AP Review #4: 18th c. States/Wars/Society (Ch. 18) & French Rev.

(Ch. 19)
18th c. States, Wars, Society
Enlightened Absolutism
 What is it? 18th century monarchs who experimented with reform policies guided by the ideas of the
philosophes (although not always) and were motivated to strengthen their states
o Met with opposition from nobles who would lose considerable wealth/power with reforms
o Collectively do not succeed in creating long-term change
 Frederick II (the Great): Prussia - the most enlightened absolutist
o Establishment of a single law code; religious toleration; civic equality for all people; ordered the
cultivation of potatoes to counteract rising bread prices; open discussion; civil service
 Joseph II: Austria – co-ruled with Maria Theresa
o Religious toleration; tax reform (attacked noble exemptions); educational and legal system
improvements (equal protection under the law, ended torture/death penalty); reforms failed
significantly after his death
 Catherine the Great: Russia
o Corresponded greatly with the philosophes (primarily Voltaire)
o Greater local self-government; legal reforms; expansion of education/art/literature; set out to
conquer lands; success of the Pugachev Rebellion forced her to extend serfdom which severely
diminished her abilities to continue enlightened reforms (Charter of the Nobility)

18th c. Wars
Rulers shift from making decisions aimed at protecting the dynastic interests to those that strengthened their
state; caused nations to compete fiercely to be major powers
 War of Spanish Succession: Louis XIV attempted to put his grandson on the SP crown; England,
HRE, Netherlands stepped in to stop him; Treaty of Utrecht (Phillip could have throne, but FR & SP
could never unite; attempted to create a balance of power in Europe)
 War of Austrian Succession: Prussia invades Austria after Charles VI death; saw a weakness in
Maria Theresa as ruler; FR backed Prussia while ENG backed Austria; Treaty of Aix-la-Chapelle
(returned to pre-war status…except Prussia maintained control of Silesia- an Austrian territory)
 Seven Years’ War: fighting took place in Europe , India and North America and caused the
Diplomatic Revolution
o Outcomes: Treaty of Paris (1763) - France lost all North American territory and diminished as a
great power (as did Austria); while England solidified their status as a WORLD power and Prussia
moved to become a strong European power
 Partition of Poland: divided territory amongst Austria, Prussia and Russia; renegotiated frequently

Agricultural Revolution
Originated in Dutch Republic and the Low Countries, quickly spread to England
 Causes: increases in food production brought on by - 1) more farmland; higher yields per acre;
3) healthier & abundant livestock; 4) improved climate conditions
 Innovations: land drainage to increase amount of arable land; use of clover/turnips; transition to
crop rotation (Townsend - instead of open-field method); iron plow/seed drill (Tull); animal
breeding (Bakewell)
 Enclosure Movement: common land was fenced off (literally enclosed) to use land more efficiently
(more food = more profits); peasants angry b/c they think they have “right” to the land; disrupted
traditional economy/society; many forced to move to cities in search of jobs/housing
 Impacts: increased food production for humans and animals; commercialization of agriculture
o Population Expansion: Declining death rate (less war/plague/famine); improved hygiene and
sanitation; use of the POTATO
“Ancien Regime”
Patterns of social, political, economic relationships in France prior to the French Revolution (1789)
 Characteristics: aristocrats with inherited legal privileges; church related to state and aristocrats;
urban workforce in guilds; rural peasants highly taxed; nobles vs. monarchs; peasants vs. nobles;
social hierarchy was rigid
 Social Composition:
o Aristocracy: 1-5% of population; noble birth/traditional legal privilege of a family ; smallest but
wealthiest group b/c of land ownership; relied heavily on privileges & exemptions (esp. taxes)
o Peasants: over 75% of population rural; burden of taxes almost solely on them; increased
peasants revolts resulted
o Women/children: women can’t survive on own so goal before marriage was to get and maintain
household of their own to entice a husband; both partners worked; marriage out of economic
necessity; operated on the family economy (household was basic unit of
production/consumption); limited # of children b/c couldn’t afford many
French Revolution
Causes
 Social: extreme social disparity; Third Estate resents the 1st/2nd because of legal divisions (still
bound by feudal obligations); feel have no voice in Estates-General (b/c 1st/2nd always outvoted the
3rd…1 vote/Estate)
 Political: ineptitude of Louis XVI and failure to get the Estates General to cooperate; called Assembly
of Notables (1787) but reform didn’t go anywhere
 Economic: financial problems exacerbated by war (LXIV); FR HAS wealth but is concentrated in
hands of nobles unwilling to share; royal spending outrageous (MA= “Madame deficit”); attempted
reforms but no success (Necker & Calonne)
 Influence of Am Rev: FR intervenes (causes more debt); but they see how a country fought against
oppression and were inspired by it

Revolution of 1789
 Cahier de Doleances: list of grievances where 2nd & 3rd realize have similar complaints so join forces
 Tennis Court Oath: Estates-General locked out of meeting room by LXVI so meet elsewhere; agree to
continue cooperation until a new constitution is written (1st/2nd reluctant but want to weaken LXVI)
 Fall of the Bastille: July 14th – Parisians attack to get ammunition b/c tension is growing; they
succeed against the king’s guards; beginning event of the revolution; tricolor flag created symbolism
 August 4th : nobles renounce unprecedented level of their privileges in order to maintain calm in
countryside (doesn’t work b/c Great Fear spreads anyway); created equality & abolished old order
 Declaration of the Rights of Man and Citizen: written by National Assembly; equality, liberty,
natural rights (freedom of religion/press/access to jobs/merit), civic equality & popular sovereignty!
o directed at abuses of the old regime and inspired by Enlightenment
 Women’s March: anxiety continues to build in Paris; women march armed to demand bread but end
up attacking royal family; start to demand their move to Paris (out of Versailles)

Revolution Turns Radical

Fierce dedication to the establishment of the French republic; put in place by the Constitution of 1791; removal
of any force/opposition to the growth of the republic (counterrevolutionaries), ushers in the Reign of Terror
 Jacobins: new legislative assembly established in which emerging political party was Jacobins; turn
radical in their methods to defend the revolution; led by Maximillien Robespierre
 Reign of Terror: sans culottes, September Massacres, execution of Louis XVI + Marie Antoinette,
conscription of soldiers (levee en masse), Committee of Public Safety runs the government after L16
gone and used the GUILLOTINE to rid threats, de-Christianization (new calendar, killed clergy),
 eventually Jacobins turn on Robespierre; period after known as Thermidorian Reaction (more
executions, Catholicism reinstated, suppressed the Sans Culottes, led to rise of the Directory)

Napoleon (1799-1815)
 Rise: rapid military success early on and won many victories for France (in Europe and abroad);
invited to lead the First Consulate and crowned himself emperor (1799); appealed to the French
people b/c he promoted French nationalism and suppressed opposition both internal and external
 Domestic Policies: carried out many reforms despite ruling as a dictator; led to economic recovery,
advances in education, and other social and political improvements
o Napoleonic Code (1802)
 Preserved gains made from the French Revolution
 Equality of all citizens before the law
 Right of individual to choose a profession
 Religious toleration
 Abolition of serfdom and feudalism
 Property rights protected
 Interest of employers protected by outlawing trade unions and strikes
o Rebuilding of Paris: roads, bridges, canals (infrastructure for strengthening of the economy),
beautification,
o Church: Concordat of 1801 reinstated Christianity and revoked the Civil Constitution of the
Clergy but still promoted the dominance of state over church (ex. Napoleon later takes the
pope prisoner)
 Continental System: helped to spread French revolutionary ideals across Europe (nationalism);
peaked at 1812 and stretched from Spain to Poland; fatal mistake was invading Russia (Great
Retreat)
 Fall: couldn’t conquer Russia or England; countries ally against him; he abdicates (Elba) and comes
back later (100 Days) and is finally defeated at the Battle of Waterloo (Belgium) by the GB and finally
exiled to St. Helena in 1815 (dies 6 years later); Europe left in shambles after his reign, must regroup
(leads to Congress of Vienna)