European Absolutism

Spain's Empire During the time of religious and economic instability in the 16 th century, Philip II ruled the land of Spain.

Spain's Powerful Empire 1555, Philip II, son of King Charles V, inherited Spain, the Spanish Netherlands and the American colonies His father retired to a monastery.

Philip II - most powerful ruler in all of Europe. His Empire had strongholds in Africa, India, and the East Indies. With him as ruler, Spain acquired wealth. Goal - to defend Catholicism from the Muslims of the Ottoman Empire and the Protestants of Europe.

Defender of Catholicism When Philip II took power, Europe was experiencing religious wars, caused by the reformation. The Pope called all Catholic princes and told them to go against the Ottoman Empire.

Weakening The Spanish Empire One of the most severe problems in Spain was inflation. Inflation: Decline in the value of money, and a rise in the prices of goods and services. Inflation had two main causes: - the first was the population was growing in Spain. -the second was as silver flooded the market its value started to drop.

Freeing The Netherlands Philip II raised the taxes in the Netherlands and tried to stamp out Protestantism. In 1566, mobs of angry Protestants trashed Catholic churches. Philip II responded by mass amounts of executions.

The beginning of Absolutism in Europe Although Philip II lost his possession of the Dutch; he was a forceful ruler in many other ways…

Absolute Monarchs Kings or queens who held all of the power within their boundaries. Control was their main goal!

Divine Right The idea that God created the monarchy Absolute monarchs answered to God

Growth of Absolutism King Phillip II had the power to determine all matters! He attempted to control all aspects of Europe and led the way for monarchs after him to control

Europe’s Monarchs gain power Centralizing authority was made easier because of the decline of feudalism Monarchs were supported by a new middle class because they promised good conditions Monarchs’ authority rose even more

FRANCES ULTIMATE MONARCH Louis XIV becomes an absolute ruler…

Louis XIV King of France in 1643, Louis XIV took control of France. He weakened power of the nobles by prohibiting them from councils. Government agents, Intendants, collected taxes and administered justice. He increased their power to ultimately increase his power. Louis XIV may be seen as the personification of Absolutism during the 17th century. He ruled from his Palace at Versailles He swore to defend the Catholic faith.

Devoted himself to France! Hired Jean Baptiste Colbert – Minister of Finance

Economic Growth and Jean Baptiste Colbert Minister of finance - Jacques-Benigne Bossuet ( ) – came up with the theory of the Divine Right of Kings. As a political theorist attached to Louis XIV, he helped Louis establish the first absolute monarchy in Europe.

Louis’s Death and Legacy Louis realized the impact of his wars on France were clearly NOT for the better. His legacy was that France was a recognized power in Europe. He left France with high debts Led other countries to practice his absolute monarchy.

… The end.