🔃 Unit 5: Revolutions (1750-1900)

The Enlightenment

An intellectual movement applying rationalist and empiricist approaches to human relationships and society, providing ideological context for political revolutions.

Natural Rights

Rights that all humans are born with, such as life, liberty, and property, which are given by God, not a monarch.

Social Contract

The idea that governments are formed by the people to protect their natural rights; if they fail, the people can overthrow them.

Popular Sovereignty

The principle that the power to govern belongs to the people, as opposed to monarchs or other forms of authority.

Liberalism

A political and economic ideology advocating for civil rights, representative government, protection of private property, and free markets.

Nationalism

A sense of common identity among people based on shared language, culture, and desire for self-rule, often leading to revolution.

American Revolution

A rebellion by the 13 colonies against British imperial rule, inspired by Enlightenment ideas and resulting in the establishment of the US as a republic.

French Revolution

A revolution that overthrew the Bourbon monarchy in France, producing the Declaration of the Rights of Man and Citizen based on Enlightenment principles.

Haitian Revolution

The only successful large-scale slave rebellion, leading to the establishment of the first black government in the Western Hemisphere, inspired by the French Revolution.

Industrial Revolution

A period of massive political, economic, and social change marked by the shift from agrarian societies to industrial powerhouses, beginning in Great Britain.

Steam Engine

An invention by James Watt that used coal to create steam, powering locomotives and steamships, marking a significant advancement in industrial technology.

Transnational Business

Companies established in one country but operating in others, reflecting the interconnectedness of the global economy, such as the Dutch East India Company.

Labor Unions

Organizations formed by workers to negotiate for better wages, hours, and working conditions, often leading to significant political changes.

Communism

An ideology developed by Karl Marx advocating for the proletariat to overthrow the bourgeoisie, establishing a classless society.

Proletariat

The working class who sell their labor for wages, typically representing the lower class in Marxist theory.

Bourgeoisie

The upper class, or owners of production, who control capital and benefit from the labor of the proletariat.

Urbanization

The process of rural populations moving into cities, often due to mechanization in agriculture and the search for industrial jobs.

Mercantilism

An economic theory that dominated before industrial capitalism, emphasizing state control over trade and wealth accumulation for the elite.