TRANSFORMATION OF THE WEST1450-1750 (EARLY MODERN PERIOD)

By Chandler Clark

THEME 1: INTERACTION BETWEEN HUMANS AND THEIR ENVIRONMENT

Contacts with Asia led to improvements in technology

Literacy became more widespread Population growth, urban growth After 1730, the changes in economic

activity caused a rapidly growing population

More people lived longer

THEME 2: DEVELOPMENT AND INTERACTION OF CULTURES

Science became the centerpiece for the first time in the history of any society

Printing helped to expand religious and technological thinking

Renaissance: challenged medieval intellectual values and styles

ITALIAN RENAISSANCE New realism appeared in painting, and religion declined as

a central focus Secular topics such as love and pride; critical thinking Da Vinci and Michelangelo changed styles in art & sculpture Political theory: Machiavelli advanced ideas similar to those

of the Chinese legalists Examples from Greece and Rome Humanism: focus on humanity as the center of intellectual

and artistic endeavor Italy declined as center of Renaissance 16th century (French

and Spanish invasion cut political independence, while new Atlantic trade routes hurt the Mediterranean economy)

NEW REALISM

LEONARDO DA VINCI’S MONA LISA

NORTHERN RENAISSANCE Centered in France, the Low Countries, Germany, and England,

spread to eastern Europe More religious than the Italians Writers(Shakespeare, Rabelais, and Cervantes)mixed classical

themes with elements of medieval popular culture Northern rulers became patrons of arts, tried to control the church,

& sponsored trading companies & colonial ventures Classical styles replaced Gothic Education changed to favor Greek and Roman classics, plus

Christian morality A spirit of individual excellence and defiance of tradition was

widespread Feudal political forms remained strong Ordinary people were little touched by the new values, and

general economic life was not much altered

NORTHERN RENAISSANCE

PROTESTANT AND CATHOLIC REFORMATIONS German monk Martin Luther nailed 95 theses to door of church

taught that only faith could gain salvation, challenged many Catholic beliefs, including papal authority, monasticism, and priestly celibacy

Bible should be translated into the vernacular Luther picked up widespread support among German elite because: German princes

who turned Protestant could increase their independence from the emperor, seize church lands, and control the church in their territories; gained power at expense of Catholic holy Roman emperor

peasants interpreted Luther's actions as a sanction for rebellion against landlords Henry VIII in England: Anglican church Frenchman Jean Calvin, based in Geneva, insisted on the principle of

predestination of those who would be saved Calvinism: sought participation of all believers in church administration, which

had the political implications of encouraging the idea of a wider access to government; stressed education to enable believers to read the Bible

Catholic Church was unable to restore unity, but much of Europe remained under its authority

Catholic Reformation worked against Protestant ideas, revived doctrine, and attacked popular beliefs

Jesuits spearheaded educational and missionary activity, including work in Asia and Americas

MARTIN LUTHER- 95 THESES

SCIENTIFIC REVOLUTION Western view of science compared to other civilizations: West was

not alone in developing crucial scientific data, but its thinkers were the only ones to see science in broader philosophical terms as central to intellectual life

Copernicus: astronomical observation and mathematical calculation to disprove Hellenistic belief that earth was center of universe

Newton established the principles of motion, defined the forces of gravity, and refined the principles of scientific methodology

Spread among educated New attitudes toward religion: Deism argued that God did not

regulate natural laws Locke stated that people could learn all that was necessary through

their senses and reason Science was central to Western intellectual life (different from other

civilizations) Led to…

ENLIGHTENMENT Centered in France Rational laws could describe both physical and

social behavior Produced a basic set of principles concerning human

affairs: humans are naturally good, reason was the key to truth, intolerant or blind religion was wrong

Adam Smith: governments should stand back & let individual effort & market forces operate for economic advance

Methodism demonstrated the continuing power of spiritual faith

THEME 3: STATE BUILDING, EXPANSION, AND CONFLICT

Overseas expansion and growing commercial dominancechange in West Governments increased their powers Renaissance sketched brasher spirit create new Western interest in

exploring Protestant and Catholic Reformations led to religious wars 16th and

17th centuries In France, Calvinists and Catholics disputed until the edict of Nantes in 1598

gave Protestants tolerance. The Thirty Years’ War (1618-1648) pitted German and Swedish Protestants

against the holy Roman emperor and Spain, established principle of territorial toleration; reduced German prosperity and power for a full century; some princely states in Germany chose one religion, some another; treaty that ended the war granted political independence to Protestant Netherlands

Religion was an important issue in English civil strife; most Protestants, but not Catholics, gained toleration

Religious wars led to very limited concepts of religious pluralism France gained power, the Netherlands and England developed international

trade, and Spain lost dominance

THEME 3 CONTINUED Protestant theory encouraged parliamentary power Feudal balance between monarchs and nobles came

undone in 17th century Monarchs gained new powers in warfare and tax

collection France became the West's most important nation

centralized authority, professional bureaucracy and military

Louis XIV: absolute monarchy Louis XIV followed economic theory of mercantilism,

supported measures improving internal and international trade, manufacturing, and colonial development

LOUIS XIV

THEME 3 CONTINUED Similar policies occurred in Spain, Prussia, and Austria-Hungary Absolute monarchs pushed territorial expansion Britain and the Netherlands formed parliamentary regimes English political settlement occurred in 1688 and 1689; parliament

won basic sovereignty over the king Power came from the people, not from a royal divine right, and that

they had the right to revolt against unjust rule Many competing nation-states kept the West politically divided and

at war Political changes were the least significant England and France continued with their previous patterns Frederick the Great of Prussia introduced greater religious

freedom, expanded state economic functions, encouraged agricultural methods, promoted greater commercial coordination and greater equity, and cut back harsh traditional punishments

FREDERICK THE GREAT

THEME 4: CREATION, EXPANSION, AND INTERACTION OF ECONOMIC SYSTEMS

15th century: Europe moved to a new role in world trade While remaining an agricultural society, West became

unusually commercially active & developed strong manufacturing sector

Renaissance was built on more commercialized economy Greater commercialization was spurred by substantial price

inflation during 16th century New World gold and silver forced prices up, and product

demand surpassed availability Trading companies formed to take advantage of colonial

markets Increasing commerce stimulated manufacturing Specialized

agricultural regions

THEME 4 CONTINUED Italian Renaissance: Merchants and bankers moved into

profit-seeking capitalist ways Mass consumerism Paid, professional entertainment as part of popular leisure New agricultural methods New World crops, like the potato, increased the food supply Led to… Manufacturing: 18th century witnessed rapid spread of

household production of textiles and metal products, mostly by rural workers who alternated manufacturing with some agriculture

Technological innovations (flying shuttle in weaving) improved efficiency

FLYING SHUTTLE

THEME 5: DEVELOPMENT AND TRANSFORMATION OF SOCIAL STRUCTURES

Enlightenment treatment of children: parents became more interested in freer movement & greater interaction for young children

Inflation and commercialization in West produced group of people without access to producing property called the: proletariat

European-style family Late marriage agebirth control, limited overcrowding Nuclear families of parents and children vs. extended families of

most agricultural civilizations Husband-wife relations; linked family to individual property

holdings Women, however, if unmarried, had fewer alternatives

when Protestants abolished convents

AFFECTION WITHIN THE FAMILY

THEME 5 CONTINUED Commercialization created a new rural and urban proletariat

that suffered from increased food prices For the more prosperous, commercialization supported a

more elaborate family life and demystification of nature Stimulated popular protest during the first half of the

seventeenth century Witchcraft hysteria reflected economic and religious

uncertainties; women were the most common targets The Renaissance created a new wedge between the elite and

the masses; elite pulled away from a shared popular culture Enlightenment: less harsh punishment for children, affection

among family members

THE END