AP Euro Unit 3 | Ch 5 Absolutism & Constitutionalism

William III of Orange

• Dutch Stadtholder

• Rallied Dutch & led coalitions vs. France

• Later took Eng throne (Glorious Rev)

Constitutionalism / Parliamentary Monarchy

• Gov't limited by law

• Monarch rules by consent of Parliament

• Balance between state power and individual rights (e.g., Britain post-1689)

Charles I (1625-1649)

Suspended Parl 2x due to them not giving him $, persecuted Puritans, taxes heavily w/o Parl

Test Act (Charles II/James II’s rule)

• Law requiring all civil/military officials to swear oath against Transubstantiation

• Parliament's effort to exclude Catholics from office and limit royal power

Parlements

• Regional courts of nobility were subdued after Fronde but remained the last obstacle to royal power

• Most important was Parlement of Paris, which claimed the right to register royal decrees before they could become law

Jansenism

• 17th-century Catholic movement. Taught extreme depravity/sin (no good works, only divine grace).

• Opposed by Jesuits.

War of Spanish Succession (1701-1714)

War over balance of power as Louis’ grandson (Philip V) became Spanish king, threatening unification w/ France; led to Utrecht

Peter the Great (Russia) / Westernization

• Tamed Boyars (nobility) & Streltsy (guards)

• Built navy, modernized army, created Table of Ranks (state service = social position)

• Subdued church via Holy Synod (gov't bishops replacing Patriarch)

• Founded St. Petersburg (new capital; "window to the West")

Hohenzollerns (Prussia) / Frederick William I

• Built strongest army in Europe (made Prussia a valuable ally)

• Gained loyalty of Junkers (nobility) by giving them absolute control over serfs → unified diverse lands

Habsburgs (Austria) / Pragmatic Sanction

• Faced problem of diverse, disunited empire

• Charles VI enforced the Pragmatic Sanction → allowed his daughter (Maria Theresa) to inherit all Habsburg lands indivisibly

Absolutism / Divine Right

• Sovereignty resides entirely in the ruler

• Justified by Divine Right (auth from God)

• Goal: Absolute control not dependent on estates/nobility (e.g., France)

John Locke, Second Treatise (1690)

• Defended Glorious Revolution

• Gov't must protect Natural Rights (life, liberty, property)

• People have the right to overthrow an abusive gov't.

Stuart Absolutist Goals

• James I & Charles I attempted Divine Right rule, resisted by Parliament (Gentry/House of Commons).

• Cost of military warfare drove conflict over funding.

English Civil War (1642-49) & Outcome

• Caused by Charles I's attempt to rule without Parliament/funds/army control

• Cavaliers vs. Roundheads (Puritans led by Cromwell)

• Ended w/ Charles' execution → Interregnum/Protectorate (Cromwell's dictatorship) → Restoration (Charles II agreed to Parliament)

Petition of Right (1628)

• Only Parl levies taxes, no forced housing of soldiers, guaranteed due process

• Charles accepted it for $, but ignored it & dissolved Parl

Habeas Corpus (1679)

Secured prisoners' rights to just cause and speedy trials.

Glorious Revolution (1688) & Settlement

• Bloodless overthrow of James II (Catholic & absolutist) by William & Mary

• English Bill of Rights secured Parliament's supremacy (consent, speech)

• Toleration Act gave non-Cath dissenters rel freedom (1689)

• Act of Settlement (1701) secured Protestant succession

Henry IV (Foundation)

• Stabilized France (Edict of Nantes)

• Used financial reforms (Paulette tax) to centralize power after the Wars of Religion

Louis XIV, “Sun King”

• Bourbon abs ruler who centralized power, motivated by the Fronde (noble/peasant revolts)

• Used intendants (local middle-class officials)

• Cardinals Richelieu/Mazarin built foundation (weakened nobles, mercantilist policies) & Henry IV

Versailles Palace

• Built by Louis XIV to control the nobility (lost pol power but kept privileges)

• Forced them to live at court, ensuring their dependence and loyalty to the king via etiquitte

Edict of Fontainebleau (1685)

• Louis XIV’s revocation of Edict of Nantes for rel unity

• Led to severe persecution and mass Huguenot flight & econ damage

Dutch East India Co.

• Joint stock company that controlled East Asia & global spice trade, leading to Dutch dominance

• Decline due to naval wars w/ Eng

Gentry / House of Commons

• Wealthy non-noble landowners

• Dominated the House of Commons & Parl w/ lords (aristocracy) post-1689

• Power was based on a limited monarchy & control in gov't/taxation, bringing them into conflict (Civil War) w/ the Stuarts (taxes w/o Parl)

The True Law of Free Monarchies

Political treatise by James I (Stuart). Asserted Divine Right of Kings / absolutism vs. Parliament.

Puritans

• Radical Protestants; Formed Roundheads in Civil War.

• Goal: Purify Church of England of Catholic elements.

“Rump” Parliament

Parliament remaining after Pride’s Purge removed non-Puritans. Executed Charles I for treason.

Interregnum (1649-1660)

Period in England w/o a king. Started as Commonwealth, became Protectorate (Cromwell's rule).

Protectorate / Cromwell

• Cromwell's Puritan military dictatorship

• Denied rel. freedom to Anglicans/Catholics; enforced strict moral code (e.g. no drinking, theater)

Restoration (1660) / Charles II

• Return of monarchy (Charles II). Parliament revived

• Anglican Church restored

• Charles agreed to abide by Parliament's consent

War of Devolution (1667-68)

• Louis XIV's early war vs. Spain

• Gained territory in Spanish Netherlands via inheritance claim

War of the League of Augsburg

• Defensive coalition (Habsburgs, etc.) vs. Louis XIV's expansion.

• Ended by Peace of Ryswick, halting his expansion & securing Dutch border.

Treaty of Utrecht (1713)

• Ended War of Spanish Succession.

• Prohibited unification of French/Spanish crowns → Kept balance of power.

• England gained Mediterranean land & NA lands from France.

Short / Long Parliament

• Short (1640): Summoned by Charles I for funds to fight Scotland, but shortly dissolved after they refused

• Long (1640-60): Summoned when Charles failed in Scotland. Refused to disband; stripped the King of power; initiated English Civil War.

Colbert (Mercantilism)

• Louis XIV’s finance minister

• Implemented full mercantilism

• Supported industry, imposed high tariffs on foreign goods, expanded infrastructure

Dutch Republic (Gov’t/Econ)

• Constitutionalism/Republic (decentralized power)

• Ruled by Oligarchy of wealthy merchants

• Maintained power via Stadtholder (William III) only in crises

• Golden Age due to toleration, joint-stock co (Dutch East India Co.), global shipping/finance dominance

• Dutch East India Co, overseas trade/finance, urbanization

French Absolutism: Foundation

1. Henry IV → Edict of Nantes, stabilized finances (Paulette)

2. Richelieu/Mazarin → Weakened nobles, created Intendants

3. Louis XIV → Sublimated nobility at Versailles, ended the threat of Fronde

4. Colbert → Economic engine (Mercantilism)