Absolutism
SSWH14 The student will analyze the Age of Revolutions and Rebellions.
a. Examine absolutism through a comparison of the rules of Louis XIV,
Tsar Peter the Great, and Tokugawa Ieyasu.
Absolutism
• A political system in which a ruler holds
total power (p. 441)
• Tied to the divine right of kings
• Kings responsible to no one but God
• Absolute monarchs had tremendous
powers such as to make laws, levy taxes,
administer justice, control the state’s
officials, and determine foreign policy
Louis XIV – The Sun King
Reigned 1643 – 1715
• Long regarded as the best example of
the practice of absolutism in the 17th
century
• Came to the throne in 1643 at the age of
4
• Took over supreme power at the age of
23 with the death of chief minister
Cardinal Mazarin
Louis XIV
Government & Religion under
Louis XIV
• One of the keys to his power was his
control of the central policy making of the
government
• Royal court established at Versailles had
three purposes
– Personal household of the king
– Chief offices of the state were located there
– Powerful subjects came to find favors &
offices for themselves
Govt. & Religion Under Louis
XIV Continued….
• Government ministers EXPECTED to
obey his every wish.
• Complete authority over foreign policy,
the Church, and taxes
• In the provinces, the king had less power
so he bribed important people to
guarantee his policies were carried out
• Goal to make France the preeminent
power in Europe & achieve military glory
How did Louis XIV achieve his
goal?
Tsar Peter the Great of Russia
• One of most prominent members of the
Romanov dynasty
• Became czar (or tsar) in 1689
• Absolutist monarch who claimed divine right
to rule
• Visited the west and came back determined
to westernize or Europeanize Russia
• Under Peter, Russia became a great military
power
• By his death, Russia was an important
European state
Military & Government
Changes
• Reorganize the army
• Form the first
Russian navy
• Divided Russia into
provinces
• Hoped to create a
police state
• Hoped for civic duty
from officials, but his
fears prevented it
Cultural Changes
• Began to introduce Western customs,
practices, & manners into Russia
• Beards were shaved and coats
shortened to imitate the west
• Insisted Russian upper class women
remove the veils that had traditionally
covered their face and move out into
society
St. Petersburg
• Object of reforms = Make Russia into a
great state and military power
• To do this he needed a port with access
to Europe
• A long and hard fought war with Sweden
achieved this goal
• St. Petersburg- a port city on the Baltic
Sea became the capital and would
remain such until 1918
St. Petersburg