Scientific Revolution
A new way of thinking about the natural world, based on careful observations, a willingness for people to question accepted beliefs
Enlightenment
A movement in the 18th century that advocated the use of reason in the reappraisal of accepted ideas and social institutions
Ptolemy
Alexandrian astronomer who proposed a geocentric system of astronomy that was undisputed until Copernicus
Geocentric
A model of the universe in which Earth is at the center of the revolving planets and stars.
Heliocentric
A model of the solar system in which Earth and the other planets revolve around the sun
Nicholas Copernicus
Polish astronomer who challenged geocentric model of the universe, published On the Revolutions of the Heavenly Bodies (1534)
Johannes Kepler
German astronomer who confirmed laws of planetary motion = elliptical orbits rather than circular (Kepler's First Law)
Galileo Galilei
Italian astronomer who confirmed Kepler's ideas and concluded planets were made of matter rather than orbs of light. - via his observation through a modified telescope. Called before the Inquisition in Rome (1632) to recant his findings. The Starry Messenger (1610)
Issac Newton
British scientist who defined the laws of motion in the Universe via gravity, published Principia (1687)
Andrea Vesalius
Proved early beliefs about human anatomy (Galen) were innacurate by dissecting corpses rather than animals, published On the Fabric of the Human Body (1534)
William Harvey
English physician and scientist who described the circulation of the blood, published On the Motion of the Heart and Blood (1628)
Robert Boyle
Irish chemist best known for Boyle's Law - describes the inversely proportional relationship between the absolute pressure and volume of a gas
Antonine Lavoisier
Widely considered to be the "Father of Modern Chemistry", helped construct the metric system, wrote the first extensive list of elements, and helped to reform chemical nomenclature
Rene Descartes
17th century French philosopher; published Discourse on Method (1637), believed mind and matter were completly seperate; Cogito ergo sum (I think therefore I am); known as the father of modern rationalism
Francis Bacon
Argued for an empirical, or inductive reasoning approach (scientific method), to scientific inquiry
Tabula rasa
"Blank slate" - a young mind not yet affected by experience according to John Locke
Baron de Montesquieu
French philosopher, published Spirit of the Laws (1748); government should divide itself according to its powers, creating a Judicial, Legislative, and Executive branch. Under this system each branch would "check and balance" the other
Voltaire
French philospher who championed Deism (God is a clockmaker who doesn't intervene with man's free will); attacked Christianity as being "intolerant"
Denis Diderot
French Enlightenment figure best known for his work on the first encyclopedia
Jean-Jacques Rousseau
Published Social Contract (1762) which argued members of a society agree to be governed by general will of the people; also published Emile (1761) which served as the inspiration for a nationally sponsored system of education
Mary Wollstonecraft
British feminist who argued for women's equality with men, even in voting; published Vindication of the Rights of Women (1792)
Salon
Gatherings of the social, political, and cultural elite in France during the Enlightenment
John Wesley
English clergyman and founder of Methodism; emphasized evangelicalism (open air preaching); Methodism played influential role in abolition of slavery
Johann Balthasar Neumann
German architect who refined the baroque style; designed the Kaisersaal (Imperial Hall, Residnez Wurzburg) in Bavaria, Germany
rococo
A continuation of the french ideas of the Baroque period with a focus on the pleasures of life for the aristocracy, very feminine, soft, and sensual
Johann Sebastian Bach
Foremost composer of the late German Baroque era
George Frederick Handel
German composer, profoundly secular, most known for religious music (Messiah)
Franz Joseph Haydn
Vienna, Austria composer who developed new musical forms such as the sonata and the symphony during the classical period
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
Considered the greatest composer of concerto, symphony and opera; a 6 year old prodigy who wrote more than 600 pieces of music
Henry Fielding
English writer; best-known work is The History of Tom Jones, a Foundling (1749)
Frederick William I
"The Soldier King"; centralized power through an efficient bureaucracy, made Prussia a military state through conscription
Frederick the Great
King of Prussia from 1740 to 1786; enlightened despot who enlarged Prussia by gaining land from Austria when Maria Theresa became Empress
Maria Theresa
Daughter of Charled VI, who's inheritance of the Austrian throne sparked the War of the Austrian Succession; became heiress of Austria; mother of Joseph II
Joseph II
Son of Maria Theresa; Holy Roman Emperor of Austria: enlightened despot who ordered a new unified code of laws; launched ambitious educational reforms; pushed for religious toleration; tried to remove the burdens of serfdom in his lands; and encourage agricultural innovation
salutary neglect
British colonial policy characterized by relaxed supervision of internal colonial affairs; contributed significantly to the rise of American self government