AP European History Flashcards

Key vocabulary and concepts from AP European History lecture notes.

Renaissance

A period of European history marked by renewed interest in classical culture, overseas trade, banking, and art appreciation in Northern Italian cities like Venice, Genoa, Milan, and Florence. Merchant guilds and oligarchies managed city affairs, transitioning to courtly culture for wealth and power.

Humanism

An intellectual movement focusing on Latin, ancient Rome, and ancient Greek, emphasizing man’s divinely bestowed nature and individuals' ability to shape the world (Vintú), promoted in humanist schools teaching classical languages.

Civic Humanism

A branch of humanism exemplified by Bruni and Machiavelli, focusing on ideals for a perfect government for the benefit of the people, with powerful leaders demonstrating various talents, strength, and intelligence.

Christian Humanism

A movement exemplified by Erasmus's “In Praise of Folly,” criticizing the corrupt Church and connecting Christian teachings with the Bible and classical studies, more religious with God and teachings are connected to Greek Mythology.

Gutenberg’s Printing Press

A revolutionary invention that spread ideas through identical books, supported by sponsors like bankers, popes, and princes; spread debates about women.

New Monarchies

Kings in countries such as England, France, Spain, and Portugal who increased power by monopolizing tax collection, establishing domestic peace, dispensing justice, employing military force, and gaining the right to pick the religion of their territories.

Age of Exploration

A period driven by maritime technologies, mercantilism, and the three G’s (gold, God, and glory), leading to the discovery of new lands and trade routes by Portugal, Spain, France, England, and the Dutch, as well as sugarcane in the Caribbean with enslaved africans.

Columbian Exchange

The transfer of diseases (smallpox & measles), food and plants (tobacco, rice, sugar, maize & potatoes), and animals (horses, pigs, sheep) between the Americas and Europe, affecting global populations and economies. Slave trade was a significant part.

Mercantilism

An economic policy of maximizing exports and minimizing imports to accumulate wealth in gold or silver, where power through money; colonies exist to enrich imperial parents.

Protestant Reformation

A religious movement challenging the Roman Catholic Church, driven by figures like Martin Luther and John Calvin, resulting in new Protestant faiths and religious conflicts in Europe, the Council of Trent was a series of meetings held between 1545 and 1563 that defined Catholic doctrine.

Council of Trent

A series of meetings held between 1545 and 1563 that defined Catholic doctrine in response to the Protestant Reformation, addressing issues like indulgences and Church corruption.

Scientific Revolution

A period of major scientific advancements, including the heliocentric theory, empiricism, and discoveries in anatomy and medicine, led by figures like Copernicus, Galileo, and Newton. Knowledge came from Aristotle and Ancient Greece, universities helped find natural philosophy and astronomy while patrons supported sciences.

The Enlightenment

An intellectual and cultural movement emphasizing reason, skepticism, and individual rights, influencing political and social reforms and challenging traditional authority. The high point was in 1750, new ideas about gender, political, economic, and scientific ideas.

Absolutism

A political system where a ruler holds unlimited power, exemplified by monarchs like Louis XIV of France and Peter the Great of Russia. Castiglione’s The Courtier 1500s discussed how a man should be talented in various subjects.

Constitutionalism

A system of government where power is limited by law and shared with representative bodies, as seen in England and the Dutch Republic. Scotland aligns with the constitutional model by the end of the 17th century.

Agricultural Revolution

Innovations in farming such as crop rotation and the enclosure movement led to increased food production and population growth. Open-field system gave peasants large plots for traditions and patterns for harvesting and sowing Soils would need to be restored using crop rotation techniques with clovers.

French Revolution

A period of social and political upheaval in late 1700's France, ultimately to depose of noble judges did not like threat to their exemption from taxation and royal deposition. Significant events that occurred was the storming of the Bastilles, signing of declaration, reign of political terror, the national assembly, estate meetings, and the women's march to Versilles. Edmund Burke wrote Reflections on the Revolution in France.

Industrial Revolution

A period of technological advancements and economic transformation, beginning in Britain, characterized by new machines, factories, and urbanization. Early factories used cotton mills and child labor.

Romanticism

Artistic movement with strong emotions/love/desire/hatred, ghostly, and supernatural events relating to revolution and french art styles that were nostalgic/

Realism

artistic movement featured as poverty, everyday life, and labor. challenges norms but is social

Revolutions of 1848

A series of widespread but ultimately unsuccessful revolts across Europe, driven by liberal and nationalist aspirations. In France there was more political movement through democratic ideals that were succesful unlike Austria and Germany.

Unification of Germany and Italy

the merge of territories around common nationalist causes

Russian Revolution

Russia stopped expansions and went internal after poverty increases. there was a petition massacre followed by multiple reforms.

World War I and World War II

Two global conflicts that are extremely large scale with the use of transportation means and weapons like guns and bombs

Cold War with Proxy Wars

Berlin and the US was trying to prevent communism by allying with multiple countries against the west. there was also a space race with Russia.