Absolutism and Enlightenment Cheat Sheet

The core ideas of Absolutism and Enlightenment distilled into a single, scannable reference — perfect for review or quick lookup.

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Quick Reference

Divine Right of Kings

The political and religious doctrine asserting that a monarch's authority comes directly from God, not from the consent of the people, making the king accountable only to God. This doctrine provided the ideological foundation for absolutism across Europe.

Louis XIV and French Absolutism

Louis XIV of France (r. 1643-1715) epitomized absolute monarchy through his centralization of power at Versailles, his control over the nobility, his revocation of the Edict of Nantes (1685), and his extensive wars that made France the dominant European power. His reign established the model that other monarchs sought to emulate.

Peter the Great's Westernization of Russia

Peter I of Russia (r. 1682-1725) pursued an aggressive program of modernization, forcing the adoption of Western European technology, military organization, education, and cultural practices. He built a new capital at St. Petersburg, reformed the Russian Orthodox Church, and created a modern navy and civil service.

The Scientific Revolution

A transformation in European thought during the 16th and 17th centuries that replaced traditional Aristotelian and Ptolemaic models of the natural world with a new understanding based on observation, experimentation, and mathematical reasoning, exemplified by the work of Copernicus, Galileo, Kepler, and Newton.

John Locke and Natural Rights

English philosopher John Locke (1632-1704) argued in his 'Two Treatises of Government' that individuals possess natural rights to life, liberty, and property; that government exists to protect these rights through the consent of the governed; and that the people have the right to overthrow a government that violates this social contract.

Montesquieu and Separation of Powers

Baron de Montesquieu (1689-1755) argued in 'The Spirit of the Laws' (1748) that political liberty required the separation of government into three independent branches (legislative, executive, judicial) to prevent any single entity from accumulating tyrannical power.

Voltaire and Religious Tolerance

Francois-Marie Arouet, known as Voltaire (1694-1778), was the Enlightenment's most prolific and influential advocate for freedom of speech, religious tolerance, and the separation of church and state. He used wit, satire, and prolific correspondence to challenge censorship, superstition, and clerical abuse.

Rousseau and the Social Contract

Jean-Jacques Rousseau (1712-1778) argued in 'The Social Contract' (1762) that legitimate political authority rests on a social contract agreed upon by all citizens for the common good, expressed through the 'general will.' He held that humans are naturally good but corrupted by society.

Enlightened Despotism

A form of absolute monarchy in which rulers adopted Enlightenment principles (religious tolerance, legal reform, educational expansion) while retaining full political power. These rulers justified their authority by claiming to govern in the rational interest of their subjects.

Key Terms at a Glance

Absolutism:A political system in which a single ruler holds unlimited sovereign power, unchecked by legislative bodies, constitutions, or other institutional constraints.

Divine Right:The doctrine that monarchs derive their authority directly from God and are accountable only to God, providing the ideological justification for absolute rule.

Enlightenment:An 18th-century intellectual movement emphasizing reason, individual rights, scientific inquiry, and skepticism of traditional authority as the path to human progress.

Social Contract:The theory that government is an agreement between rulers and the governed, deriving legitimacy from the consent of the people and obligated to protect their rights.

Natural Rights:Rights that all humans inherently possess (life, liberty, property according to Locke), not granted by government but which government is obligated to protect.

Separation of Powers:Montesquieu's principle that government should be divided into independent legislative, executive, and judicial branches to prevent tyranny.

General Will:Rousseau's concept of the collective interest of the citizenry directed toward the common good, which should be the basis of legitimate political authority.

Enlightened Despotism:Rule by an absolute monarch who implements Enlightenment-inspired reforms (tolerance, education, legal rationalization) while maintaining complete political control.

Scientific Revolution:The 16th-17th century transformation of European understanding of the natural world through observation, experimentation, and mathematical reasoning.

Mercantilism:The dominant economic theory of the absolutist era, holding that national wealth is measured by gold and silver reserves and that government should regulate trade to maximize exports and minimize imports.

Edict of Nantes:Henry IV's 1598 decree granting French Protestants (Huguenots) religious tolerance and civil protections, revoked by Louis XIV in 1685.

Philosophes:French Enlightenment intellectuals (including Voltaire, Diderot, Montesquieu, and Rousseau) who applied reason to social, political, and moral questions and advocated reform.

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