1. ABSOLUTISM ( )

2. INTRODUCTION
In the Middle Ages, the power of kings had been limited by nobles, parliaments, and the Catholic Church
The decline of feudalism, the Renaissance, the Protestant Reformation, and the Commercial Revolution all helped enrich European society and increase the power of European monarchs (hereditary rulers)

3. THE BIG QUESTION:
How did Europe’s rulers achieve absolute power?

4. WARS OF RELIGION
During the Reformation, most kings took control of religion within their own borders
Religious wars provided kings with an opportunity to build large standing armies
Introduced new government officials
Allowed tax increases (resistance was put down by the king’s army)

5. CHANGING ROLES OF THE NOBILITY
In the Middle Ages, nobles had been independent sources of power
In the 1600s, rulers began to “tame” the nobility by keeping watch over them.
Nobles kept wealth and privileges, but had to obey the king’s command
The growing urban middle classes often allied themselves with kings against the nobility

6. JUSTIFICATIONS FOR ROYAL POWER
“Reason of state” – justified doing whatever was necessary for the survival of the state
Some thought that without a strong central authority to keep order, society would break down, so kings were justified in seizing absolute power in order to maintain order in society
Divine right of kings – the king was God’s deputy on earth, and royal commands expressed God’s wishes

7. ACTIVITY
Complete the chart of absolute rulers. Include the years the monarch ruled, the country the monarch ruled, and key legislations or policies.

8. LEFT SIDE ACTIVITY
Choose one of the justifications for royal power and create a cartoon describing or illustrating it.

9. ABSOLUTISM IN RUSSIA
By the end of the 15th century, rulers around Moscow declared independence from Mongol rule (adopted the system of royal absolutism on a grand scale)
Conquered neighboring lands
The majority of population were serfs (just when serfdom was declining in Western Europe, it was increasing in Eastern Europe)
Russian nobility pledged absolute loyalty to the Tsar in return for their power over serfs

10. ACTIVITY
Add Peter the Great ( ) and Catherine the Great ( ) to your chart

11. Left Side Activity
Create a chart comparing absolutism in France and Russia. Include both similarities and differences

12. LIMITED MONARCHY IN ENGLAND
English monarchs were never able to establish absolute rule as those in France, Spain and Russia did
Checks had been placed on the English king’s power
Magna Carta (1215) guaranteed that Englishmen could not be fined or imprisoned without process of law and new taxes had to be approved by the king’s barons
Parliament: established as a legislative body made up of nobles and elected representatives

13. ENGLAND’S ROAD TO LIMITED MONARCHY
Create a flow chart describing the events leading to England’s Limited Monarchy:
Tudor Monarchs: Henry VIII and Elizabeth I
Early Stuart Monarchs: James I and Charles I
English Civil War ( ): Oliver Cromwell
The Restoration: Charles II
The Glorious Revolution: William and Mary and the English Bill of Rights

14. POLITICAL THINKERS IN THE AGE OF ABSOLUTISM
Thomas Hobbes – Man was not naturally good and was incapable of maintaining social order, therefore absolute rule was necessary
John Locke – believed rulers obtained power from the people, not God. Promoted the “social contract”. The purpose of government was to protect natural rights (life, liberty, property)
Sir William Blackstone – explained English common law (judges following precedents of other courts) and England’s “mixed monarchy” where power was shared by king and Parliament.

15. EUROPEAN SOCIETY IN THE 18TH CENTURY
Social Order – The “Old Regime”
Society was aristocratic – people of noble birth were a race apart (superior to everyone else)
Nobles owned the most land, served as army officers, became Church bishops, and held the highest government positions