Chapter 17 The Age of Absolutism

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Chapter 17 The Age of Absolutism

• By Michael Giampapa

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Spain and the Hapsburg Empire

• Spain was the first modern European power. Queen
  Isabella financed Columbuss voyage, leading to
  the Spanish conquest of the Americas. Isabellas
  grandson, Charles V was heir to the Hapsburgs,
  the Austrian rulers of the Holy Roman Empire and
  Netherlands. He was a devout Catholic who
  suppressed the Protestant movement in the German
  states. His greatest foe was the Ottoman empire.
  He couldnt rule all of the Hapsburg empire by
  himself, so he entered a monastery and divided
  his empire. He gave lands in central Europe to
  his brother Ferdinand, and Spain, Netherlands,
  and southern Italy to his son Philip.

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An Imposing Monarch

• King Philip II was hardworking, devout, and
  ambitious. He sought to expand Spanish influence,
  strengthen Catholic Church, and make his power
  absolute. His palace, the Escorial, served as a
  Church, residence, and tomb for members of the
  royal family. He centralized royal power and
  became an absolute monarch, ruler with complete
  authority over the country. He also believed in
  divine right, in which his authority to rule came
  directly from God. He wanted to defend the
  Catholic Reformation and turn back Protestant
  tide in Europe

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Wars of Philip II

• Philip fought many wars. He battled Protestant
  rebels in the Netherlands. In 1581, the northern
  Protestant provinces became known as the Dutch
  Netherlands. The southern remained Catholic and
  part of the Spanish empire. He saw Englands
  Queen Elizabeth I as his chief protestant enemy.
  Elizabeth persuaded English captains, known as
  Sea Dogs, to plunder Spanish treasure ships.
  Philip took the initiative and prepared a huge
  armada, or fleet, to carry Spanish invasion force
  to England. The weather favored the English and
  many Spanish ships took losses from the faster,
  lighter English ships. In the end, however, the
  Dutch, English and French fleets surpassed
  Spanish power in Europe.

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The Golden Century

• From 1550 to 1650, Spains siglo de oro, or
  Golden century had brilliant arts and literature.
  One famous painter El Greco, studied in
  Renaissance Italy before settling in Spain. He
  produced haunting religious pictures, and
  portraits of Spanish nobles. An amazing writer
  named Miguel de Cervantes, wrote Don Quixote, the
  first modern novel in Europe.

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Sec 2 France Under Louis XIV

• During the 1560s to the 1590s, religious wars
  between Huguenots (French Protestants) and the
  Catholic majority drove France apart. On St.
  Bartholomews Day, August 24, 1572, Huguenot and
  Catholic nobles celebrated a royal wedding.
  Violence had erupted which led to the massacre of
  3,000 Huguenots. St. Bartholomews Day Massacre
  symbolized the breakdown of order in France.

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Henry IV and Richelieu

• Henry IV, also called Henry of Navarro, was a
  Bourbon prince and Huguenot leader. He changed
  religions from Protestant to Catholic, since the
  majority of France was Catholic. He issued the
  Edict of Nantes to grant Huguenots religious
  toleration and let them live in their own towns
  and cities. In the year 1610, he was killed by an
  assassin and his son Louis XIII inherited the
  throne. He hired Cardinal Armand Richelieu as his
  chief minister. Richelieu wanted to destroy the
  power of the nobles and the Huguenots. He
  handpicked his own successor which was Cardinal
  Jules Mazarin. In 1643, Louis XIV inherited the
  throne. Mazarin was his chief minister who tried
  to extend royal power.

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Louis XIV From Boy King to Sun King

• Louis believed in divine right. The sun was the
  symbol of his power. Since the sun was the center
  of the solar system, the Sun King was the center
  of the French nation. Louis strengthened the
  state by expanding the bureaucracy and appointing
  intendants, royal officials who collected taxes,
  recruited soldiers and carried out policies.
  Louis found a chief finance minister named Jean
  Baptiste Colbert. He bolstered the economy and
  promoted trade. His policies made France the
  wealthiest country in Europe.

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Splendor of Versailles

• Louis XIV built an huge palace in Versailles. It
  was a symbol of the Sun Kings wealth and power.
  He supported a splendid century of the arts. An
  actor-playwright named Moliere turned comedies
  such as The Miser, into the delight of
  middle-class citizens. Louis supported French
  Academies, which set high standards in art and
  science.

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Successes and Failures

• Louis fought many wars. Some led by the Dutch or
  English, fought to maintain balance of power,
  distribution of military power that would prevent
  any one nation from dominating Europe. Louiss
  grandson inherited the throne of Spain, which led
  to The War of the Spanish Succession. France
  signed the Treaty of Utrecht, in which France
  agreed never to unite the twp crowns. In the
  revoking of the Edict of Nantes, more than
  100,000 Huguenots fled France, because they were
  threat to religious and political unity.

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Sec 3 Triumph of Parliament in England

• The Tudor Dynasty ruled England from 1485 to
  1603. Henry VIII broke with the Roman Catholic
  Church and became head of the Church of England.
  His daughter Elizabeth I, consulted in Parliament
  an controlled in well. She became a popular and
  successful ruler.

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The Early Stuarts

• When Queen Elizabeth died in 1603, there was no
  direct heir to the throne. Her relatives the
  Stuarts, were the ruling family of Scotland.
  James I was the first Stuart monarch who agreed
  to English laws. James dissolved parliament and
  faced Puritans, English Protestants, who wanted
  to purify the Church of England o English
  practices. Charles I took the throne after his
  father and behaved like an absolute monarch. He
  was told to sign the Petition of Right, which
  prohibited the king from raise taxes without
  consulting Parliament. Charles refused and ruled
  without Parliament for 11 years. When Charles
  tried to summon Parliament they revolted and
  became known as the Long Parliament. They
  executed his chief ministers and declared they
  could not be dissolved without their consent

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The English Civil War

• The Cavaliers, supporters of Charles I and
  Roundheads, country gentry, manufacturers, and
  Puritan clergy fought in civil war. Oliver
  Cromwell was a skilled general who organized the
  New Model Army. Cromwells army defeated the
  Cavaliers in many battles. Parliament put the
  king on trial and he was guilty. Then In 1649 the
  king was then executed. He was the first king to
  be tried and executed by his own people.

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Charles II

• Charles II was a popular ruler. He restored the
  Church of England but tolerated other religions.
  He signed the Petition of Right and believed in
  absolute monarchy. His brother James II took the
  throne in 1685. He flaunted his Catholic faith
  and many believed he was restoring the Roman
  Catholic Church. In 1688, Jamess Protestant
  daughter Mary, and her Dutch Protestant husband
  William III, became rulers of England.

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The Glorious Revolution

• William and Mary landed with their army as James
  II fled to France. This bloodless overthrow of a
  kin became known as the Glorious Revolution.
  William and Mary accepted the English Bill of
  Rights. These rights ensured Parliament superior
  over the monarchy, barred any Catholic from
  sitting on the throne, and issued England a
  Limited Monarchy. This means a government in
  which a constitution or legislative body limits
  the monarchs powers. The Bill of Rights affirmed
  habeas corpus, which is no person could be sent
  to prison without be charged for the crime. The
  Toleration Act of 1689, granted limited
  toleration to Puritans, Quakers, and other
  Protestant dissenters.

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Sec 4 Rise of Austria and Prussia

• Religion in Germany divided the states. North was
  Protestant while the south was Catholic. It
  sparked the Thirty Years War. Ferdinand, the
  Hapsburg king of Bohemia, suppressed Protestants
  and tried to roll back the Reformation. With so
  much murder and torture followed famine and
  disease. One-third of Germanys population had
  died. In 1648, the Peace of Westphalia was
  accepted. France were the big winners by the land
  they gained, and Hapsburgs were the losers
  because they had to accept princes of the Holy
  Roman Empire. Germany was divided into more than
  360 states.

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Maria Theresa

• When Charles VI faced a crisis of having no son,
  his daughter, Maria Theresa took over ruling the
  Hapsburg lands. When Frederick II of Prussia
  seized the Hapsburg province of Silesia, Maria
  went to Hungary for military help. During the
  eight year war, Maria did not succeed in pushing
  Frederick out of Silesia. She, however,
  reorganized the bureaucracy, and improved tax
  collection.

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Frederick II

• Frederick II inherited the Prussian throne in
  1740. He was abused by his father because of
  Frederick being a big fan of the flute and
  writing poetry. He got the name Frederick the
  Great because his persuading that Prussia was a
  great power and of his seizing Silesia.

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PETER THE GREAT

• Peter the Great pushed Russia into becoming a
  great modern power. He wasnt well-educated but
  very curious and determined to learn. He wanted
  to centralize royal power. Under him serfdom had
  spread. He supported western technology, improved
  education, simplified the Russian alphabet, and
  set up academies for math, science, and
  engineering. He insisted noblemen shave their
  beards and modernize their old-fashioned robes.
  Whoever resisted the new order, Peter had no
  mercy for. He executed and tortured thousands and
  left their corpses outside his palace for months.

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Russian Expansion

• Peter created the largest army in Europe and
  wanted to extend Russian borders. He fought
  Sweden over the Baltic region. When he pushed
  them back he noticed their seaports were frozen
  during the winter. He then went sent to reach a
  warm-water seaport that way they could trade with
  the west all year long. He built a new capitol
  city as a symbol of his desire, which is called
  St. Petersburg. Peter died in 1725, although he
  succeeded in expanding Russian territory, gaining
  ports off the Baltic Sea, and building a strong
  army.

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Catherine the Great

• Catherine the Great was a German princess who
  came to Russia at age 15, to wed Czar Peter III,
  heir to the throne. He was murdered by a group of
  army officers. She took the Russian throne and
  was very efficient. She embraced western ideas.
  She was determined to expand Russias borders.
  She also took steps to gain Poland territory.

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Questions

• 1.) Peter the Great and Catherine the Great
  changed Russia by
• 2.) Westernization in Russia came about largely
  through the
• 3) Changes in Russia under Peter the Great were
  similar to changes that occurred in
• 4) . . .The person of the King is sacred, and to
  attack him in any way is an attack on religion
  itself. Kings represent the divine majesty and
  have been appointed by Him to carry out His
  purposes. Serving God and respecting kings are
  bound together. Which person would you most
  agree with this statement?
• 5) God hath power to create or destroy, make or
  unmake, at his pleasure to give life or send
  death to judgeand to be judged (by) noneAnd
  the like power have kings Which idea is
  described by this passage?

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Answers

• 1) introducing western ideas and customs
• 2)efforts of Peter the Great and his successors
• 3) Japan during the Meiji Restoration
• 4) Louis XIV
• 5) theory of divine right