On the test, 10 of the following will be presented, but you will only

need to answer 5 of them.

Tip: Remember, you only have to study 25 of the following people
and concepts, not 30!

1. Glorious Revolution – The overthrow of James II of England in 1688 by a union

of Parliamentarians and the Duth stadtholder William of Orange (William III of
Orange-Nassau). The aims of the Revolution were to preserve the Anglican church,
the traditional institutions of Parliament, and decentralized government. The Tories
insisted that the Revolution was an act of divine providence. This was the final
successful invasion of England. The Revolution is relevant with the events of the 9
years war in Europe.

2. Baron de Montesquieu – (1689-1755) He was born in Bordeaux, a port city in

France. He was a French political thinker who lived during the Enlightenment. He
was known for his theory of his separation of powers which was implemented in
many constitutions all over the world. Montesquieu was a philosophe who gave
attention to the position of women. He said that men’s “power over women is mere
tyranny” and that “among the most civilized nations wives have always had
authority over their husbands.” He was also known for using the terms “Feudalism”
and “Byzantine Empire”.

3. Voltaire – (1694-1778) Voltaire was a well-known intellectual figure who lived

during the Enlightenment. He was a writer, essayist, deist philosopher known for
his wit and defense of civil liberties, including freedom of religion (people could
choose whether or not they wanted to practice it at all) and the right to a fair trial.
He sought to establish peace and stability, and was an outspoken supporter of
social reform. He mainly proposed all his ideas through writing. Voltaire wanted the
country to be rules by an enlightened monarch.

4. Jean-Jacques Rousseau – (1712-1778) Born in Geneva, Switzerland, Rousseau

was a philosopher during the Enlightenment. His political ideas influenced the
French revolution as well as the development of socialist theory and nationalism.
Rousseau also made contributions to music as a theorist and composer. His most
famous line: “man is born free, and everywhere he is, in chains.”

5. Abbé Sieyes – (1748-1836) Born in the south of France, his full name was
Emmanuel Joseph Sieyès. He was an abbé (French for an “abbot”) and a
statesman. He was of the main theorists of the French revolution, French Consulate
and the First French Empire. His pamphlet “What is the Third Estate?” became the
manifesto of the revolution. He was an instigator of the 1779 coup d’état which
brought Napoleon into power.

6. Denis Diderot – (1713-1784) He was born in Langres, France. He was a

prominent individual in the Enlightenment. He was a French philosopher and writer.
He was the editor-in-chief of Encyclopédie. He also translated great works like
Stanyan’s “History of Greece” and Robert James’ “Medical Dictionary.”

7. Cesare, Marquis of Beccaria-Bonesana – (1738-1794) He was born in Milan,

Italy. He was an Italian philosopher and politician best known for his treatise “On
Crimes and Punishments.” Here he condemned torture and the death penalty and
it proved to be a founding work in the field of criminology.

8. Condorcet – (1743-1794) He was a French philosopher, mathematician and

political scientist who set designed the concept of a Condorcet method. This
ensured that candidates are ranked by voters in order of preference. He advocated
a liberal economy, free and equal public education, constitutionalism, and equal
rights for women and people of all races. His ideas and writings are said to embody
the ideals of the Enlightenment and rationalism, and remain potent and influential
to this day.

9. Frederick the Great – (1712-1786) Also known as Frederick II, he was the King
of Prussia, and one of the enlightened monarchs. He accomplished many great
things and therefore inherited his name. He called himself, the first servant of the
state. He was in conflict with Maria Theresa, and this weakened the Holy Roman
Empire. He was a patron of the arts and philosophers. He had a turbulent
friendship with Voltaire. He modernized Prussian bureaucracy and civil service and
promoted religious tolerance.

10. French Constitution of 1791 – This was adopted by the national constituent
assembly during the French Revolution. The constitution was ceased to function
from a national standpoint less than a year after it was compiled. The constitution
attempted to establish a liberal bourgeois constitutional monarchy. The
constitution dissolved amongst the chaos of forces.

11. Jacques-Benigne Bossuet – (1627-1704) He was born at Dijon. He was a

French bishop, theologian, pulpit orator, and court preacher. He was a strong
supporter to stop the theory of political absolutism. He believed that Kings got
their power from G-d and that Governments were Divine.

12. Oliver Cromwell – (1599-1658) He was born in Huntingdon, England. He was

an English military and political leader best known for making England into a
republican Commonwealth. He later became the Lord Protector of England,
Scotland and Ireland. Cromwell is a controversial figure both considered a regicidal
tyrant by some and a hero of liberty to others.

13. Committee of Public Safety – This committee was set up by the National
Convention in 1793. This was a de facto executive government during the Reign of
Terror of the French Revolution. Essentially run by the Jacobins, the committee was
responsible for thousands of executions, mostly by the guillotine. The committee
ceased meeting in 1795.

14. Levée en Mass – In 197,2 the Public Safety Committee passed a law called
“Levee en Masse”. This called for all able-bodied men to defend the nation. All
unmarried men between the ages of eighteen and twenty- five years of age were
drafted into the army. In less than a year more than 800,000 soldiers were
recruited. This huge army helped fight the war, and brought all the citizens
together. France got everyone involved! This army was the biggest army in Europe,
and because of its size it helped France protect themselves against enemies. It
also marked a new era in which citizens were considered military targets.
15. Declaration of the Rights of Man – A document from the French revolution
which defined individual and collective rights of the people. The declaration was
adopted by the National Constituent Assembly as the first step towards writing a
constitution. “Men are born and remain free, and equal in rights.”

16. Blaise Pascal – (1623-1662) He was born in Clermont-Ferrand. He was a

French mathematician, physicist and religious philosopher. He was a child prodigy
who was educated by his father, a judge and amateur scientists. Blaise made
contributions to the construction of mechanical calculators, the study of fluids, and
clarified the concepts of pressure and vacuum. His two most famous philosophical
works are “Lettres provinciales” and “Pensées.”

17. Code Napoleon – (1804) This was a French civil code request by Napoleon. It
was the first successful code, and influenced the law in other countries as well.
This code helped establishing the rule of law. It divided civil law into personal
status, property and acquisition of property. The code also established the
supremacy of the husband with respect to the wife and children.

18. Thermidorian Reaction – (1794) This was a revolt during the French
revolution against the extremes of the Terror. It was sparked by the execution of
Robespierre and other members of the Committee of Public Safety. This revolt led
to the end of the radical phase of the French Revolution.

19. Civil Constitution of the Clergy – (1790) This passed during the French
Revolution. The law subordinated the Roman Catholic Church in France to the
French government. The constitution was predominantly supported by the
revolutionary priest, Henri Grégoire.

20. Battle of Austerlitz – (1805) This battle was one of Napoleon’s greatest
victories. The result was the destruction of the Third Coalition against the French
Empire. Led by Emperor Napoleon I, French troops decisively defeated a Russo-
Austrian army, commanded by Tsar Alexander I. The battle took place in Austerlitz,
near Moravia. After the battle, Austria and France signed the Treaty of Pressburg.
This did not, however, establish a lasting peace in the continent.

21. Jean-Baptiste Colbert – (1619-1683) He served as the French minister of

finance under the rule of King Louis XIV. He was described as cold and
unemotional. He achieved a reputation of improving the state of French
manufacturing and bringing the economy back from the brink of bankruptcy.

22. Battle of Waterloo – (1815) This was Napoleon’s last battle. His defeat put
an end to his rule as Emperor of France. Louis XVIII was restored to the throne of
France, and Napoleon was exiled to St. Helena, where he died in 1821.

23. Seven Years’ War – (1756-1763) This was the first conflict to be fought
around the globe. The war involved all of the major European powers of the time.
The result of the war ended France’s power both in America and in continental
Europe, until the time of the French Revolution. In the meantime, Great Britain
emerged as the dominant colonial power in the world.

24. Nicolaus Copernicus – (1473-1543) He was born in Toruń in Royal Prussia. He

was the first European astronomer who provided the first modern formulation of
how the sun rather than the earth is the center of the universe. He was a
mathematician, jurist, physician, classical scholar, Catholic cleric, governor,
administrator, military leader, diplomat and economist.

25. Galileo Galilei – (1564-1642) He was born in Pisa, Italy. He was an Italian
physicist, mathematician, astronomer and philosopher associated with the
scientific revolution. He studied uniformly accelerate motion, improved the
telescope, and made a variety of astronomical observations. He is often referred to
as the “father of modern astronomy”, the “father of modern physics”, as well as,
simply, the “father of science.”

26. René Descartes – (1596-1650) He was a French philosopher, mathematician

and scientist. He has been dubbed the “founder of modern philosophy and modern
mathematics.” He was a major figure in 17th century continental rationalism,
influences later intellectuals such as Spinoza and Leibniz. Descartes founded
analytic geometry. He was also a theologian, and insisted on the absolute freedom
of G-d’s act of creation. His famous quote is: “I think, therefore I am.”

27. Sir Isaac Newton – (1643-1727) He was an English physicist, mathematician,

astronomer, philosopher and alchemist. He is regarded by many as the greatest
figure in science. He described the three laws of motion, laying the groundwork for
classical mechanics. He invented the reflecting telescope. He also argued that light
is composed of particles. He studied the speed of sound and also proposed a
theory on the origin of stars. He co-developed calculus.

28. Richelieu & Mazarin – (1585-1642) / (1602-1661) Richelieu was a French

clergyman, noble and statesman. He was consecrated as a bishop in 1607 and
later entered into politics, becoming Secretary of State. Becoming King Louis XIII’s
chief minister in 1624, he remained in office until his death and was succeeded by
Mazarin. Mazarin carried on his mentor Richelieu’s position until his own death.

29. Mary Wollstonecraft – (1759-1797) She was a British writer, philosopher and
feminist. She was famous for writing “A Vindication of the Rights of Woman” in
which she argues that women are not inferior to men. She believed that men and
women should be treated equally. Today, she is considered to be one of the
foundational feminist philosophers.

30. Peter the Great – (1672-1725) Also known as Peter I, he ruled as tsar of
Russia from 1682 until his death. He descended from the Romanov dynasty. He
carried out a policy of “westernization.” He centralized the government,
modernized the army. He executed an aggressive foreign policy. He is credited for
pulling Russia out of its medieval state and into a leading eastern European state.