The Enlightenment

Denis Diderot

Philosopher who developed a book called the Encyclopedia which was banned by the French king and pope.

Samuel Richardson

Writer who won a large audience by penning sentimental novels that attracted womena dn the emotionally driven readers. -Pamela

Salons

informal social gatherings at which writers, artists, philosophes, and others exchanged ideas

Classical

the kind of art and and music of the enlightenment. it reflected new emphasis on order, balance, elegance and simplicity

Social Contract

the notion that society is based on an agreement between government and the governed in which people agree to give up some rights in exchange for the protection of others

Happiness

the thought that a person who lived by natures laws would be happy

Thomas Paine

Revolutionary leader who wrote the pamphlet Common Sense (1776) arguing for American independence from Britain. In England he published The Rights of Man

Beethoven

Romantic composer; combined classical music with passion to create emotion; first to use all instruments that are in a modern orch.

Tycho Brahe

Danish astronomer, studied the movements of the planets

Reason

absence of intolerance, bigotry or prejudice in thinking

Descartes

(1596-1650) French philosopher, discovered analytical geometry. Saw Algebra and Geometry have a direct relationship. Reduced everything to spiritual or physical.

Edward Gibbon

(1737 - 1794) Author of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire, published in 1776, one of the first modern histories that attempted to explain the past as a guide to the future.

liberty

belief that society could be set free

Articles of Confederation

this document, the nations first constitution, was adopted by the second continental congress in 1781 during the revolution. the document was limited because states held most of the power, and congress lacked the power to tax, regulate trade, or control coinage

Navigation Acts

trade laws that prevented the colonists from selling their most valuable products to anyone but Britian

Russo- Turkish War

(1877-1878) War that resulted from Russian expansion into the Ottoman Empire, it was ended by the Treaty of Sans Stefano

Short Term Effects of the Enlightenment

-Scientific Revolution: people began to question the idea that the earth was the center of the universe and began to stop explaining things with superstition -American Revolution: the colonists began to adopt the ideas of individualism and natural rights of people -Changed the way that people thought about their world

Long Term Effects of the Enlightenment

-The formation of America as a separate country -French Revolution: overthrew the king, created a government that protected the rights of all the people instead of just the king and the nobility, wrote a document modeled after the Declaration of Independence.

Copernicus

1473-1543. Polish astronomer who was the first to formulate a scientifically based heliocentric cosmology that displaced the earth from the center of the universe. This theory is considered the epiphany that began the Scientific Revolution.

Stamp Act

1765- required every document to have a stamp (purchased at a high price)

Partitions of Poland

18TH CENTURY - Polish nobility proved incapable of regulating own affairs. In 1763 Catherine got former lover Poniatowski on throne. Fred II concerned about extension of Russian power over Poland - diplomatically intervened and arranged first of 3 partitions. 1) 1772, Poland lost about half its territory. Prussia got Pomerelia, Russia took Byelorussia and Austria got Galicia. 2) 1793, Russia gained most of Lithuania and the western Ukraine while Prussia took area around Danzig and additional territory in western Poland. 3) 1795, after Polish national revolt under Kosciuszko the three powers undertook 3rd partition. POLAND CEASED TO EXIST AS AN INDEPENDENT STATE. PRUSSIA TOOK AREA AROUND WARSAW, AUSTRIA GAINED THE CRACOW REGION AND RUSSIA TOOK WHAT WAS LEFT OF LITHUANIA AND THE UKRAINE. POLES, LITHUANIANS, BYELORUSSIANS AND UKRAINIANS RESENTED BEING UNDER RUSSIAN DOMINATION. (Catherine only ruler to take part in all 3)

Checks and Balances

A system that allows each branch of government to limit the powers of the other branches in order to prevent abuse of power

Robert Boyle

An English physicist and chemist, this man discovered the nature of elements and compounds and the basis of modern chemistry.

Romanticism

An artistic and intellectual movement originating in Europe in the late 18th Century and characterized by a heightened interest in nature, emphasis on the individual's expression of emotion and imagination, departure from the attitudes and forms of classicism, and rebellion against established social rules and conventions.

Geocentric Theory

Arrangment of the solar system that places the earth at the center with the sun and planets orbiting the earth

Hobbes

English philosopher and political theorist best known for his book Leviathan (1651), in which he argues that the only way to secure civil society is through universal submission to the absolute authority of a sovereign.

Francis Bacon

English philosopher, developed the scientific method

Wollstonecraft

English writer and early feminist who denied male supremacy and advocated equal education for women, wrote "Vindication of the Rights of Women"

Baron de Montesquieu

French aristocrat who wanted to limit royal absolutism; Wrote The Spirit of Laws, urging that power be separated between executive, legislative, and judicial branches, each balancing out the others, thus preventing despotism and preserving freedom. This greatly influenced writers of the US Constitution. He greatly admired British form of government.

Rousseau

French philosopher from 1712-1778 who believed that people are naturally good, but are corrupted by society

Voltaire

French, perhaps greatest Enlightenment thinker. Deist. Mixed glorification and reason with an appeal for better individuals and institutions. Wrote Candide. Believed enlightened despot best form of government.

Catherine the Great

German-born Russian tsarina in the 18th century; ruled after assassination of her husband; gave appearance of enlightened rule; accepted Western cultural influence; maintained nobility as service aristocracy by granting them new power over peasantry.

Thomas Jefferson

He was a delegate from Virginia at the Second Continental Congress and wrote the Declaration of Independence. He later served as the third President of the United States.

Galileo

Italian astronomer and mathematician who was the first to use a telescope to study the stars; demonstrated that different weights descend at the same rate; perfected the refracting telescope that enabled him to make many discoveries (1564-1642)

Louis XVI

King of France (1774-1792). In 1789 he summoned the Estates-General, but he did not grant the reforms that were demanded and revolution followed. Louis and his queen, Marie Antoinette, were executed in 1793.

Neoclassical

Light and elegant art and architecture inspired by Ancient Greece and Rome. This style reflected Enlightenment ideas and can be seen on many buildings in Washington, DC.

Philosophe

Member of a group of Enlightenment thinkers who tried to apply the methods of science to the improvement of society

Separation of Powers

Principle by which the powers of government are divided among separate branches

Frederick the Great

Prussian king of the 18th century; attempted to introduce Enlightenment reforms into Germany; built on military and bureaucratic foundations of his predecessors; introduced freedom of religion; increased state control of economy.

David Hume

Scottish philosopher whose skeptical philosophy restricted human knowledge to that which can be perceived by the senses (1711-1776)

Bill of Rights

The first ten amendments of the U.S. Constitution, containing a list of individual rights and liberties, such as freedom of speech, religion, and the press.

Deism

The religion of the Enlightenment (1700s). Followers believed that God existed and had created the world, but that afterwards He left it to run by its own natural laws. Denied that God communicated to man or in any way influenced his life.

Law of Universal Gravitation

The scientific law that states that every object in the universe attracts every other object.

Secularism

The view that the present well-being of mankind should predominate over religious considerations in civil or public affairs.

Kepler

This astronomer stated that the orbits of planets around the sun were elliptical, the planets do not orbit at a constant speed, and that an orbit is related to its distance from the sun

Newton

This physicist developed the law of universal gravitation and further caused the decline of the old system of science

Joseph II

This was the ruler of the Austrian Hapsburgs that controlled the Catholic Church closely, granted religious toleration and civic rights to Protestants and Jews, and abolished serfdom.

Marquis de Condorcet

Transformed the enlightenment belief in gradual, hard won progress into fanciful Utopianism. Hypothesized and tracked nine stages of human progress that had already occurred and predicted the tenth stage would bring perfection

Locke

Wrote Two Treatises of Government. Said human nature lived free and had the natural rights of life, liberty, and property. He said government was created in order to protect these rights and if the government failed to do so it was the duty of the people to rebel.

Individualism

a belief in the importance of the individual and the virtue of self-reliance and personal independence

Mozart

a composer from Austria, who was known for classical NEW STYLE

Federal System

a government that divides the powers of government between the national government and state or provincial governments

Scientific Method

a method of investigation involving observation and theory to test scientific hypotheses

Baroque

elaborate an extensive ornamentation in decorative art and architecture that flourished in Europe in the 17th century

Nature

natural laws of economics and politics as well as natural laws of motion

Enlightened Despot

one of the 18th century European monarchs who was inspired by Enlightenment ideas to rule justly and respect the rights of subjects

Cesare Beccaria

philosophe; promoted criminal justice; applied logic and reason to crime and punishment; felt that the justice system should focus on preserving social order instead of avenging crimes; called for the abolition of capital punishment and torture; wanted speedy trials and the elimination of cruel and unusual punishment

Bach

renowned organist, lived all his life in Germany, considered one of the greatest composers of all time

Declaration of Independence

the document recording the proclamation of the second Continental Congress (4 July 1776) asserting the independence of the colonies from Great Britain

Progress

the ethnocentric notion that humans are moving forward to a higher, more advanced stage in their development toward perfection

Natural Rights

the idea that all humans are born with rights, which include the right to life, liberty, and property

Heliocentric Theory

the idea that the earth and the other planets revolve around the sun.