What is Absolutism?
Absolutism is a type of national monarchy in which the
leader possesses all power. Although the absolute monarch is the sole leader of
the nation, the aristocracy limits his power. The aristocracy is subordinate to
the monarchy but provides political and military support. Absolutism required
the centralization of political power to the monarch. A majority of the
absolute monarchs believed that they had divine power known as divine right. If
a ruler believed that God sent them to be the leader, they believed that they
had divine right.
Ivan The Terrible
Ivan The Terrible was born into royalty. His father Vasily
III died when he was only three making him the next leader. Ivan had a
committee of boyars to oversee the nation. When Ivan was 16 he called all of
the boyars to a meeting at which he denounced them and crowned himself the
Czar. Prince Shuisky, who was leading at the time, was dropped into a cage full
of wild dogs in front of a large crowd in Moscow. That day he took over the nation
as the supreme ruler. His violent and cruel punishments gave him the nickname
as Ivan Grozny. The direct translation of Grozny to English is “terrible” but
it actually meant feared. In 1964 Ivan left Moscow and decided to come back on
his own terms. This was because the citizens were worried and wanted him to
return. He responded by demanding absolute power if he were to return. They
went along with it and allowed him to become the Absolute Monarch of Russia.
Ivan eventually died in a strange way. His cause of death isn’t for sure but
most believe that he died from a stroke while playing in a chess game. Ivan’s
reign marked the beginning of a weak Russia. Ivan killed his son that would
have taken power upon his death, which gave the middle-son the throne. His
middle son Fyador was childless and not fit for the job. The beginning of the
Time Of Troubles began upon his death. Ivan The Terrible’s reign as an Absolute
Monarch was capped off by his cruel and violent ways. These practices would
give Ivan a bad legacy.
Louis XIV
Louis XIV was one of the France’s most influential leaders
ever. Louis established a sense of Absolutism with this quote that he spoke the
day after Cardinal Marazin’s death; “Up to this moment I have been pleased to entrust
the government of my affairs to the late Cardinal. It is now time that I govern
them myself. You [secretaries and ministers of state] will assist me with your
counsels when I ask for them. I request and order you to seal no orders except
by my command, . . . I order you not to sign anything, not even a passport . .
. without my command; to render account to me personally each day and to favor
no one." He announces to France that he will be the sole leader of France
and be subject to no one. Louis called himself the Sun King, as he shed light
on the nation. Louis was Catholic, which could be the reason he forced all
protestants to become Catholic, but it was most likely that he believed in the
motto “one king, one law, one faith.” He began by offering rewards for conversions
but quickly began to place soldiers in each town and let them run wild. This
method brought many conversions quickly. Louis also limited the Pope’s power to
spiritual matters only. The lasting effect of Louis XVI was an unstable nation
that had to rebuild to become what it was before.
Philip II
Philip II, the son of Charles V took power of the Spanish empire,
which covered more than just Spain. Philip II believed in Divine Right, which
allowed him to justify his immoral acts such as the ordering of murders. With
divine right he believed that God sent him to be the sole leader of the empire.
He established a regional self-government in which rulers reported to him. Philip
brought an economic decline upon Spain. He killed Protestants in Spain and exterminated
Native Americans. Philip believed that the Spaniards were superior to everyone
else. Philip didn’t like the Italians or Germans even though he ruled them. He
only used their military services while he used all of Spain’s resources.
Philip died of cancer in 1598. He’s remembered as the most powerful leader
during an era of war that ended with the decline of Spain’s economy.
Charles I
Charles I of England was one of the most strong-willed Kings to ever
rule England. His strong will would eventually lead to his execution after some
confrontations with Parliament. Charles didn’t cooperate with Parliament well
at all. He essentially ruled for 11 years without assistance because of his
refusal to consult Parliament. When a problem in Scotland made it’s way to
England, Charles tried to force a new Prayer book upon the Scots, which didn’t
work because of the lack of preparation and funds. Charles called upon
Parliament to fund his plan, which wasn’t successful. Charles then tried to
kill 5 members of Parliament, causing a civil war. The civil war ultimately led
to his death by execution. Charles inherited a weak England economically, but
didn’t contribute anything during his time as King. Charles’ legacy wasn’t a
good one. He was remembered as a rebellious king that believed in absolutism.
He didn’t progress England in any way, he instead began a civil war that led to
his death.
Shah Abbas
Abbas inherited the Safavid Empire during a rough time. The
Ottomans and Uzbecks had taken some of the Safavids land. Abbas realized that
to become the absolute monarch he must weaken the power of the Qizilbash. The
Qizilbash was the backbone of the Iranian army throughout the Safavid Empire.
In order to weaken the Qizilbash, Abbas began to replace the Qizilbash with Georgians,
Armenians, and Circassians who had been brought in to the empire as slaves,
converted to Islam, and taken a place in civil administration or military. As
time progressed many of the Ghulams (Georgians, Armenians, and Circassians)
were in high offices of the state. Abbas’ goal was to retake the land that the
Ottomans and Uzbecks had taken before his reign. He understood that in order to
do this he would need to rebuild his army.
He used the Ghulams as soldiers in his army. Shah Abbas is
remembered as a brilliant tactician and strategist.
Absolutism Fails
Throughout the 15th – 18th century’s
absolutism was present. Absolutism failed in most all cases and usually sent
the empire or nation into a decline. Philip II was one of the most powerful
leaders at this time, which is why his nation had the longest and worst
decline. Absolute Monarchs can’t run a nation without the support from their
citizens. Some absolute monarch had the support of their citizens out of fear
of their leader or out of the fear they would have without a leader.
Works Cited:
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