-
1533
Ivan the Terrible
He was the first Russian ruler to officially take the czar title. He crushed the power of the Russian Boyars and expanded territories of Russia eastward. Ivan IV was known as Ivan the Terrible because of his ruthless actions which one was when he stabbed his son to death during a heated argument. After his dynasty ended in 1598 the time of troubles followed because Ivan had no strong heirs. -
1553
Mary I
Mary I tried turning England back to Catholicism. She married Phillip II from Spain because they both believed in Catholicism. She was called Bloody Mary because she burned many people at the stake who she believed were witches. Unlike her father she hated Protestants. -
1557
King Philip II "The Most Catholic King"
Philip II inherits Spain, colonies in the Americas, the Netherlands, and parts of Italy from his father Charles V the Holy Roman Emperor. -
1562
The French Wars of Religion
A civil war broke out in France between the French Catholics and the Huguenots who were French Calvinists. The Huguenots however, only made up 7% of the French population, but 40-50% of the French nobility became Huguenots. The civil war lasted for 30 years with many massacres and killings of helpless people on both sides. The war ended when King Henry IV of France issued the Edict of Nantes which made the main religion in France French Catholicism, but let the Huguenots follow their religion. -
The Spanish Armada Defeat
King Phillip II sent a giant fleet of 130 Spanish warships with 33,000 soldiers to overthrow Elizabeth I Queen of England. But England's faster and lighter boats were able to defeat Spain's larger ships. -
James I
He was Mary Queen of Scots heir. He was a Stuart who's family wasn't as popular as the Tudors. He took the throne after Elizabeth I died with no heir to the throne. James wanted to be an absolute monarch and fought with Parliament often. He also clashed with dissenters. -
Cardinal Richelieu
He was known as the architect of French absolutism. He weakened the power of the nobles. He set up a network of spies to make sure the nobles weren't doing anything they weren't supposed to. He took political and military rights away from the Huguenots. He also made a large bureaucracy. -
Thirty Years War
The Peace of Augsburg did not put an end to religious disputes in the Holy Roman Empire because it failed to recognize the Calvinists. In 1618 the war started on one side it was the Catholic forces led by the Hapsburg Holy Roman Emperors and on the other side was Protestant Nobles. All major European powers were involved in the war except England. Despite this many were involved for political and territorial motives. The war ended with the Peace of Westphalia and tons of countries got more land. -
Fredrick William the Great Elector
He was ruler of one of the most powerful German states Prussia. He made a powerful standing army. He gained a lot of support through exploiting the region's social classes. He also weakened the independence of the towns, and a lot more things. -
English Civil War
The English Civil war was between the king's supporters(cavaliers) and the parliamentary forces(Roundheads). The parliamentary forces grew victorious with the help of their general Oliver Cromwell who was an extraordinary general. Which also resulted in the beheading of King Charles I in 1649, which became the first time a ruler was killed by his people. -
King Louis XIV "The Sun King"
He was heir to the throne at only 5 years old after his father Louis XIII passed away. He was the best example of royal absolutism in France and throughout Europe. He also built his giant palace Versailles to bloat off his wealth that was very expensive to make and estimated to be 2.5 dollars in 2003. -
Restoration
Charles II was restored to king after Oliver Cromwell's commonwealth and military dictatorship. Charles II accepted the Petition of Right which had certain things a king can't do and only Parliament, but he believed in absolute monarchy. He also made the Anglican Church the official church of England again. -
Jean Baptiste Colbert
Jean Baptiste Colbert was Louis XIV's brilliant finance adviser. He built many things like roads and canals, but he also cleared land for farming and encouraged mining. He also implemented mercantilism policies to encourage economic growth. -
Peter The Great
Peter rose to power in 1682. His vision fro Russia was to catch up with the rest of Europe, technologically, economically, and militarily He soon made that vision a realit, but it took a lot of time. He also ordered that a new capital for Russia called St. Petersburg, but many people died from building it and the ground wasn't very stable. -
The Glorious Revolution
Following the restoration James II which is Charles II brother clashed with parliament. He gave Catholics government jobs which broke the Test Act which said no Catholics can be given government jobs. Because of this Parliament appointed a new king and queen William and Mary but only if they would sign the English Bill of Rights into law. The English Bill of Rights made it so that Parliament had power over the monarchy. Because of this James II in a bloodless struggle fled to France.
