WHAT IS MONARCHY?

A monarchy is a form of government in which sovereignty is actually or nominally embodied in a single individual (the monarch).

When the monarch has no or few legal restraints in state and political matters, it is called an absolute monarchy and is a form of autocracy. Cases in which the monarch's discretion is formally limited are called constitutional monarchies. 

WHAT IS ABSOLUTE MONARCHY?

Ultimate governing authority Wields unrestricted political power over

the sovereign state and its people. Hereditary Autocrat

CHARACTERISTICS OF ABSOLUTE MONARCHY:

GOD

The King

Ministers, advisers, secretaries, employees

Ferdinand of Aragon and Isabella of Castile

Skillful, strong co-rulers They faced the challenges in unifying Spain Known as the “Catholic Kings”They ordered the Jews and Muslims to convert to Christianity

SPAIN

The policies of Ferdinand and Isabella had serious consequences wherein they lost:

the Jews who played an important role as business leaders and merchants and

the Muslims who had developed their advanced farming methods, which had improved Spanish agriculture

The Hapsburgs come to power in Spain

Rudolf I of Hapsburg

He was the first of the count-kings Gained control over Austria He played a vital role in raising the Hapsburg dynasty to a leading position among the Imperial feudal dynasties.

Maximilian I of Hapsburg Mary of Burgundy

son, Philip

Also known as Philip The Handsome or The Fair

Ferdinand of Aragon and Isabella of Castile

JuanaDaughter of Ferdinand and Isabella

Philip

son, known as Charles,

Charles I or Charles V

Charles

1516, he became the King of Spain

He became the Holy Roman Emperor and inherited the

Hapsburgs’ Austrian territories when Maximilian died

He continued his grandparents’ efforts to unify and

strengthen Spain.

Conquered Mexico and Peru

Treasure taken from Aztecs and Incas and silver and

gold from American mines began to pour in Spain

Under his rule, Spain attempted to expand in Italy,

bringing on war with France

He become involved in protecting Hapsburg lands in

Austria from the Ottoman Turks.

Ferdinand I

Brother of Charles who inherited the eastern Hapsburg lands – Austria, Hungary and Bohemia

He was crowned as the Holy Roman Emperor

Philip II

He inherited the Netherlands, Spain’s lands in America and Italy

He was a king from 1556-1598, ruling as an absolute monarch.

His goals were to strengthen both Spanish power and the power of the Roman Catholic Church.

He was dedicated in increasing the authority of the church.

He wanted Spain to be entirely Catholic

Moriscos- these are the Muslims converted to Christianity rather than leave Spain

Philip II

BATTLE OF LEPANTO

Portugal came under the Spanish crown and Philip acquired Portugal’s vast overseas empire.

William, Prince the Orange or William the Silent

Dutch Protestants rebel against Spanish rule because:

Philip increased taxes and restricted Dutch trade to give an advantage to Spanish merchants.

He also established the Inquisition in attempt to impose Catholicism on the growing number of Calvinists in the northern province.

In 1566, the Dutch began a rebellion against the Spanish rule that lasted for 80 years.

Philip II Mary I

In 1554, Philip married Mary I, England's Catholic queen

Elizabeth

Mary’s protestant half-sister who inherited the English throne when Mary I died

Spain clashes with England

Philip II Invincible Armada (Spanish Armada) ruled by Philip II and English ships in 1588.

Spanish fleet met its defeat against the English ships

Marks the end of Philip’s power and the Spanish prestige.

Elizabeth

Causes of the decline of Spanish power:

The cost of war

The neglect of trade and industry

Changes in agriculture

The dependence on temporary wealth

FRANCE

Catherine de Medici

Ruled France between 1559 and 1589.

Mother of three kings (Francis II, Charles IX, and Henry III)

She used her political skill to try to maintain a balance in France

In 1562, civil war erupted between Huguenots and Catholics that lasted for 30 years,

St. Bartholomew’s Day Massacre

August 24, 1572, many Protestants nobles were gathered in Paris for the wedding of Henry of Navarre, one of their leaders.

Riots and mobs of Parisians began a massacre of the Huguenots.

Henry of Navarre or Henry IV

He inherited the throne of Henry IV

He was at first a Huguenot king that eventually converted to Catholicism.

He was the first king from the Bourbon family.

He was courageous and intelligent and become one of the best-loved monarchs in French history.

Issued the Edict of Nantes – granted the Huguenots a large measure of religious freedom, equal treatment under the law and equal opportunity to hold positions in the government.

Maximilien de Béthune, first Duke of Sully

He was a tough soldier, French minister, staunch Huguenot and a faithful right-hand man who assisted Henry IV in the rule of France.

He increased the amount of money raised for the royal treasury.

He reduced dishonesty in the government and encouraged trade by building roads and canals and by improving ports.

Louis XIII

He was 9 years old when he succeeded his father Henry IV as king of France.

Marie de Medicis ruled France until the young king came of age.

But mismanagement of the kingdom and ceaseless political intrigues by his mother led the young king to take power in 1617 and exiling his mother and its followers.

Cardinal Richelieu

He became Louis’ chief minister and brought the monarchy’s new strength.

He was a cool-headed and clear-sighted.

He imprisoned and executed nobles who threatened the royal authority.

To prevent the Hapsburgs from dominating Europe, he took France into the Thirty Years’ War on the side of the Protestants states.

Hapsburg rulers claim Bohemia

1516, Louis II, the grandson of Poland’s ruler, became king of both Bohemia and Hungary.

Louis II was killed at the Battle of Mohacs

Ferdinand I was crowned as the king of Bohemia and Hungary which made Bohemia part of the Hapsburg domains.

Bohemia

Catholic Hapsburg

Czech and German

Protestants

They (Czech) rebelled against

Ferdinand II (Hapsburg) Bohemians

deposed Ferdinand and chose Fredrick

V, German Protestant

prince

Religious differences lead to war

Thirty Years’ War(1618-1648)

The last and the biggest religious war that eventually engulfed most of the major European states.

Consequences of the war:

Devastation of entire regions

Famine and diseases significantly decreased the population of the German states, Bohemia, Low Countries and Italy

Combatant powers were bankrupted

He sought support from

other Catholic rulers.

Maximilian, the Catholic ruler of the German state of Bavaria

Ferdinand II

Philip III of Spain

In 1620, the Battle of White Mountain marked the defeat of the Bohemians and deposed Frederick.

War again began to spread when the Bavarian

Army attacked the Protestant regions in

Northern Germany and threatened territory held

by Denmark.

King Christian IV of Denmark Albrecht

Wallenstein

VERSUS

Ferdinand II

VERSUS

German Protestants aided by the Catholicof France and Protestant

Sweden

King Gustavus Adolphus (Lion of the North)- one of the great generals.

Cardinal Richelieu and Louis XIII

Peace of WestphaliaIt was a series of peace treaties signed between May and October 1648 in Osnabruck and Munster.

These treaties ended the Thirty Years’ War in the Holy Roman Empire and Eighty Years’ War between Spain and the Dutch Republic.

The lasting results of the Thirty Years’ War:

It ended the medieval dream of Europe to be fully united under the Holy Roman Emperor and to become faithful to the Roman Catholic Church.German princes were given the right to rule their own states and their own religion.France became the leading state in the Western Europe, while Sweden dominated the Baltic Sea.Spain finally recognized the independence of the United Netherlands, while Switzerland, also Protestant, became independent of the control of the Holy Roman Empire.

Louis XIVor Sun King

He was declared the new king when Louis XIII died.

His mother Anne ruled for him along with the new chief minister, Cardinal Mazarin.

He claims the theory known as the divine rights of the kings which stated that kings are born to possess all and command all.

L’etat, c’est moi- The state-it is I

France had its greater unity and a stronger central government.

He reign helped art, literature, drama, music and ballet to flourished in France.

Jean Baptiste Colbert

He became the finance minister.

A strong advocate of mercantilism.

He improved the methods of taxation, supported shipbuilding and a new navy and had canals and roads built.

France had no legislative body that could call a halt to the king’s spending.

War of the Spanish Succession (1701-1713)

Often called the first of the world wars because most of the leading states of Europe were involved.

Philip V or Philip of Anjou

He was the grandson of Louis XIV.

He was the first Bourbon prince on the Spanish throne

Peace of Utrecht (1713-1714)

It comprises of individual peace treaties rather than single document and it was signed by the belligerents in the War of the Spanish Succession.Treaties between several European states, including Spain, Great Britain, France, Portugal, Savoy and Dutch Republic helped to end the war.

Louis XIVor Sun King

He died in 1715

Results of his reign:•Wars and extravagant spending had emptied the royal treasury and left the country in debt.•System of taxation placed burden of taxes on peasants.•Emergence of war in year 1715-174•Financial problems helped to weaken the monarch and bring on the French Revolution in 1789.

EnglandElizabeth I

Her 45-year reign was considered as one of England's greatest ages.

- She succeeded to keep peace within her kingdom.

- England gained its first trading post in India and London became a busy center of commerce.- She generally favored religious toleration.

Roman Catholics challenged the right to the throne of Elizabeth I. They supported the claim of Mary, Queen of Scots (Mary Stuart), Elizabeth’s cousin and a Roman catholic.

Mary Queen of Scots was executed as ordered by Elizabeth I.

James IHe is Mary Stuart’s son and he succeeded Elizabeth I.He lacked the abilities either to persuade officials and politicians or to win the English people’s support. Charles I

He is the son of James I.

During his reign tensions between the monarchs and the Parliament intensified on issues of taxes and religion.

Petition of RightsIt limited the power of the king and set forth

specific rights:1.The monarch could not collect taxes without parliament’s consent.2.Civilians could not be forced to provide food and shelter for soldiers.3.Military law could not be imposed in time of peace.4.No person could be imprisoned except upon a specific charge. Charles I dismissed the Parliament. For the next 11 years, until 1640, the king ruled without Parliament.

During Charles I reign, the archbishop William Laud, encouraged harsh persecutions of Puritans.

In 1637, Charles I tried to impose Anglican (Church of England) form of worship in Scotland. The Lowland Scots, who were Calvinist Presbyterians, rose in revolt. Needing funds to fight in Scotland, Charles was forced to call a meeting of Parliament in 1640.

But Parliament refused the approval of funds for war in Scotland. As a result, Charles dissolved the Parliament after three weeks. It is known as the Short Parliament.

English Civil WarIt began when Puritan members of the

Parliament called for reforms in the Church of England. Charles rejected the Parliaments proposal and brought in troops to arrest its leaders. The people of London outraged.

The King’s supporters, called Cavaliers or royalists included Anglicans (members of the Church of England) and Catholics, most member of the nobility and royalist members of the House of Commons.

Parliament’s supporters were Puritans and other middle-class townspeople, who resented the King’s arrogance and high expenses. They were known as Roundheads.

Desperate for funds, Charles called for new elections to Parliament in November 1640. The new Parliament was not officially dissolved until 1653 and is known as the Long Parliament.

The Long Parliament was determined to reduce the monarch’s power.

-It passed laws calling for regular sessions of Parliament.

- It abolished the special court called the Star Chamber, where royal officials had held secret trials.

- It also made illegal for the monarch to raise taxes without the Parliament’s consent.

The parliamentary army won important battles in 1644 and 1645 and took King Charles as prisoner. The King escaped and established an army in Scotland to invade England but still, his troops were defeated.

Oliver Cromwell, a Puritan leader emerged as the leader of the Parliamentary forces.

-He expelled his opponents in the Parliament. - The remaining members of the Parliament abolished the House of Lords and brought the king to trial for treason. As a result, Charles I was beheaded in 1649.

Cromwell formed a new government, a republic known as the Commonwealth.

He took the title “Lord Protector” and ruled England, Scotland and Ireland until hid death in 1658.

The civil war continued during the Commonwealth , for the King’s son gathered royalist support.

Cromwell put down the rebellion in Ireland and forced Irish Catholic landholders to turn over their estates to Protestant English settlers.

The massacre of Irish rebels in 1649 and the loss of property resulted to bitterness among the Irish and they called this the “curse of Cromwell”.

Charles IIHe is the son of the executed king, Charles I. Parliament invited him to return to the throne after Cromwell’s death. His reign was called the Restoration Period.

He was known as the “Merry Monarch” for he was popular among his subjects but often at odds with the Parliament.

England was still troubled by religious divisions of the nonconformists who were the Catholics, Anglicans, and other Protestants (including Puritans).

-He urged more tolerant policies for nonconformists than Parliament was willing to grant.

James II He inherited the crown from his brother Charles II. But he lost popular support by his policies. The English feared that the birth of James II son would result to the return of absolute rule and Catholicism. Therefore, in 1688, Parliament jointly offered the crown to Mary , James’ Protestant daughter, and her husband, William of Orange. The change of monarchs was acclaimed to be the Glorious Revolution.

The Glorious Revolution established Parliament’s supremacy over the English monarch.

In 1689, Parliament presented the new rulers, Mary and William III, with a Bill of Rights to which they were expected to agree. - It made illegal for the monarch to suspend laws, levy taxes or raise a standing army during peacetime without Parliament’s approval. - Subjects had the right to petition the monarch and the ruler could not interfere with freedom of speech of the Parliament.

Effects of these events to Western world:

• Parliamentary government

• The Rule of law

• Limited monarchy

• The protection of individual liberties

RussiaIvan III (Ivan the Great)He laid the foundation of a centralized state in Russia.

-He asserted independence from Mongols.

- He set a pattern of expansion that has continued throughout Russian history.

- He married Sophia (niece of the last Byzantine emperor). Since the marriage, he proclaimed himself heir to

Constantinople. As a symbol of his authority he adopted the title czar (derived from Caesar) and insisted in the same absolute power the Byzantine emperors had held.

-He strengthened central rule by ending the self-government of towns, ignoring the council of boyars (nobles), and taking over the boyars’ estates to give his supporters.- His rule was less restricted by church, nobles or town privileges than that of any Western European monarch.

Thus, Ivan III made czar an autocrat, a ruler with unlimited power over his subjects.

Ivan IV (Ivan the Terrible)

First ruler to be crowned with the title czar. He was Ivan III’s grandson.

-He was hostile of the boyars due to his personal experiences.

- He became czar and married Anastasia Romanov at 17.

- He was an able and energetic man despite his spinal disease.

-He established a national assembly had a new law code, and created a strong landowning class loyal to him.

- He organized an army to destroy the boyar families. His troops murdered thousands and spread terror.

Times of Trouble – Began when a rebellious group, Cossack, revolted against the czars creating disorder so widespread during that period.

The Cossacks were runaway serfs, farmers and adventurers. They were formed because they believed that the czars were limiting their freedom.

Peter I (Peter the Great)The changes during his reign made Russia an empire and established the modern state.

-At nearly seven feet tall, he had immense physical strength, vitality and curiosity.

- His goal was to help Russia catch up with Western Europe. As a symbol of Russia’s turn toward the West, he established St. Petersburg, as a new capital.

Great Northern WarThis war involved Northern European

countries. It was Russia (allies with Poland and Denmark) against Sweden. At first, Sweden was victorious, but after Peter I retrained and reorganized the navy through Western technical help, Russia emerged victorious.

Russia as victors took the Baltic Sea and made it an empire and it became a major power in Northern Europe. Peter I took the title “czar of all the Russians”.

-He brought institutions under centralized rule.

- However, peasants were forced to work on state building projects or serve the army. Serfdom came close to slavery.

Catherine II (Catherine the Great)She is the successor of Peter I. She is a German Princess and she also wished to Westernize Russia but her approach was different from Peter the Great.

-She freed the nobles from the policies that were formerly set by Peter the Great.

-She gave merchants and townspeople freedom and encouraged trade, education and the arts and sciences.

However, the benefits of her policies only favored the educated upper class. Still, the serfs were at a disadvantage. This led to even more rebellions by the serfs and Cossacks.

She expanded the Russian empire through trade via ports in the Baltic Sea and gained rich farmlands in the partitioned territories of Poland.By the end of her reign, Russia became a major power in world politics.

COMPARISON