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Period: 1547 to
Reign of Ivan the Terrible
The grandson of Ivan the Great, Ivan the Terrible, or Ivan IV, acquired vast amounts of land during his long reign, an era marked by the conquest of the khanates of Kazan, Astrakhan, and Siberia. Ivan the Terrible created a centrally controlled Russian state, imposed by military dominance. He successfully grabbed large chunks of land from the nobility and created his own personal guard, the oprichnina, during this era. -
Period: 1550 to
Scientific Revolution
The Scientific Revolution was a series of events that marked the emergence of modern science during the early modern period when developments in mathematics, physics, astronomy, biology, and chemistry transformed the views of society about nature. The Scientific Revolution led to the establishment of several modern sciences. -
Reign of Ivan the Terrible
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Reign of Henry IV of France
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Period: to
Reign of Henry IV of France
Henry IV abjured Protestantism and converted to Roman Catholicism (1593) in order to win Paris and reunify France at the end of the Wars of Religion. Despite converting to Catholicism after becoming king of France in 1589, Henry IV issued the Edict of Nantes to foster religious tolerance. With the aid of such ministers as the Duke de Sully, he brought new prosperity to France. -
Scientific Revolution
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Period: to
English Civil War
The English Civil War saw King Charles I battle Parliament for control of the English government. The war began as a result of a conflict over the power of the monarchy and the rights of Parliament. The overall outcome of the war was threefold: the trial and execution of Charles I; the exile of his son, Charles II; and the replacement of English monarchy with, at first, the Commonwealth of England. -
Reign of Louis XIV
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Period: to
Reign of Louis XIV
Louis XIV was known as the Sun King and was the prime example of absolute monarchy in 17th and 18th century Europe. He was significant for a few reasons: Government control - by building the palace at Versailles and holding court there, Louis was able to control the policy-making in absolute France. -
English Civil War
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Last Outbreak of Bubonic Plague
Late outbreaks in central Europe included the Italian Plague of 1629–1631, which is associated with troop movements during the Thirty Years' War, and the Great Plague of Vienna in 1679. Over 60% of Norway's population died. The last plague outbreak ravaged Oslo in 1654. -
Period: to
Rule of Oliver Cromwell
As one of the generals on the parliamentary side in the English Civil Wars against Charles I, Oliver Cromwell helped overthrow the Stuart monarchy. After the death of Charles I, Cromwell served in the Rump Parliament and set to reform the legal system in part through the establishment of the Blue Laws. He commanded campaigns in Ireland and Scotland in the early 1650s and served as “lord protector” of England, Wales, Scotland and Ireland from 1653 until his death. -
Rule of Oliver Cromwell
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English Restoration
When Charles II ascended the throne in 1660, English subjects on both sides of the Atlantic celebrated the restoration of the English monarchy after a decade of living without a king as a result of the English Civil Wars. Charles II lost little time in strengthening England's global power. -
Reign of Peter the Great
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Period: to
Reign of Peter the Great
Peter the Great reigned over Russia for around 43 years from 1682 till his death in 1725. He initiated a wide range of economic, social, political, administrative, educational and military reforms which ended the dominance of traditionalism and religion in Russia and initiated its westernization. -
Revocation of Edict of Nantes
Louis XIV formally revoked the Edict of Nantes and deprived the French Protestants of all religious and civil liberties. It led to the suppression of the Reformed Church in France and forced Protestants into exile or hiding. As a result, they lost all social identities. It is now believed that Louis XIV could have revoked the Edict to placate the Catholic Church, angry over the many restrictions that the king had placed on the church. -
Glorious Revolution
The Glorious Revolution of 1688-1689 replaced the reigning king, James II, with the joint monarchy of his protestant daughter Mary and her Dutch husband, William of Orange. Moreover, the British causes of the revolution were as much religious as political. It permanently established Parliament as the ruling power of England—and, later, the United Kingdom—representing a shift from an absolute monarchy to a constitutional monarchy. -
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War of Spanish Succession
The War of the Spanish Succession was a European conflict of the early 18th century between dynastic claimants and their respective allies for the throne of Spain: the Habsburg Dynasty, based in Austria, and the Bourbon Dynasty, originating in France. The war ended in Philip of Anjou ultimately winning and becoming the next king of Spain known as Philip V. -
War of Spanish Succession
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The Enlightenment
The Enlightenment presented a challenge to traditional religious views. It was thought during the Enlightenment that human reasoning could discover truths about the world, religion, and politics and could be used to improve the lives of humankind. Skepticism about received wisdom was another important idea; everything was to be subjected to testing and rational analysis. -
The Enlightenment
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The Seven Years' War
he Seven Years' War, also known as the French and Indian War, began in 1756 when the fighting between French and colonists merged into a European conflict involving France, Austria, and Russia against Prussia and Britain. The war provided Great Britain enormous territorial gains in North America, but disputes over subsequent frontier policy and paying the war's expenses led to colonial discontent, and ultimately to the American Revolution. -
Period: to
Reign of Catherine the Great
The Russian empress Catherine II (1729-1796), known as Catherine the Great, reigned from 1762 to 1796. She expanded the Russian Empire, improved administration, and vigorously pursued the policy of Westernization. Her reputation as an "enlightened despot," however, is not wholly supported by her deeds. -
The Seven Years' War/Treaty of Paris 1763
The Treaty of Paris of 1763 ended the French and Indian War/Seven Years' War between Great Britain and France, as well as their respective allies. In terms of the treaty, France gave up all its territories in mainland North America, effectively ending any foreign military threat to the British colonies there. -
Reign of Catherine the Great
