Chapter Overviews

Chapter 7: Crisis and Absolutism in Europe

Chapter Overviews

Struggles between Catholicism and Protestantism were at the root of a century of war and upheaval in Europe. Nations responded to the instability by giving absolute power to their monarchs. Art, literature, and political thought reflected the anxiety and uncertainty of the era.

Section 1 Europe in Crisis: The Wars of Religion
Wars between Catholics and Protestants plagued Europe in the 1500s. Economic, social, and political forces also played a role. Catholic Spain appeared to be at the height of its power. However, Philip II was bankrupting Spain with costly wars. Meanwhile, the United Provinces of the Netherlands, a heavily Protestant region of the Spanish Empire, emerged as a great power in its own right. The English monarch, Elizabeth, sought to placate both Protestants and Catholics at home while balancing the power of France and Spain. Hoping to restore Catholicism to power, Philip tried to invade England, but his Spanish Armada was defeated by the English. For over 30 years, the French Wars of Religion pitted Catholics against Protestant Huguenots. The violence finally ended in 1598 when Henry IV extended full political privileges and religious freedom to Huguenots while making Catholicism the official religion.

Section 2 Social Crises, War, and Revolution
From 1560 to 1650, Europe experienced severe economic and social crises. Witch hunts were common. The Thirty Years' War began as a religious war, but evolved into a much larger European struggle. The Peace of Westphalia, which ended the war in 1648, split up the Holy Roman Empire and left German states free to choose their religion. The English Revolution was a civil war over power between the king and Parliament. With the help of Oliver Cromwell's army, Parliament was victorious and King Charles I was executed. After Cromwell's death, the monarchy was restored, but conflicts between Catholics and Protestants simmered. In 1688, the Glorious Revolution occurred. King James II, a Catholic, fled to France when the Dutch rulers, William and Mary of Orange, marched toward London. With little bloodshed, the monarchy changed hands. In exchange for the crown, William and Mary accepted a Bill of Rights, laying the groundwork for a constitutional monarchy.

Section 3 Response to Crisis: Absolutism
In the wake of the crises of the 1600s, a number of powerful new rulers emerged in Europe. The French king, Louis XIV, is regarded as the best example of a seventeenth century absolutist ruler. Louis used all means at his disposal to keep power. Out of over three hundred German states, Prussia and Austria emerged as great European powers. Prussia built the fourth-largest army in Europe. The Hapsburgs, formerly rulers of the Holy Roman Empire, built a loosely governed Austrian Empire that included today's Austria, the Czech Republic, and Hungary. The Russian state emerged in the fifteenth century. The Romanov dynasty, established in 1613, produced a series of Russian absolutists. To make Russia a great power, the czar Peter the Great undertook military reforms, introduced western customs, and went to war with Sweden.

Section 4 The World of European Culture
The religious and political conflicts of seventeenth-century Europe were reflected in the art, literature, and political thought of the time. Mannerism abandoned many principles of the High Renaissance in an effort to convey the conflicting emotions brought on by religious turmoil. The baroque style tried to merge the ideals of Renaissance art with spiritual concerns. Writing and drama reached new heights in England and Spain. Writers from this period, especially England's Shakespeare and Spain's Cervantes and Lope de Vega, are considered among the greatest writers. Political thought also evolved during this period. Thomas Hobbes argued in favor of absolutism. John Locke argued that governments were formed to protect people's natural rights. Locke's ideas became important to both the Americans and the French in the eighteenth century.