1 / 13

The Wars of Absolutism

The Wars of Absolutism. 20.2 | All That Power In A Few Greedy Hands. The Tension Builds. Religious zeal had fueled European wars during the Reformation Era Dynastic and commercial rivalry drove wars from the reign of Louis XIV to the end of the 7 Years’ War

onan
Download Presentation

The Wars of Absolutism

An Image/Link below is provided (as is) to download presentation Download Policy: Content on the Website is provided to you AS IS for your information and personal use and may not be sold / licensed / shared on other websites without getting consent from its author. Content is provided to you AS IS for your information and personal use only. Download presentation by click this link. While downloading, if for some reason you are not able to download a presentation, the publisher may have deleted the file from their server. During download, if you can't get a presentation, the file might be deleted by the publisher.

E N D

Presentation Transcript

  1. The Wars of Absolutism 20.2 | All That Power In A Few Greedy Hands

  2. The Tension Builds • Religious zeal had fueled European wars during the Reformation Era • Dynastic and commercial rivalry drove wars from the reign of Louis XIV to the end of the 7 Years’ War • Absolute Monarchies compete for prestige • This spilled over into commercial enterprises in the colonies • They would fight each other, and more easily, non-European peoples

  3. The Wars of Louis XIV After the Peace of Westphalia 1648… By the 1660s, France had become Europe’s supreme power The best administrative bureaucracy, military, and national unity In 1667, Louis began a series of four major wars to expand France

  4. Louis versus Europe • When Louis occupied the free city of Strasbourg in 1681 • It sparked a threatened reaction • Beginning with the League of Augsburg… • Minor free cities joined • Then England, then Spain, then Sweden, then Holland (the Dutch) • Even the Habsburg Empire • War raged across Europe • In 1697, peace was made • Holland was secured freedom • The German city-states survived

  5. The War of Spanish Succession Because of marriages… When Charles II of Spain died in 1700 his kingdom was left to… France and Louis XIV Fearing the union of these two powerful kingdoms… England, Holland, and the Habsburgs formed and alliance By 1714, Europe had succeeded in keeping the two apart

  6. So, part of that treaty in 1714 Was a contract for the British to furnish slaves to the Spanish Empire in exchange for compensation Spain was struggling as a major state But Britain took advantage of it (troop deployment) When Spain tried to enforce the terms of the treaty…

  7. The War of Jenkins’ Ear • The tension was high • When Spain boarded an English ship to search for contraband, a fight ensued • The English captain Robert Jenkins’ ear was cut off in the fight – so he put it in a jar of brandy to preserve it • He took it to British Parliament in 1738 to show how the Spanish crossed the line • Late in 1739, Britain went to war with Spain • In junction with other wars, a series of world-wide European wars began

  8. The War of Austrian Succession Meanwhile, in Europe Prussia (German) hates Austria (auch German) because they both want to unify more of the German principalities than the other 1740 – Austria looks weak because a female (Maria Theresa) took over the throne 1740 – Frederick II of Prussia seizes Silesia from Austria

  9. Once Again • France, hating Austria, supports Prussia • Great Britain seeing the balance of power shifting (and already at war) aids Austria • All over a dispute between Prussia and Austria over Silesia

  10. A Global War • In Europe major battlegrounds include • Silesia • Austrian Netherlands • In the Americas major battlegrounds include • French Canada • In India major battle grounds include • British Madras • Austria loses, but Theresa stays in power • Treaty of Aachen dictated by France and Britain – 1748 • Prussia becomes a new strong man on continent

  11. Diplomatic Shifts • Maria Theresa (furious) works to rebuild army and separate France and Prussia • European rivalries develop • France and Britain – over colonies • Austria and Prussia – over Silesia and Germany • Alliances shift • France joins with Austria (Marie Antoinette) • Against Prussia • Britain joins with Prussia (Balance of power) • Russia tags along AGAINST Prussia (Why not? Geo-politics)

  12. So what patters are emerging?  • What can we see Europe tending to do with one another? • Reasons? • What about Europe’s relationship with the rest of the world?

More Related