Scientific revolution
Enlightenment and Revolution, 1550–1789
Previewing Main Ideas
The Scientific Revolution started with astronomers questioning the universe's operation, leading to a new world of discovery by challenging long-held views.
Enlightenment thinkers challenged old ideas about power and authority, contributing to events like the American Revolution.
Between the 16th and 18th centuries, a series of revolutions in thought and action reshaped European and American society, marking the beginning of the modern era in Western history.
Centers of Enlightenment
Major cities like Stockholm, Edinburgh, Boston, Philadelphia, Copenhagen, Dublin, London, Amsterdam, Berlin, Paris, Vienna, Lisbon, Madrid, St. Petersburg, amongst others in Europe and the Americas, became hubs for Enlightenment ideas.
Timeline of Enlightenment and Revolution
1644: Manchus invade China and establish Qing Dynasty.
1687: Newton publishes treatise on law of gravity.
1700: Start of Enlightenment Centers.
1722: Chinese emperor Kangxi dies after a 61-year reign.
1776: American colonies declare independence.
1776: Tukolor Kingdom arises in the former Songhai region of West Africa.
1789: Revolution erupts in France.
Revolutionary Ideas
During the late 1600s, Isaac Newton theorized that the universe operates under mathematically expressible laws, challenging old ways of thinking in astronomy and medicine.
These radical ideas opened the way for societal improvements but faced resistance from those unwilling to accept them.
Analyzing Causes of the Scientific Revolution
A diagram can be used to list the events and circumstances that led to the Scientific Revolution.
Science and Technology
In the mid-1500s, questioning accepted beliefs and basing new theories on experimentation led to the scientific method. Key terms include geocentric theory, Scientific Revolution, heliocentric theory, Galileo Galilei, scientific method, and Isaac Newton.
Setting the Stage
The Renaissance (1300-1600) sparked curiosity, while the Reformation challenged accepted religious thinking. This period saw a revolution in European thought, changing views of the physical world.
Roots of Modern Science
Before 1500, scholars relied on ancient Greek/Roman authors or the Bible for determining truth. Few challenged with observation.
The Medieval View
Most scholars believed in a geocentric theory, with the Earth at the center of the universe. (\text{Earth} \rightarrow \text{center})
This view was supported by Aristotle and Ptolemy and reinforced by Christian teachings that placed Earth as the focal point of God's creation.
A New Way of Thinking
Starting in the mid-1500s, scholars challenged ancient ideas, initiating the Scientific Revolution—a new way of thinking based on observation and questioning.
Factors Leading to the Scientific Revolution
European explorers' discoveries of new lands expanded the horizon and revealed new truths. The printing press spread challenging ideas widely.
Exploration fueled scientific research, especially in astronomy and mathematics, as navigators needed better instruments for geographic measurement.
Observations that contradicted ancient beliefs pushed scientists to seek more profound knowledge revealing limits of classical knowledge.
A Revolutionary Model of the Universe
Nicolaus Copernicus questioned the geocentric theory in astronomy.
The Heliocentric Theory
Copernicus proposed that the sun is at the center of the universe; the stars, Earth, and other planets revolve around the sun. This heliocentric theory contradicted religious views. (\text{stars, Earth, planets} \rightarrow \text{sun})
Copernicus delayed publishing his findings, On the Revolutions of the Heavenly Bodies, until his death in 1543, fearing ridicule.
Tycho Brahe recorded planetary movements, producing substantial observational data. Johannes Kepler, Brahe’s assistant, discovered mathematical laws governing planetary motion after Brahe’s death. Kepler's laws confirmed Copernicus’s heliocentric ideas, mathematically demonstrating that planets revolve around the sun in elliptical orbits.
Galileo’s Discoveries
Galileo Galilei built on new astronomy theories, constructing a telescope to study the heavens in 1609.
In 1610, Galileo published Starry Messenger, detailing observations like Jupiter’s moons and the moon's rough surface, contradicting Aristotle’s theory of perfect celestial substances.
Galileo's observations and laws of motion supported Copernicus's theories.
Conflict with the Church
Galileo's findings clashed with church teachings, leading to potential questioning of other doctrines. In 1616, the Catholic Church warned Galileo against defending Copernicus's ideas.
In 1632, Galileo published Dialogue Concerning the Two Chief World Systems, supporting the Copernican theory, resulting in his trial before the Inquisition in 1633.
Under threat of torture, Galileo recanted Copernican ideas, and was placed under house arrest until his death in 1642. In 1992, the Catholic Church acknowledged Galileo had been right.
The Scientific Method
Copernicus, Kepler, and Galileo's work led to the scientific method, which is a logical procedure for gathering and testing ideas.
It involves a question from observation, hypothesis formation, testing via experiment or data, and conclusion to confirm or disprove the hypothesis.
Bacon and Descartes
Francis Bacon advocated for scientists to experiment and draw conclusions (empiricism or the experimental method), attacking reliance on ancient thinkers.
René Descartes developed analytical geometry, linking algebra and geometry, advocating doubting until proof by reason. His principle stated, “I think, therefore I am.”
Modern scientific methods combine Bacon’s experimentation with mathematically expressed general laws, enhancing understanding of the natural world.
Newton Explains the Law of Gravity
Isaac Newton integrated the breakthroughs of Copernicus, Kepler, and Galileo with his theory of motion. He discovered the law of universal gravitation: every object attracts every other object based on mass and distance.\frac{Gm1m2}{r^2}
In 1687, Newton published The Mathematical Principles of Natural Philosophy, describing the universe as a giant clock created by God.
The Scientific Revolution Spreads
New instruments were developed for precise observation.
Zacharias Janssen invented the first microscope in 1590. Anton van Leeuwenhoek observed bacteria and red blood cells.
Evangelista Torricelli invented the mercury barometer in 1643. Gabriel Fahrenheit created the first mercury thermometer (water freezes at 32°F) in 1714. Anders Celsius created another scale (freezing at 0°C) in 1742.
Medicine and the Human Body
Andreas Vesalius disproved Galen’s assumptions by dissecting human corpses and publishing detailed anatomy drawings. In the late 1700s, Edward Jenner introduced a smallpox vaccine, using cowpox germs for inoculation.
Discoveries in Chemistry
Robert Boyle pioneered the use of the scientific method in chemistry, challenging Aristotle’s four elements (earth, air, fire, water) and proposing matter consists of smaller particles. Boyle’s law explains the relationship between gas volume, temperature, and pressure.
Power and Authority
Enlightenment thinkers spurred breakthroughs in science later influenced rights, liberties, and government-citizen relationships.
Section 1 Assessment
Important scientists from this chapter include Ptolemy, Copernicus, Tycho Brahe, Johannes Kepler, Galileo Galilei, Francis Bacon, Rene Descartes, Isaac Newton, Zacharias Janssen, Anton van Leeuwenhoek, Evangelista Torricelli, Gabriel Fahrenheit, Anders Celsius, Andreas Vesalius, Edward Jenner, and Robert Boyle.
The Enlightenment in Europe
A revolution in intellectual activity changed Europeans’ view of government and society. Freedoms enjoyed today are a result of Enlightenment thinking.
Key terms include Enlightenment, social contract, John Locke, philosophe, Voltaire, Montesquieu, Rousseau, and Mary Wollstonecraft.
Setting the Stage
Following the Scientific Revolution, scholars and philosophers reevaluated society, seeking insights into government, religion, economics, and education. This spurred the Enlightenment, an intellectual movement emphasizing reason and individuals' problem-solving power.
Two Views on Government
The Enlightenment stemmed from ideas by English political thinkers Thomas Hobbes and John Locke, whose conclusions on government and human nature differed.
Hobbes’s Social Contract
Thomas Hobbes, in his book Leviathan (1651), argued that humans are naturally selfish and wicked. Hobbes believed that people had to hand over their rights to a strong ruler in exchange for law and order. This agreement was called the social contract. Hobbes advocated absolute monarchy.
Locke’s Natural Rights
John Locke believed people learn and improve themselves, possessing natural ability to govern and care for society. Locke advocated self-government, criticizing absolute monarchy. He stated that individuals possess natural rights—life, liberty, and property—and that the purpose of government is to protect those rights. Citizens can overthrow a government that fails to do so. Locke’s ideas influenced modern democracy and inspired liberty struggles in Europe and the Americas.
The Philosophes Advocate Reason
The Enlightenment peaked in France in the mid-1700s. Social critics known as philosophes believed in applying reason to all aspects of life, emphasizing reason, nature, happiness, progress, and liberty.
Voltaire Combats Intolerance
François Marie Arouet (Voltaire) used satire and sharp wit to combat intolerance, prejudice, and superstition, advocating freedom of religious belief and speech. Voltaire famously said, “I do not agree with a word you say but will defend to the death your right to say it.”
Montesquieu and the Separation of Powers
Baron de Montesquieu believed Britain had the best-governed and most politically balanced country. He advocated separation of powers—executive, legislative, and judicial—to prevent one group from gaining total control. (\text{Executive} + \text{Legislative} + \text{Judicial} = \text{Separation of powers})
Montesquieu’s ideas became the basis for the United States Constitution, emphasizing checks and balances.
Rousseau: Champion of Freedom
Jean Jacques Rousseau believed civilization corrupted natural goodness. Rousseau expressed in the Social Contract the idea that the only good government was one freely formed by the people that was guided by the "general will" of society, a direct democracy.
Beccaria Promotes Criminal Justice
Cesare Bonesana Beccaria believed laws should preserve social order, not avenge crimes. He criticized torture, irregular trials, and cruel punishment, advocating speedy trials and punishment based on crime seriousness. His ideas influenced criminal law reformers in Europe and North America.
Women and the Enlightenment
Mary Astell, in A Serious Proposal to the Ladies (1694), addressed the lack of educational opportunities for women. Mary Wollstonecraft, in A Vindication of the Rights of Woman (1792), advocated for women’s education and entry into medicine and politics. Emilie du Châtelet stimulated the interest in science in France by translating Newton’s work.
Legacy of the Enlightenment
The Enlightenment produced belief in progress, a more secular outlook, and emphasis on individualism, impacting Western civilization.
Belief in Progress: Scientific successes led to confidence that human reason could solve social problems, urging social equality and democratic government.
A More Secular Outlook: People questioned religious beliefs, seeking tolerance and ridding faith of superstition and fear. Importance of the Individual: People looked to themselves for guidance, emphasizing reason and individual importance.
Adam Smith extended individualism to economic thinking.
European Values During the Enlightenment
Writers and artists used satire to comment on European values, exploring human faults through wit and humor.
The Enlightenment Spreads
Enlightenment ideas spread through European society and to colonial America, influencing the arts and government.
Setting the Stage
Philosophes faced persecution for criticizing government and the Catholic Church, yet Enlightenment ideas spread via books, magazines, and word of mouth, impacting art and royal courts.
A World of Ideas
Paris was Europe's cultural and intellectual capital in the 1700s. Wealthy Parisian women hosted salons, gathering philosophers, writers, artists and more to discuss ideas. Denis Diderot created the Encyclopedia, spreading Enlightenment views.
New Artistic Styles
The Enlightenment ideals of order and reason were reflected in the arts.
Neoclassical Style Emerges: European art shifted from baroque to neoclassical, drawing themes from classical Greece and Rome.
Changes in Music and Literature: Classical music, a lighter and elegant style, emerged with composers like Haydn, Mozart, and Beethoven.
European authors began writing novels that explored characters’ thoughts and feelings, popular among the middle class.
Cybercafés
Internet cafés allow people worldwide to explore new ideas. These locations are sometimes monitored to limit the spread of ideas.
Enlightenment and Monarchy
Philosophes believed the best government was a monarchy respecting people’s rights. Some monarchs, known as enlightened despots, embraced new ideas to strengthen their countries and make their rule more effective.
Foremost enlightened despots included Frederick II of Prussia, Joseph II of Austria, and Catherine the Great of Russia.
Frederick the Great
Frederick II of Prussia (1740-1786) reformed Prussia, granting religious freedoms, reducing censorship, improving education, and reforming the justice system.
His main goal was to serve and strengthen his country, appealing to philosophes.
Joseph II
Joseph II of Austria (1780-1790) introduced legal reforms, freedom of the press and worship, and abolished serfdom. Many of Joseph’s reforms were undone after his death.
Catherine the Great
Catherine II of Russia (1762-1796) sought to reform Russia based on Montesquieu and Beccaria’s ideas but did little to improve the life of Russian peasants. Catherine expanded Russia by winning control of the northern shore of the Black Sea and annexing parts of Poland. Poland then disappeared as an independent country for over a century. Catherine's views changed after a serf uprising in 1773, giving nobles absolute power over the serfs.
The American Revolution
Enlightenment ideas spurred the American colonies to shed British rule and create a new nation, which became a model for many nations.
Britain and Its American Colonies
British colonists formed settlements along North America’s eastern shore. In 1760, when George III became king, the colonies were thriving. They had increasing population, prosperity, and a growing sense of identity. They favored independence, but were British subjects who were expected to obey British law.
The Navigation Act (1651) prevented colonists from selling valuable products to countries other than Britain. Despite restrictions, Britain’s policies benefited both Britain and the colonies.
Americans Win Independence
The French and Indian War (1754-1763) led to growing tensions. Parliament passed the Stamp Act in 1765, requiring colonists to pay taxes on printed materials. Colonists protested "taxation without representation."
Growing Hostility Leads to War
Colonial leaders favored independence. The “Boston Tea Party” led to the closure of the port of Boston, making enemies of moderate colonists.
In 1774, the First Continental Congress protested the treatment of Boston. In 1775, British soldiers and American militiamen exchanged gunfire in Lexington, Massachusetts, starting the American Revolution. The Second Continental Congress formed an army under George Washington.
The Influence of the Enlightenment
Colonial leaders justified independence using Enlightenment ideas from John Locke and others. The Declaration of Independence stated that all men are created equal with unalienable rights—life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.
The Declaration of Independence declared the colonies’ separation from Britain.
Success for the Colonists
Americans won their war for independence due to stronger motivation, British generals’ mistakes, time being on the Americans’ side, and assistance from France. In 1781, combined American and French forces trapped a British army near Yorktown, Virginia, leading to Cornwallis’s surrender.
Americans Create a Republic
After declaring independence, the 13 states created a national government and ratified a constitution in 1781 known as the Articles of Confederation, establishing the United States as a republic.
A Weak National Government
The Articles of Confederation created a weak national government with no executive or judicial branches. Congress could declare war and coin money but could not collect taxes or regulate trade. Passing new laws required approval from 9 of the 13 states.
A New Constitution
Colonial leaders recognized the need for a strong national government. A Constitutional Convention was approved in 1787 to revise the Articles of Confederation, producing new approaches to governing.
Like Montesquieu, the delegates distrusted a powerful central government. It created three separate branches—legislative, executive, and judicial—that provided a built-in system of checks and balances.
The Federal System
The Constitution set up a federal system, dividing power between national and state governments.
The Bill of Rights
In order to gain support, the Federalists promised to add a bill of rights to the Constitution. The amendments protected basic rights advocated by Voltaire, Rousseau, and Locke. The Constitution and Bill of Rights put Enlightenment ideas into practice, expressing optimism that reason and reform could prevail.
Important People of the Enlightenment and Scientific Revolution
Ptolemy
Ptolemy was an ancient Greek astronomer, mathematician, and geographer who lived in Alexandria during the Roman era. He is renowned for his geocentric model of the universe, which posited that the Earth is at the center and that the sun, moon, and stars revolve around it. Ptolemy's geocentric model was the dominant cosmological framework for over 1400 years, influencing medieval European and Islamic thought.
Copernicus
Nicolaus Copernicus was a Renaissance-era astronomer and mathematician who formulated a heliocentric model of the universe, which placed the sun, rather than the Earth, at the center. His book, On the Revolutions of the Heavenly Spheres (1543), presented comprehensive arguments for heliocentrism and marked a pivotal shift in astronomical thought. Copernicus's work laid the foundation for modern astronomy.
Tycho Brahe
Tycho Brahe was a Danish astronomer known for his meticulous and comprehensive astronomical observations. Before the invention of the telescope, Brahe used quadrants, sextants, and other instruments to record the positions of stars and planets with unprecedented accuracy. His data was later used by Johannes Kepler to develop his laws of planetary motion.
Johannes Kepler
Johannes Kepler was a German astronomer and mathematician best known for his laws of planetary motion. Using Tycho Brahe's observational data, Kepler formulated three laws: the law of elliptical orbits (planets move in ellipses with the sun at one focus), the law of equal areas (a line joining a planet and the sun sweeps out equal areas during equal intervals of time), and the law of harmonies (the square of the orbital period of a planet is proportional to the cube of the semi-major axis of its orbit). Kepler's laws provided a precise mathematical description of planetary motion and supported the heliocentric model.
Galileo Galilei
Galileo Galilei was an Italian astronomer, physicist, and engineer who made significant contributions to the scientific revolution. He built an improved telescope and made observations that supported the heliocentric theory, including the phases of Venus and the moons of Jupiter. Galileo's advocacy of heliocentrism brought him into conflict with the Catholic Church, which held to the geocentric view.
Francis Bacon
Francis Bacon was an English philosopher, statesman, scientist, and writer who is considered one of the key figures in the development of the scientific method. He advocated for empiricism, the idea that knowledge should be based on observation and experimentation. Bacon's works, such as Novum Organum, argued for a systematic approach to scientific inquiry and influenced the development of modern science.
René Descartes
René Descartes was a French philosopher, mathematician, and scientist who is considered one of the founders of modern philosophy. He is known for his method of systematic doubt, in which he questioned all previous knowledge to arrive at certain truths. Descartes's famous dictum, "I think, therefore I am," established the existence of the self as a foundation for knowledge. He also made significant contributions to mathematics, including the development of analytic geometry.
Isaac Newton
Isaac Newton was an English physicist and mathematician who developed the laws of motion and universal gravitation. His book, Principia Mathematica (1687), is one of the most important scientific works ever written. Newton's laws explained a wide range of phenomena, from the motion of planets to the behavior of objects on Earth. He also made significant contributions to optics and calculus.
Zacharias Janssen
Zacharias Janssen was a Dutch spectacle-maker who is credited with inventing the first microscope around 1590. Janssen's invention paved the way for the development of microbiology and the study of cells and microorganisms.
Anton van Leeuwenhoek
Anton van Leeuwenhoek was a Dutch scientist and tradesman who is known as the "Father of Microbiology." He used single-lens microscopes of his own design to make groundbreaking discoveries, including bacteria, protozoa, and spermatozoa. Leeuwenhoek's observations opened up a new world of microscopic organisms and transformed our understanding of biology.
Evangelista Torricelli
Evangelista Torricelli was an Italian physicist and mathematician who invented the mercury barometer in 1643. Torricelli's barometer provided a way to measure atmospheric pressure and led to advancements in meteorology.
Gabriel Fahrenheit
Daniel Gabriel Fahrenheit was a German physicist, instrument maker, and glassblower who is best known for inventing the mercury thermometer and developing the Fahrenheit temperature scale. Fahrenheit's thermometer, which used mercury as the liquid, provided a more accurate and consistent way to measure temperature than previous instruments.
Anders Celsius
Anders Celsius was a Swedish astronomer, physicist, and mathematician who is best known for creating the Celsius temperature scale, in which 0 degrees is the freezing point of water and 100 degrees is the boiling point of water. Celsius's scale is widely used in scientific and everyday contexts.
Andreas Vesalius
Andreas Vesalius was a Belgian anatomist, physician, and author of De humani corporis fabrica (1543), one of the most influential books on human anatomy. Vesalius challenged Galen's anatomical theories, which had been the basis of medical knowledge for centuries. Vesalius's meticulous dissections and detailed illustrations revolutionized the study of anatomy and laid the foundation for modern medicine.
Edward Jenner
Edward Jenner was an English physician and scientist who pioneered the concept of vaccination. In 1796, Jenner inoculated a young boy with cowpox, which provided immunity against smallpox. Jenner's discovery led to the development of the smallpox vaccine, which eradicated the disease worldwide.
Robert Boyle
Robert Boyle was an Anglo-Irish chemist, physicist, and natural philosopher who is considered one of the founders of modern chemistry. He is best known for Boyle's law, which states that the pressure and volume of a gas are inversely proportional at constant temperature. Boyle's work helped to establish chemistry as a quantitative science.