Absolutism, Constitutionalism, and Early Modern European States

Comprehensive vocabulary flashcards covering European absolutism, Central and Eastern European empires, and constitutional developments in England and the Dutch Republic.

Gustavus Adolphus

Swedish king and Protestant military leader during the Thirty Years’ War (1618–1648) who fought to defend Protestantism; his victories turned the tide against Catholic forces and served as a model of modern warfare.

Treaty of Westphalia (1648)

Peace treaty signed in the Holy Roman Empire that ended the Thirty Years’ War, ended religious wars in Europe, recognized state sovereignty, and weakened the Habsburgs.

Henry IV

First Bourbon king of France (r. 1589–1610) who restored national unity after religious wars and issued the Edict of Nantes granting Huguenot toleration.

Louis XIII

French monarch (r. 1610–1643) and son of Henry IV who continued royal centralization and worked with Cardinal Richelieu to strengthen the monarchy.

Marie de’ Medici

Queen regent of France for Louis XIII in the early 1600s who maintained power following Henry IV’s death, facilitating Cardinal Richelieu’s rise.

Cardinal Richelieu

Chief minister to Louis XIII in France (1624–1642) who consolidated royal authority, weakened the nobility, crushed the Huguenots, and built absolutism.

Siege of La Rochelle (1628)

Royal siege of a Huguenot stronghold in France that ended Protestant political autonomy and symbolized Cardinal Richelieu’s power.

Fronde

Series of noble and popular revolts in France (1648–1653) sparked as a reaction to royal centralization, which traumatized young Louis XIV and ultimately strengthened absolutism.

Jean-Baptiste Colbert

Finance minister under Louis XIV (1660s–1680s) in France who managed the economy and promoted mercantilism to increase state wealth.

Mercantilism

Seventeenth-century European economic theory favoring state control to increase national wealth, which fueled absolutist economies.

Peace of Utrecht (1715)

Treaty that ended the War of the Spanish Succession, balanced power in Europe, and prevented Bourbon domination.

War of Spanish Succession (1701–1713)

European dynastic and balance-of-power conflict fought over the Spanish throne that marked the decline of French territorial expansion.

Francis Rakoczy

Hungarian noble rebel who resisted Habsburg rule in the early 1700s, leading the last major Hungarian revolt against absolutism.

Junkers

Prussian nobles in Brandenburg-Prussia who supported the monarchy and formed the backbone of Prussian militarism.

Boyars

Russian nobles who controlled land and serfs until Peter the Great reduced their political power.

Cossacks

Free warrior peasants from Southern Russia and Ukraine who escaped serfdom and played a key role in Russian frontier expansion.

Stenka Razin

Cossack rebel leader who led a major peasant revolt in Russia (1670–1671), becoming an enduring symbol of resistance to tsarist control.

Great Northern War

Conflict fought between Russia and Sweden from 1700 to 1721 over control of the Baltic; Russia's victory established it as a major European power.

Battle of Poltava (1709)

Decisive Russian victory in Ukraine that served as the turning point in the Great Northern War and secured Peter the Great’s dominance.

Sultan

Absolute monarch in the Ottoman Empire who held centralized Islamic authority.

Janissary Corps

Elite Ottoman infantry force loyal directly to the sultan that served as an early modern standing army.

Millet System

Ottoman administrative framework that organized religious communities, managing empire diversity by granting internal autonomy to non-Muslims.

Suleiman the Magnificent

Ottoman sultan (r. 1520–1566) who expanded the empire and oversaw the peak of Ottoman power and cultural achievement.

Constitutionalism

System of government limited by law, exemplified by England and the Dutch Republic, designed to protect individual rights as an alternative to absolutism.

Republicanism

Form of government without a monarch, practiced in the Dutch Republic and England, which emphasized civic participation and influenced Enlightenment thought.

Puritans

English Calvinists in the 1600s who sought to purify the Church of England of Catholic practices and drove the English Civil War.

“Long Parliament”

English parliamentary session (1640–1660) that opposed King Charles I, limited royal power, and sparked the English Civil War.

Triennial Act

English law passed in 1641 requiring Parliament to be summoned at least once every three years to prevent royal tyranny and strengthen constitutionalism.

Thomas Hobbes – Leviathan (1651)

Political philosophy work by English philosopher Thomas Hobbes advocating absolute rule to preserve order, justifying absolute monarchy through the social contract.

The Protectorate (1653–1658)

Oliver Cromwell’s military dictatorship in England that replaced the monarchy as an experiment in republican rule.

Test Act

English law enacted in 1673 that excluded Roman Catholics from public office, securing Anglican dominance and demonstrating religious intolerance.

Glorious Revolution (1688)

The overthrow of King James II of England that established a constitutional monarchy and produced the English Bill of Rights.

John Locke – Second Treatise (1690)

Philosophical work by John Locke defending natural rights to justify the Glorious Revolution, which provided the ideological foundation for liberal democracy.

Robert Walpole

First British prime minister in the early 1700s who stabilized national politics and strengthened cabinet government.

Stadtholder

Executive officer in the Dutch Republic who led provincial governments and balanced republican and monarchical authority.

Baroque

Grand artistic style developed in 17th-century Europe designed to express power and intense emotion, directly reflecting absolutist culture.

Peter Paul Rubens

Flemish Baroque painter from Antwerp supported by royal and religious patronage who embodied Catholic Baroque art.

J.S. Bach

German composer (1685–1750) whose musical works reflected Lutheran devotion and defined mastery of the Baroque music style.