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Jan 26, 1492
Christopher Colombus discovers the New World
Famed Italian explorer Christopher Columbus discovered the "New World" of the Americas on an expedition sponsored by King Ferdinand of Spain in 1492. The effect of this was that several more eruopeens would come over and start a new country. -
Sir Walter Raliegh Establishes colony in the East Coast.
Sir Walter Raleigh was an English adventurer and writer who established a colony near Roanoke Island, in present-day North Carolina. He was imprisoned in the Tower of London and eventually put to death for treason. The effect of this was that it was one of the first conlony in the New World. This was big because it would inspire others to go and start their own. -
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John Hobbes
Thomas Hobbes, born in Westport, England, on April 5, 1588, was known for his views on how humans could thrive in harmony while avoiding the perils and fear of societal conflict. His experience during a time of upheaval in England influenced his thoughts, which he captured in The Elements of Law (1640); De Cive [On the Citizen] (1642) and his most famous work, Leviathan (1651). Hobbes died in 1679. -
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John Locke
The English philosopher and political theorist John Locke (1632-1704) laid much of the groundwork for the Enlightenment and made central contributions to the development of liberalism. Trained in medicine, he was a key advocate of the empirical approaches of the Scientific Revolution. In his “Essay Concerning Human Understanding,” he advanced a theory of the self as a blank page, with knowledge and identity arising only from accumulated experience. His political theory of government by the conse -
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English Civil War
The English Civil War was battled between Charles I of England and Oliver Cromwell of France. It ended with Oliver Cromwell winning the battle and controlling England. It also made way for a Bill of Rights and Constitution. These documents were not only used for them, but were also used in different nation throughout history. -
Charles I is exucuted
He was executed by the people of England for commiting treason. This was big because the family of Charles was out of the throne, and that absolute monarchy was over. -
Oliver Cromwell dies
Oliver Cromwell died of what people thought was a Urinary tract infection. His son became the King didn't display good qualities which eventually lead to Charles II returning to the throne in 1660. -
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Baron de Montesquieu
Charles-Louis de Secondat, Baron de La Brède and de Montesquieu, was born in the Aquitaine region of France on January 18, 1689, during the Age of Enlightenment. Through his education and travels he became a sharp social commentator and political thinker who gained the respect of his fellow philosophers with his masterwork The Spirit of Laws, which went on to have a major influence on English and American government. -
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Voltire
Born on November 21, 1694, in Paris, France, Voltaire was exiled to Tulle in 1715. Two years later, in 1717, he returned to Paris, only to be arrested and exiled to the Bastille for a year. He was sent to the Bastille again in 1726, before being shipped off to England. In 1733, he fled to Lorraine, and in 1759, he wrote the satirical novella Candide. In 1778, Voltaire returned to Paris, where he died there on May 30 of that year. -
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Jean-Jacques Rousseau
Jean-Jacques Rousseau, known as one of the most influential thinkers during the 18th-century European Enlightenment period, was born on June 28, 1712, in Geneva, Switzerland. His first philosophical work, A Discourse on the Arts and Sciences, discussed how science and arts had caused the corruption of virtue and morality. Rousseau was also a composer and music theorist. -
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Mary W.
Feminist writer and intellectual Mary Wollstonecraft was born on April 27, 1759, in London. Brought up by an abusive father, she left home and dedicated herself to a life of writing. While working as a translator to Joseph Johnson, a publisher of radical texts, she published her most famous work, A Vindication of the Rights of Woman. She died 10 days after her second daughter, Mary, was born. -
Adam Smith writes book about economics.
After toiling for nine years, in 1776 Smith published An Inquiry into the Nature and Causes of the Wealth of Nations which is thought of as the first work dedicated to the study of political economy. Economics of the time were dominated by the idea that a country’s wealth was best measured by its store of gold and silver. Smith proposed that a nation’s wealth should be judged not by this metric but by the total of its production. This was big because we still use these ideas today.
