Chapter 14: Absolutism in Europe

1. Chapter 14:Absolutism in Europe The Impact Today: The ideas of John Locke are imbedded in the Constitution of the United States. The works of William Shakespeare continue to be read and dramatized all over the world

2. Section 1: Europe in Crisis: The War of Religion • Main ideas: • In many European nations, Protestants and Catholics fought for political and religious control. • During the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, many European rulers extended their power and their borders.

3. French Wars of Religion • Calvinism vs. Catholicism • Became very militant…both trying to win over the minds and hearts of Europeans, although economic, social and political forces also played an important role in these conflicts. • Huguenots- French protestants influences by John Calvin • Valois monarchy- very catholic • For 30 years, battles rages in France btwn the Catholic and Huguenot sides. Finally in 1589, Henry of Navarre, the political leader of the Huguenots and a member of the Bourbon dynasty, succeeded to the throne as Henry IV. • Edict of Nantes…recognized Catholicism as the official religion of France, but it also gave the Huguenots the right to worship and to enjoy all political privileges, such as holding public office.

4. England of Elizabeth • Elizabeth Tudor ascended the throne in 1558. • During her reign, the small island kingdom became the leader of the Protestant nations of Europe and laid the foundation for a world empire. • Spanish Armada

5. Section 2: Social Crises, War, and Revolution • Main Ideas: • The Thirty Years’ War ended the unity of the Holy Roman Empire • Democratic ideals were strengthened as a result of the English and Glorious Revolutions. • Important Terms: • Inflation • Witchcraft • divine right of kings • commonwealth

6. Key Terms • Thirty Years War….last religious war • Stuart Reign in England • Divine Right of Kings • Civil War in England and Oliver Cromwell. • Stuarts come back…James II • Glorious Revolution…William (Dutch) and Mary of Orange • Sign Bill of Rights…parliament gains more control.

7. Section 3: Response to Crisis: Absolutism • Main ideas: • Louis XIV was an absolute monarch whose extravagant lifestyle and military campaigns weakened France. • Prussia, Austria, and Russia emerged as great European powers in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries.

8. During the 16th and 17th centuries, much of Europe was ruled by monarchs who enjoyed absolute power over all dominions. It was accepted that it was their divine right to rule. • Divine Right of Kings: a Christian political doctrine that added to Renaissance theory of monarchy • That a hereditary monarchy was the system of government approved by God. Kings ruled because they were chosen by God to do so. • This doctrine of the divine right of kings was accepted in part because it was an effective weapon against the invasive power of the Pope. Monarchs were thus able to rule in matters of both church and state.

9. Absolutism: • No person or group of people had the right to participate in his rule or to question or appose him. That meant the monarch ruled with unshared power--- with absolute power. The monarch’s power was not subject to any constitutional safeguards or checks. • Example: Louis XIV (Sun King), France

10. France • Louis XIV: 1661-1715…video and ?s

11. Central and Eastern Europe • Hapsburgs (Austria) • Frederick I • Romanov dynasty • Peter the Great Extra Credit: Create a T-shirt of one of the Monarchs/ events from this time period. You will need an image and 5 key facts about the person or event on the T-shirt. You will wear the T-shirt all day next Tuesday to earn the extra credit points. (25pts).

12. Section 4: The World of European Culture • Main ideas: • The artistic movements of Mannerism and the baroque began in Italy and both reflected the spiritual perceptions of the time • Shakespeare and Lope de Vega were prolific writers of drama and comedies that reflected the human condition.

13. Hobbs • Alarmed by the revolutionary upheavals in England • He wrote Leviathan, 1651 • Claimed that before society was organized human life was “solitary, poor, nasty, brutish, and short,” Humans are guided not by reason and moral ideals but by a ruthless struggle for self preservation. • To save themselves from destroying one another, people made a social contract and agreed to form a state. People of the state agreed to be governed by an absolute ruler who possessed unlimited power. • Absolute power was needed to preserve order in society.

14. Locke • The Treatises of Government, 1690 • Locke believed that before society was organized, humans lived in a state of equality and freedom rather than a state of war. In this state of nature, humans had certain natural rights, rights with which they were born. This included life, liberty, and property. • Established a government to preserve these rights. • Contract between people and government involved mutual obligations. Government would protect the rights of the people, and the people would act reasonably towards government. • If the government broke the contract, people had the right to form a new government

15. Baroque Period • Mannerism • Baroque • Shakespeare