World History
Unit 4 Review
1450 to 1800
Janissaries (1300s-1600s)
They were soldiers within the Ottoman Empire, created to protect and serve the
sultan. Many of them were Christian boys from the Balkan region and forced into
service. As part of their service, they had to accept Islam and pledge loyalty to the
sultan. As it might be imagined, working so close to the sultan earned them great
power and eventually, attempts at great influence.
Renaissance (1300s-1500s)
It was a cultural movement that stood as a
re-creation of the Greek and Roman
cultures from the 1300s to the 1500s. The
movement touched on several artistic
endeavors; humanism (a focus on earthly
matters), individualism (a move away
from church doctrine and the embrace of
secularism), art (more natural and life like
work that focused on the human body
and nature as it is) and architecture that
was characterized by classical Greek and
Roman styles with the introduction of
domes.
Ming Dynasty (1368-1644)
The Ming Dynasty was a period of
stable, native rule nestled between
two periods of foreign rule; the
Mongols and the Manchus. It is best
known for its economic expansion
and various social and cultural
changes. On the latter account,
the Ming restored the civil service
system as well as Confucian ideals
and their prominence in Chinese
society, the practice of footbinding
and the proliferation of poetry, fiction writing and philosophy. Economically, the
Ming greatly expanded as its population did. New crops were brought in from
the Americas, overseas trading increased with the efforts of Zheng He and
because of that, the merchant class grew in wealth and political power.
Johannes Gutenberg
The German inventor who revolutionized and altered
Western civilization. The fact that his invention emerged
on the scene along with the Protestant Reformation and
its call for people to develop a personal relationship with
God (through having their own Bible) helped cement his
importance in world history. Though there is a nice
picture to the right, what he looked like is a bit of a
mystery. He was born in Mainz and in all likelihood, died
there, spending the last years of his life in the ancient
city of nearby Eltville.
European Expansion
(1400s-1700s)
Europeans took advantage of the absence
of the Chinese and Arabs on the world's
waves to begin their own economic and
political expansion. Their moves were due
in part to the desire to find a more
efficient water route to the Asian markets
so as to avoid the Arab-controlled
overland routes. Other lands also held
the promise of providing cash crops,
something desperately needed because of
a booming population. They wanted to
spread Christianity. Additionally, they saw
the acquisition of territories as a symbol
of power and prestige. To make these
explorations, new technologies were
required. Items like sails, astrolabes,
magnetic compasses, more accurate maps
and faster, more durable ships allowed the
expansion to take place.
European Explorers
Major explorers included
Bartholomeu Dias from Portugal (he
rounded the Cape of Good Hope in
1488), Vasco da Gama from Portugal
(he continued Dias' route and
continued along the eastern coast of
Africa to India), Christopher
Columbus from Portugal (the
Americas) and Ferdinand Magellan
from...you guessed it...Portugal who
was the first European to cross the
Pacific.
The Monument to the Discoveries in Lisbon, Portugal
Columbian Exchange (1400s-1600s)
Joint-stock Companies (1400s-1800s)
This was a company that represented a collection of investors who grouped
together and shared the costs of the creation of colonies and companies as well
as the risks associated with such ventures. While privately controlled, such
companies received support from their governments. The most profitable and
consequently the most known were the Dutch East India Company and the
British East India Company.
Hacienda
The haciendas were large plantations in
Latin America while the continent was
under Spanish rule. It was responsible for
the production of cash crops as well as
some livestock. The peasants that worked
the land were known as peons. Many of
the peons were former landowners prior
to European expansion into the Americas.
A hacienda in El Salvador
African Diaspora (1400s-1800s)
Africans in servitude were scattered throughout the world from the Americas,
Europe and the Middle East. Wherever Africans went, they brought their culture.
The focus of the slave trade differed based on the region; the Atlantic slave trade
was based on finding men to work fields and mines where the slave trade out of
east Africa sought women for domestic duties.
Mercantilism (1400s-1900s)
The business of colonies is business – the
view from a very busy port as ships bring in
goods from the empire hinterlands
It was the economic theory held to by colonizing Europeans who sought to create
a favorable trade balance by exporting more than they imported. Colonies
represented a source of raw materials the country could produce into
manufactured products and then sell again in the colonial markets. Adam Smith,
in his book, Wealth of Nations, rejected this theory as unsustainable.
Forbidden City (1420)
The Forbidden City in Beijing – at night and
looking pretty cool.
It served as the capital of both the
Ming and Qing dynasties in the city of
Beijing. It was the residence of the
court. The size and ornateness
represented to visitors the wealth and
power of the courts.
Moctezuma II
He was the 9th emperor of the Aztecs,
taking over for his uncle an empire of over
6 million people. His approach to Hernán
Cortés was based on him thinking that the
conquistador was the reincarnation of the
god Quelzalcóatl. That approach allowed
Cortés to more quickly take over the
empire. Moctezuma was jailed and died
while in custody.
Babur
He was the founder of the Mughal Dynasty in
India. A descendant of Chinggis and Timur, he
grew in power by grabbing Kabul (in modern-day
Afghanistan) in 1504 and Delhi (modern-day
India) in 1525. Surrounded by enemies, he was
able to convince his military to stand against the
onslaught and for four years, they defeated all
comers. He often tried to conquer his homeland,
Ferghana in southern Uzbekistan, but met with
one defeat after another. He was a poet and a
surrounded himself with gardens. His work also
led to the creation of magnificent and artful
mosques. His grandson, Akbar, would pull the
empire together.
Henry VIII of England
As head of England, he is likely best
known for having many wives as he is
being the head of the Church of
England or the Anglican Church. He
created the church in response to the
pope, who would not allow an
annulment of his marriage. He
created his own church, he nullified
the authority of the Catholic Church
in his country. He was also a trained
musician.
Hans The Younger Holbein’s famous portrait of the
robust English monarch
Süleyman the Magnificent
Rising to prominence in the early 1500s
with the military defeats of Hungary and a
failed attempt at Vienna, he became the
sultan of the Ottoman Empire and, along
with his military exploits, was responsible
for the building of mosques and an
increased infrastructure. His
achievements in restructuring the legal
system earned him the title, "the lawgiver" but he is equally known for his
cultural pursuits and patronage.
Sultan Süleyman the Magnificent during the siege
of Rhodes
Demak (1475-1548)
The city was a major trading center along the
northern coast of the island of Java and arguably, the
most powerful. It was from this port that Islam
spread to other Javanese ports. It would further
spread from Demak to the Celebes and the eastern
part of the Indonesian archipelago
and the Philippines.
Northern Renaissance (1500s)
The Northern Renaissance occurred a
good century after the Italian
Renaissance, emerging in the
16th-century. It focused on the
northern European countries as well
as Poland and Hungary. The
humanism movement in the north
did not distance from Christianity to
the extent seen in the southern part
of the continent. Additionally, the
Northern Renaissance art, like Peasant Dance by Pieter
northern variety saw a great deal
Breughel (above), placed an emphasis on showing ordinary
life.
more political change as a result
than what was seen in Italy, with northern leaders gaining more state powers.
However, like in Italy, the extent to which the Renaissance influenced the
region was limited to social class with most people unaffected by the
movement.
Protestant Reformation (1500s)
Martin Luther’s posting of his 95 Theses upon the
church doors in Wittenberg.
Started by the German monk
Martin Luther, the Reformation was
an attempt to break away from the
Catholic Church when attempts to
reform it failed. The Reformation,
began in Germany, soon spread to
England where King Henry VIII
created his own church, the
Anglican Church (though not based
on purely religious reasons) and
Switzerland where John Calvin
expanded Luther's idea to include
the notion of predetermination. The Catholic
Church responded to the
movement with the CounterReformation where it attempted to
reform itself.
Martin Luther
He was a German monk who, through a
lifetime of study, felt the Catholic Church
had certain practices wrong. His ninetyfive theses were a collection of these
arguments, including his problem with the
selling of indulgences, the exclusive
printing of the Bible in Latin rather than
the vernacular and the notion that
salvation was only possible through works
rather than through faith, as professed by
Paul. His ideas led to his
excommunication by the Church but also
created a movement that then led to the
development of the Protestant sect of
Christianity.
Lucas Cranach’s (German painter – 1472-1553)
portrait of Martin Luther
Spanish Conquest
The largest concentration of Spanish
conquest was in the Americas with the
arrival of conquistadors who sought gold,
converts and glory. Some of the first,
most known conquistadors were Hernán
Cortes (who took out the Aztecs in
modern-day Mexico) and Francisco Pizarro
(who conquered the Incas in modern-day
Peru). Their conquests were aided by the
fact that natives possessed no immunity
to the diseases carried by the Europeans,
most notably smallpox. The Spanish also
took the Philippines in Southeast Asia,
looking for economic and spiritual
opportunities. By taking over Manila, the
Spanish ensured themselves control of
trade with the Chinese and other nearby
civilizations.
The arrival of the conquistadors to the
Americas
Spain’s American Empire
Spain maintained an empire of the entirety of central and south
America with two major centers of authority in Mexico and
Peru. These areas were overseen by a viceroy, answerable only to
the king and they set out to enforce imperial rule. Society was
broken down by one's connection to Spain. Peninsulares were the
highest class and represented those born in Spain. They were
followed by creoles, those born in the Americas to people born in
Spain. The mestizos were people of mixed Spanish and native
parentage. At the bottom of the social ladder were the natives and
people of African descent. Missionaries represented the king as well
as God and were tasked with converting the native masses (those
still alive after disease killed many). Many natives took Christianity and blended it with their
indigenous beliefs. Today, the majority of people in Latin America are Roman Catholic - a
direct result of missionary work. The economy of the region rested on two major products:
sugar and natural resources (gold and silver). Sugar was more prevalent in Portuguese Brazil
but was also common in many Caribbean islands. Many slaves taken out of Africa were
destined for sugar plantations. Silver was mainly mined in Mexico and Peru. Spanish silver
would make its way into every major commercial center in the world. While it temporarily
made Spain rich, the flood of silver on the world market devalued it and Spain suffered as a
result.
Absolutism (1500s-1600s)
It was the idea that the power of
monarchs was complete and blessed by
God. The monarch made the laws as well
as directed domestic and foreign
policies. These developments solidified
the notion of the modern-day nationstate. It was most prevalent during the
16th and 17th centuries. French King
Louis XIV was the personification of the
philosophy as he overturned the Edict of
Nantes and spent much of the French
treasury on palaces, such as Versailles. It
was England that began to challenge the
notion during the 17th-century.
A very jaunty and kinda creepy painting of
Louis XIV of France
Encomienda System (1500s-1700s)
Illustration of how the first part of the law was observed but
not so much the second part
This was a decree by the Spanish
king that Spanish landowners
could use native populations for
labor as long as they were
looked after. Being so far from
the king, landowners were more
keen to work the natives to
death than to look after
them. The result was an
increasingly shrinking labor force
which precipitated using African
labor. Christian missionaries
were one group who fought
against the decree, horrified at
the treatment of the natives.
Safavid Empire (1502-1736)
A family that, after a fight with the
Ottomans in the early 1500s, consolidated
power over modern-day Iran and they
ruled until the early 1700s. The official
religion of the empire was the Shi'ite sect
of Islam. Shah Abbas the Great, who
ruled from the late 1500s to the early
1600s, moved the capital to Isfahan,
modernized his army and established
trade links that flourished and
expanded. However, the Safavid were the
victims of geography, with the Ottomans
to the west, the Russians to the north and
the Moghuls to the south. As these
empires continued to get stronger, the
Safavid suffered towards decline.
Mogul (Mughal) Empire (1526-1857)
Started as a Muslim empire but
heavily influenced by Persians,
the Moguls ruled India from
the 1500s to the 1600s. Their
empire was the result of the
defeat of the Delhi
Sultanate. Akbar unified much
of the subcontinent under a
strong centralized
government. The empire's
golden age represented a high
point for Islamic art and
architecture, epitomized by the
Taj Mahal. The empire began
to decline as it departed from
its religious toleration origins
and the arrival of the
Europeans.
Akbar the Great
Considered one of the greatest of the
Mughal rulers, Akbar descendent from
Timur and Chinggis Khan. Even though he
was a Muslim, he included Hindus in the
highest levels of his government and
worked to reduce discrimination against
other non-Muslims. As he conquered
more territory, he strengthened the
central government, took a hand in
appointing top military officials and was a
serious and regular patron of the arts. His
government was a hallmark and example
of future governments, displaying
benevolence, tolerance, strength and an
enlightened attitude.
A painting showing the great
Mughal leader
“Although he (Akbar) seems to have been no more than five feet seven
inches tall, he impressed observers as a dominating personality. Clearly,
although he was illiterate, he had a powerful and original mind.”
Ivan the Terrible
Victor Vasnetsov’s portrait of Ivan IV
He was the Grand Prince of Moscow and
the first Russian ruler to take the title
czar. He also began his rule in contrast to
his eventual, historical name. He was
known for the centralization of the
government, an organization and
bureaucratic reform of the Orthodox
Church, established the first parliamentlike assembly and limited the power of the
nobles (boyars). However, the latter half
of his reign was characterized by a
growing suspicion of those around him
and he soon detached from day-to-day
affairs. He also began a Russian version of
a "reign of terror" by having killed
thousands of boyars, the destruction of
Novgorod and personally killing his son,
who he feared was conspiring against him.
Times of Troubles (1500s-1600s)
With the death of Ivan IV (“the Terrible”), the boyars of Russian
society attempted to grab power originally held by the czar.
That as well as the attacks by the Swedes and Poles brought
about a period of chaos in Russia. However, by 1613, the
boyars finally decided on a new royal family – choosing the
Romanov family, who would rule over Russia until the
revolution of 1917.
Pavel Ryzhenko’s “The Time of Troubles” 2003
Slave Trade (Atlantic)
The European usage of Africans slaves
stemmed from a lack of labor in the
Americas and the need for workers in the
sugar plantations in the Caribbean, the silver
mines in South America and cash crop
plantations in North America. It absorbed
some 11 million Africans before most
European countries outlawed the practice
by the 19th-century.
Slaves transported to the
New World
Slavery (Africa)
Africans took and sold their fellow
Africans in the interior of the
continent to Europeans who hung
out on the coast in heavily
fortified “slave” forts – the largest
and most prominent being El
Mina. Since most captives were
men, the trade destroyed families
though it did not diminish the
continent's population.
Defeated tribesmen and their families being taken to
slave traders on the coast by victorious warriors
Scientific Revolution (1550-1700)
The movement was borne out of the wave of questioning brought about by the Renaissance
and the Reformation. The movement would eventually lead to a greater secularization in
Europe. One of the first ideas challenged was the notion of universe being centered around
the earth (geocentric theory); an idea supported by the church and first conceived by the
Greeks and the Romans. Nicolaus Copernicus argued that the universe was heliocentric,
meaning centered around the sun. Not surprisingly, the church and other orthodox figures
rejected these notions but it did inspire more questioning. Galileo Galilee was a
mathematician and astronomer who constructed a telescope to consider Copernicus'
ideas. Isaac Newton, yet another mathematician, used his skills to formulate the universal
gravitation theory. Rene Descartes championed the use of reason to discover truth. The
idea of truth being discovered through a combination of reason, observation and
experimentation became known as the Scientific Method.
Counter-Reformation (1560-1648)
A reaction to the Protestant
Reformation and an attempt at
self-policing, the Catholic Church
sought to slow the Protestant
momentum as well as win back
those who left the Church. At
The Council of Trent and the search for reform
the Council of Trent, church
officials sought to clearly define
the doctrine of the Church, created new religious orders to proselytize and
defend the new doctrine and reform the Church from within. Some of the
new orders included the Society of Jesus (the Jesuits).
battle of Lepanto (1571)
This was a naval battle pitting the Christian forces of Venice and Spain against the
Ottomans off the coast of Lepanto, Greece. While, in a practical sense, it did not
prove impactful (the Venetians would give up Cyprus to the Turks a couple of years
later), it worked to build the morale of Europeans. The Ottoman navy was utterly
destroyed but the Ottoman land forces were
intact and the navy was quickly rebuilt and
their supremacy restored though their
reputation of being invincible was destroyed.
Azuchi-Momoyama (1573-1603)
This is the period of unification
following the civil war period of
Japanese history. It revolves around the
leadership of Oda Nobunaga and
Toyotomi Hideyoshi. Nobunaga fought
to unify the country, battling the
militant Tendai Buddhist monks among
other rival daimyos. Both rulers made
economic reforms to break the hold
guilds and temples had on trade and
such. The two also brought in Christian
missionaries to offset the power of
Buddhists. However, the latter ruler
would eventually limit their activities.
Toyotomi Hideyoshi
Hideyoshi was one of three leaders
responsible uniting Japan, along with Oda
Nobunaga and Tokugawa Ieyasu after the
Japanese warring period. Following the death
of Nobunaga, he set up a structure of society
with the warriors and the rest, following the
Chinese model. His worst maneuvers involved
twice attempting to invade Korea.
Domestically, he revised the tax codes and
encouraged foreign trade. He also invited the
first Christian missionaries into the country to
check the power and influence of the
Buddhists, then, suspicious of the Christians’
influence, he began limiting their activities and
persecuting others. Upon his death, power
shifted to Ieyasu.
Edict of Nantes (1598)
Coming out of the Wars of Religion and signed
by Henry IV of France, the document granted
religious and civil rights for the Protestant
Huguenots. Protestant ministers would be paid
by the state, allowed to conduct services
throughout the country but not in Paris. The
Catholic Church reacted strongly. Cardinal de
Richelieu nullified some of the edict’s political
components and Louis XIV nullified the entire
document in 1685.
Deism
It was a thought that there was a powerful
God out there that created everything
however, he now looks on in indifference
to what is going on and allows the earth
to develop in accordance to its own
natural laws. The school of thought was
borne out of the Scientific Revolution and
heavily influenced scientists and scholars
during the 1600s and 1700s.
Tokugawa Period (1603-1867)
A portrait of Tokugawa Ieyasu
by Kano Ryotaku
Beginning in 1603 with the rise to shogun status of
Tokugawa Ieyasu, it was a military governorship that
lasted for the next two and a half centuries. The shoguns
were military rulers who secured their rule by way of
centralized authority and stability. This was in contrast
to the previously decentralized period of Japanese
feudalism. The Tokugawa eliminated foreign contact in
an attempt to preserve Japanese culture from the
recently arrived Christian missionaries the century
before. By the 1640s, these isolation moves extended
to foreign trade and visitors. The subsequent period was
known as Pax Tokugawa. This period of peace also
brought about social and economic changes. The former
tops of the social ladder under feudalism, the samurai
and daimyo classes, redirected their military activities
towards the arts. New crops led to an increase in
population, as seen in China. As population grew, so did
the merchant class.
Edo (1603-1867)
A map of Edo (Tokyo) in the 1840s
Founded and named by a local warlord,
it was first fortified with a castle in the
mid-1400s. In 1590, the castle was
passed to Ieyasu Tokugawa who in turn,
made the city the capital of the
province in 1590 and thirteen years
later when Ieyasu was named shogun,
he made Edo the his capital. However,
the imperial capital remained Kyoto.
Because of the shoguns, the city
became a commercial and cultural
center. However, as the shoguns
weakened, so did the city’s prominence.
When the last of the Tokugawa shogun
surrendered to the emperor in 1868,
the emperor renamed the city Tokyo
and made it the new imperial capital.
The Russian Empire (1613-1917)
The beginnings of the empire was due to Muscovite princes after the defeat of
the Mongols in the late 1400s. In doing so, the princes absolved the authority of
local princes. Ivan III used the Cossacks, the Russian version of the American
western settlers, to expand and take over additional land. Meanwhile, Ivan
solidified a centralized rule and claimed divine ordination. He proclaimed
Moscow to be the new capital of
the new empire.
The Romanovs (1613-1917)
They were a dynastic family who ruled
Russia from the early 1600s to
1917. The first Romanov to rise to
power was Mikhail after a period of
internal unrest. The family continued
many of the practices and traditions of
earlier czars and emphasized allegiance
to the Eastern Orthodox Church.
The coat of arms for the Romanov family
Thirty Years’ War (1618-1648)
It was a conflict over religion as the emperor of the Holy Roman Empire attempted
to bring his subjects back to the Church. It was fought during the first half of the
1600s and included much of Europe. The Peace of Westphalia brought the war to
an end but left the Holy Roman Empire much weaker. German states were given
independence with Prussia proving to be the most powerful. Switzerland also
earned its independence and France was granted more territories. The most
significant aspect of the treaty was the beginning of the European nation-state.
Louis XIV of France
In explanation of the idea of absolutism, he
once said, “I am the state.” His government
would sponsor the advances of education and
the sciences. He expanded his country’s
economy by lowering internal tariffs and raising
external ones, in line with mercantilism theory.
He and his chief minister, Cardinal Richelieu,
were responsible for creating a highly
centralized government where he sat at the
top, ordained by God. One of the most telling
parts of his rule was the opulence he
surrounded himself with, such as his palace in
Versailles. Compelling his nobles to live at the
palace, he and his ministers ran the country. By
the time he died, France was as well off as it
ever was but his rule is negatively referred to by
his refusal to call the Estates General into
session and revoking the Edict of Nantes.
English Civil War
(1642-1651)
It was based on a conflict between Charles I,
who supported the notion of an absolute
monarchy, and the English Parliament, who
sought to limit the power of the king. In need
of money, the king initially agreed to the
Petition of Rights that limited his power in the
areas of taxation and policing to placate the
Parliament but once he disbanded the
legislative body, he ignored the
petition. Needing money again, he called up
the Parliament in 1640 but two years later, the
king, tired of the obdurate and demanding
legislative members, brought in the military to
arrest his biggest opponents. The civil war
commenced. The Parliament established a
constitutional monarchy, executed Charles I
and, after a brief rule by Oliver Cromwell,
placed Charles II upon the throne who served
in a limited capacity having agreed to the writ
of habeas corpus, protecting ordinary citizens
from the arbitrary use of power by the
government. Later, Parliament was able to
pass the English Bill of Rights.
Qing Dynasty (1644-1911)
The name given to the Manchu
rulers of the last dynastic family in
China, the Qing ruled from the mid1600s until 1911. They upheld the
Confucian ideals of their
predecessors as well as the Ming's
penchant for highly centralized,
bureaucratic rule. During their rule,
the Qing increased foreign contact
and trade due, in part, to the high
demand for silk and porcelain.
treaty of Westphalia (1648)
In an agreement that ended the Thirty Years’ War, the Habsburg recognized the
independence of Switzerland as well as the sovereignty of the German states. In
doing so, the Holy Roman Emperor had to accept that Germany would never be a
Catholic domain. Sweden gained control over the Baltic Sea, France gain a
recognized eastern border, along the Rhine and the United Provinces of the
Netherlands gained their independence from Spain.
Sor Juana Ines de la Cruz
She was a poet, playwright, scholar, nun and
an early feminist. Of modest origins, her
intelligence garnered attention in Mexico City
but she turned her attentions elsewhere. She
became a nun and remained cloistered for the
rest of her life. Her most famous work
includes Primer Sueño (First Dream) in 1692,
which speaks of a soul’s quest for knowledge
and Respuesta a Sor Filotea (The Reply to Sister
Filotea of the Cross) in 1691, defending a
woman’s right to knowledge. Her writings
were extensive and it is said that she had one
of the largest private libraries in the western
world.
Taj Mahal (1652)
Mogul emperor Shah Jahan built it as
a tomb in memory of his wife, who
died during childbirth. It is the most
famous example of Islamic/Hindu
architecture.
The Taj Mahal outside of Agra, India
He is considered most responsible for the
beginning of Russia's turn away from its
agrarian past and towards the
modernization of western Europe. He
experienced the region himself once czar by
touring it, sometimes as a foreign ruler but
other times as a common worker in
disguised. Much of the reforms (military,
social and political) were instituted once he
returned in order to be more like Europe, in
particularly Germany. He sent Russians to
Europe to learn the latest in
military strategies and industrial methods as
well as mandating court officials to shave
their beards and appear more western in
clothing. His largest external threats were
the Turks of the Ottoman Empire and the
Swedes. He re-established the capital to St.
Petersburg, along the Baltic. He died from
complications of his rescue of some
drowning sailors.
Peter the Great
French painter Hippolyte Delaroche’s (17971856) portrait of the Russian monarch
Coming out of the ideas of the Scientific
Revolution and the methodology of the
Scientific Method, social and political
scholars began considering that reason
could also be applied to their fields. John
Locke pushed ideas such as natural rights
and that the government was bound to
protect these. If they failed or refused,
such governments could and should be
ousted by the people. Baron de
Montesquieu suggested that government
would work more responsibly if there
were different branches with their own
power, as well as power to check the
other branches. Voltaire (right) argued for
free speech and religious toleration. JeanJacques Rousseau put forth the idea of
the Social Contract; the idea that people
must accept the loss of some selfinterests for the good of the many in
forming governments.
Enlightenment
(1700s)
Francois Marie Arouet (Voltaire) was a
writer and political theorist who drove
the French monarchy mad.
Nationalism (1700s-1800s)
In a dictionary sense, it means an
excessive pride in one's country or
culture. The various independent and
unification movements during the 1700s
and 1800s were based on this concept. It
was prevalent during the French
revolution, the Zionist movement, the
Indian National Congress, the unification
movements of Germany and Italy and the
independence of Latin American states.
Frederick the Great
The great Prussian leader was able to expand
upon his predecessors with regards to the
military and bureaucratic organization. He also
provided greater religious freedom as well as
economic power of the state. As an
“enlightened despot,” he promoted
Enlightenment ideas with better agricultural
methods, pushed for greater economic equality
and toned down the harsher punishments of
the past.
“Diplomacy without arms is like music without
instruments.”
Catherine the Great
“I will live to make myself not feared.”
For the daughter of an unimportant German
prince, she made a great deal out of
herself. She entered the court as the wife of
Peter III but soon disposed of him. As czar,
she started out with great intentions (the
diminishing of the centralized authority she
declared inhumane and the emancipation of
the serfs) but none of those good ideas ever
manifested themselves. She believed in
change as long as it did not interfere with
her power. She is known for the extension
of the Russian empire (incorporating Poland
and the Crimea) and with connecting and
interacting with western Europe. She is also
known as the "enlightened despot" for her
efforts in building schools and hospitals as
well as a general religious toleration.
Aleksei Petrovich Antropov’s portrait of
Catherine II
Seven Years’ War (1756-1763)
The term refers to a series of conflicts
that waged from 1756 to 1763. The
war was a product of economic
rivalries that existed in Europe over
the treasures of the Americas. The
wars were seen in India, the West
Indies (Caribbean) and North
America. As a result of the conflict,
the French lost their empire in North
America and the British would create
more control over the contested
regions, squeezing the French out in
the process.
The British conquest of French Canada
battle of Plassey (1757)
The growth of the British Raj played itself
throughout India but one of the bigger
conflicts of the struggle occurred in
Plassey, in modern-day Bangladesh. In it,
less than 3,000 British and Indian sepoys,
under the command of famed British
general Robert Clive, defeated an Indian
army of some 50,000, under the
leadership, as it were, of a teenage local
ruler in Bengal named Siraj ud-daula.
Beyond the staggering defeat of so many
at the hands of so few, Clive was well
aware of the other army through bribery
and spies. Additionally, the British were
funded by Hindu bankers upset at unpaid
Muslim debts. The defection of portions
of the Indian army did not hurt Clive’s
cause either.
St. Petersburg,
Russia
The Catherine Palace in St. Petersburg, Russia
Peter the Great established this city, along the Baltic Sea, as the capital of
Russia. Of course, he named it for himself. Wouldn't you? St. Petersburg
was seen as the epitome of Russian modernization efforts and was known as
the "window to the west."
American Revolution (1775-1783)
Britain's American colonies, in the mid-1700s, began to resist against
parliamentary tax legislation and its violation of English rights. The colonies
created a continental congress to begin formulating those things required for a
separation, including an army and military leadership. On 4 July 1776, the
colonies declared their independence. The thinking that lay behind the
declaration was firmly rooted in Enlightenment thinking such as inalienable
rights and government based on the consent of the governed. It was France that
would provide the needed supplies and money for the Americans to win the war
and Britain did surrender in 1781.
The subsequent democratic
government based on the will of
the people influenced many other
revolutions and uprisings in the
decades and centuries to come.
Washington and his men cross
the Delaware to face Hessians
on the other side.
Louis XVI of France
He presided, along with his Austrian wife Marie
Antoinette, over the devolution of the French
monarchy at the hands of angry peasant mobs.
In 1788, he attempted to raise money through tax
reforms through a new parliament but the
Enlightenment-influenced members set out to
create a real parliament with voting powers and
not the tool that the king hoped they would be.
By 1789, the revolution was under way. While
the king attempted to appease the peasants with
limited reforms, it was not enough. While
European monarchs and aristocrats (as well as
church leaders) voiced their opposition to the
revolution, the leaders of the movement grew
more radical. In 1793, the radicals abolished the
monarchy and Louis and his wife were
decapitated at the guillotine. The executions
ushered in the Reign of Terror.
National Assembly (late 1700s)
This was the creation of the Third
Estate, who broke away from the
Estates General, the legislative body
during the monarchial period of French
history. The Third Estate was heavily
influenced by Enlightenment thinking
and the success and ideals of the
American revolution. Operating under
the idea of "life, liberty and fraternity,"
they pushed Enlightenment ideas and
adopted a new constitution in 1791
which created a constitutional
monarchy. However, the Assembly
could not last and it could not control
the excesses of the movement and
could not fulfill all of their ideals.
Declaration of the Rights of Man and
the Citizen (1789)
Declared by the French National Assembly prior
to the revolution, it would be the basis of the
Constitution of 1791. It declared that all men
were born free and equal with regards to rights.
The major rights mentioned include liberty and
private property. It also detailed freedoms with
regards to religion and speech. It stood in direct
opposition to the king (Louis XVI) particularly and
the monarchial system in general.
The French Revolution (La Révolution)
It was a revolution that began in 1789
and led to the immediate trial and
execution of King Louis XVI and Marie
Antoinette. The rule of France passed to
the radical Jacobins who initiated the
“reign of terror.” The subsequent
instability and government
incompetence led to the rise of
Napoléon Bonaparte.
C'était une révolution qui a commencé en
1789 et a causé le procès immédiat et
l'exécution du Roi Louis XVI et de Marie
Antoinette. L’autorité de la France a
passé aux Jacobins radicaux qui ont lancé
le "règne de terreur.” L'instabilité qui a
suivi et l'incompétence gouvernementale
ont causé l'ascension de Napoléon
Bonaparte.
Napoléon Bonaparte
He was a French general who led a coup
d'état in 1799. He crowned
himself emperor by 1804 with a new
constitution. He initiated political and
social reforms that created a certain level
of stability. His civil code of laws created
universal male enfranchisement and
pushed for religious toleration. Militarily,
he conquered much of Europe. He made
a huge mistake in invading Russia in 1812
and between the Russians and the
horrible Russian winter, suffered a
humiliating and total defeat. The British
would later exile him.
Jacques-Louis David’s famous painting,
Napoléon at the Saint-Bernard Pass
Congress of Vienna (1814-1815)
In session from 1814 to 1815, it comprised representatives of those countries
who defeated Napoléon Bonaparte. Their objective was to restore Europe to
its pre-French Revolution condition. It was led by Prince Metternich of Austria
and their particular goals were to restore the French monarchy and create a
balance of power to
ensure this type of
instability would not
happen again. While not
perfect, Europe would not
face another major war
until World War I.
Yet another gathering of European
leaders, this time to decide the fate of
France.