Unit 4
Scientific, Philosophical, and Political Developments
Notes
The Scientific Revolution
- Copernicus proposed a heliocentric (Sun-centered) model. Kepler showed planets move in ellipses. Galileo used the telescope to support heliocentrism and was tried by the Church (1633). Newton described universal gravitation and laws of motion (Principia, 1687).
- The scientific method: Francis Bacon (empiricism, observation and experiment) and René Descartes (rationalism, deductive reasoning: "I think, therefore I am").
- Scientific societies (the Royal Society) spread findings. Some people still practiced alchemy and astrology.
The Enlightenment
Thinkers applied reason to society and government.
- Locke: natural rights; the mind as a blank slate.
- Montesquieu: separation of powers.
- Voltaire: religious toleration, free speech.
- Rousseau: the social contract and the general will.
- Adam Smith: The Wealth of Nations (1776), free markets and the "invisible hand," against mercantilism.
- Beccaria: against torture and the death penalty.
- Mary Wollstonecraft: women's education and rights.
- Deism saw God as a watchmaker who doesn't intervene. Ideas spread through salons (often hosted by women), coffeehouses and the Encyclopédie.
Enlightened absolutism
Some monarchs adopted Enlightenment reforms while keeping power: Frederick the Great (Prussia) promoted religious tolerance and education; Catherine the Great (Russia) corresponded with philosophes but strengthened serfdom; Joseph II (Austria) abolished serfdom and granted toleration.
Society and economy
- Population grew with better food and the decline of plague. A consumer revolution spread goods like tea, sugar and coffee.
- The Seven Years' War (1756–1763) was a global conflict; Britain gained colonies, and France and Britain were left with heavy debts.
Practice
This is the heliocentric model.
The Church condemned his views in 1633.
Knowledge comes from observation and experiments.
He wrote The Spirit of the Laws.
Competition and self-interest benefit society.
Her reforms were limited.
They helped spread Enlightenment ideas.
The "watchmaker" view.
Free response
Write your answer first, then open the scoring guide.
Free-response question
Answer (a), (b) and (c).
(a) Describe ONE way the Scientific Revolution challenged traditional authority.
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Heliocentrism and the scientific method challenged the Church's teachings and ancient authorities like Aristotle and Ptolemy.
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(b) Explain ONE Enlightenment idea about government.
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Locke's idea that government exists to protect natural rights, and that people can replace a government that fails to.
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(c) Explain ONE limit of enlightened absolutism.
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Rulers like Catherine the Great adopted reforms only when they kept or increased their own power, and serfdom remained or grew.
Check off the points you earned: