Euro era descriptions and fact

The Renaissance

The Renaissance Era is defined by a revival of antiquity. Classical civilization was revived in Italy. An interest in biblical scripture was revived in Northern Europe.

The Renaissance Dates

1450-1527

The Reformation

The Reformation Era is defined by a Protestant revolt against the Roman Catholic Church, originally due to Catholic practices that could not be supported by biblical scripture. This led to a religious, political, economic, and cultural fragmenting of Europe.

The Reformation dates

1517-1555

The Religious Wars Era

The Religious Wars Era emerged directly out of the Reformation with Protestants and Catholics continuing to fight each other for political control throughout most of Europe. It resulted in a shift in power from Southern to Northern Europe and the development of greater secular thinking and economic development.

The Religious Wars dates

1555-1648

The Era of Absolutism and Constitutionalism

As a result of the Era of Religious Wars and the diminished power of the Catholic Church, monarches emerged with greater power over their kingdoms. Some attempted to exert absolute power over the nobility and were met by resistance. In some cases, such as France and Russia, the monarch maintained absolute authority over the aristocratic class. Britain, in contrast, established a constitutional monarchy and parliamentary rule.

Constitutionalism and Absolutism dates

17th Century

The Scientific Revolution

The Scientific Revolution began during the Reformation Era and culminated with the publication of Newton’s Principia in 1687, the year before the Glorious Revolution. During these two centuries, a handful of natural philosophers challenged the accepted wisdom of the church and the ancients, and slowly developed a scientific method which would become the new standard for providing sound, evidence-based explanation for how the natural world worked.

Scientific Revolution dates

16th and 17th Centuries

The Enlightenment

Following the Scientific Revolution and the Glorious Revolution the values of secularism, reason, progress, and the questioning of authority and tradition spread to the wider masses. The culture was also fueled by the increase of printed works and literacy. Scientific developments led to better health care and agriculture, which increased the population and placed increased strain on governments.

Enlightenment dates

18th century

The French Revolution and The Napoleonic Era

In 1789 an economic and agricultural crisis in France inaugurates an attempt to reform the government, but Enlightenment philosophy and proletariat poverty triggered a revolution. The French replaced a monarchy with a republic. By 1793, in a desperate attempt to protect the republic from internal and external threats, the French Republic resorted to state terror. Cultural turmoil followed. Eventually, Napoleon Bonaparte seized control of the government and proclaimed himself Emperor in 1804. Despite this political tyranny, Napoleon declared that he would enshrine the values of The Enlightenment under his rule: he enforced a Napoleonic Code, providing equality for all men, across his empire. After Napoleon was finally deposed in 1815, The Congress of Vienna attempted to establish a new international order to prevent future revolutions.

French Rev. and Napoleonic Era dates

1789-1815

Renaissance context details

Medici family grows very powerful in Florence. Lorenzo de Medici was a patron of arts and partying. Artists like Michelangelo honored antiquity with paintings like the Sistine Chapel ceiling. Works in the north like “handbook of a Christian knight” emphasized a personal relationship w god.

Reformation details

Translations of the Bible from Tyndall and Luther gave people access to God. John Calvin births a new religion in Geneva. Sale of indulgences to generate $.

Religious Wars details

30 Years War: Hapsburgs vs Bohemians grows into mass conflict as Sweden and France fought for Protestantism. 80 Years was between Dutch and Spanish when Spain wanted to tax bc success and Calvinism. Spanish English war bc Elizabeth’s independence signaled power shift.

Abs. And const. Details

Louis Versailles manipulation. Peter the Great capturing part of Sweden in Graet Northern War for St. Petersburg. Shakespeare and Milton.

Scientific Revolution details

Copernicus supported Helipcentric model with data. Kepler mapped the movement of planets with Brahe’s data. Galileo’s improved telescope and findings got him in trouble as he supported heliocentric.

Enlightenment details

Rousseau preached against society for an essay contest. Diderot encyclopedia. Montesquieu spirit of the laws.

Rev. Details