text: was persuaded to change his fiscal policy. Though willing enough to tax the nobles, Louis 
  feared the political concessions which they would demand in return. Only towards the 
  close of his reign under the extreme exigency of war, was he able, for the first time in 
  French history, to impose direct taxes on the aristocracy. This was a step toward equality 
  before the law and toward sound public finance, though it was predictably diminished by 
  concessions and exemptions won by the insistent efforts of nobles and bourgeois.[35] 
  
  Louis and Colbert also had wide-ranging plans to grow French commerce and trade. 
  Colbert's mercantilist administration established new 
  industries and encouraged 
  manufacturers and inventors, such as the Lyon silk manufacturers and the Gobelins 
  tapestry manufactory. He invited manufacturers and artisans from all over Europe to 
  France, such as Murano glassmakers, Swedish ironworkers, and Dutch shipbuilders. He 
  aimed to decrease imports while increasing French exports, hence reducing the net outflow 
  of precious metals from France. 
  
  Engraving of Louis XIV 
  
  Louis instituted reforms in military administration through Michel le Tellier and his son 
  François-Michel le Tellier, successive Marquis de Louvois. They helped to curb the 
  independent spirit of the nobility, imposing order on them at court and in the army. Gone were the days when generals protracted 
  war at the frontiers while bickering over precedence and ignoring orders from the capital and the larger strategic picture, with the 
  old military aristocracy (*noblesse d'épée*, nobility of the sword) monopolizing senior military positions and the higher ranks. 
  Louvois modernized the army and reorganised it into a professional, disciplined, well-trained force. He was devoted to the 
  soldiers' material well-being and morale, and even tried to direct campaigns. 