Development of Monarchies And Religious Wars

A) Chapter Overview Paragraph:

• The era of monarchical growth was marked by great expansion of kingdoms and their powers. New armies, such as Gustavus Adolphus' Swedish Army, were created to support strong kings that ruled their country without question. This rule was called Absolutism, which was fueled by the monarchy's desire to expand their influence anywhere and everywhere. This new philosophy caused many conflicts when two absolutists butted heads, which was most commonly related to religious problems. The Protestant denominations of Lutherans and Calvinists spread across the continent and found support in nearly every country, which was viewed as a thereat by the often times Catholic-endorsed monarchies.

B) Top 10 People:

1. Louis XIV

• 1643-1715
• King of France who's main goal while ruling was to make France the strongest country in Europe. Also known as the "Sun King."  
• Under Louis XIV, French absolutism reached its peak. His motto was "L'etat, c'est moi!" (I am the state). Louis had vigorous foreign policy in order to achieve his goal. 

     2.  Cardinal Richelieu

• 1585-1642
• First Minister of the French Crown, stepped in for Louis XII while he was too young to rule, then acted as his right hand man. 
• Under Richelieu, the French looked to repress Protestantism. Main foreign policy was to destroy the Catholic Hapsburg's grip on territories that had France surrounded.

    3.  Jean-Baptiste Colbert

• 1619-1683
• Controller general to Louis XIV, as well as Minister of Finances for France.
• The central principal of Colbert was that the wealth and economy of France should serve the state. He applied mercantilist policies to France. He tried to achieve a favorable balance of trade, and make France self-sufficient.  

     4. Charles I

• 1625-1649
• Kind of England, King of Ireland, King of Scotland
• Tried to rule without Parliament which eventually led to his execution

    5. Oliver Cromwell

• 1653-1658
• English military and political leader who overthrew Charles I and temporarily turned England into a republican Commonwealth. He served as Lord Protector of England, Scotland, and Ireland. 
• Cromwell constituted military dictatorship in England, called the protectorate. 

    6. Peter the Great

• 1672-1725
• Czar of Russia
• He westernized Russia to make it more like the rest of Europe. He was very interested in learning about other parts of Europe. He made Russia a major European power, especially with the expansion of his standing army.

   7. Rembrandt

• 1606-1669
• Dutch painter and one of the greatest painters of the Dutch Golden Age. 
• Rembrandt's most known for his portraits of his contemporaries, self-portraits, and illustrations of scenes from the Bible. 

   8.  Frederick William

• 1620-1688
• Also known as the Great Elector. He was the Elector of Brandenburg and Duke of Prussia
• Frederick William promoted trade. He was a great political and military leader, he was very tolerant of all religions

   9. William Shakespeare

• 1540-1596
• English playwright and poet
• Most known for his plays which include Hamlet, Macbeth, Romeo and Juliet, and many others. He is still called one of the greatest writers ever. 

   10. Gustavus Adolphus

• 1594-1632
• Was a King of Sweden who revolutionized traditional military structure and solidified the rights of Protestants
• Adolphus raised Sweden to a status of a major player in Europe and helped secure the Peace of Westphalia for Protestants in Germany. 

C) Top 10 Events:

1. Thirty Years War

• 1618-1648
• Was a multi-phase religious war that was the final religious war fought in Europe.
• The was was mostly based on religious tension within the Holy Roman Empire between the Lutheran Princess and the Catholic Hapsburg Emperor that was used to settle conflicts between various European rivalries. 

     2. War of the Three Henries

• 1562-1598
• Was a conflict in France between three nobles, all named Henri, all vieing for the French Monarchy
• The war results in a victory for Henri IV, who decided to end the religious aspect of the conflict by allowing Huguenots to freely worship under the Edict of Nantes

    3.  The Protectorate

• 1653-1659
• Was the official name given to the English government in the British isles under Oliver Cromwell
• Oliver Cromwell, the Lord Protector under this government, set about establishing himself as the de facto monarch and "purifying" England, Scotland, and Ireland until his death and the restoration of the Monarchy.

     4. Glorious Revolution

• 1688
• Was an event where the Stuart Monarchy of England was overthrown by William of Orange, who was backed by the Parliament
• The Parliament strongly disliked the Catholic James II, and with the birth of his son, a Catholic dynasty was insured for a very long time. They decided to invite William and his English wife Mary to come rule England, which they did together in a nearly bloodless revolution

    5. English Revolution

• 1642-1651
• Was a civil war between forces loyal to King Charles I (Cavaliers) and the Parliament (Roundheads)
• The war began following conflicts of power between the Parliament and Charles I, which eventually evolved into civil war which Charles lost and was subsequently executed.

    6. Edict of Nantes

• 1598
• Was an official edict issued by King Henry IV of France allowing religious freedom for Huguenots.
• It allowed Huguenots to practice their religion in 150 cities and allowed them full civil rights

   7. Treaty of Paris

• September 3, 1783
• Ended the American Revolutionary War between Great Britain and the United States
• The Treaty acknowledged that the United States were free, sovereign states, separate from Great Britain. 

   8.  Peace of Westphalia

• 1648
• Was a peace treaty that ended most of the 30 Years War
• The treaty solidified the Peace of Augsburg in the Holy Roman Empire, established the independance of the Netherlands and Switzerland, and tipped the balance of power in favor of France.

   9. War of Spanish Succession

• 1701-1714
• Was a conflict created what Louis XIV tried to place his nephew, Duke Philip of Anjou, on the vacated Spanish throne.
• This caused a stir in Europe as it would unite France and Spain through the House of Bourbon, so, an alliance was formed and a was was fought, which France lost and had to therefore concede a lot of land. Philip was placed on the throne anyway under the condition that the two Bourbon thrones would never unite.

   10. Great Northern War

• 1700-1721
• Was a conflict that pitted the Swedish empire against the majority of her neighbors
• Charles XII of Sweden managed to repel most of the attackers and even successfully counterattacked, but decided to confront the Russians head on and failed, signaling the decline of Sweden as a major world power. 

D)Essay:

• Cardinal Richelieu (Louis XIII) and Peter the Great both had specific domestic and international goals. Discuss the goals and comment on to what extent they were successful.

          The era of Absolutism signaled the empowerment of several select countries at the price of others. Absolutism was marked by near-constant warfare in order to expand the territory and glory of Absolutist monarchs. Two prime examples of Absolutists are Peter the Great of Russia and Cardinal Richelieu of France. Despite their respective styles of Absolutism, both similarly strove to expand the power of the monarchy, to glorify themselves, and to expand their country's influence in Europe through extensive reforms in domestic and international policy.

          Cardinal Richelieu, despite never being crowned King of France, essentially ruled France during the reign of Louis XIII. Richelieu was the Chief Minister, and as such understood the power that a strong, centralized state gives the monarchy it represents. He employed the intendant system to help centralize the government and collect taxes among other centralizing reforms. His measures were extraordinarily successful and helped set the stage for Louis XIV's reign in France. Peter the Great, on the other hand, didn't make many reforms intended to centralize the monarchy. He instead pursued his own course by empowering himself at the price of the nobility of Russia, called Boyars. He made sure that every man, woman, and child in Russia looked up to him as their supreme ruler (not just because of he was 6'10"). Peter did however introduce many reforms to westernize Russia, and in doing so helped strengthen the monarchy.

          Like most rulers in history, Cardinal Richelieu and Peter the Great tried to leave their mark on the pages of history. They also sought to glorify themselves through amazing monuments, similar to the Mughal Emperors construction of the Taj Mahal. Cardinal Richelieu had the massive palace known today as the Louvre constructed to serve as his home. In fact, large portions of the museum came from Richelieu's personal collection of art. Peter took things to a whole new level however. He had the city of St. Petersburg constructed on the Baltic Sea following his victory in the Great Northern War. St. Petersburg became the capital of Russia and a monument to Russian glory and power, despite the approximately 100,000 serfs (peasants) who died while toiling away at Peter's great project.

          The greatest hallmark of an Absolutist ruler was his influence over the events in Europe. Cardinal Richelieu strove to make France the strongest power in Europe, but to do this he had to break free of the Hapsburg chokehold around his country. Cardinal Richelieu tended to avoid actual warfare, preferring instead to work from the shadows and convince others to do his dirty work, like Sweden in the 30 Years War. He was successful in his goals and managed to break apart the power base of the Hapsburgs, the Holy Roman Empire, into over 300 individual countries that, in their disunity, posed no threat to France. Peter the Great was also extremely successful in his goals as Czar of Russia. For generations, the rulers of Russia had striven to acquire a warm water port that wouldn't freeze over in the winter, like the main port of Archangel. Peter successfully waged war against the Ottoman Turks in the south and the Swedish in the Northwest to acquire lands and to expand his Absolutist prestige, however his wars actually yielded the ultimate prize: a warm water port. He defeated the Ottomans and acquired Abkhazia, but his ultimate prize was a thin strip of land on the Baltic Sea where he built his magnificent capital of St. Petersburg. He accomplished his ancestors vaunted goals and also smashed the Swedes, making Russia the dominant power in Eastern Europe.

          Although Cardinal Richelieu mostly manipulated others and worked from the shadows while Peter danced in the spotlight, both of them were extremely successful in both foreign and domestic policy. Richelieu catapulted France to the pinnacle of Europe by empowering the monarch and expanding French influence. Peter the Great successfully introduced Russia to the West and her technology and advancements to theri respective countries that changed the face of history forever.

E) Top Dog Analysis:

• In an era defined by Absolutism and rulers and the glory they brought to their countries, no ruler was more distinguished then Louis XIV of France. Louis, commonly called "the Sun King", was the pinnacle of fashion and culture during his time. Early in life, he learned that the nobility were a power to be reckoned with when they tried to overthrow his reign during the Fronde, so he began to bend them to his will. He built up a cult of personality that revolved around the symbol of his Absolutist power, the Palace of Versailles. He kept the nobles in this massive palace so that he could monitor them and insure that they would always follow his beliefs, lest they lose social standing. In a province by himself, a lord may challenge Louis, but when he was at Versailles, he would compete with the other nobles to win favor in Louis' eyes. Louis, as part of his Absolutist nature, was in a near constant state of war over the 72 years of his reign. He constantly fought to reduce the power, as Cardinal Richelieu had, of the Hapsburgs who ruled Spain to the south and the Holy Roman Empire to the east. His many wars hurt the financial state of France and if it had not been for their brilliant finance minister John-Baptist Colbert, France may have collapsed under the crushing burden of debt acquired from Louis' wars and the sheer cost of his absolutism. Despite this, France reached its peak with their "Sun King", who all the other monarchs tried to copy and keep up with their own mega palaces and lavish lifestyles.

F)Timeline:


G) Images: