absolutism
a form of government in which the sovereign power or ultimate authority rested in the hands of a monarch who claimed to rule by divine right and was therefore responsible only to God.
Baroque
a style that dominated Western painting, sculpture, architecture, and music from about 1580 to 1730, generally characterized by elaborate ornamentation and dramatic effects. Important practitioners included Bernini, Rubens, Handel, and Bach.
Catholic Reformation
a movement for the reform of the Catholic Church in the sixteenth century.
Christian humanism
an intellectual movement in northern Europe in the late fifteenth and early sixteenth centuries that combined interest in the classics of the Italian Renaissance with an interest in the sources of early Christianity, including the New Testament and the writings of the church fathers.
divine-right monarchy
a monarchy based on the belief that monarchs receive their power directly from God and are responsible to no one except God.
indulgence
the remission of part or all of the temporal punishment in purgatory due to sin; granted for charitable contributions and other good deeds. Indulgences became a regular practice of the Christian church in the High Middle Ages, and their abuse was instrumental in sparking Luther’s reform movement in the sixteenth century.
joint-stock company
a company or association that raises capital by selling shares to individuals who receive dividends on their investment while a board of directors runs the company.
justification by faith
the primary doctrine of the Protestant Reformation; taught that humans are saved not through good works but by the grace of God, bestowed freely through the sacrifice of Jesus.
mercantilism
an economic theory that held that a nation’s prosperity depended on its supply of gold and silver and that the total volume of trade is unchangeable; therefore advocated that the government play an active role in the economy by encouraging exports and discouraging imports, especially through the use of tariffs.
new monarchies
the governments of France, England, and Spain at the end of the fifteenth century, where the rulers were successful in reestablishing or extending centralized royal authority, suppressing the nobility, controlling the church, and insisting on the loyalty of all peoples living in their territories.
northern Renaissance humanism
an intellectual movement in northern Europe in the late fifteenth and early sixteenth centuries that combined interest in the classics of the Italian Renaissance with an interest in the sources of early Christianity, including the New Testament and the writings of the church fathers.
predestination
the belief, associated with Calvinism, that God, as a consequence of his foreknowledge of all events, has predetermined who will be saved (the elect) and who will be damned.
Protestant Reformation
the western European religious reform movement in the sixteenth century c.e. that divided Christianity into Catholic and Protestant groups.
Puritans
Protestants within the Anglican Church who, inspired by Calvinist theology, wished to eliminate every trace of Roman Catholicism from the Church of England
relics
the bones of Christian saints or objects intimately associated with saints that were considered worthy of veneration.
Chapter 15
Europe Transformed: Reform and State Building
Chapter Outline
I. The Reformation of the Sixteenth Century
A. Background to the Reformation
1. The Growth of State Power
2. Social Changes in the Renaissance
3. The Impact of Printing
4. Prelude to Reformation
5. Church and Religion on the Eve of the Reformation
B. Martin Luther and the Reformation in Germany
1. Politics and Religion in the German Reformation
C . The Spread of the Protestant Reformation
1. Calvin and Calvinism
2. The English Reformation
3. The Anabaptists
D. The Social Impact of the Protestant Reformation
E. The Catholic Reformation
1. Catholic Reformation or Counter-Reformation
2. The Society of Jesus
3. A Reformed Papacy
4. The Council of Trent
II. Europe in Crisis, 1560-1650
A. Politics and the Wars of Religion in the Sixteenth Century
1. The French Wars of Religion (1562-1598)
2. Philip II and Militant Catholicism
3. The England of Elizabeth
B. Economic and Social Crises
1. Population Decline
2. Witchcraft Mania
3. Economic Trends in the Seventeenth Century
C. Seventeenth-Century Crises: Revolution and War
1. The Thirty Years’ War (1618-1648)
2. A Military Revolution?
III. Response to Crisis: The Practice of Absolutism
A. France Under Louis XIV
1. Political Institutions
2. The Economy and the Military
B. Absolutism in Central and Eastern Europe
1. Prussia
2. Austria
3. From Muscovy to Russia
IV. England and Limited Monarchy
A. Conflict Between King and Parliament
B. Civil War and Commonwealth
C. Restoration and a Glorious Revolution
V. The Flourishing of European Culture
A. Art: The Baroque
B. Art: Dutch Realism
C. A Golden Age of Literature in England
Good to know:
1. Consider the role of the various institutions that promoted social and political inequities including the Church, monarchs, and elite social classes. Remember that the Renaissance idea of humanism continued to play an important role throughout all levels of society.
2. This chapter is rich in historical processes of change and continuity. Remember that European history is not the focus of the AP World History course and that this time period, 1450 to 1750, comprises only twenty percent of the overall exam questions.
3. Some historians have argued that the printing press was the most important invention of the millennium. You should understand the comprehensive ramifications of moveable type and the ease with which information could be disseminated. Understand how rising literacy rates among the middle class due to trade, among other reasons, heavily influenced the spread of ideas throughout Europe.
4. The persecutions of the 17th century represent a good opportunity to contrast the intellectual and scientific innovations in Europe against the intolerance of the popular religious culture (See pg 436). Compare the persecutions with other means of female exclusion and subjugation in other parts of the world. Women's roles within European households and in politics are also explored in this chapter. As with many other aspects of social history, ironies abound when studying gender in early modern European history.
5. Evaluate the various reform movements in the 16th century for their effectiveness as well as their consequences spawning from those reforms. The Catholic Reformation, witch hunts, peasant revolts, religious wars, and absolute monarchies all arise as responses to reform ideologies.
6. Know the changes in art and literature as the Renaissance ideals move northward. You should be familiar with the Flemish School and the literary contributions of Shakespeare. Be able to discuss how art and literature reflect the attitudes and ambitions of the monarch as well as changing technology.
Study Help:
1. Writer that expressed 16th cent. preoccupation w/ political power
2. Where peasants did NOT make up the mass of the third estate.
3. Results of the development of the printing press in Europe.
4. Chief complaints of religious Europeans around 1500.
5. Result of the 1555 Peace of Augsburg.
6. City most associated w/ Calvin
7. Reasons why Henry VIII broke away from the Catholic Church
8. Life in Protestant Europe in 1500s & 1600s
9. Reason for marriage during this time.
10. Which pope began the reformation of the papacy.
11. "most Catholic king"
12. Queen Elizabeth I
13. Witchcraft craze
14. arguments made by advocates for mercantilism
15. Traditional example of 17th century absolutism.
16. Ivan IV- what did he do
17. James I alienated England's Parliament by...
18. Puritan characteristics
19. Oliver Cromwell
20. Beginning of Glorious Revolution