What is an Absolute Monarch?
A monarch that is unchecked and gets to do as they please. There is no power limits. Example: Louis XIV
Why is Louis XIV of France considered to be an excellent example of an Absolute Ruler?
He thought he had the divine right to rule → sun king
“I am the state” → unchecked power
No regard for his people
How did Louis XIV use Versailles as a tool to control the nobles?
He moved the nobles and their families to Versailles to isolate them from the outside world so they didn’t know what was going on. There was a 24/7 watch on them and they wanted to climb the social hierarchy there.
According to John Locke, what were the natural rights that all men were entitled to?
Liberty, property, and life (as long as they didn’t harm others)
According to John Locke, where should political power lie?
The people (consent of the governed)
According to John Locke, what is the essential goal of government?
To be good for all of mankind and to protect the natural rights of the people
According to John Locke, what can people do if the government is not fulfilling its role?
Abolish it
In the Declaration of Independence, what rights did Thomas Jefferson state that all men possess?
Life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness
What rights did The Declaration of the Rights of Man and of Citizen, claim that all men possess?
Freedom, security, resistance of oppression, equality, freedom of speech, freedom of religion, right of a fair trial, and the right to participate in the government
In the The Declaration of the Rights of the Rights of Woman and the Female Citizen what rights did Olympe de Gouges argue that all women do and should possess?
Freedom, security, resistance of oppression, equality, education, marriage, divorce, legal protection, children being acknowledged even if they are not married, freedom of speech, freedom of religion, right of a fair trial, and the right to participate in the government
Provide 3 examples of ideas that come from John Locke that are represented in The Declaration of Independence by Thomas Jefferson?
Equality, freedom, natural rights, power of the people, the right to rebel against an unjust government
Provide 3 examples of ideas that come from John Locke that are represented in The Declaration of the Rights of Man and of Citizen?
Equality, freedom, opportunities, natural rights, citizens are equal in the right of the law
What are the Estates General? Who composed the First Estate, The Second Estate, and the Third Estate?
Clergy (Roman Catholic Church)
Nobility
Everyone else (common people)
What conditions led to Louis XVI calling the Estates General to meet for the first time in 175 years?
The money in France was running low
Peasants had no more money to give
War of Louis XIV
American Revolution
Debt
Cost of living went up
People were pushing for political reform
What were some of Arthur Young’s observations regarding the plight of the French Peasants?
Land- hunting rights
Taxes- were not fair
Starvation
Explosion by the feudal system
Lack of education
What are the Cahiers de Doleances (or Grievances)? What injustices did the Third Estate list?
Voting
Equality
Land
Property
Taxes were not fair
What privileges did the nobility/aristocracy have that the members of the Third Estate not have?
Legal privileges, feudal privileges, education, culture, inheritance