 Throughout the 1500-1800’s

absolute monarchs
controlled many nation
states in Europe.
 Absolute monarch – kings or queens
who held all of the power within
their states’ boundaries.
 Divine right – The idea that
monarchs are God’s representatives
on earth and are therefore
answerable only to God
 Theirgoal was to control
every aspect of society.
From weak king to absolute
monarch

 Factors strengthening royal

power
 Crusades & other wars
weakened feudal lords
 Rising middle class
supported monarchs
 Reformation gave
monarch powers formerly
held by the Church
 Awakening spirit of
nationalism made the
monarch a symbol of
national unity
 Rulers regulated
religious worship and
social gatherings to
control the spread of
ideas
 Increased the size of
their courts and
palaces to appear
more powerful
 Created
bureaucracies to
control their
countries’ economies.
 weakened the nobles  nation’s welfare
 provided strong
depended on one
person
central government
 sacrificed national well-
 generally furthered
being for personal or
growth of nation family interests
states
 led nations into costly
wars
 disregarded the rights
of the common people

Achievements Weaknesses
 People looked to
ancient Greek and
Rome or the Bible to
determine what was
true.
 During this time many
believed in the
geocentric theory.
 Idea that the Earth was
the center of the
universe
 Bythe mid-1500s some
scholars started to
challenge these old
assumptions.
 In the early 1500s a
young Polish astronomer,
Nicholas Copernicus,
was not convinced of the
geocentric theory.
 He reasoned that the
stars, the earth, and the
other planets revolved
around the sun. –
Heliocentric Theory.
 Copernicus knew that his
ideas would not be accepted
and therefore published his
work during the last years of
his life.
 Born in the Holy Roman
Empire, Kepler became
fascinated by Copernicus’s
ideas.
 Through observation and
mathematics Kepler
discovered that the
planets revolve around the
sun in elliptical orbits
instead of circles.
 He then publishes work on
the laws of planetary
motion.
 Kepler also explained how
both eyes were used for
depth perception.
 First to measure the
distance to the stars using
stellar parallax
 Galileo was an Italian  [Link]
scientist who greatly om/people/galileo-
improved the telescope to 9305220
study the heavens. (From
3x magnification to 8 or 9)
 His discoveries supported
Copernicus’ heliocentric
theory.
 In 1633 the Pope summoned
Galileo to Rome to stand
before the Inquisition.
Under threat of torture, he
confessed that Copernicus’
ideas were false.
 Galileo was placed under
house arrest until his death
in 1642.
 The modern scientific
method is based off of the
ideas of Francis Bacon and
Rene Descartes.
 Both men believed that
truth comes after
investigation; relying on
ancient beliefs was not the
way to do it.
 Bacon – Experimentation to
draw conclusions
 Descartes – mathmatics and
logic to draw conclusions.
 Everything should be doubted
until proven by reason
A logical procedure for gathering and testing ideas.
 Newton was a great English scientist
 He conducted a series of experiments on the composition of
light, discovering that white light is composed of the same
system of colors that can be seen in a rainbow and
establishing the modern study of optics (or the behavior of
light).
 He also showed how a universal force, gravity, applied to
all objects in all parts of the universe.
 Leading to his 3 Laws of Motion
 Founder of anatomy - led to a better
understanding of the human body
 Dissected corpses and published a
book filled with detailed drawings of
human organs, bones, and muscle.
 Microscope
 magnify items 3-9x
 Mercury Barometer
 Measures pressure in the atmosphere and the start
to weather forecasts!
 Thermometer
 Measures the air temperature
 Vaccine
1st was against smallpox in
1796 by Englishman
Edward Jenner
 Old Science New Science
Scholars relied on ancient Scholars began to use
authorities, church teachings, observation, experimentation,
common sense, and reasoning to scientific reasoning to gather
explain the physical world knowledge and draw conclusions
about the physical world.
 During the 1600s – 1700s an intellectual
movement known as the Enlightenment swept
through Europe.
 Stressed reason and thought and power of individuals
to solve problems.
 They began changing their beliefs on
government, religion, economics, and education.
 Locke was critical of
absolute monarchy and
believed that men had the
ability to govern their own
affairs and look after the
welfare of society.
 Believed all people are
born free and equal, with 3
natural rights
 Life, liberty, and property
 Purpose of government is to
protect these rights. If it
fails to do so the people
have a right to overthrow
it.
 The power of government
comes from the consent of
the people. – Social
Contract Theory
 French philosopher,
Jean Jacques Rousseau,
was committed to
individual freedom
 Wrote a book “The
Social Contract” which
promoted direct
democracy.
 The only good government
was one freely formed by
the people and guided by
society
 All people were equal and
titles should be abolished.
  French philosopher who
published more than 70
books of political
essays, philosophy, and
drama.
 Fought for tolerance,
reason, freedom of
religious beliefs,
freedom of speech, and
separation of church
and state.
 Humanities worst
enemies – intolerance,
“I do not agree with a word you prejudice, and
say but will defend to the death superstition.
your right to say it.”
 He lived during the
English Civil War and the
reign of Louis XIV, both of
which influenced his
writing.
 Montesquieu’s most well
known book, De l'Esprit
des Lois (The Spirit of the
Laws) was critical of
absolute monarchy. The
kings and queens of
Europe and their
supporters disagreed with
his claims and it was
banned by the Catholic
Church.
 To prevent abuse of power Montesquieu believed
that power should be divided up into three
separate branches.
1. The Legislative Branch - creates laws
2. The Executive Branch – carry out the laws
3. The Judicial Branch – interpret the laws

 In order to further prevent abuse of power

Montesquieu also claimed a system of checks
and balances be put in place where one branch
held certain powers over the other.
 Challenged long-held ideas
 Examined the existence of divine right
monarchs, union of church and state, and the
rights of citizens, etc.
 Long – term effects: belief in progress, rise of
individualism, and a more secular outlook (non-
religious outlook)
 Their theories inspired revolutionary
movements.
1. What is the difference between the geocentric
and heliocentric theory?
2. During the Middle Ages, what did people rely on
to determine truth?
3. Who came up with the heliocentric theory?
4. What was Johannes Kepler known for?
5. Why was Galileo placed under house arrest?
6. The scientific method is based of the ideas of
which two men?
7. Name one thing Isaac Newton known for?
8. In what way did the study of science change
after/during the scientific revolution?
9. Describe the Social Contract Theory.
10. What are Locke’s natural rights?
11. What are the beliefs of Voltaire?
12. What is Laissez-faire economics? Who came
up with this idea?
13. Do you agree with Laissez-faire economics?
Why or why not?
14. Describe the major impact of the
Enlightenment on society. How could they
inspire revolutionary movements?