European History: Renaissance to WWII

Who invented the printing press and why was it important?

Johannes Gutenberg (~1450); spread books and ideas quickly.

What were Martin Luther's main beliefs?

Salvation by faith alone, Bible is the only authority, priesthood of all believers.

What was the significance of the 95 Theses?

Criticized indulgences; started the Protestant Reformation (1517).

What happened at the Diet of Worms?

Luther refused to recant and was declared an outlaw.

What did John Calvin believe?

Predestination and theocracy.

Why did Henry VIII break from the Catholic Church?

Pope wouldn't annul his marriage.

What was the Counter-Reformation?

Catholic response to Protestantism.

Who founded the Jesuits?

Ignatius of Loyola.

What did the Council of Trent do?

Reformed the Church and clarified doctrine.

What was the Edict of Nantes?

Granted religious freedom to Huguenots.

What did the Peace of Westphalia do?

Ended the Thirty Years' War (1648).

Causes of the Thirty Years' War?

Religious and political conflicts.

What is capitalism?

Private ownership and profit.

What is mercantilism?

Export more than import; gain wealth through gold/silver.

How did Elizabeth I solve religious problems?

Elizabethan Settlement.

What was the Spanish Armada?

Philip II's failed invasion of England (1588).

Why did Charles I anger Parliament?

Raised taxes without approval and ruled without Parliament.

Who was Oliver Cromwell?

Leader of the Roundheads during the English Civil War.

What happened to Charles I?

Executed for treason in 1649.

Why did James II upset Parliament?

Supported Catholicism.

What was the Glorious Revolution?

William and Mary replaced James II.

What did the English Bill of Rights guarantee?

Parliament's power and individual rights.

What is absolutism?

A ruler has complete power.

Why was Versailles important?

Showed Louis XIV's power and controlled nobles.

Peter the Great's accomplishments?

Modernized Russia and founded St. Petersburg.

What did the Scientific Revolution challenge?

Church authority and traditional beliefs.

What new idea emerged?

Scientific Method.

Copernicus?

Heliocentric theory.

Kepler?

Planets move in ellipses.

Galileo?

Telescope evidence for heliocentrism.

Newton?

Laws of motion and gravity.

John Locke?

Natural rights (life, liberty, property).

Thomas Hobbes?

Strong government needed.

Voltaire?

Freedom of speech and religion.

Montesquieu?

Separation of powers.

Rousseau?

Social contract.

Diderot?

Encyclopedia.

Descartes?

"I think, therefore I am."

Adam Smith?

Capitalism.

Mary Wollstonecraft?

Women's rights.

What were salons?

Gatherings to discuss ideas.

Main Enlightenment ideas?

Reason, liberty, equality, democracy.

Long-term causes of French Revolution?

Unfair estates system, debt, weak king.

Immediate causes?

Food shortages and financial crisis.

What was the National Assembly?

Third Estate's new government.

Tennis Court Oath?

Promise to create a constitution.

Bastille?

Symbol of royal oppression.

Declaration of the Rights of Man?

Guaranteed rights and freedoms.

Women's March on Versailles?

Forced king to Paris.

Jacobins?

Radical revolutionaries.

Reign of Terror?

Thousands executed.

Robespierre?

Leader during Terror.

How did Napoleon gain power?

Weak Directory and military success.

What caused Napoleon's downfall?

Russia, Continental System, Waterloo.

Napoleonic Code?

Equality before law and property rights.

Congress of Vienna?

Restored balance of power.

Enclosure Movement?

Common land became private.

Agricultural Revolution?

Better farming methods increased food.

Where did Industrial Revolution begin?

Great Britain.

Positive effects?

More goods, jobs, technology.

Negative effects?

Crowded cities, poor conditions.

Why did unions form?

Better wages and working conditions.

Socialism?

More government control of economy.

Communism?

Workers own means of production.

Who created communism?

Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels.

Reasons for Imperialism?

Raw materials, markets, power.

Negative effects of Imperialism?

Exploitation and loss of culture.

Realpolitik?

Practical politics.

Who used Realpolitik?

Otto von Bismarck.

M (MAIN Causes)?

Militarism

A (MAIN Causes)?

Alliances

I (MAIN Causes)?

Imperialism

N (MAIN Causes)?

Nationalism

Immediate cause (WWI)?

Assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand.

Triple Entente?

Britain, France, Russia.

Triple Alliance?

Germany, Austria-Hungary, Italy.

Schlieffen Plan?

Defeat France first, then Russia.

New WWI weapons?

Tanks, machine guns, gas, planes, submarines.

Zimmerman Telegram?

Germany asked Mexico to attack U.S.

Why did U.S. enter WWI?

Unrestricted submarine warfare and Zimmerman Telegram.

Why were Russians unhappy?

Poverty, bad government, WWI losses.

February Revolution?

Tsar abdicated.

October Revolution?

Bolsheviks took power.

Bolshevik leader?

Lenin.

Military leader?

Trotsky.

USSR?

Communist state created after revolution.

Who came after Lenin?

Stalin.

Great Depression?

Worldwide economic collapse.

Communism vs Fascism?

Communism = class equality; Fascism = nationalism and dictatorship.

Fascist leaders?

Hitler, Mussolini, Japanese militarists.

Why was Fascism attractive?

Promised order and economic recovery.

How did Hitler rise?

Great Depression, speeches, Nazis, Brown Shirts.

Lebensraum?

"Living space."

Appeasement?

Giving in to Hitler's demands.

Example of appeasement?

Munich Conference.

Non-Aggression Pact?

Germany + Soviet Union.

When did WWII start?

September 1, 1939.

What was Blitzkrieg?

Fast "lightning war."

Axis Powers (Who)?

Germany, Italy, Japan.

Allied Powers (Who)?

Britain, USSR, United States.