1648 to 1763 Flashcards
England is declared a commonwealth
1649 when the Roundheads led by Oliver Cromwell defeat King Charles I and the Cavaliers. The first revolution against a monarchy in Europe soon turns into a dictatorship by Cromwell.
The principles established by the Peace of Westphalia
state sovereignty (states shall not interfere in the internal affairs of other states)
the “balance of powers system” in Europe
the dominance of France and the decline of Spain
the end of the Hapsburg effort to unify Germany / Europe
the end of the aspiration to re-unify the Church under Rome
Cromwell serves as Lord Protector
After leading the overthrow of Charles I in 1649, he serves as Lord Protector, a de-fact dictator, from 1653 to his natural death in 1658. He conquers Ireland and Scotland and massacres many Irish Catholics.
Publication of Thomas Hobbes Leviathaan
- The sovereign’s obligation is to provide peace and security because life is nasty, brutish and short in a state of nature. Beyond this, however, people should be free, including in the areas of religion, press, science.
The first European settlers in sub-Saharan Africa
The Dutch East India Company founds a settlement on the Cape of Good Hope, largely wiping out the native population with small pox.
The completion of the Taj Mahal
1653 in Agra by the Mughal emperor Shah Jahan. He was he richest man in the world by taxes imposed on trade with the west, collected in the form of silver mined in Potosi.
The British monarchy is restored under Charles II
1660
The rein of Louis XIV of France
1661-1715 (he became king as a boy in 1643, but France was ruled by Cardinal Mazarin.)
The accomplishments of Louis XIV of France
Consolidates absolute power in the crown based on the divine right of kings
practices “enlightened despotism”
centralizes power in Versailles and breaks feudal ties by requiring the nobility to live in Versailles
replaces the nobility with a bureaucracy loyal to the crown
revokes the Edit of Nantes and assumes control over the Catholic church by appointing officials.
The Great Fire of London
1666.
The formation of the Whig party in England
- It represents the interests of the merchant class.
Ethics by Bernard Spinoza is published
- Posthumously in the Netherlands. He argues that God is nature (he did not “create” nature), that good and evil are relative terms and that everything is determined by natural laws.
The rein of Tsar Peter the Great
1682-1725. He brings Russia into the modern age. He takes power from the nobility and gives it to a centralized bureaucracy.
The Frame of Government is prepared for Pennsylvania
1682 by William Penn. It guarantees religious freedom and free elections.
The Battle of Vienna
- The Ottoman Empire is defeated by the HRE and the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, marking the end of Ottoman expansion into Europe.
