Name:_____________________

Date:_____________________
Class:_____________________
Europe in the 1500s-1700s Follow Along
Slide 4: Divine Right:
The belief that a ruler has been chosen at birth by God
“To disagree with a ruler was to disagree with God!”

Slide 6: Does Absolutism still Exist today?

Yes!

- Vatican City (although the Pope is elected… so Absolute Elected Monarchy)

- Brunei - Hassanal Bolkiah (Country in Asia)
- Swaziland - Mswati III (Southern Africa)
- Saudi Arabia - Salman of Saudi Arabia
- Oman - Haitham bin Tariq Al Said (Country in Western Asia)
- Qatar - Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani (Arab country in Asia)

Other places are in the process of turning into a Constitutional Monarchy

- Morocco
- Bhutan
- Nepal
- UAE

Slide 8:What was life like in Europe?

King Highest power in the land

Barons Lords, Nobility, the ones that controlled the land given to
them by the King.

Knights Fights for the Barons, often times borrowed by the King.

Peasants All the workers…. Field labor, servants, skilled workers

Clergy would be in a social ladder that started with the the Pope, the King , and then went
down the line of Cardinals, Bishops, Archbishops, priests, etc…

Slide 9: What was Life Like? Feudal/Manorial System

The King would grant land to those he trusts, they would swear loyalty to him and pay rent/provide
Knights-- Kept some land then divided the rest

Knights given land by the barons in return for military service and protection

Villeins/Peasants/Serfs: Very poor, worked the land for the knights and lords, bound to the land and
could not leave

Slide 10: Role of Women in Europe 1500s

Women typically were:

- Wives and Mothers

- Worked farmland aside husbands or fathers (not allowed to own their own)
- Artisans (but mostly made goods for their own households)
- Nuns or part of the Catholic Religious order

Slide 11: Women as Wives and Mothers

Women were not really considered to be their own persons, but rather they first belong to a
father or closest male relative and then pass in possession to their husbands.

- Noble especially married, women did have some rights

- There was a big push that both parties entered into the marriage freely, but often the
parties were pressured or threatened to do so
- Women had no rights to their children
- Were responsible to oversee the running of the house (whether it be a cottage or the
Manor) and the education of the children, most of the time this did not include reading
and writing
- Widows could retain their husbands land if no sons or if the sons are too young to claim
it- if remarried it would all go to the new husband

***Unmarried women of the lower classes could become artisans or businesswomen in which
they were allowed to borrow money or sign contracts!

- Married women could be hired outside the home if necessary, required a a consent form
from their husband

Women could be put on trial for crimes, and could be executed.

- Typically exempt from torture and the only method used for poor women was burning
at the stake
Slide 13: Women as Nuns

Women became Nuns for many reasons:

- Placed there by their families

- Enter in after becoming a widow
- Serve God/Be married to God

Convents would be paid a dowry for each woman they let in (wealthy women were more
favorable)

Their lives consisted of manual work(in gardens, fields, etc..), Embroidery, Prayer, and service

Freedom, Not married, secure/protected life, education, power

Slide 14: The Role of Men

Male dominated society- Land owning men had more rights and privileges

- Occupations: Lord, Knight, Soldier, Farmer, Merchants, skilled craftsman or on the

Religious side Pope, Bishops, Archbishops, Priests, Monks, Brothers
- Power and property passed down through the male line, although women could inherit
if there were no male relatives.

Slide 15: The Catholic Church

Christianity was established a major religion in the Roman Empire in the 300s by Roman
Emperor Constantine---Christianity= The Catholic Church

Christianity will be kept even after the fall of Rome in 475 CE.

Catholicism will be the dominant religion in Europe (small pockets of Jews and Muslims) and
will not be challenged until the Reformation…..

The Great Schism: 1054 CE the split between the Catholic Church and the Eastern Orthodox
Church….. Hence Roman Catholicism and Orthodox Catholicism

The Pope is the head of the Catholic Church and all monarchs seek to gain his favor… Believed
to be a direct link to God.

Slide 16: Beliefs of The Catholic Church

Believe in the divinity of Jesus Christ (meaning that he is seen as the son of God, not just as a
prophet).

Believe in the Holy Trinity: The Father, The Son, and the Holy Ghost

Adores Mary, and other saints

Builds grand, elaborate churches for the glory of God

Slide 18: Who runs the Catholic Church

The Pope is seen as the head of the Church

The Pope is chosen from the Cardinals

The Pope is seen to be speaking for God on Earth

The laity are the Church Members (ordinary/non-ordained)

Only men were allowed to fill the positions

Women could be Nuns and Abbesses

No say in the runnings the Church

Slide 19: Who funds the Catholic Church?

The People!

The King would declare that the nation is Christian…. He would make generous donations to
the Church in exchange for their support and for the salvation of his soul

Lords would build churches on their land to gain the favor of God and would also make it
mandatory for peasants to attend mass

The Parishes were supported and funded by a Tithe (which is a tax to support the church,
typically it was 10% of one’s earnings)

Through the taxes collected and the donations made by the wealthy the church was able to
afford a fairly lavish lifestyle!

Slide 20: But why support the Catholic Church?

It was the only accepted church around!

Parishes would often help the poor when needed through giving food, shelter, goods, medical
attention, and education

Not accepted to be openly Atheist (don’t believe in a a higher being or the church) or or
Agnostic (believe in a higher being, but not the Church)

The afterlife!!!!!

Life expectancy was very low and people died all the time (malnutrition, diseases, wars, etc…)
so it was a very real outcome

Catholic church offered a way to help them get to heaven, rather than spend an eternity of
damnation in purgatory… suffering immeasurable torture

Slide 21: But why support the Catholic Church?

The church will offer an explanation for everything that happens that is beyond the common
understanding of the time… I.e. how the world was created and animals existed, etc..

The Catholic Church will remain the dominant religious order in Europe, but there will be
challenges to come….REFORMATION

Slide 23: Does the Catholic Church Still Exist Today?

Still about 1.3 billion baptized Catholics throughout the world…. The largest Christian Church

Centered in the Vatican City (smallest country in the world) and run by the Pope