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

 

Louis XIV by Gian Lorenzo Bernini, 1665

 

Topics on the Page

 

• Religions and States
• The European Wars of Religion 

 

• Rise of the French Monarchy
• The Palace at Versailles
• Louis XIV
• Divine Right of Kings

 

Cross-Link: Influential Biography: Marie Antionette

 

• The Thirty Years War and the Peace of Westphalia
• Treaty of Westphalia (1648) 

 

• Growing Power of the Russian Czars

 

Cross-Links: Peter the Great and Catherine the Great

 

• Rise of Prussia 
• Poland and Sweden
• Women Monarchs 
• Timeline of rise of nation states

 

     

CROSS-LINKS: AP World History Key Concept 4.3

Definitions of a Nation State:

 

"A form of political organization under which a relatively homogeneous people inhabits a sovereign state" Merriam Webster

 

"a “human community that (successfully) claims the monopoly of the legitimate use of physical force within a given territory.” -Max Weber

 

How nation states arise: https://www.britannica.com/topic/nation-state

 

Link here for a Learning Plan on conceptual understandings of Nation States

 

 

Religions and States

 

European Religions around 1600 A.D.

With the Vatican's increased role with European nations and politics throughout the  Middle Ages, monarchies began to push away from the Pope. 

 

Anglicans, Lutherans, and Calvinists were religions that were created to separate  themselves from the Pope and the Catholic Church in the 15th and 16th centuries. 

 

Nation States used religion to further cement their power including the likes of King Henry VIII of England, who established his own Church of England in 1534 due to his own disagreements with the Pope.

 

Read more on the Protestant Reformation here. 

 

Crash Course on Reformation and Consequences here. 

 

 

 

NPR podcast reflecting on 500 years since Protestant Reformation including the role of women. 

 

 

 

Religious Wars in Early Modern Europe

 

Video about European nation states: https://study.com/academy/lesson/the-development-of-monarchical-nation-states-the-rise-of-power.html

 

 

 

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

 

Palace of Versailles. Photo on Wikimedia Commons by Jean-Christophe BENOIST

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

 

 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

 

The Palace at Versailles

 

  Take a 3D Tour of Versailles here:

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

France

 

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

 

Click here for a biography of Henry IV

 

Information on the Wives of Henry IV

 

Triple Portrait of Cardinal de Richelieu

 

Cardinal Richelieu

 

• 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.

 

Click here for a biography of Cardinal Richelieu

 

Excerpts from Cardinal Richelieu. Political Testament

Louis XIV, 1670

 

Louis XIV

Short Biography from the BBC

 

Longer Louis XIV biography from the History Channel. 


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.

 

• 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)

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 info on Anna Von Westerstee Beeck, a Dutch mapmaker who was active during the War of Spanish Succession

 

Marie Antoinette 

 

 

• France's last queen before the French Revolution
• Married Louis XVI in 1770
• Disliked by French population for vanity and luxurious lifestyle 
• Mistrust led to her house arrest and then public execution

Read full biography here 

 

Marie Antoinette Explained in 13 Minutes Below

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kxa3CFr5Jo0

 

Marie Antoinette Movie Trailer Staring Kirsten Dunst

https://youtu.be/yBWyKRoh98U?si=Pm6Zz_QVHvnZVdCg

 

The fall of the French absolute monarchy

 

 2 part video series helping breakdown and examine the (first) French revolution 

 

Click here for part 1, and here for part 2 (each part is about 20 minutes). 

 

Thirty Years' War, siege and capture of Bautzen

 

 

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)

 

 

Click here for visual timeline of territorial changes during the Thirty Years War 

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.

 

• 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

 

  Peter the Great and Catherine the Great

Timeline of Russian History from PBS

Timeline of Russian Expansion

Mikhail Romanov

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

 

D. the rise of Prussia

 

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

Frederick William 

• 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 for a biography of Frederick William, the Great Elector.






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 homogeneous

 

• 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 to read a biography of Frederick the Great

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

E. Poland and Sweden

 

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.

 

For full timeline click here.

 

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)

 

Woman in monarchies

 

While monarchies are not inherently patriarchies, the social structure of much of the world throughout the ages has often been patriarchal. That being said, there have been some incredibly influential women who have taken places of power, as either monarchs or regents. 

 

Click here for a WikiPedia page listing all female monarchs and regents, along with links to the pages on each individual. In addition to having all of this information, this list page helps put in perspective how underrepresented women have been throughout history.