Social Crises, War, and
Revolution
Chapter 7 Section 2
…from Magdeburg...
“There was nothing but beating and burning, plundering,
torture, and murder.
Most especially was every one of the enemy bent on securing
[riches]….In this frenzied rage, the great and splendid city
was now given over to the flames, and thousands of innocent
men, women and children, in the midst of heart trending
shrieks and cries, were tortured and put to death in so cruel
and shameful a manner that no words would suffice to
describe. Thus in a single day this noble and famous city,
the pride of the whole country, went up in fire and smoke.”
Economic and $ocial Crises
 One major economic problem plaguing Europe
was inflation, or rising prices.
 What caused this inflation, or rise?
1. Great influx of gold and silver from the Americas
2. Growing population in the sixteenth century increased
demand for land & food and drove up the prices for both
The Witchcraft Trials
 A belief in witchcraft, or magic, had been part of traditional
village culture for centuries.
 The religious zeal that led to the Inquisition and the hunt for
heretics also led to the hunting of witches.
 More than one hundred thousand people were charged in the
16th and 17th centuries.
 Who was charged most often?
 Common people – the poor and those without property – were
the ones most often accused.
 Of these, more than 75% were women – single or widowed and
over the age of 50.
By 1650, witchcraft
hysteria lessened because
people began to find it
unreasonable to believe in
the old view of a world
haunted by evil spirits.
Tombstones of the Victims
The ThirTy years’ War
 Takes place in the Holy Roman Empire –
 Several small, separate states
 States paid little attention to their emperor, Ferdinand, inherited from
brother Charles V
 War starts over religion –
 Northern states were protestant
 Southern states were Catholic, led by the Hapsburgs
 Soon the war turned political –
 France joins Sweden in fighting the Catholic Hapsburgs
The Peace of Westphalia
 Officially ended the war in Germany in
1648
 Terms of the peace:
 All German states could choose their own
religion
 300+ states of the Holy Roman Empire are
recognized as independent states
 France gains territory from Germany and
Spain; the Netherlands win independence
 This brought an end to the Holy Roman
Empire
 Germany would not be united for another two
hundred years
Revolutions in England
 The Stuarts and Divine Right
 Queen Elizabeth I dies in 1603 without an heir and the throne
is passed to her cousin, James I of England (James VI of
Scotland).
 James I joined the crowns and Great Britain is formed.
 James I strongly believed in the divine right of kings –
the belief that kings receive their power from God and are
responsible only to God.
 Parliament did not think much of the divine right theory;
assumed that the king or queen and Parliament ruled
England together.
The Reign of Charles I
 The Puritans wanted to make the Church of England more protestant; this
conflict began during the reign of James I and came to a head during the
reign of his son, Charles I.
 Charles also believes in divine right.
 1628 – Parliament passes a petition prohibiting the passing of any taxes
without Parliamentary consent.
 Charles initially accepts the petition but later changes his mind when he
realizes that it put limits on the king’s power.
 Charles tries to impose more rituals on the Church of England
 Puritans see it as a return to Catholic practices
 Thousands flee to America when Charles tries to force them to accept his
religious policies
Civil War and the Commonwealth
 In 1642 England slips into a civil war between the Cavaliers (or
Royalists) who were supporters of the king and the
Roundheads (so called because of their short hair) who were
the parliamentary forces.
 The Roundheads were led by Oliver Cromwell, a military
genius who put together the New Model Army that was made
up mostly of extreme Puritans known as the Independents.
Cromwell’s soldiers were well trained and disciplined in new
military tactics resulting in the Roundheads winning the war.
 Cromwell purged the parliament of those who did not support
him and had Charles I executed.
 England was made a commonwealth, or republic.
 Eventually set up a military dictatorship
The Restoration
 After Cromwell’s death in 1658, Parliament restores
the monarchy under Charles II, the son of Charles I.
 Charles II was sympathetic to Catholicism and his
brother James was a professed Catholic.
 Parliament grows weary of these Catholic leanings
and introduces the Exclusion Bill which would have
barred James from the throne as a Catholic.
 Debate over the Exclusion Bill produced two
political parties – the Whigs who wanted to exclude
James and the Tories who did not wish to interfere
with lawful succession to the throne.
 Charles dismisses Parliament in 1861 and dies in
‘65 leaving James as king who in turn appoints
Catholics to all top positions.
ARGHHHHH!!!
Glorious Revolution!
 A group of English noblemen invite the
Dutch leader William of Orange to invade
England because he and his wife are
protestant. (William’s wife Mary is the
daughter of James II.)
 In 1688, they raise and army and
“invade” England with almost no
bloodshed as James, his wife and infant
son flee to France.
 In 1689, they are offered the throne as
long as they accept the new English Bill
of Rights. William and Mary accept, and
the divine right theory ends as they take
the throne.
The English Bill of Rights
 Parliament has the right to make laws and levy taxes (16th
Amendment)
 Armies could only be raised by parliament (Legislative Branch)
 Citizens had the right to keep and bear arms and the right to a
trial by impartial jury (Amendments 2 & 6)
 Created a “limited monarch;” the king rules with laws and
parliament is elected. (Executive Branch)
The Toleration Act of 1689
 This act granted Puritans, but
not Catholics, the right of free
public worship. Few English
citizens, however, would ever
again be persecuted for religion.