Chapter 5, Section 3,4. How did Absolutism Affect Europe? How was culture affected by political events?

Absolutism is a system in which a ruler holds total power Absolutism is a system in which a ruler holds total power. It was tied (in 17th Century Europe) to the idea of the Divine Right of Kings. Absolute monarchs supposedly received their power from God and were responsible to no one except God.

Louis IV “The Sun King” was an Absolute ruler had complete authority over the traditional areas of royal power: foreign policy, the church, and taxes.

In the seventeenth century the Hapsburgs created a new empire in eastern and southeastern Europe. The core of the new Austrian Empire was the traditional Austrian lands in present-day Austria, the Czech Republic, and Hungary.

Peter the Great was an Absolute monarch who claimed the divine right to rule. He was determined to westernize Russia with European technology. He also built St. Petersburg: a base for the new Russian navy, an important trading port, the Capital, and a window to the West.

Mannerism in art reflected the religious upheavals of Protestantism by deliberately breaking down the High Renaissance principles of balance, harmony, and moderation. The rules of proportion were deliberately ignored.

By 1650, the British had established a number of trading posts in India. English ships carried Indian-made cotton goods to the East Indies. The British forced the French out of India.

A cultural flowering took place in England in the late 16th and early 17th centuries. The period is often called the Elizabethan era, because it fell within the reign of Queen Elizabeth I.

William Shakespeare: Playwright who brought many new words into common usage. He had a keen insight into human psychology. In his tragedies, comedies, and histories, Shakespeare showed a remarkable understanding of the human condition.

The crowning achievements of the golden age of Spanish literature was the work of Miguel de Cervantes. His novel Don Quixote has been hailed as one of the greatest literary works of all time.