AP World Chapter 17

Reformation

A religious movement of the 16th century that began as an attempt to reform the Roman Catholic Church and resulted in the creation of Protestant churches.

gentry

Wealthy landowning class

indulgence

A pardon given by the Roman Catholic Church in return for repentance for sins

papacy

the office or authority of the pope

speculative

not based on fact or investigation

predestination

Calvinist belief that God long ago determined who would gain salvation

windfall

unexpected good fortune

underpinning

foundation, basis

reconcile

to reestablish friendship, to resolve a dispute

dowry

money or property brought by a woman to her husband at marriage

Renaissance

"rebirth"; following the Middle Ages, a movement that centered on the revival of interest in the classical learning of Greece and Rome

Catholic Reformation

Catholic response to the Protestant Reformation; reformed and revived Catholic doctrine.

witch-hunt

The pursuit of people suspected of witchcraft, especially in northern Europe in the late sixteenth and seventeenth centuries.

Scientific Revolution

A major change in European thought, starting in the mid-1500s, in which the study of the natural world began to be characterized by careful observation and the questioning of accepted beliefs.

Enlightenment

A movement in the 18th century that advocated the use of reason in the reappraisal of accepted ideas and social institutions.

bourgeoisie

the middle class, including merchants, industrialists, and professional people

joint-stock company

a company whose stock is owned jointly by the shareholders.

stock exchange

a market for buying and selling stock

Little Ice Age

A century-long period of cool climate that began in the 1590s. Its ill effects on agriculture in northern Europe were notable.

deforestation

The removal of trees faster than forests can replace themselves.

Holy Roman Empire

Loose federation of mostly German states and principalities, headed by an emperor elected by the princes. It lasted from 962 to 1806.

Habsburg

A powerful European family that provided many Holy Roman Emperors, founded the Austrian (later Austro-Hungarian) Empire, and ruled sixteenth- and seventeenth-century Spain.

English Civil War

a conflict, lasting from 1642 to 1649, in which Puritan supporters of Parliament battled supporters of England's monarchy

Versailles

A palace built by Louis XIV outside of Paris; it was home to Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette

Balance of Power

a political situation in which no one nation is powerful enough to pose a threat to others

tax farmers

Agents who purchased from the crown the rights to collect taxes in a particular district.

Martin Luther

German theologian who led the Reformation

Galileo Galilei

Italian astronomer and mathematician who was the first to use a telescope to study the stars

Pope Leo X

excommunicated Martin Luther

Emperor Charles V

This Holy Roman emperor forced Martin Luther to stand trial and declared him to be an outlaw.

King Henry VIII

(1491-1547) King of England, he split with the Catholic Church and declared himself head of the Church of England, or Anglican Church.

Nicholas Copernicus

He thought that the sun was the center & the plants went around the sun in circles

Sir Isaac Newton

1643-1727. English physicist, mathmetician, astronomer, natural philosopher, alchemist, and theologian. Published work in 1687 describing universal gravitation, and the three laws of motion, laying the groundwork for classical mechanics.

Tulip Mania

A time during the Dutch Golden Age when the price of Tulip bulbs became exhorbitantly high and then crashed

Peace of Augsburg

1555 agreement declaring that the religion of each German state would be decided by its ruler

Spanish Armada

The great fleet sent from Spain against England by Philip II in 1588; defeated by the terrible winds and fire ships.

Philip II of Spain

king of Spain and Portugal and husband of Mary I

King Charles I

This leader was executed as a result of the English Civil War

Oliver Cromwell

English general and statesman who led the parliamentary army in the English Civil War (1599-1658)

King Louis XIV of France

Known as the Sun King

His reign began when he was four years old and lasted for 72 years.

Died in 1715 and was succeeded by his five-year-old great-grandson, Louis XV.