Now the what happened to the Renaissance was churches and politics. In Renaissance italy is a thoroughly Researched but very readable account of the life and career of Francesco Soderini. …show more content…
Nonetheless, the discoveries and theories of the Enlightenment philosophers continued to influence Western society for centuries.The Enlightenment, or Age of Enlightenment, rearranged politics and government in earthshaking ways. This cultural movement embraced several types of philosophies, or approaches to thinking and exploring the world. Generally, Enlightened thinkers thought objectively and without prejudice. Reasoning, rationalism, and empiricism were some of the schools of thought that composed the …show more content…
Louis XIV, the "sun king" of France which took the lead in European civilization in 17th century, was certainly imitated by other other rulers in various countries, such as Prussia, Russia, etc, and England became an exception. Prussia, defensive in origin, was preoccupied with its army, arising from the horrors of the Thirty Years' War and their vulnerable geographical location. Eventually it became militaristic, the army, in its requirements for food, uniforms, and weapons, was a strong force in shaping the economic growth of the country. The government, as in France under Colbert, initiated and helped to finance various industries. The army had a profound effect on the social development and people's mindset in Prussia. The civilian middle classes remained submissive, and the sense of service to the king or state was exalted as the supreme human virtue. The fact that Prussia was a very recent combination of territories, so that loyalty was not a natural sentiment, made it necessary to instill it by martial means. Emphasis fell on duty, obedience, service and sacrifice, making Prussia an offshoot of absolutism. In Russia, under Tsar Peter the Great, the country underwent a process of westernization, in which new western ideas and technology have been brought within Russian border. Politically Russian empire resembled the new kingdom of Prussia, both lacked natural frontiers, in