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I. The Hohenzollerns at Berlin: The Beginning of all those Fredericks
a. Brandenburg-Prussia state building of Frederick William of Hohenzollerns: “The Great Elector”(1640-1688)
i. The War Chest
ii. The Junkers: the young lords
b. Elector Frederick III (1688-1713) [the same guy as King Frederick I (the Germans don’t even have to inbreed to make it confusing)]
i. Pressure on Leopold I (HRE) to be called a king
ii. Established Berlin as a cultural and educational center
1. Academy of Sciences
c. Frederick William I (1713-1740): all work and no play
i. Army grew from 38,000 to 83,000
ii. 1723: The General Directory of Finance, War, and Domains
iii. Great Army: never went to war
iv. Made education an official policy but did not enforce it
v. Raised a “great” son
d. Frederick II:Frederick “The Great” (1740-1786)
i. Solid upbringing complimented interests
ii. A very Hobbesian leader: Security provided the best justification for absolutism
iii. Conquest of Habsburg Silesia in 1740
II. The Habsburg Empire
a. Charles VI(1711-1740): Austria, Bohemia, Hungary, Austrian Netherlands, Lombardy, and Tuscany
i. 1713: The Pragmatic Sanction (one of the first of the modern day WORTHLESS treaties)
ii. Focused more on diplomacy than state building
b. Maria Theresa:(1740-1781)
i. War of Austrian Succession (1740-1748)
1. France supported Prussia’s taking Silesia (Bohemia, France’s ally, had a claim to the Habsburg throne)
2. Spain wanted back Austria’s Italian holdings
3. Rebellion of Czech nobles in Bohemia
4. Fortunately, Hungary’s Magyar nobles supported Maria Theresa
5. Britain offered financial support to Austria
6. War between France and Britain spilled over into the Americas: King George’s War
7. In the end,Prussia kept Silesia and distrust and lying became the SOP for foreign diplomacy
III. This royal throne of kings, this scepter’d isle, / This earth of majesty, this seat of Mars, /This other Eden, demi-paradise, . . . / This happy breed of man, this little world, / This precious stone set in the silver sea, . . . / This blessed plot,this earth. / this realm, this England. (Ya think I may’ve overdone the intro?)
a. The Restoration of Charles II (1660-1685)
i. Made all appointments in the bureaucracy and signed all laws but no longer had royal prerogative courts (Star Chamber)
ii. Could not raise money without parliament’s OK –only income based on a tax on beer.
iii. Gentry controlled parliament and the royal ministers:money runs the show based on law and due process
iv. Poor are extremely poor – even the great fire of 1666could not thin them out
b. James II(1685-1688) see other outline
c. William and Mary(1689-1702) and the Glorious Revolution see other outline
i. Wars with France
ii. Establishment of the Bank of England (1694)
d. Queen Anne(1702-1714)
i. Scotland unified with England (1707)
ii. Peace with France at Utrecht (1713)
e. George I, Elector of Hanover (1714-1727) see genealogy pg. 550
i. Could not speak English & cared little for British politics
ii. Rise of the middle class and working wealthy
1. Mobility and mingling of classes
2. Poor got poorer /crime increased / justice was swift and harsh
iii. Extremely powerful army and navy: costly
f. George II –repeat everything I said about his old man
g. Sir Robert Walpole: he da man
i. Most dominant political figure in England for over 20years (1720-1742)
ii. 1720: South Sea Bubble – crash of an overseas trading company – handled well by Walpole
iii. 1st “prime minister”
iv. Policy of peace and sharing the wealth played well with large landlords but angered merchants who wanted to kick some French butt
v. William Pitt, Earl of Chatham was the French butt kickin’ OG the merchants had been waiting for
IV. Aristocracy in the United Provinces, Sweden, and Poland
a. We don’t really have enough time so you have to go over that on your own time
V. The Seven Years’ War (1756-1763): The shorter sequel to the 30 Years’ War and the 100 Years’ War
a. The diplomatic system – You just knew something had to be wrong when French became the language of diplomacy – Ex. 1774 treaty between the Turks and Russia
b. Armies became more organized and less brutal
c. Tactics became more complex like the fortified northeastern French border designed by Sebastion Vauban (bypassed by English general Marlborough in the War of the Spanish Succession)
d. Weak officers from the noble classes and even weaker alliances
e. Until now, the Habsburg/Bourbon rivalry had been the show – not any more
i. French vs. British in the New World
ii. Austria vs. Prussia after the whole Silesia thing
iii. Russian Empress Elizabeth hated Prussia’s Frederick II
iv. Frederick II got along with France but also wanted to protect alliances with England (remember the Hanover British kings) and signs a neutrality accord, the Convention of Westminster, 1756, which upsets France
v. France overreacts and signs on with Austria
vi. Russia, friends of Britain, are upset by England’s agreement with Prussia and likewise signs on with Austria (are you still with me?)
f. Frederick attacks Saxony in 1756
g. Russia and France met their commitments with Austria
h. Russia keeps beating Prussia but always goes home for the winter
i. As the war drags on, the alliances grow distrustful of one another
j. France and England slug it out in America: The French and Indian War
k. Prussia is saved only by some odd events
i. Empress Elizabeth dies and her son, Tsar Peter III, is a great admirer of Frederick. He pulls out of the war and gives back land.
ii. William Pitt is replaced by the Earl of Bute – he makes nice with France
l. The Peace of Hubertusburg (1763) ends the whole shebang!
The Death of the Old Regime
The French Revolution
And
The Napoleonic Era
I. 1715
a. Sun King Louis XIV dies
i. Powerful country
ii. Absolute monarchy
iii. Old Regime
II. Estates
a. 1st Estate clergy
i. Nobles and Parish priests
ii. Some lived in Luxury at Versailles
iii. Others condemned the privileged
iv. They ran church, schools, married, birth and death records
v. Talked, voted, but paid no taxes
b. 2ndEstate: Nobility
i. 2% of population
ii. Exempt from most taxes
iii. Traditional privileges
1. Collecting feudal dues
iv. “Nobles of the Robe” – tried to get power after Louis XIV died
1. parlement had to approve King’s decisions
c. 3rdEstate – Commoners (everyone else)
i. Middle Class, peasants, city workers,
ii. Paid the most taxes
iii. Resented lack of privileges and unpaid services for the landlord
III. Economic Crisis
a. Although France prospered the population grew
i. 1714: 18 million – 1789: 25 million
ii. Farmers grew a surplus and textiles did well
iii. 1770s old Regime policies of tolls busting business
iv. Guilds had monopolies
v. Debts owed by Louis XIV for wars + Louis XV and XVI borrowed for courts
vi. French support of American Revolution doubled the debt
IV. Reform?
a. Louis XVI took throne in 1774
i. Not a very determined ruler
ii. Robert Turgot – Finance minister tried reforms nixed by nobles of the Robe
1. Left office in1776 “Remember Charles I”
iii. 1786 banks would not lend $ to France
iv. 1787-1788 poor harvests – food shortage
v. Louis XVI tried to pass tax law “Legal because I wish it.”
V. 1788 – Louis XVI summoned the Estates General for the 1st time since 1614. They met in May 1789.
a. Estates usually met separately and 1st + 2nd voted down 3rd
b. 3rd Estate wanted to meet and vote equally
c. 3rd Estate takes matters in their own hands and walked out
d. Tennis Court Oath– not to leave until they had a constitution
i. Some wanted a Republic – others a limited monarchy
ii. July 1789 – peasants formed militia in fear
iii. Louis brought troops to Paris
iv. July 14, 1789 – Storming of Bastille
v. Summer of 1789 – the Great Fear
1. Peasant uprisings
e. National Assembly 1789
i. August 4 – Assembly abolishes most feudal customs
1. Serfdom and taxes
2. All males eligible for church positions
3. Adopted Rights of Man
f. October 1789 march on Versailles
i. Women outraged at high food prices
ii. Suspected Louis & Marie Antoinette of plotting against them
iii. Demanded they return to Paris with them
iv. Louis agrees out of fear
v. On return march, Louis wears the tricolor
vi. The mob is now in control
g. Religious Freedoms – 1790: Civil Constitution for the Clergy
i. Abolish Catholic Church’s privileges
ii. Church lands were sold
h. Constitution of 1791
i. Limited Monarchy
1. King – Executive Branch
2. Locally Elected Legislative branch: 83 regimes
3. Judicial Branch
ii. All feudal laws abolished
VI. Responses
a. Few people were satisfied
i. Some wanted a republic
ii. Nobles thought the constitution went too far
b. Nobles fled France: émigrés
c. Royal Family tries to flee to Austria
i. Recognized and arrested
d. October 1791 –Legislative Assembly meets for the 1st time
i. Moderates sit on the right
ii. Radicals sit on the left
e. Radical group, Jacobins gain control
i. Led by Maximilien Robespierre
VII. France goes to War
a. Émigrés try to urge Austria & Prussia to invade France and restore Louis XVI
b. French radicals want war to unify the country
c. France declares war on Austria in April 1792
i. War began poorly
1. Officers were nobles who had fled country
2. Some troops wanted to vote on everything
d. August 1792:Austrian and Prussian troops advance on Paris
i. Brunswick Manifesto: “surrender or we’ll burn the city to the ground” and torture the leaders
ii. B.M. angered the French and they rallied
1. “Liberty,Equality, and Fraternity.”
iii. Troops arrived from Mersailles to help
iv. September 1792 the French took charge and caused Austria to retreat
e. Although France had won, high prices and food shortages angered people
i. Counter revolution: “The 2nd French Revolution”
1. Angry Parisians took over city government
2. Formed the Paris Commune
ii. August 10 1792 Revolutionaries attacked the King’s Palace and killed many of the Swiss guards: captured the King
iii. Marie Antoinette was captured at the Legislative Assembly
VIII. The National convention – 1792
a. Elections held
b. Roaming mobs killing suspects
c. January 21, 1793– Louis XVI executed
IX. Attacks on the Revolution
a. Europe’s response– 1793
i. At war with many countries
1. Austria
2. Netherlands
3. Prussia
4. Great Britain
5. Spain
b. France in trouble
i. Economic
ii. Counter Revolution
c. The Reign of Terror
i. Constitution set aside and the National Assembly created The Committee of Public Safety
ii. Brutal campaign from July 1793 to July 1794 led by Robespierre
iii. Daily trials and executions: 20,000-40,000 were killed
iv. Wars were costly – draft formed
v. Food shortages – “Equality bread”
vi. Spring 1794 – Armies were doing well
vii. National Convention tried to stop all the trials
1. July 1794 –Robespierre arrested and executed
2. With Robespierre’s death, the Reign of Terror ended
viii. Impact of years between 1789-1794
1. Monarchy dead
2. Democracy established
3. All feudal laws, traditions, and customs gone
4. Styles changed
5. Metric system established
X. The Rise of Napoleon Bonaparte
a. Leaders under Robespierre found and executed
b. Constitution of 1795 establishes the Directory
i. Elected legislature
ii. Executive branch with 5 directors
iii. Only landowners who could read were allowed to vote
c. Directory(1795-1799) had many problems
i. High food prices
ii. Riots
iii. Expensive military
d. Napoleon
i. Born in 1769 in a small noble family
ii. Attended French Military academy
e. Rose quickly in military
i. 1793 led army against British
ii. Broke up riots
iii. Was a general at age 27
iv. Married Josephine de Beauharnais (she was very influential)
v. Invaded Italy and defeated Austria by 1797
vi. Invaded Egypt chasing the British
vii. Lost his fleet and many troops in Egypt but was still thought of as a hero.
f. Overthrew the Directory in 1799
i. Drew up a new constitution (the 4th since the revolution began)
ii. Named himself “First Consul:
iii. “I am no ordinary man.”
1. Brilliant military mind
2. Very popular
iv. Virtual dictator of France at age 30
1. Made himself“Consul for Life” and was agreed upon by popular vote
2. 1804 – declared himself “emperor of the French”
a. Continued many reforms
b. Divided France into departments
c. Allowed émigrés to return
d. Established the Napoleonic code
i. Freedom of religion
ii. All men equal under the law
iii. Women and children had little rights
e. Created public schools – lyceés
f. Created Ban of France
g. Imposed taxes
h. Made a deal with the Catholic church
XI. Napoleon in triumph and Defeat
a. Conquered Europe
i. From Spain to Russia
ii. Dissolved the Holy Roman Empire
b. Napoleon spread his ideas throughout Europe and weakened the church and other monarchies
c. The continental system
i. At war with Great Britain 1805
1. Naval blockades
2. Weakened economy
d. Nationalism
i. Other countries resented French taxes and occupation
ii. Spanish uprisings
1. 1808 Great Britain helped Spain
2. 1812 French kicked out of Spain
iii. 1811 – Prussian king gives rights to lower classes
1. 1812 – Prussia attacks when Napoleon attacks Russia
iv. Napoleon invaded Russia (under Czar Alexander I) and made it all the way to Moscow
1. Russia troops burned Moscow
2. Napoleon had no place to house his troops so he retreated in the month of October, 1812.
3. Only 100,000 made it out alive (out of 500,000)
4. Napoleon was weakened and the allies captured Paris and installed Louis XVIII as king in1814.
v. Austria, Russia, and Prussia Attacked and made Louis XVIII King – émigrés wanted revenge. 1815 Napoleon returned and declared himself Emperor. He got many soldiers and lasted 100 days. In June 1815 met British at Waterloo led by Duke of Wellington. Was exiled to St. Helena and died in 1821.
Response to the Industrial Revolution
I. Demands for change
a. Long hours
i. 6 days a week
ii. 12-16 hour days of hard labor
b. Low pay
c. Poor conditions
i. Dirty
ii. Dangerous
iii. Abusive toward children
d. No Sympathy from owners or government
i. 1819 Manchester protest
1. 80,000 workers protested
2. Soldiers fire on crowd killing 11, wounding 400.
e. Parliament investigates, 1831
i. Horrific stories of abuse
f. Charles Dickens and other writers expose conditions
g. Reforms begin
i. Factory Act, 1833
ii. Mine Act, 1842
iii. Ten Hours Act
II. Rise of Labor Unions
a. Similar to guilds which were limited by Combination Act, 1799, 1800, repealed in 1820
b. By 1868 100,000workers belonged to unions
c. 1870s won rights to strike
d. London dock strike of 1889
e. Wages nearly double between 1870-1914
f. Government supports workers
i. Unemployment and retirement funds
ii. Safety laws
iii. Public education
III. Improving City Life
a. Water and sewage
b. Government building codes
c. City planning
d. Police & firefighters
e. Public transportation
IV. New Social Ideas
a. Laissez Faire Economics
i. “Hands off” policies
ii. Adam Smith, The Wealth of Nations
iii. Thomas Malthus, population will outgrow food supplies
iv. David Ricardo, Iron Law of Wages
v. Economics known as the “Dismal Science”
b. Reformers
i. Jeremy Bentham – government should intervene to prevent misery
ii. John Stuart Mill – supported unions
c. Utopian Socialists
i. Robert Owen – set up ideal working conditions in Scotland and was very successful
ii. Charles Fourier – poverty would end if workers could work to their own abilities
1. His planned communities failed
V. Karl Marx and Scientific Socialism
a. Marx and The Communist Manifesto, 1848 Engels
i. Utopian Socialists = Dreamers
ii. Course of history driven by economics
iii. Production = control
iv. “haves” vs. “have nots”
v. Bourgeoisie vs. Proletariat
vi. Revolution needed
vii. Did not occur until the early 1900s
VI. Age of Science
a. Charles Darwin (remember G.L. Buffon)
i. The Origin of the Species
ii. The Descent of Man
iii. The HMS Beagle + Galapagos Islands
iv. Survival of the fittest
b. Controversy over Darwin
i. Religious controversy
ii. Social Darwinism – Herbert Spencer
c. Advances in Biology and Medicine
i. August Waisman – cell biology
ii. Gregor Mendel – cross breeding plants and animals
iii. Louis Pasteur – food spoilage
iv. Robert Koch – disease isolation
v. Joseph Lister – surgery
d. Discoveries in Chemistry + Physics
i. Dalton, Mendeleev – atoms + elements
ii. Maxwell, Roentgen – energy waves + x-rays
iii. Marie & Pierre Curie – radioactivity
iv. A. Einstein – physics
e. New Fields of Study
i. Sociology
ii. Psychology – Comte
1. Pavlov – behavior
2. Freud –psychoanalysis
