APWH Chapter 18 Guiding Questions Key
In order to receive full credit on your test, you must expand upon these answers with additional specific details wherever possible.
1. Two bitter struggles in the sixteenth century marked the end of Europe’s Middle Ages and the beginning of the early modern era. What were those two struggles, and how did they affect European unity and international strength?
The two struggles were the Reformation and the threat of the Ottoman Empire’s Muslim armies. The Reformation shattered Latin Christian unity, replacing it with bitter religious conflict. Warfare among national monarchies lessened the ability to resist Ottoman attacks. Competition and conflict, however, promoted technological, administrative, social, and economic changes that pushed Europe into the forefront of world powers.
2. How did the basic tenets of Lutheranism and Calvinism differ from those of Catholicism? What was the Catholic response to the Protestant Reformation?
Each denomination placed differing emphases on the path to salvation—the Catholic belief in salvation through good works, the Lutheran emphasis on faith, and the Calvinist belief in predestination. The different philosophies regarding church ornamentation and hierarchies were also prominent. The “Catholic Reformation” addressed the Protestant challenge at the Council of Trent. While many Catholic beliefs were clarified, the council mostly reaffirmed papal and church power.
3. How did the expansion of trade in seventeenth- and eighteenth-century Europe promote the development of new business methods and technologies? How did these new developments spur economic growth?
The expansion of trade necessitated the development of new techniques to manage businesses and invest profits. Businesses that had previously relied on small, private sources of finance increasingly turned to new large financial institutions, such as stock exchanges. Individual management evolved into boards of directors and many-layered business hierarchies. In addition to these new commercial techniques, the development of new technology—and the refinement of what already existed—also facilitated economic growth. Information of new devices was spread by means of printed material, and improvements in water transport, such as construction of canals, facilitated transportation, and shipbuilding expanded Europe’s network of trade.
4. Describe the two major elements in the intellectual revolution, noting the individuals involved and their major contributions.
The Scientific Revolution and the Enlightenment are the two major elements. The contributions of Copernicus, Brahe, Kepler, Galileo, and Newton all combined to alter the way of thinking established by Aristotle. The scientific method also made contributions to social thought, which, along with economic and political changes, resulted in the Enlightenment. The major contributors to the social thought of the Enlightenment included Voltaire and John Locke.