WHII.1+Describe+the+growing+consolidation+of+political+power+in+Europe+from+1500+to+1800+as+manifested+in+the+rise+of+nation+states+ruled+by+monarchs


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=media type="custom" key="29469161" align="right"= =**Describe the growing consolidation of political power in Europe from 1500 to 1800 as manifested in the rise of nation states ruled by monarchs**=

//Focus Question: How did nation states become ruled by monarchs between 1500 and 1800?//

 * Topics on the Page **
 * ** Rise of the French Monarchy **
 * ** The Palace at Versailles **
 * ** Louis XIV **
 * ** Divine ** **Right of Kings**
 * ** The Thirty Years War and the Peace of Westphalia **
 * ** Growing Power of the Russian Czars **
 * ** Rise of Prussia **
 * ** Poland and Sweden **


 * [[image:MAP.jpg width="80" height="41"]]See also, AP World History Key Concept 4.3**

** A. the rise of the French monarchy, including the policies and influence of Louis XIV **



 * Go here for background information on [|The Divine Right of Kings] from J. P. Sommerville, University of Wisconsin.**

Jean Domat [|On Social Order and Absolute Monarchy]

[|Jacques Benigne Bosset on Kingship]

Click here for **[|Rulers, an interactive map site]**that identifies the heads of state for every country in the world since 1700.


 * Click here for a lesson plan on absolutism and the Enlightenment
 * Google Age of Absolutism Unit Plan from the Arlington Massachusetts Public Schools for this curriculum resource as a word document


 * [[image:Screen Shot 2017-02-21 at 10.27.35 AM.png]]The Palace at Versailles**


 * Explore the [|Palace of Versailles] on Google Art Project.**


 * Official Palace Website**

Palace of Versailles website: Interactive exhibition on Louis XIV's and relics from time of his rule

**Henry IV**
Click here for a biography of Henry IV Information on the Wives of Henry IV
 * Restored the authority of the central government
 * Came to power in 1598 as the Protestant prince, called Henry of Navarre
 * Changed his religion to Catholicism to please the majority of the people, but created the [|Edict of Nantes] to give [|Huguenots], French Protestants, the right to live in peace and build churches in some cities
 * Curtailed the power of the nobility
 * Launched economic reconstruction and dealt with the religious turmoil by acknowledging and accepting both Catholicism and Protestantism
 * [|Henry IV] was followed by his son, who was considered a weak king; his chief minister, Cardinal Richelieu, helped secure his crown and expand the monarchy



**Cardinal Richelieu**
Click here for a biography of Cardinal Richelieu Excerpts from [|Cardinal Richelieu. Political Testament]
 * Secured authority of the crown over government, culture and the emerging media
 * Ordered that the Huguenots could not build walls for their cities and that nobles had to tear down their castles to ensure that no one could hide from the kings power. These acts decreased noble power and Huguenots' rights.
 * Richelieu also used people from the middle class rather than nobility, thus cutting the nobles' power even more
 * In 1631 crushed any Protestant resistance and expanded the king's authority in the provinces setting in place the framework and mechanisms for an absolute monarchy.



**Louis XIV**
[|Short Biography from the BBC]

[|A Day in the Life of Louis XIV]from Chateau de Versailles


 * The Divine Right of Kings**
 * Believed he was responsible to God alone; the idea of a Divine Right of Kings was asserted by Jacques-Benigne Bossuet who believed that kings ruled because they were chosen by God.


 * Overview of Louis XIV's Life**
 * In 1643, Louis XIV came to power at the age of 5. Cardinal Mazarin ruled for him until he was 23 years old, then Louis XIV had full control of the monarchy.
 * Yielded unlimited authority, all decisions were made by him
 * Destroyed nobility by increasing the use of commoners to run the state. He gave more power to these people and had them only answer to him.
 * Solidified church support
 * In 1685, the [|L'Edit de Fountainbleau]revoked the //Edict of Nantes//, and Huguenots, forbidden to practice religion, left France in droves.
 * To create a more responsive and effective bureaucracy, Louis instituted new administrative methods to strengthen his control.
 * Weekly ministerial conferences
 * Continuity in the top four ministries (finance, army, navy, public works)
 * Only sixteen ministers in fifty-four years of his personal reign
 * Ministers chosen by ability not birth.
 * Intendants continued to rule the 36 generalités (provinces)--but they never served where they were born.
 * Strongly encouraged French citizens to buy French goods and support its economy to increase French wealth
 * Financial reform of taxes
 * The [|War of Spanish Succession] from 1700-1713 ended with France and Spain trying to set up a united throne. The rest of Europe felt threatened by this, thus uniting and defeating the threat. France was forced to give England their American and some European territories later, which helped expand the power of the English..
 * During his reign France stabilized and became one of the strongest powers in Europe.
 * His four wars gained valuable territories including Nord- Pas De Calais - but were costly in money and lives. the wars, his extravagant palaces, and the persecution of Huguenots left a trouble and impoverished country.
 * His centralized rule and huge debts sowed the seeds of the Revolution in the next century.

The Dream of a King: BBC Drama-documentary recreating the life of Louis XIV Click here for an interactive video with further information on the reign of Louis XIV
 * Click here for two primary source accounts of Louis XIV
 * [|The Sun King Describes the State of France at the Dawn of His Reign] (scroll down the page to find the quote)

Click[| here] for info on Anna Von Westerstee Beeck, a Dutch mapmaker who was active during the War of Spanish Succession

** B. the Thirty Years War and the Peace of Westphalia **
[|Treaty of Wesphalia]

As set forth in Henry Kissinger's book //World Order// (Penguin, 2015), the Peace of Westphalia established the principle of state sovereignty--the idea that a single authority governs a territory without outside interference from others.
 * The governing unit would be the state
 * Borders would be defined for political entities and what happened inside those borders was the responsibility of the ruler or rulers
 * These concepts were the basis for international relations from 1648 to the Cold War (Jessica Mathews, The Road from Westphalia, The New York Review of Books, March 19, 2015, pp.10-14)

The [|Treaty of Westphalia] of 1648 and the Treaty of Pyrenees 1659 recognized the right of the individual states within the Empire to make war and adopt alliances, and German unity was postponed for more than two centuries. Germany was struck with disaster after losing about 4 million people and their economy began to falter. France replaced Spain as the greatest power in Europe, and Switzerland and the seven northern provinces of the Netherlands were recognized.

A satirical look at the treaty of Westphalia

More info on the concept of "Westphalian Society" and Westphalian Sovereignty that evolved from the Treaty [|here]

The [|Thirty Years War] was a series of conflicts amongst Catholics, Lutherans, and Calvinists between 1618-1648


 * 1618-1625 Bohemian period
 * 1625-1629 Danish period
 * 1630-1635 Swedish period
 * 1635-1648 French period

The Catholic House of Austria (the Hapsburg Holy Roman Emperors Ferdinand II and Ferdinand III) together with Spain (Philip IV) was opposed by the Dutch, France, and Sweden. It was also a German civil war between Catholics and Protestants. In the first half of the war, Ferdinand and the Catholics had the advantage, winning many battles. Richelieu of France feared the growing power of the Hapsburg family and decided to join sides with the Protestants, even though France was a Catholic nation.

[|Pope Innocent X's Denunciation of the Peace of Westphalia] (1648)

[|Europe After the Peace of Westphalia]

** C. the growing power of Russian czars, including the attempts at Westernization by Peter the Great, the growth of serfdom, and Russia’s rise as an important force in Eastern Europe and Asia **
Timeline of Russian History from PBS [|Timeline of Russian Expansion]




 * Mikhail Fyodorovich Romanov**

First Russian Tsar of the house of Romanov (1613 - 1645) Began the Romanov dynasty that ruled Russia for nearly 300 years Established a unified Russian state and resumed relations with foreign states Beginning of rule marked the end of the era known as the Time of Troubles

Click here for a short video detailing the life of Michael I by historian George Stuart. Click here for the biography of Romanov

Click here for the biography of Peter the Great Click [|here] for a 30 minute video about Peter the Great.
 * Peter the Great**
 * Czar 1682-1721
 * Main objective was the indoctrination of western ideals and modernization in Russia by going abroad in 1696
 * Traveled around Russia to learn more about technology and ways of industry
 * Increased the power of the Czar so he could implement his new reforms
 * Decreased the power of the nobles and placed the Roman Catholic church under his control
 * Promoted education and brought new advances to Russia such as newspapers, womens rights, and western clothing
 * Westernization of Russia under Peter the Great
 * Abolished all conservative Russian traditionalism
 * Subjugated the church to the state
 * Created a new capital St. Petersburg in 1703
 * Established Russia's naval forces
 * Reorganized the army according to European models
 * Created a senate
 * Introduced a new tax system
 * Introduced schools to teach the alphabet and basic arithmetic
 * Established a printing house and the Academy of Sciences

Peter I Decree [|On Wearing Clothes in the Hungarian Manner]

**Catherine II (Catherine the Great)**
> Click here for a biography of Catherine the Great Visit here for [|documents] on Catherine the Great
 * Came to power in 1762 after the death of her husband and ruled until her death in 1796
 * Continued Peter the Great's policies of Westernization and expansion
 * Inspired by Enlightenment teachings
 * Under her rule, Russia became established as a great world power
 * [|Pugachev's Rebellion] (1773-1774) was a serf uprising that lead Catherine to revamp the Russian government

Click [|here] for an NPR story about Catherine the Great. Click for The Return of Catherine the Great

Click [|here] for a video of creative quotes by Catherine the Great [|History Channel Episode of Catherine the Great]

See [|Great Women Rulers] from Women in World History.

[|Historical Overview of Homosexuality in Russia]

** D. the rise of Prussia **
Map of Prussian Growth from the 30 Years War:

After the Thirty Years War and subsequent Peace of Westphalia, [|Prussia] gained a much expanded (and arguably gained the most out of all states) territory and power, due to the decolonization of Germany after its defeat.

Prussian National Anthem

> [|Click here] for a biography of Frederick William, the Great Elector.
 * Frederick William [[image:Frederick William.gif width="103" height="135" align="left"]]**
 * known as the Great Elector
 * founder of Prussia, ruled from 1640-1688
 * believed in trade to increase economic viability; highly encouraged and pursued it
 * highly concerned about the consolidation of power, and sought to protect the borders of a newly renovated Germany



Click here to read a biography of Frederick the Great
 * Frederick II (Frederick The Great)**
 * Frederick William's grandson
 * considered the founder of Prussian tradition
 * a meticulous ruler - - - oversaw every facet of his rule
 * made Prussian bureaucracy more homogenous
 * highly centralized his military and had them control war making materials - - - origin of the modern military industrial complex
 * oversaw a multitude of wars, including Seven Years War.
 * believed in the ideals of the Enlightenment such as music and literature, except for that in which would apply to his power

Click here for a list of Frederick The Great's [|instructions to his military men.]

For information on the royal women of Prussia, click here

The Swedish Empire
After Sweden intervened in 1630 with great success in the Thirty Years’ War on the side of the German Protestants, and Gustav II Adolf became one of Europe’s most powerful monarchs, Sweden defeated Denmark in the two wars of 1643–45 and 1657–58.


 * December 1594. Gustavus is born in the castle of [|Tre Kronor], Sweden.
 * October 1611. Gustavus gains the Swedish throne and three wars ( [|Kalmar War], [|Ingrian War] and the [|Polish War] ) after his father, [|Charles IX's] , death.'
 * July 1626. Gustavus Adolphus and his army disembark at [|Pillau], [|Prussia] , during the [|Polish–Swedish War (1626–1629)].
 * May 1630 and 6 July Gustav Adolph lands in [|Germany] to enter the [|Thirty Years War].
 * September 1631. At the [|Battle of Breitenfeld], Gustavus Adolphus decisively defeats the Catholic forces led by [|Tilly] , even after the allied Protestant Saxon army had been routed and fled with the baggage train.

The Kingdom of Poland
1025 - Poland declares independence from Russian, Prussia, and Austria. 1791-1795 - Russia, Prussian, and Austria reclaim Polish lands and partition the Kingdom back into their own empires. 1918 - Poland is granted its independence after the conclusion of the First World War, Point #13 of Wilson's 14! (lecture notes on Polish Independence [|here]) For more detailed timeline up until present day, look[| here].


 * History of Poland and Pictures of All the Kings (960-1790)**