Absolutism and Constitutionalism Terms

Vocabulary flashcards covering core terms, monarchs, historical events, and institutions from the lecture transcript.

Absolutism

A political system in which a monarch has highly centralized and largely unrestricted power.

Divine Right of Kings

The belief that monarchs receive their authority directly from God.

Constitutionalism

A system in which government power is limited by laws or representative institutions.

Constitutional Monarchy

A government in which a monarch's power is limited by laws and a legislature.

Centralization

The process of concentrating political authority in a central government.

Bureaucracy

A system of government administration carried out by appointed officials.

Mercantilism

An economic system in which governments regulate trade and promote exports and colonies to increase national wealth.

Sovereignty

The supreme authority of a state to govern itself without outside interference.

Balance of Power

The idea that European states should prevent any one country from becoming too powerful.

Louis XIV

King of France, 1643–1715, known as the "Sun King" and the leading example of French absolutism who centralized the French government, controlled the nobility, and made France Europe's leading military power.

Versailles

Royal palace near Paris, France, expanded by Louis XIV in the late 17th century; allowed Louis XIV to control the nobility while displaying the wealth and power of the monarchy.

Intendants

Royal officials who administered French provinces and enforced royal policies, especially under Louis XIV, increasing the monarchy's control over local governments and weakening regional independence.

Jean-Baptiste Colbert

French finance minister under Louis XIV during the 1660s–1680s who promoted mercantilism, strengthened France's economy, and helped finance Louis XIV's military and government.

Fronde

Series of rebellions against the French monarchy in France, 1648–1653, during Louis XIV's childhood that convinced Louis XIV that nobles needed to be controlled more closely.

Parlements

Regional high courts in France that registered royal laws and could resist royal policies, especially during the 17th–18th centuries, providing one of the major institutional challenges to French royal authority.

Peter the Great

Tsar of Russia, 1682–1725, who Westernized Russia, modernized its military, expanded its territory, transformed Russia into a major European power, and strengthened autocratic rule.

Westernization

Adoption of Western European technology, culture, military practices, and institutions, especially under Peter the Great, which helped Russia compete militarily and politically with Western European states.

St. Petersburg

City founded by Peter the Great in Russia in 1703 on the Baltic Sea that became the capital in 1712, giving Russia access to the Baltic and symbolizing its connection to Western Europe.

Table of Ranks

System created by Peter the Great in Russia in 1722 allowing advancement through government and military service, which increased loyalty to the state and weakened the traditional nobility.

Catherine the Great

Empress of Russia, 1762–1796, who expanded Russian territory, supported some Enlightenment ideas, and expanded Russian power while maintaining autocracy and serfdom.

Serfdom

System in which peasants were legally tied to land and controlled by landowners, especially important in Eastern Europe and Russia, which strengthened the nobility but created severe social inequality.

Russian Orthodox Church

Major branch of Eastern Orthodox Christianity in Russia, brought under greater state control by Peter the Great, strengthening the tsar's authority over Russian society.

Boyers

Traditional Russian aristocrats whose political influence declined as Russian rulers centralized power, allowing rulers to create a stronger autocratic state.

James I

King of England, 1603–1625, and previously James VI of Scotland, who strongly supported divine-right monarchy and whose conflicts with Parliament helped establish tensions that later contributed to the English Civil War.

Archbishop William Laud

Archbishop of Canterbury from 1633–1640 under Charles I who promoted religious uniformity in England, angering Puritans and increasing religious and political tensions.

Charles I

King of England, 1625–1649, who fought Parliament during the English Civil War and whose execution demonstrated that Parliament and its supporters could challenge and remove a monarch.

English Civil War

Conflict in England, 1642–1651, between supporters of Charles I and Parliament over political and religious authority, which challenged absolute monarchy and temporarily abolished the English monarchy.

Oliver Cromwell

English military and political leader who ruled as Lord Protector, 1653–1658, demonstrating that replacing a monarchy did not necessarily produce democratic government.

Commonwealth

Republican government established in England in 1649 after Charles I's execution, which temporarily replaced the monarchy with a republic.

Restoration

Return of the English monarchy in 1660, when Charles II became king, which restored the monarchy but left unresolved conflicts between the crown and Parliament.

Charles II

King of England who became monarch in 1660 during the Restoration, whose Spanish namesake later died without an heir, leading to the War of the Spanish Succession.

James II

King of England, Scotland, and Ireland, 1685–1688, whose Catholicism and attempts to expand royal authority caused opposition, leading to the Glorious Revolution and permanently strengthening Parliament's position.

Glorious Revolution

Revolution in England in 1688 that removed James II and brought William and Mary to the throne, establishing constitutional monarchy and significantly limiting royal power.

William and Mary

Joint monarchs of England beginning in 1689 who accepted limits on their authority, establishing the principle that monarchs ruled with Parliament's consent.

English Bill of Rights

Document passed by Parliament in England in 1689 that restricted royal power, protected parliamentary rights, and strengthened Parliament.

Act of Settlement

English law passed in 1701 establishing Protestant succession to the throne, which protected England's Protestant monarchy and further limited royal independence.

House of Lords

Upper house of the English/British Parliament made up historically of nobles and church officials, representing traditional aristocratic influence within Parliament.

House of Commons

Lower house of Parliament whose members represented constituencies, becoming increasingly powerful in taxation and lawmaking.

Habeas Corpus

Legal protection against unlawful imprisonment, strengthened by the Habeas Corpus Act of 1679 in England, which limited arbitrary government imprisonment and protected individual liberties.

Limited Monarchy

A system in which a monarch's power is restricted by laws and representative institutions, becoming the defining political structure of Britain after the Glorious Revolution.

Dutch Golden Age

Period of economic, commercial, artistic, and naval prosperity in the Dutch Republic during the 17th century, making the Netherlands a leading European economic and commercial power.

Dutch Republic

Independent republic in the Netherlands, 1581–1795, dominated politically by wealthy merchants and provincial governments, providing an important alternative to Europe's increasingly powerful monarchies.

Joint Stock Company

A business in which investors pool money and share profits and losses, widely used in Europe during the 17th century to finance overseas exploration and trade.

Dutch East India Company

Dutch trading company founded in 1602 that controlled much of Dutch trade in Asia, helping the Dutch Republic become a major commercial and colonial power.

War of the Spanish Succession

European war from 1701–1714 over who would inherit the Spanish throne after Charles II died without an heir, preventing France and Spain from being united under one monarch and reinforcing the balance of power.

Absolutism

A political system in which a monarch has highly centralized and largely unrestricted power.