1. Introduction to the Enlightenment and Democratic Revolutions
i. Renaissance had its affect throughout 17 th century ii. Focuses of Renaissance: 1. The individual 2. Expanding human potential iii. Focuses extended the boundaries into what became the Age of Exploration 2. Enlightenment Thinkers and Ideas i. 17 th 18 th century: Development of Enlightenment, an intellectual movement ii. Thinkers of this movement rued to apply the principles of science and the methods of science to all aspects of society iii. Greece Introduced the idea of natural laws being able to be understood through careful observation and inquiry iv. Christianity Equality of all humans v. Renaissance Main area of thought = worldly concerns; criticized medieval society for looking at questions that were unrelated to human conditions vi. 1500s 1600s: Scientific Revolution furthers Enlightenment thought vii. Scientific Revolution: 1. Made people questions society and government and have new ideas about these two 2. Rational thought > accept traditional beliefs 3. People praised Isaac Newtons discovery of the mechanical laws that govern the universe and the scientific method that allowed this discovery to be made 4. People wanted to use scientific method on human affairs 5. Reason used natural laws discovered, just like physical laws were discovered b. Hobbes and Locke i. Thomas Hobbes and John Locke = English Enlightenment thinkers ii. Both thought about human nature and the role of government iii. Leviathan (Hobbes 1651) People were selfish and ambitious because it was in their nature 1. Needed form of government = absolute monarchy 2. Social contract = agreement among members of society 3. People usually chose to go with an authoritarian rule when there was chaos 4. Idea of social contract was most important contribution iv. Two Treatises of Government (Locke 1690) [a year after the Glorious Revolution] : 1. English people were justified in overthrowing James II 2. Government had failed to perform most important duty protecting the rights of the people 3. All people have right to life, liberty, and property (these are known as the natural rights). 4. Governments role is to protect these rights 5. Governments right came from the people, not from God 6. Self-government v. Voltaire and Rousseau 1. These two admired the democratic nature of English institutions 2. Lived under absolute monarchy 3. Voltaire = very smart 18 th century French historian a. Argued in favor of tolerance, freedom of religion, and free speech b. Targets of criticism = Christianity and French Government 4. Jean-Jacques Rousseau = most freethinking Enlightenment philosopher a. Most famous work = The Social Contract (1762) in which he advocated democracy b. Called social contract an agreement among free individuals to create a government that would respond to peoples wills. c. Only authentic government came from the consent of the governed d. People would choose what is best for their community vi. Montesquieu 1. Baron de Montesquieu = another French philosopher who thought of liberty as a natural right 2. The Spirit of the Laws (1748): a. Any single person or group in power will try to increase its/his or her power 3. Liberty could best be safeguarded by the separation of powers (the government into three powers): a. A legislature to make laws b. An executive to enforce them c. Courts to interpret them 3. The Beginnings of Democracy in America i. Mid 1700 13 British colonies had been established in North America ii. To north and west of these colonies was New France, a French colony iii. 1754 France and Britain go to war for North America, The French and Indian War iv. France and England fought in Europe, the Seven Years War b. Americans Protest British Policies i. 1763 - French and Indian War ended ii. War had been costly iii. Britain thought: 1. Colonies should pay some of the cost because they had some of the benefits 2. This new area needed more British soldiers to protect it 3. They should tax the colonists to raise money iv. 1756 The Stamp Act is passed, an unfair tax that is one of a series of tax measures v. Colonists were not represented in Parliament 1. They protested, no taxation without representation vi. Furthermore, colonists were unhappy because Britain didnt allow them to expand westward of the Appalachian Mountains, after all didnt they win territory from the French to expand their kingdom c. Americans Win Independence i. Colonists opposed each tax measure ii. Eventually, these Americans armed themselves against British oppression iii. April 19, 1775 = First battle for freedom, the Battle of Lexington and Concord iv. July 4, 1776 = The Declaration of Independence is released 1. In it, the colonists stated to King George III and the rest of the world why they should be free of British rule v. 1781 The British surrender vi. Several years after the states existed as a union, a loose federation, under the Articles of Confederation 1. Americans wanted a weak central government and under the Articles of Confederation they had a weak central government with only one body, the Congress a. This was too weak 2. Congress couldnt collect taxes to pay a war debt or even finance the government d. Enlightenment Ideas Shape the Constitution i. Summer of 1787 A group of American leaders met in Philadelphia to frame, to work out, a better government plan and they produced the Constitution of the United States (they were known as the framers) ii. Main question: Is it possible to establish a government that is strong and stable, but not tyrannical? iii. Yes, if there was balance 1. First, a representative government, one in which citizens elect representatives to make laws and policies for them, was to be set i. This ensured power to govern ultimately was in the hands of the people, as advocated by Rousseau. b. They choose an indirect form of government over Rousseaus direct democracy i. Similar to the Romans when they established a republic 2. Second, a federal system, or a system in which the power of the government was to be divided between the federal (or central) government and the states (or local) government. 3. Third, the federal government was to be divided into the executive, the judicial, and the legislative branches. a. This was an idea borrowed from Montesquieu b. It provided a system with checks and balances to prevent any branch from having too much power 4. James Madison i. 1751 - 1836 ii. Strongly influenced by the Enlightenment as a young man iii. When the Constitutional Convention was called, he spend a year reading the works of Locke, Montesquieu, Voltaire, and other Enlightenment philosophers iv. Known as Father of Constitution v. Designed plan that had the three branches of government vi. Helped formed the federal government plan vii. Kept detailed notes on debates viii. Served as 4 th president of the United States 5. The French Revolution i. 1700s Democratic ideas began stirring in France ii. Louis XIV (ruled from 1643-1715) absolute monarchy at its excess massive debts, unresolved problems, and growing unrest were left for his heirs (Louis XV and Louis XVI) b. Causes of the Revolution i. 1774 - Louis XVI comes to throne at 19 1. Weak leader that was dominated by his wife, Marie Antoinette (an Austrian by birth who was very unpopular with the French people). ii. The clergy and nobility enjoyed many privileges iii. Monarchy deeply in debt, but only commoners paid taxes iv. French Revolution fought to balance the inequality in society v. 18 th century Enlightenment ideas caused people to rethink societys structure vi. French middle class and some nobility were impressed with the ideas of social contract and freedom of speech, and by the American people overpowering an oppressive government in the 1770s. vii. Also, the peasants were angry, hungry, and felt that neither king nor nobility cared about their troubles (there had been poor harvests in late 1780s). c. Early Reforms of the Revolution i. 1789 Louis XVIs government is about to go bankrupt ii. Louis sought to raise taxes iii. He called the Estates-General into session iv. Hadnt been called since 1614 1. Commoners felt they werent fairly represented 2. They left and formed the National Assembly 3. Others classes eventually joined them v. July 14, 1789 People of Paris storm the Bastille (a hated Parisian prison symbolic of autocratic rule) which fueled several other peasant uprisings that spread from Paris to other parts of the country vi. National Assembly had made reforms 1. Adopted the Declaration of Rights of Man and of the Citizen a. This document was influenced by Enlightenment ideas and the Declaration of Independence b. Guaranteed the rights of liberty, property, security, and resistance to oppression to all people 2. Drafted a constitution that made France a limited monarchy a. Reorganized the Catholic Church in France and redistributed its land b. Reformed the court systems vii. This assembly disbanded in 1791 so that a newly elected Legislative Assembly could take over d. Democratic Reforms Undone i. New assembly wasnt accepted by king, the aristocracy, or many Catholics ii. European countries under absolute democracy feared the spread of democratic ideas iii. They went to war with France in hope of destroying this new republic iv. 1792- Royal family was imprisoned and the country was in a state of crisis v. A new legislature, even more radical, took charge vi. Reign of Terror period followed 1. People who were against the revolution were killed a. This included the king and queen vii. 1799 Napoleon Bonaparte, a military leader, took control of France and ruled under a dictatorship viii. Mid-1800s Democracy develops in France ix. French Revolution shows that for a democracy to work it is not enough to promise equality and freedom or to have a representative government; to have a democracy, a government must have a society in which rule must be by law, there must be protection for both civil rights and liberties, tolerance of dissent, and the acceptance of majority decisions by the minority 6. The Struggle for Democracy Continues i. Took centuries for democracy to take hold ii. Democracy is the preferred form of modern government iii. Some authoritarian governments agree with democracy, but when the time comes for decisions, their actions are not democratic b. The United Nations Promotes Democracy i. 1945 World War II ends ii. Before 1945, the United Nations was formed 1. Goal = work for world peace and the betterment of humanity 2. One branch, the General Assembly, is like a democracy a. Nations discuss problems, hoping to solve them peacefully b. Each nation has equal representation 3. Charter is based on traditions of democracy and it reaffirms basic human rights (need for justice, the rule of the law, and the desire for social progress). 4. Authority comes from the nations of the world 5. One of their most important contributions = the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (adopted 1948) a. Draws on democratic ideas b. Set a worldwide standard for basic social, political, and economic rights i. Included the right to life, liberty, and security ii. Also stated, are the rights to equal protection under the law, free movement, and free association and assembly with other people iii. Social and economic rights were added: rights to work, to rest and leisure, and to education c. Purpose is to serve as an international code of conduct c. New Movements Toward Democracy i. Nations are struggling to achieve a democratic government ii. Difficult to establish democracy where dictatorship has been for so long iii. Early 1990s Breakup of Soviet Union allowed 1. Allowed 15 new republics to assert their peoples national identities and interests iv. In South Africa, after many years of racial segregation, or apartheid, a democratic, all-race government was formed v. 2002 East Timor regained independence with the UNs support from Indonesia vi. There is no guarantee that democracy can be achieved in a particular place or time vii. Nor can it be guaranteed that once achieved, it will not be lost if the people are careful viii. It is an idea where strength comes from the people