World History: Connections to Today

World History: Connections to Today

The Enlightenment and the American Revolution (1715–1800)

Copyright 2001 © Prentice Hall, Inc.

The Enlightenment and the American Revolution The Enlightenment Natural Laws Thomas Hobbes John Locke Social Contract

Natural rights Philosophe Montesquieu Rousseau Lassiez-faire

The Enlightenment and the American Revolution Adam Smith Free market Censorship Salon Enlightened despot Baroque

Thomas Jefferson Constitutional government Popular sovereignty Federal Republic

The Enlightenment and the American Revolution (1715–1800)

SECTION 1 Philosophy in the Age of Reason SECTION 2 Enlightenment Ideas Spread SECTION 3 Birth of the American Republic Chapter 1

The Enlightenment and the American Revolution By the 1700s, some thinkers were beginning to fight against superstition, ignorance, intolerance, and tyranny This movement became known as the Enlightenment.

The Enlightenment and the American Revolution The goal of the Enlightenment was to shed the “light” of reason on traditional ideas about government and society

Reason

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Philosophy in the Age of Reason The Enlightenment grew out of the Scientific Revolution of the 1500s and 1600s Scientific discoveries in the fields of medicine, chemistry, and astronomy gave people confidence in the power of reason

Air Pump

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Philosophy in the Age of Reason Enlightenment thinkers called philosophes believed that they could use reason to find natural laws to govern human nature. Natural laws are rules discoverable by reason These laws could be used to solve social, political, and economic problems.

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Philosophy in the Age of Reason Thomas Hobbes wrote the Leviathan He believed that people were naturally cruel, greedy, and selfish He thought that life was “Nasty, Brutish, and Short” in the state of nature

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Philosophy in the Age of Reason Hobbes argued that people entered into a Social Contract in which they gave up the state of nature for an organized society Hobbes’ views supported the role of Kings Hobbes supported an absolute monarchy

The Leviathan

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Philosophy in the Age of Reason John Locke agreed with Hobbes that people give up absolute freedom in exchange for the benefits of living in a governed society

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Philosophy in the Age of Reason However, he argued that the government has an obligation to those it governs

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Philosophy in the Age of Reason Locke argued that all humans had natural rights, or rights that belong to all humans from birth These rights included the right to life, liberty, and property

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Philosophy in the Age of Reason Locke wrote a book titled Two Treatises of Government In his book, Locke argued that people formed govt. to protect their natural rights The best govt., he said, had limited power and was accepted by all citizens

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Philosophy in the Age of Reason According to Locke; if the government fails to protect or violates the natural rights of citizens… Then the people have a right to overthrow that government Locke’s ideas supported the idea that, in a reasonable society, power lies with the people and not the government

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Philosophy in the Age of Reason French thinker, Baron de Montesquieu, studied the governments of Europe. He admired how the British protected themselves against tyranny by dividing the government into three branches

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Philosophy in the Age of Reason Legislative, executive, and judiciary

•Thus creating checks and balances

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Philosophy in the Age of Reason Jean-Jacques Rousseau believed that people were basically good He thought that people were corrupted by society and the unequal distribution of wealth He thought people should give up their self-interest to a government that supported the common good

Philosophy in the Age of Reason In 1762, Rousseau wrote The Social Contract Rousseau felt that controls were necessary but should be kept minimal Supported the good of the community as a whole

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Philosophy in the Age of Reason The Enlightenment slogan “free and equal” did not apply to women Philosophes believed women had natural rights, but their rights were limited to the home and family By mid 1700’s, a small group of women protested this view

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Philosophy in the Age of Reason Mary Wollstonecraft was a well-known British social critic In 1792, she published A Vindication of the Rights of Woman She argued for equal education and participation in govt. for women

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Philosophy in the Age of Reason The enlightenment thinkers were called Philisophes, or “lovers of wisdom” Their ideas would later be used to justify revolutions and inspire people who rejected government regulation in favor of laissez-faire economics Laissez-faire economics says that businesses should operate with little or no government involvement

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Philosophy in the Age of Reason British economist Adam Smith wrote The Wealth of Nations.

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Philosophy in the Age of Reason He argued that the Free Market, natural forces of supply and demand, should be used to regulate business

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Enlightenment Ideas Spread As Enlightenment ideas spread, Europeans began to challenge the following long-held traditions divine-right rule a strict class system The belief in heavenly reward for earthly suffering Chapter 1, Section 2

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Enlightenment Ideas Spread The government and church authorities felt they had a sacred duty to defend the old order They turned to censorship, or the controlling/limiting of information Many books were banned or burned and writers were imprisoned

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Enlightenment Ideas Spread Despite persecution, people throughout Europe continued to discuss the new literature, art, science, and philosophy at salons Salons were informal social gatherings at which writers, artists, philosophers, and others exchanged ideas

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Enlightenment Ideas Spread Some absolute monarchs accepted Enlightenment ideas and used their power to bring about social and political change. An absolute rulers who used their power to bring about political and social change is an Enlightened despot

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Enlightenment Ideas Spread Frederick the Great (King of Prussia) saw himself as the “first servant of the state” Allowed people to choose their own religion

Enlightenment Ideas Spread Catherine the Great of Russia experimented with enlightenment ideas but had no intention of giving up any of her power Joseph II (Austrian Hapsburg Emperor) Traveled in disguise to learn of people’s problems Tolerated Jews and Protestants Ended censorship Chose talented middle-class people to run departments

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Enlightenment Ideas Spread Art was very grand in the age of Enlightenment The Grand and complex style of Baroque became the popular form of art, architecture, and music

The Death of Socrates – Jacques Louis David, 1787

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Enlightenment Ideas Spread Bach, Handel, and Mozart created structured music that fit the age of reason

Bach

Handel

Mozart

Enlightenment Ideas Spread The rise of the middle class led to more widespread novels such as Robinson Crusoe

Enlightenment Ideas Spread A growing number joined the new middle class However, most Europeans remained peasants who lived in small rural villages Most were untouched by Enlightenment ideas.

Isaac Blessing Jacob –1642 Gerbrand van den Eeckhout

Peasants Dancing – 1651 Johannes Lingelbach

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Enlightenment Ideas Spread Peasants in the West were more prosperous than those in the East In Russia and Eastern Europe, peasants were Serfs and considered property

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Birth of the American Republic Britain’s rose to world power, in part, due to its: island location colonial possessions favorable business climate powerful navy

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Birth of the American Republic Britain merged with Scotland reducing internal tension British took over and oppressed the Irish

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Birth of the American Republic Britain developed three new political institutions: political parties the cabinet the office of prime minister. Britain had developed a constitutional government, or a government whose power is defined and limited by law

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Birth of the American Republic The British constitution is made up of all acts of law over the centuries The cabinet was formed when George I of Germany became King of England

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Birth of the American Republic Despite the growing influence of Parliament and the cabinet.. most political and economic power in Britain was held by a ruling class of landowning aristocrats.

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Birth of the American Republic King George III wanted to reestablish the power of the monarchy He dissolved the cabinet and in 1775 He made colonist in North America pay for their own defense His failure to handle the American situation would eventually give most authority back to the Parliament

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Birth of the American Republic The British controlled 13 colonies along the Atlantic coast of North America Colonists had control over much of their own affairs Many began to believe that the U.S. should break away from Britain Chapter 1, Section 4

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Birth of the American Republic The Seven Years War and the French and Indian War (British vs. French) drained the British treasury (no $$$) The king believe that colonist should help pay for the debt Parliament passed the Sugar Act and the Stamp Act in 1765

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Birth of the American Republic Settlers in the 13 English colonies protested British taxes and trade restrictions as an attack on their rights as British citizens The saying “no taxation without representation” became the popular saying

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Birth of the American Republic The Americans were especially upset since they had no representation in Parliament. In Common Sense Tom Paine, an immigrant from England, argued the themes of the Enlightenment

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Birth of the American Republic In 1770, British soldiers opened fire on protesters who had been pelting them with snowballs (Boston Massacre) In 1773, colonist destroyed tea to protest British taxes (Boston Tea Party) In April 1775 the conflict exploded into WAR!

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Birth of the American Republic In 1776, Thomas Jefferson wrote the Declaration of Independence “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal,… …that they are endowed by their creator with certain unalienable rights,… …that among these are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness… …That to secure these rights, governments are instituted among men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed.”

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Birth of the American Republic The Declaration included another of Locke’s ideas: people had the right “to alter or to abolish” unjust governments- a right to revolt Jefferson also included the idea of popular sovereignty which states that all government power comes from the people

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Birth of the American Republic Britain had many advantages Britain had professional soldiers, more money, and a superior navy One third of the colonists were loyal to the King

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Birth of the American Republic The Colonists had some things on their side They were fighting at home In 1777 the French joined on the side of the Americans the Netherlands and Spain also joined the Americans

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Birth of the American Republic In 1781, General Washington forced the surrender of the British at Yorktown Two years later, the Treaty of Paris ended the war which recognized U.S. independence

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Birth of the American Republic The Mississippi River became the new nation’s western frontier

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Birth of the American Republic America was governed by The Articles of Confederation for several years, but they were too weak to govern The authors of the Constitution were inspired by Enlightenment ideas such as: separation of powers checks and balances natural rights

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Birth of the American Republic During the summer of 1787, a new constitution was created and the new document established a government run by the people, for the people Although there were numerous representatives working on the constitution, James Madison is credited with being the “Father of the Constitution”

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Birth of the American Republic The Constitution absorbed many ideas of Locke, Motesquieu, and Rousseau The Constitution created a federal republic, with power divided between the federal, or national, government and the states Created three branches of government legislative, executive, and judicial (from Montesquieu)

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Birth of the American Republic The Bill of Rights (the first amendments to the Constitution) recognized the ideas that people had basic rights that the govt. must protect, such as freedom of religion Freedom of speech Freedom of the press

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Birth of the American Republic The Constitution became the supreme law of the land and has remained for over 200 years It has served as an example for many other countries around the world

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Birth of the American Republic The United States Constitution would serve as a model for other democratic nations A Bill of Rights included certain basic rights the government must protect

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