Chapter 19 Enlightenment

Skepticism

The thought that *nothing can ever be known beyond all doubt.* Bayle was a well-known skeptic, who thought that *when it came to religion, everyone should have open-minded toleration.*

British Navigation Acts

These were a series of laws passed in England in the 17th century. The acts required that most goods imported from America into England and Scotland be carried on British-owned ships. The acts gave British merchants and shipowners a virtual monopoly on trade with British colonies. The idea was to make sure the English colonies only traded with England rather than the Netherlands, France and other European countries. These acts formed a basis for British overseas trade for almost 200 years.

"killing nurses"

These were wet nurses, women hired to suckle other people's children, who were accused of allowing the child under their care to die as soon as possible so the nurses could take on another.

Turnips

They *started to become commercially farmed, along with peas, beans, and clover* as early as 1600. They were *great to feed to sheep during the winter, and useful with crop rotation.*

John Locke

This English philosophe believed that people were naturally happy, tolerant, and reasonable--he argued all people were born equal with natural rights of life liberty and property. He stated the purpose of gov was to protect peoples natural rights-he didn't think monarchs were chosen by God rather people consented to gov whose powers were limited by laws--if gov failed to protect citizens natural rights then people have the right to overthrow it. FOUNDATION FOR MODERN DEMOCRACY

Bubonic plague

This is a disease carried by rats and fleas. It causes swollen lymph nodes. The plague swept most of Europe from town to town, killing a third or more of the population. The disease would return periodically, though new quarantine procedures and the Asiatic brown rat helped reduce its impact.

Treaty of Paris (1763)

This treaty ended the Seven Years' War between France and Britain in the colonies. France lost all its possessions on the mainland of North America. Canada and all French territory east of the Mississippi River passed to Britain, and France ceded Louisiana to Spain as compensation for Spain's loss of Florida to Britain. France also gave up most of its holdings in India, allowing Britain to dominate the subcontinent.

Potatoes

This vegetable greatly *helped the diets of the poor throughout Europe. It has all the nutrition that many of Europe's green vegetables lack*. It balanced the poor and middle classes' diets, but the *rich tended to stay away from vegetables and exercise, and gout was a common affliction*. The potato *replaced grains for many peasants, and the crop was widespread in Ireland.* It was a nutritious *part of a balanced breakfast (and lunch and dinner) for peasants* in Europe.

Cottage Industry

This was a system in which the production of goods is at people's homes. Products and services were unable to be mass-produced under this system. The system was better for workers than the factory system because families worked together in the cottage when they wished to work for extra money, unlike the impersonal, regimented factory system that replaced it at the end of the 18th century in England.

Baron de Montesquieu

Wrote The Spirit of the Laws : developed the idea of the separation of powers into three branches of government; greatly influenced United States Constitution

A fallow field

a field that has been exhausted, so the farmer allows it to "rest" by not planting crops there for a season. Fields were made fallow on purpose so the soil could recover. Needless to say, this isn't very efficient! It was replaced by crop rotation.

Primogeniture

a system where a father passes on his whole estate to his eldest son when he passes away. The daughters and younger males received none of it.

Louis-Joseph Marquis de Montcalm

he was a French soldier most known for being the commander of the French forces during the French and Indian War in North America. He fought in the War of the Polish Succession (1733-1738) and the War of the Austrian Succession (1740-1748). Montcalm was killed in the Battle of Quebec during the French and Indian War.

Agricultural revolution

is a period of farming advances that started in the mid-seventeenth century. It resulted in a dramatic increase in crop production and caused a population explosion. Advancements in agricultural technologies were made during this revolution. The technologies allowed more food to be easily picked from fields. The increase in production allowed for the growth of cities, providing a ready labor supply for industrialization.

Putting-out System

merchant capitalists and rural workers worked together. First, merchants loaned raw materials to cottage workers. Cottage workers took the raw materials back to their homes and made finished products. The merchants then paid the workers for their work by the piece. The merchants proceeded to sell the finished products at the market. A major weakness was that the merchants could not rely on their supply of product, since the cottage workers labored at their own pace and at their leisure.

Mestizos

part white and part Native American. On the social hierarchy, they were below whites, but above Native Americans, mulattoes (part black, part European), and Africans. Mestizos could become considered as white if they accumulated enough wealth and power.

The Creoles

people of Spanish blood born in America. The most wealthy and influential were called the Creole Elite.

Separation of Powers

the division of power among the legislative, executive, and judicial branches of government

Nicholas Copernicus, Heliocentric Theory

(1473-1543) He worked on *developing the theory that the stars and planets revolved around a fixed sun in a "perfect and divine" circular orbit.* His theory indicated that *stars were fixed in place*, and that the *universe was much larger than Aristotle had believed*. He waited until the year of his death (1543) to publish his written theory in On the Revolutions of the Heavenly Spheres.

Paracelsus

(1493-1541) He was a *Swiss alchemist and physician who criticized the belief of the Greek physician Galen that diseases were caused by an imbalance of bodily fluids*. He attacked the medical establishment of his time and offered a different way of thinking about pathology. To him, *diseases were specific entities that attacked particular parts of the body, and medicine should try to fight disease using substances made for that specific disease*. This approach *led to a new understanding of therapy and encouraged many people to use chemically based remedies for diseases*. He believed instead that *disease attacks the body from a source outside the body, though had no concept of germs and viruses*. He was way ahead of his time - it wasn't until the mid-19th century that scientists figured out the germ theory of disease!

Tycho Brahe

(1546-1601) He was a Danish astronomer who, with money granted by the king of Denmark, *built the largest observatory to that date (Uraniborg)*. He observed the stars and planets without the aid of a telescope, and he provided copious amounts of data for future astronomers and scientists. He *discovered a new star (nova) in 1572, which blew holes in Aristotle's immutability of the universe theory*. In 1573, he *destroyed the theory of the celestial spheres with precision measurements that showed the heavens were not unchangeable as previously assumed by Aristotle and Ptolemy*. He was able to collect volumes of data on the heavens. His assistant was the famous mathematician Johannes Kepler.

Sir Francis Bacon

(1561-1626) He was an *English politician and writer* who stressed the *importance of experimental research, as opposed to the medieval practice of speculative theorizing*. He believed that *direct observation* was the way to discover scientific truth. He is often referred to as the *creator of empiricism*. In addition, he *popularized the scientific method.*

Galileo Galilei

(1564-1642) He was an Italian astronomer, physicist, and mathematician who *developed the experimental method (using controlled experiments to gather information)*. He *published Two New Sciences, in which he showed that a uniform force produced uniform acceleration.* Galileo also *developed the law of inertia*. Galileo *improved the structure of the telescope at the time*. He *discovered that Jupiter had four moons, disproving the theory that Jupiter was embedded in a perfect crystal sphere, as Aristotle had stated*. This *helped fuel the Copernican theory*. Galileo *published Dialogue on the Two Chief Systems of the World in 1632, which defied the widely accepted views of Aristotle and Ptolemy*. He was imprisoned by the papal Inquisition under Pope Urban VIII, and threatened with torture. He *recanted his beliefs*, the coward! The *Church banned his books and he was forced to renounce his claims that supported the Copernican theory. His works were placed on the Index until the 19th century!*

Johannes Kepler

(1571-1630) He was a *German scientist who believed that the universe was built on mathematical relationships*. He is *known for his three famous laws of planetary motion*. The first *1.* builds onto the Copernicus heliocentric theory and demonstrates that the orbits of the planets around the sun are elliptical rather than circular. The second law *2.* demonstrated that the planets do not move at a uniform speed in their orbits - they move more rapidly when nearer to the sun. Third, *3.* Kepler showed that the time a planet takes to make its complete orbit is related to its distance from the sun. His contributions to science were monumental, and his *laws are still true today*. He is thought to be one of the greatest scientists of the time, as he *used science and mathematics to prove what Copernicus could not*. Still, he *relied on Copernicus' theories and Brahe's observations to reach his conclusions.*

Cornelius Vermuyden

(1595-1677) This man was a *Dutch engineer, initially employed by Charles I of England in 1626 to drain swamps in Yorkshire, England*. His *biggest accomplishment was draining the Fens, the low marshy lands in the east of England.*

Pierre Bayle

(1647-1706) He was a famous *French skeptic*. He *despised Louis XIV* and found refuge in the Netherlands. He was a *Huguenot, writer and French Enlightenment figure.* His seminal work was the Historical and Critical Dictionary, a biographical, theological and philosophical encyclopedia. He was a fideist, meaning he *believed that reason and faith were contradictory but faith was superior*. He believed that *reason could not be applied to theology because the nature of God is incomprehensible to man*. He believed *logical contradictions within theology only proved God's incomprehensible nature.* Despite these beliefs, he *advocated for religious toleration in his works.*

Charles Townshend

(1674-1738) He was *one of the pioneers of English agricultural improvement*. Townshend *learned of clover and turnips, and used them in the sandy soils of his large estates in eastern England*. He *drained and manured his fields, and he sowed his crops in regular rotation without fallowing.* His fields produced larger crops, and all of England picked up on the techniques.

Jethro Tull

(1674-1741) He was an *English agricultural innovator. He adopted a critical attitude toward accepted ideas about farming and tried to develop better methods through empirical research*. He believed that *using horses was important for plowing and was better to use than oxen*. He *advocated the sowing of seeds with drilling equipment rather than scattering by hand*. *Drilling spread the seeds equally through the soil*. His *invention was called the seed drill*. *Selective breeding of certain livestock was also an improvement from the old way*. So, his contributions were the *seed drill, selective breeding of livestock*, and Aqualung, a concept album that differentiates between religion and God.

Baron de Montesquieu

(1689-1755) He was a French philosopher who *wrote The Persian Letters*, which was a *satirical novel supposedly written by Persian travelers, who see European customs in unique ways and thereby cleverly criticize existing practices and beliefs.* He also believed that *no single political system could serve every different country* (Americans should read this!). He *also wrote The Spirit of the Laws, proposing separation of powers and checks and balances.* He also *believed that different forms of government worked for different countries depending on the size, population, economic system, and social and religious traditions* of the country.

Madame Geoffrin

(1699-1777) During this era, *people ran meeting places called "salons," many were females who held a sort of authority at public gatherings.* She *ran one of these salons, where a person could discuss philosophy.* At these meetings, *people would discuss their points of view on science, literature, philosophy, and other subjects enlightened upon at this time.* She is known as the *"unofficial godmother of the Encyclopedia."*

Madame du Châtelet

(1706-1749) She was *passionate about science in a time when it was not a priority to educate women*. She was a *follower of Newton and translated his Principia into French*. She also shared a very *close relationship with Voltaire* and had a huge influence on him. Voltaire said that she was *"a great man whose only fault was being a woman."* She believed that *women could succeed, given equal education to that of a man's, saying, "I would reform an abuse which cuts off, so to speak, half of the human race. I would make women participate in all the rights of humankind, and above all in those of intellect."*

Denis Diderot

(1713-1784) He was a *French philosopher who edited the Encyclopedia* - The Rational Dictionary of the Sciences, the Arts, and the Crafts, which was a book that *included all the ideas of Enlightenment thinkers across Europe.* It was a 28 volume collection of all known knowledge of the time.

Baron D'Holbach

(1723-1789) He was a French philosopher who *wrote System of Nature*. In this novel, he *denied the existence of God*. This was quite scandalous for the eighteenth century, and *many people mistakenly associate the Enlightenment with atheism because of him.*

Coitus Interruptus

(a.k.a. "withdrawal") This was basically the only form of birth control they had during the eighteenth century. Not very effective! 27 times out of 100, the woman gets pregnant! Yikes!

Quintessence

*A fifth essence*, heavenly bodies constantly moved in circular orbits at a uniform rate of speed because this was an inherent property of the perfect material of which they were supposedly made, called this. According to ancient and medieval science, this (aka *aether, œther, or ether*) is the *material that fills the region of the Universe above the terrestrial sphere.*

Empiricism

*All knowledge is obtained from sense-experience, and people should use extensive experimental research to prove theories*. Sir Francis Bacon developed this school of thought. Bacon maintained that *empiricism would yield useful knowledge, and ultimately contribute to the power of nations.*

Louis XV

*Great grandson of Louis XIV, he became King of France in 1715, and remained king until his death in 1774*. He *aligned himself with Prussia during the War of Austrian Succession*. In the Seven Years' War, he instead *aligned with Russia and Austria to fight against Great Britain and Prussia.* This, however, wasn't the only war going on for France. *In the American colonies, France was allied with the Native Americans to fight off the British.* The *British defeated France in both Europe and America, and France lost its North American possessions.* Louis, unlike some of the other monarchs of this time period, *was not enlightened*. He *used secret police, arrested and imprisoned people without informing them of the charges* (lettre de cachet), *and suppressed Enlightenment literature, including the Encyclopedia.* After decades of war and extravagance, *Louis died in his palace in Versailles, leaving France broke and weak.* He would be succeeded by his mediocre grandson Louis XVI.

Common Land

*Lands that were shared by everyone, they were open meadows for hay and natural pasture.* These lands were *set aside primarily for the draft horses and oxen necessary in the fields, but open to the cows and pigs of the village community as well*. Boston Common, believe it or not, was once a cow pasture!

Pope Urban VIII v. Galileo

*Pope Urban VIII allowed Galileo to write about different possible systems of the world as long as he did not judge which one actually existed*. Pope Urban VIII *requested Galileo's book, Dialogue on the Two Chief Systems of the World, to have two qualities*. Urban requested that *Galileo not advocate heliocentrism, only argue for and against it*, and that *Galileo include Urban's own belief on the matter in the book*. However, the *character included to express Urban's beliefs and defend the Aristotelian geocentric view, Simplicio, was often caught in his own errors and came across as a fool!* Pope Urban VIII *called Galileo to the Roman Inquisition, where Galileo recanted his writings.*

Branches of Government

1. Legislative--makes laws 2. Judicial--interprets laws 3. Executive--enforces laws

Encyclopedia

28 volume series of books that explained new ideas about art, science, government and religion during Enlightenment--purpose was the promotion of knowledge. Written by Diderot (French philosophe)--took 27 years and he was attacked for writing--government tried to stop publication b/c it criticized the church, gov and legal system.

Clover

A *good feed for livestock*, it *gave nitrogen to the soil, which improved farmland in Britain.*

The Spirit of the Laws

A *political theory novel written by Montesquieu*. It *discussed the idea of separation of powers and checks and balances*, which is similar to our government because we have three branches that create a *separation of powers*. For instance, Congress makes laws, but the President can veto them, and the Supreme Court can declare them unconstitutional.

Open-field System

A *system involving the division of a large field that surrounds a village into small strips of land* farmed by peasants. *Each peasant family had a few strips, scattered across the field.* They would *all till the field together, and try to plant different crops throughout the year to keep the soil fresh. It was quite inefficient.*

Andreas Vesalius

A Flemish surgeon who is considered the father of modern anatomy

Catherine II

A German princess, she was *Czarina of Russia* from 1762-1796. She was *married to the mentally challenged Peter III, but she soon got rid of him*. When Peter III was just about to pull his forces out of the 7 Years' War, *Catherine used the anger of the troops as an excuse to have Peter's officers (including one of her 21 official lovers) stab him to death*. She then went on to accomplish *three goals* as czarina. The first was to *Enlighten/westernize Russia*. Catherine worked hard to rule in an enlightened manner, *importing architects, musicians, sculptors, and intellectuals from the West*. In addition, she *wrote plays, spoke multiple languages, and decried French censorship of the Encyclopedia*. The *second goal was to change domestic policy*. She wanted *religious tolerance, improved education and stronger localized governments*. Her *third goal was to expand Russian land*. She met this goal through the *Partitions of Poland- Poland lost land to Austria, Prussia, and Russia on three separate occasions, until it disappeared from the map in 1795*. Unfortunately, Catherine *became much less enlightened after a Cossack rebellion, called Pugachev's Rebellion*, in 1773. The rebellion *reversed some of Catherine's reforms, such as abolition of torture and religious toleration.*

Laissez Faire

A business system where companies are allowed to conduct business without interference by the government

Inductive Reasoning

A kind of reasoning that *makes generalizations based on specific circumstances* and *arrives at a conclusion after observations*. Sir Francis Bacon, who believed that *direct observation was the way to discover scientific truth*, introduced it. He argued that new knowledge had to be pursued through empirical, experimental research.

Scientific method

A method of inquiry that has 5 basic steps: Identify the problem or research question, form a hypothesis to be tested, experiment, record results, analyze results; its a means to gain scientific knowledge

Checks and Balances

A system where each branch of government looks out and makes sure that one branch doesn't get too much power--each branch limits the powers of the other branches in order to prevent abuse of power

Enlightenment

A time of optimism/possibility, science and reason, spread of new ideas, spread of knowledge from the late 1600s to the late 1700s, also called the Age of Reason

Frederick II

Also known as *Frederick the Great, he ruled Prussia* from 1740-1786, was the *son of Frederick William I (loved tall soldiers), and was a member of the Hohenzollern family*. He is generally considered *one of the best examples of Enlightened absolutism*. He *loved French literature, language, music, and art, corresponded with Voltaire for years, wrote a book condemning Machiavelli's political beliefs, and even played the flute!* He gave his people *freedom of speech, press, religion (except Jews), and forced the wealthy to sell grain to the poor at reasonable rates.* He *abolished torture, sped up trials, and educated his people.* On the down side, he *confined the Jewish people to ghettos, extended the power of the nobility over the serfs, and fought two major wars.* Starting off his reign, Frederick *entered the War of Austrian Succession* (1740-1748) with the intent to gain control over the territory Silesia, then controlled by Austria. He *accomplished his goal with the Treaty of Dresden*, which ended the war. *Prussia was aligned with France, but when the Seven Years' War broke out in 1756, it was Britain and Prussia against France, Austria and Russia.* The switching of sides is *called the Diplomatic Revolution, and was initiated by France*. *Frederick* won countless battles all over Europe, but *was outnumbered*. Most of *British aid was money, not troops, so the end did not look good for Frederick.* However, *Peter III had had taken the throne of Russia and Peter, being an admirer of Frederick, ended the war with the Treaty of St. Petersburg* (1762). This *left Austria for Frederick to dominate, which he did.* Frederick's *reign ended with his death in 1786, but he left Prussia the dominant power in Europe.* Briefly.

Social Contract

An agreement between a people and their government stating that people would give up some of their freedom and in return their government would provide them with peace security and order

Mozart

Austrian child prodigy and great musical composer; created 3 of the worlds greatest Operas.

Aristotelian world-view

Before the Copernican Hypothesis, Europeans believed in a universe described by the model theorized by Greek philosopher, Aristotle. *Aristotle had stated that the earth was the center of the universe and was at rest, with spheres containing the sun, moon, stars and the five known planets around it.* During the Middle Ages, *two more spheres were added to this model to make up for notable changes in the stars*. It was *believed that the spheres were perfect and unchanging*. The Europeans of the Middle Ages also decided to add some Christian views to the model and added that *God, Heaven and those lucky (or virtuous, depending on your religious sect) enough to be saved were beyond the spheres*. Aristotle also believed in just *4 elements- earth, fire, water, and air*. In physics, Aristotle said that a *uniform force moved an object at a constant speed and that the object would stop as soon as that force was removed*. These were the ideas followed and accepted by the people living during the Middle Ages.

Joseph II

Born during the War of Austrian Succession, he was *one of the sixteen children of Maria Theresa, in her effort to keep the Habsburgs going.* Quite an effort! He *succeeded his mother's throne in 1765, and held it until his death in 1790.* He was a man who *strived for a lot of reform during his reign*. He was *so radical for his time that he granted civil rights to Jews in his strive for religious toleration.* In his *Edict on Idle Institutions, he did away with contemplative orders, allowing only orders that taught, nursed, or did other practical work to exist.* The *money taken from abolished orders was given to charities or used to increase the salaries of priests.* He *abolished serfdom, and the nobility of Austria were now forced to pay their workers.* The *country descended into utter chaos, and, after his death, his brother Leopold II reversed a great many of the reforms that Joseph had established.*

Enclosure

During the 16th-18th centuries, large landowners in England seized common lands, kicked the peasants off, and fenced them in to raise sheep. Many modern historians argue that this process helped England prepare for the Industrial Revolution, since landless peasants were forced to move to cities, where they provided early factories with cheap semi-skilled labor.

Famine Foods

During the second half of the eighteenth century, a lot of *shortages existed in a variety of different crops. People had to resort to eating chestnuts, stripped bark, dandelions, roots, and grass to escape starvation*. Because of a big *imbalance in the diets of people at this time, they were weak and susceptible to epidemics.*

Isaac Newton

English mathematician and natural philosopher; he discovered the law of gravity as well as laws on the physics of falling objects; developed calculus--new kind of math

William Harvey

English physician and scientist who described the circulation of the blood to and from the heart

Thomas Hobbes

English thinker/philosopher that believed people are born selfish/greedy--believed a strong central government (absolute power) was needed to impose order and avoid rebellion and civil war--came up with the concept of the social contract (people should give up some freedoms in exchange for peace and safety from gov). He believed absolute monarch was best leader

Mary Wollstonecraft

English writer and early feminist who rejected the traditional view that women's role was to be a wife/mother and they needed little education--she demanded equal rights for women--especially education. Wrote "Vindication of the Rights of Woman"

Spinning Jenny

Englishman James Hargreaves invented this device in 1764. This device sharply reduced the amount of work that was needed to produce yarn. This made the worker able to work eight or more spools at once. Many homes in the English countryside had a spinning jenny.

Explain the connections between the American Revolution and the Enlightenment. How were the Founding Fathers influenced by specific ideas from the Enlightenment

Enlightenment ideas regarding power, authority, and reason spread to North America and inspired revolution. The founding fathers such as Benjamin Franklin and Thomas Jefferson of America were influenced by the political views of Locke, Rousseau, Voltaire and others to develop the independence and strength to break free from the English monarch. Locke's opinion that all people are naturally happy, reasonable and born equal with natural rights of life liberty and property made the founding fathers recognize they didn't need to be under the power of British monarchy. Rousseau spread a similar message--people are good and government should work for the benefit of the common good not the wealthy few--he despised inequality in society. Voltaire was quite vocal and spread the message of liberty for all. Benjamin Franklin of America agreed with these thinkers--he believed (just like other Enlightenment thinkers) reason and intelligence could be used to make peoples lives better. American colonies grew rapidly in population because people realized they could more easily advance themselves through intelligence and hard work compared to Great Britian

Demonic View of Disease

Faith healers were still a powerful "healing" force during this period of time. People believed that illness was caused by an attack by a demon or devil that had gained access to the victim's body and was causing it harm. The only cure for demonic possession was an exorcism. This demonic view of disease was most prevalent in the countryside, where superstitions reigned and science was ignored.

Robert Boyle

Founder of modern chemistry; first chemist to define an element

Voltaire

French philosopher and author--supporter of Deism (the idea that God was no longer involved with the universe after creating it). He supported tolerance to religion, justice and liberty for all. He was very witty in his writing and didn't hold back--he made a lot of enemies--was imprisoned twice and exiled to England

Johannes Kepler

German astronomer/mathematician who first stated laws of planet motion--He discovered that the paths of the planets around the sun are elliptical rather that circular

Edward Jenner

If Lady Mary Montague were to be considered the mother of smallpox inoculation in Europe, Edward Jenner would be the father. For him, it began when he learned that maids who contracted cowpox (a similar, but much weaker disease) did not get smallpox. He studied cowpox and smallpox for eighteen years and eventually discovered a way to inoculate people against smallpox using the basically harmless cowpox disease. He is the reason kids of responsible parents get shots in the thighs and arms and don't die of smallpox anymore.

Nuclear family

In Western culture, this refers to a mother and a father and their children together. Found in central and western Europe, it was when a couple would get married and live in their own house. The couples usually married later in life at the average age of 27. They married usually after holding a job for many years, to be financially stable.

Extended family

In Western culture, this refers to grandparents, uncles, aunts, and cousins. Until recently, scholars believed that the extended family was typical in preindustrial Europe, but recent discoveries have shown that most European families were nuclear. In an extended family, a newly married couple lives with either the bride's or the groom's family. They raise their children in the same house as their own brothers and sisters, who may also have their own families in the house. The family is a big 3 or 4-generation clan, and is usually led by a patriarch.

Illegitimacy explosion

In the second half of the eighteenth century, the former pattern of late marriage and marriage before childbirth began to break down. Previously, it wasn't necessarily that couples weren't having sex outside of marriage. In fact, a lot of them were. They almost always got married before the child was born, though. Then, between 1750 and 1850 that all changed. Illegitimate births in places like Frankfurt, Germany, rose from approximately two percent of all births in the early 1700s to twenty-five percent in 1850. This was because fewer young women abstained from premarital sex, and fewer young men had the sense of duty to marry the poor lasses they got pregnant. Love 'em and leave 'em! Because of the cottage industries, young people didn't have to wait for their parents to kick the bucket before they could have their independence and financial stability. Also, young people in cities did not face the pressure to conform to the old rules of morality.

Tycho Brahe

Influenced by Copernicus; Built an observatory and collected data on the locations of stars and planets for over 20 years; however he believed the sun and moon revolved around the earth and the other planets revolved around the sun

Salon

Informal social Gatherings in which intellectual and political ideas were exchanged during the enlightenment

Asiatic brown rat

It drove out, and eventually eliminated, the black rat from Europe. The Asiatic brown rats' fleas did not carry the plague well. This was most likely a major reason for the near disappearance of the Bubonic plague.

Peace of Utrecht (1713)

It ended the War of Spanish Succession between France and Spain with Britain. After 12 years of fighting, Britain forced Louis XIV into the Peace of Utrecht. Louis had to cede Newfoundland, Nova Scotia, and the Hudson Bay area to Britain. Spain was also compelled to give control of its West African slave trade (asiento) to Britain.

Capitalism

It is an economic system that became dominant beginning in the late 18th century. Capitalism *includes private ownership of the means of production, the creation of goods or services for profit, competitive markets, and wage labor.* So, *businesses could charge what they wanted* for doing what they wanted, *pay their workers what they wanted*, and could run business the way they wanted it to be run with *zero government regulation ("laissez-faire")*.

Uraniborg

It was a *Danish observatory operated by Tycho Brahe*. It *cost 1% of the Danish national budget to pay for the construction*. That would be like $28 billion for a building today in the US!

Conversations on the Plurality of Worlds

It was a *book written by French author Bernard de Fontenelle*. The book *made the discoveries of science understandable for the regular, nonscientific reader.* It *used simple everyday situations to explain the confusing matter of science problems. It was a normal conversation between two people*; it just happened that they were talking about the basics of astronomy. A little cheesy, but still effective.

Four elements

It was an *Aristotelian belief that everything on Earth was made up of the four imperfect, changing elements: fire, water, air and earth.* *Air and fire were known as "light" elements* and believed to naturally gravitate upward, while *earth and water were known as "heavy" elements* and naturally moved downward.

Galileo Galilei

Italian astronomer who built the first telescope to observe the stars and planets and proved that planets and moons move and that Copernicus theory that the sun is the center of the universe. Wrote "Starry Messenger"

John Wesley

John Wesley was an important catalyst for popular religious revival in England. He went to Oxford University to prepare for the clergy, and while there organized a "scheme of religion." After he became a teacher, he created the Holy Club for students who thought like him. These students were the first Methodists, so called because of their methodical devotion.

Preindustrial childhood

Kids these days don't know how good they've got it! For children in this time period, every day was a matter of life or death. It may sound dramatic, but infant mortality rates were high and children were at risk of catching colds and diseases that with today's medicine are preventable and treatable. One in five infants died, and one in three was likely to die in poorer areas. Then, if diseases weren't bad enough, the adults had little idea of how precious their children really were, as many were neglected, ignored, or abused. Almost no education existed, so many boys and even more girls never learned to read, though literacy was slowly increasing. Parents were urged not to become too emotionally involved with their children because of the likeliness of death. This emotional detachment often led to abuse. Susannah Wesley, mother of John Wesley, said her children were "taught to fear the rod." "Spare the rod, spoil the child" was a saying that lasted at least up through Mr. Carver's childhood!

Lady Mary Montague

Lady Mary Montague brought inoculation to Europe. Having been disfigured by smallpox in her youth, she was eager to protect her children from its touch, and heard about the practice in Muslim countries of inoculation. Her son was successfully inoculated, and she brought the practice back to Europe with her in 1722. However, it was widely disliked because one in fifty people died because of the inoculation, and people who had been inoculated were infectious to those not inoculated.

Natural Laws

Laws that govern human nature--The set of rules that are obeyed by every detail of everything that occurs in the universe;

Free Market

Natural force of supply and demand--An economic system in which prices and wages are determined by unrestricted competition between businesses, without government regulation or fear of monopolies; a system in which individuals decide for themselves what to produce and sell

Philosophes

Philosophers of the Enlightenment--enlightenment thinkers who applied methods of science to better understand and improve society

Nicolaus Copernicus

Polish astronomer who produced a workable model of the solar system with the sun (not the earth) in the center--the heliocentric, sun centered theory of the universe

Purging

Purging is the practice of using laxatives prescribed by an apothecary to empty the bowels. It was believed that regular purging was extremely beneficial to one's health, but really the opposite was true. Rather, purging resulted in only slightly less shortened lives than bloodletting did.

Asiento

Put into effect by the Peace of Utrecht (1713), it is the name given to the Spanish slave trade. The treaty forced Spain to give control of its West African slave trade to Britain. Slavery was a very lucrative business during this time. This was a blow to the Spanish economy, which continued its inexorable decline.

Natural Rights

Rights that belong to all human beings from birth--life, liberty and property

Geocentric Theory

Scientific theory that has the earth as the center of the universe with the sun and stars revolving around it

Heliocentric Theory

Scientific theory that has the sun as the center of he universe with the earth rotating around the sun

Adam Smith

Scottish economist used reason to analyze economic systems. Advocated for private enterprise and free trade; Economist who wrote "Wealth of Nations"; supports-was the biggest advocate of Laissez-Faire economics. Considered "father of modern economics"

James Graham

Sexologist who created an electro-magnetic, musical, Grand State Celestial Bed. The Celestial Bed was designed to make the feeble fertile and to produce perfect babies. It was decorated with magnets and electrical devices. Graham was dismissed as a "quack," but only after a lot of suckers bought the bed in hopes of a little magic!

Jean Jacques Rousseau

Swiss-French Philosphe who believed that people are naturally born good and free and can rely on their instincts but that society corrupted people. He hated inequality in society--people were all equal and should be recognized as equal in society. Wrote "The Social Contract"

Rationalism

The *belief that nothing was accepted on faith, everything was to be submitted to the rational, critical, and scientific way of thinking.*

Maria Theresa (Austria)

The *daughter of Charles VI, who was supposed to be protected by the Pragmatic Sanction from invasion, but wasn't.* In 1740, *Frederick II of Prussia attacked Austria in the War of Austrian Succession*. After eight years of fighting, *Prussia obtained Silesia from Maria Theresa. She then aligned with Russia and France in the Seven Years' War against Britain and Prussia, but accomplished nothing*. She was then *succeeded by her son Joseph II in 1765, though she continued serving with him until 1780*. Her accomplishments included *bringing the Church under her complete control*, and she *made everyone, including nobles, pay taxes*. She also *paved the way for her son, Joseph, to free the serfs, by reducing the power of the nobles over them.* Also, Maria Theresa was the *mother of Marie Antoinette*, the ill-fated future queen of France.

Enlightened Despot

The absolute monarchs in the 18th century Europe who ruled according to the principles of the Enlightenment--used their power to bring about political and social change

Progress

The belief that *human beings can create a better society and better people than what already existed*. This belief was *strengthened by some modest improvements in economic and social life during the eighteenth century.*