Asher K. Sisneros Prof. Thomas E. Woods, Jr.  Western Civilization Since 1493 October 28, 2024 Enlightened absolutism arose as a merger between principles of the Enlightenment and absolutism, hence the name. Monarchs lenient to Enlightenment thinkers such as Diderot and Voltaire wound up governing with policies that favored such philosophical ideas. Typically, they viewed themselves … More Enlightened Absolutism

Asher K. Sisneros Prof. Thomas E. Woods, Jr.  Western Civilization Since 1493 October 22, 2024 It is often said that one generation builds, another maintains, and the third destroys. This cycle vaguely resembles what happened to absolutism in France. At one point, all of Europe’s monarchs envied King Louis XIV’s consolidation of centralized power and … More The Fall of Absolutism in France 

Asher K. Sisneros Prof. Thomas E. Woods, Jr.  Western Civilization Since 1493 October 21, 2024 Economics did not truly become a social science until Adam Smith and his followers. Economic theories had existed before him, such as mercantilism, and even the University of Salamanca had theologians and scholars who pushed for laissez-faire principles, but none … More Adam Smith’s Invisible Hand 

Asher K. Sisneros Prof. Thomas E. Woods, Jr. Western Civilization Since 1493  October 21, 2024 The Enlightenment in France gave rise to a philosophy known as materialism, which completely rejected prior Christian norms. Though many thinkers through the Enlightenment retained their faith in God, such as Isaac Newton, the materialists were an exception. Unlike their … More French Materialism

Asher K. Sisneros Thomas E. Woods, Jr.  Western Civilization Since 1493 October 14, 1493 The basic backbone of the Enlightenment was the presupposition of the sovereignty of reason; more specifically, reason accompanied by empirical evidence. Man became the authoritative sovereign during this era and the definer of truth. Those who shared this belief ran contrary … More Ideas of the Enlightenment

Asher K. Sisneros Thomas E. Woods, Jr.  Western Civilization Since 1493 October 14, 2024 Joseph Priestley (1733-1804) was a theologian and natural philosopher during the 18th century. He even taught as a minister after abdicting from Calvinism because of his theologically liberal views. But upon meeting Benjamin Franklin, he became enamored by science and made … More Joseph Priestley (1733-1804)

Asher K. Sisneros Thomas E. Woods, Jr.  Western Civilization Since 1493 October 14, 2024 It is a misconception that the Scientific Revolution was the first attempt to understand the universe in terms of rationality. Many Scholastics engaged in this behavior, and the pioneers of the Scientific Revolution did build on some ideas from the past. … More The Copernican Revolution

The High Renaissance more or less died with Michelangelo, and Mannerism (1520-1600) took its place. Following the death of the three greatest Renaissance artists—Leonardi da Vinci, Michelangelo, and Raphael—most artists more or less gave up on trying to top their predecessors. Instead, Mannerism was a movement to explore the individuality and idiosyncrasies of each individual … More Mannerist and Boroque Art

Asher K. Sisneros Thomas E. Woods, Jr. Western Civilization Since 1493 October 7, 2024 Peter the Great (r. 1682-1725) had one primary objective as the Tsar of Russia: Westernization. Today, his rule is highly controversial. To some, he was an absolutist despot who sought to vanquish Russia of its old tradition. To others, he was … More Russian Rule Under Peter the Great