THE AGE OF REVOLUTIONS 1642-1791• • THE NOTIONS

The facts

Definitions of key notions & vocabulary

Political regimes
• monarchy: a political regime in which the head of state is a hereditary monarch who inherited the crown.
• absolute monarchy: when the monarch holds all powers and makes all decisions, justified by the divine right of kings, the fact that monarchs hold their power from God and are only accountable before God -not the people.
• arbitrary power: when people in power make decisions without justifying them, so they are viewed as unfair by the people.
• tyranny: when people in government abuse their power and oppress the people, don’t respect their rights.
• limited or parliamentary or constitutional monarchy: when royal power is limited, controlled by the people represented in a parliament; the monarch is no longer above the law but must obey it.
• republic: a political regime in which the head of state is elected by the people.
• confederation: a loose association of states with a weak central government.
• federation: a tight association of states with a strong central government.

Political powers
• the three powers: the legislative power to pass laws and the budget, the executive power to implement law, the judicial power to apply law.
• separation of powers: each power (legislative, executive and judicial) is held by a different player (person or institution) to prevent abuse of power.
• balance of powers: the three powers are equally shared between different players (person or institution) to prevent abuse of power.
• sovereignty of the people: the nation, the people is the basis of all legitimate power.
• representation of the people: when the people take part in political decisions thanks to elected representatives.
• virtual representation: lawmakers represent and legislate in the best interests of not only the people who elected them but also the people who don’t have the vote.

Political crisis
• revolution: popular uprising leading to drastic political and social change. Based on the right to rebel: when the people overthrow their government because it doesn’t respect their rights.
• civil war: a war that takes place between different groups in one country to take control of the government or become independent.
• colony: a territory controlled and governed from outside, not locally, by an imperial power. Its inhabitants are colonists.
• state: a independent, free territory with its own government.

Religious tensions
• Catholic, Catholicism: also called papist, Popery by Protestants, as the Pope is the head of the Catholic Church.
• Anglican, Anglicanism, Church of England: mild form of Protestantism, predominant in England where the monarch is the head of the Church of England.
• Puritan, Puritanism: more radical form of Protestantism.
• tolerance: when all religions are officially accepted by the state
• persecution, discrimination: when one religion dominates and the others are forbidden or less considered.

Economic tensions
• caused by fiscal policy : more revenue for the government means the people pay more taxes.
• due to commercial policy: trade monopoly, that is to say, when the government gives a company the right to be the only one allowed to trade (here to import and to export) goods with its colonies ; it’s a way for governments to control trade and their colonies because colonists aren’t free to trade with other partners or destinations.