-Absolute monarch/absolutism meant that the sovereign power or ultimate authority in the state rested in the hands of a king who claimed to rule by divine right. 

-believed that sovereign power consisted of the authority to make laws, tax, administer justice, control the state's administrative system, and determine foreign policy. 

-1610-1643

-Was very young when he took the throne so the government was dependent on Cardinal Richelieu, his chief minister

-reigned 1643-1715

-Following essentially the reigns of Cardinal Richelieu and then Cardinal Mazarin, Louis XIV decided to be a real king and the sole ruler of France

-created a grand and majestic spectacle at the court of Versailles, which set the standard for monarchies and aristocracies all over europe

-could restructure the central policy-making machinery of government b/c it was part of his own court and household

-believed in the theory of absolute monarchy,

-fostered the myth of himself as the sun

-greatest danger to his rule were the high nobles and princes so he removed them from the royal court council and enticed them to his court where he could keep them preoccupied with court life and out of politics; relied on other ministers

-wanted to maintain religious harmony, but then had issues with the huguenots b/c he didn't want to allow protestants to practice their faith in largely catholic france

-issued the edict of fontainebleu

-Louis XIII's chief minister from 1624-1642

-initiated policies that eventually strengthened the power of the monarchy by eliminating the political and military rights of the huguenots while preserving their religious ones. He transformed the huguenots into more reliable subjects. 

-Royal officials who were sent out by Cardinal Richelieu to the provinces to execute the orders of the central government.  

-They came into conflict with provincial governors but normally won, further strengthening the power of the crown

-Successor to Richelieu, Louis XIV's chief minister, reigned from 1643-1661 

-attempted to carry on richelieu's policies

-dealth with the Fronde revolt

-died and was followed by King Louis XIV as a sole, absolute ruler

-A revolt in 1648-1649 1650-1652

-First fronde was started when nobles of the Robe, Parlement of Paris, broke out in Paris against other nobles, resenting the centralized administrative power building up, who allied with members of the Parlement of Paris and the masses of paris opposing new taxes levied by the government to pay for the 30 yrs war.  Ended in compromise.

-Second Fronde was led by the nobles of the sword, ancestors=medieval nobles, who wanted to overthrow Mazarin and secure their own positions/power.  Was crushed when nobles started fighting each other

-Left the vast majority of france concluding that the best hope for stability in france lay in the crown

-Louis XIV was in a financial crisis, so Jean-Baptiste Colbert helped him 

-controlled general finances and sought to increase the wealth and power of france through general adherence to mercantilism (stressed government reputation of economic activities to benefit the state)

-Seeked to expand the quantity and improve the quality of french manufactured goods

-founded new luxury indsutries, drew up instructions and regulations of quality, oversaw training of workers, and granted special privileges, including tax exemptions etc, to individuals who established new industries. 

-built roads/canals to improve communications

-raised tariffs on foreign manufactured goods to decrease improts

-his economic policies were geared to making the king more powerful which were ultimately self-defeating

-October of 1685

-Revoked the edict of nantes

-provided for the destruction of huguenot churches and closing of protestant schools. 

-Royal Court was located here

-Built by Louis XIV, caused many financial issues

-Elaborate structure that served different purposes:

-Personal household of the king

-location of central governmental machinery

-location where powerful subjects came to find favors and offices for themselves/clients

-Keeping the threatening nobles busy here allowed Louis XIV to keep an eye on them, control them, and take their political power

-set the standard for monarchies and aristocracies all over europe. 

-Louis XIV's second war that he waged

-In the first he got angered that the Dutch formed a triple alliance with England and Sweden so he then in 1672 he isolated the Dutch and invaded the United PRovinces with some initial success. 

-A new coalition of Brandenburg, Spain and the Holy Roman empire forced Louis to end the Dutch War by making peace at Nimwegen in 1678 

-Louis XIV moved eastward against the HRE and gradually annexed the provinces of Alsace and Lorrained followed by the occupation of the city of Strasbourg which led to widespread protest  and the formation of a new coalition

-1689-1697 

-The league of Augsburg was created after the occupation of Strasbourg, and this league of Spain, HRE, the United provinces, sweden, and england, led to Louis' third war 

-brought economic depression and famine to france

-Treaty of Ryswick ended the war and forced Louis to give up most of his conquests in the empire 

-Louis XIV's fourth war

-1702-1713

-was over the succession to the Spanish throne

-Charles II left the throne to Louis XIV so he became Philip V of spain after Charles' death, but suspicion that Spain and France would eventually be united in the same dynastic family caused the formation of a new coalition determined to prevent a bourbon hegemony that would mean certain destruction of the european balance of power

-The coalition fought france until the Peace of Utrecht and Peace of Rastatt

-Peace of Utrecht (1713) and Peace of Rastatt (1714) ended the War of the Spanish Succession, confirmed Philip V as the spanish ruler and initiated a Spanish bourbon dynasty 

-Also affirmed that the thrones of spain and france were to remain separated

-England emerged from these wars as a formidable naval force

-reigned from 1598-1621

-Was only interested in court luxury or miracle-working relics

-allowed his first minister, duke of lerma, to run the country

-an aristocrat, his primary interest was accumulating power and wealth for himself and his family. 

-important offices were filled with his relatives so crucial problems went unsolved

-Reigned from 1621-1665

-Offered hope for revival of spain's energies in the hand of his chief minister, Gaspar de Guzman, the count of Olivares

-Statesman who dominated the king's every move and worked to revive the ineterests of the monarchy

-There was a flurry of domestic reform decrees aimed at curtailing the power of the catholic church and landed aristocracy which was followed by a political reform program whose purpose was to further centralize the government of all spain and its possessions in monarchical hands

-wanted to pursue spain's imperial glory, but failed

-evolved Brandenburg into a powerful state

-came to control Brandenburg-Prussia 

-Laid the foundation for the Prussion state

-Came to power in the midst of the 30 yrs war, 1640-1688 

-Saw that Brandenburg-prussia was a small, open territory so he made an efficient standing army which he sustained by establishing the General War Commissariat 

-Made a tacit agreement with the nobles so they would support him. Made it in order to eliminate the power that the members of the nobility could exercise in their provincial Estates-General. In return for a free hand in running the government, for depriving the provincial estates of their power, he gave the nobles almost unlimited power over their peasants, exempted the nobles from taxation, and awarded them the highest ranks in the army and the Commissariat as long as they didn't challenge his political control

-Reinforced surfdom w/ his concessions to the nobles

-followed mercantilist policies, roads canals and high tariffs, subsidies, and monopolies to stimulate domestic industry

-was created by Frederick William the Great Elector to levy taxes for the army and oversee its growth and training. 

-It soon evolved into an agency for civil government as well 

-a new bureaucratic machine that became the elector's chief instrument for governing the state 

-many of its officials were members of the prussian landed aristocracy, the junkers

-Members of the Prussian landed aristocracy who also served as officers in the all-important army

-were part of the General War Commissariat

-Son of Frederick William

-1688-1713

-in return for aiding the HREmperor in the War of the Spanish Succession, he was officially granted the title of King-in-Prussia and therefore was Elector Frederick III transformed into King Frederick I, ruler of an important new land. 

-Had long played a significant role in European politics as HREmperors, but by the end fo the 30 yrs war their hopes of an empire were crushed. 

-17th Century:

-House of Austria made an important trasition, the German empire was lost but a new emprie was created in eastern and southeastern europe

-Leopold I encouraged the eastward movement of the Austrian Empire, but was rivaled by the Ottoman powers. 

-By end of 18th century, house of austria had a considerable empire

-Austrian monarchy never was highly centralized; it included so many different national groups so it remained a collection of territories held together by a personal union

-Habsburg emperor=archduke of austria, king of bohemia, and king of hungary, each with its own laws and political life. 

-landed aristocracy were connected by a common bond of service to the house of habsburg as military officers or government bureaucrats, but nothing else.

-1699

-Ended the issues between Austria (leopald I) and the Ottoman empire

-Austria took control of hungary, transylvania, croatia, and slovenia, thus establishing an austrian empire in southeastern europe. 

-16th century, Ivan IV the Terrible was the first ruler to take the title tsar, "caesar"

-1533-1584

-expanded the territories of russia eastward after finding westward expansion blocked by the powerful swedish and polish states.  

-Extended the autocracy of the tsar by crushing the power of the russian nobility, knows as the boyas

-his dynasty came to an end in 1598 and was followed by a resurgence of aristocractic power in a period of anarchy known as the Time of Troubles

-National Assembly

-Ended the Time of Troubles by chosing michael Romanoc (1613-1645) as the new tsar, beginning a dynasty that lasted until 1917

-1613-1645

-Became new tsar according to the Zemsky Sobor after the Time of Troubles

-began a new dynasty after Ivan IV's dynasty

-Russian nobility

-Were crushed by Ivan IV in order for him to extend the autocracy of the tsar

-Helped organize and mount growing resistance during the rebellion in the netherlands against spanish rule (Council of Troubles, Philip II sent Duke of alva to crush rebellion; reign of terror) 

-William of Orange invades England forcing James to flee to France

-Without much bloodshed, the revolution became over who would be the monarch rather than whether or not there would be one

-Revolution settlement confirmed William and Mary as monarchs

-By deposing one King and establishing another during the Glorious revolution, Parliament had demolished the divine-right theory of kingship and confirmed its right to participate in the government

-In 1689 affirmed Parliament's right to make laws and levy taxes and made it impossible of rKings to oppose or do without Parliament

-laid the foundation for a constitutional monarchy

-1685

-Devout catholic; tried to further catholic interests making religion a primary cause of conflict b/w king and parliament again

-Opposed the Test Act (only Anglicans can hold military and civil offices) and put catholics in high positions in government

-Issued a new Declaration of Indulgence in 1687 which suspended all laws barring catholics and dissenters from office

-Was removed from the throne in 1689 when Parliament asserted that he'd tried to subvert the constitution

-An assembly of representatives from every province in the Dutch republic

-They oppose the orangist ambitions (william of orange) and advocated for a decentralized, republican form of government

-Cromwell died in 1658; it was established that arbitrary rule by the army wasn't feasible and the monarchy was reestablished with Charles II, restoring the Stuart monarchy

-The Monarchy and the House of Lords were restored, but the revolution was not undone

-Parliament passed the Test Act of 1673 which said that only Anglicans could hold military and civil offices

-began the ideas of religious tolerance in england by retracting the Test Act which said that only Anglicans could take office

-Under Louis XIV

-believed France could only be successful if there were one king, one law, and one faith so he strengthened the power of the central government, created a law that everyone must follow, tried eliminate the huguenots in an attempt to catholocize the state (edict of fontainebleu) 

-Habsburg ruler

-left the throne to Louis XIV who later became King Philip V of spain after Charles' death

-Part of the Austrian monarchy under the Habsburg emperor

-Jan 1689; Convention Parliament asserted that James had tried to subvert the constitution and declared the throne of England vacant

-The throne was given to William and Mary along with the provisions of a declaration of rights, later enacted into law as the Bill of Rights in 1689

-17th century

-there was a schism that unsettled Russia

-1689-1725

-crude and vicious in punishments

-Travelled west and then returned to Russia in 1698 with a firm determination to westernize or europeanize his realm. 

-it was a largely technical policy of europeanization; admired their technology and gadgets and wanted them in russia giving him the army and navy he needed to make russia 

-one of his first priorities was the reorganization of the army and the creation of a navy, employed both russians and europeans as officers, conscripted peasants for twenty-fiver year stints fo service and therefore had a standing army

-reorganized the central government, in 1711 he created the senate to supervise the administrative machinery of the state; it became a ruling council, but its ineffectiveness caused peter to borrow the western institution of "colleges", boards of administrators, 

-divided russia into eight provinces to impose the rule of  the central government more effectively throughout the land, and then into 50 in 1719

-hoped for a sense of civic duty, but created an atmosphere of fear 

-instituted the Table of Ranks to create opportunities for nonnobles to serve the state and join the nobility in 1722

-adopted western mercantilistic policies to stimulate economic growth to pay for the army

-sought to gain state control of the Russion Orthodox Church

-1721: abolished the position of patriarch and created a body called the Holy Synod to make decisions for the church, was led by a procurator(a layman who represented the interests of the tsar)

-1701-1721

-Peter attacked Sweden, Charles XII, wanting the Baltic but they responded and this war ensued

-Peter won at the Battle of Poltava in 1709

-War dragged on and was ended in peace of nystadt in 1721

-1721

-Ended the Great Northern War

-Formally established what Peter had already achieved in his win at the battle of poltava 12 years ealier:  the acquisition of estonia, livonia, and karelia.  

-Russia was now the great European state peter had wanted

-Following the Great Northern War/Peace of Nystadt, Peter was building a capitol for his now-great european state of russia 1701/1721

-early in the war, along the baltic, peter had begun to construct a new city, st. petersburg, his window on the West and a symbol that russia was looking westward to europe.  

-its construction cost the lives of thousands of peasants, but it was completed in peter's lifetime and remained the russian capital until 1917

-the assemblies created by the tsar

-is the lower house of the polish parliament

-The sejm is made up of 460 deputies, or Posel in Polish 

-elected by universak ballot and is presided over by a speaker called the Marshal of the Sejm

-Businesses working with different kinds of products which are sold for consumer, business or government purposes.  

-They buy a specialized range of products, maintain a stock or a shop, and deliver products to customers. 

-One was the Muscovy Company, an English trading company chartered in 1555

-the first major chartered joint stock company, precursor to business that would soon flourish in england

-had a monopoly on trade b/w england and muscovy until 1698 and survived as a trading company until the Russian Revolution

-Dutch West India Company/East India company

-following the Glorious Revolution in England, the Bill of rights enacted by William and Mary in 1689

-It helped fashion a system of government based on the rule of law and a freely elected parliament, thus laying the foundation for a constitutonal monarchy

-Competition among nations is fundamental

-a nation's prosperity depends on a plentiful supply of gold and silver bullion, purchasing power. with bullion they have a lot of purchasing power and can put others out of competition

-a favorable balance of trade promotes the influx of bullion, sell more than you buy

-Second half of the seventeenth century, france replaced italy as the cultural leader of europe

-rejected the baroque style as overly showy, they remained committed to the classical values of the high renaissance

-late classicism had an emphasis on clarity, simplicity, balance, and harmony of design

-shift from chaos to order in society

-rejected the emotionalism and high drama of the baroque, french classicism continued the baroque's conception of grandeur in portrayal of nobles.

-1594-1665

-exemplified french classicist principals in his paintings. 

-his choice of scenes from classical mythology, the orderliness of his landscapes, the postures of his figures copied from the sculptures of antiquity, and his use of brown tones all reflect french classicism of the late seventeenth century

-1606-1669

-Finest product of the golden age of dutch painting

-painted opulent portraits and grandose scenes that were often quite colorful

-turned away from materialistic success to follow his own artistic path

-lost public support and died bankrupt

-shared the dutch predilection for realistic portraits, he became more introspective as he grew older and refused to follow others whose pictures were largely secular

-stands out as the one great protestant painter of the seventeenth century who painted biblical tales

-French author who derived much of his themes and plots from greek and roman sources

-french dramatists cultivated a classical style that emphasized the clever, polished, and correct over the emotional and imaginative

-1639-1699

-In Phèdre, racine followed closely the plot of a greek play, like ancient tragedians, he perfected the french neoclassical tragic style, focused on conflicts, such as between love and honor or inclination and duty, that characterized and revealed the tragic dimensions of life

-1622-1673

-Enjoyed the favor of the french court and benefited from the patronage of king louis XIV 

-wrote, produced, and acted in a series of comedies that often satirized the religious and social world of his time.  

-Tartuffe: he ridiculed religious hypocrisy

-his satires sometimes got him into trouble as the paris clergy didn't find tartuffe funny and had it banned for five years

-king protected him from more severe punishment/harassment

-Was a jurist in the Dutch Republic

-Laid the foundations for international law, based on natural law

-was a philosopher, theologian, christian apologist, playwright, and poet 

-English philosopher

-Wrote Leviathan which established the foundation for most of western political philosophy

-1651

-argues for a social contract with the absolute sovereign

-argues that the only way to avoid civil wars and issues of the state is through an absolute monarch

-Believed in absolutist power of the monarch, that we are born with our independence already given to the monarch and we surrender it to someone else for them to rule us

-Believed that the King represents the people, power of the people

-English philosopher, father of classical liberalism

-Expressed in his "Two Treatises of Government"

-The First treatise attacks patriarchalism 

-The Second treatise outlines his ideas for a more civilised society based on natural rights and contract theory

-Believed in Tabula Rosa, blank slate; that we are born completely free of power and thoughts and then choose to join society because freedom has too many distractions

-Argued against absolutist monarchies but rather for legislative power that represents the people

-Founded in 1648

-modeled off of italian principles

-used to proffessionalize the artists working for the french court and give them a stamp of approval that the artists of the st. luke's guild didn't have

-1661, came under the control of Jean-Baptiste Colbert who made the arts a main part in the glorification of King Louis XIV