Response to Crisis: State Building and

1
Chapter 15 Response to Crisis State Building and
the Search for Order in the Seventeenth Century
2

• The Theory of Asolutism
• Jean Bodin
• Definition of sovereignty
• Bishop Jacques Bossuet (1627-1704)
• Government divinely ordained
• Monarchs responsible to no one but God
• Absolutism in Western Europe
• France and Absolute Monarchy
• Foundations of French Absolutism
• Louis XIII, 1610-1643)
• Cardinal Richelieu, 1624-1642

• Strengthen the monarchy

3

• Louis XIV, 1643-1715
• Cardinal Mazarin
• Fronde, 1648-1649
• Parlement of Paris
• Restructures policy-making structure
• Ministers from the new nobility
• Intendents
• Religious harmony
• Finances
• Palace of Versailles
• Internal improvements

4
The Wars of Louis XIV 1. As part of the
settlement of the Peace of Westphalia in 1648,
France gained Artois, parts of Alsace and
Lorraine, and the cities of Verdun and Metz. 2.
In 1678 by way of the Peace of Nimwegen which
ended Louis XIV's futile war against the Dutch
and its allies Brandenburg, Spain, and the Holy
Roman Empire, France managed to gain
Franche-Comte from Spain. 3. From 1689 to 1697
France was in a bitter struggle against the
League of Augsburg as Louis moved eastward
against the Holy Roman Empire. Louis
consolidated his control over Alsace and Lorraine
and then occupied the city of Stasbourg. As part
of the Treaty of Ryswich in 1697, France kept
Strasbourg and part of Alsace. 4. The last war
for Louis XIV was the War of the Spanish
Succession. When Charles II of Spain (1665-1700)
died in 1700 he left the throne to Louis'
grandson Philip. Among the reasons for selecting
Philip (a distant relative) was the belief he
would preserve the Spanish empire and if nothing
else, Louis would help. This bequeath created
considerable concern among the European states
which feared that the thrones of Spain and France
might one day merge. Moreover, France would
surely have access to the potentially great
wealth of the Spanish empire. Fears became
reality when Louis sent French troops into the
Spanish Netherlands supposedly to guarantee the
territory as his grandson took the crown of
Spain. This was enough to prompt war. Facing a
coalition of the European states, the conflict
dragged on for a weary France and Spain from 1702
to 1713. 5. When peace came, all that France
gained was the acceptance of Philip as the king
of Spain providing he renounce his claim to the
French throne and that the two crowns never be
united. Questions 1. Why was Louis XIV at war
with the various European states throughout much
of his reign? 2. Why were the European states so
concerned when Charles II of Spain willed his
throne to Louis' grandson Philip?

• The Wars of Louis XIV

5

• Daily Life at the Court of Versailles

• Court ceremony

• Court etiquette

• Gambling

• Wars of Louis XIV

• Four wars

• Decline of Spain
• Bankruptcy, 1596 and 1607
• Philip III, 1598-16212
• Impact of the expulsion of the Moriscos
• Philip IV, 1621-1665
• Gaspar de Guzman, count of Olivares
• Reform
• Wars and taxes

6
The Growth of Brandenburg-Prussia 1. The
Hohenzollerns began to rule the insignificant
lands of Brandenburg in 1417. The family
inherited territories along the Rhine in western
Germany in 1609. The duchy of Prussia (East
Prussia) was added by inheritance in 1618 as a
fief from Poland. Thus, by the seventeenth
century Brandenburg-Prussia consisted of three
disconnected territories. Frederick William I
(1640-1688), the Great Elector, soon realized the
weakness of these lands without any natural
frontiers and pursued policies to correct the
situation. 2. Although Brandenburg had little
impact on the Thirty Years' War, Frederick
William did win from the Peace of Westphalia in
1648 the territories of Magdeburg and eastern
Pomerania. 3. As a result of Frederick William's
siding with Poland in a war against Sweden in the
late 1650s, Poland's overlordship in East Prussia
was surrendered. By the time Frederick William
died in 1688 a single state of Brandenburg-Prussia
had been created. 4. In 1740 Frederick II
(1740-1786), the Great, took advantage of the
death of Charles VI (1711-1740) of Austria to
invade the nearby Austrian territory of Silesia
which had a large population, industry, and
natural resources. The conclusion of the War of
the Austrian Succession (1740-1748) and the Seven
Years' War (1756-1763) confirmed Prussia's title
to the land. 5. The acquisition of West Prussia
in 1772 permitted the physical joining of the two
Prussias. Further lands were gained when Prussia
joined Austria in carving up weak Poland (see
Acetate 57, Map 18.2). Questions 1. In what
manner did Brandenburg-Prussia geographically
grow to become a major European power? 2. Why did
Prussia attack Silesia and what did it expect to
gain?

• The Growth of Brandenburg-Prussia

7

• Absolutism in Central, Eastern, and Northern
  Europe
• German States
• Brandenburg-Prussia
• Hohenzollerns
• Frederick William the Great Elector, 1640-1688
• Frederick III, 1688-1713, King Frederick I

• Army

• Commissariat

• Mercantilism

8
The Growth of the Austrian Empire 1. The
traditional Austrian hereditary possessions
consisted of Austria, Styria, Carinthia,
Carniola, and Tyrol. During the Thirty Years'
War Austria reclaimed Bohemia. Since 1526 the
crown of Hungary had also been worn by the
Austrian emperor. In truth, however, the
Austrian emperor exercised authority only over
the northwest portion of Hungary. 2. The revival
of Turkish power by the Ottomans resulted in
their pushing west up the Danube once again into
Hungary, Slovenia, and Croatia and north into
Transylvania. By 1683 the Turks had laid siege
to Vienna. After two months, the Europeans
lifted the siege and went on a counter-offensive
culminating with the defeat of the Turks in 1687
at the second battle of Mohacs (the first battle
marked a Turkish victory in 1526 as they
penetrated Hungary). With the Turks routed,
Hungary, Transylvania, Croatia, and Slovenia were
regained by Austria. 3. At the end of the War of
the Spanish Succession in 1713, Austria gained
the Spanish Netherlands and occupied the Spanish
possessions of Milan, Mantua, Sardinia, and
Naples. 4. In 1740 Charles VI (1711-1740) of
Austria died leaving his daughter Maria Theresa
(1740-1780) the throne. During the last years of
his life Charles sought to have the other
European states sign the Pragmatic Sanction which
would guarantee Austrian territory after his
death. Although the document was signed by
Frederick William I of Prussia, his son Frederick
the Great chose to ignore it and invaded the rich
land of Silesia thereby touching off the War of
the Austrian Succession (1740-1748). Other
states sought to take advantage of Austria's
weakness and also attacked. At the end of the
war Prussia still retained Silesia. 5. In
conjunction with Russia and Prussia, Austria
helped carve up Poland in 1772 and received
Galicia. Questions 1. How did the Austrian
Empire grow in the seventeenth and eighteenth
centuries? 2. Why was Austria unable to retain
Silesia?

• The Growth of the Austrian Empire

9

• Emergence of Austria

• Habsburgs

• Leopold I, 1658-1705

• Turks

• Expansion east

• Multicultural empire

• Italy From Spanish to Austrian Rule
• From Muscovy to Russia
• Ivan IV the Terrible, 1533-1584
• Crushes the boyars (nobility)
• Serfdom

10
From Muscovy to Russia 1. Between 1580 and 1651
the wastelands of Siberia were explored by
cossacks and fur traders. In essence, the region
was a game preserve utilized by the government to
exploit the furs. By the seventeenth century,
the conquest of Siberia was completed. 2. The
Ukraine was acquired by treaty in 1667 ending a
war with Poland. The lands on the left bank of
the Dnieper River were ceded to Moscow and those
on the right remained with Poland. The exception
was Kiev which was left under Muscovite rule for
two years, though actual control lasted much
longer. By treaty, Moscow's hold on Kiev became
permanent in 1686. 3. Peter the Great
(1682-1725) desired a warm water port to provide
access to Europe. This could be achieved only
through the Baltic and that was controlled by
Sweden. With the support of Poland and Denmark,
Peter attacked Sweden at Narva in 1700 but the
8,000 man army of Swedish King Charles XII
soundly defeated the Russian army of 40,000.
Peter's action initiated a series of wars known
as the Great Northern War (1701-1721). Sweden,
however, failed to follow up its victory and with
a reconstituted army, Peter overran the Swedish
Baltic provinces. The mouth of the Neva River
was captured in 1703 and here Peter built his new
capital of St. Petersburg. In 1708 the Swedes
invaded Russia with the intention of capturing
Moscow but at Poltava in 1709 Peter's forces
crushed the invaders. Nevertheless, the war
continued for twelve more years until the Peace
of Nystadt in 1721 by which Russia acquired
Estonia, Livonia, and Karela. 4. The desire for
warm water ports continued under Catherine the
Great (1762-1796) who initiated war against the
Turks in 1769. By 1771 Russia controlled Ottoman
provinces on the Danube River and the Crimean
coast of the Black Sea. These acquisitions were
confirmed by a treaty in 1774 which also gave
Russia an outlet to the Mediterranean by granting
access through the Bosporus Strait. Although the
treaty made the Crimea an independent state, it
was annexed by Catherine in 1783. 5. The
partitioning of Poland between 1772 and 1795 by
Russia, Austria, and Prussia was due to Prussia's
fear that the balance of power in the region was
being jeopardized by Russian military successes.
In return for giving up some of its conquered
Danube provinces, Russia obtained eastern
Poland. 6. In 1773 Emelyan Pugachev initiated a
mass peasant revolt in southern Russia. Freeing
the serfs and offering promises of land, the
rebellion spread rapidly between the Ural
Mountains and the Volga River. Over 1500 estate
owners and their families were killed. In 1775
Pugachev was captured and executed. The
rebellion collapsed and Catherine responded with
greater oppression of the peasantry. Question 1.
What factors drove Russian expansion?

• From Muscovy to Russia

11

• Peter the Great, 1689-1725
• Trip West, 1697-1698
• Western customs
• Reorganization of the army
• Reorganization of the government
• Division into provinces
• Service
• Economic activities
• Mercantilism
• Church
• Women
• Great Northern War, 1701-1721

12
The Ottoman Empire 1. The Ottomans had their
origins in western Asia Minor and began expansion
in the fourteenth century, taking advantage of
the collapse of the empire of the Seljuk Turks.
In the late fourteenth century they pushed into
the Balkans (see Acetate 44, Map 12.4). 2.
Constantinople fell in 1453. A force of 9000
(half being Genoese) under Constantine XI held
off 160,000 Turks for seven weeks before finally
succumbing. The city was renamed Istanbul. 3.
Considering themselves the successors to the
Byzantine emperors, the Ottomans began further
imperialistic expansion after the capture of
Constantinople. Anatolia was conquered in the
east and in the west the Ottomans drove into the
Aegean and then up the Adriatic coast. In 1480
the Italian port of Oranto was taken. Wallachia
in the north was conquered in 1476 but the
resistance from the Hungarians kept the Ottomans
in check thereby preventing them from going up
the Danube valley. South of Asia Minor, the
Ottomans conquered Egypt in 1517 and held Syria
and Palestine by 1526. Throughout the rest of
the century attacks would be pressed in North
Africa until it too was incorporated into the
Ottoman Empire. 4. In 1521, after consolidating
their eastern provinces, the Ottomans under
Sulieman I (1520-1566), the Magnificent, began a
thrust up the Danube and gained Belgrade. At the
battle of Mohacs in 1526 the Hungarians were
crushed. Three years later, Vienna was under
siege. The Turkish forces withdrew, however,
due to the insistence of the soldiers that they
return home before winter. 5. The Turks seized
Cyprus in 1570 due to attacks by Christian
pirates. 6. In 1571 a large Turkish fleet was
smashed at Lepanto by an armada of over two
hundred ships from Spain, Venice, and the papacy.
Although defeated, the Turks rebuilt their fleet
and continued to exercise control over the
Mediterranean. 7. The Ottomans were on the move
again in the seventeenth century across the
Hungarian Plain and by 1683 were once again
laying siege to Vienna. Defeated by a large
united Christian force which used heavy artillery
(the Turks had none), the Ottomans withdrew. In
the Peace of Karlowitz in 1699 the Turks gave up
Hungary and Transylvania to Austria. Questions 1
. What was the driving force for Ottoman
expansion? 2. What was the threat of Ottoman
expansion to Europe?

• The Ottoman Empire

13

• Growth of Monarchy in Scandinavia
• Denmark
• Sweden
• Ottoman Empire
• Suleiman I, the Magnificent, 1520-1566
• Attacks southeastern Europe
• Defeated at Vienna, 1529
• Turkish navy defeated at Lepanto, 1571
• Effective government
• Well-organized military
• Turks defeated at Vienna, 1683, and driven out of
  Hungary

14

• Limits of Absolutism
• Local institutions still affected lives
• Urban and provincial privileges, liberties and
  exemptions limited monarchs
• Limited Monarchy and Republics
• Weakness of the Polish Monarchy
• Elective throne
• Sejm (Polish diet)
• Confederation of semi-independent estates of
  landed nobles

15

• Golden Age of the Dutch Republic
• Independence Peace of Westphalia, 1648
• Internal dissension
• Stadholder
• William of Orange and heirs
• States General
• Amsterdam
• Urban expansion
• Commercial and financial center
• Social differences and structure

16

• England and the Emergence of Constitutional
  Monarchy
• Revolution and Civil War, 1642-1648
• James I, 1603-1625
• Divine Right of Kings
• Puritans
• Charles I, 1625-1649
• Petition of Right
• Parliament does not meet, 1629-1640
• Archbishop of Canterbury, William Laud
• Long Parliament, 1640-1660

17

• Oliver Cromwell
• New Model Army
• Charles I executed, January 30, 1649
• Rump Parliament
• Commonwealth, 1649-1653
• Oliver Cromwell, Lord Protector, 1653-58
• Dissolves Parliament, 1655
• Cromwell dies, 1658
• Restoration and a Glorious Revolution
• Charles II, 1660-1685
• Cavalier Parliament, 1661

18

• Declaration of Indulgence, 1672
• Test Act, 1673
• Attempts to pass the Exclusion Bill, 1678-1681
• James II, 1685-1688
• Declaration of Indulgence, 1687
• Protestant daughters, Mary and Anne
• Birth of a son, 1688
• William of Orange and wife Mary invited to take
  the throne of England, 1688

19

• Revolution Settlement, 1689
• Bill of Rights, 1689
• Toleration Act, 1689
• Responses to Revolution
• Thomas Hobbes (1588-1679)

• Leviathan, 1651

• John Locke (1632-1704)

• Two Treatises of Government

• Right of Revolution

20

• Economic Trends Mercantilism and European
  Colonies in the Seventeenth Century
• Mercantilism
• Total volume of trade is unchangeable
• Bullion
• State regulation of the economy
• Overseas Trade and Colonies
• Erosion of Portuguese trade
• Decline of Spanish commerce and economy
• Rise of Dutch trade
• Dutch East India Company, 1602
• Dutch West India Company, 1621
• English colonization

21

• The World of Seventeenth Century Culture
• Art French Classicism and Dutch Realism
• Nicholas Poussin (1594-1665)
• Judith Leyster (c. 1609-1660)
• Rembrandt an Rijn (1606-1669)
• The Theater The Triumph of French Neoclassicism
• Jean-Baptiste Racine (1639-1699)
• Greek tragedies
• Jean-Baptiste Molière (1622-1673)