Enlightenment and Industrial Revolutions

Flashcards about The Enlightenment and the Industrial Revolution

The Enlightenment

An intellectual movement in the 1700s that used rationalism and empiricism to understand the world and human society, laying the ideological foundation for many revolutions.

Rationalism

The belief that reason, not emotion or religious authority, is the best source of knowledge.

Empiricism

The belief that knowledge comes from experience and the senses, especially through experimentation and observation.

The Scientific Revolution

A period in Europe (16th–17th century) where scientists began using reason and observation instead of biblical authority to understand the universe.

Deism

Belief in a non-intervening Creator — God made the universe like a clock and let it run without interference.

Atheism

Complete rejection of religion and belief in any divine being.

Individualism

The idea that society is made of individuals, not just groups, with a focus on personal freedom and progress.

Natural Rights

Basic rights all humans are born with (e.g., life, liberty, property) that cannot be taken away by rulers.

Social Contract

The idea that governments exist only by the consent of the people to protect natural rights and that people have the right to revolt if the government violates these rights.

Nationalism

Shared identity among a people based on language, religion, and social customs, often linked to a desire for independent territory.

Popular Sovereignty

The idea that government power comes from the people, leading to calls for democracy.

Liberalism

An ideology emphasizing civil rights, representative government, private property, and economic freedom.

American Revolution

A revolution (1776–1783) influenced by Enlightenment ideas that resulted in the birth of the United States as a republic.

French Revolution

A revolution (1789–1799) that overthrew the absolute monarchy in France and established a republic, promoting natural rights and popular sovereignty.

Haitian Revolution

A revolution (1791–1804) led by Toussaint Louverture that resulted in the second republic in the Western Hemisphere and the first Black government in the region.

Latin American Revolutions

Revolutions in the early 1800s in Spanish and Portuguese colonies influenced by Enlightenment ideals and resentment of imperial control.

Propaganda Movement

A movement in the Philippines where wealthy Creoles and mestizos demanded reform and equality, eventually leading to the Philippine Revolution.

Industrial Revolution

Transition from agrarian economies to industrial economies from goods made by hand to being made by machines began in Great Britain around 1750.

Transnational Corporations (TNCs)

Businesses based in one country, but with operations in multiple others, helping coordinate industrial production and trade on a global scale.

Muhammad Ali’s Reforms

Leader: Muhammad Ali (not the boxer, the ruler). Goal: Reduce dependence on the Ottoman Empire and build an industrial economy.

Hong Kong and Shanghai Banking Corporation (HSBC)

Founded in 1865 in British-controlled Hong Kong. Purpose: Manage the flow of British imperial trade, especially opium in China.

Unilever

Joint British-Dutch corporation producing household goods, especially soap. Operated factories globally. Sourced raw materials from colonies, especially in West Africa and the Belgian Congo.

Mercantilism

State-driven economic system dominant before and during early imperialism. Government controlled trade to maximize national wealth and maintain favorable balances of trade.

Labor unions = collectives

Collectives of workers organizing to protect their interests. Initially illegal, but became legal and powerful by the late 19th century.

Self-Strengthening Movement

Some reforms included new industry and military modernization and aimed to modernize China while preserving traditional culture in the 1860s–70s.

Tanzimat Reforms

Radical attempt to modernize that involved aggressive industrialization & westernization to build textile factories, implemented secular courts/laws, and modern education systems in the Ottoman Empire