- Franco-Russian Alliance à when the Reinsurance Treaty came up for renewal in 1890, Wilhelm II showed no desire to renew it, so Russia knew that the Germans had chosen Austria over them. Consequently, they formed an alliance w/ France in 1894 (TWO FRONT WAR?).

- Entente Cordiale à then in 1904, England actually made an understanding w/ France, their longtime enemies, b/c Germany was beginning to threaten them – it was building a navy, competing for colonies, and being arrogant as seen in the Krueger Telegraph. Germany was trying to bully them into forming an alliance because England would not agree to one.

- Moroccan Crisis #1 à in 1905, the Germans decided to test the French/English understanding, and hopefully mess it up, over an issue w/ Morocco. France wanted special status there, and announced it as their protectorate – Germany gets angry, sends ship, and calls a congress. But at the congress, everyone but Austria -Hungary sides w/ France, and the French/English alliance only gets stronger.

- Triple Entente à In 1907, the Triple Entente (an informal coalition of France, England and Russia). This comes about b/c after the Russo-Japanese war in 1904, England no longer feels threatened by Russia b/c Russia has no navy. Now, they can all be friends.

- Balkan Crisis #1 à a.k.a. the Bosnian Annexation Crisis. Back in 1878 in the Berlin Congress, Austria –Hungary, which was getting nervous about the Balkan states, was allowed to administer Bosnia. Now, it suddenly decides it wants to keep Bosnia, but it knows it must strike a bargain with Russia, which wants a port still. So in 1908, Russia and Austria -Hungary agree for Russia to get a port, and Austria -Hungary being able to annex Bosnia without Russian intervention. So Austria -Hungary goes ahead and annexes Bosnia while Russia (to the surprise of the Serbs) does nothing. Then Russia calls a congress on the port and all agree except England and Germany, so Austria -Hungary says nothing. Russia feels totally ripped off, and is out to get Austria too.

- Moroccan Crisis #2 à now, France wants to annex Morocco. Talks seemed to be going well when the Germans sent the gunboat Panther to a Moroccan port in 1911. Although there was an eventual compromise, it heightened tensions.

- Tripolitan War à in 1911, Italy declared war on Turkey to get Tripoli, which it got easily. Even Italy can defeat the Ottoman Turks now. This is not a good sign for the “sick man of Europe”.

- Balkan War #1 à seeing Italy’s easy victory, Bulgaria, Serbia and Greece declared war on Turkey in 1912 and destroyed the Turks.

- Balkan War #2 à in 1913, Serbia, Greece, Romania and Turkey went to war against Bulgaria b/c Bulgaria gained too much land in the last war.

*The July Crisis of 1914*

- On June 28th, 1914, the Archduke Francis Ferdinand, heir to Austria-Hungary’s throne, was assassinated by a Serbian terrorist from the Black Hand. Austria -Hungary was outraged, and believed that the terrorists were affiliated w/ the Serbian gov’t.

- So Austria-Hungary asked Germany what they should do, and Germany responded by saying A-H has Germany’s full support.

- A-H gave Serbia an incredibly harsh ultimatum designed to be rejected and start a war. Serbia responded by accepting all but 2 of the demands and asking for international mediation.

- A-H refused meditation and declared war on Serbia claiming demands weren’t met.

- Tsar Nicholas II ordered a full mobilization against A-H and Germany, so, on August 1st, Germany responded by declaring war on Russia and then later declaring war on France.

- The Germans invaded Belgium leading to the British declaration of war on Germany the next day b/c of its violation of Belgium’s neutrality.

*The Course of the War*

- Generally what happened was that the Germans got close to Paris, but were stopped at the Battle of Marne. There, both sides built miles of parallel trenches – and from then on, it was just stalemate. At the Battle of Verdun, where the Germans again tried to break through, it became a total war of attrition, as no strategy seemed to work. The Battle of the Somme was the allied counterattack, to no avail.

- The Eastern front followed a similar pattern of stalemate.

- The main naval battle, the Battle of Jutland, was when the Germans tried to break out of the British naval blockade, but they failed, and had to resort to submarine warfare, which drew in the US.

- In the end, it was US involvement that decided the fate of the war, as things had just become dependent on who could be drawn in to provide fresh supplies and men.

*The Effects of the War*

- The war strained the resources of each country to the max. It created national unity, for a time, but it also caused great hardship. Supplies were lacking, women went to work in the factories, there was disruption and dislocation, and Europeans grew thinner and less fashionable (as the textbook says).

- The war contributed greatly to the increased involvement of the government in society, led to increased propaganda, and also to women’s liberation.

- Many social customs faded out, and society became more open (at least for a time).

- There was also a rapid development of new technology. Overall, however, the economy was greatly hurt by the war, as world trade had been totally disrupted.

- And then, of course, practically a whole generation of young men in every country had disappeared.

*The Peace Treaties*

- Fourteen Points à the list of US war aims, the Fourteen Points was a very idealistic treaty that wanted to “make the world safe for democracy” – it supported nationalism, democracy, etc. Wilson felt that oppression led to war and that if oppression was stopped, war would be stopped as well. Wilson supported the idea of colonies eventually reaching independence, state lines being drawn by nationalism, and so on.

- Paris Peace Conference à in 1919, all the winners met in Paris to determine what the new Europe would be like. Among the main players were:

1. Woodrow Wilson à from the US, Wilson is truly the honest broker here: he doesn’t really have any interests except for promoting long term peace.

2. Clemenceau à from France, all he wants to do is get Germany back for what they did. He wants to enact a Carthaginian peace: just to start, he is determined to dismember Germany.

3. Lloyd George à from England, LG is, as he said, “stuck between Jesus Christ and Napoleon” – although he had to promise his country to make Germany pay, he is not like Clemenceau.

- Treaty of Versailles à surprisingly enough, they actually came up with a treaty. The Rhineland was to be occupied for 15 years and permanently demilitarized, France got Alsace-Lorraine, Germany lost all its colonies, the Polish corridor was added to protect people from Germany, and the Germans had to pay billions in reparations. There was, to add insult to injury, the war guilt clause (Clause 231), which said it was all Germany’s fault for the war. At first, Germany refused to sign, but they did after all. Also, the mandate system is established.

- The Enlightenment provided the ideology for the Revolution. For decades the philosophs questioned accepted political and religious beliefs and advocated for freedom, liberty, and reason. Philosophs wished to make people aware that the traditional ways were not always best.

- Louis XVI was not suited to be an absolute monarch (he was stupid) and his queen, Marie Antoinette, was hated through the land for her lack of sympathy with the people.

- Long-term economic difficulties made it necessary for the king to try to tax the nobility, an act that pretty much set in motion the entire deal.

*The Prelude to the Revolution (1774 – 1789)*

- So, when Louis XVI took the throne in 1774, the monarchy was in a pretty bad shape economically. - Turgot (finance minister) tried to make reforms to fix the situation (like removing government restrictions on commerce, replacing the obligation of peasants to work on royal roads with a small tax on all landholders) but this made him unpopular with the nobles.

- So Louis kicked Turgot out and replaced him with Necker who avoided new taxes, which made him popular, but took out huge loans instead, which was bad for the economy. After a while things were so screwed up that the new finance guy, Calonne, rightly stated that the monarchy was on the verge of bankruptcy. Calonne came up w/ new taxes and proposed to convene provincial assemblies. To support his plan, he called an Assembly of Notables but they didn’t end up supporting him.

- Naturally Louis got rid of Calonne and appointed Archbishop Brienne (one of the notables) in his place. Brienne submitted Calonne’s ideas to the Parlements, but they rejected them. Then they demanded that Louis convene the Estates General. Louis responded by attempting to send the Parlement into exile, but was forced to back down.

- So, Louis recalled the Parlements and Necker and agreed to convene the Estates General (EG) in 1789…

*The Estates General Meet*

- As the word spread that the EG were going to meet, the liberal ideology began to take shape.

- The first big issue was the method of voting for the EG. The Third Estate, representing 95% of population, asked to be doubled in size – the king said OK. But as the old method of voting (by order) made the upper chambers outweigh the Third Estate regardless of numbers, the Third Estate felt ripped off and asked for the voting to be conducted by head.

- Before the EG, the king invited the citizens to elect delegates to assemblies. All male taxpayers could vote for electors, who, in turn, chose reps for the Third Estate of the EG. Also, he asked citizens to write grievance petitions – cahiers. Most cahiers dealt with local issues, and gave no hint of the Revolution to come. Only some, from Paris, talked about natural rights and all that stuff. Still, the cahiers and local elections helped make citizens aware of politics.

*The National Assembly (1789 – 1791)*

- May 5th, 1789 à the EG finally met, for the first time since 1614. But the king only spoke generally and didn’t clear up the voting mess.

- June 17th, 1789 à the Third Estate had enough and proclaimed itself the National Assembly. A few days later, most of the clergy joined. The king decided to support the nobles and locked the Third Estate out of its meeting hall.

- Tennis Court Oath à on June 20th, the Revolutionaries went to a tennis court and swore that they wouldn’t separate until they had given France a constitution.

- The king responded by promising equality in taxation, civil liberties, and regular meetings of the EG but voting would be by order. Then, he ordered the estates to go to their individual meeting halls, but the Third Estate (T.E.) didn’t go. Finally, he recognized the National Assembly (N.A.)and (trying to act like it was all his idea) told all the estates to join it. But, he secretly was ordering 20,000 royal troops to the Paris region.

- At the same time as this political stuff, the ordinary citizens were getting mad over food shortages. When they heard rumors of the royal troops, they feared an aristocratic plot to overthrow the NA. And, when the king got rid of Necker (who was popular) on July 11 it was the last straw.

- July 14th, 1789 à fearing counter-revolution Parisian crowds attacked the Bastille, the 20,000 troops joined (on Rev side), and the Revolutionaries won. At the same time, royal officials in Paris were ousted and were replaced w/ a Revolutionary municipality, and a citizens’ militia was formed.

- The NA was saved, but the hungry peasants were still hungry and consequently still angry. Starvation and rumors (that nobles were going to destroy the harvest) caused The Great Fear in which the peasants attacked nobles and revolted.

- August 4th, 1789 à in response, the deputies of the clergy and nobility gave up their ancient privileges. In one night, feudalism and seigneurialism were abolished for good!

- August 26th, 1789 à NA writes The Declaration of the Rights of Man and the Citizen as the constitution. The Declaration established natural rights like freedom of expression, religion, etc.

- Civil Constitution of the Clergy à #1 mistake for Revolutionaries. In 1790, they passed this law that forced clergy to become state employees and take oaths of loyalty to state. 50% clergy obeyed, other 50% didn’t, and the pope condemned the action, so many religious people were alienated.

- Constitution of 1791 à finally, in 1791, the constitution was finished. It established a limited monarchy w/ a clear separation of powers. There was a unicameral legislature elected by indirect voting. Every adult male w /minimal taxpaying requirement could vote, w/ a higher qualification needed to serve public office.

*The Legislative Assembly (1791 – 1792)*

- After the constitution was finished, the NA gave way to the Legislative Assembly (L.A.).

- Just as the first LA is about to go into effect, the king escapes! In his unsuccessful Flight to Varennes he tries to escape, but is captured. LA decides to keep him alive.

- Then, the LA makes the dumb decision to go to war w/ Austria and Prussia b/c of the Declaration of Pillnitz (which wasn’t intended as serious anyway). The Girondins feel this will somehow unite the nation, the Royalists hope that they lose (king goes back).

- August 10th, 1792 à then, b/c of the Brunswick Manifesto by General Brunswick the Parisian militants decided to storm the royal palace at the Tulieries and are given new revolutionary life.

*The Radical Phase (1792 – 1794)*

- Temporarily, a Paris Commune or city government was created. But this was not enough to maintain order, and in September, hysteria spread by the radical journalists resulted in the September Massacres, in which popular tribunals summarily executed thousands of prisoners, who were feared to be counter-revolutionaries.

- The hysteria began to fade when the French won at the Battle of Valmy on September 20^th which was the first time a professional army was defeated by a peasant one. France was declared a Republic.

- January 21st, 1793 à Louis XVI was guillotined after lengthy deliberations.

- Now, the Convention was being threatened from many different sides – including internal rebellions, foreign invasions, economic crisis, factionalism, popular pressure, etc. So, they decided to purge the Girondins and establish a program for public safety.

- The Jacobins swept aside the new constitution, declaring the government “revolutionary until the peace” and instituting the Reign of Terror. A twelve-man committee, the Committee for Public Safety, was in charge, and the main leaders of the Committee were Robespierre, Danton, and the ultra radical Hébert.

- During the ROT, the French were fighting the foreign wars, and, soon enough, with the strict discipline of the ROT, they began to win.

- But, finally, the ROT culminated in the execution of its own leaders – Danton and Robespierre executed Hébert, Robespierre executed Danton, and then Robespierre himself was overthrown.

*The Thermidorian Reaction (1794 – 1795) and The Directory (1795 – 1799)*

- After the fall of Robespierre, the revolutionary committees that had led the ROT were destroyed, the Paris Jacobin Club was closed, and the Convention offered an amnesty to the remaining Girondins. The term Thermidorian Reaction refers to the return of conservatism after the ultra-radical phase in the FR.

- The anti-Jacobin sentiment grew so strong, in fact, that a White Terror erupted against anyone connected with the Jacobins.

- The last revolutionary uprising occurred in 1795, when the sans-culottes launched a poorly organized revolt (calling for “bread and the constitution of 1793”) and, after two days of street fighting, were overwhelmed by the government.

- In 1795, a new constitution was drafted. It proclaimed a general amnesty and set up a five man executive committee known as the Directory. It also had a two-house legislature. The Directory attempted to stay on the moderate side of everything, and it became incredibly corrupt! It had to overthrow itself after the first general election because a royalist majority won, and things only got worse. By 1799 any semblance of legitimacy was gone, making way for Napoleon…

The Industrial Revolution

*Demographic Change*

- Prior to the eighteenth century, the levels of populations seemed to flow in wave-like patterns depending on natural phenomena such as crop failures, plagues, etc.

- Around 1730, a new era in Europe’s demography began. During the 18th century, Europe’s population skyrocketed, jumping millions. Europe’s population simply continued to increase.

- The rapid population growth was, according to historians, caused by a decline in mortality rates.

*Economic Growth*

- During the 18th century, overall wealth also increased, although the growth was not consistent. Significant growth began around 1730 and continued until 1815. This period was characterized by gradual price inflation (which reflected growing demands for goods from a growing population). This gradual price inflation stimulated the economy, and, although there were some problems, the economy generally grew.

- The growth, however, did not affect all sectors of society in the same way. Though the gradual increase in prices was good for landlords, employers, merchants, and landed peasants, it was very bad for the poor, landless peasants, who could barely afford to live.

- Proto-industrialization à is the economic development that occurred just prior to the rise of the factory system and may have led to it. Proto-industrialization, a.k.a. the putting out system, was a system in which merchants distributed raw materials to peasants’ households, who would process it, and then would pick it up and sell it. Proto-industrialization led to increased manufacturing and population growth in rural areas. Additionally, it strengthened marketing networks, helped merchants get more $ (which could be re-invested in production), helped the peasants make $ (increasing their demand for goods), and allowed peasants to familiarize themselves w/industrial processes. Though it didn’t lead to technological improvement, it helped economic growth.

*Changes in Industry*

- Though, during the 18th century, most industries remained the same, dramatic change was beginning to occur, especially in the manufacturing of cotton cloth. The changes in industry were meant to increase the productivity of labor through new technologies. This replacement of workers with new tools and machines, which is known as factor substitution, eventually led to the factory.

- Europeans faced many difficulties as they attempted to change the structure of the economy, such as:

1. Small Market Size à since European countries were cut off from one another for both physical and political reasons, merchants were forced to deal with very limited markets. This slowed the growth of specialized manufacturing and limited the mobility of capital and labor.

2. Skewed Distribution of Wealth à since the aristocracy used most of the income, merchants would cater to their desires and make small quantities of luxury goods, as opposed to lots of cheap goods that would be accessible to the public. This screwed up supply and demand.

3. Property Rights/Privileges à these traditional institutions worked against innovation, as rents and tolls often sucked up capital that would otherwise be available to both would-be consumers (peasants) and the entrepreneurs (merchants).

4. Guild/Government Regulations à were huge problems for the merchants. As the guild regulations established a standard, traditional procedure for industry, which was not be changed, they made innovation exceedingly difficult. Government restrictions on economic activity and licensing of monopolies only made it more difficult for merchants.

*England Begins to Industrialize*

- England was the first nation to develop a social structure supportive of innovation and economic growth b/c of many advantages, such as:

1. Geography à England was close to the sea, which allowed trade w/ foreign nations and colonies. Also, England had two great resources essential to industry, iron and coal, as well as a lot of good, productive farmlands.

2. Free Trade à the English had markets in their colonies, with the other European powers (free trade agreement w/ France in 1786) and the Spanish colonies b/c of the Treaty of Utrecht.

3. Labor Supply à slavery, cheap labor (peasants) due to the Enclosure Acts, which drove the peasants out of the communal farmlands and made them look for work.

4. Friendly Political Environment à since the gentry was in control of the government they could pass laws favorable to the merchants.

*Cotton Begins Industrialization*

- There was a very large supply of raw cotton in the English colonies. There was also a very high demand for the durable, cheap cotton goods. However, the putting-out system had reached its limits in production, so merchants were ready to take the next step towards industrialization.

- Richard Arkwright à inventor of the water frame, which was able to twist fibers into thread using waterpower. Before him, though weavers could make cloth quickly from yarn, production was slowed down b/c a person had to rest and take breaks but now they could continuously work.

- James Watt à inventor of the steam engine. Arkwright asked Watt to use steam engines to drive his spinning machines, and the first factories were created.

- Edmund Cartwright à inventor of a power-driven loom. Though the opposition of handloom weavers and technical flaws made the loom not really become available until the 19th century, once it became available, both spinning and weaving could go incredibly fast.

- The cotton industry was revolutionized by the 19th century, for goods could be made incredibly fast, and merchants could house all their workers in factories and watch them work. After industrialization, the price of cotton fell tremendously, and it became available to many poorer people.

*Changes in Agriculture*

- In England, many peasants were able to leave the country and go to the city, where they found work as factory laborers, because of the new agricultural techniques, which caused an increase in efficiency and productivity. If it hadn’t been for these changes, the peasants could not have left.

- Convertible Husbandry à instead of letting land lie unused every second or third year (to prevent it from become infertile) agricultural innovators planted fields w/ turnips (which could also provide feed for livestock, which could make fertilizer) to help it regain fertility.

- Charles Townshend à innovator who proved the value of planting turnips instead of resting land.

- Jethro Tull à noble who was into agricultural innovation.

- Enclosure Movement à throughout Europe, all towns shared communal lands, which were divided into small plots. This made it difficult to change agricultural techniques, since the village as a whole had to agree to a certain technique. But, in England, Parliament was able to (in response to the petitioning of large landowners) enclose all the land in a village, even against the will of the village. Though enclosure was difficult and expensive, it was worth it, for it generated high profits. In the end, the communal field system was practically eradicated in England, leading to the domination of rural society by great landlords and their tenant farmers. Enclosure also forced many peasants to leave for the cities, where they could find work.

- On the continent, however, things were very different, for, in Eastern Europe, nobles completely controlled the lives of their serfs, who spent their time in unpaid labor for their noble lord. Since, throughout the continent, peasants were barely surviving, they had no time to worry about efficiency (change was too risky).

Europe from 1815 to 1848

*The Definition of Romanticism*

- Romanticism was a major movement in the early nineteenth century. Although it was more an attitude towards life than it was a philosophy, it did have some defining characteristics.

- Romanticism was almost a counterpoint to the ideals of the Enlightenment, which were then associated with liberalism and the middle class.

- Romanticism could coexist w/ other political philosophies, for example nationalism or socialism.

- Actually, conservatives and radicals both drew on romantic philosophy, for conservatives claimed that stability was only possible through tradition and respect of customs while radicals claimed that a new era required the shattering of old institutions just as artistic change required new creativity.

*Romanticism (Rousseau and French Revolution) vs. Liberalism (Enlightenment)*

- Romanticism was a movement that idealized the countryside, liberalism thrived in the cities. It emphasized emotion, the heart, and poetry (often illogical and emotional) while liberalism emphasized reason, the mind, and prose (logical and unemotional).

- Romanticism stressed intuition and the concept of genius (often misunderstood) while liberalism stressed reason and scholarship (you must study and work to improve yourself).

- Romanticism viewed nature as untamable, irrational, and out of control. They felt that nature controlled humans, not visa versa. Liberalism felt nature could be controlled, and, most importantly, understood through mathematical laws – it stressed progress.

- Romanticism stressed the uniqueness of the individual (sometime nations nationalists) while liberalism stressed the fact that humans control own destiny, that perfection can be reached through education, progress and science and that there are universal human laws.

*Romantic Philosophy and Literature*

- Romantic thought flourished with an increased interest in history and rising nationalism.

- Romantic thinkers wrote about metaphysics, aesthetics, and the philosophy of nature and science and tended to express themselves through poetry, aphorisms, and autobiographical accounts.

- Friedrich Schegel à was a very influential romantic thinker from Germany.

- Samuel Taylor Coleridge à was an English romantic poet who wrote the Rime of the Ancient Mariner, a tale of guilt, redemption, and the supernatural.

- William Wordsworth à another romantic poet whose poems contrasted the beauty of nature with urban corruption and denounced the materialism of his age.

- In general, novelists and dramatists began to set their tales in the past, favor vivid description and attempt to describe the larger picture of human existence (like Shakespeare and Cervantes).

*Political Ideologies*

- Almost all the “isms” of the nineteenth century (Romanticism, Liberalism, Nationalism, Socialism, Conservatism, and Radicalism) came from either the Enlightenment or the French Revolution (or as a reaction to the French Revolutions).

- Conservatism à conservatives tended to justify the status quo, defend tradition and hierarchy, and stress the limitations of human understanding. Conservatism arose mainly from Edmund Burke, an Englishman who stated that society exists through a continuity of the traditions that have developed over the years. Although Burke allowed for gradual change in theory, he mainly supported established institutions. Other conservatives stated that society, in order to preserve itself, had to control the dangerous ideas of reform.

- Liberalism à political liberalism, which originated with Locke and Enlightenment, was associated with ideas of social progress, economic development and the middle class. Liberals hoped to achieve a free society governed by a constitution that valued individual rights. John Stuart Mill was the most important liberal spokesman of the nineteenth century – he supported freedom of thought, universal suffrage and collective action by workers. David Ricardo, an Englishman who wrote the Principle of Political Economy and Taxation (1817), extended Smith’s ideology. He said that economic laws governed prices, such as the iron law of wages (which applied the law of supply and demand to labor).

- Utilitarianism à the call for social reform led to utilitarianism, which stressed the role of the state in society. One influential utilitarian was Jeremy Benthan, and Englishman who dismissed the doctrine of natural rights as a meaningless abstraction and, instead, proposed that utility should guide public policy. With good being that which give the most people pleasure and the bad being than which gives the most people pain, Benthan stated that self-interest could also guide public policy.

- Socialism à socialist despised the competitive spirit of capitalism and advocated a society in which people could live harmoniously and could be truly free. The early socialists – Saint-Simon, Fourier, and Owen – were late called utopian socialists by Marx b/c they attempted to found ideal communities in which everyone cooperated for the public benefit.

*The Structure of Society*

- By the beginning of the nineteenth century, the original social pyramid structure of society was being transformed into different, more fluid, classes – and social relationships were becoming matters of contact between individuals. The classes were as follows:

1. Aristocracy à the aristocracy continued to control most of the wealth of the country and still dominated the administration and the military.

2. Peasants à most Europeans were peasants. The peasants felt the effects of change as agriculture became more commercial (profits increased) and technology changed, but the big change for most peasants was the emancipation of the peasants from feudal obligations, which encouraged peasants to enter the commercial market. But, on the other hand, the decline of local industries (putting-out system) made the peasants even more dependent on small plots of land.

3. Workers à a new class, the industrial workers lived dependent on their employers and often made barely enough to keep alive. They often lived in dirty slums, with special restrictions on their rights, etc. Workers were clearly an emerging political force in society. But, although there were attempts to make organized labor movements, for the most part, the vast majority of the working class remained defenseless without the skills to organize well.

4. Artisans/Skilled Workers à the most independent workers, the artisans continued to live by a hierarchy of masters and apprentices. They did benefit from industrialization, and, unlike the factory workers, did have the organization and education to organize effectively to improve conditions.

5. Middle Classà the most confident and assertive class, the middle class ranged from the great bankers to the petit bourgeoisie (clerks, shopkeepers, etc.) and was held together by shared ideals and common interests. All were opposed to special privileges and saw themselves as the beneficiaries of careers open to talent. They were associated with the liberal ideology of the time, and pushed for moderation.

- There were terrible conditions in the cities, and people tried to improve them through charities and government laws concerning public welfare.

*The Spread of Liberal Government*

- As liberal social programs spread throughout Europe, England became the model for many aspiring liberal nations. But England itself had passed through a time of reform and change.

- England had an archaic system of government: only 500 people were elected to the House of Commons through the Burrows, there was total misrepresentation, and it was all in all really unfair.

- Finally, in 1832 the Reform Bill was passed, which extended the franchise from 500,000 to 800,000 votes (which allowed upper MC to vote), and redistricted (more proportional representation). This was a big deal b/c it signaled the beginning of the middle class taking over and gaining control of the government.

- After 1832 new reforms such as the Factory Act (limiting hours of child labor) and the Poor Law were passed, and finally a law granting all resident taxpayers the right to vote in municipal elections.

- Still, more reforms were pushed for by the masses. One big issue was the Corn Laws (tariff on agricultural goods), which the landowners liked (can raise prices, more $) but middle class and working class despised (food prices up). So middle and working classes joined against gentry. In 1846 the laws were repealed (a final proof of the switch in power to the middle class). The Test Act was also repealed around this time.

- The radicals in England, known as the Charterists, wanted universal male suffrage, annual elections, secret ballots, and salaries for parliament members. But this movement, unlike the one against the Corn Laws, ended up in failure.

*The Revolutions of 1830*

- In 1830, revolution swept across Europe, beginning with the abdication of Charles X in France, which sparked off minor revolts in central Italy, Spain, Portugal, some German states, and Poland. But Austria and Russia once again crushed most of the revolutions.

- France à of course it started with France. First, Charles X didn’t like the elections, so he passed the July Ordinances (which cancelled elections, upped censorship, and called for new elections), which resulted in the people taking to the streets in revolution, Charles running away, and Louis Philippe becoming the new king. The new reign, known as the July Monarchy, emphasized moderation – the regime began w/ a new constitution presented as a contract that guaranteed individual rights, etc. The July Monarchy attempted to identify w/ the middle class, and Louis called himself the citizen king. But the monarchy didn’t please anyone b/c it attempted to please everyone, so, naturally, nobody was satisfied.

- Belgium à the Belgians (Catholics) followed the French revolted against the Dutch Protestants. They established a liberal constitutional monarchy and became a prosperous small country.

- Spain à in Spain, the monarchy supported the liberals. In 1833, however, the monarchy was threatened by a conservative uprising (the Carlists). So, to win support more support from the liberals, the monarchy granted a constitution in 1834.

The Revolutions of 1848 and Nationalism

*The Revolutions of 1848*

- In 1848, liberal revolutions broke out throughout Europe. Although, at first, they appeared to be spectacularly successful, in the end, all the revolutions failed.

- In general, revolutions occurred where governments were distrusted and where the fear and resentment fed by rising food prices and unemployment found focus in political demands.

- In the end, the revolutions failed b/c the revolutionaries found themselves divided.

- Sometimes 1848 is referred to as “the turning point at which modern history failed to turn” because it seemed as though the revolutionaries were only so close to success.

*Revolution in France*

- Naturally, it all started in France b/c of a small issue about suffrage. When the government refused to widen suffrage, the parliamentary opposition launched a protest movement that staged large banquets across the country.

- The government banned the banquet scheduled for Paris in late February 1848, but some deputies said they would attend anyway, sparking a popular rebellion.

- Louis Philippe (L.P.) responded by reviewing his National Guard, and they refused to support him. LP realized he had no support and abdicated in favor of his grandson and left for England.

- Instead of listening to LP, of course, two rival newspapers chose a provisional government of men, who appeared at the Hotel de Ville and declared France a republic. Led by Alphonse de Lamartine, an admired romantic poet, the new government was dominated by moderates who at first cooperated with the more radical members.

- But the new regime didn’t want to go overboard – it rejected intervention on behalf of other revolutions, didn’t use the red flag, and added new taxes. Relations w/ the church were great, nearly 85% of the people voted, moderate republicans won, and all seemed well…

- The workers, however, were not satisfied and agitated for a social program and pinned their hopes on the program of national workshops that had been established. But the program seemed stupid to the moderates, who disbanded the workshops in June (bad move).

- Now the workers were really ticked off, and they responded by building barricades. For three days they fought viciously against the republic’s troops (led by General Cavaignac) but were crushed in the bloody during the June Days. Now, with almost dictatorial powers, Cavaignac restricted the press, suppressed the radicals, and instituted severe discipline on the workers. Although Cavaignac remained a republican and the assembly still wrote its constitution, something was definitely off.

- The June Days represented the fatal split between the two revolutionary groups:

1. Middle class à wanted moderate goals, like equality of taxation, careers open to talent, representative government, freedom of speech, press – goals of Enlightenment.

2. Working class à wanted radical goals, socialism, total equality – new type of revolution no longer based on Enlightenment but based on socialism and working class.

- So, in December, there was an election and Louis Napoleon Bonaparte won w/ 70% of the votes b/c of his name, which meant glory and stability. Bonaparte later changed the government to an empire w/ himself as emperor just like his uncle, the original Napoleon. So, all in all, the revolution failed!

*Revolution in Austria*

- In the Austrian Empire, the Hungarians had by mid-March established a free press and a national guard and had abolished feudal obligations and special privileges. Vienna then reluctantly allowed Hungary to levy its own taxes and direct its own army.

- This Hungarian example caused students in Vienna to demand representative government for Austria as well. Metternich resigned, censorship was abolished, a constitution was promised, and universal male suffrage was given.

- But, of course, Hungarian autonomy caused similar demands from the Czechs in Bohemia, the Croatians in Croatia, and the Romanians in Transylvania.

- The original revolutionaries, however, had no tolerance for other smaller revolutions against the Germans, and it supported the repressors of those small revolutions.

- The Hapsburgs used their powerful armies to force all the revolutionaries into submission.

*Revolution in Prussia*

- In the meantime, Frederick William IV (F.W.) of Prussia, upon hearing about the uprising in Vienna, granted some concessions, relaxed censorship and called the parliament. Fighting broke out anyway. But when FW agreed to remove his troops from Berlin and elected a constitutional assembly through indirect male suffrage (Berlin), it stopped and it seemed that the revolution had won out.

- Frankfurt Convention à in May, delegates met at Frankfurt to discuss German issues. Most favored a monarchial German state w/ a semi-democratic constitution, but there was a split between the Little Germans (wanted Prussia to lead) and Big Germans (wanted Austria to lead).

- Finally, the Little Germans won out, and in March 1849 the Prussian king was elected to become the German emperor. But he refused – which was actually not surprising since the Prussians were never liberal, cared nothing for Germany, and FW didn’t want his power limited – so the constitution was never put into effect.

*Revolution in Italy*

- A similar pattern occurred in Italy. At first, the revolutions were successful, and all the states got constitutions (Napes, Tuscany, Piedmont, even Papal States).

- Lombardy and Venetia had been part of the Hapsburg Empire, but after the revolution in Vienna, a revolt broke out in Milan against the Austrian forces there. In the Five Glorious Days of Milan the Austrians were forced to retreat. The Venetian republic was reestablished, and Piedmont joined the war against Austria as well. In fact, when it then turned out that the pope was not an Italian nationalist (surprise, surprise) and he escaped, Rome was even left to be run by a representative assembly.

- Still, military force was the decisive factor, and Austria came back and beat Piedmont and its allies, leaving Austria back in firm control. Louis Napoleon then restored the pope, Sicily fell to the kingdom of Naples in May 1849, and, finally, Venetia was defeated in August 1849 by Austria.

*The Effects of Revolution*

- The widespread revolutions measured the failures of restoration, once again demonstrated the power of political ideas, and uncovered the effects of a generation of social change.

- Several gains, in fact, did endure: peasants in Prussia and Austria were emancipated, Piedmont and Prussia kept their new constitutions, and monarchs learned they needed to watch public opinion.

- Liberals learned that they couldn’t depend on the masses to follow them w/o making demands, they reevaluated their own goals – perhaps the old order was better than anarchy, they thought. The, on the other hand, saw they couldn’t trust the liberals to help them (they were ripped off).

- Everyone realized that revolutions needed power and armies to back them up but that, nevertheless, nationalism was a powerful new force in politics.

*Nationalism*

- Nationalism’s roots stem from a shared sense of regional and cultural identity, but the French Revolution and the effects of Napoleon’s conquests really caused it to emerge as a force in Europe.

- As an intellectual movement, nationalism also emphasized the importance of culture and cultural uniqueness. It rejected the universality of the Enlightenment and stated that each country had its own unique values and was suited to its own system of government.

- So, nationalism led to a fascination with folk culture and national history.

- As a political movement, the goal of nationalism was independence: both actual and economic.

*The Crimean War*

- Nationalist tensions led to the Crimean War, which originated over competing claims by Roman Catholic and Greek Orthodox monks to be the guardians of Jerusalem’s holy places.

- France (supporting the Catholics) pressured the Ottoman sultan into giving the Catholics special privileges, which caused the Russians (supporting the Greek Orthodox) to demand a protectorate over Orthodox churches w/in the Ottoman Empire. Then the Russians occupied Wallachia and Moldavia, lands that were under the Ottomans.

- Concerned by the Russian expansion, the English urged the sultan to resist the Russian demands. When negotiations broke down, Britain and France sent their fleets to the Aegean Sea, and in October 1853 the sultan declared war on Russia. When his butt got kicked, Britain and France joined him to preserve the balance of power.

- In the end, England, France, Piedmont, and Turkey fight Russia in the Crimean area. This war exposed the weakness of Austria and Russia, and showed how antiquated their systems were.

- Congress of Paris à finally, the Turkish side won and the powers met at the Congress of Paris, a congress that was preoccupied with issues of nationalism. Russia was forced to cede some territory, surrender its claims in Turkey and accept a ban on warships in the Black Sea.

*Italian Unification*

- Giuseppe Mazzini à known as “the spirit” of Italian Unification, Mazzini was one of the first Italian nationalists. His form of nationalism was very romantic and emphasized Italy’s uniqueness and special role in Europe. In nationalism, Mazzini saw the expression of natural communities, the basis for popular democracy and international brotherhood. His big chance for unification came in 1848, but, when Austria regained control, Mazzini left.

- Consequently, the task of unification, surprisingly, came to the small state of Piedmont, which had fought Austria and emerged with a constitutional monarchy led by Victor Emmanuel II.

- Cavour à was Prime Minister, a liberal who believed in progress, tolerance, limited suffrage, and who saw nationalism as an avenue to modernization. Although Piedmont’s internal strength was his first concern, he also wished to make Piedmont the center of Italy’s resurgence.

- Plombieres Agreement à made by Cavour w/ Louis Napoleon, the Plombieres Agreement stated that if Piedmont were at war w/ Austria then France would back them up. If Piedmont won, then there would be land gains for both countries. Cavour wanted Venetia and Lombardy out of the deal (but he never intended to fully unify Italy), and Napoleon wanted to weaken Austria, get Nicene and Savoy, and get back at the Austrians (for Congress of Vienna).

- They were just looking for a way to start the war when Austria did some stupid things: it imposed military conscription on Venetia and Lombardy, and it sent a declaration of total disarmament or war to Piedmont.

- So after two battles at Magenta and Solferino, things are going well when Napoleon III!

- Treaty of Villafranca à is where Napoleon III pulls out and the Austrian-Sardinian war ends.

- But now, it is time for Garibaldi who is the ultimate romantic. He recruits a thousands volunteers, sails down to Sicily and attacks the Kingdom of Two Sicily. As he wins battles, his army grows, and he is soon ready to take on Papal States and Cavour. So, in 1860 he marches to meet the North and, in order to prevent a civil war, he gives ALL his conquests to Cavour!

- So now Northern Italy (w/ the exception of Venetia and Rome) joins Southern Italy.

- In 1866, through the Austro-Prussian war, Italy gets Venetia, and then, in 1870, through the Franco-Prussian war, Italy sneaks in and takes Rome. Now Italy is totally unified.

*German Unification*

- In 1848 the Frankfurt Assembly reinforced the concept of a united Germany. In 1861, Wilhelm I mounted the Prussian throne, and in 1862 Bismarck was appointed Prime Minister.

- When Wilhelm I came to power in 1861, there was a big issue on military spending: Wilhelm wants $, Parliament doesn’t want more taxes. So Wilhelm appoints Bismarck, who collects taxes regardless. But this time, b/c of the tradition of absolutism, the monarch won out and Parliament couldn’t do anything about it.

- Then, in 1864 there is The Danish War in which Austria & Prussia fight the Danish. This war originates when Danish want traditional German provinces of Schleswig and Holstein. Naturally the Austrians and Prussians win, and Austria gets Holstein while Prussia gets Schleswig at the Gastein Convention.

- Then in 1866 the Austro-Prussian (Seven Weeks) War starts. Bismarck instigates this war by causing trouble in Holstein, the Prussians kick Austrian butt b/c Austrians have out of date military technology and have to cope with all these nationalist issues.

- Next in 1870 the Crisis of the Spanish Succession occurs. The question is the next Spanish emperor. Bismarck proposes Leopold of Hohenzollern (Will’s cousin), the Cortes like it, but France doesn’t. Wilhelm backs down at Ems, but he won’t promise to never do it again when Napoleon III asks him to. Concerned, Will sends the Ems Telegram home to Bismarck saying what happened, Bismarck changes a few choice words, releases it to the press and you have a war!

- So the Franco-Prussian War is on. France is favored, but, once again, Prussia totally wipes the floor with the French. Not only does Prussia win, but the Prussians even force the French into unconditional surrender via the Siege of Paris (not very pretty, people were eating their dogs and cats). Then, to add insult to injury, the French have to pay a huge indemnity and give up Alsace-Lorraine.

The Belle Époque

*The Arts*

- In this time, there was a new variety of artistic styles.

- Naturalists à this school believed that the artist had to show life exactly as it was w/ careful detail and research. This applied especially to the novel – Emile Zola was the master of the school.

- A common theme for this time was determinism, the belief that behavior was predetermined through social circumstance and blood inheritance (influence of Darwin).

- Impressionism à during this time the big new style was impressionism. Instead of attempting to capture reality, impressionists showed “what the eye first sees” by using color, light, and flattening the canvas. The big guys were Manet, Monet, Renoir, and Degas. The impressionists were into art for arts sake and made no political points in their work (unlike romantics).

- Post Impressionism à took the next step and was even less realistic, didn’t even try to show reality at all. The big people included Van Gogh, Paul Gaugin, and Seurat.

*Attacks on Liberal Civilization*

- Radicalismà there were several different types of working class/radical movements, most of which were socialist, during this time. The different ones included:

1. Marxism à the most common type, as most socialist parties in Europe were at least formally Marxist. In 1864, a group of English labor leaders called an international conference in London, and Marx decided to attend. Known as the First International, the meeting was dominated by Marx (who kicked out people he didn’t agree with – for example, the Blanquists). Marx had a big issue w/ the Russian anarchist Mikhail Bakunin, who supported nationalism (Marx hated it) and thought Marx was too authoritarian. Although the First International died after 1872 (when Bakunin was expelled), it helped build a workers movement by spreading Marxism. After this, most Marxist parties combined moderate policies w/ exciting slogans – they formed the Second International in 1889.

2. Trade Unions à trade unions also gained an avid following. Skilled artisans often led these movements, but the greatest threat was posed by the concept of the General Strike by the factory workers. The concept of the general strike was proposed by Georges Sorel.

3. Anarchism à there were also anarchist groups, which were illegal and underground parties specializing in random acts of violence – terrorism. Although not all anarchists were bomb throwers, all anarchists hated established authorities.

- Conservatism à rightist movements revived during this time, gaining support among the aristocrats, rural people, and member of the lower-middle class. They defended voting by class, limited suffrage, and attacked the shallowness of middle class culture and capitalism.

- Philosophy à some philosophers of the time began to look beyond reason. They stated that humanity was essentially irrational. For example, Henri Bergson believed that human understanding arose from intuition, not reason, and felt that spontaneity and creativity was key. Friedrich Nietzsche attacked everything about his society: equality, democracy, nationalism, militarism, etc. and felt that society’s only hope lay in being led by a few ubermench (supermen).

- Charles Darwin à Darwin’s discoveries, which made people appear to be more like animals and showed that humans were irrational creatures controlled by nature, also undermined faith in liberalism, a philosophy that was based on a belief in human rationality.

*France’s Domestic Policies*

- During Franco-Prussian war, in the four-month Siege of Paris, a split broke out between the right (which wanted to quit) and the left (wanted to fight like in 1792). The left won out, and established a radical Paris Commune, which took over the city in 1871. They held out as out as long as they could (they ate their dogs and cats), but the Germans still won.

- Now, the Paris Commune people thought they were the people running the country and a civil war breaks out. It is the republic national government vs. the Paris Commune

- May 1871 à the “bloody week”. 25,000 people were killed in street fighting. Finally, the insurrection was put down and the French Third Republic was born (1871 – 1940). Although the people who wanted the republic were a minority, since the others are so divided, they won!

- The new Third Republic had a Chamber of Deputies (elected by direct universal male suffrage) a Senate (elected by indirect suffrage through local officials) and a president. It was a regime of compromise. From 1879 to 1899, it was lead by moderate republicans.

- There were still plenty of problems: in 1889 General Georges Boulanger actually became more popular than the politicians using nationalism, and the leaders feared a coup, but nothing happened. And in 1894, the whole Dreyfus Affair occurred (bad for military, monarchists, and Church).

- The prime minter from 1906 to 1909 was Georges Clemenceau.

*Germany’s Domestic Policies*

- Until 1890, Bismarck totally dominated German politics. But then young William II, eager to run the country and exasperated w/ Bismarck’s complex policies, forced his resignation.

- Bismarck’s policies had allowed the court, army, bureaucracy and the big businesses to accumulate tremendous amounts of power. His successors were faced w/the challenge of holding the system together w/ the demands of the public and parliament. They tried to mimic his foreign policy successes and copied him in building up the army.

- Still, the Social Democrats (socialist party) gained a lot throughout the 1890s and dominated Germany’s labor unions. The SD’s remained firm revolutionaries choosing strict Marxism.

- In 1909, the last peacetime chancellor, Theobald von Bethmann-Hollweg, took office. He tried to placate both the conservative court and the more radical parliament. His programs for reform failed.

*Russia’s Domestic Policies*

- Russia had blocked reform for a generation, and it had become a totally backwards country. When Alexander III came into power, he tried to achieve stability through the Orthodox Church and police control of ideology. He game nobles a greater role n local councils (the zemstvos) and gave governors permission to use martial law to restrict non-Russian religions and languages and persecute Jews.

- Then, when Russia suffered a humiliating defeat at Japanese hands in the Russo-Japanese war in 1905, the pressure for reform grew tremendously. The Social Revolutionaries and the Marxist Social Democrats were both gaining strength, and the liberal members of the zemstvos decided to hold an illegal meeting in which they argued for civil liberties.

- In 1905 striking workers marched on the Winter Palace in St. Petersburg to petition for a constitution and labor unions. They were shot down by the army on “Bloody Sunday” – which led to agitation so wide that in March the tsar promised to call an assembly of notables and announced reforms of religious toleration, reduced restrictions on non-Russians and Jews, and fewer payments for peasants.

- This was not enough. Urban strikes, peasant riots, etc. showed the country demanded a constitution, and in August the tsar said he would consult the Imperial Duma.

- The public wanted even more, and responded w/ a wave of strikes so effective it forced the tsar to issue the October Manifesto, which granted a constitution.

- The people who supported the constitution became known as Octoberists, more liberal leaders became known as the Cadets (short for Constitutional Democrats), and, further to the left, some socialists refused to compromise and called for another general strike, which was only partially successful and whose leaders were soon arrested.

- Since elections under this system brought the Cadets into power, Nicholas disbanded the legislature and held new elections, which turned out more radical. So, he passed a law favoring the upper classes.

- Although the new system was somewhat corrupt, it was still workable and allowed Russia to industrialize. The prime minister from 1906 – 1911, Peter Stolypin, reformed education and administration and created full private ownership of land and social insurance.

*Austria-Hungary’s Domestic Policies*

- In Austria-Hungary, politics had reached a stalemate, as the creation of the autonomous regime in Hungary had touched off conflicts w/ the rest of the empire.

- From 1879 – 1893 Count Eduard von Taffe held office. Although Czechs and Poles supported Taffe, he was forced to stick to inaction for fear of alienating his other supporters. In response to worker’s agitation, Taffe proposed welfare measures but repressed the socialists (making the left and the right mad). After his fall, the gov’t relied more on support from the top, since universal male suffrage (introduced in 1907) put the Christian Socialist and Social Democrats in the lead.

- In Hungary, the Magyars kept control through oppression and corruption of the bureaucracy. They weakened the empire w/ their independent policies.

*England’s Domestic Policies*

- In England, the domestic issues were resolved through a two-party system. William Gladstone transformed the Whigs into the Liberal Party, and Benjamin Disraeli (who dated the Queen) turned the Tories into the Conservative Party. Gladstone supported increased suffrage and reform, and even sympathized with radicals. Disraeli supported a simper suffrage reform bill, which was passed in 1867.

- But, when Gladstone agreed to Irish home rule in 1886, his party split and some Liberals (led by Joseph Chamberlain) allied w/ the Conservatives, who took over using imperialism.

- While the Conservatives promoted British power abroad, they restructured local government by making country councils elective and therefore more democratic (1888, 1894) and extended the reforms of the civil service (in 1902 they got a national education system w/secondary schools).

- But the working class was still dissatisfied, and, in 1900, union representative and intellectuals combined to for the Labour party, which was basically a democratic socialist party. The Liberal and the Labour parties campaigned for social programs that the Conservatives were against.

- In 1906, the Liberals won again, and they established programs of workers’ compensation, old-age pensions and urban planning. This led David Lloyd George to propose the “people’s budget” in 1909, which was rejected by the House of Lords. But the king, who threatened to appointed more peers, forced the upper house to consent to the budget and a change in the constitution, which prohibited the Lords from vetoing money bills or anything that passed three times.

- The outbreak of WWI generated a wave of national unity, though the peace and prosperity was sacrificed.

World War I

*Foreign Policy from 1870 to 1890*

- By 1870, all the major powers that would participate in WWI were in place. Their foreign policies from 1870 to 1890 (end of Bismarck’s rule) would in many ways set the stage for WWI.

- England à the #1 power in Europe, by a lot. England had been the first to industrialize and it was still well ahead (steel production, paper use, etc.) until 1890, when Germany began to surpass it. England was the biggest imperial power, with India, Canada, and its plans for the Cape Town à Cairo railroad. It had the Suez Canal (which was its “lifeline” and it would protect at all costs) as well. The English navy was also bigger than all the others in the world combined! England’s only concern with Europe was for the balance of power.

- France à the #3 power in Europe. After the horrible mess of the Paris Commune and the Dreyfus affair, the French Third Republic seemed solidly established. The main goal for France was to regain control of Alsace-Lorraine (the “lost provinces”). Consequently, they had a vendetta against Germany.

- Russia à also the #3 power in Europe. A totally backwards country that only freed its serfs in 1861, was not industrialized at all (b/c needed middle class and trade, which it didn’t have). Russia’s goal was, as ever, a warm water port, which it would need for trade. It wanted to get it on the Mediterranean, from Turkey, which would be easily done if not for England, which wanted to maintain peace near its lifeline, and kept stopping them…

- Austria-Hungary à the #5 power in Europe. They are really, really scared of one thing: Slavic nationalism.

- Germany à the #2 power in Europe at the middle of the entire mess. Controlled by Bismarck, Germany developed a huge system of peacetime alliances, all based on their fear of a two front war – or that France, who hates them, might find an ally.

*Bismarck’s Alliance System*

- So it all began with Germany’s well-justified fear of a two front war – France and somebody else ganged up against Germany.

1. England – England and France together would be a serious problem. Luckily for Bismarck, England is not for peacetime alliances and won’t interfere unless the balance of power is threatened. So, all Bismarck has to do is make sure he doesn’t threaten England.

2. Austria-Hungary à a valid possibility, especially as he beat Austria-Hungary in 1870, which humiliated them. The treaty between the two should not make them want revenge though.

- So, to prevent the dreaded two-front war, Bismarck had to befriend BOTH Austria -Hungary and Russia. There was one slight problem: due to the Pan-Slavism issue, Austria -Hungary and Russia hated each other! So, in 1874, Bismarck formed the Three Emperors League between them.

- Then another problem began to develop. The Ottoman Empire (now the sick man of Europe) is in bad shape, and as Turkey controls the Balkans, which Russia wants but Austria-Hungary and England would defend, a war seems eminent.

- War would be very bad for Bismarck, as it would bring the British onto the continent to defend their lifeline, it would cause a war between Austria-Hungary and Russia, and it would ally France w/ England.

- Russo-Turkish War à From 1876 to 1878, Russia wipes the floor with Turkey – Turkey is collapsing, everyone is mobilizing. So Bismarck takes the initiative and quickly calls…

- The Congress of Berlin à in 1878, Bismarck presented himself as the honest broker and pretty much ran the session. He forced Russia to give back practically all its winnings – or else it would have to fight with Germany – and sided w/ Austria-Hungary, but now Russia feels betrayed and angry, and could possibly join France in a two front war.

- So, in 1879, Bismarck makes the Dual Alliance w/ Austria-Hungary, which becomes the Triple Alliance in 1881 with the addition of Italy. Now his friendship w/ Austria -Hungary is totally confirmed.

- Then he goes to Russia and asks if Russia wants to bring back the Three Emperors League, and Russia says yes and it is recreated in 1881.

- In 1887 the Three Emperors League falls apart b/c Russia and Austria -Hungary hate each other too much, but Bismarck quickly makes the Reinsurance Treaty with Russia to prevent a two-front war.

- Wilhelm I has to die, bringing impatient and power-hungry Wilhelm II to the throne. Wilhelm II wants navy, colonies, and “Germany’s day in the sun” and doesn’t want the complex alliance system. So in 1890, he fires Bismarck because of their differences.

- England was the model for a non-absolutist regime. Though Charles II was able to summon and dissolve Parliament, make appointments in the bureaucracy, and had to sign all the laws, he no longer had the Star Chamber, he couldn’t arrest Parliament leaders, and he couldn’t add seats in the Commons. In effect, he also could no longer use dispensations or raise $ w/out Parliament.

- Now, the gentry (wealthy local leaders w/out titles of nobility) had control of the government through Parliament (not through the monarch other countries).

- James II à successor of Charles II who was a total moron (bull in the china shop). After a struggle for the succession, which he won, James immediately announced his support for Catholics (dumb move), and began to antagonize Parliament (dumb move again). So, after a series of idiotic events, seven leaders of Parliament invited William III to invade, and he did, and James II fled.

- The Glorious Revolution à William and Mary (daughter of James) became co-monarchs in 1689. William was able to accept a limited monarchy, and a Bill of Rights was passed, which determined succession, defined Parliament’s powers, and established civil rights. An Act of Toleration was passed, which put an end to religious persecution, and a Triennial Act was passed, which stated that Parliament had to meet every three years. William guided England into an aggressive foreign policy and greatly expanded the central government. Unlike rulers before him, William saw his limits.

- England had already begun to develop a multi-party system. One side was the Whigs who opposed royal power and Catholicism. Their rivals, the Tories, favored the crown and wished for a traditional and ceremonial Anglicanism. The Whigs supported his war vs. Louis XIV (b/c Catholic and harbored James’ supporters). But, in 1700, the Tories won by opposing the war. By 1702, they were at war again over the Spanish Succession, and the Whigs were in control again. 1710 brought back the Tories, for the English were sick of the war, and they persuaded Queen Anne (William’s successor) to make peace at Utrecht in 1713. After Anne, George I (Hanover) took over, as did the Whigs.

- England’s Economy à at the same time, England was winning big time power in the navy and in the colonies, and it surpassed France. London is now the financial capital of the world. But, most Englishmen were untouched by the boom, and the peasants still lived in crappy conditions in village or city.

- Sir Robert Walpole pretty much ran things. Walpole kept England at peace and is often seen as the 1st prime minister. Walpole’s peaceful policies pleased large landlords but angered merchants (feared growth of French commerce) who found leadership in William Pitt the Elder, who wanted to get rid of France sea influence (England’s destiny).

*Diplomacy and Warfare*

- During the 17th century international relations became more impersonal and based on rational thought and less based on relationships between kings. Gradually dynastic influences gave way to the concept of the state. Leaders tried to shape their policies on reasons of state – i.e. security.

- One principle at work was the Balance of Power (BOP) – all powers agreed that it was best not to be dominated by one state. The goal was to keep balance, and diplomats were not always honest and were often deceitful in attaining their goals.

- The Seven Years War (1756 – 1763) à began w/a realignment of diplomatic alliances. Now, the antagonism between France and England and the rivalry between Prussia and Austria was taking over. So, Austria had a diplomatic revolution and made an alliance w/France and Russia against Prussia. Prussia tried to find allies, so it sought England at the Convention of Westminster, insulting France. England joined Prussia, but still, Prussia was almost demolished. Luckily for them, at the last minute the ruler of Russia goes and dies! A complete tsar who loves Frederick takes over, and, just as Russian troops are about to get rid of Prussia, he turns them back. Then, France and England work out their difficulties. Finally, at the Peace of Hubertusburg (what a name) Prussia gets Silesia and Austria gets Saxony back.

*Laissez-Faire Economics*

- Many Europeans called for less control of the economy by the economy.

- Adam Smith à a Scottish philosopher who epitomized the concerns and desires of the age, and wrote An Inquiry into the Nature and Causes of the Wealth of Nations (1776). Smith believed that $ was not actually wealth, but only showed it, and that real wealth consisted of the added value of manufactured items produced by invested capital. Most importantly, however, he stated that economic progress required that each individual be allowed to pursue his/her self-interest freely w/out restrictions for this would lead to economic growth. Natural divisions of labor and specialization, he stated, should be encouraged. This philosophy became known as laissez-faire economics, which means that people should be allowed to pursue their own economic interests. Smith also introduced the concept of the invisible hand that stated that if all individuals follow their own self-interest, it would be for the economic good of everyone, since everyone will do what they do best.

- Laissez-faire economics really caught on, especially in England, and in 1786 France and Britain signed a free-trade treaty. Guilds were growing weaker, and in 1791, the French got rid of them. In the 1790s, the English also began to pass laws against them, and the merchants gained freedom.

The Enlightenment

*The Definition of the Enlightenment*

- The Enlightenment was a period of time in which many intellectuals, who were called philosophs, began to question the traditions of society and to look at the universe in a scientific, critical light.

- During the Enlightenment, all the trademark aspects of European society were exposed to criticism and analysis through reason. No institution was spared, for even the church itself was attacked by philosophs. Though the Enlightenment began as a movement that only reached the intellectual elite of society, its repercussions would eventually reach and have a big impact on society as a whole.

*The Beliefs of the Philosophs*

- The philosophs, a group of intellectuals who supported the ideals of the Enlightenment, stood for a series of beliefs, which they stood for, regardless of the cost. These ideas included the following:

1. Reason à the universe can be explained through reason, as can all human institutions. The philosophs thought that reason could be applied to everything, and that it could be used to correct the problems in society.

2. Skepticism à the philosophs believed that everything should be open to questioning and criticism, even religion. They disliked dogma, superstition, and blind faith.

3. Toleration à both religious and intellectual. They felt that all ideas were equally valid, and that people should have the freedom to express themselves and their ideas.

4. Freedom à that is, intellectual freedom, an idea closely linked to toleration. They felt that people should have free speech, press, and freedom of religion. They felt that each person should have the opportunity to reason things out for themselves.

5. Equality à based on Locke’s Tabula Rasa (blank slate) and that all people are equal.

6. Education à again, based on Locke. They believed that education could eventually lead to a perfect society, a paradise of reason and toleration.

7. Optimism à very optimistic, believed in science bringing progress.

8. Enlightened Despotism à for many kings, enlightened despotism (“I am ruling b/c I can be a servant of the state and bring the enlightenment to my people”) replaced divine right monarchy and other justifications for ruling.

*The Famous Philosophs*

- Voltaire à Francois-Marie Arouet (a.k.a. Voltaire) is often regarded as the leading figure of the Enlightenment. A talented writer, Voltaire stood for many of the ideals of the period. First of all, he greatly admired science and helped to popularize it. In 1738, he wrote Elements of the Philosophy of Newton, which attempted to make Newton’s discoveries understandable. Voltaire greatly admired the English, for he felt their society had allowed greats like Locke, Bacon and Newton to rise, and in 1734 he wrote the Philosophical Letters on the English, which celebrated English toleration. Also, Voltaire absolutely hated religion (really hated intolerance) and he wrote that that organized religion bred intolerance and superstition. Voltaire was a deist, and felt religion should be a private matter. Throughout his life, Voltaire faced persecution and censorship, and as a result, he was a dedicated advocator of intellectual and religious freedom. Voltaire was a brilliant satirical writer (Candide) and literary critic who poked fun at everything.

- Diderot à most famous for his Encyclopedia. Diderot often felt that his contemporaries overemphasized reason over passion. He also sometimes criticized religion, and ended up as an atheist. But his most important work was the Encyclopedia, which classified all human knowledge from the most common to the most complex. The aim of the book was to “change the general way of thinking.” The book treated religion w/ artful satire, analyzing it like any other topic. Science was the core of the book, and scientific techniques and discoveries were presented in it. The Encyclopedia was banned in many places, but it was still distributed, and had a great impact on the intellectuals of Europe.

- Baron de Montesquieu à wrote The Spirit of the Laws a book that described an ideal system of government using checks and balances based on England. He believed that societies and political institutions could be studied scientifically, and that a balanced government would lead to success.

- David Hume à he was the empiricism who made the argument about the tree falling in the forest. He hated dogma. He went around proving how everybody was wrong. He was an atheist and he didn’t believe in any general knowledge, so who knows what he did believe in. Anyhow, he wrote Inquiry into Human Nature that criticized Christianity.

- Adam Smith à that economist. He only came up with an entire new philosophy on economics and also wrote The Wealth of Nations in 1776 which helped shape the U.S.A.

- Immanuel Kant à a brilliant philosopher, he stated that Hume woke him from his “dogmatic slumber” and believed that reality and perception were two different things. However, he believed that so long as it is organized by certain concepts, like cause and effect, science is still valid.

- Cesare Beccaria à was an economist and penal reformer who wrote On Crimes and Punishments, which argued for human rights and humanitarianism.

- Edward Gibbon à historian who criticized Christianity and held it responsible for the fall of the Roman Empire in The Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire.

*Art, Literature, and Music*

- Art of the Enlightenment à the art of the Enlightenment consisted of two competing styles, Rococo and Neoclassicism. Rococo was the art of the nobility, meaningless, w/out content, but very pretty, using bright, swirling colors, like Rubenism. Famous Rococo painters were Francois Boucher and Fragonard. Neoclassicism, on the other hand, favored line over color, and was all about drama, tension, emotion, content, and an imitation ancient style. The philosophs loved the NC, for they favored themes that the philosophs liked. Famous painter was Jacques Louis David.

The Renaissance

*The Causes of the Renaissance*

- The Middle Ages, which began around 500 AD, finally came to an end around 1450 AD.

- Though the beginning of the Renaissance, which signaled the end of the Middle Ages, occurred in the city-states of Italy, the same reasons that caused the Renaissance to begin in Italy caused it to appear in the rest of Western Europe.

- The conditions that led to the Renaissance in Italy are as follows:

1. Because of the Crusades, and the new trade routes, Europeans began to come in contact with other, more advanced civilizations, which influenced them greatly.

2. The Church, due to the scandals that occurred, lost much of its power, and people began to doubt its ultimate authority.

3. Due to trade, the middle class grew, and people began to accumulate vast sums of money. They then wanted to enjoy and show off their wealth, which led to a philosophy of enjoying this life instead of simply waiting for the next one.

4. Competition between wealthy people for status led to developments in education and art, since wealthy people, wanting to be respected, would compete to see who was the most educated or had sponsored the most artists.

*The Definition of the Renaissance*

- The Renaissance (French Term) means the rebirth of culture.

- An essential element of the Renaissance was the beginning of humanism, which glorified the culture of Ancient Greece and Rome.

*The Four Aspects of Humanism*

- Humanism was a new philosophy that really defined the Renaissance. Although it was an intellectual movement and didn’t really spread to most people, it had a huge impact on the age.

- Though many believe that humanism replaced religion in the Renaissance, in reality, the two coexisted. Most humanists were actually religious, and the only difference between the beliefs of church and of the humanists had was that the humanists believed that this life was important and should be enjoyed while the church did not, and felt that people should focus on awaiting the afterlife instead.

- Humanism consists of four essential aspects, which are as follows:

1. Admiration and emulation of the Ancient Greeks and Romans.

2. Philosophy of enjoying this life, instead of just waiting for the next one.

3. The glorification of humans and the belief that individuals are can do anything.

4. The belief that humans deserved to be the center of attention.

- Humanism also had a subdivision known as civic humanism. The civic humanists believed that participation in public affairs was essential for human development, and that individuals should not cut themselves off from society and study the world. Instead, they should help make changes in it by becoming a part of government. Eventually, the beliefs of the civic humanists spread to the humanists as a whole.

*The Humanists*

- Petrarch à (1304 – 1374) was the first humanist of the Renaissance. He greatly admired the Greeks and Romans and preferred them to his own contemporaries, who he saw as barbaric. He even felt that the only true examples of moral and proper behavior could come from the Ancients. Though he was a lawyer and cleric by trade, he devoted himself to writing poetry, papers, and letters, which were often to the famous Greeks and Romans.

- Giovanni Boccaccio à (1313 – 1375) was a writer who became famous for a collection of short stories called The Decameron that is now thought of as the first prose masterpiece ever written in Italian. The Decameron is a book relating how a group of young Florentines went to a secluded villa to escape the plague and began telling stories. It was one of the first books intended for entertainment and is groundbreaking in its frank treatment of relationships and its creation of ordinary, realistic characters.

- Lorenzo Valla – (1406 – 1457) was a humanist who pointed out errors in the Bible for the western Church. One of the first people to openly challenge the Church.

-Christine de Pisan – WOMAN who wrote “The Treasure of the City of Ladies” (First real feminist)

*Humanist Art*

- The area in which the humanists really excelled was art. Though some of the novels and essays written in the time have become classics, none of their writing (or any other area) ever came close to being as brilliant as their art.

- The differences between Medieval art and Renaissance art are numerous, and very dramatic, for a complete change in style occurred.

- Also, during the Renaissance, great artists, for the first time, gained special recognition and prestige instead of simply being craftsmen.

*Characteristics of Medieval Art*

- Paintings were lacking in depth and perspective.

- Paintings usually lacked a background.

- Always themed religiously and usually focusing on heaven or holy people.

- The paintings were not realistic, and made no sense geometrically or mathematically.

- The subjects did not show any emotions, except for calm or piety.

*Characteristics of Renaissance Art*

- Emulation of the Ancient Greeks and Romans.

- Good use of depth in paintings.

- Linear (further away = smaller) and atmospheric (further away = hazier) perspective.

- Paintings began to have more detailed backgrounds.

- Not necessarily religious, more focus on earthly themes and humans.

- More realistic, geometrically precise and mathematically accurate.

- Subjects showing signs of more emotion.

*Artists of the Early Renaissance*

- Giotto à (1267 – 1337) was a painter famous for the solid bodies, the expression of human emotion, and the suggestion of landscape in his paintings.

- Masaccio à (1401 – 1428) was a painter who used the inspiration of the ancients to put a new emphasis on nature, on three-dimensional human bodies, and on perspective. He also was the first painter since the ancients to show nudes in his paintings.

- Donatello à (1386 – 1466) was mainly a sculptor whose focus was on the beauty of the human body. He made some of the first nude sculptures since the ancients.

*Artists of the High Renaissance*

- Leonardo à (1452 – 1519) was a painter (and a scientist, writer, and inventor) whose paintings are remarkable for their technical perfection, in other words, for their good use of angles, perspective, and a detailed background.

- Raphael à (1483 – 1520) was a painter who used his mastery of perspective and ancient styles to produce works of harmony, beauty, and serenity and convey a sense of peace.

- Michelangelo à (1475 – 1564) was a painter who also experimented in poetry, architecture, and sculpture. Most of his work focuses on individuals who always give a sense of strength and ambition.

The Reformation

*The Short Term Causes of the Reformation*

- The Avignon Exile and Great Schism à were both events that greatly undermined both the power and prestige of the Church, and made many people begin to question its holiness and the absolute power of the Papacy. People realized that the Church was a human institution with its own faults.

- The Printing Press à before the invention of the printing press in the mid-1400s, many people didn’t have access to information or changes in religious thought except through word of mouth and the village viellées. With the printing press, new ideas, and the dissatisfaction with the church, could spread quickly, and people could read the Bible for themselves.

*The Long Term Causes of the Reformation*

- The growth in the power of the secular king and the decrease in the power of the Pope.

- The popular discontent with the seemingly empty rituals of the Church.

- The movement towards more personal ways of communicating with God, called lay piety.

- The fiscal crisis in the Church that led to corruption and abuses of power – IMPORTANT!

*Abuses of Church Power*

- Simony à the sale of Church positions, which quickly led to people becoming Church officials purely for economic motives, and not for spiritual ones.

- Indulgences à the sale of indulgences was the biggest moneymaker for the Church. When a person paid for an indulgence, it supposedly excused the sins they had committed (the more $, the more sins forgiven) even without them having to repent. Indulgences could even be bought for future sins not yet committed and for others, especially those who had just died, and were supposed to make a person’s passage into heaven faster.

- Pluralism à having more than one position at a time.

- Nepotism à control by a particular family.

*The Definition of the Reformation*

- The Reformation was the final splitting of the Western Church into two halves (Catholicism / Protestantism)

*Martin Luther*

- Luther (1483 – 1546) was born into a middle class family in Saxony, Germany. He got a good education and began studying law. After almost being hit by lightning, he decided to become a monk.

- As a monk, he became obsessed with his own sinfulness, and pursued every possible opportunity to earn worthiness in God’s eyes (for example, self-flagellation) but he was still not satisfied, for he felt that God would never forgive a sinner like himself.

- Finally, he had an intense religious experience that led him to realize that justification in the eyes of God was based on faith alone and not on good works and sacraments.

­- Then, in 1517, he saw a friar named Johann Tetzel peddling indulgences and claiming that by buying them, people could save themselves time in the purgatory. Since he said that by buying the indulgences, people could excuse sins, people were coming to buy the indulgences in droves. This outraged Luther, and on October 31st, 1517 he posted his Ninety-Five Theses on the church door.

- The theses explained that the Pope could remit only the penalties he or canon law imposed, and that for other sins, the faithful had only to sincerely repent to obtain an indulgence, not pay the Church.

- The theses made the profits from the indulgences drop off, and angered the order that supported Tetzel. Luther and the rival monks began to have theological discussions, which were at first ignored.

- But, by 1520 Luther had written three radical pamphlets:

1. An Address to the Christian Nobility of the German Nation à made a patriotic appeal to Germans to reject the foreign Pope’s authority.

2. The Babylonian Captivity à attacked the belief that the seven sacraments were the only means of attaining grace, saying that only two, baptism and the Eucharist (which were mentioned in the Bible) were important.

3. The Liberty of the Christian Man à explained his principle of salvation by faith alone.

*The Diet of Worms*

- Luther’s writings could no longer be ignored, and, in 1520, Pope Leo the Fifth excommunicated him, and Luther responded by calling the Pope an anti-Christ. So, Charles the Fifth ordered him to offer his defense against the decree at a Diet of the Empire at Worms.

- At Worms, Luther refused to retract his statements, asking to be proved wrong with the Bible. So, Charles ordered that Luther be arrested and his works burned, but Prince Frederick of Saxony (an elector in the H.R.E.) came to Luther’s aid and allowed Luther to hide in his castle.

*Lutheran Doctrine and Practice*

- Codified in the Augsburg Confession the Lutheran beliefs are as follows:

1. Justification by faith alone, or the belief that faith alone, without the sacraments or good works, leads to an individual’s salvation.

2. The Bible as the only authority, not any subsequent works.

3. All people are equally capable of understanding God’s word as expressed in the Bible and can gain salvation without the help of an intermediary.

4. No distinction between priests and laity.

5. Consubstantiation (the presence of the substance and Christ coexist in the wafer and wine and no miracle occurs) instead of transubstantiation.

6. A simplified ceremony with services not in Latin.

*The Appeal of Protestantism*

- Appeal to the peasants:

1. Message of equality in religion, which they extended to life in general.

2. A simplified religion with fewer rituals, which made it easier to understand.

3. Luther rebelled, which inspired many of them to do the same.

- Appeal to the nobles:

1. No tithe to pay, so $ stays in the country.

2. Since they are against Charles for political reasons, they can justify it by becoming Protestant.

3. No more church owned land, so they can get more land and are can tax peasants more w/ no tithe.

- Appeal to the middle class:

1. No tithe to pay, so more $ for them.

2. Now they can read the Bible and interpret it in their own way.

3. Concept of individualism – you are your own priest.

*Other Forms of Protestantism*

- Zwingli à (1484 – 1531) had beliefs very similar to Luther, except that he believed that NONE of the sacraments bestowed grace, and that they were purely symbolic. He also felt that for people to lead godly lives, they had to be constantly disciplined and threatened – Calvinism without predestination.

- Radicals à many radical sects broke out, and after Munster (where a sect called the Melchiorties gained political control of the city and began to establish a heavenly Jerusalem on earth) they were all persecuted. Since some believed that Baptism should only be administered to adults who asked to be baptized, they were all called the Anabaptists (rebaptisers).

- Calvin à (1509 – 1564) formed the second wave of the Reformation. Though Lutheranism and Calvinism both believed in people’s sinfulness, salvation by faith alone, that all people were equal in God’s eyes and that people should follow existing political authority, Calvin believed in predestination or the concept that God, being all knowing, already knows if a person is going to go to heaven and become part of the elect or not. Though behavior on earth technically had no effect on the decision, it was established that moral people tended to be part of the elect. Calvinist communities were model places, with very strict moral codes that were vehemently imposed. The church and its doctrines were also very well defined in the Institutes of the Christian Religion and all Calvinists were supposed to make their communities worthy of the future elect.

The Centralization of Political Power

*Existing System of Government in England*

- Local administration à members of the gentry (not technically members of the nobility, but still had large estates and were dominant political figures) were chosen to become JPs. The JPs were voluntary unpaid officials that served as the principal public servant in the more than forty counties. Since the gentry wanted appointments for reasons of status, the king could always count on their support.

- Lawmaking à though the Parliament grew in power, it always remained subordinate to the crown. Nevertheless, the English kings knew that they couldn’t take severe measures without its consent. The Parliament contributed to the unification of the country, even though it took away power from kings.

- Judiciary à the common law (based on the interpretations and precedents made by individual judges), not Roman law was in effect, and traveling judges administered it. This helped unify the country as well.

*Changes made by Henry VII and Henry VIII*

- Henry VII à founder of the Tudor dynasty, Henry VII came to power shortly after the War of Roses, a civil war that weakened the nobles greatly. He was a conservative, and strengthened the crown by applying the traditional methods, such as:

1. He carefully built up funds without overtaxing his subjects; he put collection and revenue in the hands of a small, efficient group of his officials. Avoided foreign entanglements.

2. He increased the power of the JPs and had the Star Chamber (a group of royal councilors) resume hearing appeals, which strengthened royal power and decreased noble power because nobles could no longer control the local courts.

- Henry VIII à tended to enact more radical measures than did his father, such as:

1. In 1513 he beat invading Scottish army @ Flodden, near England’s north border.

2. Decided to break with the Roman Catholic Church after advice from Thomas Cromwell. This had the effect of stimulating the economy since church funds stayed in the country and the church lands were annexed. It also greatly strengthened the Parliament and gave it more responsibility.

3. The break with the Church also had the effect of making a reorganization of the administration necessary. They made six departments, each with specific functions. Cromwell was the executive of the councils. A Privy Council was also established, consisting of the king’s advisers.

*Existing System of Government in France*

- Local administration à there was no real system for local government, and aristocrats were virtually independent rulers until the new monarchs came along.

- Royal administration à had three departments: the Chancery (had charge of formal documents), the Treasury ($), and the Parlement of France (the court of law). Roman law was used, which helped the king because the monarch was then able to issue ordinances.

- Lawmaking à representative assemblies, known as Estates, limited the throne’s power because the estates had to approve measures made by the king before they were enacted. The throne was forced to negotiate with the estates, especially to raise taxes. Nevertheless, the Estates never were as powerful as the English Parliament. The taxes (the sales tax, hearth tax, and salt tax) all went to the crown and after 1451, they could be collected on the king’s authority alone.

- Army à unlike the English, they had a standing army that was rarely used but always a threat, so it increased the king’s power. However, it took an enormous amount of funding.

*Changes made by Louis XI and Charles VIII*

- Louis XI à began his reign after the Hundred Years War, which weakened the crown. At the beginning of his reign, there was anarchy, and the king had no power. However, changes he made reestablished the crown’s power. For example:

1. He beat Duke Charles the Bold of Burgundy, who was Charles V great-grandfather and he then reannexed Burgundy except for the Low Countries, which the duke’s daughter kept.

*Changes made by Louis XII, Francis I and Henri II*

- Louis XII à began reign after Charles VIII and before Francis I. He made many changes, including:

1. He increased the size and complexity of the administration.

2. Adopted the sale of offices (simony) that stimulated social mobility and corruption.

3. Due to the fact that the clergy and nobles were exempt from taxation, the crown was forced to rely on the lower classes, which couldn’t provide enough money to upkeep the standing army and the country. So, under Louis XII, the country began taking loans from banks (Fugger).

- Francis I à took over after Louis XII, made most changes of any new monarch in France, such as:

1. Gaining power over the Church with the Concordat of Bologna (1516), which allowed him to make appointments, and, though it was not stated, it effectively allowed him to control the Church without breaking from it (see Henry VIII).

2. He began a major reorganization of the government. He legalized the sale of offices, formed and inner council and centralized all tax gathering and accounting responsibilities in 1523.

3. During his reign the Estates General stopped meeting and consequently lost influence.

4. After his reign, the monarchy was the strongest that it had ever been. Unfortunately, the advent of the Reformation screwed everything up again – Calvinism!

*Existing System of Government in Spain*

- The Iberian Peninsula was divided into three different sections, as follows:

1. Portugal à in midst of its overseas exploration.

2. Castile à the largest and richest area. It was still fighting the Muslims on its Southern frontier. This led to nobles gaining a lot of political power.

3. Aragon à small area same size as Portugal.

- In October 1469 Isabella of Castile married Ferdinand of Sicily, which led to a ten-year civil war which the two monarchs won.

*Changes made by Ferdinand and Isabella*

- Although Ferdinand and Isabella made no attempt to form a monolithic state (all united) they did somewhat unify Spain into a federation where the nobles lost power.

1. Aragon à remained a federation of territories administered by viceroys who were appointed by the king but allowed local customs to remain intact. Each province was allowed to keeps its own representative assembly, called the Cortes.

2. Castile à in Castile, they were determined to assert their superiority and restore order to the countryside (which was screwed up by civil wars). They did this by establishing the Cortes of Castile, an assembly dominated by urban representatives who shared the wish for order since peace helped trade. The Cortes also had tribunals to try criminals.

- They also made general changes, such as:

1. They overhauled the entire administration by saying that “ability rather than social status should determine appointments.” They kicked out the nobles as local administrators, and replaced them with people from a lesser class of nobility called the hidalgos (similar to gentry in England) who occupied positions called corregidors, which were local judicial officers.

2. They weakened the clergy and after they got rid of the Muslims in 1492, the Pope allowed them to make appointments. So, by Charles V’s reign they had power over the church.

3. Also, in 1478, the Pope granted them the power to have an independent Inquisition to kick out all non-Christians, such as the Muslims and Jews. Without other religions, Spain was more united. Plus, the Inquisition, like the Italian wars, kept the nobles busy.

4. They instituted Castilian law, which all came from the throne and was similar to Roman law.

5. After Isabella’s death, Ferdinand concentrated on foreign affairs and reannexed several provinces from France and entered the war in Italy, which under Charles V (Hapsburg) they won against Henry II of France. They won because they had the best standing army.

*The Holy Roman Empire under Charles V*

- Charles V was the king of Spain but the Cortes didn’t like him because he requested additional tax funds so that he could take the Spanish troops and try to unify the HRE. So, effectively, he wasted all of Spain’s $ from the new world on stupid wars. Naturally, when Charles V left for war, the poor people revolted but the nobles put down the rebellion before Charles V came back. The nobles sided against the peasants only because along with attacking Charles, they attacked the nobles.

- Though corruption was widespread, centralization gave monarch lots of power. Spain’s administration was the most detailed, though it was not always the most efficient.

- Charles’ major problem was $ because he wasted all of it on his stupid wars (like the one against the Ottomans, and all the ones against the Schmalkaldic League in HRE) in Europe. Since Aragon was more independent, the entire tax burden fell on Castile, but Castile did get a monopoly of trade with the New World, which gave them lots of silver. However, the monopoly eventually led to foreign domination since no one else could get the $. Consequently, Philip II had to declare Spain bankrupt several times because of the wars.

England in the 17^th Century

*Elizabeth I (1558 – 1603)*

- Queen Elizabeth was a skillful queen who was very able to sense the mood of her people, and very good at using propaganda to promote her image.

- She was a very successful queen, and the only issue she left unresolved was the question of succession. However, at the last minute, her Scottish cousin James I was chosen.

*James I (1603 – 1625)*

- In 1603, James took over and was greeted eagerly as he traveled from Scotland to London. However, both the religious controversy and the conflict between the king and Parliament were unresolved, and soon began to cause trouble for the new king.

- James was a complete believer in divine right monarchy or the belief that that kings rule by divine right and should have absolute power. He believed Parliament was unnecessary.

- Millenary Petition à petition given to James as soon as he reached the capital signed by 1,000 churchmen which asked James to move the Anglican Church further away from Catholicism (no popery, no bishops) and to simply and “purify” the services instead. James responded by saying simply, “No bishop, no King,” because he felt that the bishops, as traditional figures of authority should stay, since otherwise people could also begin questioning his authority.

- Foreign Policy under James I à James wisely kept England out of the Thirty Years War (though this made some Englishmen unhappy since it was seen as a failure to support the Protestant cause) and he even tried to make peace with Spain by attempting to marry his son, Charles I, to a Spanish princess (which enraged the public). However, the Spanish turned Charles I down, which sparked a conflict. Instead, Charles was married to Henrietta Marie of France, another Catholic. But, just as the war against Spain began, James died and Charles took over.

*Charles I (1625 – 1649)*

- Though Charles was sure that war against Spain would unite the country under his leadership, it actually provided Parliament with more opportunities to force him to make concessions, since he needed to tax to support the war and Parliament’s approval was needed for new taxation.

- Several Parliaments were called and dissolved in rapid succession for the king was unwilling to concede on the issue of Buckingham, a duke who had favor within the monarchy (wink, wink). Finally, in 1628, Parliament had enough of the king’s behavior (he was illegally forcing loans from people in order to avoid relying on Parliament for $) and decided to draw up a petition stating their traditional rights.

- The Petition of Right à passed in 1628 (Charles simply agreed to be able to get more $), it stated the rights of Parliament, such as:

1. Due Process of Law (Habeas Corpus)

2. No taxation w/out Parliament’s consent.

3. No billeting of troops.

4. Parliament must be called frequently (not specific).

- Though Charles accepted the Petition, in reality, like his father, he was an absolutist.

- Next, Parliament moved to impeach Buckingham, which the king objected to, so he dissolved Parliament. The duke was then assassinated, and the king called the Parliament back into session expecting more cooperation. Parliament, however, was angry because, under his wife’s influence, Charles had begun to favor the High Church and not enforce the laws against popery.

- So, in 1629, Parliament tried to enact laws against Catholics to reverse the drift towards the High Church. Charles was unable to stop them since he was in desperate need of $ to support the war against Spain, but he finally decided to dismiss Parliament, and sent word to the Speaker of the House of Commons, who was supposed to immediately give up his chair. Instead, the infuriated members of the House forced the speaker back into the chair and passed three quick anti-Catholic resolutions.

- Charles was enraged and dissolved Parliament, swearing he would never call another one.

- So, for 11 years Charles attempted to rule completely w/out Parliament. Since Parliament had no way to call itself back into session, the only weapon it had against Charles was public opinion.

- Because of four events, public opinion gradually shifted towards Parliament. The events were:

1. Charles’ treatment of his opponents à for example, John Eliot’s imprisonment in the tower of London until he apologized, which he never did.

2. Archbishop Laud à appointed by the king, the archbishop was a zealous believer in the High Church who was strongly against Puritans (imposed Anglican Prayer Book).

3. Ship $ Case à to raise $, the king spread a tax that was formerly only applicable to coastal towns to all towns, which Parliament considered a violation of their rights.

4. The imposition of the Anglican Prayer Book which lead to a Scottish rebellion.

- Since putting down the rebellion required $, Charles was forced to call Parliament.

- Short Parliament à because the Parliament demanded concessions, it was quickly dissolved.

- Long Parliament à again, Charles was forced to call a Parliament, and although most of his opponents from the Short Parliament were reelected, he was forced to pass the following to get $:

1. Bill of Attainder against Strafford and Archbishop Laud (advisors) for their imprisonment / death.

2. Law that gave up king’s right to dissolve Parliament.

3. Triennial Act à required having Parliament meet every three years.

4. No taxation w/o Parliament’s approval (taxes that had been passed that way declared illegal).

5. The abolishment of the Star Chamber.

*Civil War*

- The civil war consisted of two phases, which were as follows:

1. King vs. Parliament (1642 – 1646) à the king quickly raised an army of mercenaries, while Parliament allowed Cromwell to take over and form the New Model Army, which won.

2. Parliament vs. Parliament’s Army (1646 – 1649) à Cromwell splits from most of the Parliament since he is an Independent (believes in freedom of religions) and they are strictly Puritans. So, everyone joins against Cromwell, but he still wins.

*England Under Cromwell*

- Cromwell executed the king in 1649, saying he was not to be trusted, and then purged Parliament of all Presbyterians (600 à 60 people, called Romp Parliament) which got him firmly in control.

- Cromwell soon became a military dictator, and he divided England into 12 military districts that were ruled by martial law. However, he was unable to make any lasting changes.

- He was far ahead of his time in his religious toleration (which was limited, since it didn’t include Catholics and Anglicans, but was still remarkable for the time) but did not believe in democratic rule.

- Levellers à faction that wanted all people to vote.

- Diggers à faction that wanted all people to vote and wanted to share all the wealth equally.

*Charles II (1660 – 1685)*

- Nicknamed “The Merry Monarch” Charles II was very easygoing and had no problem with compromising with Parliament. After the interregnum both parties were eager to compromise.

- The Treaty of Dover à in 1670, Charles II secretly signed the treaty with France. The treaty stated that, in exchange for military support (against the Dutch) and $, Charles would try to convert England back to Catholicism and to convert back to Catholicism himself.

- Test Act à in response, Parliament passed the Test Act in 1673, which prohibited anyone who had not had an Anglican communion from entering into the army or public service. The law was aimed at excluding Catholics. Charles allowed the law to be passed, but his used his powers of dispensation to sneak some Catholics into public service anyhow.

*James II (1685 – 1688)*

- Before James became king, a rebellion caused by the Popish Plot (a hoax that stated that there was going to be an assassination of Charles II to bring James II, a Catholic, to the throne, and that James was going to convert the country back)

- He tried to Romanize (convert back to Catholicism) Oxford and Cambridge, as well as the army. He Romanized the army using his powers of dispensation, and he did so because he felt that the only real source of power was the army, and in order to control the army, he knew he needed Catholic officers.

- Finally, he passed a Declaration of Indulgence that was ignored, so he passed another law forcing every bishop to read it in church. Seven bishops, however, refused to obey, and they were put on trial, and found not guilty (to the king’s astonishment and anger).

- Still, after all James’ stupidity, Parliament was still reluctant to revolt since they remembered what had happened last time and did not want to repeat the same mistake. Also, James was getting old.

- However, James’ wife became pregnant, which was a miracle at her age, and actually gave birth to a healthy baby boy. Parliament asked William of Orange (married to Mary, daughter of James) to.

*The Glorious Revolution*

- So, in 1688, William and Mary take over as co-monarchs. William of Orange, the leader of the Dutch who is fighting the French, was so thankful to be able to take over England because of its military strength that he did not mind being a limited, not an absolute, monarch.

- Then, Parliament passes the Bill of Rights a statement that, once and for all, establishes Parliament’s supremacy. Also, to please William, Parliament finally passes the Act of Toleration.

The Scientific Revolution

*Definition of the Scientific Revolution*

- The Scientific Revolution (1543 – 1687) was a period of time in which many breakthrough discoveries were made in science and philosophy, as well as an era in which the Europeans’ perception of the universe and their role in it was changed forever.

- Although the SR began by only affecting the scientific and intellectual elite (5 % of the population or so) the concepts that originated during the SR eventually spread to all of the population.

*Science Before the Scientific Revolution*

- Prior to the SR, all scientific concepts came from either the Bible or ancient scientists. Since, during the Middle Ages, most of the works of other ancient scientists were lost, Aristotle, Ptolemy, and Galen became the only, and therefore ultimate, authorities, on their fields. The old beliefs came from:

1. The Bible à naturally, the main source of information, in all respects, was the Bible, whose teachings were taken literally (for example, if a story stated that the world stopped spinning, Europeans believed that the world actually did stop spinning).

2. Aristotle à was the greatest philosopher of ancient times. He was viewed as the absolute authority on physics, although many of his theories were clearly wrong! His theories included the belief that there was no movement without a mover (which fit in perfectly with church philosophy since it made it obvious that God was necessary to move the Earth) and that in their natural state all objects were at rest (i.e. all objects wish to be at rest, motion is an unnatural state which must be accounted for by an outside force at all times). He explained motion by the fact that each of the four elements (earth, air, fire and water) wished to return to its natural place (for example, a stone falls because it wants to return to the earth). Air and fire, he said, always wished to go upwards and earth and water wished to fall downwards. Aristotle believed in teleological (based on the fact that everything is made for a purpose).

3. Ptolemy à a great astronomer from ancient times, he stated that the earth was the center of the universe and that the sun and all the planets moved around in crystalline spheres. Since this alone was not able to mathematically explain retrograde motion Ptolemy added in epicycles (circles within circles), which, through some very complicated calculations, could approximate planetary motion.

*Causes of the Scientific Revolution*

- One cause was that scientists were simply beginning to take note of the inadequacies of the standard theories, and, although they greatly preferred to make slight changes to the theories (vs. abandoning them) some scientists were beginning to question the old authorities.

- Still, it is unlikely that the scientists would have challenged the established theories without the influence of the other ancient scientists, especially Archimedes, (who were rediscovered during the Renaissance due to the humanists’ efforts to find ancient works) that disagreed with the old theories.

- Lastly, the European interest in technology both stimulated and made possible the SR. New instruments and devices (printing press, telescope, vacuum pump, thermometer, barometer and microscope), often made for other purposes, were used in science and made possible many of the new discoveries.

*The Major Scientific Discoveries*

- Nicolaus Copernicus (1473 – 1543) à was a Polish priest and astronomer who shook the foundations of European beliefs. He challenged Ptolemy’s system simply because it was too complex and he felt that there had to be a better system mathematically. So, based on mathematics, he developed a new, sun-centered system that placed earth as the third planet rotating around the sun. This system eventually ended up requiring complex mathematics as well, but Copernicus was a great mathematician who easily defended his theory. Copernicus even began developing the concept of gravity, for he stated that large masses have their own attractive forces. His major work was The Revolution of Heavenly Bodies (1543 – start of scientific revolution), which, fearing the Church, he did not publish until his deathbed.

- Tycho Brahe (1546 – 1601) à stargazer who meticulously recorded star data for years.

- Johann Kepler (1571 – 1630) à a brilliant mathematician who developed the first theories of motion. With the aid of Brahe’s star data (which he acquired since he was Brahe’s assistant), Kepler came of with the theory that the planets moved in ellipses, and that they did not move at a steady rate. Instead, as they came closer to the sun, they accelerated, and they slowed down as they moved away. So, Kepler’s First Law of Motion stated that the planets moved in elliptical orbits, and his Second Law stated that the planets sweep though an equal area of space in an equal amount of time.

- Galileo Galilei (1564 – 1642) à was the first scientist to use the telescope. With the telescope, he saw Jupiter’s moons (the existence of which proved that not everything orbited the earth, as was previously thought) and the craters on the moon (which proved that heaven was not perfect). Based on his observations, Galileo concluded that the principles of terrestrial physics could be applied to the heavens as well. In 1610, he wrote the Starry Messenger and subsequently got in trouble with the Spanish Inquisition, which stated that it was not allowed to openly support Copernicus. So, in 1632, he wrote the Dialogue on the Two Great World Systems (supposedly a work of fiction, but obviously supported Copernicus). But this did not fool the church, for they forced him to recant in 1633 and made him spend the last years of his life under house arrest. There, he developed his Theory of Inertia, which stated that things in motion remain in motion unless acted upon by another force (implies that God is not necessary to move planets), which he published in The Two New Sciences in 1638. Galileo is really considered to be the first modern scientist, for he developed the scientific method of experimentation and was one of the first mechanists (how, not why).

- Isaac Newton (1642 – 1727) à brought to a climax all the previous works in his masterpiece, The Principia, which described three laws of motion (in the absence of force, motion continues in a straight line; the rate of change of the motion is determined by the forces acting on it; action and reaction between two bodies are equal and opposite) and a law of universal gravitation (which applied the concept of gravity to both the earth and the heavens). Newton also supported observation and experimentation, and helped further develop the scientific method.

*The New Epistemologies*

- The SR allowed many new epistemologies (theories of knowledge) to develop. First, the belief in mechanism, which stated that scientists should question how (not why) things worked, became more widespread, especially through Galileo and Newton. The opposite philosophy to mechanism is teleology, which stated that everything is made for a purpose, and was used by Aristotle.

- Mainly, however, the discoveries helped the scientific method develop. The scientific method, which was a new theory on how to obtain and verify knowledge, stressed experience, reason, and doubt and rejected all unsubstantiated authority. The scientific method revolutionized science, and made measurement of data, and mathematics, essential parts of science.

- The scientific method was actually a combination of two theories of knowledge:

1. Empiricism (a.k.a. induction) à was advocated by Francis Bacon (who wrote New Atlantis a description of an ideal society based on science) and supported going from particular knowledge (observation) to general knowledge.

2. Rationalism (a.k.a. deduction) à was advocated by Rene Descartes (who wrote the Discourse on the Method of Rightly Conducting the Reason and Seeking Truth in the Sciences) who stated that senses can lie and that the only way to find truth was to start from one fact, which was “I am doubting” and proceed to deduce all other statements – “I think, therefore I am.” Descartes also stated that there was an essential divide between the world of thought and reality (tangible objects). In other words, he took Bacon’s statement that religion (faith) and science (fact) should be separate and turned it into a far-reaching divide between the reality of the world and our perception of it

*The Famous Empiricists*

- Empiricism was a very influential epistemology, and soon, it was beginning to be applied to other fields, not just science. Actually, several individuals used empiricism to develop political theories.

- Thomas Hobbes à was a radical Nominalist who stated that there are no abstract ideas. Therefore, he was also an atheist (since God is an abstract idea – he must not exist). Instead, in his Pleasure-Pain Philosophy he stated that, since abstract good and evil do not exist, the only good things are ones that bring one pleasure and the only bad things are the ones that bring one pain. Mainly, however, Hobbes used empiricism to develop a political system. Because, according to him, in the state of nature (w/out any authority) there would be a constant war of all-against-all b/c of competition, diffidence (fear), and vain glory (desire to show off). Nobody could ever win the war, for, although a law of nature exists which states that if you want respect then respect others, people, the terrible beings that they are, will break the agreement to get what they want unless there is an outside authority enforcing the law. So, the only solution, Hobbes writes in his masterpiece, The Leviathan (1651) is ABSOLUTE MONARCHY! Hobbes’ absolute monarchy is not based on divine right, but, instead, it is based on a social contract (an agreement between the people and their ruler) in which the people agree that, since anything is better than the war of all-against-all, they will give up their natural rights to the government in exchange for protection. So, the government is all-powerful, but, in theory, they will never need to actually use their power, it is only a threat.

- John Locke à the next significant empiricist, he was somewhat a reaction to Hobbes’ negativity. Locke began with the assumption that, at birth, each person is born with a tabula rasa (blank slate) and that all human nature and knowledge comes from either direct experience or from reflection. Therefore, since all beliefs come from experience, all beliefs are open to criticism (this was one of the most powerful arguments for equality and tolerance yet). Clearly, Locke was a great supporter of equality, toleration, and education (make good environments). Locke also used his ideas to write a social contract, like Hobbes. Locke’s social contract, however, as stated in An Essay Concerning Human Understanding (1690) and Two Treatises of Government (1689), had almost nothing in common with Hobbes. Locke stated that, in the state of nature, people are neutral, since it all depends on the environment. Based on this, he said that, at birth, each person has certain inalienable rights of life, liberty and property. Since people must be forced to respect e/others rights, government is formed, to protect the rights. In his contract, government must protect peoples’ rights, but not more, and the people must obey the government so long as it does not do more than necessary. If it does, people have the right to rebel and establish another government. The Declaration of Independence is pretty much just paraphrasing JL’s beliefs.

- David Hume à was the dead end of end of empiricism. He stated that there can’t be any absolute knowledge if everything is based on the senses. So, people can know things through common sense, but not through philosophy (which he says is a joke) and he hates dogma.

*The Effects of the Scientific Revolution*

- The universe was no longer appeared to be a mystery. In fact, people felt that it was orderly, rational, and, most importantly, could be understood by humans and people felt they were able to control their own destiny

- The concept of natural laws developed. These laws, which were similar to the laws found in science by Newton, could govern other aspects of life as well, such as economics, politics, or ethics.

- Science gained wider appeal and unprecedented popularity. Additionally, science was institutionalized, and scientific societies sprung up throughout Europe, on both the national and personal level.

- Positive effects of the SciRev à gain of knowledge, greater toleration (both religious and scientific), less superstition and more scientific answers, and freedom to deviate from established theories, which opened the door for new, further developments.

- Negative effects of the SciRev à loss of innocence, loss of traditional faith, loss of faith in heaven, earth is no longer regarded as the center (God’s pet project), skepticism, loss of personal/caring God.

- Overall, however, the SR was an era of optimism that gave way to an Age of Reason in the 18th century.

*The Arts During the Scientific Revolution*

- Mannerism à a reaction to the glorification of humans seen in the Renaissance, Mannerism featured distorted human figures, strange perspectives and unnatural colors and lighting. Mannerism reached its peak during the instability of the Reformation, and it reflected the concerns of a troubled time. The major Mannerist painter was El Greco (1541 – 1614).

- Baroque à a reaction to Mannerism, the Baroque style occurred during the Counter Reformation, and it reflected the desire for grandeur and the wish to inspire and awe people with God’s greatness. A famous baroque painter was Caravaggio (1571 – 1610) whose paintings were famous for their depictions of highly emotional moments. Other famous baroque painters were Rubens (1577 – 1640), and Veláquez (1599 – 1660), who glorified church figures and rulers. Bernini, a baroque sculptor and architect, did the inside and outside of St. Peter’s Cathedral in Rome.

- Classicism à like Baroque, Classicism attempted to awe the viewer. However, like the Renaissance, it attempted to awe the viewer with form and discipline – also they wished to return to ancient values. Big guy was Poussin whose paintings were more subdued than the baroque guys (he liked togas).

*The Literature During the Scientific Revolution*

- Cervantes à wrote Don Quixote, which illustrated the wide gaps between rich and poor and the difference between reality and fantasy of his time by poking fun at society and politics (he thought that politics disregarded human values).

- Shakespeare à wrote plays that made timeless statements about human behavior and covered a very wide range of topics and emotions. However, his plays also reflected his time as death, turmoil and change were always present. Also, the vigor in his plays showed the sense of achievement that also characterized the 1500s (don’t ask what achievements, please!). .

*Social Patterns and Popular Culture During the Scientific Revolution*

- Population decreased after the 16th century. In the 17th century, population began to rise again, leading to overcrowding in the cities, bigger armies, increased crime, more taxation (but food prices didn’t rise = bad for peasants), and beggars (not enough food for peasants).

- Also, during the SciRev, social status became mobile because it became based on wealth and education as opposed to family heritage. The emphasis on education led to a higher literacy rate, which led to the start of newspapers and book sales. Woman also gained opportunities (in business).

- In the East, peasants were reduced to serfdom, and in the West, many were forced to go into the cities in search of a job (leading to chaos @ cities) and village unity decreased b/c of increased population and national intervention for law enforcement (intendants).

The Emergence of the European State System

*Absolutism in France under Louis XIV*

- Louis XIV, a.k.a. the Sun King, was the next threat to universal absolute monarchy.

- Born in 1638, he ruled from 1643 – 1715. His rule had three phases:

1. 1643 – 1661 à Cardinal Mazarin rules b/c Louis XIV was too young. Mazarin put down the Fronde (rebellion by nobles) but only after Louis XIV fled Paris and his entire family was killed which, naturally, left a lasting impression on Louis XIV. This phase ended when Mazarin died in 1661.

2. 1661 – 1682 à Louis takes over, builds Versailles, and vows not to let anyone rule over him. He built up the standing army, continued centralization of power through the bureaucracy, helped the economy grow and said I am the state, which pretty much sums it up.

3. 1682 – 1715 à Constant wars, France vs. the rest of Europe.

*Louis XIV’s Internal Policies*

- Versailles à isolated location of Louis XIV’s palace. Versailles was the great trap dedicated to the taming of the aristocracy. Effectively, it drew the nobles away from their affairs and kept them close to Louis XIV. Versailles was a constant party, so nobody wanted to leave. Louis XIV, however, knew how to balance work w/ party so he was a good ruler. Versailles was also the center of French culture.

- Louis attempted to strengthen the economy by making reforms (which he later ignored b/c he needed instant $ for wars) by stimulating manufacturing, agriculture, and trade. He also tried to reduce the effect of France’s internal toll, and tried to boost overseas trade.

- Louis XIV wanted to unify the country and keep his control over it, which he attempted to do by:

1. Trying to create religious uniformity (i.e. trying to make France Catholic). First, Louis XIV revoked the entire Edict of Nantes in order to “clean out” the country from the Huguenots. This aspect of Louis’ policies did not work, for they simply angered productive and hardworking sects of the French population while accomplishing nothing. In other words, in attempting to unify the country through religion, Louis XIV simply alienated his people.

2. Employing intendants and royal officials to subdue peasants and collect taxes. Although this helped the economy and treasury, it was terrible for the peasants, who had to pay huge taxes to support the wars, and, since nobles couldn’t be taxed, the peasants were forced to bear all the burden.

3. Keeping the parlements and nobles (with Versailles) under control. Additionally, he ruthlessly suppressed all the peasant rebellions that occurred.

*Louis XIV’s Foreign Policies*

- Louis made very good use of his contrasting advisers, which helped him greatly @ foreign policy.

- Colbert à one of Louis’ advisers who regarded the Netherlands as France’s biggest enemy b/c of their mercantilist policies. Therefore, he felt that all the taxes should go to building up a navy to fight the Netherlands, who tended to dominate the overseas trade routes. Helped reform the army as well.

- Louvois à other adviser, who emphasized the army b/c he felt that France was threatened by land.

- First, Louis listened to Colbert, and fought the Dutch. When this war (1672 – 1678) failed, Louis turned to Louvois and began land wars. The result was that France was able to annex a lot of territory, until the other countries ganged up on him b/c of the balance of power.

- Grand Alliance à league formed against Louis headed by Leopold I (HRE) and William III (Netherlands/England). The league went to war against Louis @ 1688.

- When Louis began to lose his territories he chose to seek peace. But the peace didn’t last long, for, in 1690, the War of the Spanish Succession began.

- The War of the Spanish Succession à was a war to gain the Spanish throne for Louis’ family. The previous king had actually chosen Philip (Louis XIV’s grandson), and his wishes might have been respected had Louis promised to open Spain to trade and not unify France and Spain under one ruler. Since he didn’t agree to do so, the Grand Alliance declared war on him in 1701. Louis was defeated, but at the Peace of Utrecht in 1713 he still was able to secure the throne for his grandson though he couldn’t profit from Spain. Mainly, the war was a waste of $ and an additional on France’s already strained economy.

*France after Louis XIV*

- After Louis’ death in 1715 the duke of Orléans served as reagent (until 1723). The duke was committed to giving power back to the aristocracy, so he restored the parlements to power (he gave them the power to veto royal laws, a power they would never relinquish) and replaced royal bureaucrats w/nobles. On the financial side, a financier named John Law tried to solve the $ crisis w/ government banks, but the scheme (known as the Mississippi Bubble) failed. A positive change was that the peasants were never again to be oppressed still some though) b/c government realized that in order to be successful, need mass support.

- After the duke, Louis XV gave almost unlimited authority to his tutor and adviser, Cardinal Fleury, who was a cautious, dedicated man. During Fleury’s time, France began to recover: harvests were abundant, population grew, and commerce boomed.

- The problems that had plagued the reign of Louis XIV, however, were not solved, and when Fleury died in 1743 the pressures exploded. France was plunged into stupid wars that ruined the economy and Louis XV, having nobody to replace Fleury, placed his confidence in several advisers, most of which were dumb. Louis XV was uninterested in government, and let mistress Madame de Pompadour control him

*Absolutism in Austria under the Hapsburgs*

- Leopold I à ruler of the HRE (but really Austria) who had control over Bohemia, Austria, and a small part of Hungary, and had considerable authority. His downfall would be the diversity here,

- Unlike Louis, however, Leopold relied on a group of leading nobles, to devise policy and run his government. After consulting w/ them, he would come to a final decision. Since Leopold gave the nobles influence in the government w/out first establishing control over their lands, the nobles were far more autonomous, so, though Leopold had less power, he had more support.

- Charles VI (r. 1711 – 1740) à was Leopold’s successor, whose major problem was that he had no male heir. In 1713 he drafted the Pragmatic Sanction, which stated that all Hapsburg lands would pass intact to the heir regardless of who it was. He forced all the major powers to sign the PS.

- Maria Theresa à was Charles’ daughter, who was heir to the throne in 1740. MT was in a difficult position, for not only had Charles had left her w/ an empty treasury, a poorly trained army and an ineffective bureaucracy, but she also faced an attack from Frederick III of Prussia. Rebellions by the nobles (Magyars) in the country also happened and MT had to give into some nobles requests (Monarchy loses lots of power).

- The War of Austrian Succession (1740 – 1748) à The French (to help Bavaria claim the Hapsburg throne), Spain (hoped to win back control of Austria’s Italian possessions), and Prussia (took Silesia) gang up on Austria. Only England supports Austria but b/c of Maria Theresa’s brilliant tactics, Austria was able to fight to a stalemate and only gave up Silesia.

*Absolutism in Prussia under the Hohenzollerns*

- In Brandenburg-Prussia, state building was once again made possible through an alliance between the ruler and the nobles. The nobility saw that they could get serfs and consolidate their power on their lands, and the elector saw that he could build a strong state. The nobles created very efficient, profitable estates, and were known as Junkers.

- Frederick William (r. 1648 – 1688) à a.k.a. the Great Elector. Realizing that other states were swarming over his possessions at will, he built a good army, which he used to impose order and to gain territory. In domestic policy, FW got rid of the Diet of Brandenburg’s power, established the War Chest, which financed the army and collect government revenue, and placed the implementation of policies in the hands of war commissars.

- Frederick III (r. 1688 – 1713) à He effectively gained Prussian independence by asking Leopold to make him a king in exchange for his army (for War of Spanish Succession). After gaining independence, Frederick changed his name to King Frederick I.

- Frederick William I (r. 1713 – 1740) à was a Spartan ruler who disdained court society and concentrated on the army. He built up the army (38,000 à 83,000 men) by instituting a form of conscription. He took great care of the army and as a result, he had a fantastic army that he could use to intimidate other powers (On the domestic side, FW created the General Ober Finanz Kriegs und Domanen which took over in 1723 all government functions except justice, education and religion.

- Frederick II (r. 1740 – 1786) à a.k.a. Frederick the Great, he was trained, but also mistreated by his father and was an intellectual. He realized only absolute rule could get power, so he used absolute power for objectives. Immediately, he was able to establish religious toleration and judicial reform, but security was his main goal. To gain security, Frederick knew that he had to acquire stronger borders, and he began the process of gaining territory in 1740 when he attacked the Hapsburg’s province of Silesia, which the Hapsburgs couldn’t defend. In the War of Austrian Succession, Frederick was able to keep Silesia.

*Absolutism in Spain under Hapsburgs/Bourbons*

- After Philip IV the throne went to Charles II, a sickly man incapable of having children. Spain had a relatively weak monarchy, for the nobles controlled the regime, and Spain’s dominions had been reduced by the war of Spanish succession (Netherlands + Italy à Austria).

- After the war of Spanish Succession, however, the Bourbons gained control of the crown, and they ended the traditional independence of Aragon, Catalonia and Valencia and created a united Spain. The Bourbons also established the office of the intendant in Spain, which helped curb the nobles.

*Absolutism in Russia under Peter the Great*

- Peter (the Great Westernizer) was born in 1672, and, when he was three, his father Tsar Alexis (Romanov) died and his half-brother took over, called Fedor. After Fedor died, there was the question of succession – was it to be Ivan (dumb, older son) or Peter (brilliant, younger son)?

- So, Sophie (Peter’s brilliant half-sister) organized the Streltsy, a group of conservative soldiers w/ nothing to do, and removes Peter and his mother sending them to Preobrazhusky (place filled w/ foreigners) where Peter learns Western ways.

- In 1689, Peter goes back to Moscow and overthrows the government of Ivan (in name, but really it is Sophie) and becomes a co-ruler w/ Ivan.

- Peter’s Crash Course in Westernization à beginning in 1689 Peter gives Russia a crash course in Western ways. He sent Russians to the West to study, brought foreigners into Russia, forced men to shave (against Old Believer rules, symbol of modernization), adopted Western court rituals and founded an Academy of Sciences.

- In 1697, he went to the West himself undercover. Peter was a giant, and he was also VERY intelligent, and he learned about Western ways from the bottom up (shipbuilding, metallurgy, dentistry). When he returns, he finds out that the Streltsy revolted and he quickly crucifies 1200 of them.

- Peter’s Administration à in ruling, Peter concentrated on his bureaucracy. He organized his administration into several departments each of which either had a specialized function or took care of a region. He totally subdued the nobles, and used coercion to make them listen to him (do this or else).

- Russian Society à Peter made a very clear dividing line between peasants (had to pay poll tax, military conscription, forced public work) and nobility (status in which was now based on level in bureaucracy and not family). Result was more controlled social order + more uniformity.

- Peter decides to declare war on Sweden since the Swedish king just died and there is a 12-year-old on the throne. Peter wants ports to help with economy and gets them in Treaty of Nystad in 1721.

- Forms that Table of Ranks in 1722 and lets nobles do anything w/ serfs in return for their help.

- Charles XII à Swedish king MILITARY GENIUS! Obsessed w/ war, very brilliant, great physical courage, very willful, upright moral man, Lutheran, determined to fight to death if attacked, but will not attack if not provoked.

- The Great Northern War à Charles crushes Denmark, then scares Polish away and totally beat Russians, who were besieging Narva. So, by 1700, Charles has really won, but he still wants revenge, and chooses (big mistake) to go after Augustus first (b/c Augustus didn’t declare war). For 7 yrs Charles chases after Augustus and finally puts him in jail. Now Charles attacks Peter, but now Peter is ready. Charles takes 35,000 men and invades Russia, and Russians use Scorched Earth Policy (retreat and burn everything) so in INCREDIBLY harsh Russian winter of 1707-1708 the Swedes freeze. So, in 1709 at Poltava the Russians win a crushing victory and gain Baltic provinces as a window to the West.

*The United Provinces*

- The UP’s were moving towards absolutism when William III had the office of Stadholder (during the wars against Louis XIV), but the Estates General soon reasserted themselves and ended the wars. Then, William sought the English crown, but only w/ the approval of the Estates and he had to leave the representative assemblies for the two countries separate.

- Dutch Society à in the UP’s, social distinctions were less prominent and social mobility was easier. Also, instead of ancient families of nobility, the UP’s were filled with merchants and mayors – they were the most bourgeoisie state.

*England*

- England was the model for a non-absolutist regime. Though Charles II was able to summon and dissolve Parliament, make appointments in the bureaucracy, and had to sign all the laws, he no longer had the Star Chamber, he couldn’t arrest Parliament leaders, and he couldn’t add seats in the Commons. In effect, he also could no longer use dispensations or raise $ w/out Parliament.

- Now, the gentry (wealthy local leaders w/out titles of nobility) had control of the government through Parliament (not through the monarch other countries).

- James II à successor of Charles II who was a total moron (bull in the china shop). After a struggle for the succession, which he won, James immediately announced his support for Catholics (dumb move), and began to antagonize Parliament (dumb move again). So, after a series of idiotic events, seven leaders of Parliament invited William III to invade, and he did, and James II fled.

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