SOL review pts 1-3

Mercantilism

Economic policy aiming to increase national wealth through trade by ensuring more goods are exported than imported.

Censorship

The act of controlling public sources of information to prevent criticism of the monarchy or government.

Peter the Great

Russian Tsar who focused on Westernization to modernize Russia and fought the Great Northern War.

Why did Russia fight the Great Northern War?

Peter the Great fought Sweden to gain access to the Baltic Sea which was secured by the Treaty of Nystad.

Great Britain's Constitutionalism

The gradual shift in England away from absolute monarchy towards a government limited by law.

Why did the English Civil War occur?

It was a major conflict over power fought between King Charles I and the English Parliament which was led by Puritans.

The Restoration

The period when Charles II became king and restored the English monarchy after the rule of Oliver Cromwell.

How did the Glorious Revolution change England?

It was the peaceful overthrow of King James II; William III and Mary II were invited to rule as joint monarchs.

Toleration Act of 1689

A law that gave religious freedom to Protestant groups outside the Church of England known as Dissenters.

Dissenters

Protestant Christians who did not follow the standard practices of the Church of England.

English Bill of Rights

A crucial document that guaranteed England would operate under a constitutional government with limits on royal power.

Rational Inquiry

A core concept of the Scientific Revolution that used reason and logic to understand the world.

Empiricism

The scientific belief that all true knowledge comes from direct observation and sensory experience.

Skepticism

The intellectual practice of questioning and doubting accepted ideas or traditions.

William Harvey

Scientist who wrote On the Motion of the Heart and Blood and proved that blood circulates throughout the body.

Galileo Galilei

Scientist who wrote Dialogue Concerning the Two Chief World Systems and championed heliocentrism.

What is Heliocentrism?

The scientifically proven astronomical model stating that the Earth and other planets revolve around the Sun.

Isaac Newton

Legendary physicist who wrote Principia and established the universal laws of motion and gravity.

Rene Descartes

Philosopher who wrote Discourse on Method and championed deductive reasoning with his quote "I think therefore I am."

Individualism

A Renaissance ideal focusing on the achievements and potential of the individual itself.

Secularism

A Renaissance focus on worldly and present-day issues rather than religion and the afterlife.

Humanism

An intellectual movement focused on the value and classical education of human beings.

Johannes Gutenberg

Inventor of the movable-type printing press which allowed for the mass production of books and ideas.

How did the printing press impact religion?

It allowed the Bible to be printed in vernacular languages so everyday people could read it for themselves.

Early Dissenters

Figures like John Wycliffe and Jan Hus who were non-Anglican Protestant Christians that criticized the Church early on.

Elizabeth I

English Queen who established the modern Anglican Church and allowed the toleration of religious dissenters.

John Calvin

Protestant reformer who taught that the Elect are revealed by living a righteous life with a strong work ethic.

Henry VIII

English King who dismissed the Pope's authority to get a divorce; he redistributed Church lands to nobles to gain support for the English Reformation.

Martin Luther

Protestant reformer who wrote the 95 Theses; he rejected the Pope and believed in Salvation by Faith Alone.

Max Weber

Sociologist who wrote The Protestant Ethic and the Spirit of Capitalism connecting religious work ethic to economic success.

What is the Calvinist belief of Predestination?

The theological belief that God has already decided who will be saved and a person's fate cannot be changed.

Catholic Reformation

The Catholic Church's internal attempt to fix its own corruption and stop the spread of Protestantism.

The Inquisition

A strict Church court system designed to punish people who held beliefs against traditional Catholic teachings.

Council of Trent

A major meeting of Catholic leaders that banned the corrupt sale of indulgences while reaffirming other traditions.

Ignatius of Loyola

The founder of the Jesuits who dedicated his order to education and stopping the spread of Protestantism.

Peasants War of 1525

A massive uprising where German peasants violently revolted against their lords and nobles.

French Wars of Religion

A brutal series of civil conflicts fought between French Catholics and French Protestants known as Huguenots.

St. Bartholomew's Day Massacre

A tragic event where thousands of French Protestant Huguenots were killed by Catholic mobs.

Edict of Nantes

A decree issued by Henry IV after he converted to Catholicism that gave Protestants limited rights and religious tolerance.

Cardinal Richelieu

French minister who reduced religious division by weakening the military power of Huguenots to increase the absolute power of the French Monarchy.

Peace of Augsburg

A treaty that ended early German religious wars in the Holy Roman Empire by officially legalizing Lutheranism.

Why did the Spanish Armada fail?

The massive naval fleet sent by Catholic Spain to invade Protestant England was defeated with the help of Sir Francis Drake.

Thirty Years War

The last major war of religion that left medieval superstition behind; it ended with the Treaty of Westphalia.

Eighty Years War

Also known as the Dutch Revolt; it was a conflict where Dutch provinces led by William of Orange fought Spain's Philip II to gain their national identity.

Charles V

Holy Roman Emperor who used his massive Habsburg lands and strategic alliances to heavily expand his absolute power.

Louis XIV

The absolute monarch of France who built the Palace of Versailles and forced his nobles to live there so he could control them.

What is the Divine Right of Kings?

The political and religious belief that a monarch's authority to rule comes directly from God.

Father Miguel Hidalgo

Mexican priest who sparked the Latin American independence movement with his famous Grito de Dolores speech.

Toussaint L'Ouverture

A brilliant military leader who led a massive slave rebellion in Haiti that defeated the armies of Spain; France; and Britain to win independence.

Simon Bolivar

Known as The Liberator; he was a revolutionary leader who helped Colombia and Venezuela win independence from Spain.

What was the social legacy of Latin American Colonialism?

It created a very rigid class system based strictly on a person's race and where they were born.

Viceroys

Absolute colonial rulers who governed regions in the Americas directly in the name of the Spanish king.

Monroe Doctrine

A 19th-century US document warning that if European states attempted to invade Latin America the US would initiate a war.

Why did the European population increase before the Age of Exploration?

Agricultural improvements led to population growth which increased the demand for goods and land.

How did the collapse of Feudalism cause exploration?

Monarchs gained more centralized power and wealth which allowed them to fund expensive overseas voyages.

Enclosure Movement

An economic shift in England where peasants were forced off their agricultural land so wealthy owners could fence it in.

Why did religion motivate European Exploration?

There was massive religious zeal to spread Christianity globally and many minority groups sought religious freedom overseas.

How did the Fall of Constantinople cause exploration?

The Ottoman Empire blocked traditional land trade routes which forced Europeans to seek out new ocean routes to Asia.

Prince Henry the Navigator

Portuguese royal who created a School of Navigation with the goal to spread Catholicism and find a new route to Asia.

Vasco da Gama

Portuguese explorer who successfully made it around Africa to India and brought back thousands in profit.

Ferdinand and Isabella

Spanish monarchs who completed the Reconquista and funded Christopher Columbus's western voyages.

Christopher Columbus

Explorer who sailed west across the Atlantic Ocean attempting to reach Asia but landed in the Americas instead.

Hernando Cortez

Spanish conquistador who conquered the massive Aztec Empire by making clever alliances with rival native cities.

Francisco Pizarro

Spanish conquistador who aggressively conquered the Inca Empire and captured their capital city of Lima.

Sir Francis Drake

The first Englishman to successfully circumnavigate the globe; he also helped defeat the Spanish Armada.

Jacques Cartier

French explorer who navigated the St. Lawrence River while claiming territories in North America for France.

How did the Age of Exploration impact Africa?

It led to the horrific expansion of the Trans-Atlantic slave trade where enslaved people were traded to Europe for goods.

How did the Age of Exploration impact Asia?

European nations focused on establishing trading posts to acquire luxury goods like silk; spices; and porcelain.

How did the Age of Exploration impact the Americas?

It caused a devastating population decline among indigenous people due to introduced European diseases like smallpox.

John Locke

Enlightenment philosopher who wrote Two Treatises of Government and argued for natural rights to life; liberty; and property.

Baron de Montesquieu

Enlightenment philosopher who wrote The Spirit of the Laws and championed the Separation of Powers in government.

Voltaire

Highly influential Enlightenment philosopher who strongly advocated for freedom of speech and religious tolerance.

Jean-Jacques Rousseau

Enlightenment philosopher who wrote The Social Contract and believed government should follow the General Will of the people.

David Hume

Enlightenment skeptic who wanted to intellectually challenge every accepted social construct including religion.

Storming of the Bastille

The explosive event where Paris citizens attacked a royal prison to grab weapons; sparking the French Revolution.

Reign of Terror

The most radical phase of the French Revolution where Robespierre executed thousands at the guillotine to protect the revolution.

How did the French Revolution initially change the government?

It took absolute power away from King Louis XVI and established a constitutional government.

Napoleon Bonaparte

A brilliant military general who conquered much of Europe to create a massive empire under French control.

Napoleonic Code

A comprehensive legal system created by Napoleon that guaranteed equality before the law; religious freedom; and protection of property.

Battle of Waterloo

The final and decisive military defeat of Napoleon Bonaparte.

How did the French Revolution lead to a Secular Society?

It significantly weakened the political and economic power of the Catholic Church in France.

How did the French Revolution lead to Nationalism?

It inspired people to become much more involved and emotionally connected with their own nation.

How did the French Revolution impact global politics?

Its democratic ideas heavily challenged the concept of absolute monarchy all across Europe.

Concert of Europe

A powerful alliance of European countries formed during the Napoleonic age to maintain peace and the balance of power.

Congress of Vienna

The major peace conference after Napoleon's defeat that redrew Europe's borders; leading to the disappearance of Poland and the Holy Roman Empire.