Absolutist Monarchs and their extent of power

What is an absolutist monarch?

a sovreign ruler holding supreme, unquestioned authority claiming it is bestowed upon them by god

What does Henshaw explore?

the claim that absolutism as a concept is largely a myth and monarchs never truely held unlimited power in practice

what points are argued within this essay?

religious reforms, political reforms and practical opposition

who had a larger extent of power through religious reforms

peter through his deliberate reconstruction of the orthodox church

How did Peter’s abolishment of the patriarchate serve as evidence of the extent of his absolutist rule?

Previously, the orthodox church had proven it could rival Tsarist authority, not just through role in shaping domestic policy but also influence of patriarchs such as Patriarch Nikon 1652-1666

When did peter establish the holy synod?

1721

Did peter get any opositon to his religious reforms?

met with resentment from clergymen but no formal opposition

what does historian Paul Buskovitch argue?

arguing that Peter’s creation of the holy synod was a successful, deliberate consolidation of absolutist power, and not just a futile conflict between Tsar and church

when did Louis impose the Gallican articles?

1682

what ddi the gallican articles showcase

attempt to reaffirm the independence of the French church from Rome, asserting Louis as subordinate to no one

When did Louis revoke the Gallican articles?

1693

why did louis revoke the gallican articles?

to mend relations in Rome in return for papal support against the Jansenists

when did Louis establish the intendant system, what was i?

1663, appointed royal officials directly to Versailles who in turn could override local nobles and parlements entirely.

what did the intendant system change?

Unlike the venal officeholders they replaced, intendants served limited terms and owed their position entirely to the crown, eliminating any independent institutional base from which the aristocracy could challenge royal authority

when did Peter introduce his table of ranks?

1722

what did Peter’s table of ranks change?

reconstructed the noble identity itself, status now derived entirely from service to the Tsar, meaning the aristocracy’s power became dependent on royal favor

What does historian Lindsey Hughes argue?

Historian Lindsey Hughes acknowledges that Peter achieved genuine administrative modernization, though notes his reforms were modelled explicitly on Swedish institutions-raising the question of whether Peter was extending his own authority or merely transplanting foreign structure

what was the strelsy?

formerly elite and well respected military corps

how did Peter remove the strelsy from their position of power

lowered pay and excluded them from elite campaigns, reforms which fostered the exact opposition they sought to prevent

when was the Strelsy revolt?

1698

what caused the Camisard Revolt?

Louis’s revocation of the Edict of Nantes 1685

Who were the camisards?

protestant militants

what was the camisard revolt?

a string of armed inssurections starting in 1702 till 1710