| A | B |
|---|
| Hapsburg empire | Central European empire that lasted from the 1400s to the 1900s and at its height included the lands of the Holy Roman Empire and the Netherlands. |
| Charles V | Became king of Spain in 1516 and the heir to the Hapsburg Empire in 1519, he fought to suppress Protestantism and against the encroaching Ottoman Empire. |
| Philip II | Son to Charles V, he expanded Spanish influence, strengthened the Catholic Church, and made his power absolute in Spain during his 42-year reign. |
| absolute monarch | Ruler with complete authority over the government and lives of the people he or she governs. |
| divine right | Belief that a ruler's authority comes directly from God. |
| armada | Fleet. |
| El Greco | Although born in Greece, he became one of Spain's master painters. |
| Miguel de Cervantes | Wrote Don Quixote. |
| Huguenots | French Protestants of the 1500s and 1600s. |
| Henry IV | Huguenot prince who became king of France against fierce Catholic opposition and would issue the Edict of Nantes. |
| Edict of Nantes | Law issued by French king Henry IV in 1598 giving more religious freedom to French Protestants. |
| Cardinal Richelieu | Chief minister to Louis XIII who sought to destroy the power of the Huguenots and nobles through his policies. |
| Louis XIV | Became king at 5, he became an absolute monarch, calling himself the Sun King, and building the opulent palace Versailles. |
| intendent | Offical appointed by French king Louis XIV to govern the provinces, collect taxes, and recruit soldiers. |
| Jean-Baptiste Colbert | Louis XIV's finance minister who imposed mercantilist polices to bolster France's economy, helping it become the wealthiest state in Europe. |
| Versailles | Royal French residence and seat of government established by King Louis XIV. |
| levee | Morning ritual during which nobles would wait upon French king Louis XIV. |
| balance of power | Distribution of military and economic power that prevents any one nation from becoming too strong. |
| James I | Ruling king of Scotland, he became king of England and was the first Stuart monarch, repeatedly clashing with Parliament throughout his reign. |
| dissenter | Protestant whose views and opinions differed from those of the Church of England. |
| Puritans | Members of an English Protestant group who wanted to "purify" the Church of England by making it more simple and more morally strict. |
| Charles I | Son of James I, who continued his father's policy of absolute monarchy in England, eventually leading to a long civil war and his arrest and execution. |
| Oliver Cromwell | Puritan leader of the Roundheads, he eventually became Lord Protector of England's Commonwealth after the monarchy was abolished for a little over a decade. |
| English Bill of Rights | Series of acts passed by the English Parliament in 1689 that limited the rights of the monarchy and ensured the superiority of Parliament. |
| limited monarchy | Government in which a constitution or legislative body limits the monarch's powers. |
| constitutional government | Government whose power is defined and limited by law. |
| cabinet | Parliamentary advisors to the king who originally met in a small room. |
| oligarchy | Government in which ruling power belongs to a few people. |
| elector | One of seven German princes who would choose the Holy Roman emperor. |
| Ferdinand | Bohemian king who was elected Holy Roman Emperor and tried to suppress Protestant revolts, sparking the 30-Year War. |
| mercenary | Soldier serving in a foreign army for pay. |
| depopulation | Reduction in the number of people in an area. |
| Peace of Westphalia | Series of treaties that ended the Thirty Years' War. |
| Maria Theresa | Daughter of Austrian Emperor Charles VI, whose rise to the throne started the War of the Austrian Succession. |
| War of the Austrian Succession | Series of wars in which European nations competed for power in Central Europe after the death of Hapsburg emperor Charles VI. |
| Prussia | Strong military state in central Europe that emerged in the late 1600s. |
| Frederick William I | Prussian rulerfrom the Hohenzollerns who strenghtened control of his state and emphasized military values and forged one of the best-trained armies in Europe. |
| Frederic II | Nicknamed "the Great," he had his armies invade Silesa, igniting the War of the Austrian Succession and brought Prussia recognition as a great power. |
| Peter the Great | Tsar who fostered a period of modernization for Russia through heavy autocratic rule. |
| westernization | Adoption of western ideas, technology, and culture. |
| autocratic | Having unlimited power. |
| boyar | Landowning noble in Russia under the tsars. |
| warm-water port | Port that is free of ice yearround. |
| St. Petersburg | Capital city and major port that Peter the Great established in Russia in 1703. |
| Catherine the Great | German princess who became tsarina of Russia after a period of ineffective rulers as an Enlightened ruler, while still carrying forth repressive policies of absolute rule. |
| partition | A division into pieces. |
