When Louis XIV both dominated land and sea, he did not build a colonial empire. After brilliantly choosing his faithful strategists, and constructing a fantastic kingdom with plenty of richness for decadent wastefulness and impressive theatrics, he failed to execute a winning strategy for the future because he believed military dominance was rooted on land.
Ever since, France has attempted to catch up, with plenty of trumps in hand, and the occasional outburst of brilliant independence (as exemplified especially by the formidable De Gaulle). It is impressive how the country has maintained such vitality and spirit, while keeping its head buried in the ground.
At the present time, one can enumerate tens of themes on which it is trailing the competition (efficient administration, suburban policy, women's rights, integrating science and industry, a global strategy in higher education, language teaching, automotive industry, ...) which could easily be cured with the country's impressive resources and abilities, but which are not because it still seems to be digesting Louis' strategic mistake.
Only when one lives in a great nation can one feel the frustration of the waste of enormous collective possibilities.
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