Transcript Enlightened Absolutism

The Enlightenment
German philosopher Immanuel Kant
defined the Enlightenment as “man’s
leaving his self-caused immaturity”
 Kant proclaimed the motto “Dare to
know! Have the courage to use your
own intelligence!”
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What did these Enlightened thinkers
focus on?
Advocating the application of the
scientific method to the understanding
of all life.
 By using reason, they could find the
laws that governed human society
 Reason, natural law, hope, progress
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What was the foundation for the
Enlightenment?
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Popularization of science – influenced by ideas of
scientific revolution, Bernard de Fontanelle –
communicated his deep knowledge of scientific work
in clear way that appealed to upper-class audiences,
he contributed to growing skepticism toward religion
by portraying churches as enemies of scientific
progress
New Skepticism – As scientific knowledge spread,
more and more educated people began to question
religious truths and values, Pierre Bayle – compelling
people to believe a particular set of religious ideas
was wrong, he believed that new rational principles of
textual criticism should be applied to the Bible as well
as secular documents
What was the foundation for the
Enlightenment?
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Impact of Travel literature – skepticism about both
Christianity and European culture was nourished by
travel reports – traders, missionaries, medical
practitioners, and explorers published larger number
of travel books about many different cultures, led to
the realization that there were highly developed
civilizations with different customs in other parts of
the world
Legacy of Locke and Newton – Enlightened thinkers
were convinced that by following Newton’s rules of
reasoning, they could discover the natural laws that
governed politics, economics, justice, religion and the
arts, Locke argued every person was born with tabula
rasa (blank mind) and that our knowledge is derived
from our environment and reason, not from heredity
or faith
Who were the philosophes?
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Literary people, professors, journalists, statesmen,
economists, political scientists, and social reformers
 Came mostly from nobility and middle class
 Paris was the capital of the Enlightenment
 Believed reason was scientific method, an appeal to
facts and experience. A spirit of rational criticism
should be applied to everything including religion and
politics
 Were not free to write whatever they wanted – state
censors decided what could be published (used
pseudonyms, double meaning, published secretly
Montesquieu
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Came from French nobility, classical education,
studied law
Persian Letters(1721) – criticized French
institutions, especially Catholic Church and French
monarchy
The Spirit of the Laws (1748) – comparative study
of governments, distinguished 3 basic kinds of
governments
Republics – suitable for small states and based on
citizen involvement
Monarchy – appropriate for middle-sized states
Despotism – for large empires, depended on fear to
inspire obedience
Lasting contribution – importance of checks and
balances created by means of separation of powers
Voltaire
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Son of prosperous middle-class family from Paris, received
classical education, studied law, writer, playwright
Philosophic Letters on the English (1733) – expressed deep
admiration of English life, especially its freedom of the press,
political freedom, religious toleration
Criticized royal absolutism and lack of religious toleration and
freedom of thought in France
Especially known for his criticism of traditional religion and belief
in religious toleration
Treatise on Toleration (1763) – argued that religious toleration
created no problems for England and Holland and reminded
governments that “all men are brothers under God
Championed Deism – suggested the existence of a mechanic
(God) who had created the universe, but had no direct
involvement in the world he had created and allowed it to run
according to his own natural laws.
Denis Diderot
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Son of skilled craftsman from France,
freelance writer
 28 volume Encyclopedia – its purpose was
to “change the general way of thinking”
 Contributors included many philosophers who
expressed their major concerns – attacked
religious superstition and advocated
toleration as well as a program for social,
legal, and political improvements
 Price was reduced in later editions –
increased sales, made it available to more
people
David Hume “the science of man”
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Scottish philosopher
 Treatise on Human Nature – argued that
observation and reflection, grounded in
“systematized common sense,” made
conceivable a “science of man”, careful
examination of the experiences that
constituted human life would lead to the
knowledge of human nature that would make
this science possible
Physiocrats
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Leader was Francois Quesnay – highly successful
French court physician
First principle – land constituted the only source of
wealth and that wealth could be increased only by
agriculture because all other economic activities were
unproductive and sterile, even state’s revenues
should come from one single tax on land rather than
on mix of inequitable taxes and privileges
Second principle – stressed that the existence of the
natural economic forces of supply and demand made
it imperative that individuals should be left free to
pursue their own economic self-interest, in doing so
all of society would ultimately benefit – state should in
no way interrupt the free play of natural economic
forces by government regulation (laissez-faire)
Adam Smith
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Scottish philosopher
Wealth of Nations (1776) – strong attack on mercantilism
First principle – condemned use of tariffs to protect home
industries (better to purchase than produce) – free trade is
fundamental economic principle
 Second principle – labor theory of value – labor of
individuals constituted the true wealth of a nation
 Third principle – state should not interfere in economic
matters – government had only 3 basic functions: to
protect society from invasion, defend individuals from
injustice and oppression, keep up certain kinds of public
works (roads and canals)
 Physiocrats and Smith laid foundation for economic
liberalism of 19th century
Rousseau
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Born in Geneva, studied music and the classics
The Social Contract (1762) – agreement on part of
entire society to be governed by the general will. If
any individual wished to follow his own self-interest,
he should be compelled to abide by the general will.
Liberty was achieved through being forced to follow
what was best for all people because what was best
for all was best for the individual.
Emile (1762) – on education, fundamental concern
was that education should foster rather than restrict
children’s natural instincts
Mary Wollstonecraft
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English writer, viewed as founder of modern
European feminism
Vindication of Rights of Woman (1792) – to argue
that women must obey men was contrary to the
beliefs of the same individuals that a system based
on the arbitrary power of monarchs over their
subjects or slave owners over their slaves was
wrong. The subjection of women to men was equally
wrong. Enlightenment was based on ideal of reason
innate in all human beings. If women have reason,
then they are entitled to the same rights as men
have. Women should have equal rights to men in
education and in economic and political life as well.
Salons
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Elegant drawing rooms in the urban houses of the
wealthy where invited philosophes and guests
gathered to engage in witty conversations that
centered on the ideas of the philosophes
Women hosted salons – so could influence decisions
of kings, political opinion, literary and artistic taste
Salon played important role in promoting
conversation and sociability between upper-class
men and women as well as spreading the ideas of
the Enlightenment
Innovations in art, music, literature
Rococo art – emphasized grace and
gentle action, rejected strict geometrical
patterns, fondness for curves, highly
secular (Antoine Watteau)
 Neoclassicism – wanted to recapture
the dignity and simplicity of the classical
style of ancient Greece and Rome
(Jacques-Louis David)
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Rococco (pg.476-478)
Time period: Began in 1730s
Characteristics: Emphasized grace and gentle action, rejected strict
geometrical patterns and had fondness for curves, delicate contours and
graceful curves, highly secular, lightness and charm spoke of the pursuit of
pleasure, happiness and love
Important Artists: Antoine Watteau
Examples:
Watteau’s Reunion en plein air
Neoclassicism (pg.478)
Time period: Late 18th Century
Characteristics: Wanted to recapture the dignity and simplicity of ancient
Greece and Rome
Important Artists: Jacques-Louis David
Examples:
David’s The Death of Socrates
Music
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Formative years of classical music, rise of opera and
oratorio, the sonata, the concerto, and the symphony
Depended on patrons
Johann Sebastian Bach – reputation as one of the
greatest composers of all time, music was means to
worship God
George Frederick Handel – wrote for large public
audiences, wrote unusual-sounding pieces, best
known for his religious music
Two great innovators of classical music – Haydn and
Mozart – caused musical center of Europe to shift
from Italy and Germany to the Austrian Empire
Music
Franz Joseph Haydn – composed 104
symphonies in addition to string
quartets, concerti, oratorios, and
Masses
 Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart – famous
operas The Marriage of Figaro and Don
Giovanni
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Literature/Writing of History
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18th century saw development of the novel (English)
Philosophes created revolution in writing of history –
completely eliminated the role of God in history, also
broadened the scope of history (political, but also
econ, social, intellectual, and cultural developments)
Edward Gibbon – Decline and Fall of the Roman
Empire – great example of 18th century
historiography (the narrative presentation of history based on
a critical examination, evaluation, and selection of material from
primary and secondary sources and subject to scholarly criteria)
– portrayed the growth of Christianity as a major
reason for Rome’s eventual collapse
High Culture of
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18
Century
High culture – the literary and artistic world of the
educated and wealthy ruling classes (Popular culture
– written and unwritten lore of the masses, most of
which is passed down orally)
 Expansion of both the reading public and publishing,
growth of publishing houses
 Development of magazines for the general public
 Daily newspapers – first printed in London in 1702
 Books in wider circulation through development of
libraries in the cities as well as private circulating
libraries (books for rent)
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Education and Universities
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Already had large # of privately endowed secondary schools –
tended to be for elite, designed to meet needs of children of
upper classes
Philosophes reinforced belief that education should function to
keep people in their own social class
Curriculum still largely concentrated on Greek and Latin
classics, little attention to mathematics, sciences, and modern
languages
Complaints from philosophe-reformers led to new schools with
broader education – modern languages, geography,
bookkeeping
Universities – philosophes complained about old-fashioned
curriculum, by end of century this led to reforms that introduced
new ideas in areas of physics, astronomy, and even
mathematics
Literacy
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Upper-class elites and upper middle
classes in the cities were mostly all
literate, dramatic increases for lowermiddle class artisans in urban areas,
peasants still largely illiterate
Crime and Punishment
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By 18th century most European states had developed hierarchy
of courts to deal with crimes
Judicial torture still important for obtaining evidence before trial
(except England), punishments were cruel, public executions
basic part of traditional punishment and seen as necessary
means of deterring potential offenders
Death penalty still used
Italian philosophe Cesare Beccaria opposed to use of capital
punishment, wrote On Crimes and Punishments
By end of 18th century – growing sentiment against executions
and torture led to decline in both corporal and capital
punishment
New type of prison where criminals were placed in cells and
subjected to discipline and regular work to rehabilitate them
began to replace barbarous punishments
Broken on
the wheel
This device was used as a capital punishment during the Middle Ages.
Reserved for hated criminals, The Wheel always killed its victim,
but did so very slowly. The Wheel originated in Greece and quickly spread to
Germany, France, Russia, England and Sweden. The device consists of a
large wooden wheel with many spokes. The victim's limbs were tied to the
spokes and the wheel itself was slowly revolved. Through the openings
between the spokes, the torturer usually hit the victim with an iron
hammer that could easily break the victim's bones. Once his bones
were broken, he was left on the wheel to die, sometimes placed
on a tall pole so the birds could feed from the still-living human.
Thumbscrew
The thumbscrew is a torture instrument which was first
used in medieval Europe.
It is a simple vice, sometimes with protruding studs on
the interior surfaces. The victim's thumbs or fingers were
placed in the vise and slowly crushed. The thumbscrew
was also applied to crush prisoners' toes, while larger,
heavier devices based on the same design principle were
applied to crush knees and elbows.
This torture was extremely painful and usually forced
out confessions of the victim
Rack
The rack is a torture device that consists of an oblong rectangular,
usually wooden frame, slightly raised from the ground, with a roller at
one, or both, ends, having at one end a fixed bar to which the legs were
fastened, and at the other a movable bar to which the hands were tied.
The victim's feet are fastened to one roller, and the wrists are chained to
the other.
As the interrogation progresses, a handle and ratchet attached to the top
roller are used to very gradually stepwise increase the tension on the
chains, inducing excruciating pain..
Additionally, once muscle fibers have been stretched past a certain point
they lose their ability to contract, thus victims who were released had
ineffective muscles as well as problems arising from dislocation.
One gruesome aspect of being stretched too far on the rack is the loud
popping noises made by snapping cartilage, ligaments or bones.
Eventually, if the application of the rack is continued, the victim's limbs
are completely separated from the body. One powerful method for
putting pressure upon a prisoner was to merely force him to view
someone else being subjected to the rack.
A rack in the
Tower of London
Drawn and Quartered
1. Dragged on a hurdle (a wooden frame) to the place of
execution. This is one possible meaning of drawn.
2. Hanged by the neck for a short time or until almost dead
(hanged).
3. Disemboweled and emasculated and the genitalia and
entrails burned before the condemned's eyes (this is another
meaning of drawn)
4. The body divided into four parts, then beheaded
(quartered).
Typically, the resulting five parts (i.e., the four quarters of
the body and the head) were gibbeted (put on public
display) in different parts of the city, town, or, in famous
cases, in the country, to deter would-be traitors who had not
seen the execution.
World of Medicine
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Physicians – university grads, education still in Latin
and based on Galen, new methods emphasized
clinical experience
Surgeons (still known as barber-surgeons) – bled
patients and performed surgery – in 18th century they
began to separate themselves from barbers, gained
additional training in dissection and studied anatomy
more systematically
Apothecaries, midwives, faith healers – main function
to provide herbs and potions recommended by
physicians or surgeons
Hospitals – terrible conditions
Popular Culture
Carnival – most spectacular form of
festival, people ate, drank, and
celebrated to excess (time of
indulgence),
 Taverns/alcohol – regular gathering
places for neighborhood men to talk,
play games, conduct small business
matters, drink
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Religion and Churches
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In both Catholic and Protestant countries, the parish church run
by priest or pastor remained center of religious practice. Parish
church also kept records of births, deaths, marriages, provided
charity for poor, supervised primary education, cared for
orphans
Jews – despised religious minority, mostly lived in eastern
Europe, restrictions placed on land/jobs/taxes, pogroms, in
western Europe they experienced relative freedom to participate
in banking and commercial activities, some Enlightened thinkers
favored new acceptance of Jews
Catholics – still a great deal of external forms of worship
Protestants – development of Pietism (movement that arose in
Germany whose goal was to foster a personal experience of
God as the focus of true religious experience)
John Wesley – founder of Methodism
Enlightened
Absolutism
18th Century Europe
Absolutism / Absolute Monarchy
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Monarch rules by divine right, has absolute
power over everything and everyone, and
decides what is best for the state
Ruler holds unlimited power
Ruler dominates upper classes, which in turn
dominate lower classes
Ruler encourages industry and trade to
strengthen the economy
Ruler dominates cultural life either as a
patron of the arts or by censorship
Enlightened
Absolutism/Despotism
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Monarchs affected by Enlightened Ideals of reason
and progress
Used their power to rule for the good of the people
Enlightened rulers allowed religious toleration,
freedom of speech/press, right to hold private
property, foster arts, sciences, education, not
arbitrary rule, obey laws, and enforce laws fairly
Justified their absolutism by claiming to govern in
people’s best interest
Introduced various reforms
Countries in 18th Century Europe
France
Britain
-Not overly influenced by Enlightenment
-Louis XV was lazy and weak, ministers and mistresses influenced him
-Madame de Pompadour – helped make important government
decisions, gave advice on appointments and foreign policy
-Economic problems – loss in Seven Years’ War, high taxes, expensive court life
-Louis XVI knew little about the government, lacked energy, Marie Antoinette
spent lots on court life
Countries in 18th Century Europe
France
Britain
-Not overly influenced by Enlightenment
-Louis XV was lazy and weak, ministers and mistresses influenced him
-Madame de Pompadour – helped make important government
decisions, gave advice on appointments and foreign policy
-Economic problems – loss in Seven Years’ War, high taxes, expensive court life
-Louis XVI knew little about the government, lacked energy, Marie Antoinette
spent lots on court life
-Sharing of power between king and Parliament
-King chose ministers – they set policy and guided Parliament
-Parliament made laws, levied taxes, passed budget, influenced king’s ministers
-Parliament dominated by landed aristocrats
-British parliamentary elections were unfair, unequal
-George I and II relied on Robert Walpole as prime minister
-Walpole pursued peaceful foreign policy to avoid new land taxes
-George III wanted to expand power of monarchy
-John Wilkes – outspoken journalist, criticized the king’s ministers, liberty, calls for
reforms for Parliament
Countries in 18th Century Europe
Dutch
Republic
Prussia
-Decline in economic prosperity
-Government dominated by oligarchies
-Conflict between oligarchs and House of Orange (head of exec. branch)
-Artisans, merchants, and shopkeepers fought for democratic reforms
(Patriots), but stopped by Prussian troops (sister was wife of Orangist
stadholder)
Countries in 18th Century Europe
Dutch
Republic
Prussia
-Decline in economic prosperity
-Government dominated by oligarchies
-Conflict between oligarchs and House of Orange (head of exec. branch)
-Artisans, merchants, and shopkeepers fought for democratic reforms
(Patriots), but stopped by Prussian troops (sister was wife of Orangist
stadholder)
-Backbone of Prussia – army and bureaucracy
-Frederick William I created highly efficient civil bureaucracy by establishing the
General Directory (central govt, supervised military/police/econ)
-Close personal supervision over the bureaucracy
-Nobility (Junkers) dominated, held monopoly over officer corps of Prussian army
-Expanded army (country was 10th in size, 13th in pop, 4th largest army)
-military virtues – duty, obedience, sacrifice
-peasants had few rights, middle class had opportunity in civil service
-Frederick II (the Great) one of best educated and most cultured monarchs
-Efficient/honest bureaucracy
-Enlightened reforms – single code of laws that eliminated use of torture except
In treason/murder, granted limited freedom of speech and press, complete
Religious toleration
-But made society more aristocratic (no commoners rising to power)
-Enlarged Prussian army, seized Austrian province of Silesia, gained Polish territory
Countries in 18th Century Europe
Austria
Russia
-Vienna was music capital of Europe
-Empire had many different nationalities, languages, religions, cultures –
difficult to provide common laws & centralized administration
-Maria Theresa – accepted privileges of Hungarian nobility/right to have own laws
-Created dept. of foreign affairs, justice, war, commerce, internal affairs
curtailed role of diets/assemblies in taxation/local admin
-enlarged/modernized armed forces
-Joseph II – abolished serfdom, tried to give peasants hereditary rights to
their holdings, eliminated internal trade barriers/ended monopolies
-New penal code that abolished death penalty, equality before the law
-Religious reforms – complete religious toleration, restrictions on Cath Church
-He alienated nobility by freeing serfs, alienated church, serfs unhappy,
alienated non-Germans by imposing German official language
Countries in 18th Century Europe
Austria
Russia
-Vienna was music capital of Europe
-Empire had many different nationalities, languages, religions, cultures –
difficult to provide common laws & centralized administration
-Maria Theresa – accepted privileges of Hungarian nobility/right to have own laws
-Created dept. of foreign affairs, justice, war, commerce, internal affairs
curtailed role of diets/assemblies in taxation/local admin
-enlarged/modernized armed forces
-Joseph II – abolished serfdom, tried to give peasants hereditary rights to
their holdings, eliminated internal trade barriers/ended monopolies
-New penal code that abolished death penalty, equality before the law
-Religious reforms – complete religious toleration, restrictions on Cath Church
-He alienated nobility by freeing serfs, alienated church, serfs unhappy,
alienated non-Germans by imposing German official language
-Catherine the Great -- Supported Enlightenment but didn’t want to alienate nobility
-In Instruction – questioned serfdom, torture, capital punishment, advocated
principle of equality before the law --- but little change actually made
-Catherine strengthened landholders at expense of others, local nobility made
more responsible for day-to-day governing of Russia
-worse conditions for peasants
-Pugachev’s rebellion was crushed – Catherine responded with greater
repression
-Expanded Russia’s territory into Poland and southward to Black Sea
Countries in 18th Century Europe
Poland
Italian States
- Weak monarchy
-Rivalry between Austria,
Russia, Prussia – took control
of land
-Example of why strong
monarchy was essential
-Austria replaced Spain as the
dominant force
Spain
-temporary rejuvenation
-leader was Philip V –
centralized institutions of the
state
-landed aristocrats still had
lots of power
Countries in 18th Century Europe
Poland
Italian States
- Weak monarchy
-Rivalry between Austria,
Russia, Prussia – took control
of land
-Example of why strong
monarchy was essential
-Austria replaced Spain as the
dominant force
Spain
-temporary rejuvenation
-leader was Philip V –
centralized institutions of the
state
-landed aristocrats still had
lots of power
Enlightened Despots: Frederick II of Prussia,
Joseph II of Austria, Catherine the Great of
Russia
Joseph II-Austrian Empire – only one to truly
seek radical changes based on
Enlightenment ideas
 Catherine the Great and Frederick II
expressed interest in Enlightenment reforms,
attempted some, but neither seemed
seriously affected by Enlightenment thought
 All three were still guided by a concern for
power and well-being of their states
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Failure of Enlightened
Absolutism:
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Did not remove basic causes of
discontent against absolutism:
-Autocracy
-Class Distinctions
-Unfair taxation
-Frequent wars
Failure of Enlightened
Absolutism:
Could not assure good government by
their successors
 In time many European peoples
rebelled against royal absolutism,
enlightened or not
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Wars and Diplomacy
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Philosophes condemned war as foolish waste of life and
resources
18th century concept of balance of power was based on how to
counterbalance the power of one state by another to prevent
any one state from dominating the others – did not imply a
desire for peace – Frederick the Great said “fundamental rule of
government is the principle of extending their territories”
Diplomacy still focused on dynastic interests – but also saw
development of concept of reason of state (where ruler looked
beyond dynastic interests to the long-term future of their states)
Development of large standing armies ensured that political
disputes would be periodically resolved by armed conflict rather
than diplomacy
War of Austrian
Succession
1740-1748
Pre-War Austria
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Charles VI of Austria
– Fears the succession
of his daughter Maria
Theresa, so…
– He negotiates the
Pragmatic Sanction:
European powers
agree to recognize
his daughter as legal
heir
– Pragmatic Sanction
is ignored by some
European powers
(especially Frederick
II of Prussia) after
Charles’ death
War begins…
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Frederick II of Prussia
invades Austrian
territory, Silesia
France is nervous about
the vulnerability of
Maria Theresa, so they
decide to ally with
Prussia and fight
against her
Britain allies with
Austria (Maria Theresa)
because they want to
prevent French
hegemony
The 2 sides
 Prussia
& France
vs.
 Austria & Great Britain
The “End” of the War
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By 1748, all were exhausted and agree
to stop
– Aix-la-Chapelle Treaty promised the return
of all occupied territories except Silesia
– The refusal of Prussia to give up Silesia
will lead to the Seven Years’ War
The Seven Years
War 1756-1763
Conflict in Europe, India, and
North America
The Separation of Allies
Maria Theresa is still angry about the
loss of Silesia
 In order to win, she knows she must get
the French on her side
 She works with her foreign minister to
separate the allies Prussia and France
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– it was a successful and “diplomatic
revolution” that caused France to abandon
Prussia and ally with Austria
The New Alliances
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Russia sees Prussia as a hindrance to their
progression, so they side with Austria and
France
 Frederick the Great (of Prussia) looked to
Britain for support because they were
enemies of the French, which just increased
the rivalry between the two when Britain
agreed to support the Prussians
 France, Austria, Russia
 Vs
 Prussia and Great Britain
War ends in Europe
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Ended by the Peace
of Hubertusburg
– Occupied territories
were returned and
Austria recognizes
Silesia as part of
Prussia
War in the rest of the world
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INDIA
– France and Britain
support opposing native
Indian princes
– Britain wins because of
their persistence
– France leaves India to
Britain
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NORTH AMERICA –
“French & Indian War”
– French control along the
Mississippi River
threatens to cut off
growth opportunities for
British colonies
– France finds allies in the
native Indians
– Britain wins
War Ends
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Treaty of Paris
– France gives Canada and lands East of the
Mississippi River to Britain
– French ally, Spain, gives Florida to Britain
– France gives Louisiana to Spain in return
– By 1763, Britain is greatest colonial power