World History and Western Civilization Midterm Review

Comprehensive vocabulary flashcards covering the Renaissance, Reformation, Age of Exploration, Absolutism, Scientific Revolution, Enlightenment, and the American Revolution based on lecture notes.

The Book of the Courtier (Criteria for Nobility)

Established standards for nobility, which included impeccable character, breeding, dignity, military service standards of conduct, a classical education, and a well-developed personality.

Patrons of the Arts

Wealthy people, bankers, and merchants who supported the arts during the Renaissance.

Printing Press

Invented by Johannes Gutenberg using moveable type; the first printed book was the Bible, and it spread widely and printed vernacular works.

Renaissance Man

An individual with broad knowledge, deep knowledge in one area, and the ability to create new knowledge; Leonardo da Vinci was the Renaissance man.

Taille

An annual direct tax that strengthened the French monarchy.

Niccolo Machiavelli

Wrote The Prince, arguing that a prince may do whatever is necessary to protect his state, meaning the ends justifies the means.

Raphael

Renaissance artist who painted the School of Athens.

Albrecht Dürer

Considered the greatest of German artists; painted Self Portrait in fur-collared robe.

Jan van Eyck

The most important of the Flemish painters, known for the detail in his paintings, including Giovanni Arnolfini and his wife.

Michealangebu

Renaissance artist who created the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel and La Pieta.

Filippo Brunelleschi

Architect who designed the cathedral dome (Cuppolo of St. Maria).

Desiderius Erasmus

The most influential Christian humanist; emphasized inner piety, developed a 'philosophy of Christ,' and wanted less focus on sacraments.

Peace of Augsburg

Recognized Lutheranism as a religion in the Holy Roman Empire, allowed each German prince to decide the religion of his subjects, and forbade all Protestant sects except Lutherans.

English Reformation

A politically motivated break caused by Henry VIII, who broke from the Catholic Church because the Pope would not grant him a divorce from Catherine of Aragon.

Johann Tetzel

A seller of indulgences who came to Germany in 1517 claiming they would free people from purgatory sooner; the primary catalyst for Luther writing the 95 Theses.

95 Theses

A document written by Martin Luther and nailed to the door of Wittenberg Cathedral, challenging the sale of indulgences and criticizing papal wealth.

Martin Luther's Religious Beliefs

Held that salvation could not be earned through good works but through justification by faith, and that the Bible was the sole guide to religious truth.

Council of Trent

Met from 1545 to 1563; instead of compromising with Protestants, it restated basic Catholic doctrine, declaring that salvation was due to both faith and good works, and that the Bible was not the sole source of authority.

Predestination (John Calvin)

The belief resting on the sovereignty of God and the weakness of man, holding that only the 'elect' can be saved and that there is no certainty of salvation.

Counter Reformation

The Catholic Church's response to the Protestant Reformation, built on three pillars: the Jesuits, a reformed papacy, and the Council of Trent.

Ultra-Catholics

An extreme Catholic party that opposed the Huguenots.

Anabaptists

Radical reformers of the Protestant Reformation who advocated adult over infant baptism, believed all believers were equal, and were persecuted by both Protestants and Catholics.

Huegonots

French Calvinist Protestants who accounted for 40-50% of the French nobility.

Mercantilism

An economic doctrine that emphasizes national wealth as a source of power and aims to maintain a favorable balance of trade.

Joint-Stock Companies

Commercial enterprises formed to help fund colonies in America.

Capitalism

An economic system based on private property and profit.

Prince Henry the Navigator

Started a school for navigation in 1419, leading Portugal to take the lead in overseas exploration.

Middle Passage

The voyage of enslaved Africans across the Atlantic to the Americas.

Hernán Cortés and Francisco Pizarro

Spanish conquistadors: Cortés landed in Mexico and conquered the Aztec Empire; Pizarro defeated the Inca and killed the Inca ruler.

Marco Polo

Traveler whose written account of his voyages, 'Travels,' sparked the interest of other European explorers.

Treaty of Tordesillas

An agreement negotiated under Christopher Columbus that divided the undiscovered non-European world between Spain and Portugal.

Japanese Policy of Seclusion

A policy under which Japanese people were strictly forbidden to travel abroad.

John Cabot

English explorer who explored parts of Canada and New England.

Ivan the Terrible

Russian ruler whose greatest move of strength was to eliminate all boyars; ruled through terror with a powerful secret police.

Boyars

Russian nobles.

Oliver Cromwell

English leader who abolished the House of Lords and the monarchy, though his revolution did not endure long; Charles II assumed power after his death.

Romanov Dynasty

The Russian imperial dynasty that ruled from 1613 to 1917.

Revocation of the Edict of Nantes

An action by King Louis XIV that revoked toleration for Huguenots, causing many productive French Protestants to leave France.

Divine Right

The theory that kings receive their authority from God and are therefore accountable to no one except God.

Reason of State

A Machiavellian political philosophy holding that what is done for the state is justified by God, validating actions that would be considered a crime if committed privately.

Jean-Baptiste Colbert

Financial advisor to Louis XIV and architect of French mercantilist economic policies.

Palace of Versailles

The royal palace constructed by Louis XIV that helped him maintain political control over the French nobility.

Peter the Great

Russian Romanov ruler who attempted to modernize Russia, transforming it into a major power.

Glorious Revolution

A transition in English leadership achieved with little bloodshed that established Parliament as a major participant in governance and eliminated the divine right theory.

Absolutism

A system giving a monarch total authority over the state, stripping liberties through the justification of divine right; exemplified best by Louis XIV.

Scientific Revolution

Historical changes in thought, belief, and social and institutional organization that unfolded in Europe roughly between 1550 and 1700, based on observation and inquiry.

Nicolaus Copernicus

Astronomer who initiated the Scientific Revolution by proposing a heliocentric model of the universe.

Ptolemaic View of the Universe

The geocentric theory placing Earth at the center of the universe, surrounded by spheres of crystalline, transparent substance moving in circular orbits.

Galileo Galilei

First to make systematic observations of space using a telescope; published findings in 'The Starry Messenger' before being ordered by the Catholic Church to abandon his ideas that the heavens were made of matter rather than a spiritual realm.

Cosmology

A new concept regarding man, human existence on Earth, and the place of Earth within the universe.

Isaac Newton

Regarded as the greatest genius of the Scientific Revolution; wrote Principia, formulated the concept of universal motion, and provided a mechanical explanation of the universe.

Deism

A belief in the existence of a God or Supreme Being as a 'clockmaker' while denying revealed religion, asserting that God remains uninvolved in everyday human life.

John Locke's Natural Rights

Political concept asserting that human beings are endowed by God with fundamental natural rights to life, liberty, and property, favoring self-government and positive environments.

Montesquieu (Separation of Powers)

The doctrine dividing government into three branches with distinct authority and checks and balances to preserve liberty; classified forms of government as monarchy (middle-sized states), republic (small states), and despotism (large states ruled by fear).

Laissez-faire Economics

An economic doctrine (meaning 'leave it alone' in French) holding that governments should not interfere with natural economic forces through regulations.

Madame Geoffrin

The most prominent salonnière of the Enlightenment who hosted intellectual salon gatherings.

Characteristics of the Enlightenment

An intellectual movement defined by rationalism, secularism, optimism, self-confidence, freedom of thought and expression, and education of the masses.

Proclamation of 1763

A British decree that closed off the region west of the Appalachian Mountains to settlement by American colonists.

Sugar Act (1764)

British legislation that cut the sugar tax in half but enforced naval patrols by British ships in American waters to combat smuggling.

Quartering Act (1765)

A British law requiring American colonies to provide barracks, housing, and supplies for British soldiers.

Townshend Acts (1767)

Taxes levied by the British Parliament on colonial imports entering the American colonies.

Boston Massacre

An incident on March 5, 1770, in which British soldiers fired into a protesting crowd of colonists, killing five people.

King George III

British monarch who assumed the throne of England in 1760 and reigned during the American Revolution.

Tea Act

Legislation that allowed the British East India Company to sell tea directly to America without paying customary duties.

Battle of Saratoga

The major turning point of the American Revolutionary War, after which France officially formed an alliance with the United States.

Battle of Yorktown

The final major battle of the Revolutionary War.

Treaty of Paris (1763)

Peace treaty concluding the French and Indian War (Seven Years' War), in which France ceded all territory east of the Mississippi River to Great Britain.

First Continental Congress

Colonial assembly that adopted a boycott of British goods, urged colonists to form militias and arm themselves, and sent a direct appeal to King George III seeking compromise.

Articles of Confederation (Weaknesses)

A 'firm league of friendship' national framework that lacked the power to tax or compel state compliance, prompting the Constitutional Convention to reform government.

Treaty of Paris (1783)

The peace treaty in which Great Britain recognized the independence of the United States, promised troop withdrawals, and saw Congress agree not to prosecute Loyalists.

Purpose of the Bill of Rights

Constitutional amendments designed specifically to safeguard the inalienable rights outlined by Thomas Jefferson in the Declaration of Independence.