The legacy of the past: Le Ancien Regime , 1650 - 1789

1. The legacy of the past: Le Ancien Regime, 1650 - 1789

2. In many ways, 18th century Europe still looked much like medieval Europe • Economic structure traditional (overwhelmingly agrarian) • Social structure traditional (division of legal classes) • Political structure traditional (monarchies dominated) • Culture and world outlook traditional (parochial and narrow)

3. European society by the 18th century • A pyramid with a very broad base • 3-5% was the landed aristocracy • 10% was the middle class • 80 – 90% were peasants the aristocracy The middling orders Note: This graphic is a bit misleading. Think of the “farmers” more as wealthy gentry. Also, it should be obvious that serfdom has been abolished in Western Europe by 1700. Also, with the advent of the Protestant Reformation, the pope and Catholic Church had long since been at the apex of Western society.

4. Aristocracy divided in two groups Upper aristocracy ( the Great Titled nobility) Lower aristocracy Without titles they included knights (in Britain), seigniors (in France), and hidalgos (in Spain) Some were more wealthy than titled nobility, some were relatively impoverished • Dukes • Marquises • Margraves • Counts (earls in Britain) • Viscounts • Barons These titles were hereditary and honorific. They involved no real duties; just status and privilege. Theoretically, these are the oldest families in the country. In reality , they die out and are replaced from below.

5. Aristocratic wealth • Based on land • The nature of their wealth was changing around 1700. • Some aristocrats diversified, holding office in the government or investing in overseas trade and finance

6. Aristocratic wealth made possible a life of elegant and opulent display Blenheim was the palace for the Duke of Marlborough Chatsworth was the palace for the Duke of Devonshire

7. The owners believed The architecture and landscaping reflected reason, proportion, and a man’s achievement Chenoceaux in France was owned by the Dupin family Esterhazy Palace in Austria was for the noble of that name Clearly, the greatest of these houses were palaces, rivaling the royal court itself.

8. The Vienna Opera House Throughout most of the year, aristocrats spent their time in the great capitals of Europe where they lived a dizzy life of entertainment and social obligation. Attending The theatre and opera were mainstays of their social calendar.

9. Ned Ward, The Coffee House Mob (London, 1710). Seated around long trestle tables, a variety of men have assembled in the candle-lit room of a genteel coffee-house, hung with landscape paintings. They are variously occupied: some are busy with reading the little diurnals or newspapers of the day, while some are or have been smoking long clay pipes of tobacco. But two activities dominate: conversation (or debate) and coffee-drinking. In the Salon of Madame Geoffrin in 1755, Château de Malmaison (Paris, 1812). a salon is a gathering of intellectuals who engage in thought provoking discussion with each other and with their social and political peers. Salons were common in 17th and 18th century France, and the ideas and philosophies exchanged then have been credited with spurring the Enlightenment.

10. The Middling Orders • A broad middle class is a hallmark of modern society. • This time period saw the growing numbers and influence of the middle class • The term bourgeoisie refers to urban middle class

11. The top of the middling orders • merchants and financiers • Made money in overseas and internal trade and investment • Many would imitate the aristocracy • Some would buy titles The Syndics of the Clothmaker's Guild (1662) by Rembrandt illustrate the wealth of the rising urban merchant class toward the end of the Ancien Regime.

12. The professionals • Below the merchant-class was the professional class • Made up of lawyers, doctors, military officers, clergy, and estate stewards

13. The tradesmen • These are the small businessmen • They sell the things they make in their shops • They are master-craftsmen who take on apprentices

14. The servant class • European society was full of servants at every rank and status

15. Literacy and the Middle Class • Due to the Protestant emphasis on education, literacy was on the rise • Even in France, by the 1780s, 50% of all men and 20% of women could read • The middling orders joined clubs that promoted the ideals of the Enlightenment

16. The Peasantry • Life for peasants varied from country to country • Peasants were small farmers who generally did not own land; similar to share-cropping • western European peasants generally fared better; peasants in the east were mostly serfs • In England and France peasants could own land; in England landowning peasants could vote

17. The Peasantry were generally poor rural folk • The vast majority of the population • Their work was physical • Holidays were frequent • Fairs and festivals were sources of entertainment Cornelis Dusart, Country inn, 1690

18. David Teniers the Younger’s The Chaff Cutter, 1610-1630 (right), portrays 17th century peasant life

19. Class differences in child rearing Aristocrats Middle and lower classes Fewer children, usually beginning in the parents’ 20s Raised their own children, often giving them chores to help the family or business • Children were conceived early and often • Children raised by wet nurses and tutors

20. Class differences in education Aristocrats Middle and lower classes Sons of wealthy merchants might have same education pattern as aristocrats Apprenticeship was common for those becoming tradesmen Middle class girls were sent to other houses to learn how to run a household Peasants received virtually no education • Boys were given a tutor early, then sent to private school, followed by university, then Grand Tour of Europe • Girls were given an education on how to run an aristocratic household

21. Class differences in marriage Aristocrats Middle and lower classes Children could not marry exactly whoever they wanted, but they had more freedom of choice than aristocrats Their marriage break up rates were about the same as ours today • Marriages were arranged by parents, with the children holding veto power • If children happened to make their own match, parents also had veto power • Broken marriages were uncommon

22. Health and medicine in 1700 • Europeans were great on diagnosis, still poor with cures • However, hygiene and nutrition were improving • Population increased from 100 million to 200 million in the 1700s Bleeding a patient was commonly done to cure patients of their ailments.