AP European History
Unit 3 – Absolute Monarchs in Theory and Practice compared to Constitutional Governments (Chapters 16 & 17)
In Class
Homework
Day 1
Review Unit 2 Test
Read pp. 531-537 (up to Absolute Monarchy of Louis XIV)
10/29
1. Define absolutism.
Tuesday
2. Why was Henry IV such a popular king?
3. How did Sully help Henry IV and France to become so
strong?
4. In what ways does the French minister Richelieu
symbolize absolutism? What were his achievements?
Give examples of how he enforced his rules.
5. Explain how the intendant system worked.
6. What is the significance of the Fronde and what effect
did it have on the future of France?
Day 2
Primary Source: Cardinal Richelieu Read pp. 537-541 (up to Revocation of the Edict of Nantes)
10/30
- The Political Testament
1. Why do scholars refer to Louis XIV's reign as the "Grand
Wednesday
Century" or "Age of Magnificence?"
2.
Some scholars consider Louis XIV to be absolute in his
Teacher Notes on Louis XIV
power - how does McKay (author of your book) refute
that assessment?
3. What aspects of French culture/society were exported
throughout Europe? To what extent?
4. Why can it be said that the palace of Versailles was used
as a device to ruin the nobility of France? Was Versailles
a palace or a prison?
5. How did Louis XIV structure the government so that
France was the strongest and most centralized country in
Europe by 1685?
6. How did the French tax system work?
7. Define mercantilism. How did Colbert try to make
mercantilism work for France?
8. How successful was mercantilism in France?
Day 3
Discuss Intendants, Mercantilism,
Read pp. 541-544 (up to The Decline of Absolutist Spain in
10/31
and Louis XIV’s Palace of
the 17th Century)
Thursday
Versailles
1. Why did Louis XIV revoke the Edict of Nantes?
2. Was the revocation of the Edict of Nantes an error on the
part of Louis XIV?
3. How did playwright Moliere show himself to be a social
critic?
4. How was France able to create and maintain a national
fighting force of 250,000?
5. In France's 33 years of war, what was Louis XIV's main
objective?
6. As the wars progressed, how did Louis XIV financially
support his army?
7. What were two reasons the Grand Alliance went to war
against France?
8. What were the causes of the War of Spanish Succession?
9. What did the Peace of Utrecht do?
Day 4
Discuss Louis XIV
Read pp. 544-548 (up to Constitutionalism)
11/1
1. What were the factors that led to the decline of Spain?
Friday
2. In the early 17th century, why did Spain's trade with its
Essay outline - Louis XIV declared
colonies fall by 60%
his goal was “one king, one law,
3. How many times did Spain go bankrupt? How did those
and one faith.”
actions affect the perception of Spain?
4. Why was it a problem for Spain to only have a tiny
Analyze the methods the king used
to achieve this objective and discuss
the extent to which he was
successful.
1st body paragraph - "one king"
should discuss the purpose for the
Palace of Versailles
5.
6.
7.
8.
middle-class?
What was the problem with the kings of Spain between
1598-1700?
Explain the significance of the Treaty of the Pyrenees.
How did the culture of Spain, especially among the ruling
classes, contribute to the decline of Spain?
Explain why Cervantes's book Don Quixote is important.
2nd body paragraph - "one law"
should discuss the purpose for
intendants
Day 5
11/4
Monday
Day 6
11/5
Tuesday
Day 7
11/6
Wednesday
3rd body paragraph - "one faith"
should discuss the purpose of Louis
XIV revoking the Edict of Nantes.
Discuss Essay #1
Discuss Nightly Reading
Outline Essay #2
In 1490, there was no such country
as Spain, yet within a century it had
become the most powerful nation in
Europe and within another had sunk
to the status of a third-rate power.
Describe and analyze the major
social, economic, and political
reasons for Spain’s rise and fall.
Discuss Essay #2
Discuss the Rise of Hohenzollern
Prussia
Discuss the Rise of Hohenzollern
Prussia
Teacher notes (hyperlinked on my
School Loop webpage)
Finish Essay Outline
In 1490, there was no such country as Spain, yet within a
century it had become the most powerful nation in Europe and
within another had sunk to the status of a third-rate power.
Describe and analyze the major social, economic, and political
reasons for Spain’s rise and fall.
Read pp. 565-573 (up to Prussia in the Seventeenth Century)
1. What were the reasons for the re-emergence of
serfdom in eastern Europe in the early modern
period?
2. In western Europe the conflict between the kings and
his vassals (nobles) resulted in gains for the common
man. Why did this not happen in eastern Europe?
3. How did the Thirty Years War and invasion by the
Ottoman Turks help the Habsburgs consolidate
power?
4. What was the Pragmatic Sanction and why were the
Hungarian and Bohemian princes opposed to it?
Read pp. 573-576 (up to the end of the page)
1. How did the 30 Years War help Frederick William The
Great Elector establish absolute rule?
2. How was Frederick William the Great Elector able to
build a large army? How did the army help him? How
did the Junkers inadvertently reduce their own power and
give it to the Great Elector?
3. Discuss King Frederick William I's (the Soldier King)
personality and leadership.
4. How did King Frederick William I incorporate the
Junkers into his absolutist state?
5. Prussia has traditionally been considered one of the most
militaristic states in Europe. How do you explain this
development? Who or what was responsible?
Read about Frederick the Great
Day 8
11/7
Thursday
Essay outline #3
Analyze the military, political, and
social factors that account for the
rise of Prussia between 1640 and
1786.
Day 9
11/8
Friday
Quiz possibility
Video - Peter the Great
Day 10
11/11
Monday
NO SCHOOL – VETERAN’S DAY
Day 11
11/12
Tuesday
Discussion of the Westernization of
Russia During the Time of Peter the
Great 1689-1725
Day 12
11/13
Wednesday
Quiz possibility
Discuss Essay #4
Read pp. 577-585 (up to Absolutism and Baroque
Architecture)
1. How did the Mongols rule Moscow?
2. What were the highlights of Ivan the Terrible's reign?
3. Who were the Cossacks?
4. Explain the Time of Troubles.
5. How did Michael and Alexis Romanov's reign affect the
common man or peasant/serf?
6. What was the crisis that the Russian Orthodox Church
went through starting in 1652?
7. What reforms did Peter the Great implement in Russia?
8. Explain the major events of the Great Northern War.
9. What effect did the war have on Russian society and
Russia's political presence in the region?
Read pp. 585-589 (up to the end of the chapter)
1. What was the relationship between baroque architecture
and European absolutism? Give examples.
2. It has been said that the common man benefited from the
magnificent medieval cathedrals as much as the princes.
Can the same be said about the common man and the
building projects of the absolute kings and princes?
Explain.
3. What were the positive and negative aspects in building
St. Petersburg?
Read pp. 548-551 (up to Puritanical Absolutism in England)
1. What is constitutionalism? How does it differ from a
democratic form of government? From absolutism?
2. What were the attitudes and policies of James I that made
him so unpopular with his subjects?
3. How did society change during the 16th century and how
did those changes affect the House of Commons?
4. Why was Calvin's theology to attractive to English
people?
5. Who were the Puritans and what was their goal? Why did
they come into conflict with James I
6. How did William Laud attempt to bring about religious
uniformity? What was the people's reaction?
7. How did Charles I's actions lead to civil war between
1642-1649?
Essay outline #4
Analyze the major ways through which Tsar Peter the Great
(1689-1725) sought to reform his society and its institutions in
order to strengthen Russia and its position in Europe.
Read pp. 551-555 (up to The Dutch Republic in the
Seventeenth Century)
1. How did the English government operate under
Cromwell?
2. During the restoration, what was the purpose of the Test
Act?
3. What is the importance of the Cabal?
4. How did James II make Protestant England fearful?
5. What two events helped spur the Glorious Revolution?
6. What were the basic beliefs in the Bill of Rights?
7. Why is it said that Locke was the spokesman for the
Day 13
11/14
Thursday
Day 14
11/15
Friday
Lecture - The End of Absolutism in
England
TEACHER NOTES ON THE
GLORIOUS REVOLUTION
Finish Lecture about Glorious
Revolution
liberal English Revolution of 1689 and for representative
government?
 Primary Source - Hobbes: Leviathan
 Primary Source – Locke: Second Treatise on Government
Essay outline #5
Analyze the ways in which both the theory and the practice
of monarchy evolved in England from 1603 (the death of
Elizabeth I) to 1688-1689 (the Glorious Revolution).
Finish Reading
Review for Test
Day 15
11/18
Monday
Discuss Outline #5
Read pp. 555-559 (up to the end of
the chapter)
1. Describe the Dutch system of
government. How was it
different from that of other
western European states?
2. What was unusual about the
Dutch attitudes toward religious
beliefs?
3. How did religious toleration
help the Dutch economy?
4. How does a joint stock
company, like the Dutch East
Company, operate?
5. What kind of good fortune
came to the Netherlands as a
result of their trade and
commerce?
What factors led to the decline of
Dutch prominence in financial
affairs?
Day 16
11/19
Tuesday
Multiple Choice Test - (60
questions covering units 1-3)
Prepare for Essay Test
Day 17
11/20
Wednesday
Essay Test
Read pp. 595-602 (up to Causes of the Scientific Revolution)
1. Explain the Aristotelian view of the universe.
2. Why were Aristotle's views accepted for over 2,000 years?
3. What were the scientific and religious implications of
Copernicus's theory?
4. What are the contributions of Copernicus, Brahe, Kepler,
Galileo, and Newton?
5. What is meant by Newton's "synthesis"?
6. Read Primary Source - Galileo's Letter to the Grand
Duchess Christina
Read pp. 602-605 (up to the Enlightenment)
1.
2.
What four factors caused the scientific investigation
leading to the Scientific Revolution?
How did Bacon and Descartes contribute to the
3.
development of modern scientific method?
Did the Catholic and Protestant churches slow down or
help scientific investigation? Explain.
What were the consequences of the rise of modern
science?