Age of Absolutism & Enlightenment: Key Concepts and Historical Figures

Monarchical power

Began to grow in the wake of the Renaissance and Reformation.

Divine right of kings

Concept that God picks rulers to be king.

Absolutism

How kings ruled with absolute power that cannot be challenged.

Phillip II

Son of Charles V and one of the earliest absolute monarchs.

Spanish Armada

Sent by Phillip II to challenge England but was defeated.

Holy Roman Empire

Example of monarchy not absolutist; Emperor chosen by electors.

30 Year's War

Started by division between Catholics and Protestants; evolves to war between absolute monarchs.

Peace of Westphalia

Resulted in Netherlands gaining independence and fragmentation of the German empire.

Maria Theresa

Ruled as absolute monarch of Austria; challenged by Frederick the Great.

Peter the Great

Suppressed Boyars, the land-owning nobility in Russia.

Catherine the Great

Used Boyars to control peasants in Russia.

Edict of Nantes

Established religious tolerance in France.

Louis XIV

Adopted mercantilist policies and built the palace at Versailles.

War of Spanish Succession

War over the rise of Phillip V; resulted in Treaty of Utrecht.

Seven Year's War

Major global conflict between France and Britain over North America.

James I

Ruled as absolute monarch of England; claimed divine right of kings.

Charles I

Son of James I; ruled as absolute monarch and sparked English Civil War.

Oliver Cromwell

Executed Charles I and declared England a common wealth.

Glorious Revolution

Bloodless revolution that forced James II out and invited William and Mary to the throne.

English Bill of Rights

Signed by William & Mary in exchange for the royal throne.

Thomas Hobbes

Wrote Leviathan; advocated that people need government.

John Locke

Believed the purpose of government is to secure natural rights: life, liberty, and property.

Jean Jacques Rousseau

Proposed that people and government form a social contract.

Montesquieu

Argued that government must be divided into branches to prevent too much power.

Voltaire

Advocated for freedom of religion and expression.

Declaration of the Rights of Men

Declared all men equal and established taxing for clergy and nobility.

Civil Constitution of the Clergy

Placed the Catholic Church under French state control.

Reign of Terror

Period during the French Revolution resulting in mass execution and imprisonment.

Maximillian Robespierre

Leader of the French Reign of Terror; responsible for execution of Louis XVI.

Napoleon Bonaparte

Helped stabilize France and end the French Revolution.