Industrial & Modern Era, Enlightenment & Revolutions, Renaissance & Reformation

These flashcards cover key terms and concepts from the Industrial & Modern Era, Enlightenment & Revolutions, and Renaissance & Reformation.

Social Darwinism

Misuse of Darwin's theories to justify social and economic inequality.

Socialism

Economic system advocating collective or state ownership of production to address industrial inequality.

Means of Production

Physical and organizational resources needed to produce goods (factories, machines, etc.).

Realism

Artistic movement focusing on accurate depiction of everyday life.

Communism

Economic and political system proposed by Marx advocating collective ownership and a classless society.

Congress of Vienna

1815 meeting that reorganized Europe after Napoleon's defeat.

Meiji Restoration

Period of rapid modernization in Japan following Western models.

Triple Alliance

WWI alliance between Germany, Austria-Hungary, and Italy.

Treaty of Nanjing

Agreement ending the First Opium War, giving Britain control of Hong Kong.

Boxer Rebellion

Anti-foreign uprising in China around 1900.

Natural Rights

Enlightenment concept of fundamental human rights (life, liberty, property) that governments should protect.

Louis XIV

French 'Sun King' who exemplified absolute monarchy and spent lavishly on wars and palaces.

Louis XVI

French king whose resistance to reform and financial mismanagement contributed to the French Revolution.

Jacques Necker

French finance minister whose dismissal helped trigger the French Revolution.

Bastille

Prison stormed by Parisians on July 14, 1789, symbolizing the start of the French Revolution.

Tennis Court Oath

Pledge by representatives to create a constitution, marking a crucial moment in the French Revolution.

National Assembly

Revolutionary French governing body that replaced the Estates-General.

Declaration of Rights of Man

French Revolutionary document outlining fundamental rights and principles of the new government.

Émigrés

Nobles and clergy who fled revolutionary France.

Treaty of Tordesillas

Agreement between Spain and Portugal dividing newly discovered lands between them.

Elmina

First permanent European settlement in Africa, established by Portugal for gold trade.

Columbus

Italian explorer who sailed for Spain, initiating European contact with the Americas in 1492.

Cortés

Spanish conquistador who led the conquest of the Aztec Empire.

Pizarro

Spanish conquistador who conquered the Inca Empire.

Council of the Indies

Spanish administrative body that governed colonial territories.

Encomienda System

Colonial labor system that forced native peoples to work for Spanish settlers.

Humanism

An intellectual movement that emphasized human potential and achievements, focusing on classical texts from ancient Greece and Rome.

Vernacular

The everyday language of ordinary people (like English, French, or German), used instead of Latin to make literature more accessible.

Medici Family

Powerful Italian banking family who shaped Renaissance culture through their patronage of artists and scholars.

Printing Press

Revolutionary invention by Gutenberg that enabled mass production of books, leading to a wider spread of knowledge and ideas.

Indulgences

Church pardons sold to reduce time in purgatory; their sale became controversial and helped spark the Protestant Reformation.

95 Theses

Document nailed by Martin Luther to a church door in 1517, challenging Church practices and launching the Protestant Reformation.

Predestination

Calvinist belief that God had predetermined who would achieve salvation.

Anglican Church

The Church of England, established by Henry VIII when he broke from the Catholic Church.

Council of Trent

Catholic Church meeting that addressed Protestant criticisms while reaffirming core Catholic doctrine.

Heliocentric Model

Scientific theory proposing the sun (not Earth) was at the center of the universe, challenging Church teaching.