Ch. 16 – The Age of Absolutism Review
Know the meaning or significance of the following terms/places/people:
*Huguenots
*boyars
*cabinet
*El Greco
*Long Parliament
*partition
*electors
*divine right
*intendants
*absolute monarchy
*mercenaries
*Edict of Nantes
*limited monarchy
*dissenters
*republic
*Peace of Westphalia
Spain
Charles V: (formerly Charles I)
- Inherited throne of Spain (1516) and later the throne of Hapsburg Empire (1519)
- Devout Catholic who fought to suppress Protestantism but was ultimately forced to let
German princes choose own religions
- Major threat to his empire was Ottomans who were advancing into central Europe
- Grew tired of ruling and gave up titles to his brother Ferdinand (who became HRE) and
his son, Philip II, who gained Spain, the Netherlands, some southern Italian states, &
Spain’s overseas empire
Philip II: (son of Charles V)
- Devout Catholic who worked hard and lived simply, like a monk
- Sought to defend Catholic Reformation and reverse Protestant Reformation
- Had 4 marriages to forge alliances & gain territory
- reigned as absolute monarch, claiming divine right to rule
- saw Queen Elizabeth as chief Protestant rival
- Amassed huge Armada thought to be finest in Europe, but when used to attack British
fleet, was surprisingly defeated, marking the beginning of the decline of Spanish power.
France
Henry IV: (Huguenot prince who became king)
- inherited throne in 1589 and converted to Catholicism to hold onto throne
- Issued the Edict of Nantes to encourage toleration of Protestants
- Killed by assassin & his 9-yr-old son Louis XIII inherited the throne
Louis XIII: (inherited throne in 1610 as a boy after father’s assassination)
- Cardinal Richelieu was chief minister for 18 yrs
- Richelieu selected Cardinal Mazarin as his own successor
Louis XIV: (inherited throne at age of 5 in 1643)
- Cardinal Mazarin served as chief minister until his death in 1661
- After Mazarin died, Louis took full control of government himself
- called himself the Sun King & proclaimed “I am the state”, he ruled as absolute monarch
- never called Estates General (medieval council of representatives of all French social
classes) during his reign, so nothing to keep his power in check
- strengthened royal power and appointed intendants to carry out his policies in provinces
- ruled from Versailles, where nobles would also live and compete to take part in the levee,
his morning rising ritual
- appointed nobles to high positions to keep their loyalty and have more control over them,
waged many costly wars
- Saw France’s Protestant minority as a threat and in 1685, he revoked the Edict of Nantes.
This spurred more than 100,000 Huguenots to leave France, striking a serious blow to the
French economy, for they were among the hardest working and most prosperous of
Louis’s subjects.
- in 1700, his grandson Philip V inherited the throne of Spain, sparking the War of Spanish
Succession as neighboring nations, led by England, sought to prevent the union of Spain
and France to keep the balance of power in Europe in check
England
Elizabeth I: died childless, so throne went to James Stuart, king of Scotland
James I: (first Stuart monarch)
- lectured Parliament about divine right; dissolved Parliament
Charles I: (NOT the one from Spain who became Charles V!)
- son of James I who inherited throne in 1625 and ruled as absolute monarch
- imprisoned foes without trial and squeezed nation for money
- needed to raise taxes in 1628 & was forced to summon Parliament, so Parliament forced
him to sign the Petition of Right, which forbade him to raise taxes without Parliament’s
consent or to jail people without legal justification
- dissolved Parliament in 1629 and ruled without them for 11 yrs, making many enemies
- his appointee Archbishop of Canterbury Laud tried to impose Anglican prayer book on
Scotland, sparking a revolt among Calvinist Scots
- needing money to suppress the rebellion, he was forced to call on Parliament for money
- This triggered the Long Parliament, which tried and executed his chief ministers
(including Laud), called for abolition of bishops, and declared Parliament could not be
dissolved without its own consent
- Charles led troops to House of Commons to arrest its most radical leaders, but they
escaped and raised a “New Model Army”, led by Oliver Cromwell
- Charles I’s supporters, called Cavaliers, fought Parliamentary forces called Roundheads
- Charles I captured, tried, and executed; House of Commons abolished monarchy and
Church of England and Cromwell became new leader of England
Oliver Cromwell: (Puritan who led Parliamentary forces to victory over Charles I)
- led newly-declared Commonwealth (republic) of England
- threatened by supporters of Charles II (uncrowned heir to throne), who attacked by way
of Ireland and Scotland; exiled Irish Catholics to barren land in west Ireland
- Took title of Lord Protector and ruled as virtual dictator through the army
England: (cont.)
Charles II: (son of executed king Charles I who took throne in 1660)
- invited to return to London & rule after death of Cromwell
- more popular than father; reestablished Church of England but encouraged toleration of
other Protestants; reopened theaters and taverns
- accepted Petition of Right, but believed in absolute monarchy & secretly had Catholic
sympathies
James II: (brother of Charles II who inherited throne in 1685)
- openly practiced Catholic faith & angered subjects by appointing Catholics to high
office, leading many to fear he would restore Roman Catholic Church
- alarmed Parliamentary leaders invited James’s Protestant daughter Mary & her Dutch
Protestant husband William III of Orange to rule England together instead of James II
- When they landed with their army, James II fled to France, and the bloodless overthrow
became known as the Glorious Revolution
- The Glorious Revolution ushered in a limited monarchy, for William and Mary had to
accept several acts passed by Parliament known as the English Bill of Rights before they
could be crowned; the Bill of Rights ensured the superiority of Parliament over the
monarchy, required the monarch to summon Parliament regularly, and gave the House of
Commons control over spending.
- a separate Toleration Act granted limited religious freedom to Puritans, Quakers, and
other dissenters, but only Church of England members could hold public office and
Catholics were allowed no religious freedom.
Austria:
Charles VI: (NOT from Spain or England!)
- no male heir, so persuaded European powers to recognize daughter’s right to rule
Maria Theresa: (daughter of Charles VI, 1st female ruler of Hapsburg Empire)
- had to fight to stay in power during War of the Austrian Succession
- strengthened Hapsburg Empire by reorganizing Hapsburg bureaucracy
Prussia:
Frederick William I:
- Prussian ruler who gained loyalty of Junkers by giving them positions in the army and
government
- Forged one of the best-trained armies in Europe.
Frederick II: (Frederick the Great)
- trained in art of war from young age
- mistreated by father for his love of poetry and flute, so he tried to run away
- was caught, thrown into solitary confinement, and forced to watch the execution of his
friend who had tried to help him run away
- became king in 1740 and challenged Maria Theresa’s rule by seizing the rich Hapsburg
province of Silesia (started War of Austrian Succession)
- used his military might to force all to recognize Prussia as a great power
Russia:
Peter the Great: (took throne in 1682 when 10 yrs old; took control of govt. in 1689)
- sought to westernize Russia and was very curious about learning western ways himself
- forced boyars to serve the state in civilian or military positions & made them cut their
beards and stop wearing traditional clothes; to maintain their loyalty, passed laws ensuring
they would retain control of their land, including the serfs that lived there, leading to
growth of serfdom in Russia
- waged war against the Ottoman Empire to try and gain control of warm-water port on
Black Sea but was unsuccessful
Catherine the Great: (German princess; married mentally-unstable heir to Russian throne)
- loyal Russian army officers deposed and murdered her husband and she then took throne
- successfully gained Black Sea warm-water port in Russo-Turkish War in 1774
- in 1772, partitioned Poland with Austria and Prussia and Russia each taking part of the
land; Russia gained lands in eastern Poland