Age of Absolutism
DBQ FROM AP WORLD HISTORY: AN ESSENTIAL COURSE BOOK BY ETHEL WOOD
QUESTION:
USING THE DOCUMENTS, ANALYZE THE CONCEPTS THAT RULERS HAD OF THEMSELVES, AS
WELL AS EXPECTATIONS THAT SUBJECTS HAD OF THEIR RULERS, DURING THE PERIOD FROM
1450 TO 1750. IDENTIFY ONE ADDITIONAL TYPE OF DOCUMENT AND EXPLAIN BRIEFLY HOW
IT WOULD HELP YOUR ANALYSIS.
SIGNS OF ABSOLUTE POWER
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Divine right- claim that power
was granted through God
Powerful military- Gunpowder
technology establishing
empire (maritime for
European powers) religious
wars were fought.
Competition over colonies
Harsh laws- don’t threaten
the power of the monarch
or…off with your head(must
protect power at all costs)
ENLIGHTENMENT: REACTION TO …
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18th Century
European movement
in which thinkers
attempted to apply
the principles of
reason and the
scientific method to
all aspects of society
REASONING…
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Until 1700’s, people
of France accepted
the fact that their
king ruled by divine
right
Philosophes:
intelligent,
reasonable men who
felt there was much
about life in Europe
that was unfair…
CAUSES OF ENLIGHTENMENT
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Renaissance humanism
Secularism- movement away
from the church
Democratic reform (creation of
legislative bodies and rise of
bourgeosie (new wealth class)
Perhaps confuciaism brought
back by Jesuit missionaries
Coffe houses and salons
Growth of universities and royal
patronage
DOC #1A DESCRIPTION OF ABBAS THE GREAT
BY HIS SECRETARY,
ESKANDER BEY MONSHI
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This doc from the Safavid Empire suggests a very complimentary vision by his secretary
identifying his knowledge of the world and” He has cultivated diplomatic relations with
most of the princes of the world, and the rulers of the most distant parts of Europe,
Russia, and India are on friendly terms with him. Foreign ambassadors bearing gifts are
never absent from his court, and the Shah’s achievements in the field of foreign relations
exceed those of his predecessors.”
Can be grouped politically or by Muslim rule or
favorably or by someone who works for the
Monarch
DOC #2 ELIZABETH I OF ENGLAND
AN ADDRESS TO HER ARMY BEFORE
THE ATTACK OF THE SPANISH ARMADA
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As a female ruler she must earn the trust of her military to help defeat the mighty
Spanish Armada “I know I have the body of a weak, feeble woman; but I have the
heart and stomach of a king – and of a King of England too, and think foul scorn that
Parma or Spain, or any prince of Europe, should dare to invade the borders of my
realm; to which, rather than any dishonor should grow by me, I myself will take up
arms – I myself will be your general, judge, and rewarder of everyone of your virtues
in the field”- she caters to their patriarchal notions of women and also the
embodiment of religious values ( she was their Virgin Queen taking on a Christian
persona)
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This can be grouped politically, culturally by European or favorably think of what will
England’s gain be when they defeat the Spanish Armada
DOC #3:AN INSCRIPTION BY SULEIMAN THE
MAGNIFICENT ON A TURKISH CITADEL
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A very grandiose vision of his absolute rule ( either as a legacy, egocentric or a justification of his rule “I am
God’s slave and sultan of this world. By the grace of God I am head of Muhammad’s community. God’s
might and Muhammad’s miracles are my companions. I am Suleiman, in whose name the hutbe [sermon] is
read in Mecca and Medina. In Baghdad I am the shah, in Byzantine realms the Caesar, and in Egypt the
sultan; who sends his fleets to the seas of Europe, the Maghrib and India
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”
This can be grouped by Muslim rule, politically,
religiously or by the highest favorable praise possible(
note its on a citadel which is a military fortification)
DOC #4 FRENCH BISHOP JACQUES-BENIGNE
BOSSUET COURT PREACHER TO LOUIS XIV AND
TUTOR TO LOUIS’ SON
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Someone, again, working for the absolute monarch who serves to justify the divine right (Godgranted) to rule “Behold an immense people united in a single person; behold this power,
paternal and absolute; behold the secret cause which governs the whole body of the state,
contained a single head: you see the image of God in the king, and you have the idea of royal
majesty. God is holiness itself, goodness itself, and power itself.
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This can be grouped by European, with #1 as someone who works for the monarch, by religious
or political. He is a representative of the Roman Catholic church and a staunch defender of
divine right(nobless oblige-noble obligations to serve the populace
DOC #5 PETER THE GREAT
DECREE ON THE INVITATION OF FOREIGNERS
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Peter the Great’s intention to “Westernize” selectively with some amount of suspicion trying to consolidate
his authority while ,at the same time, trying to move Russia ahead “For this end we have always tried to
maintain internal order, to defend the state against invasion, and in every possible way to improve and to
extend trade. With this purpose we have been compelled to make some necessary and salutary changes in
the administration, in order that our subjects might more easily gain knowledge of matters of which they
were before ignorant, and become more skillful in their commercial relations.”
This can be grouped economically, politically, by an even headed view of his own real
( to be compared with the over the top views of the other empires) moderate
westernization program ( remember warm water ports and his window to the west: St
Petersburg)
DOC #6 MATEO RICCI: JESUIT MISSIONARY ON
CHINA
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This foreigner ( to be compared with those sources from within the Empires) sees the
ethnocentric manner of rule of China and is quite critical of it “The extent of their
kingdom is so vast, its borders so distant, and their utter lack of knowledge of a
trans maritime world is so complete that the Chinese imagine the whole world as
included in their kingdom” yet is impressed by some of the components of the size (
but lacking maritime power)
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This can be grouped unfavorably, moderately, by an outsider, politically, economically
or culturally. Remember Ricci’s greatest goal was the conversion of Chinese to
Roman Catholicism which may have tainted his view of the Chinese under the Ming
Dynasty. Remember the transmission of learning from each area ( China received
quinine, accurate maps and calendars while Europe received inoculations,
enlightened ideas, and trading items like silk, porcelain and lacquer ware
THESIS
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From 1450-1750 the Age of Absolutism saw rule
through divine right monarchies or the Mandate of
Heaven, all economic decisions of empire building
or foreign trade rested in the hands of Sultans,
monarchs, Shah’s and Emperors, not all people
saw the great rule in the grandiose manners that
these rulers needed to justify their authority. An
additional documents from a religious minority (
Huguenot in Louis XIV after revocation of Edict of
Nantes) might provide a greater perspective as to
those who might be opposed to the absolute rule.
OTHER ADDITIONAL DOCUMENTS
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Enlightened thinkers like John Locke who believed that government should come
from the consent of the governed and might attempt to overthrow these
governments.
Thomas Hobbe’s Leviathan who supported the idea of an enlightened monarch to do
what was best for the people.
Catherine the Great as an enlightened despot to determine who she utilized her
power benevolently ?
A serf whose life in Russia became worse under the absolute rule of the Romanov’s
A Parliamentarian in England whose desire for more power would eventually cause
the English civil law and create the first Bill of rights
A scientist in England whose royal sponsorship pays for technological breakthroughs
which would advance the cause of both the public and private sphere.