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Isaac Newton's Principia mathematica
In this work, Isaac Newton explained in mathematical terms the principles of time, force, and motion that have guided the development of modern physical science. This was important because he developed important scientific ideas and it shows the scientific advances during the time. -
English Bill of Rights
The English Bill of Rights was passed by the English parliament. It prevented the Crown from raising taxes without parliament’s permission. It is important because it led the way to England becoming a constitutional monarchy. -
Two Treatises of Government by John Locke
His work argued that all individuals have natural rights to freedom, independence, and political equality. It is important because it had an important influence on the development of modern concepts of democracy. -
Salons
Salons were gathering places for wealthy, intellectually minded elites during the years during and prior to the Enlightenment. The salons typically held weekly meetings where upper-class citizens gathered to discuss the political and social theories of the day. Women were able to host them and became more important to them. Women being able to help showed a gradual change in gender equality, but very slowly. -
Montesquieu published 'Persian Letters'
His work criticizes French society, culture, religion, nation and politics, and asks questions about women. In his letters, he used reason to liberate the mind. This was a true piece of Enlightened work because the Enlightenment focused on emphasizing reason and individualism rather than religion. -
Robert Walpole becomes the first Prime Minister of England
This event was important to the Enlightenment because it signified a move toward a more democratic society and the more democratic society of Great Britain was one that was idolized by many Enlightenment philosoophers. -
Methodist Church Is Created
The creation of the Methodist church by John Wesley was significant to the Enlightenment, because it showcased the shift in religion away from relying on an organized church structure to achieve heavenly salvation to the principle that one could achieve salvation through personal spiritual consciousness. -
Voltaire's 'Philosophic Letters to the English'
His work shows how he was exposed to the English empiricism and how the English aristocracy exposed him to Enlightenment ideas that he took back to France. His works later influenced the Enlightenment ideas in France because of his writings. -
Montesquieu's 'Spirit of the Law'
This event is notable in the history of the Enlightenment because it shifted beliefs on the way a government should be run by introducing new concepts such as separate branches of government and checks and balances. -
Encyclopedie
This event is important because it showcases an amalgamation of Enlightenment ideals in one work. It also showcases the common class which was a growing theme in the Enlightenment. -
Rousseau published 'The Social Contract' and 'Emile'
'The Social contract' was an agreement between the people of a state and the government of a state. 'Emile' was important for education because it served as the inspiration for what became a new national system of education. -
Catherine the Great begins her rule in Russia
Catherine the Great's rule was significant to the Enlightenment because it showcased an "enlightened despot" in action because she was a patron of the philosophes, she worked towards some forms of social reform, she was more tolerant (in some ways) than her predecessors, and she was an absolutist. -
Voltaire published 'Treaties on Toleration'
He argued for religious toleration because he believed religious intolerance was against the law of nature. His work is a big piece of Enlightenment work because writers during that time turned away from the darkness of the church. -
the First Partition
The partitions of Poland divided the Polish Empire into three sections controlled by Prussia, Russia, and Austria. It was significant to the Enlightenment because it signified a change in the balance of European powers as well as the end of the autonomous Polish Empire -
Adam Smith 'Wealth of Nations'
His work is considered the first work on modern economics. He had an immediate impact on British economic policy that still continues to modern day. It is important because it revolutionized economics and brought more national leaders into thinking of how to make their nations more wealthy which improved the quality of life -
America Declares Independence from England
The achievement of American independence from the British through the Revolutionary War was important to the age of Reason in Europe because it signified that concepts that were generally just hypothetical in Europe (checks and balances, freedom of religion and press, etc) could actually be achieved in a real, functioning government. -
French Revolution
It marked a decisive break in the history of France and Europe, and accelerated intellectual, cultural, and psychological change. The Revolution brought a widening of expectations and imaginative awareness which was a belief, inherited from the Enlightenment, in the possibility of progress, as well as a conviction that state and society could be reconstituted. -
'The Progress of the Human Mind' by Condorcet
His work dealt with theoretical thought on perfecting the human mind and analyzing intellectual history based on social arithmetic. It showed the shift to more secular ways of thinking and trusting more in science and reason.