DBQ 10 21 14
Daniel Finan
Mr. Stephenson
AP European History
22 October 2014
Absolutism and its Influence Absolutism is the idea that one ruler is responsible for an entire empire for everything. More simply, they have control of everything. Absolutism became especially popular in the 1500s with events that were caused because of it. Absolutism has social, political, and religious effects on every-day lives of people and governments, not to mention the unhappy nobles. Absolutism has always been something tha t leaders try to achieve, but either it doesn’t last long or the leader does not achieve full absolute power. The political effects of absolutism were simple enough, full power. King Louis XIV of France said it best in Document C-“ The head alone has the right to deliberate and decide, and the functions of all the other members consist only in carrying out the commands given to them… The more you grant (to the assembly of the people), the more it claims… The interest of the state must come first.” He states that a member of the government has very limited power and an easy rule to follow, do whatever the king says or orders. It seems he is speaking to his lower counterparts and officials, because of his tone of speaking about the common people and their intents. In Document E, there is a perspective painting of Versailles and all of its glory. The pure sight of the palace makes someone’s jaw drop. The fact that King Louis XIV could just “build” something of that size is unimaginable. It is an exaggeration of his absolute power and showing to the rest of the world as well as his people that he truly has full control over everything. Another important aspect of absolutism is religion and keeping the religious happy. The religious followers never like too much change and being an absolutist means you have full control over the church. In Document F, Bishop Jacques Bossuet is speaking about a king’s relation to the church; he states, “There is something religious in the
Mr. Stephenson
AP European History
22 October 2014
Absolutism and its Influence Absolutism is the idea that one ruler is responsible for an entire empire for everything. More simply, they have control of everything. Absolutism became especially popular in the 1500s with events that were caused because of it. Absolutism has social, political, and religious effects on every-day lives of people and governments, not to mention the unhappy nobles. Absolutism has always been something tha t leaders try to achieve, but either it doesn’t last long or the leader does not achieve full absolute power. The political effects of absolutism were simple enough, full power. King Louis XIV of France said it best in Document C-“ The head alone has the right to deliberate and decide, and the functions of all the other members consist only in carrying out the commands given to them… The more you grant (to the assembly of the people), the more it claims… The interest of the state must come first.” He states that a member of the government has very limited power and an easy rule to follow, do whatever the king says or orders. It seems he is speaking to his lower counterparts and officials, because of his tone of speaking about the common people and their intents. In Document E, there is a perspective painting of Versailles and all of its glory. The pure sight of the palace makes someone’s jaw drop. The fact that King Louis XIV could just “build” something of that size is unimaginable. It is an exaggeration of his absolute power and showing to the rest of the world as well as his people that he truly has full control over everything. Another important aspect of absolutism is religion and keeping the religious happy. The religious followers never like too much change and being an absolutist means you have full control over the church. In Document F, Bishop Jacques Bossuet is speaking about a king’s relation to the church; he states, “There is something religious in the