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Balance of Power in the
Eighteenth-Century Europe
Rise of Russia
• In the beginning of the 18th century Russia
was scarcely known about to the rest of
Europe
• Won decisive victory at battle of Poltava
• Treaty of Nystad confirmed Russia’s victory
over Sweden in the Great Northern war
• Established Russia as new Baltic power
Rise of Russia
• Under Peter the Great
Russia came to its
international position
of power
• Visited Europe,
married off his
children to German
prince/dukes, and
established foreign
embassies
• Sent sons of gentry
west for education
• Recruited Europeans
to fill most skilled
positions in the state
• Made foreign scholars
head of state schools
Peter the Great/ Russia
• Not only did the
Russians defeat the
invincible Swedes, but
they took over Baltic
provinces and could
protect and defend
their northern ports
under the leadership of
Peter
• Huge standing army
• Large navy
• Russia could organize,
equip, finance, and
train up-to-date
military force
Tsar Peter the Great
• Russia was not
ethnically
homogeneous like
most of the European
states, instead it was a
loose confederation of
diverse peoples
• Western states posed
the greatest threat to
Russia
• All of Peter’s western
reforms were meant to
enhance military
efficiency rather than
civil progress
• Poll tax: tax went from
household to
individual adult maleerasing social classes
Tsar Peter the Great
• Census taken to inhibit • Nobility and gentry
tax evasion
provided officers and
states servants for the
• Tax instituted to
growing war machine
increase revenue for
of Russia
war
• Rest of military force
• Lifetime military
was raised from the
service was required
peasants or conscripts
of the landowning
classes
Tsar Peter the Great
• Gentry lived on estates
given by Peter.
Gentry controlled the
resident peasants in
reward for their
military contributions
• Had to accompany
regiments to the field
and lead them in battle
Tsar Peter the Great
• If you were too old
• Senate was led by
then you were to
Procurator-General:
perform administrative
presided over session
service
and proposed
• Peter created the
legislation
Senate: 9 senior
• 500 fiscals: traveled to
administrators to
parts of the states
oversee all aspects of
looking for any
military and civil
government
irregularities
Tsar Peter the Great
• Table of Ranks 1722:
official hierarchy of
the states: social
position. Divided into
3 categories:
Military service
civil service
landed elites
• New ability to move
into Russian elite
• Founded university,
had western books
translated into
Russian, Russian
newspaper, and
introduced Arabic
numerals
Tsar Peter the Great
• Russia had more
natural resources than
any other state in
Europe
• Established factories:
production of textiles,
glass, leather, and *
iron and copper
• Largest producers of
iron/copper
• Killed his son, Alexis,
which plunged the
state into a succession
crisis
• 97% Russians were
farmers: bad harvests
• Most people were
peasants, who served
their master…became
serfs under Peter
Catherine the Great
• In order to gain the
throne each new tsar
had to make
concessions with the
nobility: life service
abolished
• Had her husband,
Peter III, murdered so
she could have power
•
Catherine the Great
• Restructured
government into
provinces governed by
a central official and
elected noblemen-had
right to petition the
tsar
• Education: created
schools for boys and
girls of the nobility
• Took no actions to end
or soften serfdom-she
gave away some
800,000 state peasants
• Pugachev’s Revolt:
promised freedom and
land he drew peasants
to revolt
• 1774 to over Kazan
and threaten Moscow
Russian Life
• Took a year to control
the rebellion and
Pugachev was
executed
• Quality of life
changed for those in
the nobility/gentry
while no different for
peasants
Homework:
• Reading pages 588-596
• Answer question # 3
Two Germanies
• End of 30 Years’ War initiated a period of
profound transformation in the H.R. Empire
• 2 empires: German and Austrian, ruled by
Holy Roman Emperor
• German: Brandenburg-Prussia
• Austria: Austria, Bohemia, and parts of
Hungary
Prussia
• Under Frederick
William the Great
Prussia was built into
a war machine
• On winning sides of
the wars of succession
and Great Northern
War
• Gained some Baltic
ports
• All reforms made
from the state were to
meet the needs of the
military
• Geographic position
meant Prussia had to
maintain its armies
• Reformed
government:
centralization
Prussia
• Reformed economy
• Created a surplus
• Frederick II: military
exploits
• Gained territory of
Silesia
• Unified state
Austria
• Gained territory in the
Netherlands and Italy
through war of
Spanish Succession
• Benefited more from
the balance of power
concept than from its
own strength
• 30 Years’ war limited
powers of emperornow like monarch
• Protestants fled area
dominated by
Catholics
• Still states within very
autonomous
• Hard to centralize
power
Austria
• Charles IV Emperor of
the German nation
(1711-1740)
• Army small and poor
• Lack of finances
• Charles had no sons:
Pragmatic Sanction to
recognize daughter as
new emperor
• Maria Theresa (17401780) inherited throne
• 1740 Prussia attacked
taking Silesia
• Through Hungarian
aid she defended
Austria from Prussia
• Began process of
building the state
Austria
• Established royal
control over raising
and collecting taxes
• Peasants reforms:
limited labor and taxes
• Joseph II (1780-1790)
Continued in mother’s
path
• Reorganization of
bureaucracy, increased
taxes, and social
reforms revitalized the
state
Wars of Austrian Succession
1740-1748
• Prussia, France, and
• Forced Austria to
Spain vs. Austria,
recognize Prussia’s
England, and Holland
conquest of Silesia
• Again theory of
• France withdrew from
balance of power came
the Netherlands in
into the conflict
return from some of its
colonial possessions
• War made Austria and
Prussia permanent
enemies
7 Years’ War
1756-1763
• Prussia and England
• Peter III worshipped
vs. Russia, France, and
Frederick the Great
Austria
and when he became
tsar quickly negotiated
• Attacked Saxony and
a peace
Austria, but defeated
by Russian army
• He abandoned his
allies and land gains
• Russia gained territory
in Prussia, however
• Not long afterwards,
Peter III gave back the
Catherine came to the
land
throne
7 Years’ War
• War did little to
redraw political lines
• It did, however,
establish Prussia as a
major power balanced
by the Austrian
Empire
• Ushered in a peaceful
time in eastern Europe
Poland
• Poland was like a
sitting duck
• Nobility still
controlled country so
there was little
centralization of
power
• Repeatedly powers of
nobility were extended
• Poland had open
borders with some of
the most powerful
states in Europe:
Prussia, Russia, and
Austria
• Army small and not
equipped to fight large
force
Poland
• Prussia, Russia, and
Austria came together
to partition Poland in
1772
• Prussia was now a
single geographical
entity
• Austria proved
capable of survival
• Russia created a buffer
zone to keep German
powers at distance
Homework
• 596-601
• Questions 4-5
Great Britain/ England
• Became the leading power in Europe during
the 18th century
• Unsurpassed in naval power
• Profited from lucrative colonial trade
• Government based on balance of power
between the Crown and Parliament
Great Britain
• Parliament: 2 houses:
House of Commons
and House of Lords
• Gentry dominated
House of Commons
• Crown developed
ways to find favor and
friends in the Houses
• Usually members also
worked for the Crown
• Constitution was
gradually formed
together over time
• 2 main parts: King and
Parliament (2 houses)
Great Britain
• Elections were
expensive so many
areas made
nominations
• Development of the
party system
• Tories-supported
English Church and
James II and James III
• Whigs-did not support
Catholic monarch
• Whigs supported
Protestant succession
• Whigs dominated
Parliament in the early
years
• Monarch had to
support Whigs and put
into powerful
positions to keep
alliance
Great Britain
• Sir Robert Walpole led • Great financial cost in
Parliament and
the Wars of
England. He was over
Succession and the 7
both the treasury and
Years’ War
legislation. Like the
• Raised taxes in the
“prime minister”
American colonies:
• Corruption noted in
shifted burden of
his actions of stacking
taxation to North
Parliament with Whigs
America
Great Britain
• North American
colonists responded to
new taxes negatively
• Revolts based on
issues of:
Taxation without
representation
Already had their own
taxes, which paid for
defensive costs
Colonists had not asked
for British troops
British tossed away
colonial victories at
negotiating tables
British policy defended
Natives
Regulation of internal
taxes not legal
Great Britain
• Protests against the
tyranny of Parliament
• Used resistance theory
to support movement
• The same theory used
in the Glorious
Revolution against the
King of England
• Claimed Parliament
wanted to deprive
colonists of property
and enslave them for
their interests and
corruption
• Used boycotts, mobs,
and violence
• 1770 Boston Tea
Party: British fought
back
Great Britain
• By 1775 England was
in a full scale war with
it’s North American
colonists
• 8 years later England
withdrew from the
American colonies
•
•
•
•
16th: Spain
17th: France
18th: England
All the new social and
economic reforms of
the 18th century were
to lead to great social
upheaval in Europe