Absolute Monarchs in Europe PDF

Module 11 Absolute Monarchs in Europe Essential Question Why do you think absolute monarchs came to power in many different regions,...

Module 11 Absolute Monarchs in Europe Essential Question Why do you think absolute monarchs came to power in many different regions, and what caused their demise? About the Painting: The absolute ruler In this module you will learn about absolute monarchs in Europe. Louis XIV of France imposed taxes to pay for Absolute rulers wanted to control their countries’ economies so that they the construction of a magnificent palace and could free themselves from limitations imposed by the nobility. to finance wars. His government provided security and enforced laws, but the people had no say in what the laws were. In this What You Will Learn … painting, you can see Louis’s lavish clothing, Lesson 1: Spain’s Empire and European Absolutism......... 438 The Big Idea During a time of religious and economic instability, which demonstrated to others his power and Philip II ruled Spain with a strong hand. status. The gold flowers on his robe are the Lesson 2: The Reign of Louis XIV..................... 446 symbol of French kings. The Big Idea After a century of war and riots, France was ruled by Louis XIV, the most powerful monarch of his time. Lesson 3: Central European Monarchs Clash.............. 456 Explore ONLINE! The Big Idea After a period of turmoil, absolute monarchs ruled Austria and the Germanic state of Prussia. VIDEOS, including... The Magnificent Palace of Versailles Lesson 4: Absolute Rulers of Russia................... 462 The Big Idea Peter the Great made many changes in Russia to try to Peter the Great: The Tyrant Reformer make it more like western Europe. Lesson 5: Parliament Limits the English Monarchy.......... 470 The Big Idea Absolute rulers in England were overthrown, and Document-Based Investigations Parliament gained power. Graphic Organizers Interactive Games Carousel: Absolute Grandeur: Versailles Carousel: A Winter Culture 436 Module 11 Timeline of Events 1500–1800 Explore ONLINE! European Events World Events 1500 1521 Cortés conquers Aztec Empire. 1533 Pizarro conquers Incan Empire. 1588 British defeat Philip II’s Spanish Armada. 1603 Tokugawa shoguns rule Japan. 1632 Shah Jahan orders construction of Taj Mahal. 1643 Louis XIV begins to rule France. 1649 Puritans under Oliver Cromwell execute English king. 1696 Peter the Great becomes sole czar of Russia. 1756 Prussian king Frederick the Great begins Seven Years’ War against Austria. 1776 American colonists declare their independence from England. 1800 Absolute Monarchs in Europe 437  Lesson 1 Spain’s Empire and European Absolutism Setting the Stage The Big Idea As you have already learned, from 1520 to 1566, During a time of religious and Suleyman I exercised great power as sultan of the economic instability, Philip II Ottoman Empire. A European monarch of the same ruled Spain with a strong hand. period, Charles V, came close to matching Suleyman’s Why It Matters Now power. As the Hapsburg king, Charles inherited Spain, When faced with crises, many Spain’s American colonies, parts of Italy, and lands in heads of government take on Austria and the Netherlands. As the elected Holy Roman additional economic or political emperor, he ruled much of Germany. It was the first time powers. since Charlemagne that a European ruler controlled so Key Terms and People much territory. Philip II absolute monarch A Powerful Spanish Empire divine right A devout Catholic, Charles not only fought Muslims but also opposed Lutherans. In 1555, he unwillingly agreed to the Peace of Augsburg, which allowed German princes to choose the reli- gion for their territory. The following year, Charles V divided his immense empire and retired to a monastery. To his brother Ferdinand, he left Austria and the Holy Roman Empire. His son, Philip II, inherited Spain, the Spanish Netherlands, and the American colonies. Philip II’s Empire Philip was shy, serious, and—like his father—deeply religious. He was also very hardworking. Yet!Philip would not allow anyone to help him. Deeply suspi- cious, he trusted no one for long. As his own court historian wrote, “His smile and his dagger were very close.” Perhaps above all, Philip could be aggressive for the sake of his empire. In 1580, the king of Portugal died without an heir. Because Philip was the king’s nephew, he seized the Portuguese kingdom. Counting Portuguese strong- holds in Africa, India, and the East Indies, he now had an empire that circled the globe. Philip II of Spain 438 Module 11  Explore ONLINE! Defeat of the Spanish Armada, 1588 58° N W 8°W 16 ° 0° Route of the Armada Route of the English fleet Some shipwreck sites SCOTLAND In the summer of 1588, Philip II Spanish Hapsburg lands sent about 130 ships carrying 19,000 soldiers to the English 50 °N Channel. English warships, however, outmaneuvered the IRELAND Spanish vessels and bombarded N o r th S e a the Armada with their heavier AT L ANTIC long-range cannons. ENGLAND OCEAN N Plymouth London W E Dover Interpret Maps S Calais 1. Location Off what English town did the 0 100 200 mi first clash between the Spanish Armada 0 100 400 km English SPANISH and the English fleet take place? Channel NETHERLANDS 2. Movement Why do you think the Spanish captains chose to sail north Bay of 42° Biscay around Scotland rather than take the N FRANCE La Coruña more direct route home through the English Channel? Santander Late September, 1588 L U GA RT PO Lisbon Late May, 1588 S PA I N N 52°N W E ENGLAND S London 0 25 50 mi 0 50 100 km Dover Aug. 8 Major battles Gravelines Calais Me dite r r an e an S e a Isle of Wight SP. Plymouth Portland Bill NETH. Aug. 3 e l Aug. 2 Aug. 4 n n July 31 C h a 50°N g l i s h E n FRANCE 4°W 2°W 2°E 0° Absolute Monarchs in Europe 439  Philip’s empire provided him with incredible wealth. By 1600, American mines had supplied Spain with an estimated 339,000 pounds of gold. Between 1550 and 1650, roughly 16,000 tons of silver bullion were unloaded from Spanish galleons, or ships. The king of Spain claimed between a fourth and a fifth of every shipload of treasure as his royal share. With this wealth, Spain was able to support a large standing army of about 50,000 soldiers. This painting shows the defeat Defender of Catholicism When Philip assumed the throne, Europe was of the Spanish Armada by English warships. experiencing religious wars caused by the Reformation. However, religious conflict was not new to Spain. The Reconquista, the campaign to drive Muslims from Spain, had been completed only 64 years before. In addition, Philip’s great-grandparents Isabella and Ferdinand had used the Inquisi- tion to investigate suspected heretics, or nonbelievers in Christianity. Philip believed it was his duty to defend Catholicism against the Mus- lims of the Ottoman Empire and the Protestants of Europe. In 1571, the pope called on all Catholic princes to take up arms against the mounting power of the Ottoman Empire. Philip responded like a true crusader. More than 200 Spanish and Venetian ships defeated a large Ottoman fleet in a fierce battle near Lepanto. In 1588, Philip launched the Spanish Armada in an attempt to punish Protestant England and its queen, Elizabeth I. Elizabeth had supported Protestant subjects who had rebelled against Philip. However, his fleet was defeated. (See map, “Defeat of the Spanish Armada, 1588.”) Reading Check Although this setback seriously weakened Spain, its wealth gave it the Make Inferences appearance of strength for a while longer. Philip’s gray granite palace, the What did Philip Escorial, had massive walls and huge gates that demonstrated his power. want his palace to demonstrate about The Escorial also reflected Philip’s faith. Within its walls stood a his monarchy? monastery as well as a palace. Golden Age of Spanish Art and Literature Spain’s great wealth did more than support navies and build palaces. It also allowed monarchs and nobles to become patrons of artists. During the 16th and 17th centuries, Spain experienced a golden age in the arts. The works of two great painters show both the faith and the pride of Spain during this period. El Greco and Velázquez Born in Crete, El Greco (GREHK oh) spent much of his adult life in Spain. His real name was Domenikos Theotokopoulos, but Spaniards called him El Greco, meaning “the Greek.” El Greco’s art often puzzled the people of his time. He chose brilliant, sometimes clashing colors, distorted the human figure, and expressed emotion symbolically in his paintings. Although unusual, El Greco’s techniques showed the deep Catholic faith of Spain. He painted saints and martyrs as huge, long- limbed figures that have a supernatural air. 440 Module 11  The paintings of Diego Velázquez (vuh LAHS kehs), on the other hand, reflected the pride of the Spanish monarchy. Velázquez, who painted 50 years after El Greco, was the court painter to Philip IV of Spain. He is best known for his portraits of the royal family and scenes of court life. Like El Greco, he was noted for using rich colors. Don Quixote The publication of Don Quixote de la Mancha in 1605 is often called the birth of the modern European novel. In this book, Miguel de Cervantes (suhr VAN teez) wrote about a poor Spanish nobleman who went a little crazy after reading too many books about heroic knights. Hoping to “right every manner of wrong,” Don Quixote rode forth in a rusty suit of armor, mounted on a feeble horse. At one point, he mis- took some windmills for giants: In Las Meninas (The Maids of Honor), Velázquez depicts King Philip IV’s daughter and her attendants. “He rushed with [his horse’s] utmost speed upon the first windmill he could come at, and, running his lance into the sail, the wind whirled about with such swiftness, that the rapidity of the motion presently broke the lance into shivers, and hurled away both knight and horse Reading Check along with it, till down he fell, rolling a good way off in the field.” Develop Vocabulary Look again at the —Miguel De Cervantes, Don Quixote de la Mancha excerpt from Don Quixote de la Some critics believe that Cervantes was mocking chivalry, the knightly Mancha. Use context code of the Middle Ages. Others maintain that the book is about an ideal- clues to explain what shivers most likely istic person who longs for the romantic past because he is frustrated with means. his materialistic world. The Spanish Empire Weakens Certainly, the age in which Cervantes wrote was a materialistic one. The gold and silver coming from the Americas made Spain temporar- ily wealthy. However, such treasure helped to cause long-term economic problems. Inflation and Taxes One of these problems was severe inflation, which is a decline in the value of money, accompanied by a rise in the prices of goods and services. Inflation in Spain had two main causes. First, Spain’s popula- tion was growing. As more people demanded food and goods, merchants were able to raise prices. Second, as silver bullion flooded the market, its value dropped. People needed more and more silver to buy things. Spain’s economic decline also had other causes. When Spain expelled the Jews and Moors (Muslims) around 1500, it lost many valuable artisans and businesspeople. In addition, Spain’s nobles did not have to pay taxes. Absolute Monarchs in Europe 441  The tax burden fell on the lower classes. That burden prevented them from accumulating enough wealth to start their own businesses. As a result, Spain never developed a middle class. Making Spain’s Enemies Rich Guilds that had emerged in the Middle Ages still dominated business in Spain. Such guilds used old-fashioned methods. This made Spanish cloth and manufactured goods more expensive than those made elsewhere. As a result, Spaniards bought much of what they needed from France, England, and the Netherlands. Spain’s great wealth flowed into the pockets of foreigners, who were mostly Spain’s!enemies. To finance their wars, Spanish kings borrowed money from German and Italian bankers. When shiploads of silver came in, the money was sent abroad to repay debts. The economy was so feeble that Philip had to declare the Spanish state bankrupt three times. The Dutch Revolt In the Spanish Netherlands, Philip had to maintain an army to keep his subjects under control. The Dutch had little in common with their Spanish rulers. While Spain was Catholic, the Netherlands had many Calvinist congregations. Also, Spain had a sluggish economy, while the Dutch had a prosperous middle class. Philip raised taxes in the Netherlands and took steps to crush Prot- estantism. In response, in 1566, angry Protestant mobs swept through Catholic churches. Philip then sent an army under the Spanish duke of Alva to punish the rebels. On a single day in 1568, the duke executed 1,500 Protestants and suspected rebels. The Dutch continued to fight the Spanish for another 11 years. Finally, Reading Check in 1579, the seven northern provinces of the Netherlands, which were Identify Problems largely Protestant, united and declared their independence from Spain. Why didn’t Spain’s They became the United Provinces of the Netherlands. The ten southern economy benefit from the gold and silver provinces (present-day Belgium) were Catholic and remained under from the Americas? Spanish control. The Independent Dutch Prosper The United Provinces of the Netherlands was different from other Euro- pean states of the time. For one thing, the people there practiced religious toleration. In addition, the United Provinces was not a king- dom but a republic. Each province had an elected governor, whose power depended on the support of merchants and landholders. Global Patterns Tulip Mania savings on bulbs and taking out loans so that they could buy more. Tulips came to Europe from Turkey around 1550. Tulip mania reached a peak between 1633 and People went wild over the flowers and began to 1637. Soon after, tulip prices sank rapidly. Many buy rare varieties. However, the supply of tulips Dutch families lost property and were left with could not meet the demand, and prices began bulbs that were nearly worthless. to rise. Soon people were spending all their 442 Module 11  Dutch Art During the 1600s, the Netherlands became what Florence had been during the 1400s. It boasted not only the best banks but also many of the best artists in Europe. As in Florence, wealthy merchants sponsored many of these artists. Rembrandt van Rijn (REHM brant vahn RYN) was the greatest Dutch artist of the period. Rembrandt painted portraits of wealthy middle-class merchants. He also produced group portraits. In The Night Watch, he portrayed a group of city guards. Rembrandt used sharp contrasts of light and shadow to draw attention to his focus. In The Night Watch, Rembrandt showed the individuality of each man by capturing distinctive facial expressions and postures. Another artist fascinated with the effects of light and dark was Jan Vermeer (YAHN vuhr MEER). Like many other Dutch artists, he chose domestic, indoor settings for his portraits. He often painted women doing such familiar activities as pouring milk from a jug or reading a letter. The work of both Rembrandt and Vermeer reveals how important mer- chants, civic leaders, and the middle class in general were in 17th-century Netherlands. Dutch Trading Empire The stability of the government allowed the Dutch people to concentrate on economic growth. The merchants of Amsterdam bought surplus grain in Poland and crammed it into their warehouses. When they heard about poor harvests in southern Europe, they shipped the grain south while prices were highest. The Dutch had the largest fleet Reading Check of ships in the world, and this fleet helped the Dutch East India Company Draw Conclusions (a trading company controlled by the Dutch government) to dominate Why did the Dutch prosper during this the Asian spice trade and the Indian Ocean trade. Gradually, the Dutch period? replaced the Italians as the bankers of!Europe. Absolute Monarchs in Europe 443 ANALYZE KEY CONCEPTS Absolutism Absolutism was the political belief that one ruler should hold all of the power within the boundaries of a country. Although practiced by several monarchs in Europe during the 16th through 18th centuries, absolutism has been used in many regions throughout history. In ancient times, Shi Huangdi in China, Darius in Persia, and the Roman caesars were all absolute rulers. CAUSES EFFECTS Religious and territorial conflicts created fear and uncertainty. Rulers regulated religious worship and social gatherings to The growth of armies to deal with conflicts caused rulers to raise control the spread of ideas. taxes to pay troops. Rulers increased the size of their courts to appear more Heavy taxes led to additional unrest and peasant revolts. powerful. Rulers created bureaucracies to control their countries’ economies. Interpret Charts 2. Hypothesize Today several nations of the world (such 1. Make Inferences Why do you think absolute rulers as Saudi Arabia) have absolute rulers. Judging from controlled social gatherings? what you know of past causes of absolutism, why do you think absolute rulers still exist today? Absolutism in Europe Even though Philip II lost his Dutch possessions, he was a forceful ruler in many ways. He tried to control every aspect of his empire’s affairs. During the next few centuries, many European monarchs would also claim the authority to rule without limits on their power. The Theory of Absolutism These rulers wanted to be absolute monarchs, kings or queens who held all of the power within their states’ boundaries. Their goal was to control every aspect of society. Absolute monarchs believed in divine right, the idea that God created the monarchy and that the monarch acted as God’s representative on Earth. An absolute monarch answered only to God, not to his or her subjects. Growing Power of Europe’s Monarchs As Europe emerged from the Middle Ages, monarchs grew increasingly powerful. The decline of feudalism, the rise of cities, and the growth of national kingdoms all helped to centralize authority. In addition, the growing middle class usually backed monarchs, because they promised a peaceful, supportive climate for business. Monarchs used the wealth of colonies to pay for their ambitions. Church authority also broke down during the late Middle Ages and the Reformation. That opened the way for monarchs to assume even greater control. In 1576, Jean Bodin, an influential French writer, defined absolute rule. Bodin stated that a ruler has the power to make laws without the consent of anyone else. He said that if a ruler needs to consult superiors, then 444 Module 11  he is a subject himself. If a ruler needs to consult peers, he is an equal, not a ruler. If he needs to consult his subjects, he is not a ruler. Crises Lead to Absolutism The 17th century was a period of great upheaval in Europe. Religious and territorial conflicts between states led to almost continuous warfare. This caused governments to build huge armies and to levy even heavier taxes on an already suffering population. These pressures in turn brought about widespread unrest. Sometimes peasants revolted. In response to these crises, monarchs tried to impose order by increas- ing their own power. As absolute rulers, they regulated everything from religious worship to social gatherings. They created new government bureaucracies to control their countries’ economic life. Their goal was to Reading Check free themselves from the limitations imposed by the nobility and by Draw Conclusions representative bodies such as Parliament. Only with such freedom could How was Philip II typical of an absolute they rule absolutely, as did the most famous monarch of his time, Louis monarch? XIV of France. You’ll learn more about him later. Lesson 1 Assessment 1. Organize Information Use a graphic organizer to show conditions needed for a monarch to gain power. 4. Analyze Motives Why did the Dutch revolt against Spain? conditions conditions 5. Draw Conclusions What does the art described in this section reveal about the cultures of Spain and the absolute monarch Netherlands? 6. Analyze Causes What role did religion play in the conditions conditions struggle between the Spanish and the Dutch? 7. Make Inferences How did the lack of a middle class 2. Key Terms and People For each key term or person in contribute to the decline of Spain’s economy? the lesson, write a sentence explaining its significance. 3. Synthesize What is the significance of England’s defeat of the Spanish Armada? Absolute Monarchs in Europe 445