Age of Exploration and Absolutism

Question 1

Absolute Monarch

Answer 1

A ruler with complete unrestricted governmental power over their state and subjects often claiming divine right.

Question 2

Divine Right

Answer 2

The belief that a monarch’s authority to rule comes directly from God making them answerable only to God and not to any earthly authority.

Question 3

Louis XIV

Answer 3

The Sun King of France a prime example of an absolute monarch. He centralized power by forcing nobles to live at Versailles to control them and spending revoked the Edict of Nantes to enforce religious unity and famously declared “L’État c’est moi”.

Question 4

Versailles

Answer 4

The opulent palace built by Louis XIV outside Paris serving as a symbol of his absolute power and a tool to control the French nobility.

Question 5

Peter the Great

Answer 5

An absolute monarch of Russia who implemented extensive modernization and Westernization reforms. He established St. Petersburg reduced the power of boyars and opened new schools for navigation and engineering.

Question 6

Modernization/Westernization (Peter the Great)

Answer 6

Peter the Great’s efforts to adopt Western European culture technology and institutions in Russia. Examples include building St. Petersburg forcing nobles to adopt Western clothing and developing a strong navy.

Question 7

St. Petersburg

Answer 7

The city founded by Peter the Great serving as Russia’s new capital and a “Window to the West” to facilitate trade communication and Western ideas.

Question 8

Boyar

Answer 8

A member of the old Russian aristocracy whose power was diminished by Peter the Great often by forcing them into state service.

Question 9

Edict of Nantes & Huguenots (Louis XIV’s impact)

Answer 9

The Edict of Nantes was a French law granting religious freedoms to Protestants (Huguenots). Louis XIV revoked it to achieve religious uniformity and strengthen his absolutist control.

Question 10

Ivan IV (the Terrible)

Answer 10

The first Tsar of Russia known for consolidating absolute power using brutal methods against the boyars and expanding Russian territory.

Question 11

Intendants

Answer 11

Royal officials in France appointed by the monarch (like Louis XIV) to oversee specific regions administer justice and collect taxes centralizing power.

Question 12

Philip II

Answer 12

Absolute monarch of Spain a staunch defender of Catholicism. He used his power to enforce religious unity through the Inquisition and was involved in the Spanish Reconquista.

Question 13

Spanish Reconquista and Inquisition

Answer 13

Reconquista: The centuries-long effort by Christian kingdoms to recapture the Iberian Peninsula from Muslim rule. Inquisition: A judicial institution used to suppress heresy notably by Philip II to enforce Catholic orthodoxy.

Question 14

The Age of Exploration

Answer 14

A period from the 15th to 18th centuries when European powers extensively explored the world leading to new trade routes colonization and global cultural exchange.

Question 15

Reasons for European Exploration (3 G’s)

Answer 15

Gold: Desire for direct access to Asian spices and precious metals. Glory: Seeking fame power and expanded empires. God: Spreading Christianity and competing with Islam.

Question 16

Factors Aiding European Exploration

Answer 16

Inventions like the caravel astrolabe magnetic compass printing press and better maps. Also being forced to find alternative routes to Asia because of Muslim Middlemen and the strengthening of monarchies like Spain.

Question 17

Caravel Astrolabe Compass

Answer 17

Caravel: A small highly maneuverable sailing ship. Astrolabe: Instrument used for celestial navigation. Magnetic Compass: Device indicating direction crucial for navigation.

Question 18

Ferdinand Magellan

Answer 18

Portuguese explorer who led the first expedition to circumnavigate the Earth.

Question 19

Trading Post Empires

Answer 19

A type of empire focused on controlling strategic coastal locations and trade routes rather than large territorial conquests common in Africa and Asia.

Question 20

Columbian Exchange: Impact on Europe & New World

Answer 20

New World: Devastated by European diseases leading to massive population decline slavery became prevalent demographics changed. Europe: Population increased due to diversified diets and gained new resources.

Question 21

Atlantic Slave Trade: Impact on Africa

Answer 21

Decimated populations of able young people destabilized societies and incentivized destructive wars among African states.

Question 22

Hernando Cortez vs Montezuma II

Answer 22

Cortez was a Spanish conquistador who led the conquest of the Aztec Empire ruled by Montezuma II.

Question 23

Francisco Pizarro vs Atahualpa

Answer 23

Pizarro was a Spanish conquistador who led the conquest of the Inca Empire ruled by Atahualpa.

Question 24

Encomienda System

Answer 24

A labor system in Spanish colonies where Spanish encomenderos were granted control over indigenous populations forcing them to provide labor or tribute.

Question 25

Potosí

Answer 25

A major silver mine in present-day Bolivia that was a massive source of wealth for the Spanish Empire reliant on forced indigenous labor.

Question 26

Middle Passage

Answer 26

The brutal and deadly sea journey taken by enslaved Africans from West Africa to the Americas.

Question 27

Triangular Trade

Answer 27

A transatlantic trade network connecting Europe Africa and the Americas. Europe sent manufactured goods to Africa Africa sent enslaved people to the Americas the Americas sent raw materials to Europe.

Question 28

Olaudah Equiano

Answer 28

A prominent African abolitionist who wrote an autobiography detailing his experiences as an enslaved person and the horrors of the Middle Passage.

Question 29

Plantation System

Answer 29

A system of agriculture in the Americas characterized by large farms growing cash crops and reliant on forced labor typically enslaved Africans.

Question 30

Council of the Indies

Answer 30

A powerful governmental body established by Spain that held legal and administrative authority over all colonial affairs in the Spanish Americas.

Question 31

Peninsulares

Answer 31

Individuals born in Spain who resided in the Spanish colonies holding the highest social status.

Question 32

Creoles

Answer 32

People of Spanish descent born in the American colonies below Peninsulares in the hierarchy.

Question 33

Mestizos

Answer 33

People of mixed Spanish and Indigenous American ancestry in the Spanish colonial social hierarchy.

Question 34

Mulattoes

Answer 34

People of mixed African and Spanish ancestry in the Spanish colonial social hierarchy.

Question 35

Henry the Navigator

Answer 35

Portuguese prince who funded educational institutions for navigation and shipbuilding and sponsored voyages leading to Portugal’s trade routes and influence on the African coast.

Question 36

Absolute Monarchs: Ways They Used Power

Answer 36

Centralized Power (Louis XIV Versailles Peter the Great boyars)

Question 37

Louis XIV: Impact on Religion & Politics (Essay Prompt)

Answer 37

Religion: 1. Revoked the Edict of Nantes removing protections for Huguenots. 2. Used unified religion (Catholicism) to strengthen state control. Politics: 1. Never called the Estates-General avoiding parliamentary consultation. 2. Declared himself the "Sun King" centralizing all political authority around himself.