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15 Cards in this Set
- Front
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What is an enlightened despot? Be sure to talk about the religious views of an enlightened despot and its relation to Jesuits.
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-when kings justified authority on how useful they were to the state, not on the divine right of kings or sometimes heredity
-Frederick the Great’s quote: “I am the first servant of the state” -enlightened despots were secular and ruled w/ religious toleration -Jesuit conflict -Jesuits power was threatening the power of Kings in Catholic country. By 1760, the Jesuit order was banned in almost all Cath. Countries, 1773, the pope bans it completely. Jesuit schools/prop is taken over. -enlightened despots hated all the remains of “feudalism”, like parlements, church, nobles, guild, estates, etc. They were therefore less willing to compromise with lower bodies, and desired quick results and acting quickly on matters. -enlightened despots ruled w/reason - gov’t= an abstract and impersonal authority exercised by public officers, of whom the king was the highest” |
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Why wasn't Louis XV and enlightened despot?
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Louis XV (1715-1774)
-indifferent, materialistic ruler with no political interest -France was ultimately run by enlightened officials |
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Explain the tax problem experienced by Louis XV, mention the vingtieme.
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Tax Problem
-France’s main problem= methods of raising revenue for the monarchy—taxes! -some income came from sale of offices -most important tax= taille -land tax paid only by peasants -most wealthy classes didn’t pay taxes according to their incomes—didn’t pay taxes at all! -landed classes thought taxes were degrading -bourgeois, church, nobles wouldn’t pay taxes b/c they weren’t allowed to participate in gov’t. -the church claimed that its lands (5-10% of the country) weren’t taxable -the tax exemptions to the church, bourgeois and nobility made the gov’t chronically poor -1740’s: France needs $ b/c of war costs -Louis introduces the vingtieme (twentieth) -imposes a 5% income tax on all forms of property for all classes -this tax lasted until the French Rev. -During the 7 Year’s War, the French gov’t tries to increase it -Parlement of Paris and other bodies, the church rule that the tax increase is unconstitutional -Louis XV drops the matter completely -1768: the Seven Years War is over, and France has horrible war debt. -Louis XV hires Maupeou as the chancellor, with hopes of centralizing authority by the elimination of parlement |
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Who was Maupeou?
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Maupeou
-Maupeou was enlightened -Maupeou eliminated the old parlements and established new parlements Maupeou parlements -judges have no property rights in their seats; they are now salaried officials appointed by the crown w/tenure -judges can’t reject gov’t edicts or decide what is constitutional -Maupeou tried to make French laws/courts uniform throughout France -he tried again to tax the upper classes *The Maupeou parlements were the closest France ever got to enlightened despotism. |
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Talk about the beginning of Louis XVI's reign, and his reaction to the old reign of Louis XV.
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Louis XVI
-takes over in 1774, age 20 -genuine desire to govern well -lacked will power and could not bear to offend the people who he saw personally -right after he takes the throne, the people cry out against Maupeou as a “despot”, demand the restoration of the Parlements -Louis XVI was scared that people would label him as a “despot”, so he recalled the old parlements and abolished the “Maupeou Parlements” (anti-Enlightenment move!) -Louis XVI appoints Turgot as his head minister |
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Who was Turgot?
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Turgot
-head minister to Louis XVI at the beginning of his reign -philosophe and physiocrat, very experienced administrator -wanted to suppress guilds -had plans of tax reform to make it more equal -Protestant-tolerating -1776: Viciously opposed by the Parlement of Paris, the church, and the Provincial estates, Turgot resigned. -proved that Louis XVI’s action of recalling the old parlements had made reform impossible |
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What was Maria Theresa's main goal as empress and what did her ministers accomplish with her? Mention the Tariff Union of Bohemia/Moravia/Austria
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-After the war of the 1740s, Maria Theresa realized how disconnected her empire was. Maria Theresa’s main goal became the internal consolidation of her empire.
Maria’s ministers -Kaunitz= forein relations, Moravian, plus other non-Austrian advisers -goal= prevent dissolution of the monarchy by enlarging and guaranteeing the flow of taxes and soldiers. -needed to break control of territorial nobles in diets 1. They bring Bohemian and Austrian provinces together under a unified state bureaucracy, instead of local self-gov’t. 2. Officials use the mercantilist doctrine of “cameralism” to try to increase production 3. 1775: creation of the Tariff Union of Bohemia, Moravia, and Austrian duchies -Region= largest area of free trade in Europe -Bohemia= most productive area |
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Talk about Maria's attacks against serfdom.
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-humane motives as well as a desire to control the manpower from which her armies were recruited
-attack on serfdom= attack on the landed aristocracy -but…since the diets were reduced in power, nobles had less effective protests. -Maria Theresa passes laws against abuse of peasants, labor laws, these laws ultimately achieved minimal success, but still were an important step in the emancipation of peasants. |
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Talk about Joseph II and how he was the true enlightened despot.
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takes over in 1780
-much more of an impatient ruler, to the point ruler than his mother (she was often “flaky”, evasive) -True Enlightened Despot! -solemn, earnest, good man who sensed the misery and hopelessness of the lowest classes -Believed in progress, right, and reason -Quote: “The State equals the greatest good for the greatest number” |
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What were the main accomplishments of Joseph II?
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Main Accomplishments of Joseph II
1. Abolishment of serfdom 2. Absolute equality of taxes 3. Equal punishment for equal crimes, whatever the class of the offender -less cruel/unusual punishment 4. Complete liberty of the press 5. Toleration of all religions 6. Equal civil rights to Jews, creation of Jewish nobles, allowing Jews to serve in the army 7. Suppression of monasteries, using their prop. to finance secular hospitals, leading to Vienna’s medical excellence -open clashes w/the pope and demand for increased power over Catholic clergy 8. Centralization of the monarchy, even in Hungary 9. Germanization of the empire -leads to nationalistic resistence from Czechs, Poles, Hungarians 10. Establishment of an effective gov’t bureaucracy 11. Utilization of the clergy to communicate laws, gov’t respect to their parishioners 12. CREATION OF THE POLICE STATE -employed “secret police” to monitor the empire and spy on possible problematic people, etc. |
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Joseph died in 1790. What was his legacy?
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**In the end, most of Joseph’s reforms didn’t last. Joseph was a revolutionist w/out a party, he couldn’t be everywhere he wanted at once, and he had been opposed by the most powerful social groups in his empire. His reign proved that even the most legally absolute rulers couldn’t do exactly what they wanted. Perhaps only true reform could be accomplished by a true revolution?
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Describe Fred. the Great's main accomplishments as a leader in Prussia, his main goals.
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Prussia Under Frederick the Great (1740-1786)
-Fred the Great was a great intellectual ruler, constantly writing memoirs, he was friends w/ Voltaire, etc. He believed that sweeping changes weren’t necessary to happiness in Prussia—Prussia was relatively “enlightened” already. -Diets, Junkers, church were already pretty subordinate to the state -But, Frederick’s main goal was to “fight ignorance and prejudice in the country”—very idealistic. -simplified/codified laws, made law courts cheaper and more honest, -protected religious freedom -tried to get elementary ed. For all kids -During Fred’s reign, 300,000 immigrants came in to Prussia |
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Describe the social stratification of Prussia? Why was it like this?
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-nobles, peasants and burghers lived side by side; but segregated.
-each class paid diff. taxes -classes couldn’t exchange prop. w/other classes -people and property were legally classified according to social class -little movement b/w classes -military purpose to this segregation: -preserved a distinct peasant class from which to draw soldiers -preserved a distinct aristocratic class from which to draw officers |
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Describe Fred the Great's serfdom policy.
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-peasants were considered “hereditary subjects” and couldn’t leave the lords estate w/out his permission
-serfs held their own land w/labor obligations to their lord. -So, Fred. The Great relieved serfdom on his own crown domains -HE did nothing to relieve serfdom for the junkers -antagonizing the Junkers, his army commanders, would’ve been way too risky! |
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Talk about Fred the Great's legacy
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-Frederick the Great represented isolated genius. He didn’t believe in sharing knowledge or power w/any adviser, he considered that wasteful. When he died in 1786, he had ruled for 46 years w/out training any successors. 20 years later, Prussia fell to Napoleon.
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