1. The Age of Absolutism

2. The Age of Absolute Monarchs
By the end of the Renaissance, new nations were formed in Europe
Many of these nations were ruled by powerful kings with unlimited power known as absolute monarchs
The era from to mid-1700s was known as the Age of Absolutism

3. Peter the Great of Russia Frederick the Great of Prussia
Absolute monarchy is a government in which one king should hold all the power within a country
Peter the Great of Russia
Frederick the Great of Prussia
Absolute monarchs controlled all aspects of their nations, including taxes, religion, the military, & the economy
Louis XIV of France
Maria Theresa of Austria
Phillip II of Spain

4. The Rise of Absolute Monarchs
Absolute monarchs believed in divine right: the idea that God created the monarchy & kings answered only to God, not the people

5. Louis XIV came to power in 1643 as an absolute monarch
He ruled France for 72 years & became the classic example of an absolute monarchy
Louis XIV believed that he was the government. To illustrate this, his motto was “L’etat c’est moi” which means “I am the state.”
Louis XIV believed that he was the government, “L’etat c’est moi”
Louis weakened the power of the nobles by excluding them from his councils
He hired loyal bureaucrats to collect taxes & enforce his laws; He made sure they communicated with him often

6. Louis XIV had a positive impact on France:
Louis XIV called himself the “Sun King” because he felt that French power emanated from him and that the other European countries revolved around him.
Louis XIV had a positive impact on France:
Louis hired Jean Baptiste Colbert to oversee the French economy:
Colbert promoted manufacturing to make France self-sufficient
He encouraged colonization & settlement in Canada
He created one of the most powerful armies in Europe
With this wealth, Louis built a powerful army & transformed France into the most powerful nation in Europe
His economic advisors used overseas colonies & mercantilism to generate new wealth

7. Louis XIV Louis XIV alsohad a negative impact on France:
He involved France in expensive wars that failed to gain France new lands & led to massive debts
Louis promoted art not to glorify God or human potential, but to glorify himself
Playwrights like Molière wrote comedies
Opera and ballet became popular
Architecture promoted the wealth of France
War of Spanish Succession

8. He used wealth & art to glorify himself, including constructing a massive palace called Versailles

10. The Legacy of Louis XIV
As a result of Louis XIV, France became the most powerful nation in Europe
But, decades of lavish spending led to massive debts & heavy taxes
Discuss impact
Foreshadow debt, spending, French Revolution
Eventually, the French people grew frustrated & overthrew the monarchy

11. But Russia was not as advanced as Western European nations
Peter the Great
By the time Peter the Great became czar in 1682, Russia was a large empire
But Russia was not as advanced as Western European nations

12. Russia before Peter the Great
Russia was isolated from Western Europe & knew very little about the new ideas of the Renaissance
While European nations grew wealthy from trade, made cultural advances, & had strong economies…
…Russia had no advanced industry, no overseas colonies, & an economy of small-scale farmers
1200s-1700s—Russia was isolated from Western Europe; knew very little of the ideas of Western Europe:
Missed out on ideas of Crusades, Renaissance, Age of Exploration
During Middle Ages, Russia looked to Constantinople, not Rome—became Eastern Orthodox Christians (thought Catholics & Protestants were heretics)
Russia was very “behind the times” in relationship to western Europe:
Most of Russians were feudal serfs
Long beards worn to show status
Did not have advanced industry
Intellectually isolated from ideas of Renaissance & Scientific Revolution
Wanted to modernize Russia & make Russia a major European power
Most Russians were feudal peasants (called serfs working for nobles (called boyars)

13. Peter toured Europe to learn new ways to modernize Russia
Czar Peter the Great wanted to modernize & “Westernize” Russia to catch up with Europe
Peter toured Europe to learn new ways to modernize Russia
While in Europe, Peter learned new ideas about shipbuilding, manufacturing, gov’t organization, city planning, music, & fashion

14. Adopted European fashions by banning beards for men & veils for women
When he returned from Europe, Peter imposed new reforms to Westernize Russia:
Adopted European fashions by banning beards for men & veils for women
Adopted a European calendar
Modernized the army & navy
Peter made changes in Russia:

15. Peter expanded Russia’s borders & built a new “European-style” Russian capital at St. Petersburg

16. The Legacy of Peter the Great
As a result of Peter the Great, Russia became a more advanced, Western nation
But, modernization was a slow process & Russia had not fully industrialized by World War I
During World War I, revolutionaries overthrew the monarchy & created a radical new gov’t based on socialism

17. The American Revolution

18. The Settlement of America
During the Age of Exploration, Europeans began colonizing in North America
From 1607 to 1733, England established 13 colonies in America

19. Economics & Government in America
England used mercantilism (the colonies could ONLY trade with England)
to control colonial trade & increase their profits
Text
Despite these trade restrictions, the colonists made money trading with England
England used a policy called salutary neglect which allowed colonists freedom to make their own laws & taxes
Americans created their own colonial assemblies & enjoyed self government

20. The French & Indian War (1754-1763)
For 150 years, colonists were happy with this relationship with England
But, everything changed after the French & Indian War
In 1754, England & France went to war for seven years over territory in America
In 1763, England won the war, but the war left England with massive debts

21. Their slogan became: “No taxation without representation”
To pay off war debts, Britain created a series of new taxes on the American colonists
The colonists were upset that Parliament in England would pass laws without the colonists approval
Their slogan became: “No taxation without representation”

22. Colonists responded to new taxes with boycotts (refusing to buy British goods that were taxed)
Boycotts were effective, but the king & Parliament believed the Americans should obey British laws, so they punished the colonists by taking power away from the colonial assemblies

23. From 1763 to 1776, tensions between the English government & the American colonists increased

24. “Kings can be overthrown if they violate peoples’ natural rights”
Americans were literate & read books by leading Enlightenment thinkers, especially John Locke, & used these ideas to justify their protest
“People are born with natural rights, including life, liberty, property”
“Kings can be overthrown if they violate peoples’ natural rights”
“Government power comes from the consent of the governed”

25. British abuses & Enlightenment ideas inspired Americans to declare independence
Ben Franklin, John Adams, & Thomas Jefferson served on the committee to draft the Declaration of Independence

26. Title

27. On July 4, 1776 Americans sent King George III the Declaration of Independence

28. Brief summary of American Revolution Treaty of Paris, 1783
The American Revolution lasted from 1775 to 1783
After 6 years of fighting, the Americans defeated the British at the Battle of Yorktown, which ended the war.

29. The founding fathers created a “federal” system that created a national gov’t but allowed the 13 states to keep power & make their own laws
Government Structure
Many of the ideas of the Enlightenment served as inspiration for the new national government of the United States

30. The American Revolution was an important event in world history
It was the first time a colony overthrew its mother country
It was the first time a gov’t was created using Enlightenment ideas of limited gov’t & individual liberty
The success in America inspired revolutions in Europe & Latin America