Terms World History Honors Unit 4
Enlightenment Thinkers
Baron de Montesquieu
French Enlightenment philosopher who argued for separation of powers in government (executive, legislative, judicial).
John Locke
English philosopher who believed people have natural rights (life, liberty, property) and governments must protect them.
Thomas Hobbes
Philosopher who believed people are naturally selfish and need a strong absolute government to maintain order.
Jean‑Jacques Rousseau
Philosopher who believed government should follow the general will of the people and supported popular sovereignty.
Mary Wollstonecraft
Writer who argued that women deserve education and equal rights.
Voltaire
French writer who supported freedom of speech, religious tolerance, and civil liberties.
Olympe de Gouges
French activist who wrote Declaration of the Rights of Woman demanding equality for women during the French Revolution.
Enlightenment Ideas & Vocabulary
Enlightenment
18th-century intellectual movement emphasizing reason, science, and individual rights.
Age of Reason
Another name for the Enlightenment emphasizing logic and rational thinking.
salons
Meetings in private homes where intellectuals discussed Enlightenment ideas.
philosophes
Writers and thinkers who spread Enlightenment ideas.
social contract
Idea that people give government power in exchange for protection of their rights.
natural rights
Rights people are born with, such as life, liberty, and property.
republicanism
A form of government where citizens elect representatives.
democracy
Government where people have power, either directly or through representatives.
sovereignty
Supreme power or authority in a state.
Divine Right
The belief that kings receive authority from God, not from the people.
constitutional monarchy
Government where a king or queen shares power with a constitution and legislature.
bourgeoisie
Middle class of merchants, professionals, and business owners.
reform
Changes made to improve a political or social system.
bureaucracy
A system of government departments and officials who manage policies.
revolution
A major and rapid change in government or society, often involving conflict.
autocracy
Government where one person has absolute power.
Commonwealth
Government without a monarch (England under Cromwell).
equality
The idea that all people have the same rights and status under the law.
abdicate
To give up a throne or position of power.
5 Stages of Revolution
Common pattern of revolutions:
Old regime crisis
Moderate reform government
Radical phase
Reaction/thermidor
Rise of a strong leader
French Monarchy & Absolutism
Louis XIV
King of France known as the “Sun King” who strengthened absolute monarchy and built Versailles.
Louis XV
King of France whose weak leadership contributed to financial problems before the revolution.
Louis XVI
King during the French Revolution who was executed by revolutionaries.
Marie Antoinette
Queen of France, wife of Louis XVI, widely criticized for luxury spending.
Cardinal Richelieu
Chief minister under Louis XIII who strengthened royal power and weakened nobles.
Palace of Versailles
Large palace built by Louis XIV that symbolized royal wealth and absolutism.
French Revolution Leaders
Maximilien Robespierre
Radical revolutionary leader who controlled the Reign of Terror.
Georges Danton
Early leader of the French Revolution who later opposed extreme violence.
Napoleon Bonaparte
Military leader who seized power after the revolution and became Emperor of France.
Marquis de Lafayette
French noble who supported liberty and helped write the Declaration of the Rights of Man.
French Revolution Events & Groups
Storming of the Bastille
July 14, 1789 attack on a Paris prison that symbolized the start of the French Revolution.
Tennis Court Oath
1789 pledge by the Third Estate to create a new constitution for France.
Estates‑General
Assembly of the three estates called by the king to approve taxes.
First Estate
The clergy (church leaders).
Second Estate
The nobility.
Third Estate
The common people, including peasants and the bourgeoisie.
National Assembly
Government formed by the Third Estate to create a constitution.
National Convention
Radical revolutionary government that abolished the monarchy.
Committee of Public Safety
Group that ruled France during the Reign of Terror.
Directory
Weak government that ruled France before Napoleon took power.
Reign of Terror
Period when thousands were executed as enemies of the revolution.
Thermidorian Reaction
Period after Robespierre’s fall when radical policies ended.
Mountain / Plain / Girondins
Political factions within the National Convention.
sans-culottes
Working-class revolutionaries in Paris.
English History
Oliver Cromwell
Leader of Parliament’s forces during the English Civil War and ruler of England as Lord Protector.
Charles I of England
King executed after losing the English Civil War.
James I of England
King who believed strongly in divine right.
James II of England
Catholic king overthrown in the Glorious Revolution.
Royalists
Supporters of the king in the English Civil War.
Parliamentarians
Supporters of Parliament against the king.
Puritans
Protestants who wanted to purify the Church of England.
English Civil War
Conflict between king and Parliament over power.
Glorious Revolution
1688 peaceful overthrow of James II that established parliamentary supremacy.
Thomas Becket
Archbishop who conflicted with King Henry II over church authority.
Religious Conflict in France
Henry IV of France
King who ended religious wars in France and issued the Edict of Nantes.
Huguenots
French Protestants.
St. Bartholomew’s Day Massacre
1572 killing of thousands of Huguenots by Catholics.
Edict of Nantes
Law granting religious tolerance to Protestants in France.
European Wars
Thirty Years’ War
Major European war between Protestant and Catholic states (1618–1648).
Peace of Westphalia
Treaty ending the Thirty Years’ War and recognizing state sovereignty.
War of the Spanish Succession
War over who would control Spain’s empire.
Treaty of Utrecht
Treaty ending the War of Spanish Succession.
Napoleon
Napoleonic Code
Set of laws created by Napoleon that guaranteed equality before law and property rights.
Continental System
Napoleon’s economic blockade designed to weaken Britain.
Russia
Peter the Great
Russian tsar who modernized and westernized Russia.
Catherine the Great
Russian empress who expanded Russia and supported some Enlightenment ideas.
Grand Embassy Voyage
Peter the Great’s trip to Europe to learn about Western technology and government.
Partition of Poland
Division of Poland among Russia, Prussia, and Austria.
Pugachev Rebellion
Peasant uprising against Catherine the Great.
Atlantic Revolutions
Haitian Revolution
Successful slave revolt that created the independent nation of Haiti.
Simón Bolívar
Leader who helped liberate several South American countries from Spain.
Latin American Revolutions
Independence movements in the early 1800s that ended Spanish and Portuguese colonial rule.