Enlightenment - Start French Revolution

Enlightened despots were 18th-century absolute monarchs who embraced Enlightenment ideas while maintaining their power. Rulers like Frederick the Great of Prussia, Catherine the Great of Russia, and Joseph II of Austria implemented reforms such as religious tolerance, legal codification, and education improvements, though they never gave up absolute control.

The Third Estate, representing the vast majority of the French population, had little political influence compared to the clergy and nobility. Their demand for fair representation and political power was a primary driver of the revolution.

Under the Old Regime, the clergy and nobility were largely exempt from taxes. The burden fell almost entirely on the commoners, or the Third Estate, which created deep resentment and fueled the revolution.

Both Machiavelli and Hobbes argued that a strong, central authority is necessary to maintain order and prevent chaos. Machiavelli focused on the pragmatism of the ruler, while Hobbes emphasized the need for a sovereign to prevent the 'war of all against all'.

The Divine Right of Kings held that a monarch's authority came directly from God. Similarly, the Mandate of Heaven in China was the belief that a ruler's right to govern was granted by divine approval, which could be lost if the ruler became unjust.

Montesquieu, Voltaire, and Rousseau were all prominent thinkers of the Enlightenment. They advocated for reason, individual rights, and critical examination of political and social institutions.

John Locke is the philosopher most famously associated with the concept of natural rights, specifically life, liberty, and property. He argued that these rights are inherent to all humans and that government exists to protect them.

Enlightenment thinkers challenged the traditional authority of monarchs, including the theory of divine right. By promoting the idea that government should be based on the consent of the governed, they provided the intellectual justification for the French Revolution.

The three estates in pre-revolutionary France were a rigid social hierarchy based on birth and status: the clergy (First Estate), the nobility (Second Estate), and everyone else (Third Estate).

The tax structure in France was highly unequal, placing the financial burden on the Third Estate while exempting the wealthy clergy and nobility. This systemic inequality was a major catalyst for the revolution.

The Enlightenment marked a shift toward using reason, science, and logic to evaluate government and society. This challenged traditional authority and paved the way for democratic revolutions.

The quote reflects the belief that the monarch's power is derived from God and is therefore absolute and above human law. This is the definition of the divine right of kings.

Enlightenment thinkers emphasized the use of reason and scientific inquiry to understand the world, rather than relying solely on tradition or religious dogma.

John Locke argued that people possess natural rights and that the primary role of government is to protect those rights. If a government fails to do so, the people have the right to change it.

Both the Hindu Caste System and the French Estates were rigid social structures where an individual's status was determined by birth, making it nearly impossible to move between classes.

John Locke was an Enlightenment philosopher who argued that government exists to protect natural rights (life, liberty, and property). If a government fails to do so, the people have the right to revolt.