State building in the 17th century

¶ … Building

17th Century Europe

The seventeenth century in Europe saw a great deal of change occur. The previous discovery of the New World had had many political, social, and economic effects on the Old World across the sea, creating constant change in the balance of power and wealth that did not stabilize until late in the twentieth century (if then). The Reformation -- the tuning away from the Catholic church by many European nations -- had an even greater impact; this reflected an institutional change in the way many countries operated and interacted, including a large change in their economic advantages and policies. In England, the monarchy was removed from the throne, and in France an absolute ruler came into power. Through all of this upper-class upheaval the middle merchant class was rising, and humanist thought was beginning to emerge.

In France, absolutism became the method of government. Henry IV, followed by Louis XIII, wer the supreme rulers, controlling the military, church, and the rest of the aristocracy -- not to mention the peasantry and other lower classes. This reflected the very essence of absolutist thought. The Thirty Years War, which started as a religious battle between Protestants and Catholics, developed into a power struggle between many European powers, but most notably the French Bourbons and the Austrian Hapsburgs. The massive destruction that this war caused allowed new powers -- notably Austria, Brandenburg-Prussia, and Russia to emerge as powerful new empires in Europe. Meanwhile, Parliamentary limits on Charles I's power in England came to a head when he was denied funding for wars and other endeavors; his subsequent actions led to a revolution in which he lost his throne and head.