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MEDIEVAL   AND    MODERN    HISTORY 

AN   OUTLINE   OF   ITS   DEVELOPMENT 


CHARLEMAGNE 


MEDIEVAL  AND  MODERN 
HISTORY 


AN  OUTLINE  OF  ITS  DEVELOPMENT 

4  0 


\p  -  ? 

GEORGE   BURTON   ADAMS 

PROFESSOR    OF    HISTORY    IN    YALE    UNIVERSITY 


WITH  MAPS  AND  ILLUSTRATIONS 


Nefcr  gorfe 
THE   MACMILLAN    COMPANY 

LONDON:   MACMILLAN  &  CO.,  LTD.    , 
IQO/ 

All  rights  reserved 


(or.  mum,  1899, 
BY  THE  MACMILLAN  COMPANY. 


Set  up  and  electrotyped  January,  1899.     Reprinted  July, 
September,  1899;    July>  19°°   >  September,  -901  ;  April,  1902: 
March,  1903;  April,  1904;  May,  1905;  October,  1906; 
February,  1907. 


PREFACE 

IN  response  to  a  considerable  demand  from  those  who 
wish  a  separate  text-book  of  medieval  and  modern  history, 
it  has  seemed  advisable  to  publish  that  portion  of  my 
European  History  by  itself.  Advantage  has  been  taken  of 
this  change  of  form  to  correct  a  few  errors  to  which  my 
attention  has  been  called. 

G.  B.  A. 

FEBRUARY  10,  1900. 


PREFACE  TO  THE  COMPLETE  WORK 

IT  is  my  hope  that  this  book,  while  it  may  be  used  in  any 
way,  will  be  found  of  especial  value  by  the  teacher  who  has 
escaped  from  the  bondage  of  set  text-book  recitations,  as 
fortunately  most  teachers  of  history  have  now  done. 

In  the  preparation  of  the  bibliographies  and  references  I 
have  had  in  mind  both  the  needs  of  the  teacher  and  of  the 
pupil.  Nothing  adds  so  much  to  the  interest  of  work  in 
history  as  a  more  extensive  knowledge  of  the  subject  on  the 
teacher's  part  than  the  text-book  gives,  and  an  ability  to  fill 
it  out  and  throw  light  upon  it  from  various  sources.  The 
bibliographies  give  the  names  of  many  books  not  specifically 
referred  to  elsewhere.  These  are  especially  for  the  use  of 
the  teacher,  and  the  intention  has  been  to  mention  in  each 
case  the  two  or  three  best  books.  In  the  construction  of 
the  text  also,  while  it  has  been  my  purpose  to  state  as 
clearly  as  possible  all  the  important  facts,  I  have  endeavored 
to  make  a  text  which  would  readily  serve  as  the  foundation 
for  considerable  expansion  by  both  teacher  and  pupils.  It 
will  be  noticed,  possibly,  that  the  stock  historical  anecdotes 
are  lacking.  These,  if  used  at  all,  will  have  much  more 
force  and  point  coming  from  the  teacher  than  if  they  stand 
in  the  text  to  be  read  and  reread  and  repeated  to  the  weari- 
ness of  the  bright  pupil. 

The  specific  references,  while  they  may  be  of  use  to  the 
teacher  himself,  are  especially  intended  to  be  used  with  due 
judgment  in  the  assignment  of  outside  reading  to  the  pupil 
and  as  the  basis  of  reports  to  the  class.  At  the  close  of  each 

vii 


viii  Preface 

chapter  two  or  three  topics  of  especially  assigned  readings 
are  given,  but  these  are  intended  to  serve  as  specimens 
rather  than  to  furnish  a  complete  list.  The  teacher  can 
construct  as  many  others  as  desired  on  the  basis  of  the 
marginal  topics  and  references.  In  the  selection  of  the 
books,  to  which  the  specific  references  are  made,  I  have 
been  governed  by  the  readiness  with  which  the  books  can 
be  procured.  If  a  list  of  all  those  to  which  most  frequent 
reference  is  made  were  drawn  up,  it  would  not  exceed  the 
limits  of  a  good  school  library  of  European  history.  I 
believe  that  all  the  easily  accessible  sources  in  English  have 
been  referred  to  in  most  cases  by  specific  references,  and 
I  have  supplemented  these  by  reference  to  two  or  three  col- 
lections of  sources  in  French  and  German  which  are  readily 
obtainable  and  inexpensive. 

In  the  preparation  of  the  text  I  have  endeavored  to  give 
especial  emphasis  to  the  different  periods  of  history,  and  at 
the  same  time  to  make  clear  the  continuous  movement.  If 
any  fairly  good  conception  can  be  gained  from  the  study  of 
history  of  the  steady  march  of  humanity  up  to  its  present 
level,  one  of  its  richest  and  most  fruitful  results  has  been 
secured,  and  it  is  a  wish  of  mine,  though  one  perhaps  not 
easily  realized,  that  the  teacher  should  be  able  to  make  his 
class  see  in  each  lesson,  or  at  least  in  each  of  the  minor 
epochs  of  history,  how  the  movement  advances  a  stage  in 
the  given  bit  of  time.  I  hope  that  the  summaries  prefixed 
to  the  different  parts  may  be  of  service  in  this  direction. 
It  will  be  noticed  also  that  the  traditional  divisions  of  gen- 
eral history  have  not  been  exactly  followed,  and  that  in  a 
number  of  cases  new  names  have  been  given  to  the  divisions 
made.  These  names  have  been  selected  with  a  view  to 
bringing  out  prominently  the  unity  and  continuous  advance 
of  history.  The  traditional  divisions  are,  however,  made 
clear  enough  in  the  text  so  that  any  one  who  prefers  can 
make  use  of  them. 


Preface  ix 

I  hope  the  book  may  also  be  found  to  serve  a  good  pur- 
pose in  colleges  as  the  "  backbone  book  "  of  a  wider  course 
of  study  or  as  a  book  of  review  on  the  completion  of  such  a 
course. 

I  have  received  suggestions  of  value  in  the  preparation 
of  the  book  from  a  number  of  correspondents,  but  I  am 
under  especial  obligation  for  such  suggestions  to  Professors 
Lucy  M.  Salmon  of  Vassar  College  and  Fred  Morrow  Fling 
of  the  University  of  Nebraska. 

It  is  impossible  that  in  a  book  of  this  kind  errors  both 
of  the  pen  and  of  the  press,  and  even  graver  ones,  should 
not  have  escaped  attention.  I  shall  be  very  grateful  to 
those  who  will  call  my  attention  to  any  of  these  which  they 

may  notice. 

GEORGE   BURTON   ADAMS. 

DECEMBER  29,  1898. 


CONTENTS 


PACK 

A  BRIEF  LIST  OF  BOOKS  OF  REFERENCE  OF  VALUE  TO  THE 

TEACHER  .  .  .  xxvii 


PART   I 

THE  ROMAN   WORLD-STATE  WITH   ITS  FALL 
AND   ITS  REVIVAL 

Books  for  Reference — Summary          ......         I 

I.  THE  EMPIRE  AND  ITS  DECLINE 5 

Character  of  the  Early  Empire  —  Constitutional  Forms 

—  Economic  and  Literary  Character  of  the  Age  —  Provin- 
cial Administration —  Augustus  and  the  Germans — The 
Period  of  the  Julian  House  —  From  Tiberius  to  Nero  — 
The  Flavian  Dynasty  —  Growth  of  the  Imperial  Constitu- 
tion —  Plve  Good  Emperors  —  The  Roman  Law  —  Dis- 
orders  of  the   Third   Century  —  Reforms   of    Diocletian 

—  Constantine  the  Great. 

II.  THE  ESTABLISHMENT  OF  CHRISTIANITY  ....      20 
Books  for  Reference  and  Further  Reading 2O 

Christianity  at  the  Death  of  Christ  —  Becomes  a  World 
Religion  —  Causes  of  Roman  Persecution  —  Beginnings  of 
Church  Government  —  Christianity  recognized  by  the  State. 

III.  THE  LAST  AGE  OF  ROME 26 

Character  of  the  Fourth  Century  —  Causes  of  the  Fall  of 
Rome  —  From  Slavery  to  Serfdom  —  Attacks  upon  the 
Frontiers  —  Characteristics  of  the  Germans — The  Third 


xii  Contents 

PAGE 

and  Fourth  Centuries  —  The  Goths  cross  the  Danube  — 
Theodosius  the  Great  —  Invasions  of  Alaric  —  Breaking  of 
the  Rhine  Frontier  —  Rome's  German  Defender  Sacrificed 

—  Invasion  of  the  Huns  —  End  of  the  Western  Empire. 

IV.  THE  FOUNDING  OF  THE  GERMAN  STATES  37 

A  Second  Period  of  German  Conquests  —  Founder  of 
the  Frankish  Empire  —  Arian  versus  Catholic  —  Clovis 
adopted  the  Catholic  Faith  —  The  Last  Years  of  Clovis' 
Reign  —  The  Ostrogoths  conquer  Italy  —  The  Character 
of  Theodoric's  Rule  —  Growth  of  the  Frankish  Power  — 
Decay  of  the  Merovingian  House  —  The  Roman  Empire 
of  the  East  —  The  Reign  of  Justinian  —  Justinian's  Work 
for  Civilization  —  The  Invasion  of  the  Lombards  —  The 
Saxons  in  Britain  —  The  Saxon  States  —  No  Roman  Ele- 
ments in  the  Saxon  States. 

V.  THE  FRANKS,  THE  ARABS,  AND  THE  PAPACY  ...      52 

The  Second  Frankish  Dynasty  —  The  First  Carolingians 

—  Their  Power  Established  —  The  Government  Strength- 
ened —  Arabia  before  Mohammed  —  Mohammed  and  his 
Religion  —  A  Religion  of  Conquest  —  Conquests   of  the 
First  Century  — The  Revolution  of  750 —  Arabian  Science 

—  Coming  in  of  the  Turks  — The  Frankish  Empire  Restored 

—  Lombards   threaten   the    Pope's   Independence — The 
Franks  protect  the  Pope. 

VI.  THE  EMPIRE  REVIVED.    CHARLEMAGNE  ....      64 
Books  for  Reference  and  Further  Reading 64 

The  Way  prepared  for  a  Great  Empire  —  Conquest  of 
Italy — Of  the  Saxons  —  Charlemagne's  Other  Conquests 

—  Revival  of  the  Roman  Empire  —  The  Missi  Dominici — 
Charlemagne's  Schools  —  Charlemagne's  Place  in  History. 


Contents  xiii 


PART  II 
THE  FORMATION  OF  THE  NATIONS 

PACK 

Books  for  Reference — Summary 73 

I.  THE  BREAKING  UP  OF  CHARLEMAGNE'S  EMPIRE      .        .      75 

Causes  of  Division —  Economic  Condition  —  Louis  I.  the 
Pious  —  The  Treaty  of  Verdun  —  End  of  the  United  Em- 
pire —  New  Barbarian  Invasions — The  Northmen  —  Rollo 
in  Normandy  and  the  Danes  in  England  —  yElfred  the 
Great  —  The  Second  Danish  Invasion. 

II.  THE  FEUDAL  SYSTEM 85 

The  Conditions  which  gave  rise  to  Feudalism  —  Forms 
of  the  Feudal  System  —  The  Feudal  System  in  France  — 
Feudal  Rights  and  Obligations — The  Serf  Class — Gradual 
Improvement  in  the  Condition  of  the  Serf. 

III.  THE  RISE  OF  THE  NEW  NATIONS 92 

General  Conditions  —  The  Beginning  in  Germany  — 
The  Saxon  Kings  —  The  Empire  revived  by  Otto  I. — 
Effect  of  the  Revival — The  Beginning  in  France  —  Kings 
of  Little  Power  —  Norman  Conquest  of  England. 

IV.  EMPIRE  AND  PAPACY 99 

The  Papacy  during  the  Tenth  Century  —  The  Reforms  of 
Cluny  —  Power  of  the  Empire  under  Henry  III. — The 
Beginning  of  the  Conflict  — Its  Results  — The  Third  Ger- 
man Dynasty,  the  Hohenstaufen  —  Danger  to  the  Papacy 
—  The  Cities  of  Northern  Italy  —  Guelf  and  Ghibelline  — 
The  Papacy  at  its  Highest  Point  of  Power. 

V.  THE  CRUSADES 109 

Books  for  Reference  and  Further  Reading 109 

Place  of  the  Crusades  in  History — Motives  of  the  Cru- 
saders —  The  Beginning  of  the  First  Crusade  —  Results  of 
the  First  Crusade  — The  Second  and  Third  Crusades  — 
The  Later  Crusades. 


xiv  Contents 

PACK 

VI.  THE  CHANGES  WHICH  FOLLOWED  THE  CRUSADES    .        .117 

The  Direct  Results  of  the  Crusades  — The  Rise  of  the 
Third  Estate— The  Third  Estate  on  the  Side  of  Strong 
Government  —Effect  of  the  Increased  Use  of  Money  — 
Fall  of  the  Feudal  System  —  Changes  affecting  the  Serf 
Class  —  Institutions  of  the  Cities. 

VII.  THE  FORMATION  OF  THE  FRENCH  NATION      .        .        .124 
General  Conditions  in  France — Two  Great  Difficulties 

—  The  Work  of  Louis  VI.  —  France  threatened  by  the 
Angevin  Empire  —  The  First  Great  Advance — The  Growth 
of  the  King's  Power  —  The  Salic  Law  —  The  First  Period 
of  the  Great  Struggle  with  England  —  The  King  of  Eng- 
land becomes  King  of  France  —  Joan  of  Arc  —  The  Final 
Triumph  of  France  —  Louis  XI.  and  Charles  the  Bold. 

VIII.  ENGLAND I36 

Books  for  Reference  and  Further  Reading 136 

General  Character  of  English  History  —  Period  of  the 
Norman  Kings  —  Henry  II.  Abroad  and  at  Home  —  Eng- 
land and  Ireland  —  Henry's  Two  Sons  —  The  Greatest  of 
the  Angevin  Kings  —  The  Hundred  Years'  War  —  The 
House  of  Lanr  ster  —  The  Wars  of  the  Roses. 

IX.  THE  OTHER  ,  ,.ATES  OF  EUROPE 147 

The  Situation  in  Germany  and  Italy  —  The  Foundation 
of  Austria  —  A  Period  of  Many  Dynasties  —  The  Hussite 
War  —  The  Rise  of  Other  German  States  —  Italy — Spain 

—  The  Rise  of  the  Ottoman  Empire. 


PART    III 

RENAISSANCE  AND   REFORMATION 

Books  for  Reference — Summary           .         .         .         .         ,         .157 
I.  THE  REVIVAL  OF  LEARNING 159 

A  Transitional  Epoch — The  Meaning  of  Renaissance 
—  The  Place  of  the  Middle  Ages  in  History  —  Learning 
in  the  Middle  Ages  —  Medieval  Revivals— The  Age  of 


Contents  xv 

PACK 

Scholasticism  —  The  Founding  of  the  Universities  —  The 
Renaissance  comes  First  in  Italy  —  The  Beginning  in  the 
Age  of  Petrarch  —  The  Revival  of  Greek  —  Scientific 
Method  Recovered  —  The  Invention  of  Printing  and  its 
Results  —  The  Renaissance  South  and  North  of  the  Alps 

—  Erasmus. 

II.  THE  IMMEDIATE  RESULTS  OF  THE  REVIVAL    .        .        .173 

Advance  in  Knowledge  —  The  Commercial  Situation  of 
the  Fifteenth  Century — Portuguese  Discoveries  —  Colum- 
bus and  his  Discoveries  —  The  Economic  Results  —  The 
First  Great  Step  in  Physical  Science  —  The  End  of  the 
Renaissance  —  Art  and  Literature. 

III.  REVOLUTION  ATTEMPTED  IN  THE  GOVERNMENT  OF  THE 

CHURCH 183 

The  Papacy  at  Avignon  —  The  Great  Schism  —  The 
Demand  for  Reform  —  Wycliffe's  Attempt  at  Reformation 

—  Huss  and  the  Hussites  —  The  Council  of  Constance  — 
The  Council  fails  to  reform  Government  or  Conduct. 

IV.  THE  POLITICAL  CHANGES  OF  THE  AGE   ....     190 

Politics  become  International  —  T  Condition  of 
France  —  The  Creation  of  Spain  —  ResuiiS  of  Ferdinand's 
Policy  —  England  —  Germany  —  Italy  —  France  begins 
the  Struggle  —  The  First  Invasion  of  Italy — A  New  French 
Claim  on  Italy — Rapid  Changes  in  the  Italian  Situation 
— The  Dominions  of  Charles  V.  —  The  Imperial  Election 
and  its  Results  —  France  still  seeks  Dominion  in  Italy. 

V.  THE  REFORMATION  OF  LUTHER 203 

Luther's  Theological  Beliefs  —  Indulgences  —  Luther 
posts  his  Theses  —  Luther  gradually  led  to  Open  Rebel- 
lion—  The  Protestant  Position  in  Regard  to  Authority — 
The  Diet  of  Worms  —  Events  in  Italy  —  The  Treaty  of 
Madrid  —  Enforcement  of  the  Edict  Delayed  —  Peace 
between  France  and  Charles  V.  —  The  "  Protestants  "  and 
their  Strength  — The  Great  Peasant  War  — The  First 
Attack  of  the  Turks  — The  Diet  and  "Confession"  of 
Augsburg  —  The  Emperor's  Plans  again  Postponed. 


xvi  Contents 

PAGE 

VI.  THE  LATER  AGE  OF  THE  REFORMATION.        .        .        .217 

The  Reformation  in  the  North  of  Europe  —  Henry  VIII. 
takes  the  Place  of  the  Pope  —  England  becomes  Protestant 
—  Calvinism  —  The  Reformation  in  France  and  Holland 
—The  Counter  Reformation — The  Society  of  Jesus. 


PART   IV 

THE  STRUGGLE  OF  THE  NATIONS  FOR  SUPREMACY 

AND   EXPANSION 
Summary 225 

I.  THE  AGE  OF  RELIGIOUS  WARS 228 

The  General  Character  of  the  Age  —  The  Schmalkaldic 
War  —  Abdication  of  Charles  V.  —  The  Power  and  Char- 
acter of  Philip  II.  —  Philip  and  Mary  of  England  —  Eng- 
land again  Protestant  —  The  Netherlands  under  the 
Hapsburgs  —  The  Beginning  of  Resistance  to  Philip  — 
The  Independence  of  the  United  Netherlands  —  England 
—  Mary  Queen  of  Scots  —  The  Invincible  Armada — Rise 
of  the  Puritan  Party  —  Opposing  Parties  in  France  — 
Huguenot  Civil  Wars  —  The  First  of  the  Bourbons  — 
Foreign  Plans  of  Henry  IV.  —  Beginning  of  the  Thirty 
Years'  War  — The  Bohemian  Period  of  the  War— The 
Danish  Period  —  Sweden  and  France  —  Richelieu  cen- 
tralizes France  —  Richelieu  and  the  Thirty  Years'  War  — 
Gustavus  Adolphus  in  Germany  —  The  Death  of  Gustavus 
and  Wallenstein  —  The  French  Period  of  the  War— The 
Peace  of  Westphalia  —  The  Empire  Destroyed — The  Other 
States  of  Europe  in  the  Peace  — The  Sufferings  of  Ger- 
many—  A  New  Era  in  English  History  —  The  Stuarts  and 
the  Puritans  —  The  Reign  of  James  I.  —  Charles  I.  and 
Parliament  —  Civil  War  Begun  —  The  Great  Rebellion 
and  the  Commonwealth. 

II.  FRANCE  TRIES  TO  DOMINATE  EUROPE      .        .        .        .265 

The  Hapsburgs  in  1660  —  England  and  Holland  —  The 
Situation  in  France  —  Character  of  Louis  XIV.  —  Colbert 


Contents  xvii 

PACK 

and  the  Finances  —  Colbert's  Economic  Measures  —  Pre- 
paring to  annex  Spain  —  Louis  XIV.'s  First  War  —  Louis 
prepares  to  punish  Holland  —  War  against  Holland  —  The 
Period  of  the  "  Reunions  "  —  Revocation  of  the  Edict  of 
Nantes  —  Resources  of  France  Declining  —  Charles  II.  in 
England  — The  Revolution  of  1688  — The  War  of  the 
League  of  Augsburg  —  The  Question  of  the  Spanish  Suc- 
cession—  The  Partition  Treaties — France  annexes  Spain 
—  The  War  of  the  Spanish  Succession  —  The  War  goes 
against  Louis  —  The  Peace  of  Utrecht  —  The  Rise  of  Eng- 
land—  The  Beginning  of  L9uis  XV.'s  Reign  —  The  End 
of  the  Stuart  Dynasty. 


III.  THE  RISE  OF  RUSSIA  AND  PRUSSIA         .... 

The  Position  of  Sweden — The  Early  History  of  Russia 

—  Russia  in  the  Seventeenth  Century . —  Peter  the  Great  — 
Russia  against  Sweden  —  The  Fall  of  Charles  XII. — The 
First  Promotion  of  the  Hohenzollern  —  Chief  Steps  in  the 
Making  of  Prussia  —  The  Father  of  Frederick  the  Great 

—  The  Pragmatic  Sanction  of  Charles  VI.  —  The  War  of 
the   Austrian    Succession    (1740-1748)  —  Maria  Theresa 
determined  to  punish  Frederick  —  France  abandons  her 
Hereditary  Enmity  —  The  Seven  Years'  War  (1756-1763) 

—  Prussia  a  Great  Power  —  Catherine  II.  of  Russia  (1762- 
I796)  —The  Condition  of  Poland  —  The  First  Partition  of 
Poland  —  Further   Russian   Advance  —  The    Rise  of  the 
Eastern  Question  —  Poland  at  last  Destroyed  —  A  Revolu- 
tion in  the  Political  Situation  of  Europe. 


IV.  THE  STRUGGLE  FOR  COLONIAL  EMPIRE   ....    306 
Becks  for  Reference  and  Further  Reading 306 

The  Dawn  of  the  Age  of  World  Politics  — The  First 
Modern  Colonial  Powers  —  Spain's  World  Power  Threat- 
ened— The  Rise  of  the  Dutch' kepublic  —  The  Beginning 
of  the  English  Empire  —  The  First  English  Colonies  — 
The  Thirteen  Colonies  —  Conflict  between  England  and 
Holland  —  The  Power  of  Holland  broken  by  France  — 
The  Beginning  of  Rivalry  with  France  —  The  Advantages 


xviii  Contents 

PACK 

of  the  English  —  Colonial  Wars  —  The  Situation  in  India 

—  King  George's  War  —  The  Interval  of  Nominal  Peace  — 
The  Great  Colonial  War  (1756-1763)  —Its  Ultimate  Con- 
sequences  —  The  English  Ministry  determines  to  tax  the 
Colonies  —  Compromise  not   Possible  —  The  War  of  the 
Revolution  —  The  English  Empire  apparently  broken  up 

—  The  Revenge  of  France  more  Apparent  than  Real. 

V.  THE  FRENCH  REVOLUTION  AND  NAPOLEON     .        .        .    327 

The  Intellectual  Leadership  of  France  —  The  Deists  — 
Voltaire,  Montesquieu,  and  Rousseau  —  Abuses  existing  in 
France  —  Financial  Condition  of  France  —  Attempts  at 
Reform  —  The  Danger  of  calling  together  the  Estates 
General  —  The  Struggle  for  One  Chamber  —  The  Struggle 
with  the  King  —  The  King  completely  Overcome  —  Revo- 
lution Completed  —  The  Rise  of  Opposing  Parties  —  Finan- 
cial Difficulties  still  Continue  —  Paper  Money  based  on 
Land  —  The  Republic  Proclaimed  —  The  Beginning  of  a 
Long  War  —  The  First  Step  towards  the  Republic  —  The 
King  Executed — WTar  against  all  Europe — The  Reign  of 
Terror,  followed  by  Reorganization  and  Success  —  The 
Work  of  the  Convention  —  Bonaparte  forces  Austria  to 
make  Peace — Revolution  within  the  Revolution — Bona- 
parte in  Egypt  —  A  Strong  Government  —  Bonaparte  turns 
the  Tide  of  War  —  The  Interval  of  Peace  —  The  War 
Renewed  —  Napoleon  stretches  his  Power  too  Far  —  The 
Beginning  of  the  End  —  The  First  Restoration  —  The 
Charter  of  1814  —  The  Congress  of  Vienna  —  The  "  Hun- 
dred Days"  —  The  Second  Restoration  and  the  Congress 
of  Vienna  —  Results  of  the  Revolution  in  Europe  at  Large. 

VI.  EUROPE  SINCE  1815 352 

Books  for  Reference  and  Further  Reading 352 

The  Nineteenth  Century  an  Age  of  Transition  —  Three 
Lines  of  Great  Political  Changes  —  The  Absolutist  Reac- 
tion —  Revolutionary  Movements  —  The  Monroe  Doctrine 
—  Further  Reaction  and  a  New  Revolution  in  France  — 
The  Consequences  of  the  Revolution  in  France  —  Prepara- 
tion for  Another  Revolution  —  The  Revolution  of  1848  — 
The  Second  Republic  —  Revolution  in  Austria  and  Italy 


Contents  xix 

PACK 

—  Unsuccessful  Attempts  in  Germany  —  The  Suppression 
of  the  Revolution  —  The  Second  Empire  established  by 
Napoleon  III.  —  Free  Government  indirectly  Secured  — 
The  Congress  of  Vienna  and  the  Idea  of  Nationality  — 
The   Independence  of  Greece  —  Attempts  following  the 
Two  French  Revolutions  —  The  Spirit  of  Nationality  grow- 
ing Stronger  —  The   Policy  of  Cavour  —  United  Italy  — 
William  I.  and  Bismarck  —  The  Army  made  Ready  —  The 
New  Prussia's  First  War  — The  Seven  Weeks'  War  — The 
Results  of  the  War  for  Germany —  Results  of  the  War  for 
Austria  —  The  Franco-Prussian  War  desired  by  Both  Gov- 
ernments—  The  Pretext  found  for  War  —  The  Course  of 
the   War  —  The   Empire   of  Germany  —  Alsace-Lorraine 
and  Rome  —  The  Third  Republic  in  France  —  Results  of 
the  Period  in  Europe  at  Large  —  The  Eastern  Question  — 
Rise  of  Egypt  under  Mehemet  Ali  —  Preliminaries  of  the 
Crimean  War  —  The  Crimean  War  (1854-1856)  — Russia 
again  attacks  Turkey,  1877 — The  Treaty  of  Berlin,  1878 

—  Later  History  of  the  Balkan  States  — Later  Phases  of  the 
Eastern  Question  —  The  Greek  and  Turkish  War. 


VII.  ANGLO-SAXON  EXPANSION  AND  THE  GROWTH  OF  WORLD 

POLITICS 387 

Europe  no  longer  the  Stage  of  History  —  The  Occupa- 
tion of  the  World  —  Australia  the  First  Step  —  Its  Early 
History  —  A  New  English  Nation  —  England  in  the  Wars 
of  the  French  Revolution  —  Napoleon's  Attempt  at  Colo- 
nial Empire— The  Expansion  of  the  United  States  — The 
English  Empire  in  the  Napoleonic  Period — The  Expan- 
sion of  Canada  —  The  Struggle  for  Self-government  — 
Canada  opens  the  Way  —  A  Great  Change  in  English 
Methods  of  Colonial  Government  —  A  Second  Great  An- 
nexation by  the  United  States  —  Gold  in  California  and 
Australia  —  A  Theory  of  Imperial  Dissolution  —  The 
Imperial  Federation  Movement  —  Expansion  of  English 
Dominion  in  India  —  Russian  Expansion  in  Asia  —  The 
Results  in  Asia  —  The  Occupation  of  Africa  —  The  Eng- 
lish Occupation  of  Egypt  —  The  Insurrection  of  the  Mahdi 
—  The  Anglo-Saxon  Race  in  the  World. 


xx  Contents 

PACK 

VIII.  THE  GROWTH  OF  THE  ENGLISH  AND  AMERICAN  CON- 

STITUTIONS 4IO 

Books  for  Reference  and  Further  Reading 410 

Importance  of  the  History  of  our  Institutions  —  The 
Absolutism  of  the  First  Norman  Kings  —  Our  First  Con- 
stitutional Document  —  The  Beginning  of  our  Judicial 
Institutions  —  The  Magna  Charta  —  The  Right  of  Civil 
War  —  The  Right  of  Insurrection  Applied  —  The  Idea  of  a 
Limited  Monarchy  —  Origin  of  Representative  Institutions 

—  The  First  Case  of  Town  Representation  —  Progress  in 
the  Thirteenth  Century  —  The  King  recognizes  the  Right 
of  Parliament  to  control  Taxation  —  Parliament  takes  a 
New  Step  —  Another  Most  Important  Right  Gained  —  A 
Third  Great  Gain  of  Parliament's  —  The  Exclusive  Right 
to  Legislate  —  Rise  of  the  House  of  Commons  —  Summary 
of  Results  —  First  Dangerous  Attack  on  the  Constitution 

—  The  Deposition  of  Edward  II.,  1327  —  Right  of  Parlia- 
ment to  control  Succession — The  Progress  of  the  Four- 
teenth Century  —  The  Yorkist  Period  —  Peculiar  Character 
of  the    Tudor    Period  —  Constitutional    Change    in    the 
Position  of  the  Church  —  Character  of  the  Stuart  Period 

—  Reasons    for   the   Attitude   of  the   Kings — The   Reli- 
gious Parties  —  Slow  Advance  towards  War — The  Second 
Great  Constitutional  Document  —  Period  of  Rule  without 
Parliament  —  Concessions  of  King  Charles  —  The  King 
determines  to  Resist — The  Constitutional  Character  of  the 
Commonwealth — The  Later  Stuarts  —  The  Revolution  of 
1688  —  Results  of  the  Revolution  —  Constitutional  Ques- 
tions in  the  Colonies  —  Progress  in  the  Eighteenth  Century 
in   England  —  The  Constitution  of  the  United  States  — 
Tendency  towards  Democracy  —  Anglo-Saxon  Institutions 
in  Other   States  —  The  Common  Work  of  England  and 
America. 

IX.  SCIENTIFIC     AND     ECONOMIC     ADVANCE     SINCE     THE 

RENAISSANCE 444 

Books  for  Reference  and  Further  Reading   .....     444 

The  Close  of  the  Renaissance — The  Great  Age  of 
English  Literature  —  Of  Scientiiic  Work — The  Law  of 


Contents  xxi 

PAGB 

Gravitation — The  Idea  of  the  Reign  of  Law  —  The  Eng- 
lish Deists  —  Leaders  of  French  Thought  in  England  — 
The  Benevolent  Despots  —  Character  of  Eighteenth  Cen- 
tury Science —  Advances  in  Science — A  New  Science  — 
The  Age  of  Machinery  Begins  —  Its  Effect  on  Manufactur- 
ing —  On  Labor  —  The  Final  Effect  —  Political  Results  — 
The  Accumulation  of  Wealth  —  Nineteenth  Century  Sci- 
ence—  Advances  in  Pure  Science. 


LIST  OF  ABBREVIATIONS  USED  IN  REFERRING  TO  THE  VARIOUS 

AUTHORITIES  QUOTED  .  459 

Each  chapter  is  followed  by  a  list  of  TOPICS— TOPICS  FOR  AS- 
SIGNED STUDIES — and  frequently  by  a  list  of  IMPORTANT  DATES  FOR 
REVIEW. 


xxii  Contents 


LIST  OF  MAPS  AND   TABLES 

PAGE 

Roman  Empire between  10-11 

Europe  about  525 43 

Charlemagne's  Empire between  68-69 

Europe  about  1200 "     126-127 

The  Crusades 112,113 

Europe  about  1560 between  234-235 

The  Baltic  Lands  at  the  Beginning  of  the  Eighteenth  Century     .     287 

Europe  about  1740 between  292-293 

Central  Europe  about  1812,  showing  Battle-fields  from  1792 

between  346-347 


The  Capetian  Kings  of  France 135 

The  Kings  of  England,  1066-1485 146 

The  Genealogy  of  the  Emperor  Charles  V 202 

The  Kings  of  England :   Tudors,  Stuarts,  and  Hanoverians  .         .  263 


ILLUSTRATIONS 


PACK 


Charlemagne Frontispiece 

A  Street  in  Pompeii 5 

Pretorian  Guards 6 

A  Cameo  —  Portraits  of  Claudius,  Agrippina  the  Younger,  Livia, 

and  Tiberius 9 

Arch  of  Trajan 12 

Marcus  Aurelius 14 

Constantine  the  Great -         .         .         .18 

Christian  Sarcophagus,  with  Labarum 23 

German  Bodyguard,  Column  of  Marcus  Aurelius  ....  28 

German  Settlement,  Time  of  Tacitus 30 

German  Weapons         .         .         . 36 

St.  Sophia,  Constantinople 47 

Fragment  from  the  Digest  of  Justinian 51 

The  Kaaba  at  Mecca 54 

Tomb  of  the  Caliphs  at  Cairo 59 

Charlemagne 67 

Signature  of  Charlemagne 70 

The  Cathedral  at  Worms      .                  79 

Edinburgh  Castle 87 

Milan  Cathedral 100 

Harbor  of  Palermo 105 

Papal  Keys 107 

Bird's-eye  View  of  Rhodes 1 1 1 

Knight  Templar 115 

Saracenic  Arms 116 

Grand  Canal,  Venice 119 

A  Hanseatic  Ship 122 

xxiii 


xxiv  Illustrations 

PACK 

Notre  Dame,  Paris .127 

Canterbury  Cathedral •        .         .130 

Tower  of  London 141 

The  Great  Seal  of  England 143 

Carving  from  a  Moslem  Screen 153 

St.  John's  College,  Oxford 164 

Dante  Alighieri 166 

Gutenberg's  Press 168 

Armor  of  Columbus 174 

Columbus «...  176 

Cortes 178 

Lorenzo  Magnifico 180 

The  Duomo,  Florence  ...*•••••  194 

The  Emperor  Charles  V 199 

Luther 203 

Bridge  and  Castle  of  S.  Angelo,  Rome 209 

Ignatius  Loyola    ..........  222 

Cannon  of  the  Sixteenth  Century 231 

Philip  II 232 

William  the  Silent 237 

Queen  Elizabeth 239 

Soldier  of  the  Thirty  Years'  War 245 

Gustavus  Adolphus 248 

Richelieu 250 

Swedish  Leather  Cannon      ........  252 

Holyrood  Palace 256 

Charles  I.  of  England 259 

Cromwell 260 

Louis  XIV 268 

Louis  de  Bourbon,  the  Great  Conde 272 

Colbert 275 

Gobelin  Tapestry,  Time  of  Louis  XIV 279 

A  North  View  of  Gibraltar 282 

Peter  the  Great 289 


Illustrations  xxv 

PAGE 

Gigantic  Grenadier  of  Frederick  William  I.          •        •        •  294 

Stone  Bridge  at  Prague 296 

Frederick  the  Great 3O1 

The  Mosque  at  Delhi 310 

William  Penn 311 

Champlain 314 

Dupleix 317 

George  Washington facing  320 

The  Declaration  of  Independence.     Facsimile  (reduced)  of  the 

first  lines  of  Jefferson's  original  draft 323 

Versailles 329 

Marie  Antoinette 330 

Taking  of  the  Bastille 334 

Facsimile  of  an  Assignat  (reduced) 337 

Lazare  Carnot 342 

The  Three  Consuls 344 

Napoleon 345 

Lafayette 356 

Pope  Pius  IX. 360 

Count  Cavour 366 

Germania.    Niderwald  Monument 374 

M.  Thiers 377 

Sebastopol 380 

The  Congress  at  Berlin 383 

Bird's-eye  View  of  Melbourne,  Australia 389 

Durban,  Natal 394 

Butter's  Mill.    Where  gold  was  first  discovered  in  California       .  399 

Khartum 406 

Benjamin  Franklin       .......       facing  446 

The  Cotton  Gin 452 


A  BRIEF  LIST  OF  BOOKS  OF  REFERENCE  OF 
VALUE  TO  THE  TEACHER 

In  French.  —  Lavisse  et  Rambaud,  Histoire  Generate  du  IV  Sieclt 
a  nos  Jours.  12  vols.  (144  francs.)  Probably  the  best  book  of  refer- 
ence and  for  obtaining  more  full  knowledge  than  the  ordinary  text- 
book gives  on  Medieval  and  Modern  history.  Each  epoch  is  treated 
by  a  specialist.  —  Rambaud,  Histoire  de  la  Civilisation  Franc,aise. 
2  vols.  (Paris;  Colin;  8  francs.)  Deals  chiefly  with  France  from 
the  beginning  to  the  Revolution,  but  is  of  value  for  all  Europe. 

In  German. —  Leopold  von  Ranke,  Weltgeschichte.  9  Parts.  (158 
marks.)  Mainly  political.  —  G.  Weber,  Lehrbuch  der  Weltgeschichte. 
2  vols.  (18  marks.)  Will  be  found  very  useful  by  the  teacher,  as  it 
takes  up  many  sides  of  history. 

In  English.  —  George  P.  Fisher,  Outlines  of  Universal  History. 
(American  Book  Co.;  $2.40.)  A  very  full  single  volume  history.  Has 
some  of  the  characteristics  of  Weber.  This  book  and  the  same 
author's  History  of  the  Christian  Church  (Scribner's  ;  $3.50)  will 
form  a  satisfactory  reference  library  of  the  smallest  size.  —  Arthur 
Hassall,  Editor,  Periods  of  European  History.  8  vols.  By  different 
authors.  (Macmillan  ;  $1.40  to  $1.75.)  A  very  useful  series  covering 
the  whole  field  of  Medieval  and  Modern  history.  —  The  Story  of  the 
Nations  Series  (Putnam's;  $1.50)  and  the  Epochs  of  History  Series 
(Longmans  or  Scribner's  ;  $1.00)  approach  the  character  of  general 
histories  in  monographs.  Volumes  in  each  series  will  be  mentioned 
in  connection  with  the  different  periods.  —  J.  N.  Larned,  History  for 
Ready  Reference.  5  vols.  (Subscription.  Nichols,  Springfield,  Mass.; 
$25.00.)  A  general  history  on  the  dictionary  plan.  It  is  especially  use- 
ful because  of  the  large  number  of  unusual  names  and  terms  which  are 
explained.  —  The  American  Historical  Review  ($3.00)  and  the  Eng- 
lish Historical  Review  (20  shil.)  are  the  standard  periodicals  in  Eng- 
lish. Teachers  who  can  make  use  of  French  will  probably  find  that 
the  Revue  Historique  (Paris;  Alcan;  33  francs)  will  keep  them  more 
nearly  abreast  of  the  new  work  in  European  history  than  any  other  sin- 
gle periodical.  —  Hassall,  A  Handbook  of  European  History,  476—1871 
(Macmillan;  $2.25),  and  Ploetz,  Epitome  of  Ancient,  Medieval,  and 
Modern  History  (Houghton;  $3.00),  are  helpful  manuals  of  chronology 

xxvii 


xxviii  List  of  Books  of  Reference 

with  genealogical  and  other  tables.  —  Lorenz,  Gcncalogisches  Handbuch 
der  Europdischcn  Staatengeschichte.  (7  marks.)  Very  good  and  full 

tables. George,  Genealogical  Tables.     (Clarendon;  $3.00.)     The  best 

in  English.  In  atlases,  the  teacher  should  have  at  hand  something  bet- 
ter than  any  English  school  historical  atlas.  —  Droysen,  Historischer 
Hand-atlas  (Leipzig;  25  marks),  and  Schrader,  Atlas  de  Geographic 
Historique  (Paris;  35  francs),  are  both  very  good.  — The  Oxford  His- 
torical Atlas,  publishing  in  30  parts  (Clarendon  ;  #1.10  each)  is  still 
better,  but  more  expensive. 


MEDIEVAL    AND    MODERN    HISTORY 

AN   OUTLINE   OF   ITS   DEVELOPMENT 


PART   I 

THE   ROMAN    WORLD-STATE     WITH  ITS 
FALL   AND  ITS  REVIVAL 


Books  for  Reference  and  Further  Reading 

Merivale,  The  Romans  under  the  Empire.  7  vols.  (Longmans; 
$15.00.)  (6  vols.  Appleton;  $12.00.)  From  the  death  of  Sulla 
to  1 80  A.D.  Fills  the  interval  between  Mommsen  and  Gibbon. 

Gibbon,  Decline  and  Fall  of  the  Roman  Empire.  Edited  by  Bury. 
7  vols.  (Macmillan;  $14.00.)  Edited  by  Milman.  6  vols. 
(Harper;  $3.00.)  Still  of  value,  especially  in  Bury's  edition. 
Goes  to  1453. 

Bury,  The  Later  Roman  Empire.  2  vols.  (Macmillan;  $6.00.) 
From  395-800.  The  history  of  the  empire  in  the  West  briefly,  in 
the  East  more  in  detail.  Of  great  value. 

Hodgkin,  Italy  and  Her  Invaders.  6  vols.  (Clarendon  Press; 
$32.00.)  The  most  detailed  and  best  account  in  English  of  the 
conquest  by  the  Germans. 

Kingsley,  The  Roman,  and  the  Teuton.  (Macmillan;  $1.25.)  Very 
interesting,  but  somewhat  idealized  history. 

Mommsen,  The  Provinces  of  the  Roman  Empire  from  C&sar  to  Dio- 
cletian. 2  vols.  (Scribner  ;  $6.00.)  Organization,  government, 
and  condition. 

Kaufmann,  Deutsche  Geschichte.  2  vols.  (Leipzig;  15  M.)  Prob- 
ably the  best  narrative  history  in  German.  From  the  earliest 
times  to  814  A.D. 

Schaff,  History  of  the  Christian  Church.  6  vols.  (Scribner;  $24.00.) 
The  most  recent  detailed  history  in  English.  Full  bibliographies. 

Alzog,  Church  History.  3  vols.  (Robert  Clark  &  Co.;  $10.50.)  The 
best  in  English  from  the  standpoint  of  the  Catholic  church. 

Fisher,  History  of  the  Christian  Church.  (Scribner;  $3.50.)  A  valu- 
able one-volume  history. 

As  the  history  advances  into  the  medieval  period,  translations  from 
the  sources  become  less  accessible. 


The  Empire  and  its  Decline 


SUMMARY 

The  history  of  the  world  had  now  been  brought  into  one  cur- 
rent by  Rome.  The  period  of  the  Roman  Empire  beheld  the 
introduction  into  that  current  of  two  great  streams  of  new  in- 
fluence —  Christianity  and  the  Germans.  With  the  end  of  the 
Republic  the  age  of  Roman  conquest  was  finished.  The  work  of 
the  new  age  was  not  expansion,  but  it  was  to  assimilate  the  pro- 
vincials, to  make  of  all  the  West  one  great  Latin  nation  —  the 
East  was  already  Greek  —  and  to  perfect  the  laws  and  institu- 
tions by  which  all  the  empire  was  ruled.  This  work  went  on 
under  good  and  bad  emperors  alike,  and  at  the  end  of  three 
centuries  was  complete.  During  the  first  century  of  our  era, 
Rome  suffered  much  from  the  capricious  tyranny  of  the  em- 
perors, but  the  government  of  the  provinces  was  greatly  im- 
proved. The  second  century,  the  age  of  the  "  good  emperors," 
was  a  time  of  apparent  prosperity  till  near  its  close,  but  the  em- 
pire was  growing  weaker,  and  the  third  century  was  filled  with 
civil  strife  and  attacks  on  the  frontiers  which  were  resisted  with 
difficulty  and  not  always  with  success.  The  constitution  of  the 
empire,  which  had  been  growing  more  and  more  monarchical, 
was  completed  by  Diocletian  and  Constantine  at  the  close  of 
this  period,  and  became  that  of  a  highly  centralized  despotism. 
In  the  meantime  Christianity,  which  had  been  slowly  spreading 
over  the  empire  from  its  little  beginning  in  Palestine  in  the 
reign  of  Tiberius,  had  become  so  strong  that  Constantine  sought 
it  as  an  ally  in  his  struggle  for  the  throne.  Recognized  by  the 
state  the  progress  of  Christianity  was  now  very  rapid,  and  the 
church  began  to  assume  clearly  the  monarchical  constitution 
towards  which  it  was  already  tending.  In  the  fourth  century  also 
the  Germans  finally  entered  the  empire.  The  Visigoths,  fleeing 
before  the  Huns,  were  allowed  to  cross  the  Danube,  but  they 
quickly  arose  and  defeated  and  slew  the  emperor  Valens.  Theo- 
dosius  was  able  to  bring  them  to  submission  again,  but  it  was 
only  for  his  lifetime.  On  his  death,  under  their  young  king 
Alaric  they  invaded  both  Greece  and  Italy.  Soon  after,  the 
Rhine  was  crossed  by  a  number  of  tribes  who  held  Gaul  and 


Summary  3 

Spain  at  their  mercy,  and  Rome  was  sacked  by  Alaric.  This 
was  the  first  invasion,  after  which  the  authority  of  the  Western 
Empire  was  never  restored.  It  left  southern  Gaul  and  Spain  in 
the  possession  of  the  Visigoths ;  eastern  Gaul  under  the  Bur- 
gundians  and  northeastern  under  the  Franks  ;  and  Africa  in  the 
hands  of  the  Vandals  ;  while  a  union  of  tribes  ruled  Italy  under 
Odovakar.  But  a  second  invasion  soon  followed.  The  Franks 
under  Clovis  spread  out  from  the  Rhine  valley  in  both  direc- 
tions, gradually  occupying  all  Gaul  and  central  Germany.  The 
Anglo-Saxons  occupied  Britain.  The  Ostrogoths  under  Theo- 
doric  invaded  Italy  and  made  it  the  seat  of  a  most  promising 
kingdom.  His  successors  were  not  able  to  maintain  its  strength, 
however,  and  when  a  revival  of  the  Eastern  Empire  came  under 
Justinian  it  fell,  as  did  the  kingdom  of  the  Vandals  in  Africa. 
Justinian's  best  title  to  fame,  however,  is  not  derived  from  his 
conquests  but  from  his  codification  of  the  Roman  law.  The 
law  had  been  given  a  perfected  form  by  the  scientific  lawyers  of 
the  second  century,  and  it  was  now  brought  together  into  a 
systematized  shape  which  made  its  preservation  for  the  future 
easy.  This  new  Roman  occupation  of  Italy  lasted  but  a  few 
years.  The  Lombards,  another  German  tribe,  conquered  the 
most  of  it,  but  left  fragments  here  and  there  under  the  Roman 
governor.  Upon  this  fact  hinged  the  history  of  the  future. 
One  of  these  fragments  was  Rome  and  a  little  territory  about  it. 
Difficulty  of  communication  with  the  governor,  whose  seat  was  at 
Ravenna,  threw  the  political  rule  of  this  territory  more  and  more 
into  the  hands  of  the  pope.  His  power  in  the  church  had 
already  become  almost  definitely  monarchical,  and  now  he  be- 
came the  sovereign  of  a  little  temporal  state.  The  Lombards, 
however,  could  not  give  up  the  hope  of  possessing  Rome,  and 
were  pressing  towards  its  capture  at  every  favorable  moment. 
The  popes  could  not  hope  for  aid  from  the  Eastern  emperors,  — 
they  were  more  often  than  not  quarrelling  with  them  on  some 
point  of  doctrine,  —  and  they  naturally  turned  to  the  most  pow- 
erful German  state  of  the  West,  the  Franks.  The  period  which 
followed  Clovis  had  been  one  of  decline.  His  descendants  had 
soon  lost  physical  strength  and  moral  character,  and  in  their 
weak  hands  the  empire  he  had  founded  threatened  to  fall  to 


4  The  Empire  and  its  Decline 

pieces.  It  was  reestablished  by  the  rise  of  a  new  family,  the 
Carolingian,  of  great  energy  and  political  ability.  The  way  for 
an  alliance  with  the  papacy  had  been  opened  at  the  conversion 
of  Clovis  when  he  adopted  Catholic,  or  organized  Christianity, 
in  place  of  the  Arian,  or  separatist  form.  Pippin  the  Short,  now 
ready  to  assume  the  crown  of  the  Franks,  needed  the  aid  of  the 
pope,  and  the  alliance  was  soon  concluded.  Pippin  became 
king,  and  the  advance  of  the  Lombards  was  checked.  This 
connection  with  Italy  and  the  papacy  was  drawn  still  more  close 
by  Pippin's  son,  Charlemagne.  Italy  was  an  important  link  in 
his  great  empire,  which  included  all  western  Europe  except 
Spain,  which  the  Arabs  still  ruled  as  a  result  of  the  wonderful 
impulse  which  had  been  given  to  their  tribes  by  the  new  reli- 
gion of  Mohammed.  The  union  of  all  the  West  under  Charle- 
magne and  the  strong  centralization  with  which  he  ruled  it, 
made  the  revival  of  the  title  emperor  of  Rome  seem  a  natural 
step  to  all  the  world.  On  Christmas  day  boo  Charlemagne  was 
crowned  in  Rome  by  the  pope. 


A  STREET  IN  POMPEII 


CHAPTER   I 

THE  EMPIRE  AND   ITS   DECLINE 

i.  The  Character  of  the  Early  Empire.  —  His  victory  at 
Actium  made  Octavius  undisputed  master  of  the  Roman 
world.  The  form  of  government  which  he  established, 
following  the  model  made  by  Julius  Caesar,  was  a  new  and 
peculiar  type  of  monarchy  in  history.  But  it  was  a  very 
natural  form  for  a  monarchy  created  by  the  slow  and  un- 
conscious transformation  of  a  republic.  For  a  generation 
or  two  longer,  it  might  perhaps  have  been  easy  for  a  Roman 
to  persuade  himself  that  no  great  change  had  been  made. 
The  old  magistrates  continued  to  be  elected  as  usual.  The 
assemblies  still  met  and  made  laws.  The  Senate  still  exer- 


Octavius 
emperor. 
The 

character  of 
the  Empire. 
The  Monu- 
mentum 
Ancyranum, 
translated, 
Penn.  V., 
No.  I. 


The  Empire  and  its  Decline 


Capes, 
The  Early 
Empire 
(Epochs)  ; 
Bury,  The 
Roman 
Empire, 
B.C.  27  to 
A.D.  180 
(Student's 
Series, 
Harpers). 


The  constitu- 
tional 
position  of 
the  emperor. 
Merivale, 
Romans, 
Chap.  XXXI. 


"  Emperor ' 

means 

"general." 


cised  its  functions  of  general  direction  and  administration. 
The  only  difference,  and   this  would  not  seem   a  striking 

difference  to  the  Roman 
who  remembered  the  recent 
past,  was  that  a  citizen  who 
held  no  formal  office  con- 
trolled everything  as  he 
chose.  But  this  was  a  wise 
and  beneficent  control,  as 
it  seemed  to  the  Romans. 
Civil  war  and  the  strife  of 
parties  came  to  an  end. 
Life  and  property  were  se- 
cure, and  such  peace  reigned 
within  the  Empire  and  on 
the  frontiers  as  the  oldest 
could  not  remember.  It 
was  a  change  which  no  one 
could  regret,  and  yet  it  car- 
ried with  it  the  destruction 
of  the  Republic,  and  the 
establishment  of  an  absolute  monarchy. 

2.  Constitutional  Forms. — The  constitutional  forms  of 
the  early  Empire  were  but  little  modified.  Without  hold- 
ing formally  any  of  the  offices,  Octavius  had  the  powers 
of  each  conferred  upon  himself,  so  that  he  was  a  kind  of 
informal  and  supplementary  consul,  tribune,  and  censor. 
More  important  still  was  the  fact  that  he  was  allowed  to 
retain  and  exercise  in  the  city  the  powers  of  the  general  in 
the  field  at  the  head  of  the  army,  the  imperator.  This  was 
the  office  which  in  the  end  gave  its  name  to  the  new  mon- 
archy, and  has  come  down  to  us  as  the  monarchical  title  of 
highest  dignity,  emperor.  The  family  name  of  Caesar  also 
became  a  title  for  the  monarch,  and  still  exists  in  two  of  the 
greatest  of  modern  states  as  Kaiser  and  Czar.  To  Octavius 
was  given  the  title  Augustus,  by  which  he  is  generally 
known,  and  this  passed  also  to  the  succeeding  emperors. 


PRETORIAN  GUARDS 


§  3]  Economic  and  Literary  Character  7 

3.   Economic  and  Literary  Character  of  the  Age.  —  For  The 
the  city  of  Rome  a  great  age  opened  with  the  accession  of  imProved 

_.  ,  .  /•  u          j    i  -j    condition  of 

Augustus.     Peace  and   security  were  followed  by  a  rapid  the  Empire, 
revival  of  prosperity  in  which  Rome  had  a  full  share.     Com-  church, 
merce  flourished  and  dealt  in  the  goods  of  the  most  remote  Pictures 
countries.     Augustus  gave  much  attention,  not  merely  to 
the  great  roads  leading  from  every  part  of  the  Empire  to  story 
the  capital,  but  also  to  the  adornment  of  the  city.     His    (the  Empire 
boast  was  not  a  vain  one  that  he  found  a  city  of  brick,  and  *°  x® ° 
left  one  of  marble.     One  of  the   new  buildings  was   the  in  Rome 
Pantheon,  in  which  were  gathered  all  the  gods  of  the  Em- 
pire,  something  new  in  the  world,  but  symbol  of  a  still  more 
important  thing  that  was  new  —  the  community  of  nations  studies, 
in  a  common  system.    This  community  of  nations  once  estab-   ^°-.9 ; 
lished  by  Rome  has  never  ceased,  though  it  has  changed  its   N0.vii. 
form,  and  out  of  it  grew  the  idea  of  the  unity  of  all  men 
—  the  brotherhood  of  men,  as  they  began  to  call  it  in  the 
early  days  of  the  Empire.     This  idea,  of  such  immense  value 
in  the  civilization  of  the  world,  and  soon  to  be  so  strongly 
reinforced  by  the  teachings  of  Christianity,  first  rose  to  con- 
sciousness in  the  minds  of  men  as  a  result  of  the  conquests 
and  organized  Empire  of  Rome. 

The  Stoic  philosophy,  which  had  been  developed  among  The  Stoic 
the  Greeks,  gave  the   Romans  a  scientific  foundation  for  philosophy. 
such  an  idea  as  the  brotherhood   of  man.  to  which  their  s^cism 
own  history  had  led  them,  and  furnished  them  also  many   (S.  P.C.K.); 
other  lofty  moral   ideas.     The   Stoic   philosophy,  with   its  anarticle: 

.     '  ,     J  Roman 

emphasis  of  the  strong  virtues,   and   of  manly  endurance  stoicism, 

and  calmness  under  trials,  was  particularly  attractive  to  the  Westminster 

Roman  character,  whose  natural  ideal  was  one  of  unyielding  ^Z^g2. 

courage.     The  early  Empire  produced  some  of  the  most  Selections 

famous  of  the  Stoics,  like  Seneca  and  the  emperor  Marcus  fr0™ 

,.  Epictetus 

AurellUS.  (Putnam). 

In  literature  the  reign  of  Augustus  is  as  remarkable  as  in   Literature 
other  directions.     The   names   of  Livy  in   history,  and  of 
Vergil,  Horace,  and  Ovid  in   poetry  give   evidence   of  a 
wealth  of  production  which  has  made  the  name  Augustus 


8 


The  Empire  and  its  Decline 


4,5 


Changes  in 
the  govern- 
ment of  the 
provinces. 
Arnold, 
Roman 
Provincial 
Administra- 
tion ; 
Merivale, 
Romans, 
Chap. 
XXXII. 


End  of  the 
age  of 
Roman 
conquests. 


stand  for  an  age  of  literary  brilliancy  in  the  history  of  later 
nations.  Yet  there  are  few  great  names  in  the  history  of 
Roman  literature  to  add  to  these,  and  in  total  product  it  is 
far  below  the  Greeks. 

4.  Provincial  Administration.  — The  statesmanship  of 
Augustus  appears  most  clearly  of  all  in  his  reorganization 
of  the  provincial  government  of  the  Empire.  The  provinces 
were  divided  into  two  classes,  the  senatorial  and  the  impe- 
rial. The  interior  provinces,  long  conquered  and  well 
organized,  were  left  under  the  administration  of  the  Senate 
as  originally,  though  their  governors  were  held  to  a  more 
real  and  strict  responsibility.  The  more  recent  provinces 
and  those  on  the  frontiers,  which  were  unsettled  and  ex- 
posed to  attack,  the  emperor  held  in  his  own  hands,  that 
is,  he  governed  them  by  officers  appointed  by  himself  and 
immediately  responsible  to  him  for  their  conduct.  The 
change  was  one  of  great  advantage  to  the  provincials.  The 
larger  part  of  the  old  oppression  and  extortion  came  to  an 
end,  and  though  it  might  occasionally  reappear  in  later 
times,  the  subjects  of  Rome  from  now  on  began  to  look 
upon  the  imperial  government  less  as  that  of  their  con- 
querors, and  more  as  a  government  in  which  they  had  a 
share,  as  in  a  sense  their  own.  It  was  the  beginning  of  a 
change  which  made  the  last  step  in  the  process  of  making 
all  men  Romans,  members  on  an  equal  footing  of  a  world- 
wide state,  from  which  the  people  and  city  of  Rome  had 
disappeared  as  rulers,  though  they  survived  in  the  language, 
laws,  and  institutions,  which  had  become  universal. 

5.  Augustus  and  the  Germans.  —  On  the  frontiers  it  was 
the  object  of  Augustus  to  maintain  peace,  a  policy  which, 
followed  by  nearly  all  later  emperors,  brought  the  age  of 
Roman  conquests  to  an  end.  On  one  frontier  Augustus 
could  not  carry  out  his  policy  of  peace,  that  of  Germany. 
This  was  due  to  the  warlike  and  restless  character  of  the 
German  tribes,  and  the  constant  warfare  of  his  reign  along 
the  Rhine  and  the  Danube  was  only  the  opening  of  a  cease- 
less conflict  which  runs  through  all  the  later  history  of  the 


§6] 


The  Period  of  the  Julian  House 


Empire,  until  from  increasing  weakness  Rome  could  no 
longer  maintain  her  ground,  and  the  Germans  broke  through 
and  conquered  the  West. 


The  defeat  a 


One  attempt  to  teach  the  Germans  the  danger  of  attack-   Varus. 


ing  the  Romans  led  to  a  great  disaster.     Varus  with  three 

legions  invaded  Germany,  as  Julius  Caesar  had  done,  but   iv.  268-276 


Merivale, 
Romans, 


A  CAMEO 

Claudius,  Agrippina  the  Younger,  Livia,  and  Tiberius 

was  killed  and  his  army  annihilated  by  the  Germans  under 
Arminius,  or  Hermann,  in  the  battle  of  the  Teutoberger 
Forest.  This  battle  is  regarded  by  the  Germans  as  in  a  way 
the  beginning  of  their  national  history,  and  Hermann  as  the 
first  of  their  national  heroes. 

6.   The  Period  of  the   Julian  House.  —  The  reign  of 
Augustus,   which  is   usually  reckoned    as    beginning  with 


Dates  of 

Augustus' 

reign. 


10 


The  Empire  and  its  Decline 


[§7 


The 

successors  of 
Augustus. 
S.  Baring 
Gould,  The 
Tragedy  of 
the  Cezsars, 
2  vols. 
(Scribner)  ; 
Tacitus, 
Annals, 
translation 
of  Church 
and 

Brodribb ; 
Suetonius, 
Lives  of  the 
Twelve 
CCBSOTS 
(Bohn)  ; 

The  reign  of 
Tiberius, 
14-37  A.D. 
Caligula, 
37-44- 


Claudius, 
41-54- 


Tacitus, 

Annals, 
XII.  46-47- 

Nero,  54-68. 

Sienkiewicz, 
Quo  Vadis 
(novel)  ; 
Tacitus, 
Annals, 
XV.  38-41, 


29  B.C.,  runs  on  to  14  A.D.  and  so  includes  the  beginning  of 
the  Christian  era  and  the  birth  of  Christ,  an  event  which 
was  to  have  such  momentous  consequences  both  for  the 
Roman  Empire  and  for  all  mankind. 

The  adoptive  and  the  lineal  descendants  of  Augustus 
reigned  for  a  little  more  than  fifty  years  after  his  death. 
The  story  of  the  half  century  is  one  of  almost  unbroken 
tyranny  and  brutal  debauchery,  and  the  patience  with  which 
the  Roman  people  endured  it  shows  how  soon  they  had 
completely  reconciled  themselves  to  the  monarchy  as  the 
only  possible  government. 

7.  From  Tiberius  to  Nero. — The  immediate  successor 
of  Augustus  was  Tiberius,  son  of  his  wife  Livia  and  adopted 
by  the  emperor  after  the  death  of  his  grandsons  Cams  and 
Lucius  Caesar.  He  was  past  fifty  years  of  age  at  his  acces- 
sion, had  distinguished  himself  in  war  and  gave  promise  of  a 
wise  and  happy  reign.  But  he  soon  abandoned  the  power 
to  his  favorite  Sejanus,  who  hoped  to  make  his  own  way  to 
the  throne.  The  last  years  of  Tiberius  were  filled  with  vio- 
lent deaths  in  the  emperor's  family  and  with  suspicion  and 
terror  for  all  who  came  near  him. 

Caligula  his  successor  made  his  favorite  horse  consul  and 
wished  the  Roman  people  had  a  single  neck  to  save  the 
trouble  of  so  many  executions.  Claudius,  made  emperor 
by  the  Pretorian  guard  after  the  murder  of  Caligula,  gave 
the  Empire  at  large  a  few  years  of  better  rule,  but  could  not 
bring  to  an  end  the  reign  of  intrigue  and  assassination  in 
his  own  court.  He  was  himself  finally  poisoned  by  his  wife, 
Agrippina,  to  secure  the  throne  to  her  son  by  another 
marriage. 

Nero,  the  last  of  the  family  of  Augustus,  is  the  typical 
tyrant  of  the  period.  He  murdered  his  mother,  whose 
crimes  had  made  him  emperor,  and  a  long  series  of  others, 
among  them  his  wife,  his  early  tutor,  the  philosopher  Seneca, 
and  the  poet  Lucan  ;  he  was  suspected  of  having  kindled 
the  great  fire  which  destroyed  half  the  city  during  his  reign 
as  a  fitting  scene  for  the  recitation  of  his  great  poem  on  the 


§§  8?  9]  Growth  of  the  Imperial  Constitution       1 1 

siege  of  Troy ;  and  to  divert  suspicion  from  himself  he  is 
said  to  have  accused  the  Christians  of  the  crime,  and  to 
have  burnt  many  of  them.  In  this  persecution  the  apostles 
St.  Peter  and  St.  Paul  are  believed  to  have  perished.  At 
last  the  patience  of  the  world  was  exhausted  and  the  armies 
in  several  of  the  provinces  rose  almost  at  the  same  time. 
Nero  killed  himself  to  avoid  a  more  cruel  death,  exclaiming : 
"  How  great  an  artist  is  about  to  die." 

8.  The  Flavian  Dynasty.  —  Three   emperors,  Galba,   Vespasian 
Otho,  and  Vitellius,  follow  one  another  in  rapid  succession,  *nd  his  sons» 
set  up  and  deposed  by  their  armies  or  by  the  Pretorian 

guards.     Finally  the  army  in  the   eastern  provinces  made 
their  commander  Vespasian  emperor  and   the  founder  of 
a  new  dynasty,  the  Flavian.     He  was  succeeded  by  his  son 
Titus,  the  conqueror  of  Jerusalem,  in  whose  reign  occurred   The  pia^an 
the  great  eruption  of  Vesuvius  which  destroyed  the  cities    Casar,  in 
of  Pompeii  and  Herculaneum.     Vespasian  and  Titus  had  ™ss*°r*cal 
been  emperors   of  the   best   type.     Titus  was   called   the  vol.  n'.; 
"  delight   of  mankind."      But    Domitian    his    brother   was   Buiwer,  The 
another  Nero,  and  after  too  long  a  reign  filled  with  cruelties  Lp^e^ *  °^ 
was  murdered  by  one  of  his  own  slaves.  (novel). 

9.  Growth  of  the  Imperial  Constitution.  — The  end  of   The  constitu- 
the  Flavian  dynasty,  so  near  the  end  of  the  first  century,   tion  more 
A.D.,  marks  the  close  also  of  the  first  age  in  the  history  of  monarchical- 
the  Empire.     The  constitution  had  now  become  much  more 
monarchical  in  form.     Tiberius  took  away  from  the  assem- 
blies the  election  of  the  magistrates  and  gave  it  to  the  Sen- 
ate, and  the  last  lex  was  passed  by  the  people  in  the  reign 
immediately  following  Domitian's.     The  Senate  ceased  to 

be  an  independent  part  of  the  government  and  became  a 
great  council  of  state  for  the  emperors.     The  reign  of  terror 
under  which   the   capital   lived    during   almost   the   whole 
period  did  not  extend  to  the  provinces,  and  they  enjoyed  The  prov- 
almost   unbroken   prosperity   under   governors   whom    the   inces  pros- 
provincials   could  impeach  at  Rome   for  misconduct  with 
some   chance   of  success   and   with   provincial   assemblies 
which  had  some  influence  on  the  conduct  of  local  affairs. 


12 


The  Empire  and  its  Decline 


[§9 


The  frontiers  of  the  Rhine  and  Danube  were  made  secure 
against  the  Germans,  and  the  eastern  frontier  against  the 


ARCH  OF  TRAJAN 


Parthians,  the  successors  of  the  Persians.  A  great  insur- 
rection of  the  Jews  was  put  down  after  a  desperate  struggle 
by  Vespasian  and  his  son  Titus,  and  one  in  Gaul  under 


§io] 


The  Five  Good  .Emperors 


Civilis  about  the  same  time.  The  conquest  of  Britain, 
begun  under  Claudius,  was  completed  by  Agricola,  the 
father-in-law  of  the  historian  Tacitus,  under  the  Flavian 
emperors. 

Still  more  important  were  the  processes  of  Romanization 
and  centralization  which  go  on  rapidly  during  this  century. 
Claudius  adopted  the  plan  of  admitting  distinguished  pro- 
vincials to  the  Senate,  and  this  policy,  followed  by  his  suc- 
cessors, did  much  to  form  one  nation  of  the  Empire.  The 
worship  of  the  emperor's  genius,  as  the  guardian  genius  of 
the  state,  became  during  the  century  a  universal  religion, 
the  one  universal  religion  of  the  Empire,  serving  not  merely 
to  bind  the  Empire  together,  but  to  awaken  a  feeling  of  per- 
sonal devotion,  akin  to  patriotism. 

10.  The  Five  Good  Emperors.  —  The  second  century, 
A.D.,  is  the  age  of  the  Antonines,  the  reigns  of  the  five  good 
emperors,  Nerva,  Trajan,  Hadrian,  Antoninus  Pius,  and  Mar- 
cus Aurelius,  closed  by  the  reign  of  Commodus  who,  though 
the  son  of  one  of  the  best  sovereigns  who  ever  ruled,  Marcus 
Aurelius,  was  himself  one  of  the  worst.  The  period  from 
96  to  1 80,  the  date  of  Marcus  Aurelius'  death,  is  the 
golden  age  of  the  Roman  Empire,  —  one  of  the  happiest 
ages  of  history.  The  Empire  was  at  peace  and  seemingly 
prosperous  within  and  strongly  defended  without.  Although 
almost  the  whole  of  the  reign  of  Marcus  Aurelius  was  a  des- 
perate struggle  with  the  Germans  in  which  we  can  begin  to 
detect  the  failing  powers  of  the  Empire,  he  succeeded  in 
maintaining  the  frontiers. 

Nerva's  short  reign  brought  the  abuses  of  Domitian's  to 
an  end.  Trajan,  a  Spaniard,  that  is,  a  provincial,  and  so  a 
sign  of  the  growing  Romanization,  was  a  soldier  and  added 
a  province  to  the  Empire  —  Dacia,  north  of  the  Danube. 
This  was  abandoned  almost  immediately  after  his  death,  but 
its  present  name  of  Roumania  preserves  the  memory  of  the 
Roman  occupation,  and  the  colonies  settled  there  by  Trajan 
Romanized  the  language  so  thoroughly  that  the  modern 
speech  of  the  country  is  as  truly  a  descendant  of  the  Latin 


Civilis. 
Tacitus,  His- 
tory, Bk.  IV. 

Tacitus, 
Agricola, 
translation  of 
Church  and 
Brodribb. 

Romaniza- 
tion of  the 
world. 
Gibbon, 
Chap.  II.; 
Fisher,  Be- 
ginnings of 
Christianity, 
47-73.     See 
Claudius" 
speech  in 
Tacitus, 
Annals,  XI., 
24-25. 

The  five 
good  em- 
perors. 
Capes,  The 
Age  of  the 
Antonines 
(Epochs)  ; 
Gibbon, 
Chaps.I.-III. 


Nerva  and 

Trajan, 

96-117. 

The  origin  of 
Roumania. 
Capes,  Anto- 
nines, 36-38; 
Merivale, 
Romans, 
VII.  189-197, 


The  Empire  and  its  Decline 


[§n 


as  Italian.  Hadrian  and  Antoninus  Pius  spent  laborious 
lives  in  the  faithful  service  of  the  state,  and  the  Stoic  phi- 
losopher Marcus  Aurelius,  even  more  famous  for  his  little 
book  entitled  "  Thoughts  "  —  thoughts  on  living,  on  con- 
duct and  character  — •  than  as  an  emperor,  spent  an  even 
harder  life  in  desperate  warfare  on  the  Danube. 


Roman  law 
given  scien- 
tific form. 
Extracts  from 
Justinian's 
Institutes, 
Fling,  Stu- 
dies, No.  10 ; 
the  Institutes, 
translated  by 
Moyle 
(Clarendon). 


MARCUS  AURELIUS 

ii.  The  Roman  Law. — The  two  processes  which  had 
characterized  the  first  century  went  on  steadily  through  the 
second,  the  Romanization  of  the  Empire  and  the  gradual 
transformation  of  the  constitution  into  an  undisguised 
monarchy.  This  age,  however,  saw  a  new  process  begin- 
ning which  was  of  the  utmost  importance  for  the  future 
history  of  the  world.  It  was  the  reduction  of  the  Roman 
law  to  definite  and  scientific  form.  We  shall  see  later  the 
deep  and  permanent  influence  which  the  Roman  law  has 


§  n]  The  Roman  Law  15 

exercised  on  all  the  civilized  nations  of  later  times.  It  was 
in  the  second  century  that  it  began  to  be  put  into  the  shape 
that  enabled  it  to  exert  this  influence. 

In  its  growth  the  Roman  law  was  in  many  ways  like  our 
own  Anglo-Saxon  law.     It  had  two  chief  sources,  the  written  How  the  law 
or  statute  laws,  made  by  the  people  in  the  days  of  the  Repub-  £^d  been 
lie  and  by  the  emperors  later,  and  the  unwritten  law,  founded   Hadley, 
on  the  customs  and  precedents  established  in  the  administra-   introd.  to 
tion  of  the  law  in  the  courts.      The  body  of  this  law  had 
naturally  come  to  be  after  so  many  generations  enormous  in 
size  and  very  confused  and  intricate. 

Now  begins  the  process  of  putting  it  into  simple  and  The  begin- 
scientific  form.  -It  began  in  two  ways.  One  was  the 
act  of  the  emperor,  following  a  practice  begun  much 
earlier.  The  praetor,  or  judge,  in  taking  possession  of 
his  province  issued  an  edict  which  stated  the  principles 
by  which  he  would  be  guided  in  his  administration  of 
the  law.  These  edicts  had  now  become  very  numerous 
and  often  contradictory,  and  the  emperor  Hadrian  issued 
what  was  called  "  the  perpetual  edict "  to  take  their 
place.  This  stated  the  principles  which  should  be  followed 
by  the  judges  in  the  provincial  courts  uniformly  throughout 
the  Empire.  It  was  a  limited  and  partial  codification,  but 
it  introduced  a  process  which  went  on  by  degrees  through 
four  hundred  years  and  finally  resulted  in  the  great  codifica- 
tion of  the  emperor  Justinian.  The  other  process  was  the 
writing  of  scientific  treatises  on  the  law,  or  on  special  points  The  writings 
of  it,  by  the  great  lawyers  of  the  time.  These  writings 
came  to  have  very  great  authority  in  later  times,  and  tended 
to  reduce  the  law  to  systematic  form  and  to  bring  out 
clearly  the  scientific  principles  on  which  it  rested.  One 
influence  was  exerted  on  the  teachings  of  the  Roman  law 
at  this  time,  and  mainly  through  the  writings  of  these 
lawyers,  which  is  very  interesting.  The  Stoic  philosophy  The  influ- 
was,  as  we  have  seen,  very  much  cultivated  at  Rome  under  ence  of 
the  early  Empire,  and  from  it  the  writers  on  law  took  many 
maxims  of  ethics  to  prove  the  justice  or  to  give  brief  and 


i6 


The  Empire  and  its  Decline        [§§  12, 13 


Rapid  de- 
cline of  the 
Empire. 


Gibbon, 
Chap.  X. 


The  Illyrian 

emperors. 

Freeman, 

Historical 

Essays,  Vol. 

III. 

Diocletian, 
284-305. 
Gibbon, 
Chap.  XIII.; 
Bury,  Later 
Empire,  Bk. 
I.,  Chap.  IV. 


pointed  statement  to  the  principles  of  the  law.  Several  of 
these,  on  this  account,  because  taken  up  into  a  system  of 
law  which  was  to  be  so  permanent,  have  come  down  to  our 
own  time  as  maxims  of  legal  or  political  ethics.  The  most 
interesting  of  these  to  us  is  the  one  used  in  several  different 
ways  in  the  documents  of  the  American  and  French  revolu- 
tions :  All  men  are  by  nature  free  and  equal. 

12.  The  Disorders  of  the  Third  Century. — After   the 
close  of  the  second  century  the  Roman  Empire  went  on 
rapidly  to  its  fall.     The  third  century  was  filled  with  dis- 
order  and   anarchy.      Emperors   of  the   worst   type,    like 
Caracalla  or   Elagabalus ;    disputed    successions    in   which 
several  emperors  at  once,  set-up   by  their  armies   in   the 
provinces,  fight  with  one  another  for  the  throne, — at  the 
middle  of  the   century  was   a   period   called    that   of  the 
thirty  tyrants  from  the  number  of  pretending  emperors ;  — 
and  incursions  of  barbarian  tribes  who  could  no  longer  be 
kept  out  by  the  weakening   frontier   guards ;  all   these    at 
once  indicate  the  decline  of  Rome  and  show  us  what  helped 
to  produce   it.     The  Alemanni  broke    through    the  Rhine 
frontier  and  even  invaded  northern  Italy  ;  the  Goths  crossed 
the    Danube,   defeated    and    killed   the    emperor   Decius, 
ravaged  the  shores  of  the  Bosphorus,  and  escaped  without 
adequate  punishment.      The  Persians  invaded    Syria   and 
captured  the  emperor  Valerian.      It  might  almost  seem  as 
if  the  Empire  would  be  broken  up  at  once.     But  in  the  last 
quarter  of  the  century  came  a  succession  of  emperors,  who 
checked  for  a  time  the  rapidity  of  the  decline.     Aurelian 
(270-275)  beat  back  the  barbarians,  restored  the  frontiers, 
and  subdued  Gaul  and  Palmyra. 

13.  The   Reforms    of  Diocletian.  —  With  Diocletian   a 
great  statesman  became  emperor,  and  great  changes  were 
made,  intended  to  restore  the  strength  of  the  Empire.     He 
thought,  very  wisely,  that  there  were  two  necessities  to  be 
supplied,  one  that  there  should  be  an  able  man  in  supreme 
command  on  every  frontier  to  maintain  it  unbroken,  and 
the  other  that  the  order  of  succession  should  be  so  clearly 


§  14]  Constantine  the  Great  17 

marked  out  that  the  danger  of  civil  war  would  be  avoided. 
To  accomplish  these  results  he  decided  that  there  should  be  Division  of 
two   emperors,  one  looking   after   the   East  and   one   the  *^™plre> 
West,  and  that  each  of  these  should  appoint  an  assistant  Roman  Pro- 
who  should  take  the  title  of  Caesar,  be  responsible  for  the  vinciai  Ad- 
government  of  a  part  of  the  provinces,  and  succeed  to  the 
throne  in  regular  order.     Besides  these  changes  Diocletian 
made  many  others.     The  provinces  were  reorganized,  their 
number  almost  doubled,  and  all  were  made  imperial  provinces. 
The  military  were  entirely  separated  from  the  civil  offices, 
and  the  latter  were  given  a  very  strict  organization  from  the 
highest  to  the  lowest.     In  the  court,  Oriental  etiquette  was 
introduced,  and  the  government  became  in  external  appear- 
ance as  in  reality,  a  true  despotism. 

14.   Constantine  the  Great.  —  The  system  of  Diocletian  Renewed 
was  very  well  planned,  but  it  did  not  take  into  account  the  civil  war- 

/  ,    Gibbon, 

strength  of  ambition.      When  he  abdicated  in  305,  civil  Chap  Xiv. 
war  almost  immediately  broke  out  among  the   rivals  for 
supreme  power,  and  lasted  for  nearly  twenty  years.     In  the 
end  Constantine,  whose  father  had  been  Caesar  in  Britain 
and  Gaul,  by  his  genius,  and  by  his  readiness  without  scruple 
to  make  use  of  any  means,  gained  the  victory  over  all  the 
others,  and  became  sole  emperor  (323).     Constantine,  the   Constantine, 
equal  of  Diocletian  in  statesmanship,  maintained  the  strength  ^^fon 
of  the  Empire  to  the  close  of  his  reign,  and,  though  he  chaps,  xvn. 
dropped  Diocletian's  plan  of  emperors  and  Caesars,  he  kept  andxvni. 
up  and  perfected  his  system  of  internal  organization.     Two 
things  especially  mark  his  reign  as  a  great  turning-point  in 
history.    The  first  is  his  recognition  of  Christianity  as  a 
legal  religion  to  be  protected  by  the  state.     This  was  done 
by  Constantine,  as  nearly  as  we  can  judge,  not  from  any 
conviction  of  the  truth  of  the  religion,  but  from  motives  of 
policy.     The  other  was  his  change  of  the  capital  of  the  Em- 
pire from  Rome  to  Constantinople  on  the  Bosphorus.     The  Constanti- 

situation  of  Rome  was  very  favorable  in  the  early  ages  of  its  nople  the  . 
..  .  *,«      •»•    i.  capital  of  the 

history  when  its  task  was  the  conquest  of  the  Mediterranean   Empire. 

lands,  but  now  when  its  northern  and  eastern  frontiers  de-   Bury,  Later 


i8 


The  Empire  and  its  Decline 


[§14 


Empire,  Bk.  manded  the  constant  watchfulness  of  the  government,  it  was 
I.,  Chap.  v.  ;  far  to  one  side.  Even  before  the  time  of  Constantine,  Rome 
^m-  na(^  practically  ceased  to  be  the  residence  of  the  emperors, 


pire  (Na-        and  afterwards,  when  the  West  had  an  emperor  of  its  own, 
tunis),  Chap.  he  preferre(i  to  reside  at  Milan,  nearer  to  the  threatened 


CONSTANTINE  THE  GREAT 

(From  a  Colossal  Statue  in  the  Vatican) 


frontiers,  or  in  Ravenna  made  still  more  secure  by  the 
swamps  which  surrounded  it.  On  the  other  hand,  the  situ- 
ation of  Constantinople  was  most  admirable  both  for  rule 
and  for  defence.  It  commanded  both  Europe  and  Asia 
in  days  before  men  had  begun  to  make  highways  of  the 
oceans,  and  so  profound  an  impression  did  its  strategic 
advantages  make  upon  history  that  even  now,  in  totally 
changed  conditions,  men  cannot  get  rid  of  it. 


Topics  19 


Topics 

Describe  the  position  which  Augustus  held  as  ruler,  as  the  Romans 
would  look  at  it.  Can  you  mention  anything  of  a  similar  kind  in  mod- 
ern politics?  What  changes  for  the  better  were  made  by  the  establish- 
ment of  the  Empire?  How  were  the  provinces  governed?  Put  to- 
gether the  facts  showing  the  relation  between  Rome  and  the  Germans 
during  this  period.  Character  of  the  emperors  of  Augustus'  family, 
especially  of  Nero.  The  Flavian  dynasty.  What  is  meant  by  the 
Romanization  of  the  Empire,  and  what  were  its  permanent  conse- 
quences? The  age  of  the  good  emperors.  Growth  and  systemizing  of 
the  Roman  law.  The  character  of  the  third  century.  The  changes 
made  by  Diocletian.  Those  made  by  Constantine. 

Topics  for  Assigned  Studies 

Nero.     Tacitus,  Annals,  XV.  13-16.      Merivale,  Romans,  Chap.  LV. 

Capes,  Early  Empire  (Epochs),  Chap.  V. 
Marcus  Aurelius.     His   Thoughts,  translation  of  Long  or  of  Jeremy 

Collier.      Matthew    Arnold,    Essays    in    Criticism,   I.    344-379. 

Capes,  Antonines  (Epochs),  Chap.  V. 


CHAPTER   II 

THE  ESTABLISHMENT  OF  CHRISTIANITY 

Books  for  Reference  and  Further  Heading 

Fisher,  The  Beginnings  of  Christianity.      (Scribner;.  $2.50.) 
Ramsay,    The   Church   in   the  Roman  Empire.     (London,   Hodder; 

Putnam;   #3.00.) 
Uhlhorn,  The  Conflict  of  Christianity  with  Heathenism.     (Scribner; 


Hatch,  Organization  of  the  Early  Christian  Churches.     (Longmans; 

#1-750 

Allen,  Christian  Institutions.     (Scribner;   $2.50.) 
Renan,  Influence  of  Rome  on  Christianity.     (Scribner;   $1.50.) 
Burckhardt,  Die  Zeit  Constantins  des  Grossen.     (Leipzig;   6  marks.) 

Nearly  all  the  original  Christian  literature  of  this  period  is  to  be 
found  in  translation  in  the  Ante-Nicene  Library,  or  in  Bohn. 


A  few  work- 
men and 
women. 


15.  Christianity  at  the  Death  of  Christ.  —  The  recogni- 
tion which  Christianity  received  from  Constantine  was  due 
to  its  strength  in  numbers  and  organization.  When  we 
remember  the  situation  of  this  new  religion  at  the  death  of 
its  founder,  it  seems  a  most  remarkable  fact  that  it  had 
reached  this  position  of  influence  in  the  Empire  in  less 
than  three  hundred  years.  At  that  date  it  had  not  been 
preached  outside  of  Judea,  one  of  the  most  insignificant 
divisions  of  the  Empire.  Its  adherents  were  a  mere  handful 
of  workmen  and  women,  who  up  to  that  time  do  not  seem 
to  have  understood  the  mission  of  their  teacher.  His 
death,  however,  wrought  a  great  change.  The  disciples 
became  leaders  and  apostles,  and  the  number  of  converts 
among  the  Jews  rapidly  increased. 


§  i?]      Why  the  Romans  persecuted  Christianity       21 

1 6.  Christianity  becomes  a  World  Religion. — The  first  Preached  to 
great  step  in  advance  was  taken  when  the  wall  of  Jewish  the  Gentiles. 

J  Fisher,  Be- 

exclusiveness  was  broken  down  and  the  gospel  was  pro-  ginningSt 

claimed  on  equal  terms  to  all  men.     From  the  New  Testa-  Chap,  xv.; 

ment  we  learn  that   this  was  begun  by  St.  Peter,  to  be  x^n^xT' 

carried  out  most  logically  and  completely  by  St.  Paul.     Our  and  Gala- " 

records  of  the  early  progress  of  Christianity  are  incomplete,  *ians>  ChaP 
but  we  know  that  churches  were  established  in  many  of 
the  chief  cities  of  the  Empire  within  thirty  years  of  the 
crucifixion. 

Especially  interesting  is  the  church  at  Rome,  because  The  church 

this  first  came  into  serious  collision  with  the  government  of  Fa^°™^,   A 

the  state.     With  this  church  we  know  from  the  New  Testa-  ness  a^d 
ment  that  St.  Paul  labored  for  a  time,  and  tradition  asserts 
that  St.  Peter  did  also,  a  tradition  to  which  history  lends 

some  slight  support.     Here  as  elsewhere  the  adherents  of  gimtings, 

Christianity  were  drawn  mainly  from  the  poor,  slaves,  and  520-533; 

the   lower   classes,   who   were   especially   attracted   by   its  No  x 
message  of  hope  and  comfort.     The  higher  classes  of  Rome 
would  know  but  little  of  Christianity  in  its  early  days,  and 
if  it  was  persecuted  by  Nero  it  was  not  with  the  deliberate 
and  thoroughgoing  intention  of  the  later  emperors. 

17.  Why  the  Romans  persecuted  Christianity.  —This  The  state 
condition  of  things  began  to  change  in  the  second  century.  no^the 
In  some  parts  of  the  Empire  the  number  of  the  Christians  Christians, 
increased  so  largely  as  to  draw  the  attention  of  the  state.  Pliny  s  letters 

°     J  on  the  Chris- 
There  were  among  them  now  also  many  more  persons  of  tianSi  FIingi 

rank  and  education  than  formerly.     When  the  Roman  gov-  studies,  No. 

ernment  began  to  be  conscious  of  this  and  to  understand  No^Penn 

the  character  of  the  Christian  church,  it  began  to  be  hostile  iv.,  No.  i ; 

to  it.  in  general,. 

Rome  had  been  very  tolerant  of  the  religions  of  all  the  studies  II 

peoples  it  had  conquered,  but  it  could  not  be  tolerant  of  No.  i. ' 

Christianity.     This  was  because  Christianity  differed   from  Rome  intol- 

all  the  other  religions  in  its  exclusive  character.     It  denied  erant  of 

the  gods  of  Rome,  and  refused  to  allow  them  to  be  wor-  aione.  a"  y 

shipped.   To  the  earnest  Roman  citizen  or  officer  this  seemed  Fisher, 


22 


The  Establishment  of  Christianity          [§ 


Beginnings, 

539-542 ; 
Capes,  Anto- 
nines,  Chap. 
VI. ;  Church, 
To  the  Lions 
(novel). 


The  best 
emperors 
persecute. 
Matthew  Ar- 
nold, Essays 
in  Criticism, 

I-359-363; 
Penn.  IV., 
No.  i ;  Uhl- 
horn,  Con- 
flict, 282-297 ; 
Gregg,  The 
Decian  Per- 
secution 
(Black- 
wood)  ; 
Newman, 
Callista 
(novel). 
Carr,  The 
Church  and 
the  Roman 
Empire 
(Epochs, 
Ch.  Hist.), 
Chap.  II. 


The  earliest 
organization 
simple. 
Causes  of 
change. 


to  be  treason.  The  Romans  believed  that  the  safety  and 
prosperity  of  the  state  depended  on  the  favor  of  the  national 
gods,  which  was  to  be  won  only  by  paying  them  their  due 
worship.  To  refuse  to  worship  them  was  to  invite  public 
calamities.  When  the  state  was  merged  in  the  emperor,  his 
guardian  genius  became  the  especial  guardian  genius  of  the 
Empire.  To  refuse  a  simple  act  of  worship  before  the 
emperor's  statue,  which  was  the  test  often  demanded  of 
the  Christians,  seemed  to  the  Roman  a  more  open  act  of 
treason  than  it  would  to  us  if  a  man  should  refuse  to  promise 
allegiance  and  fidelity  to  the  state. 

This  explains  why  we  find  an  extended  persecution  of 
the  Christians  under  Marcus  Aurelius,  who  was  one  of  the 
best  sovereigns  of  history,  and  why  as  a  rule  it  is  the  best 
emperors,  those  who  are  endeavoring  to  restore  the  strength 
and  simplicity  of  early  times  and  remove  the  causes  of  cor- 
ruption and  weakness  which  have  come  in,  who  persecute 
the  church  the  most  severely.  The  last  of  these  great  per- 
secutions was  under  Diocletian,  whose  efforts  to  reform  the 
state  we  have  seen.  It  was  a  most  determined  and  system- 
atic persecution,  carefully  planned  to  destroy  the  leaders 
and  the  Christian  writings  and  to  bring  the  common  people 
back  to  the  national  religion.  It  ended,  however,  in  failure, 
and  the  state  had  abandoned  the  attempt  before  the  vic- 
tories of  Constantine  changed  the  attitude  of  the  gov- 
ernment. 

1 8.  The  Beginnings  of  Church  Government.  —  During  all 
the  third  century  Christianity  was  spreading  rapidly.  The 
persecutions  rather  aided  than  hindered  its  growth.  As  the 
membership  of  the  church  increased,  it  gave  itself  a  stronger 
and  more  complex  organization.  The  New  Testament  does 
not  allow  us  to  say  beyond  the  possibility  of  dispute  what 
was  the  exact  organization  of  the  earliest  churches,  but  the 
best  scholars  of  all  present  churches  unite  in  holding  that  it 
was  much  simpler  than  it  came  to  be  when  numbers  and 
wealth  had  so  increased  that  a  more  definite  constitution 
was  possible.  The  hostile  attitude  of  the  Roman  state  was 


§  1 8]      The  Beginnings  of  Church  Government       23 

favorable  also  to  a  close  organization.  Then  again  the 
dissensions  which  early  began  to  arise  in  the  church  con- 
cerning various  points  of  doctrinal  belief,  and  which  gave 
rise  to  the  great  heretical  parties,  had  the  effect  to  draw 
together  those  who  held  the  orthodox  belief  into  a  united 
body  against  their  opponents. 

The  government   of  the   Roman   Empire   was  followed 
somewhat  closely  by  that  of  the  church  as  it  developed,  for  schaff, 
it  was  the  only  form  of  political  organization  with  which  the    Church  His- 


CHRISTIAN  SARCOPHAGUS,  WITH  LABARUM,  ETC. 

men  of  the  time  were  familiar.     The  bishop  naturally  took  tory,  ll- 
up  his  residence  in  the  local  capital  of  the  provincial  sub-  ^^' l V> ' 
division,  the   archbishop,  or   metropolitan,  in    that  of    the    church  His- 
larger  province  ;  and  some  of  the  greater  cities,  like  Anti-   *°*y> l-  389- 
och  and  Alexandria,  became  the  seats  of  still  higher  officers,   4I5' 
the  patriarchs.     It  was  the  beginning  of  a  monarchical  con- 
stitution, but  at  the  end  of  the  third  century  it  was  still  only 
a  beginning.     Progress  enough  had  been  made,  however,  to 
give  the  church  a  compact  organization  and  to  make  it  a 
power  within  the  state.     This  Diocletian  had  discovered  in 


24 


The  Establishment  'of  Christianity          [§  *9 


The  begin- 
ning of 
monasticism. 


Constantine, 
the  first 
Christian 
emperor. 
Cutts,  Con- 
stantine 
(S.  P.C.K.). 


his  persecution,  and  Constantine  was  shrewd  enough  to  see 
it  at  the  outset  of  his  career,  and  to  take  advantage  of  it 
by  allying  himself  with  the  Christians. 

By  this  time,  also,  another  of  the  most  characteristic 
features  of  medieval  Christian  life,  the  monastic  system,  had 
begun  to  assume  its  later  form.  Monasticism  had  its  origin 
in  the  Eastern  Empire,  in  the  effort  of  individuals  to  escape 
from  sin  by  withdrawing  into  the  wilderness,  where  they 
hoped  to  avoid  temptation  by  escaping  all  contact  with  men 
and  society.  These  were  the  original  hermits,  and  the 
practice  was  at  first  without  system  or  any  rule  of  life. 
But  as  the  number  of  such  recluses  increased  rapidly  they 
began  to  form  communities  and  to  take  on  something  of  an 
organization.  It  was  in  the  Western  Empire,  however, 
rather  than  in  the  Eastern,  and  at  a  later  time,  that  the 
great  monastic  orders  arose. 

19.,  Christianity  recognized  by  the  State. — Whether 
Constantine  was  moved  to  his  acts  in  favor  of  Christianity 
by  a  conviction  of  its  truth  or  not  has  long  been  a  subject 
of  dispute.  He  was  probably  more  strongly  influenced  by 
motives  of  policy,  as  has  already  been  said,  and  it  was  cer- 
tainly a  wise  step  from  policy  alone,  for,  aside  from  its 
strong  organization,  the  Christian  society  now  contained  the 
most  vigorous  and  energetic  elements  of  the  population. 
It  must  not  be  supposed,  however,  that  Constantine  made 
Christianity  the  religion  of  the  state.  The  most  that  he 
did  was  to  make  it  a  legal  religion,  under  the  protection  of 
the  state  and  on  the  same  footing  as  paganism,  and  to  allow 
the  influence  of  the  court  to  be  exerted  in  its  favor.  In 
324  he  advised,  by  edict,  his  subjects  to  become  Christians. 
In  325  he  presided  over  the  great  council  of  Nicaea,  in  which 
representatives  of  the  whole  Christian  world  met  to  discuss 
the  question  of  the  divinity  of  Christ,  denied  by  the  fol- 
lowers of  Arius.  He  thus  made  Christianity  the  religion  of 
the  court,  and  in  some  sense  put  himself  at  the  head  of  the 
church,  but  Paganism  was  still  legal  and  still  the  formal  reli- 
gion of  the  law. 


§  19]         Christianity  recognized  by  the  State  2$ 

The  effect  of  Constantine's  step  was,  however,  enormously  Effect  upon 
to  the  advantage  of  the  church.     Christianity  became  popu-   the  church. 
lar,  and  even  fashionable.     The  numbers  and  influence  of 
the  Christians  increased  rapidly.     The  government  of  the 
church  took  on  more  and  more  the  monarchical  form  to 
which  it  had  been  tending,  and  became  constantly  more 
powerful  as  the  Roman  state  was  growing  weaker.     Before 
the  end  of  the  fourth  century  paganism  was  made  illegal, 
and  the  triumph  of  Christianity  was  complete. 


Topics 

Christianity  at  the  death  of  Christ.  Its  first  advance.  The  church 
it  Rome.  Why  did  the  good  emperors  persecute  the  Christians? 
What  causes  led  to  the  growth  of  a  governmental  organization  in  the 
church?  Why  would  the  Empire  naturally  be  taken  as  a  model? 
How  did  monasticism  originate  ?  What  motives  of  policy  would  lead 
Constantine  to  recognize  Christianity?  What  was  the  effect  upon  the 
church? 

Topics  for  Assigned  Studies 

Constantine's  recognition  of  Christianity  and  its  results.  Carr,  Church 
and  Roman  Empire  (Epochs,  Ch.  Hist.),  Chap.  IV.  Uhlhorn, 
Conflict,  420-444.  Schaff,  Church  History,  III.  11-37.  Alzog, 
Church  History,  I.  463-473. 

The  primitive  church  organization.  Schaff,  Church  History,  I.,  Chap. 
X.  Alzog,  Church  History,  I.  195-206.  Hatch,  Organization, 
Lect.  II.  Allen,  Institutions,  Chaps.  II.  and  III.  A  very  valuable 
statement  of  the  position  of  the  best  scholars  of  the  Catholic 
church  is  to  be  found  in  an  article  in  the  Revue  des  Questions 
Historiques,  Vol.  XLIV.  329-384,  by  the  Jesuit  Father  De  Smedt, 
president  of  the  Bollandists. 

Monasticism.  Kingsley,  The  Hermits.  (Macmillan.)  On  early 
monasticism,  containing  translations  from  the  original  lives  of  its 
founders.  See  also  story  of  St.  Columban,  Milman,  Latin  Chris- 
tianity, II.  237-247,  and  translation  of  his  life  by  Jonas  in  Penn. 
II.,  No.  VII.  The  rule  of  St.  Benedict,  in  Henderson,  274-314, 
and  of  St.  Francis,  344-349.  See  Daily  Life  in  a  Medieval 
Monastery,  in  Jessopp,  Coming  of  the  Friars  (Putnam),  and 
in  Nineteenth  Century,  Jan.,  1884;  and  Allen,  Christian  In- 
stitutions, 137-178.  Also  Fling,  Studies,  II.,  No.  6. 


CHAPTER   III 


A  fair  degree 
of  prosperity 
and  security. 


Julian  "the 
apostate." 
Gardner, 
Julian 
(Heroes); 
King,  Julian 
the  Empe- 
ror's Works 
(Bohn) ; 
Julian  and 
the  Germans, 
Zeller.  I. 


Disease 
within  and 
attack  from 
without. 


THE   LAST  AGE  OF  ROME 

20.  Character  of  the  Fourth  Century.  — The  reforms  of 
Diocletian  and  of  Constantine  began  the  last  age  of  pros- 
perity of  the  Roman  Empire.     The  frontiers  during  three- 
quarters   of  the  fourth    century  were  preserved  from  any 
permanent  break,  and  within  the  Empire  there  was  a  fair 
degree  of  security.     Civil  Wars  for  the   possession  of  the 
throne  did  not  cease.     Constantine  showed  during  his  reign 
a  very  cruel  disposition,  and  this  nature  descended  to  his 
sons.     To  secure  their  possession  of  power  they  murdered 
all  their  relatives,  their  cousin  Julian  escaping  only  because 
of  his  youth.     But  the  brothers  quarrelled  among  themselves 
and  had  usurpers  to  resist,  and  after  some  years  but  one 
survived,  Constantius,  sole  emperor  for  a  time. 

In  360  Julian  was  proclaimed  emperor  by  his  soldiers 
in  Gaul,  against  his  will,  and  by  the  speedy  death  of  his 
cousin  obtained  the  whole  Empire.  His  reign  of  three  years 
is  famous  for  his  attempt  to  restore  paganism  to  the  suprem- 
acy which  it  had  lost.  Direct  persecution  was  not  pos- 
sible, but  he  tried  to  exclude  the  Christians  from  the  means 
of  education  and  to  throw  contempt  upon  the  religion  in 
every  way  possible.  The  attempt  proved  a  failure  and  was 
never  renewed.  Julian  was  the  last  of  the  family  of  Constan- 
tine to  reign,  and  after  him  emperors  chosen  by  the  armies 
were  engaged  in  a  constant  struggle,  rapidly  becoming  hope- 
less, to  protect  the  frontiers. 

21.  Causes  of  the  Fall  of  Rome.  —  During  these  cen- 
turies since  Augustus,  despite  all  reforms  and  every  tempo- 

26 


§  21]  Causes  of  the  Fall  of  Rome  27 

rary  restoration  of  strength,  the  double  progress  of  disease 
within  and  attack  from  without  was  steadily  going  on,  and 
became  increasingly  difficult  to  resist.  Of  these  two  dangers 
the  one  which  was  fatal  in  the  end  was  that  from  internal 
disease,  for  Rome  fell  not  so  much  because  the  attack  from 
without  was  stronger,  as  because  she  could  no  longer  resist 
it  with  her  earlier  strength. 

It  is  not  possible  to  explain  briefly  this  decay  of  Roman  Chiefly 
strength.  Its  causes  were  mainly  economic.  The  univer- 
sal  use  of  slaves,  which  is  a  very  wasteful  means  of  produc- 
tion, wasting  both  men  and  capital,  and  one  that  makes  free 
labor  degrading ;  heavy  taxes  which  were  so  collected  that 
the  burden  of  them  rested  with  killing  weight  on  the  middle 
class ;  a  debased  currency,  giving  a  very  unsteady  standard 
of  value ;  a  practice,  begun  in  the  last  days  of  the  Republic, 
of  feeding  a  part  of  the  city  population  at  the  expense  of 
the  state,  making  an  idle  and  dangerous  mob  and  constantly 
tempting  the  middle  class  to  give  up  the  hopeless  struggle 
with  taxes,  slave  competition,  uncertain  prices,  and  declin- 
ing production,  and  take  life  easy  at  the  public  cost ;  official 
corruption,  which,  in  spite  of  all  the  efforts  of  the  emperors 
and  of  temporary  reforms,  continued  to  look  upon  public 
trusts  as  sources  of  private  wealth ;  a  general  decay  of  the 
earlier  Roman  manhood  and  moral  strength,  which  greatly 
weakened  the  army  and  the  resisting  power  of  the  whole 
Empire ;  and  a  decline  of  the  population,  which  no  effort  of 
the  state  seemed  able  to  check. 

Causes  like  these  exhausted  the  resources  of  Rome  in  The  Empire 
men  and  capital.     Thousands  of  Germans  had  been  colo- 
riized  in  the  Empire  before  the  conquest.     The  army  was  falu 
largely  barbarian.     The  soldiers  spoke  German  and  fought 
in  the  German  style.     Comparatively  little  was  left  on  the 
eve  of  the  conquest  that  really  belonged  to  Rome,  except 
—  her  best  gifts  to  the  world  —  her  language,  law,  and  insti- 
tutions, and  the  idea  of  her  universal  and  eternal  empire, 
which  Christian  and  German  believed  as  implicitly  as  did  the 
pagan  Roman  of  Vergil's  day. 


28 


The  Last  Age  of  Rome 


[§22 


The  origin  of 
serfdom. 


Arnold, 
Roman   Pro- 
vincial Ad- 
ministration, 
161-164 ; 
Bury,  Later 
Empire, 
I.  28-29 ; 
11.418-421. 


22.  From  Slavery  to  Serfdom.  — The  economic  condi- 
tion of  the  Empire  during  the  age  of  its  decline  led  to 
some  changes  which  had  most  permanent  and  beneficial 
consequences.  They  made  the  beginning  of  the  transform- 
ation of  the  class  of  manual  laborers  from  slaves  into  serfs. 
These  changes  were  made  under  quite  a  variety  of  different 
forms  and  for  several  different  reasons,  but  we  may  say  that 
the  most  prevailing  reason  was  the  growing  scarcity  of  labor- 
ers and  the  difficulty  of  keeping  the  lands  of  the  Empire  in 
cultivation.  To  secure  this  result  the  right  of  the  master  to 


7 


GERMAN  BODYGUARD,  COLUMN  OF  M.  AURELIUS 


sell  his  slaves  was  in  certain  cases  taken  away,  and  the  slaves 
were  fixed  by  law  to  little  pieces  of  land  which  they  were 
required  to  cultivate.  The  state  did  not  do  this  in  order  to 
improve  the  condition  of  the  slave.  Its  only  object  was  to 
keep  up  the  supply  of  food.  But  in  doing  so  it  gave  to  the 
slave,  who  had  before  had  no  rights  at  all,  a  certain  very 
limited  number  of  rights  which  the  master  could  not  take 
away.  Looked  at  from  the  side  of  slavery  this  was  a  great 
step  in  advance,  and  in  the  history  of  the  laboring  class  serf- 
dom is  the  stage  through  which  it  passes  in  advancing  from 
slavery  to  freedom. 


The  Attacks  upon  the  Frontiers 


29 


23.  The  Attacks  upon  the  Frontiers. — While  political 
and  economic  disease  within  was  thus  steadily  sapping  the 
strength  of  the  Empire,  attacks  almost  without  a  pause  on 
every  frontier  revealed  the  presence  of  dangers  which  it 
would  have  required  the  resources  of  the  best  days  of  Rome 
to  overcome.  The  resistance  had  been  long  and  obstinate, 
fairly  successful  for  four  hundred  years,  but  we  have  now 
reached  the  point  when  it  breaks  down,  because  the  re- 
sources of  the  Empire  would  no  longer  sustain  it,  and  new 
races  take  possession  of  the  provinces. 
•  On  the  eastern  frontier  the  struggle  was  with  a  renewed 
and  powerful  Persian  empire  under  the  Sassanid  dynasty. 
This  family  had  arisen  early  in  the  third  century,  and  from 
that  time  had  waged  many  and  fierce  wars  to  push  their 
dominions  towards  the  West  over  Roman  territories.  Jovian, 
the  successor  of  Julian,  was  obliged  at  last  to  yield  them  five 
provinces,  and  their  gains  might  have  continued  if  they  had 
not  been  involved,  as  the  Empire  was,  in  the  great  danger 
that  swept  down  from  the  north  of  Asia  on  all  the  south, 
the  invasion  of  the  Huns. 

On  the  western  frontier  Rome's  enemies  were  the  Ger- 
mans, and  it  was  their  attack  which  was  finally  fatal  to  the 
Empire.  Ever  since  the  day  when  Julius  Caesar  had  turned 
back  the  invasion  of  Ariovistus,  the  German  king,  this  conflict 
had  been  going  on.  For  the  first  century  and  a  half  the 
trials  of  strength  came  only  at  considerable  intervals,  and 
the  Romans  were  sometimes  at  least  the  attacking  party, 
trying  to  teach  the  Teutonic  tribes  respect  for  their  arms  by 
a  raid  into  Germany.  With  the  reign  of  Marcus  Aurelius 
the  attack  of  the  Germans  became  more  determined  and 
more  like  an  organized  invasion,  and  the  defence  of  the 
Romans  more  desperate. 

As  the  decline  of  population  in  the  Empire  became  seri- 
ous, and  the  difficulty  of  keeping  up  the  army  greater,  large 
numbers  of  Germans  and  of  other  barbarians  were  enlisted 
as  soldiers  in  the  service  of  the  emperors,  and  even  whole 
tribes,  or  portions  of  tribes,  were  in  some  instances  settled 


Resistance 
no  longer 
possible. 


A  new  Per- 
sian empire. 
Gibbon, 
Chap.  VIII. 


The  German 

attack  is  the 
fatal  one. 
Gibbon, 
Chap.  IX. 


Germans 
also  defend 
the  Empire,, 


The  Last  Age  of  Rome 


[§24 


In  an  early 

stage  of 

civilization. 

Tacitus, 

Germania, 

translation 


of  Church 
and 

Brodribb ; 
also  in  In- 
diana, No. 
9:  Fling, 
Studies, 
II.,  No.  2. 


in  lands  which  had  become  vacant  within  the  borders.  It 
was  a  dangerous  expedient,  but  they  proved,  on  the  whole, 
faithful  to  their  engagements  so  long  as  there  was  anything 
left  to  which  they  could  be  faithful. 

24.  The  Characteristics  of  the  Germans. — These  Ger- 
mans were  still  a  primitive  people,  in  a  stage  of  develop- 
ment corresponding  to  that  of  the  earliest  days  of  Greek 
and  Roman  history.  Their  governments  were  tribal.  Some 
of  the  tribes  had  kings  of  the  Homeric  type,  exercising  a 


GERMAN  SETTLEMENT,  TIME  OF  TACITUS 

limited  authority,  with  councils  of  elders  and  nobles  and  a 
public  assembly  of  the  people.  Other  tribes,  like  our  own 
Saxon  forefathers,  had  not  advanced  even  as  far  as  this,  and 
scarcely  had  a  common  political  organization.  In  habits  of 
life  and  manners  and  customs,  both  in  war  and  peace,  they 
were  in  many  ways  like  the  more  advanced  North  American 
Indians.  Their  agriculture  was  simple.  War  was  a  favorite 
occupation  of  the  men,  and  in  peace  they  spent  much  of 
their  time  in  the  chase  and  in  drinking  and  gambling.  On 
the  other  hand,  in  many  of  their  political  and  ethical  ideas, 
they  were  much  above  the  ordinary  barbarian.  They  had  a 


§§  25,  26] 


The  Goths  cross  the  Danube 


simple  religion  of  nature  gods,  with  some  darker  supersti- 
tions. Their  regard  for  woman  and  their  standard  of 
morals  were  high.  Their  criminal  law  was  crude,  but  based 
upon  sound  and  just  principles,  and  their  method  of  trying 
the  accused,  though  attaching  great  importance  to  the  fol- 
lowing of  certain  fixed  forms,  really  provided  for  a  decision 
of  the  important  points  of  the  case  by  the  public  opinion  of 
the  community.  In  political  questions,  also,  like  war  and 
peace,  or  the  choice  of  magistrates,  the  public  opinion  of 
the  tribe  had  the  final  decision. 

25.  The  Third  and  Fourth  Centuries.  —  The  middle  and 
last  part  of  the  third  century  was  the  most  terrible  age  of 
this  conflict,  at  least  until  the  final  ruin  came.     The  Ale- 
manni  burst  through  the  barriers  in  the  West,  and  appearing 
in  northern  Italy  threatened  Milan.     The  Goths  crossed  the 
Danube  and  invaded  the  Eastern  Empire,  killed  the  emperor 
Decius,  even  crossed  the  Bosphorus,  and,  finally,  carried  off 
great  plunder.     The  Illyrian  emperors  restored  the  frontiers, 
but  only  with  great  difficulty.     In  the  first  part  of  the  fourth 
century  the  German  attack  lessened  in  severity,  but  only  to 
be  renewed  again  after  a  couple  of  generations  of  compara- 
tive security.     Julian  had  another  fierce  conflict  with  the 
Alemanni,  and  overcame  them  only  with  an  army  so  largely 
made  up  of  Germans  that,  when  they  proclaimed  him  em- 
peror they  put  him  up  on  their  shields  after  the  German 
fashion. 

26.  The  Goths  cross  the  Danube. — The  final  breaking 
down  of  the  frontier  defences  was  the  result  of  the  attempt 
of  the  Germans  to  escape  from  a  still  fiercer  race  of  war- 
riors which  had  attacked  them  from  the  East.     These  were 
the  Huns,  a  Tartar  tribe  from  northern  Asia,  who  fell  first 
upon  the  kingdom  of  the  Goths  which  occupied  at  that  time 
a  considerable  portion  of  European   Russia.     When   they 
could  not  resist  further,  the  two  divisions  of  the  Goths  fol- 
lowed different  counsels.     The  Ostrogoths,  or  East  Goths, 
submitted   to   the   Huns  and   became  their   subjects ;    the 
Visigoths,  or  West  Goths,  fell  back  before  their  advance, 


Extracts 
from  the  law 
of  the  Salic 
Franks, 
Henderson, 
176-189. 
Forms  of 
trial,  Penn. 
II.,  No.  IV., 
and  Hender- 
son, 314. 

The  frontiers 
often  broken 
and  restored 
with  diffi- 
culty. 
Freytag, 
Ingo;  Dahn, 
Felicitas 
(novels). 


The  attack  of 
the  Huns. 
Hodgkin, 
Italy,  Vol. 
II.,  Chap.  I.; 
Gibbon, 
Chap. 
XXVI. 


The  Last  Age  of  Rome 


[§§  27, 28 


Hodgkin, 

Italy, 

I.  250-256. 


The  battle  of 

Hadrian- 

ople,  378. 

Oman, 

Byzantine 

Empire 

(Nations), 

Chap.  III.; 

Hodgkin, 

Italy, 

I.  271-275. 

The  last 
great  em- 
peror of  the 
united  Em- 
pire, 379-395. 
Hodgkin, 
Dynasty  of 
Theodosius 
(Clarendon), 
Lect.  IV. 


Alaric,  king 
of  the 
Visigoths. 
Bury,  Em- 
pire, Bk.  II., 
Chap.  IV. ; 
Hodgkin, 
Dynasty  of 
Theodosius, 
Lect.  V. ; 
Gibbon, 
Chap*-  *XX 
and  XXXI. 


and  coming  to  the  Danube  besought  the  Romans  to  take 
them  within  the  frontier.  This  the  Romans  agreed  to,  the 
Goths  surrendering  their  arms  and  giving  hostages  for  their 
good  conduct. 

It  is  likely  that  the  Goths  would  have  kept  the  peace  but 
for  the  injustice  of  the  Roman  officers  who  had  charge  of 
the  arrangements.  They  were  trying  to  make  all  the  money 
they  could  out  of  the  business,  and  they  finally  allowed  the 
Goths  to  buy  back  the  arms  they  had  surrendered.  Then 
they  rose  and  marched  towards  Constantinople.  The  em- 
peror Valens  foolishly  risked  battle  without  waiting  for 
reinforcements,  and  was  totally  defeated  and  slain. 

27.  Theodosius   the   Great.  —  The    new   emperor,   who 
shortly  was  given  the   throne   in   the    East,  Theodosius,  a 
man  of  great  ability,  succeeded   in   settling  the   Goths   in 
territories   south    of   the    Danube,    which    they   agreed    to 
defend.      During   his   reign   of    about   twenty  years   they 
remained    faithful    to    the    Empire. 

Theodosius  united  for  some  years  the  whole  Empire  under 
his  rule,  but  this  was  for  the  last  time  in  history.  On  his 
death,  in  395,  it  was  divided  between  his  two  sons,  Honorius 
becoming  emperor  in  the  West,  and  Arcadius  in  the  East, 
and  the  Empire  was  never  again  united  except  in  mere 
form. 

28.  The  Invasions  of  Alaric.  —  Theodosius'  death  was 
the  signal  also  for  the  Visigoths  to  attempt  new  conquests, 
or  this  may  have  been  because   the    young  and  ambitious 
Alaric  came  to  their  throne  at  about  the  same  time.     They 
marched  into    Greece    plundering   and   destroying,  passed 
Athens,  and  went  on  into  the   Peloponnesus.     Here  their 
course   was   checked   by   an   army   from  the   West   under 
Stilicho,  a  Vandal,  who  was  the  commander  of  the  forces 
of  Honorius.     Alaric  escaped  from  Stilicho  with  his  army, 
and  crossed  into  Epirus,  but  was  persuaded  to  settle  down 
in  Illyricum  as  Roman  commander  in  that  province.     Here 
he  could  make  preparations  for  an  attack  on  either  half  of 
the  Empire  as  circumstances  might  invite. 


§§  29,  3°]        Rome's  German  Defender  sacrificed       33 

In  402  he  set  his  army  in  motion  again  and  this  time 
attacked  the  West.  Descending  into  the  valley  of  the  Po, 
he  threatened  Milan,  and  began  the  siege  of  Asti  where  the 
emperor  had  taken  refuge.  Again  Stilicho  saved  the  Empire, 
and  drove  him  back,  but  he  only  retired  to  the  head  of  the 
Adriatic  and  waited  for  another  opportunity. 

29.  The  Breaking  of  the  Rhine  Frontier.  —  Meantime  TheGer- 
events  had  taken  place  in  Germany  which  led  to  the  speedy 
collapse  of  the  Roman  power.  The  Huns  had  pushed  their  Huns. 
conquests  towards  the  West,  and  many  of  the  Germans, 
representing  several  tribes,  falling  back  before  their  advance, 
had  collected  on  the  east  side  of  the  upper  Rhine,  waiting 
an  opportunity  to  pass  over  into  Gaul.  From  these  a  large 
force  of  various  tribes  under  Radagaisus  turned  south  and 
invaded  Italy.  Stilicho  met  them  in  the  neighborhood  of 
Florence,  surrounded  them  with  his  army,  and  starved  them 
into  submission.  Rome  was  relieved  of  this  danger,  but  it 
was  her  last  success  in  Italy. 

On  the  last  day  of  the  year  406  the  Germans  who  had   The  °ccu- 


not  joined  the  expedition  of  Radagaisus  forced  the  passage  ( 


of  the  Rhine  and  entered  Gaul.  The  most  important  of  Zeiier,  I. 
these  tribes  were  three,  the  Suevi,  the  Vandals,  and  the  Bur- 
gundians.  The  Burgundians  settled  in  the  country  about 
the  upper  Rhine  which  still  bears  their  name,  and  soon 
were  able  to  make  a  treaty  with  the  Romans  by  which  their 
occupation  received  the  sanction  of  the  emperors  and  they 
were  recognized  as  a  Roman  army  of  occupation.  The 
Suevi  and  Vandals,  after  spending  some  time  in  plundering 
Gaul,  passed  through  the  Pyrenees  and  took  possession  of 
Spain,  which  they  made  into  kingdoms  for  themselves. 
Rome  never  recovered  any  real  control  of  Gaul. 

30.  Rome's  German  Defender  sacrificed.  —  Shortly  after  The  death  oi 
this  breaking  of  the  Rhine  frontier,  Stilicho  was  put  to  death   Stilicho  the 

,  ,       r  -  TTT-  i    i  •  Vandal,  408. 

as  the  result  of  a  conspiracy  of  his  enemies.     With  his  great  Hodgkin, 
enemy  out  of  the  way  Alaric  knew  that  his  opportunity  had  Italy,  I., 
come,  and  he  came  down  into  Italy  once  more.     This  time   ^P  .XVI.; 
there  was  no  one  to  turn  him  back.     In  410  Rome  was 


34 


The  Last  Age  of  Rome 


[§3i 


The  Vandals 

occupy 

Africa,  429. 

Curteis, 

Roman 

Empire, 

Chap.  VII.; 

Hodgkin, 

Dynasty  of 

Theodosius. 

Lect.  VII. 


Attila  in- 
vades Gaul, 

45i- 

Hodgkin, 
Dynasty  of 
Theodosius, 
Lect.  VI. ; 
Curteis, 
Roman 
Empire, 
Chap.  VIII. 
Zeller,  I. 


He  invades 
Italy,  452. 
Carr,  Church 
and  Roman 
Empire, 
Chap.XXIII. 


taken  and  sacked.  But  Italy  was  not  to  belong  to  the 
Visigoth.  Alaric  died  in  the  south  soon  after  the  capture 
of  Rome,  and  the  new  king  led  the  nation  into  southern 
Gaul.  There  they  settled  down  to  live  under  an  arrange- 
ment with  the  emperor,  whose  sister  was  married  to  their 
king,  and  from  there  they  extended  their  rule  over  Spain, 
gradually  conquering  the  Suevi  and  Vandals  who  had  occu- 
pied that  country  earlier. 

A  few  years  later  an  opportunity  came  to  the  Vandals  to 
cross  over  into  Africa,  a  province  which  up  to  that  time  had 
not  been  plundered  by  the  Germans.  The  story  goes  that 
they  were  invited  to  make  the  invasion  by  the  Roman 
officer  in  command.  At  any  rate  there  was  civil  war 
among  the  Romans  in  the  province,  and  the  Vandals  easily 
conquered  it,  and  made  Carthage  the  capital  of  a  new 
kingdom  which  soon  became,  like  the  old  Carthage,  a  great 
naval  power  in  the  Mediterranean.  In  455  in  one  of  their 
raids  they  stormed  the  city  of  Rome  and  carried  off  a  great 
booty. 

31.  The  Invasions  of  the  Huns.  — Just  before  this  hap- 
pened, however,  the  smitten  Empire  had  made  its  last 
desperate  attempt  at  self-defence.  Attila,  the  young  king 
of  the  Huns,  at  the  head  of  a  great  army  composed  of  his 
own  people  and  of  the  German  tribes  who  had  submitted  to 
their  rule,  invaded  Gaul,  and  threatened  to  sweep  all  before 
him.  By  a  heroic  effort  the  Roman  commander,  Aetius, 
"  the  last  of  the  Romans,"  succeeded  in  getting  together  an 
army  strong  enough  to  oppose  him.  It  was  made  up,  how- 
ever, largely  of  Germans.  The  army  of  the  Visigoths  was 
there,  led  by  their  king,  and  Franks  also  aided  in  the  de- 
fence of  the  Empire.  The  great  battle  at  Chalons-sur- 
Marne,  called  sometimes  the  battle  of  the  nations,  was 
desperately  fought  and  not  decisive,  but  Attila's  loss  was  so 
heavy  that  he  decided  to  give  up  the  attempt.  The  next 
year  he  entered  Italy  with  another  army.  Aetius  was  this 
time  unable  to  meet  him,  but  we  are  told  that  the  pope, 
Leo  I.,  came  to  the  help  of  the  Empire  and  persuaded  the 


§  32]  The  End  of  the   Western  Empire  35 

Hun  to  turn  back.  The  story  is  very  possibly  true.  At 
any  rate,  for  some  reason  Attila  did  abandon  the  attack, 
and  Italy  was  saved.  In  the  following  year  he  died,  and  his 
empire  fell  apart,  the  Huns  remaining  in  the  Danube  valley 
and  the  German  tribes  becoming  independent. 

32.  The   End  of  the  Western   Empire.  —  Already  the  Nominal 

Saxon  settlements  had  begun  in   Britain,  and  now  not   a  emP^ors 

0  and  German 

province  of  the  Western  Empire  was  really  Roman.  Italy  ruiers. 
kept  up  the  pretence  of  being  so  for  some  years  yet,  and 
the  throne  was  occupied  by  some  one  who  called  himself  by 
the  title  of  emperor,  but  the  army  was  German  and  its  Ger- 
man commander  was  the  real  ruler  of  the  country.  Finally 
this  army  revolted,  made  a  German,  Odovakar,  king  in  the 
German  fashion,  deposed  the  emperor  Romulus  Augustulus, 
and  sent  to  Constantinople  the  imperial  insignia,  saying  that 
one  emperor  for  the  whole  Empire  was  sufficient.  This 
meant,  of  course,  though  they  might  express  it  differently,  that 
Italy  had  now  become  a  German  kingdom  like  the  other 
provinces  of  the  West. 

The  date  of  this  event,  476,  is  usually  taken  as  the  date   The  close  of 

to  separate    "ancient"   from    "medieval"    history,    and  it   "ancient 

.c         .      '.    .  .         history/476 
serves  as  well  for  the  purpose  as  any  date,  if  such  a  division 

is  to  be  made,  for  it  does  mark  in  a  somewhat  striking  way 
the  great  fact  which  makes  a  real  separation  —  the  fall  of 
the  Roman  power  and  the  coming  in  of  the  Germans.  But 
it  must  not  be  thought  that  this  event  seemed  especially 
significant  to  the  people  who  were  living  at  the  time  or  that 
they  were  at  all  conscious  of  any  passage  from  one  age  of 
history  to  another.  It  was  to  them  an  incident  like  a  great 
many  others  which  were  happening  on  all  hands,  and  they 
were  able  easily  to  persuade  themselves  that  Rome  con- 
tinued, for  was  there  not  an  emperor  of  Rome  reigning  all 
the  time  at  Constantinople.  To  after  ages,  which  realized 
more  clearly  that  the  West  had  ceased  to  be  Roman,  this 
dramatic  surrender  of  the  title  seemed  to  mark  the  close 
of  a  great  period  in  history. 


36  The  Last  Age  of  Rome 


Topics 

The  last  age  of  prosperity.  The  attempt  of  Julian  against  Chris- 
tianity. The  economic  diseases  of  the  Roman  Empire.  What  was  the 
real  reason  why  Rome  could  no  longer  resist  the  Germans?  How 
does  a  serf  differ  from  a  slave?  What  frontiers  were  especially  subject 
to  attack?  The  Germans  on  the  side  of  Rome.  The  civilization  of 
the  Germans.  The  events  which  led  to  the  battle  of  Hadrianople. 
The  final  division  of  the  Empire.  Alaric  and  Stilicho.  The  name  and 
place  of  settlement  of  each  of  the  German  tribes  occupying  the  Western 
Empire.  The  history  of  Attila.  What  happened  in  the  year  476,  and 
the  meaning  of  the  event? 

Topics  for  Assigned  Studies 

The  causes  of  the  fall  of  Rome.  Hodgkin,  Italy,  Vol.  II.,  Chap.  IX., 
and  an  article  in  the  Contemporary  Review,  Jan.,  1898.  Seeley, 
Roman  Imperialism,  Lecture  II.  Bury,  Later  Roman  Empire, 
Book  I.,  Chap.  III.  Adams,  Civilization  during  the  Middle 
Ages,  76-87. 

A  glimpse  of  Hun  life.  Bury,  Later  Empire,  Book  II.,  Chap.  XI., 
a  translation. 

The  end  of  the  Western  Empire  in  476.  Bryce,  Holy  Roman  Empire, 
Chap.  III.  Hodgkin,  Italy,  II.,  Chap.  VIII.  Bury,  Later  Em- 
pire, Book  III.,  Chap.  V. 


GERMAN  WEAPONS 


CHAPTER   IV 

THE  FOUNDING  OF  THE  GERMAN  STATES 

33.  A  Second  Period  of  German  Conquests.  —  With  all 
their  appearance  of  success  these  first  German  states  were 

not  destined  to  be  permanent.     Another  series  of  conquests  The  first  con- 

followed  these  earlier  ones,  made  by  tribes  which  were  not  quests  not 

directly  impelled  by  the  attack  of  the  Huns,  and  theirs  were  P 
the  states  which  grew  into  the  modern  nations. 

The  Franks  were  the  first  to  begin  the  new  movement.  The  Franks. 

A  part  of  their  race   had  been  allowed  by  the  Romans  to  Sergeant, 

occupy  lands   along  the  western  bank  of  the  Rhine    long  (Nations!  * 

before    that   frontier  was    finally   broken.      They  were  not  Freeman,  ' 

always  peaceable  allies  of  the  Empire,  but  they  continued  Tke  Franks 

to    hold  these  lands ;  their  numbers  were  increased  after  cauls,  in 

the  invasion  of  406 ;  and  when   they  began  their   career  Historical 

of  conquest  they  were  occupying  the  territory  on  both  sides  f^cmii' 

of  the  middle  and  lower  Rhine.     Their  conquests  differed  ian) ;  Zeiier, 

from  those  of  all  the  other  German  tribes  in  the  important  n- 
fact  that  they  were  an  expansion,  the  Franks  spreading  out 
in  all  directions  while  they  still  retained  possession  of  their 
original  home  as  the  centre  of  their  dominion. 

34.  The  Founder  of  the  Frankish  Empire.  —  Clovis  was  Clovis,  481- 
the  founder  of  the  greatness  of  his  race.     He  was  the  king,  5"- 

at  the  beginning  of  his  career,  of  a  small  subdivision  or  clan   y^ 
of  the  Franks  on  the  Roman  side  of  the  river,  with  Tournai   Gibbon, 
as  his  capital,  for  at  this  time  the  Franks  were  in  a  somewhat 
backward  stage  of  political  development  and  had  no  com- 
mon  or   national  government,   but  several  kings  of  tribal 
subdivisions.    This  gives  us  the  double  task  in  which  Clovis 

37 


38  The  Founding  of  the  German  States        [§  35 


His  first 
conquest, 

486. 


The 

Alemanni 

overcome. 


The  question 
of  the 
divinity  of 
Christ. 
Gwatkin, 
The  Arian 
Controversy 
(Epochs, 
Ch.  Hist.)  ; 
Penn.  IV., 
No.  II. 


was  to  be  successful,  the  conquest  of  new  territory  and  the 
consolidation  of  his  own  race. 

To  the  west  of  Clovis,  in  north  central  Gaul,  lay  a  terri- 
tory which  had  not  as  yet  been  occupied  by  any  German 
tribe.  A  Roman  officer,  Syagrius,  commanded  here,  but  he 
was  of  course  really  independent,  and  he  is  called  by  the 
historian  of  the  Franks,  Gregory  of  Tours,  the  king  of  the 
Romans.  This  was  an  opportunity  for  Clovis,  and  with  a 
small  army  he  marched  against  Syagrius  and  completely  de- 
feated him  in  486.  In  territory  and  resources  this  was  a 
great  increase  of  Clovis'  power,  and  is  the  first  event  in  the 
history  of  the  empire  which  was  to  succeed  the  Roman. 

Ten  years  later  the  second  step  was  taken.  Clovis  led 
the  Franks  against  their  enemies  the  Alemanni,  who  held 
the  lands  to  the  southeast.  The  decisive  battle  was  hotly 
contested,  and  we  are  told  that  in  the  midst  of  it  Clovis 
cried  out  that  if  the  God  of  his  Christian  wife,  Clotilda, 
would  give  him  the  victory  he  would  become  his  follower. 
The  victory  was  gained.  The  Alemanni  were  conquered 
and  their  land  made  subject  to  the  Franks,  and  Clovis  kept 
his  promise. 

35.  Arian  versus  Catholic.  —  The  conversion  of  Clovis 
brings  us  to  a  fact  of  great  importance  in  the  history  of  the 
Christian  church  as  well  as  in  the  political  history  of  Europe. 
Early  in  the  fourth  century  a  theological  controversy  had 
arisen  in  Alexandria  on  the  question  of  the  divinity  of  Christ. 
Arius  and  his  followers,  called  Arians,  maintained  that  Christ 
was  not  God.  To  get  an  authoritative  decision  of  the  matter 
Constant! ne  called  the  first  great  council  of  the  church,  the 
council  of  Nicaea,  in  325.  Its  decision  was  in  favor  of  the 
doctrine  of  Christ's  divinity,  but  this  did  not  finally  settle 
the  controversy,  and  for  a  considerable  portion  of  the  fourth 
century  the  government  of  the  Eastern  Empire  favored  the 
Arian  belief. 

The  West,  on  the  other  hand,  when  left  to  itself,  steadily 
favored  the  orthodox  view.  The  German  conquest  of  the 
fifth  century,  however,  threatened  the  church  of  the  West 


§  36]          Clovis  adopted  the  Catholic  Faith 


39 


with  a  serious  danger  arising  from  this  question.  For  these 
Germans  had  been  converted  before  the  crossing  of  the 
Danube  by  missionaries  from  Constantinople  who  were 
Arians.  The  most  famous  of  these  missionaries,  Ulfilas, 
translated  nearly  all  the  Bible  into  Gothic,  and  the  fragments 
which  have  come  down  to  us  of  this  translation  are  our 
earliest  written  specimens  of  the  Teutonic  languages. 

When  the  Arian  German  became  the  ruler  of  the  provinces 
of  the  West,  the  difference  of  religious  belief  gave  rise  to 
constant  suspicion  between  himself  and  his  Romanized  sub- 
jects. The  Arian  was  nearly  always  liberal  and  did  not  try 
to  force  his  views  upon  others,  but  he  could  not  avoid  know- 
ing that  the  Catholic  looked  upon  him  as  a  heretic,  and  the 
suspicion  was  natural  that  the  rule  of  the  orthodox  emperor 
was  preferred  to  his  own,  and  that  conspiracies  to  establish 
it  might  be  constantly  expected.  Still  more  important  was 
the  fact  that  the  Arian  did  not  acknowledge  the  supremacy 
of  the  bishop  of  Rome,  even  in  the  undeveloped  form  of 
the  fifth  century.  The  permanence  of  this  faith,  therefore, 
in  the  West  would  mean  a  very  loose  organization  for  the 
church  there,  and  very  possibly  no  organization  at  all  but 
independence  and  separation,  which  in  turn  would  mean  a 
far  more  slowly  developing  civilization. 

36.  Clovis  adopted  the  Catholic  Faith.  —  The  Burgundi- 
ans  like  the  rest  were  Arians  at  the  time  of  their  settlement, 
but  a  portion  of  the  race  had  been  converted  to  Catholicism, 
and  Clovis'  wife  was  of  this  party.  Whether  he  was  led  by 
this  reason  or  by  the  obvious  advantage  which  he  might  ex- 
pect to  gain  if  he  were  a  Catholic  in  extending  his  con- 
quests over  his  Arian  neighbors,  Clovis  at  his  conversion 
adopted  the  Catholic  belief.  As  in  the  case  of  Constantine, 
Clovis'  conversion  made  no  apparent  change  in  hi?  charac- 
ter or  conduct,  and  the  real  importance  of  the  act  is  to  be 
found  in  its  political  consequences,  especially  in  the  fact 
that  he  thus  prepared  the  way  for  a  close  union  in  interest 
and  policy  between  the  papacy  and  the  Prankish  nation, 
which  was  of  the  greatest  value  to  them  both. 


The  Roman 
West 

Catholic,  the 
German 
Arian. 


A  source  of 
discord  be- 
tween rulers 
and  ruled. 


Clovis'  con- 
version not 
unlike  Con- 
stantine's. 
Sergeant, 
Franks, 
Chap.  IX. 


4O         The  Founding  of  the  German  States      [§§  37,38 


The  Bur- 

gundians 
conquered. 
Sergeant, 
Chap.  X. 


The  Visi- 
goths also, 
5°7- 


The  Franks 
made  a 
nation. 


Results  of  the 
reign. 


37.  The  Last  Years  of  Clovis'  Reign.  —  Not  long  after 
his  conquest  of  the  Alemanni,  Clovis  attacked  the  Burgun- 
dians,  skilfully  fomenting  a  division  in  the  state.     At  first 
he  was  entirely  successful  and  reduced  the  country  to  the 
condition  of  a  tributary  state,  but  later  the  Burgundians  re- 
covered something  of  their  independence,  and    were   not 
incorporated   in   the    Frankish    dominions   until   after   the 
death  of  Clovis.     Next   came    the    turn    of  the   Visigoths, 
whose  territories  south  of  the  Loire  Clovis  naturally  coveted, 
and  who  could  be  attacked  as  Arians.     Again  Clovis  gained 
a  decisive  victory  and  would  have  annexed  all  the.  territory 
to  the  Pyrenees  but  for  the  intervention  of  the  Ostrogothic 
king  Theodoric  from  Italy.     He  saved  Septimania  to  the 
Goths,  the  land  along  the  coast  of  the  Mediterranean,  and 
so   kept  open  a  line   of  communication   between  the  two 
Gothic  states. 

In  the  last  years  of  Clovis'  life  the  process  of  consolidat- 
ing the  Franks  into  a  nation  was  carried  to  completion. 
The  way  was  prepared  for  it  by  a  series  of  treasons  and 
murders  which  are  evidence  enough  that  his  conversion  had 
had  no  influence  on  the  character  or  conduct  of  the  Frank- 
ish king. 

Clovis  died  in  511,  after  the  accomplishment  of  a  great 
work.  If  we  consider  with  how  small  a  power  he  began, 
and  what  a  really  great  dominion  he  had  brought  together, 
the  solid  foundation  of  the  empire  which  was  to  be  the 
source  of  institutions  and  law  for  the  Middle  Ages,  we  can- 
not refuse  to  Clovis,  savage  though  he  was,  the  title  of  one 
of  the  great  men  of  history. 

38.  The  Ostrogoths  conquer  Italy.  —  During  the  years 
of  Clovis'  life  another  German  kingdom  had  been  founded 
which  deserved  a  better  fate  than  awaited  it,  by  a  man  as 
great  or  even  greater  than   Clovis.      After  the    death    of 
Attila,  the  Ostrogoths,  now  independent,  had    crossed  the 
Danube  and  settled  on  its  southern  side,  where  they  made 
an  arrangement  with  the  emperor  in  the  East.     About  the 
same  time  that  Clovis  became  the  king  of  the  Franks,  the 


39]          The  Character  of  Theodoric  s  Rule 


41 


young  Theodoric  became  their  king.  Like  Alaric  and 
Attila  under  similar  circumstances,  he  was  probably  moved 
by  ambition  to  attempt  new  conquests. 

Italy  was  the  province  which  he  finally  selected  as  the 
seat  of  his  kingdom.  Here  Odovakar  was  still  in  power, 
and  Theodoric  did  not  find  it  an  easy  task  to  conquer  him. 
He  only  succeeded  in  the  end  by  murdering  Odovakar  with 
his  own  hand  after  a  nominal  peace  had  been  made  between 
them. 

39.   The  Character   of    Theodoric'  s    Rule.  —  This    act, 
however,  was  not  followed  by  others  like  it.     Theodoric's 

,,.,,„  .  1-1 

reign  was  wise  and  liberal.  He  seems  to  have  desired  to 
lead  the  two  races,  German  and  Roman,  to  live  in  harmony 
and  to  rule  as  the  king  of  all  his  people.  Though  he  was 
an  Arian,  he  respected  the  religion  of  his  Catholic  subjects 
and  did  not  persecute  them.  In  the  later  years  of  his  life, 
when  perhaps  his  mind  had  been  darkened  by  family  and 
public  misfortunes,  he  showed  more  of  the  disposition  of  a 
tyrant,  and  put  to  death  several  of  the  leading  Romans  on 
suspicion  of  conspiracies  to  restore  the  rule  of  the  emperor. 
Among  these  was  the  philosopher  Boethius,  whose  books 
were  in  such  common  use  during  the  Middle  Ages.  Out- 
side his  own  kingdom,  Theodoric's  influence  was  very  great 
over  all  the  Germans  of  the  West.  He  was  connected  with 
almost  all  the  states  by  marriage  alliances  or  other  ties,  and 
came  as  near  to  exercising  a  universal  rule  as  was  possible 
at  the  time.  For  twelve  years  during  the  minority  of  their 
king  he  acted  as  king  of  the  Visigoths,  and  the  two  parts  of 
the  race  were  united  again  as  they  had  been  before  the  attack 
of  the  Huns.  In  government,  Theodoric,  though  he  was  him- 
self a  German  king,  retained  much  of  the  machinery  of  the 
Roman  state,  and  there  promised  to  be  made  among  the 
Ostrogoths  a  thorough  and  early  union  of  the  two  sides  of 
future  civilization,  German  and  Roman. 

But  it  was  the  Franks  who  were  in  the  end  destined  to 
make  this  union  of  German  and  Roman,  and  not  the  Goths. 
No  king  like  Theodoric  came  after  him,  and  in  not  many 


Theodoric 
the  Great- 


The  conquest 


The  wisest 
andbestof 

the  early  Ger- 

man  kings. 
Bryce,  Holy 


His  influence 
international. 


The  Ostro- 


Short-Hved, 
493-555. 


42        The  Founding  of  the  German  States       [§§  4°>  41 


Divisions, 


New 
conquests. 


The  "  do- 
nothing" 
kings. 

Zeller,  II. 


years  the  kingdom  of  the  Ostrogoths  was  overthrown  and 
the  race  annihilated. 

40.  The  Growth  of  the  Frankish  Power.  —  The  dominion 
of  the  Franks,  on  the  other  hand,  continued  to  grow.     Clovis' 
kingdom  was  divided  on  his  death  between  his  four  sons, 
and  divisions  of  the  kingdom   continue  to  be  frequent  in 
Frankish  history,  but  these  do   not  split  the  race   or  the 
empire  into  permanent  fragments.      Towards  the  west,  in 
the  lands  which  had  a  large  Roman  population,  the  Franks 
themselves  were  slowly  becoming  Romanized,  and  as  those 
to  the  east  remained  German  there  was  beginning  in  this 
way  a  division  in  the  race  which  was  to  be  permanent  and 
to  have  most  important  consequences  in  history.     It  was, 
however,  many  generations  before  these  consequences  be- 
gan to  appear. 

In  the  meantime  new  conquests  were  made.  The  Bur- 
gundians  were  annexed  and  received  a  Frankish  king.  The 
Visigothic  territories  in  southern  Gaul  were  more  com- 
pletely incorporated.  In  central  Germany  the  Thuringians 
were  conquered.  Finally,  southeastern  Germany  was  in- 
cluded, and  about  the  beginning  of  the  seventh  century  the 
Frankish  dominions  reached  their  widest  extent  for  this 
period,  covering  all  Gaul,  the  valley  of  the  Rhone,  and  cen- 
tral and  southern  Germany. 

41.  The   Decay  of  the  Merovingian   House. — At   this 
same  date  the  Merovingian  house,  the  family  of  Clovis,  en- 
tered   upon  a  period  of  rapid  decay  and  exhaustion,  the 
period  of  the  faineant  or  do-nothing   kings.     The  savage 
passions  of  Clovis  descended  in  his  family.     Its  history  is 
full  of  treachery,  murder,  and  crimes  of  all  kinds.     In  the 
last  half  of  the  sixth  century  two  famous  queens,  Frede- 
gonda  and  Brunhilda,  strove   for  supremacy  and   triumph 
over  one  another,  in  a  most  barbarous  and    brutal  conflict 
from   which  begins  the  corruption   of  the  strength   of  the 
line.     Dagobert,  who  was  king  from  628  to  638,  was  the  last 
of  the  Merovingians  who  really  ruled.     After  him  the  con- 
trol of  the  state  passed  into  the  hands  of  the  great  officers 


§  41]       The  Decay  of  the  Merovingian  House          43 


who  were  called  the  mayors  of  the  palace,  and  the  kings 
were  reduced  to  mere  shadows,  with  no  voice  in  the  con- 
duct of  affairs. 

One  characteristic  of  the  Prankish  constitution  made  the 
dissolution  of   government  comparatively  easy.      The  ma-   count. 


0       100      200       300     400 


Bormay  1  0».,«,J. 


chinery  of  the  state  was  very  simple.  The  chief  adminis- 
trative officer  was  the  count,  or  graf,  an  officer  of  the 
primitive  Germans  whose  duties  had  been  enlarged  under 
Roman  influence.  The  territory  of  the  state  was  divided 
into  districts  called  counties/  each  of  which  was  adminis- 


44        The  Founding  of  the  German  States      [§§  42>  43 


Changes  in 
Italy. 


Character  of 
the  Empire 
in  the  East. 


Justinian, 

527-56S- 
Bury, 

Empire,  Bk. 
IV.,  Chap. 
II.;  Oman, 
Byzantine 
Empire 
(Nations), 
Chaps.  VI. 
and  VII. 


tered  by  a  count.  In  his  hands  were  concentrated  all  the 
various  functions  of  the  state.  He  collected  the  taxes,  ad- 
ministered and  enforced  the  laws,  presided  in  the  courts  of 
justice,  was  the  military  head  of  his  county,  and  repre- 
sented the  interests  of  the  state  in  all  directions.  So  much 
power  in  the  hands  of  an  individual,  who  was  often,  to  begin 
with,  one  of  the  great  landholders  of  his  county,  made  it 
very  easy  for  the  count,  especially  when  the  central  govern- 
ment was  weak,  as  in  the  age  of  the  "  do-nothing  "  Merovin- 
gians, to  throw  off  his  dependence  upon  the  government, 
and  become  practically  the  independent  ruler  of  a  little 
principality. 

42.  The  Roman  Empire  in  the  East.  —  In  the  meantime, 
the  Ostrogothic  kingdom  established  and  made  so  powerful 
had  come  to  an  end,  and  Italy  had  been  taken  possession 
of  by  another  German  race.     This  change  was  due  to  a 
sudden  revival  of  strength  in  the  eastern  half  of  the  Em- 
pire and  to  a  desire  of  the  emperor  to  rule  the  West  once 
more. 

Since  the  death  of  Theodosius  and  the  final  division  of 
the  Empire  the  East  had  taken  but  little  interest  in  the  af- 
fairs of  the  West.  Its  own  difficulties  were  enough  for  all 
its  strength.  To  be- sure  it  was  not  exposed  to  the  full  fury 
of  the  German  attack,  but  the  Huns  were  long  a  threaten- 
ing danger,  and  the  new  Persian  Empire  was  constantly 
trying  to  push  towards  the  West,  while  civil  and  religious 
strife  was  frequent  within  the  borders.  On  the  whole,  how- 
ever, the  Empire  in  the  East  was  well  maintained  through 
the  stormy  times  of  the  fifth  century. 

43.  The  Reign  of  Justinian.  —  Early  in  the  sixth  cen- 
tury, an  Illyrian  peasant,  Justin,  a  brave  soldier,  obtained 
the  throne,  and  prepared  the  way  for  his  nephew,  Justinian, 
whose  reign  is  the  last  great  period  in  what  may  be  called 
Roman  history  in  any  true  sense.     The  cherished  purpose 
of  Justinian  was  to  restore  the  old  Roman  Empire  by  the 
recovery  of  the  provinces  of  the  West  from  their  German 
conquerors.     Fortune  favored  him  in  this  purpose,  for  it 


§  44]         Justinian  s  Work  for  Civilization  45 

gave  him  in  Belisarius  a  general  of  great  ability,  and  in  the 
weakness  and  dissensions  of  the  German  states  a  compara- 
tively easy  task. 

The  kingdom  of  the  Vandals  in  Africa  was  first  attacked.  The  Vandals 
They  had  never  got  on  well  with  their  subjects,  largely  be-   con<luered- 
cause  as  Arians  they  were  inclined  to  persecute  the  Catho- 
lics, and  the  provincials  stood  ready  to  welcome  the  conquest 
of  Justinian.,     The  king  and  his  army  made  a  brave  defence, 
but  it  was  unskilful,  and  the  task  of  Belisarius  was  not  dif- 
ficult.    The  province  of  Africa  remained  under  the  Em- 
pire of  the  East  until  its  conquest  by  the  Arabs  a  century 
later. 

Belisarius  was  next  sent  against  Italy.     There  he  found  a  The  fall  of 
task  which  required  all  his  powers.     The  Ostrogothic  race  the  Ostr°- 
was  not  as  strong  as  it  had  once  been,  but  its  resistance  was  1^' 
long  and  heroic.     Once  when  everything  seemed  at  an  end  Empire,  Bk. 
they  recovered  possession  of  nearly  all  they  had  lost.     If  {^od'ktn  V'' 
they  had   had  the   leadership  which   they   deserved   they    Theodoric 
might   have   been  successful,  but   they  were  not  fortunate    (Heroes), 
in  their  kings  and  the  protracted  conflict  undermined  their 
strength.     Finally  they  were  entirely  overcome  and  the  race 
was  practically  annihilated,  for  the  few  survivors  passed  into 
Spain  where  they  were  absorbed  in  the  Visigoths. 

In  Spain  a  civil  war  among  the  Visigoths  enabled  Justinian  A  part  of 
to  obtain  possession  of  some  territory  in  the  southeastern  Spam 

recovered. 

quarter,  but  there  his  successes  were  limited.  He  had  not 
reestablished  the  old  Empire  of  Rome,  but  he  had  taken 
vengeance  on  the  first  conquerors  of  the  West,  and  he  had 
added  new  strength  to  the  name  and  idea  of  the  Empire. 

44.  Justinian's  Work  for  Civilization.  —  The  greatness  Building, 
of  Justinian's  reign  is  not  measured  by  his  wars  alone.  He 
was  a  great  builder  both  of  fortresses  for  defence  and  of 
beautiful  buildings  like  the  church  of  St.  Sophia  in  Constan- 
tinople, and  the  revived  interest  in  architecture  in  his  reign 
long  influenced  the  art  of  building  even  in  the  West. 

But  his  greatest  title  to  fame  of  all  is  his  codification  of 
the  Roman  law.     In  this  work  the  great  body  of  the  Roman 


46          The  Founding  of  the  German  States         [§  45 


The  codifica- 
tion of  the 
Roman  law. 
Extracts 
from  the 
Institutes, 
Fling, 
Studies, 
No.  10. 

Justinian's 
code  in  the 
West. 


The  Lom- 
bards enter 
Italy,  568. 


Character  of 
the  Lombard 
Conquest. 


law,  which  had  been  growing  for  so  many  centuries,  was  put 
into  systematic  and  easily  accessible  form.  The  work  com- 
prised three  parts :  the  Code  proper,  containing  the  laws 
made  by  the  emperors ;  the  Digest,  based  upon  the  writings 
of  the  great  Roman  lawyers  the  jurisconsults ;  and  the 
Institutes,  treating  of  the  fundamental  principles  of  the 
law,  as  an  introductory  text-book  for  the  law  student. 

This  system  of  law  Justinian's  conquest  introduced  into 
Italy,  where  it  remained  in  use,  and  whence  it  spread,  some 
centuries  later  in  the  Middle  Ages,  to  the  other  countries  of 
the  West,  becoming  at  length  powerfully  influential  in  the 
formation  of  the  national  law  of  all  the  continental  states, 
as  well  as  in  the  development  of  the  royal  power  at  the 
expense  of  the  feudal  system.  Probably  there  is  no  text- 
book of  law  in  such  extensive  use  to-day  as  the  Institutes  of 
Justinian. 

45.  The  Invasion  of  the  Lombards. — The  possession 
of  Italy  by  the  Eastern  Empire  was  not  of  long  duration. 
The  conquest  by  Justinian  had  merely  opened  the  way  for 
another  German  tribe.  The  Lombards  had  followed  the 
Ostrogoths  across  the  Danube,  and  now  they  followed  them 
into  Italy.  Justinian  had  been  dead  but  three  years  when 
they  descended  into  the  valley  of  the  Po  and  took  posses- 
sion of  that  part  of  Italy  almost  as  easily  as  if  it  were  a 
vacant  land,  only  a  very  few  of  the  cities  making  any  resist- 
ance. Of  the  rest  of  the  country,  however,  their  conquest 
was  very  slow  and  never  complete. 

The  Lombards  were  very  rude  and  uncivilized,  in  a 
backward  stage  of  political  development,  and  not  yet 
thoroughly  accustomed  to  a  national  government.  For 
some  years  after  the  conquest  they  lived  without  a  king, 
ruled  in  little  states  by  dukes,  while  others  were  trying  to 
make  new  states  for  themselves  in  the  unconquered  parts 
of  the  country.  These  later  conquests  were  made  without 
much  order  or  system,  wherever  it  pleased  the  leader  of  the 
band  to  settle.  Thus  it  happened  that  the  eastern  Romans 
retained  many  fragments  of  territory  scattered  about  in  the 


48         The  Founding  of  the  German  States      [§§  46, 47 


The  Eastern 
Empire  re- 
tained parts 
of  Italy. 


The  attack 
began  before 
the  Romans 
withdrew. 

Church,  The 
Count  of  the 
Saxon  Shore 
(novel). 

The  first 

settlement, 

449- 


The  develop- 
ment of 
government. 


peninsula,  and  separated  from  one  another  by  the  Lombard 
lands. 

This  fact  had  very  important  consequences  in  later  history. 
Southern  Italy  remained  a  part  of  the  Eastern  Empire  for 
almost  five  hundred  years.  Rome  and  Naples,  Genoa, 
Venice,  and  Ravenna  escaped  the  Lombard  occupation,  and 
though  the  exarch  of  Ravenna  was  in  form  the  representa- 
tive of  the  emperor,  he  could  exercise  no  very  effective 
control  over  the  cities  which  were  separated  from  his  by 
Lombard  territory.  This  meant  local  independence,  and  in 
the  case  of  Rome  it  meant  the  beginning  from  which  grew 
the  pope's  temporal  sovereignty. 

46.  The  Saxons  in  Britain.  —  One  German  settlement 
remains  to  be  described,  and  one  in  which  we  are  especially 
interested,  the  Saxon.     They  had  begun  to  make  plunder- 
ing raids  along  the  coasts  of  Britain,  exactly  after  the  fashion 
of  their  later  relatives  the  Northmen,  long  before  the  Roman 
troops  withdrew  from  the  island.     After  this  had  occurred, 
about  the  year   407,   the   abandoned   provincials   suffered 
severely  and  were  not  able  to  protect  themselves,  either  from 
the  Saxons  or  from  the  uncivilized  Celts  of  the  north  and 
west. 

By  the  middle  of  the  century  the  German  invaders  had 
begun  to  make  Little  settlements  along  the  coasts.  The  first 
of  these  was  probably  made  in  the  isle  of  Thanet,  at  the 
southeastern  corner  of  England,  by  the  Jutes  —  invited  to 
assist  in  keeping  off  the  wilder  Celts.  They  did  not  long 
remain  satisfied,  however,  with  Thanet,  but  spread  over  the 
neighboring  territory  by  conquest,  and  established  the  first 
of  the  German  kingdoms,  that  of  Kent. 

47.  The    Saxon    States.  —  Other   settlements  followed 
during  the  next  hundred  years,  the  Saxons  occupying  the 
southern  coasts  and  the  Angles  the  eastern.     The  Saxons 
had  at  this  time  no  idea  of  a  national  government,  and  those 
who  remained  in  the  original  home  on  the  continent  did  not 
have  even  at  the  time  of  their  conquest  by  the  Franks  more 
than  two  centuries  later.     The  new  conditions,  however, 


§  48]      No  Roman  Elements  in  Saxon  States         49 

which  arose  from  their  making  a  conquest  and  occupying  a 
conquered  land,  led  the  Saxons  in  England  to  transform 
their  leaders  into  kings  and  to  a  steady  increase  of  the 
royal  power. 

Of  the   earliest  states  we  know  almost  nothing.     They  The  so-called 
seem,  however,  to  have  been  very  small,  and  to  have  tended  Q^Jrchy" 
early  to  coalesce,  by  conquest  or  voluntary  union,  into  larger  English 
states.     From  this  stage  of  their  history  there  emerge  seven  People, 
larger  kingdoms  of  which  we  have  some  definite  knowledge.   L'  Ghap* IL 
They  are  the  kingdom  of  the  Jutes  in  Kent ;  three  Saxon 
kingdoms,  Sussex  and  Wessex  on  the  south  coast  and  Essex 
on  the  north  side  of  the  lower  Thames ;  and  three  states  of 
the  Angles :  East  Anglia,  now  the  counties  of  Suffolk  and 
Norfolk,  Northumberland,  stretching  finally  as  far  north  as 
Edinburgh,  and  Mercia,  the  last  to  be  settled,  a  kingdom  of 
the  interior  lying  to  the  west  of  East  Anglia.     These  are  the 
kingdoms  known  sometimes  as  the  Heptarchy,  a  term  which 
must  be  understood  to  mean  merely  that  there  were  seven 
states,  not   that   they   were    united  in  any  kind  of  union 
which  could  be  called  by  this  name  as  a  government. 

48.   No  Roman  Elements  in  the  Saxon  States.  —  In  one   Pure  Ger- 
very   important   respect  this   Saxon  conquest  differs  from   ^sovTrn" 
those  made  by  the  other  Germans.     Whatever  may  have  jaw> 
been  their  treatment  of  the  Romanized  provincials,  whether  Green, 
they  drove  them  entirely  out  of  the  land  which  they  occu-  Makin£°f 

.     ,  .  -  England, 

pied  or  made  subjects  of  them,  and  we  are  not  quite  sure   131-152; 
which  they  did,  they  underwent  themselves  no  Romaniza-   Church, 
tion.     Their  strictly  legal  and  political  institutions  show  no   ^f^in 
traces  of  Roman  influence.     No  union  of  German  and  Ro-    (Nations), 
man  was  made  in  these  states,  but  the  development  was 
purely  Teutonic.     In  institutions  of  a  more  economic  char- 
acter, especially  in  those  relating  to  the  holding  of  estates 
of  land  and  the  management  of  their  cultivation,  there  may 
have  been  a  more  direct  Roman  influence. 

One  line  of  connection  with  ancient  civilization  was,  how-   The  conver* 
ever,  established  not  long  after  the  conquest  in  the  conver-  sionofthe 
sion  of  the  Saxons  to  Christianity.     The  new  faith  had  been 


50  The  Founding  of  the  German  States       [§  48 


Translation 
of  Bede  in 
Bohn,  34-40 ; 
Letters  of 
Pope 

Gregory  to 
Augustine ; 
Gee  and 
Hardy,  2-10. 

664. 


introduced  into  the  island  under  the  Romans,  and  still 
endured  among  the  unconquered  Celts  of  the  west  and 
north,  an  earlier  and  less  developed  form  of  Christianity 
than  that  which  now  prevailed  upon  the  continent.  After 
the  introduction  of  Roman  Christianity  by  the  mission  of 
St.  Augustine  to  the  Saxons  in  597,  these  two  types  of  faith 
and  practice  became  rivals  for  the  adherence  of  the  new 
German  rulers.  In  the  Synod  of  Whitby  the  decision  was 
made  in  favor  of  the  Roman  forms,  a  decision  which  brought 
the  Saxons  into  contact  at  once  with  the  best  remaining  chan- 
nel of  influence  from  ancient  civilization,  with  the  growing 
unity  of  all  the  Christian  West  under  the  papacy,  and  with 
the  contemporary  life  of  the  continent. 


Topics 

How  did  the  Prankish  conquest  differ  from  that  of  the  other  Ger- 
mans? What  conquests  were  made  by  Clovis?  What  was  Arianism? 
What  difference  did  it  make  whether  Clovis  became  an  Arian  or  a 
Catholic?  State  all  the  changes  which  took  place  among  the  Franks 
under  Clovis.  The  character  of  Theodoric's  government  in  Italy. 
Divisions  in  the  Frankish  state.  Territories  of  the  Franks  at  their 
widest  extent.  What  is  meant  by  the  "do-nothing"  kings?  The 
duties  of  the  count.  The  conquests  of  Justinian.  The  fall  of  the 
Ostrogoths.  The  codification  of  the  Roman  law.  The  geographical 
character  of  the  Lombard  conquest.  How  did  the  Saxons  get  their 
first  footing  in  Britain?  What  effect  had  the  conquest  on  their  govern- 
ment? Was  there  anything  like  this  in  Frankish  history?  What  is 
meant  by  the  Heptarchy?  What  states  composed  it?  Roman  in- 
fluence on  the  Saxons. 


Topics  for  Assigned  Studies 

The  character  of  Theodoric's  rule.  Gibbon,  Chap.  XXXIX.  Bradley, 
Goths,  Chap.  XVII.  Hodgkin,  Theodoric  the  Goth  (Heroes), 
Oman,  Periods,  20-32.  Hodgkin,  7"he  Letters  of  Cassiodorus 
(Frowde),  gives  in  translation  a  large  number  of  the  letters  of 
Theodoric's  minister,  which  illustrate  the  character  of  his  govern- 
ment and  the  Roman  elements  in  his  state. 

Compare  or  contrast  Theodoric  and  Clovia 


Topics  for  Assigned  Studies  51 

The  codification  of  the  Roman  law.  Bury,  Empire,  Book  IV. ,  Chap. 
III.  Gibbon,  Chap.  XLIV.  Hadley,  Introduction  to  Roman 
Law  (Appleton),  Lectures  I.  and  II.  Sheldon  Amos,  Roman 
Civil  Law  (London,  Kegan  Paul),  Part  I.,  Chap.  IV.;  Part 
III.,  Chaps.  I.  and  II. 

The  first  Saxon  settlement.  Green,  Making  of  England  (Harper), 
13-54.  Green,  History  of  the  English  People  (Macmillan),  I. 
22-27.  Social  England  (Putnam),  I.  116-121.  Church,  Early 
Britain  (Nations).  Translation  of  Bede  in  Bohn's  Library, 
23-26.  There  is  also  a  translation  of  the  Anglo-Saxon  Chronicle 
in  Bonn. 


IT  li'  Cfi? 


Ul*  S  TX14  1  IX' 


FRAGMENT  FROM  THE  DIGEST  OF  JUSTINIAN 


CHAPTER  V 


The  Caro- 

lingian 
family. 
Sergeant, 
The  Franks 
(Nations), 
Chap.  XIV.; 
Hodgkin, 
Charles  the 
Great 

(Macmillan), 
Chap.  II.; 
Zeller,  II. 

Sources  of 
their  power. 


The  mayor 
of  the  palace. 
Sergeant, 
The  Franks, 
194-200. 


Pippin, 
Grimoald, 
and  Arnulf. 


THE  FRANKS,  THE  ARABS,   AND  THE  PAPACY 

49.  The  Second   Frankish  Dynasty.  —  The  conditions 
which  have  been  described  as  existing  in  the  Frankish  state 
under  the  later  successors  of  Clovis — turbulence,  civil  war, 
and  weak  kings  —  were  very  favorable  to  the  rise  of  some 
strong  man  into  power  alongside  the  king  to  exercise  the 
authority  which  the  kings  failed    to   exercise.     This  is  the 
way   in   which    the  second    dynasty   of    Frankish   history, 
the  great  family  of  the  Carolingians,  obtained  its  power. 

Aside  from  the  opportunity  which  the  general  condition 
of  things  gave  them,  the  new  family  was  assisted  in  its  rise 
by  two  important  facts.  One  was  their  own  great  wealth 
and  resources,  especially  when  in  the  third  generation  the 
possessions  of  two  of  the  richest  families  of  the  Rhine  valley 
were  united  in  their  hands.  The  second  was  that  they  early 
obtained  a  practically  hereditary  hold  upon  the  office  of  mayor 
of  the  palace  in  Austrasia,  the  eastern  kingdom.  This  office 
seems  to  have  been  that  of  a  kind  of  steward  of  the  royal 
estates,  from  which  the  Frankish  king's  revenue  was  chiefly 
derived.  It  therefore  gave  its  holder  some  control  over 
the  disposition  to  be  made  of  the  lands  and  of  the  revenues, 
and  so  put  into  his  hands  a  means  of  influence,  of  favoring 
his  friends,  and  of  punishing  his  enemies,  of  great  value  to  a 
growing  power. 

50.  The  First  Carolingians.  —  The  first  of  this  line  was 
Pippin    of  Land  en,  who  was   mayor  of  the   palace  under 
Dagobert  I.     His  son  Grimoald,  under  weaker  kings,  exer- 
cised almost  royal   authority  for  nearly  twenty  years.     At 
last  he  made  a  premature  attempt  to  transfer  the  crown  to 

52 


§§5J>52]       The  Government  Strengthened  53 

his  son,  and  was  killed  by  the  other  nobles,  who  were  not 
willing  to  allow  a  strong  king  to  take  the  place  of  a  weak 
one,  and  who  were  not  yet  used  to  seeing  the  royal  author- 
ity in  the  hands  of  any  family  but  the  Merovingian.  Grimo- 
ald's  sister  carried  on  the  line  through  her  marriage  with 
the  son  of  Arnulf  of  Metz,  who  had  been  a  most  influential 
man  in  the  days  of  the  first  Pippin.  Their  son  was  the  sec- 
ond Pippin,  of  Heristal,  and  he  recovered  the  power  of  his 
grandfather  and  uncle. 

51.  Their  Power  established.  —  In  the  meantime,  in  the   Differences 

west  Frankish  kingdom,  Neustria,  a  similar  course  had  been   between 

.    Neustria  and 
run,  except  that  no  really  hereditary  power  had  been  created   Austrasia. 

by  the  mayors  of  the  palace  who  ruled  for  the  kings.     The 
difference  between  the  Romanized  Frank  of  the  West  and 
the  pure  German  of  Austrasia  had,  however,  been  increasing, 
and  many  wars  had  been  fought  between  the  two  states. 
Perhaps  one  result  of  the  difference  was  that  Neustria,  after 
the  Roman  model,  was  a  more  centralized  state  than  Aus- 
trasia, and  the  nobles  were  less  independent  there.     In  687 
the  two  states  and  the  two  differing  systems  came  to  a  deci- 
sive conflict  in  the  battle  of  Testry.     Here  Pippin  and  the   The  battle  of 
east  Franks  gained  a  complete  victory.     This  battle  gave  to   Testry' 
Pippin  the  control  of  both  kingdoms  and  of  all  the  Franks, 
which  he  retained  to  the  end  of  his  life  and  passed  on  to   Hodgkin, 
his  descendants.     But  its  results  were  more  than  this.     It    Charles  the 
gave  ascendency  again  to  the  German  element  in  the  nation,        33-39. 
and  it  checked  for  a  time  the  development  of  an  absolute 
monarchy. 

52.  The  Government  strengthened.  —  Pippin  had  won  Centraiiza- 
his  victory  as  the  representative  of  a  loose  organization  and   tlon  of  tne 
of  an  independent  aristocracy.     But  when  he  was  once  in 
possession  of  the  supreme  power  he  naturally  strove  to  make 

it  as  great  as  possible.  The  next  stage  of  Frankish  history 
then  is  filled  with  a  new  conflict  between  the  central  power 
in  the  hands  of  Pippin,  and  after  him  of  his  son  Charles 
Martel,  and  the  aristocracy.  It  is  a  conflict  in  which  the 
central  authority  was  finally  successful,  and  Charles  Martel 


54        The  Franks,  the  Arabs,  and  the  Papacy     [§  52 

passed  on  to  his  son,  the  third  Pippin,  a  strong  government 
in  which,  however,  he  still  ruled  in  the  name  of  the  king,  not 
having  ventured  to  try  again  the  experiment  of  transferring 
to  himself  the  crown  in  which  the  line  had  once  so  disas- 
trously failed. 


THE  KAABA  AT  MECCA 


Under  Charles  Martel  a  new  line  of  influence  of  the  great- 
est importance  enters  the  history  of  Europe,  having  had  its 
rise  in  the  Orient  some  time  before.  This  was  Mohamme- 
danism. 


§§  53>  54]  Mohammed  and  his  Religion  55 

53.  Arabia   before   Mohammed. — Up   to   the   time   of  No  unity  of 

Mohammed  Arabia  had  had  no  part  in  the  history  of  the   national  life 
-  .  .  .     ,  ,  ,     .         or  of  religion, 

world.     The  most  of  its  territory  was  occupied  by  wandering  Bury-s 
tribes,  and  only  along  the  shores  of  the  Red  Sea  was  there  a  Gibbon, 
commercial  and  agricultural  population  with  some  develop-  v-  3«-333- 
ment  of  city  life.     The  Arabs  had  no  national  government, 
nor  anything  which  could  be  called  a  national  culture  or 
religion.     Mecca  was  the  centre   of  what   national  feeling 
existed,  and  there  was  the  Kaaba,  a  temple  full  of  idols 
from  many  sources,  under  the  charge  of  the  priestly  family 
of  the  Koreishites.     Idolatry  prevailed  in  general  through- 
out the  country,  and  in  some  parts  the  worship  of  the  stars. 

54.  Mohammed    and   his   Religion.  —  Mohammed   was   Moham- 
born  in  571.     Left  an  orphan  while  a  mere  child,  he  spent   med's  early 
a  youth  of  poverty,  and   finally  obtained   employment   as 

a   driver  in  a  caravan.     His  employer,    a   widow  named 
Khadijah,  was  attracted  by  his  high  character,  fidelity,  and 
gentle  disposition,  and  married  him.     This  was  the  turning- 
point  in  his  career,  for  her  wealth  gave  him  the  influence  in 
the  community  which  he  had  lacked  before,  and  the  leisure 
necessary  for  his  work.     He  could  now  give  play  to  the 
strongly  religious  and  mystical  tendency  of  his  nature.     He 
began  to  have  visions  and  to  receive  revelations.     His  wife  The 
encouraged  him  to  believe  in  them,  and  to  obey  the  injunc-   character  of 
tions  which  he  received  to  teach  to  Arabia  the  true  character  M°J1>am' 

med  s 

of  God  and  a  new  religion.  religion. 

So  far  as  the  religion  itself  is  concerned,  which  Mohammed  Muir«  The 

taught,  it  was  a  distinct  advance  upon  anything  in  Arabia  composition 

before  his  time.     In  its  conception  of  God  and  of  responsi-  and  Teaching 

bility  in  the  future  life  for  conduct  in  this  life,  in  its  influence    (s-  P-C-K-) ; 

all  important 

upon  the  position  of  woman,  and  upon  many  lines  of  con-  passages 
duct,  it  reveals  the  fact  that  Mohammed  had  studied  some  translated, 
at  least  of  the  results  of  the  best  religious  and  ethical  think-  See  also  the 

0  common 

ing  of  mankind  up  to  his  times.     His  religion  reveals  also  translation 

its  human  origin  in  the  appeals  which  it  allows  to  the  lower  by  Sale;  and 

side  of  human  nature,  and  in  the  fact  that  progress  under  studies 

its  influence  seems  possible  only  up  to  a  certain  point;  but  n.,  No. 3. 


56        The  Franks  y  the  Arabs,  and  the  Papacy     [§  55 


The  Hegira, 
622. 


Conversion 
by  the  sword. 


Reasons  for 
the  rapid 
expansion  of 
Moham- 
medanism. 
Freeman, 
History  and 
Conquests  of 
the  Saracens 
(Macmillan). 


certainly  to  more  than  one  race  in  the  lower  stages  of 
advancement  conversion  to  Mohammedanism  has  been  fol- 
lowed by  rapid  progress  in  civilization.  This  was  its  origi- 
nal effect  upon  the  Arabians. 

At  first  his  converts  were  confined  to  his  own  relatives. 
Mecca,  and  especially  the  priestly  family  of  the  Koreishites, 
who  feared  the  loss  of  their  influence,  could  not  be  per- 
suaded. In  622  Mohammed  fled  from  persecution  in 
Mecca  and  found  refuge  in  the  rival  city  of  Medina.  This 
event  in  Mohammedan  history  is  called  the  Hegira,  and  is 
the  date  from  which  the  Mohammedan  chronology  begins 
to  reckon.  It  seems  to  have  produced  a  change  also  in  the 
character  of  Mohammed,  and  in  that  of  the  revelations 
which  he  received.  The  idea  began  now  to  be  cherished 
that  men  may,  for  their  own  good,  be  forced  to  accept  the 
truth  even  against  their  will,  and  this  idea  was  carried  out 
in  Mohammed's  lifetime  in  the  conquest  of  Arabia.  After 
the  death  of  Mohammed  the  central  and  eastern  portions  of 
Arabia  revolted  and  the  unity  of  the  nation  was  reestab- 
lished only  after  a  violent  civil  war. 

55.  A  Religion  of  Conquest.  —  In  the  meantime  con- 
quest outside  Arabia,  which  Mohammed  had  foreshadowed, 
had  already  begun.  In  an  incredibly  short  time  the  Ara- 
bians created  the  largest  empire  of  civilized  history,  the 
largest  at  least  before  the  nineteenth  century.  Provinces 
indifferent  to  a  change  of  masters  or  states  weak  and  de- 
cayed offered  no  adequate  resistance  to  the  tremendous 
enthusiasm  of  the  new  nation.  The  religion  also  was  dis- 
tinctly that  of  a  conquering  race.  With  its  doctrine  of  fate 
—  that  the  moment  of  every  man's  death  is  absolutely  fixed  — 
and  with  its  promise  that  the  soul  of  the  martyr  dying  in  battle 
should  be  admitted  at  once  into  the  joys  of  paradise,  it  tore 
down  the  ordinary  barriers  of  prudence  and  gave  enthusiasm 
unchecked  sway.  From  the  heretical  Christian  sects  along 
the  borders  of  Arabia,  who  had  descended  from  Arianism, 
Mohammed  had  learned  also  to  put  the  enormous  emphasis 
which  he  did  upon  the  doctrine  that  "  God  is  one  God." 


§  561          The  Conquests  of  the  First  Century          57 

This  teaching,  together  with  the  tolerant  character  of  the 
early  Mohammedanism,  made  its  victory  not  unwelcome  to 
the  oppressed  sectaries  of  the  Eastern  Empire. 

56.    The  Conquests  of  the  First   Century. — Syria  and  In  Asia, 

Persia  were  conquered  within  ten   years  of  the  death  of  Africa- and 

Mohammed,  Egypt  in  about  five  more.     By  the  close  of  Bury'^Gib- 

the  century  their  empire  had  practically  reached  the  Atlan-  bon,  v. 

tic,  the  limits  of  the  Roman  Empire,  on  the  west,  and  on  397~48  • 
the  east  and  northeast  in  Asia  those  of  Alexander  the  Great 

Ten   years   later   the   turn  of  Europe   came.     The   Arabs  Spain, 

crossed    the   straits  of  Gibraltar  and  easily  overthrew  the  ^^ey' 

great  Visigothic  kingdom  of  Spain,  which  was  now  weak  (Nations); 

and  full  of  civil  strife.     Only  a  little  land  remained  Christian  ChaP- 
behind  the  mountains  in  the  northwestern  corner. 

During  this  time  repeated  and  fierce  attempts  were  made  Attacks  on 

to  get   possession  of  Constantinople,  which   the  Saracens  ^^"o^n 

seem  to  have  thought  indispensable   to  their  empire,  like  Byzantine 
the  Russians  of  modern  history.     We  are  told  that  the  city 
was  saved  by  the  mysterious  Greek  fire,  but  the  Empire 

evidently  had  some  reserve  of  strength  and  was  able  even  to  andxiv.; 

dispute  the  possession  of  Asia  Minor  with  the  Arabs.  Oman,  Art 

With  Spain  in  their  hands,  it  was  natural  that  the  Saracens  545-543'. 

should  try  to  make  further  conquests  in  Europe.     But  north  Greek  fire, 

of  the  Pyrenees  they  came  in  conflict  with  a  new  kind  of  ^ury 'fm~ 

J  J  ,  ,        ptre,  II. 319; 

enemy,  a  race   as  young  and  powerful  as  themselves,  the 
Franks.     The  struggle  between  them  for  the  rule  of  southern  medan  ~x_ ' 
Gaul  lasted  for  twenty  years,  and  for  twenty  years  longer  the   pansion 
Saracens  held  a  little  portion  of  the  southeastern  corner.    The   ^  Franks' 
great  battle  of  the  time,  sometimes  called  one  of  the  greatest 
battles  of  history,  is  that  which  we  name  the  battle  of  Tours,   The  battle  of 
though  it  was  fought  nearer  the  city  of  Poictiers,  not  far 
south  of  the  Loire.     Here  Charles  Martel,  the  son  and  suc- 
cessor of  Pippin  of  Heristal  as  mayor  of  the  palace  and  ruler 
of  the  Franks,  totally  defeated  and  drove  back  the  greatest 
invasion  of  the  period.     He  had  much  fighting  afterward  to 
recover  the  lands  along  the  Rhone  which  the  Mohammedans 
had  occupied,  as  did  his  son  the  third  Pippin,  but  this  great 


58        The  Franks,  the  Am&s,  and  the  Papacy     [§  57 


End  of  the 
age  of  con- 
quest. 


The  Caliphs. 
Muir,  The 
Caliphate 
(Lond.  Rel. 
Tract  Soc.). 


The  rise  of 
the  Abbas- 
sides.     Muir, 
Caliphate, 
422-429. 


The  empire 
divided. 
Lane,  Ara- 
bian Society 
in  the  Middle 
Ages. 


The  most 
important 
service  of 
Mohamme- 
danism to 
civilization. 


victory  and  his  vigorous  defence  of  Gaul  strengthened  the 
hold  of  his  house  on  the  government  of  the  Frankish  nation. 
57.  The  Revolution  of  750. — The  age  of  conquest  in 
Mohammedan  history  goes  to  about  the  year  750.  Then 
occurs  a  dynastic  revolution  which  is  followed  by  a  division 
in  the  empire,  and  a  change  in  the  character  of  the  Saracen 
civilization. 

Mohammed  made  no  arrangement  for  the  government 
after  his  death.  The  first  caliphs,  or  "  successors,"  whose 
reigns  were  mostly  short,  were  chosen  from  the  companions 
of  Mohammed.  During  this  period  the  constitution  of  the 
empire  was  gradually  taking  shape.  In  66 1  the  caliph  Ali, 
the  nephew  of  Mohammed,  was  murdered  and  the  heredi- 
tary dynasty  of  the  Ommiads  seized  the  throne  and  made 
Damascus  the  capital  of  the  empire.  They  ruled  the 
united  empire  during  the  whole  age  of  conquest. 

A  little  before  750  leaders  who  claimed  a  descent  from 
Abbas,  another  uncle  of  Mohammed's,  raised  an  insurrec- 
tion to  avenge  the  wrongs  of  Ali.  Their  insurrection  was 
successful.  The  Ommiads  were  overthrown  and  cruelly 
punished,  and  the  dynasty  of  the  Abbassides  took  their 
place.  One  prince  of  the  Ommiads  escaped  and  later 
appeared  in  Spain,  which  recognized  him  as  caliph  and  made 
itself  independent.  From  this  time  on  the  Saracen  empire 
was  divided  into  two,  an  eastern  and  a  western,  as  the 
Roman  had  been.  Not  long  afterwards  another  dynasty, 
claiming  descent  from  Ali  himself  and  Fatima  the  daughter 
of  Mohammed,  established  the  independence  of  Egypt. 
The  Abbassides  changed  the  capital  from  Damascus  to 
Bagdad  on  the  Tigris,  and  this  city  became  speedily  the 
centre  of  a  rich  and  brilliant  civilization  which  has  left  us 
an  extremely  interesting  picture  of  itself  in  the  Arabian 
Nights. 

58.  Arabian  Science. — In  its  influence  upon  the  larger 
history  of  the  world,  the  most  important  feature  of  this 
civilization  was  its  scientific  character.  For  work  of  this 
kind  the  early  Mohammedan  people  seem  to  have  had  as 


58] 


Arabian  Science 


59 


great  a  liking  as  the  Greeks.  From  every  ancient  civiliza- 
tion with  which  they  came  in  contact,  they  absorbed  what 
could  be  learned,  —  Greek  science,  Persian  philosophy,  Hin- 
doo mathematics, —  and  these  they  wrought  into  a  single  body 
of  scientific  teaching.  To  what  they  had  borrowed  they  made 
some  additions  of  their  own,  especially  in  astronomy,  chem- 


TOMB  OF  THE  CALIPHS  AT  CAIRO 


istry,  and  mathematics,  though   their  work  in   advancing  Thefounda- 
science  was  less  important  than  in  transmitting  it.     For  this  tion  of 
the  world  owes  them  a  great  debt  of  gratitude.     The  service  scjence> 
which  the  church  and  the  Franks  performed  in  handing  on 
Roman  institutions  and  law,  the  Mohammedans  rendered  to 


60        The  Franks,  the  Arabs,  and  the  Papacy     [§  59 


Decay  of  the 
Abbassides. 


The  Seljuk 
Turks. 


The  early 
Merovingian 
conquests 
recovered. 


Greek  and  Oriental  science,  preserving  it  through  the  dark 
ages  as  the  foundation  of  modern  science  when  the  revival 
of  learning  finally  came. 

59.  The  Coming  in  of  the  Turks. — The  decline  of  this 
brilliant  Mohammedan  civilization  was  as  rapid  as  its  rise. 
In  the  East  the  Abbassid  family  fell  into  speedy  decay  like 
the  Frankish  Merovingians,  whom  they  rivalled  in  cruelty 
and  corruption.     In  the  days  of  their  greatness  they  had 
begun   the  introduction  of  Turkish  slaves  to  form  a  royal 
bodyguard,  and  when  the  age  of  decline  came  on  these  sol- 
diers and  their  officers  were  able  to  usurp  the  real  rule  as 
the   Carolingians    did    among    the    Franks,    restricting   the 
caliphs  to  a  religious  headship.     In  the  eleventh  century  the 
Seljuk  Turkish  dynasty   established  itself  in   the   political 
power,  and  it  was  with  them  that  the  first  crusaders  fought 
for  the  possession  of  the  Holy  Land.      When  the  Turks 
came  into  power  civilization  speedily  died  in  the  eastern 
caliphate,  as  it  has  everywhere   under  the  Turk.     In  the 
West  the  Spanish  caliphate  had  a  long  and  varying  history, 
at  times   weak  through  dissension  and  civil  war,  at  other 
times  reinforced  by  a  revival  of  enthusiasm  in  the  Moham- 
medan world  of  Spain  or  Africa.     Its  history  is  closely  con- 
nected with  the    growth  of  the  Christian  states  of  Spain, 
which  will  be  followed  later. 

60.  The  Frankish  Empire  restored. — In  the  Christian 
world  of  the   West,    the  eighth   century   is  one  of  steady 
recovery  in  the  Frankish  state   under  the   princes  of  the 
Carolingian  house.     The  reconstruction  of  the  authority  of 
the  central  government  has  been  already  noticed.     At  the 
same  time  is  carried  on  the  reestablishment  of  the  rule  of 
the  Franks  over  the  early  Merovingian  conquests,  which  as 
in  the  case  of  the  Bavarians,  for  example,  had  tended  to 
become  independent   during   the   age    of  weakness  in  the 
state.     The  work  of  recovery  in  this  direction  was  not  com- 
pleted  by  the  first   two   Carolingian  princes,   but  goes  on 
through  the  time  of  the   third,  Pippin  the  Short.     Charle- 
magne, the  son  of  Pippin,  began  his  reign  over  no  more 


§  61]         The  Pope's  Independence  Threatened         6 1 

territory  than  the  Franks  had  ruled  in  the  days  of  Dago- 
bert  I. 

But  some   new  things   had   been   done   by   Pippin   the   Pippin  made 
Short.     About  the  middle  of  the  century  he  came  to  believe   JjjjJ^J** 
that  the  experiment  of  Grimoald  could  be  safely  tried  again,   Hodgkin,  *' 
and  that  he  might  be  king  in  name  as  well  as  in  fact.     But   Charles  the 
he  felt  obliged  to  proceed  with  great  caution.     Something 
of  divinity  might  still  attach  in  the  popular  feeling  to  the  old 
house.     The  change  must  carry  with  it  a  religious  sanction 
which  all  would  recognize.     So  application  was  made  to  the 
pope  to  lend  the  weight  of  his  approval  to  the  assumption 
of  the  crown.     This  was  quickly  granted,  and  in  addition 
the  new  king  was  consecrated  with  holy  oil  by  a  religious 
ceremony  which  was  an  imitation  of  that  by  which  in  Old 
Testament  times  David  had  been  anointed  king  in  the  place 
of  Saul. 

This   reference   of  the   question   to  the  pope  shows  us  The  influ- 
clearly  .the  position  which  the  pope  had  come  to  hold  in  the  ence  of  the 
West  at  this  time.     Pippin  could  as  easily  have  obtained  ^^ Church 
the  sanction  he  desired  from  the  assembled  bishops  of  his  and  the 
own  realm.     It  is  manifestly  Pippin's  judgment,  however, 
that  the  opinion  of  the  pope  will  have  more  authority  and  xxiv. 
carry  more  weight  than  that  of  the  church  of  Gaul. 

61.  The  Lombards  threaten  the  Pope's  Independence. —  The  origin  of 
But  the  pope  at  this  time  had  as  great  need  of  Pippin  as  the  PaPal 
Pippin  had  of  him.    We  have  seen  how  at  first  the  Lombard   Oman, 
conquest  of  Italy  had  not  been  complete.     Rome  and  some   Periods, 
little  territory  about  it  had  remained  as  before.     Nominally 
it  was  under  the  rule  of  the  exarch  of  Ravenna  as  the  rep- 
resentative  of  the   emperor  at   Constantinople.      But   he 
could  not  easily  exercise  any  practical  control  in  Rome,  cut 
off  as  he  was  from  any  quick  or  safe  communication  with  it. 
As  a  result  the  conduct  of  political  affairs  drifted  steadily 
into  the  hands  of  the  pope,  as  the  only  one  to  whom  it  590-604. 
seemed  naturally  to  belong.     Gregory  I.,  the  great  pope  of  Barnaby, 
the  end  of  the  sixth  century,  assumed  the  direction  of  politi-    J^fat^ 
cal  affairs,  and  exercised  almost  all  the  functions  of  a  tern-    (S.  P.  c.  K,). 


62        The  Franks ,  the  Arabs,  and  the  Papacy     [§  62 


The  Lom- 
bard ad- 
vance. 
Oman, 
Periods, 
Chap.  XVI. 


The  appeal 
to  the 
Franks. 


The  donation 
of  Pippin. 


poral  sovereign  in  his  little  state.  This  sovereignty,  assumed 
by  the  popes  because  it  was  necessary  for  them  to  do  so 
without  any  thought  of  what  it  might  grow  into,  became  in 
the  course  of  time  the  sovereignty  of  a  little  state  in  central 
Italy,  of  which  they  were  the  kings,  though  they  did  not 
bear  the  title,  a  position  which  lasted  until  the  Franco- 
Prussian  War  in  1870,  and  which  is  known  in  history  as  the 
"temporal  power"  of  the  pope. 

After  almost  a  century  of  this  partial  occupation  of  Italy, 
the  Lombards  now  began  to  press  forward  to  obtain  the 
rest.  Dissensions  which  had  sprung  up  between  the  popes 
and  the  emperors  over  the  use  of  images  in  the  churches, 
which  the  emperors  called  idolatry  and  wished  to  prohibit, 
had  also  divided  Roman  Italy  into  parties,  and  gave  some 
prospect  of  success  to  the  Lombard  attempt.  For  the  pope, 
to  be  brought  under  the  rule  of  a  king  of  Italy,  near  at  hand 
and  constantly  under  temptation  to  interfere,  would  threaten 
very  seriously  the  position  which  he  had  now  come  to  oc- 
cupy in  the  West.  The  danger  must  be  avoided  if  it  could 
be  in  any  possible  way. 

62.  The  Franks  protect  the  Pope. — The  emperor  would 
not  or  could  not  protect  the  pope.  The  Franks  were  the 
only  other  power  capable  of  checking  the  Lombard  advance. 
The  first  .invitation  to  interfere  in  Italy  was  sent  to  Charles 
Martel,  but  he  was  still  too  busily  occupied  in  the  work  of 
reconstruction  at  home  to  suspend  it  in  any  foreign  interest. 
In  753,  Pope  Stephen  II.  went  in  person  to  Gaul  to  induce 
Pippin  to  come  to  his  aid.  His  mission  was  successful. 
Pippin  returned  with  him  at  the  head  of  his  army,  and 
forced  the  king  of  the  Lombards  to  restore  all  that  he  had 
taken  of  the  lands  which  the  pope  claimed.  After  the  re- 
turn of  the  Franks,  however,  the  Lombard  king  forgot  his 
promises  and  even  laid  siege  to  Rome.  Pippin  at  once 
came  to  the  rescue  of  the  pope,  and  with  complete  success. 
This  time  he  made  sure  of  the  surrender  of  his  conquests  by 
the  Lombard  king.  These  included  the  exarchate  of  Ra- 
venna on  the  eastern  side  of  Italy,  in  which  the  pope  had 


§  62]  The  Franks  protect  the  Pope  63 

never  exercised  any  authority,  but  instead  of  restoring  these 
lands  to  the  emperor,  Pippin  made  a  formal  gift  of  them 
to  the  pope.  By  this  gift  the  state  over  which  the  pope 
exercised  temporal  sovereignty  was  carried  over  to  the  Adri- 
atic and  assumed  the  geographical  outlines  which  it  retained 
through  almost  the  whole  of  history. 

So  far  as  concerned  the  Franks  this  was  no  immediate 
extension  of  their  empire,  but  it  prepared  the  way  for  Char- 
lemagne's invasion  of  Italy  and  annexation  of  the  Lombard 
kingdom  to  his  own. 


Topics 

What  things  aided  the  rise  of  the  second  Prankish  dynasty?  The 
office  of  mayor  of  the  palace.  What  mistake  was  made  in  the  second 
generation  of  the  new  family?  Why  was  it  a  mistake?  Points  of 
difference  between  Neustria  and  Austrasia.  Results  of  the  battle  of 
Testry.  The  events  of  Mohammed's  life.  What  changes  did  he  make 
in  Arabia?  Mohammedanism  as  a  religion.  The  Hegira.  The  ex- 
tent of  the  Mohammedan  conquests  at  the  year  750.  What  changes 
occurred  with  the  accession  of  the  Abbassides?  The  services  of  the 
Arabs  to  science.  The  beginning  of  Turkish  rule.  How  was  the 
crown  changed  from  the  Merovingians  to  the  Carolingians  ?  What 
does  this  show  of  the  position  of  the  pope?  How  had  the  popes 
obtained  a  political  authority  in  Italy?  In  what  way  was  this 
threatened  by  the  Lombards?  What  bearing  had  these  facts  on 
Frankish  history? 

Topics  for  Assigned  Studies 

Study  carefully  the  opening  paragraph  of  the  story  of  the  Forty  Thieves 
in  the  Arabian  Nights,  and  notice  what  it  implies  as  to  facts  re- 
garding Arabian  life,  the  position  of  woman,  and  certain  points  of 
law. 

Mohammed.  Muir,  Mahomet.  (London,  Rel.  Tract  Soc.)  Gibbon, 
Chap.  L.  Bury,  Empire,  Book  V.,  Chap.  VI. 

The  appeal  of  the  Popes  to  the  Franks.  Bryce,  Holy  Roman  Empire, 
34-41.  Sergeant,  Franks,  207-212.  Bury,  Empire,  II.  499. 

'        Oman,  Periods,  286,  327-332. 


CHAPTER   VI 


The  begin- 


reign,  768. 
Zeller,  in. 


Bavaria  in- 
corporated 

ish  state. 


THE   EMPIRE   REVIVED.     CHARLEMAGNE 

Books  for  Reference  and  Further  Reading 

Einhard,  Life  of  Charlemagne.  Contemporary.  Translation  by  Turnei 
in  Harper's  Half  Hour  Series  (15  cents),  and  by  Glaister  (Bell). 

Hodgkin,  Charles  the  Great.     (Macmillan;    75  cents.) 

Mombert,  Charles  the  Great.     (Appleton;   $5.00.) 

Cutts,  Charlemagne.     (S.  P.  C.  K.  ;  E.  &  J.  B.  Young;   $1.25.) 

Mullinger,  Schools  of  Charles  the  Great.     (Longmans.) 

West,  Alcuin.     (Scribner;   $1.00.) 

Abel  and  Simson,  Jahrbiicher  des  frankischen  Reichs  unter  Karl  dem 
Grossen.  2  Bde.  (Leipzig.) 

63.  The  Way  prepared  for  a  Great  Empire.  —  Charle- 

magne  succeeded  his  father  as  king  of  the  Franks  at  the  age 
°f  twenty-five.  The  last  two  generations  of  his  house  had 
prepared  the  way  for  a  great  reign.  The  government  of  the 
king  was  once  more  strong  and  well  obeyed,  though  con- 
stant watchfulness  was  necessary  against  the  perpetual  tend- 
ency to  independence  on  the  part  of  the  local  aristocracy 
and  of  the  counts  who  acted  for  the  government.  The  old 
conquests,  also,  of  the  early  Merovingians  had  been  practi- 
cally recovered,  so  that  the  kingdom  existed  once  more  as 
in  the  days  of  its  greatest  extent  under  Dagobert  I.  Every- 
thing was  ready  for  a  new  age  in  the  history  of  the  Franks, 
an  age  of  expansion,  and  this  is  the  character  of  the  reign  of 
Charlemagne. 

One  bit  of  work  in  the  way  of  reconstruction  remained  to 
^  done,  the  complete  incorporation  of  the  Bavarians  of 
southeastern  Germany  in  the  Frankish  kingdom.  This 
Charlemagne  accomplished  without  much  effort,  and  more 


§§  64, 65]         The  Conquest  of  the  Saxons  65 

thoroughly  than  it  had  ever  been  done  before.  Their  native 
dynasty  was  deposed,  and  disappeared  from  history,  and 
they  submitted  entirely  to  the  rule  of  the  Franks,  though 
they  retained  their  identity  of  race. 

64.  The  Conquest  of  Italy.  —  In  four  directions  Charle-   The  Lom- 
magne  added  to  the  territory  of  the  Franks.     In  Italy  his  ^?sa™** 
father   had   prepared   the   way.     The   Lombards   were   no  On  Rome, 
match  for  the  Franks,  but  they  had  not  yet  learned  how 
thoroughly  in  earnest  their  new  enemies  were  in  protecting 

the  pope,  or  perhaps  in  controlling  Italy.  Soon  after  the 
accessions  of  Charlemagne,  the  Lombard  King  Desiderius 
marched  against  Rome.  The  pope  was  probably  not  sorry 
to  have  an  opportunity  to  call  upon  the  Franks  once  more, 
so  much  was  to  be  gained  from  them,  and  he  sent  at  once 
to  Charlemagne  to  ask  his  aid. 

As  soon  as  other  interests  would  permit,  the  king  came  Charlemagne 
down  into  Italy  with  a  great  army,  and  though  Desiderius  invades  Italy, 
made  a  brave  resistance  he  was  forced  to  yield.     Charle-  chap,  v.'; 
magne  sent  him  into  a  cloister,  and  had  himself  crowned   Mombert, 
king  of  the  Lombards.     He  made  but  few  changes  in  gov-  86~IO°- 
ernment  or  in  the  Lombard  laws,  and  the  people  were  so  774. 
well  satisfied  with  his  rule  that  they  made  no  effort  to  re- 
cover their  independence.     To  the  pope  Charlemagne  con- 
firmed the  donation  of  his  father. 

The  papacy  was  now  relieved  from  this  danger.     It  was   Results  of 
some  centuries  before  another  power  arose  in  Italy  strong  thls concluest< 
enough  to   threaten  the  independence  of  the  little  state 
which  the  pope  ruled  as  a  temporal  sovereign.     For  Charle- 
magne the  greatest  gain  from  this  conquest  was  in  the  fact 
that  it  brought  into  his  kingdom  the  city  of  Rome  with  all 
that  Rome  still  stood  for  in  the  minds  of  men. 

65.  The  Conquest  of  the  Saxons.  —  Before  his  expedi-  A  long 
tion  into  Italy,  Charlemagne  had  begun  another  conquest  struggle, 
which  was  to  occupy  three-quarters  of  his  reign,  that  of  the  772~     ' 
Saxons  of  North  Germany.     This  proved  about  as  difficult 

a  conquest  as  ever  was  made.  The  obstinacy  of  the  Saxons 
in  refusing  to  see  that  they  were  conquered,  apparently  a 


66  The  Empire  Revived.     Charlemagne       [§  66 


The  charac- 
ter of  the 
war. 


The  Saxons 
at  last  sub- 
mit. 


In  Spain. 
Hodgkin, 
Chap.  VIII. 


In  the  East. 
Avars. 
Zeller,  III. 


hereditary  trait  of  the  race,  was  only  equalled  by  Charle 
magne's  patience  in  doing  the  work  over  again  year  after 
year  until  it  was  finally  completed. 

Charlemagne  would  enter  the  country  early  in  the  sum- 
mer with  a  great  army,  easily  overcome  the  resistance  of 
the  Saxons  in  the  field,  establish  Frankish  garrisons  and 
colonies  of  monks  and  priests,  force  the  people,  in  so  far 
as  he  could  get  hold  of  them,  to  accept  Christianity  in 
form,  and  return  home  at  the  end  of  the  summer,  leaving 
the  land  apparently  subdued.  But  after  he  was  gone,  the 
Saxons  rose,  massacred  his  priests  and  garrisons,  and  threw 
off  every  mark  of  subjection,  including  Christianity,  and  all 
the  work  had  to  be  repeated. 

Gradually  the  intervals  between  the  insurrections  became 
longer,  and  at  last  the  Saxons  submitted,  overcome,  it 
would  seem,  not  so  much  by  the  military  force  of  the 
Franks  as  by  conviction,  by  the  influence  which  the  real 
teachings  of  the  Christian  religion  were  beginning  to  have 
over  them,  and  by  the  realization  of  the  fact  that  the  gov- 
ernment of  the  Franks  was  in  every  way  better  for  them 
than  their  own.  The  Saxons  of  a  later  time  looked  upon 
Charlemagne  with  gratitude,  as  the  great  apostle  to  their 
race  and  the  founder  of  its  civilization. 

66.  Charlemagne's  other  Conquests.  —  The  other  con- 
quests of  Charlemagne  were  less  important  and  occupied 
but  little  of  his  own  attention.  By  invitation  of  one  of  the 
factions  of  Mohammedan  Spain,  he  crossed  the  Pyrenees 
and  marched  through  the  northern  part  of  the  country. 
Little  was  gained  in  this  expedition,  but  afterwards  the 
Frankish  dominion  was  slowly  pushed  over  a  small  triangle 
of  territory  in  northeastern  Spain,  including  the  city  of 
Barcelona. 

Against  the  Tartar  Avars  in  the  Danube  valley,  who  could 
not  abandon  their  old  habit  of  making  plundering  inroads 
on  German  territory,  Charlemagne  conducted  one  great  and 
successful  campaign  and  then  left  the  conquest  to  be  com- 
pleted by  others.  In  wars  with  the  emperor  at  Constant!- 


CHARLEMAGNE 


68 


The  Empire  Revived.     Charlemagne       [§  67 


The  belief 
that  the  Em- 
pire still 
existed. 


The  pope 
crowns 
Charlemagne 
emperor,  800. 


nople  he  also  gained  lands  east  of  the  Adriatic,  and  thus 
joined  his  territories  in  Italy  with  those  of  Germany,  and 
carried  his  boundaries  nearly  to  those  which  had  marked 
the  Western  Roman  Empire  on  the  east.  Many  of  the 
Slavic  tribes  that  joined  the  Germans  on  the  east  acknow- 
ledged his  supremacy,  and  the  Danes  were  taught  to  respect 
his  power. 

67.  The  Revival  of  the  Roman  Empire.  — The  territories 
of  Charlemagne  were,  by  the  year  800,  practically  those  of 
the  old  Roman  Empire  in  the  West.  All  the  lands  of  the 
continent,  which  were  still  Christian  and  which  had  ever 
been  Roman,  were  now  in  his  hands,  and  Germany  besides. 
To  all  men  who  thought  about  it,  it  would  seem  that  the 
Western  Empire  had  been  reconstructed.  The  theory  of 
the  eternal  dominion  of  Rome  had  not  been  forgotten,  es- 
pecially not  in  Italy.  In  a  vague  way,  sometimes  in  a  real 
way  in  the  case  of  the  pope,  the  supremacy  of  the  emperor 
at  Constantinople  had  been  recognized,  and  even  after  the 
quarrel  about  the  worship  of  images,  the  rights  of  the 
emperor  were  not  denied,  only  those  of  the  wicked  em- 
peror who  refused  to  follow  the  true  Christian  faith.  No 
one  who  knew  anything  of  the  past  realized  that  the  Empire 
of  Rome  had  come  to  an  end. 

Now  the  time  had  come  when  the  West  could  have  its 
own  emperor  again.  On  Christmas  day,  800,  as  Charle- 
magne was  worshipping  in  St.  Peter's  church,  the  pope 
crowned  him  emperor  of  Rome.  In  this  way  was  begun  a 
new  succession  of  emperors  of  Rome  in  the  West,  which 
continued  through  medieval  and  modern  history  to  the  be- 
ginning of  the  nineteenth  century.  This  title  must  be  care- 
fully distinguished  from  that  of  king  in  all  history  which 
follows  the  crowning  of  Charlemagne.  There  could  be,  as 
men  thought,  only  one  emperor,  the  emperor  of  Rome. 
There  was  no  emperor  of  Germany  nor  of  Austria  until 
Napoleon  changed  the  fashion  of  things  by  making  himself 
emperor  of  the  French.  Since  then  emperor  has  meant 
but  little  more  than  king,  but  before,  it  had  been  the  highest 


§§  68, 69]  Charlemagne  s  Schools  69 

of  all  temporal  titles,  and  in  medieval  times,  when  men  be- 
lieved in  what  they  called  the  Holy  Roman  Empire,  the 
emperor  was  thought  to  have  the  same  sort  of  headship  of 
the  temporal  world  that  the  pope  had  of  the  religious. 

68.   The  Missi  Dominici.  — This  title  added  but  little  to  A  new 

Charlemagne's  real  power,  though  much  to  his  position  in   mstitution  °* 
.     ,5    f  government. 

the  minds  of  men.     But  the  power  which  he  actually  exer-   Hodgkin, 
cised  was  growing  as  his  territory  grew.     As  great  a  states- 
man  as   he   was   a   warrior,  Charlemagne   devised   a   new 
political  institution  to  overcome  the  constant  tendency  to  during 
local  independence,  and  to  hold  the  counts  under  a  close  Middle  Ages, 
responsibility  to  the  government.     This  institution  was  the    I59~I  2* 
office  of  the  missi  dominici,  or  king's  messengers. 

The  counties  of  the  Empire  were  grouped  together  into  To  hold  the 
circuits.     To  each   of  these  circuits  were  sent  every  year  counts  to  a 
two   officers   from   the   court.      In   each   of    the   counties  sponsibliity. 
assigned  them  they  were  to  hold  an  assembly  of  the  free-   Edict  con- 
men,  or  they  held  a  great  assembly  for   the  whole   circuit,   earning  the 
and  in  these  assemblies  the  counts  must  make  a  report  of    ^^derson 
the  way  in  which  they  had  administered  their  office,  com-   189-201.  See 
plaints  were  heard  against  them,  and  all  abuses  were   in-   aisoZeller, 
quired  into.     On  their  return  the  missi  made  Charlemagne    IIIp 
familiar  with  the  condition  of  things  throughout  the  whole 
Empire. 

It  was  an  institution  admirably  adapted  to  keep  a  great  This  institu- 
empire  closely  centralized  and  under  control,  to  overcome,   tion  has 
that  is,  the  tendency  to  local  independence  which  we  have   to  USt 
noticed  in  the  case  of  the  counts,  and  it  was  destined  to  a 
long   life.     In  the   age   that  followed  Charlemagne  it  lost 
something  of  its  efficiency,  but  it  passed  from  the  Franks  to 
the  Normans,  and,  revived  in  England  still  later  to  serve 
something  like  its  original  purpose,  it  finally  grew  into  the 
Anglo-Saxon  circuit  court  system. 

69.    Charlemagne's    Schools.  —  Charlemagne    was    also  A  kind  of 
greatly  interested  in  education.     He  called  from  England   public  school 
Alcuin,  who  passed  for  the  most  learned  man  of  the  time, 
and  other  teachers  from  Italy,  and  tried  to  organize  a  gen- 


70  The  Empire  Revived.     Charlemagne       [§  7° 


A  turning 
point  in 
history. 
Bryce,  Holy 
Roman 
Empire, 

63-75- 
Hodgkin, 
Chap.  XIII. 


eral  system  of  schools  throughout  the  Empire.  In  the  school 
of  the  palace  his  own  children  were  taught,  with  others  from 
various  parts  of  the  Empire,  who  were  especially  promising  ; 
the  monasteries  and  cathedral  churches  were  expected  to 
maintain  good  schools,  and  even  the  parish  priests  to  give 
elementary  instruction.  As  an  organized  system  Charle- 
magne's reforms  were  not  permanent,  but  the  impulse  which 
he  gave  tc  learning  lasted.  Some  of  the  individual  schools 


SIGNATURE  OF  CHARLEMAGNE 

survived,  men  knew  more  of  books,  and  wrote  better  Latin 
than  they  had  done  before,  and  those  who  wished  to  learn 
found  it  easier  to  do  so. 

70.  Charlemagne's  Place  in  History.  —  Charlemagne's 
reign  fills  but  a  short  time  in  the  long  period  of  the  Middle 
Ages,  but  it  binds  the  whole  together.  In  him  is  completed 
the  process  which  runs  through  the  first  half,  the  Germani- 
zation  of  the  Roman  Empire.  There  was  a  Roman  Empire 
again  uniting  Christian  Europe  together,  but  it  was,  as  it 


Topics  71 

called  itself  later,  "  The  Roman  Empire  of  the  German  Na- 
tion." The  ruling  race  was  German  and  the  emperor  was 
a  Frank.  From  the  end  of  his  reign,  also,  begins  the  process 
which  runs  through  the  second  half,  the  formation  of  the 
modern  nations,  independent  members  of  an  international 
system,  which  we  call  now,  not  the  Roman  Empire,  but 
Christendom.  All  the  forces  of  union  and  of  civilization 
were  strengthened  by  his  reign,  and  though  his  empire  was 
not  permanent,  its  influence  never  ceased. 


Topics 

How  had  the  way  been  prepared  for  what  Charlemagne  was  to  do? 
How  did  the  position  which  he  took  in  Italy  differ  from  his  father's? 
The  character  and  results  of  the  Saxon  War.  Why  were  not  the  Span- 
ish conquests  carried  further?  State  the  territories  finally  embraced 
in  Charlemagne's  empire.  In  what  points  was  this  like  the  Western 
Roman  Empire?  Why,  in  your  opinion,  was  the  title  Emperor  of 
Rome  revived  in  800?  How  did  "emperor"  differ  from  "king"  in 
meaning  before  Napoleon?  The  duties  of  the  missi  dominici.  Char- 
lemagne's school  system.  His  place  in  history. 

Topics  for  Assigned  Studies 

The  Saxon  wars.     Einhard,  Chaps.  VII.  and  VIII.     Hodgkin,  Chap. 

VI.     Mombert,  101-153. 
The   revival   of  the   Empire.     Bryce,    Holy   Roman   Empire,   44-61. 

(Three    original    accounts    translated.)       Hodgkin,    Chap.    XI. 

Mombert,  357-368.     Sergeant,   The  Franks,  243-247. 
The   school   system.      Mullinger,    Schools,    68-108.     Einhard,   Chaps 

XXIV.  and  XXV.     Mombert,  241-270.     Hodgkin,  235-238. 
Charlemagne  as  a   landlord.     The    capitulary  de  mills.     Penn.,  III., 

No.  II.     Zeller,  III. 

Topics  for  Review 

Compare  Nero's  reasons  for  persecuting  the  Christians  with  those  of 

Marcus  Aurelius. 

Compare  the  conversion  of  Clovis  with  that  of  Constantine. 
Trace  the  passage  of  the  Visigoths  from  their  entrance  into  the  empire 

until  their  final  settlement. 


72  The  Empire  Revived.     Charlemagne 

Trace  the  history  of  the  Roman  law  through  the  whole  of  this  period. 

What  historical  events  in  succession  were  witnessed  by  "  Father  Rhine  " 
during  this  period? 

Of  each  province  of  the  Western  Empire,  state  what  German  or  other 
conquerors  occupied  it  in  succession,  and  by  whom  it  was  per- 
manently held. 

Important  Dates 

A.D.     14  ....  Death  of  Augustus. 

1 80  .                .  Death  of  Marcus  Aurelius* 

250  ....  An  invasion  of  the  Goths. 

284  ....  Diocletian  emperor. 

323  ....  Constantine  emperor. 

325  ....  The  council  of  Nicsea. 

378  ....  The  battle  of  Hadrianople 

379  „     .     .     .  Theodosius  emperor. 

410     ....     Capture  of  Rome  by  Alaric. 

449     ....      First  German  settlement  in  Britain. 

476     ....     Romulus  Augustulus  deposed. 


THE  TEUTONIC  NATIONS 

486.  Clovis"  first  victory. 
493.  Theodoric,  king  in 

Italy. 
553.  End  of  Ostrogothic 

kingdom. 


638.  Dagobertl.d.  The 
last  strong  Mero- 
vingian king. 

687.   Battle  of  Testry. 


751.  Pippin,  king  of  the 
Franks. 

768.  Charlemagne,  king 
of  the  Franks. 

800.  Charlemagne,  em- 
peror. 

814.  Death  of  Charle- 
magne. 


590. 


597- 


738. 


756. 


THE  CHURCH 


Gregory      I.,     the 
Great,  pope. 

Augustine's      mis- 
sion to  England. 


Lombards     attack 
Rome. 

The    donation    of 
Pippin. 


THE  EAST 


527.  Justinian,  emperor. 


622.  The  Hegira. 


661.  The   Ommiad    ca- 
liphs. 

750.  The  Abbassid  ca- 
liphs. 


PART    II 

THE  FORMATION  OF  THE  NATIONS 

Books  for  Reference  and  Further  Reading 

Gregorovius,  History  of  the  City  of  Rome  in  the  Middle  Ages.  (Bell, 
Macmillan;  $  12.00.)  5  vols.  now  translated,  to  beginning  of  the 
XIV.  century.  A  history  of  the  papacy  and  of  the  Middle  Ages 
as  related  to  Rome. 

Bryce,  The  Holy  Roman  Empire.     8th  edition.     (Macmillan;   $1.00.) 

Jenks,  Law  and  Politics  in  the  Middle  Ages.  (Holt ;  $2.75.)  Insti- 
tutional history. 

Lavisse,  General  View  of  the  Political  History  of  Europe.  (Long- 
mans; $1.25.)  Suggestive  outline  sketch. 

Luchaire,  Manuel  des  Institutions  Francises  sous  les  Cap'etiens  directs. 
(Paris;  15  francs.) 

Schroder,  Lehrbuch  der  deutschen  Rechtsgeschichte.      (Berlin.) 
Both  very  valuable  on  all  points  of  institutional  history. 

Green,  History  of  the  English  People.     4  vols.     (Harper;  $10.00.) 

Traill,  editor,  Social  England.     6  vols.     (Putnam;   $3.50  per  vol.) 

Kitchin,  History  of  France.     3  vols.     (Clarendon  Press;   $2.60  per  vol.) 

Henderson,  History  of  Germany  in  the  Middle  Ages.  (Bell,  Mac- 
millan; $2.60.) 

Reber,  Medieval  Art.     (Harper;   $5.00.) 

Tout,  Empire  and  Papacy.  "Periods"  series,  918-1273.  (Mac- 
millan; $1.75.) 

Emerton,  Medieval  Europe.  814-1300.  (Ginn  ;  $1.65.)  Gives  ref- 
erences to  the  chief  collections  of  sources. 

Adams,  Civilization  during  the  Middle  Ages.  (Scribner;  $2.50.} 
The  connection  and  significance  of  historical  events. 

Bonn's  Libraries  (Macmillan)  contain  many  translations  of  medieval 
sources,  especially  of  English  chronicles.     These  are  specifically 
referred  to  in  the  course  of  this  part. 
73 


74        Breaking  up  of  Charlemagne's  Empire 


SUMMARY 

The  strong  union  of  Christian  Europe  which  Charlemagne 
had  formed  did  not  long  survive  him.  The  forces  of  disunion 
were  many  and  powerful,  and  his  descendants  were  not  able  to 
deal  with  them.  The  Empire  was  broken  up  after  a  time  into 
many  states,  but  its  first  real  successor  was  the  feudal  system 
which  had  begun  to  assume  its  final  form  even  under  Charle- 
magne—  a  system  which  allowed  great  independence,  both 
economic  and  political,  to  the  fragments  of  the  state  while  main- 
taining in  form  the  general  government.  The  anarchy  of  the 
time  and  the  need  of  local  protection  were  greatly  increased  by 
the  inroads  of  the  Northmen  and  of  the  Hungarians.  The  North- 
men established  permanent  colonies  in  northern  France  and  in 
England,  and  in  the  latter  country  postponed  for  some  time  the 
union  of  all  the  Anglo-Saxon  states  into  one  which  had  been 
rapidly  advancing  under  the  West  Saxons.  On  the  extinction 
of  the  family  of  Charlemagne  in  Germany  a  native  dynasty  was 
elected,  and  under  the  first  kings  of  the  Saxon  family  there  was 
great  promise  of  the  formation  of  a  strong  nation.  In  France 
somewhat  later  a  native  dynasty  also  obtained  the  throne  in  the 
family  of  the  Capetians,  but  here  the  kings  remained  very  weak 
for  several  generations.  In  England  still  later  real  national 
existence  began,  first  under  the  Danish  king  Cnut,  and  then 
under  William  the  Conqueror.  The  German  kingdom  was  so 
strong  under  Otto  I.  that  a  revival  of  the  Roman  Empire  of 
Charlemagne  seemed  a  natural  thing,  but  this  step  fatally  weak- 
ened the  government  at  home,  and  it  brought  the  new  Empire, 
the  Holy  Roman  Empire,  into  a  long  rivalry  and  conflict  with 
the  other  great  medieval  world  power,  the  papacy.  The  govern- 
ment of  the  Church  was  now  beginning  to  assume  its  modern  form 
under  the  influence  of  the  ideas  of  Cluny,  carried  out  by  the  great 
statesman  Hildebrand,  Pope  Gregory  VII.  The  first  period  of 
the  conflict  between  these  ideas  and  the  Empire  under  the  Fran- 
conian  emperors  ended  in  a  compromise  in  the  Concordat  of 
Worms,  but  it  was  really  a  victory  for  the  papacy,  which  was 
never  again  subject  to  the  control  of  the  Empire.  The  second 
period  of  the  strife  under  the  Hohenstaufen  emperors  saw  not 
merely  the  destruction  of  the  imperial  power,  which  could  never 
afterward  be  reconstructed,  but  also  the  dissolution  of  the  Ger- 
man nation  into  a  host  of  independent  and  even  hostile  frag- 
ments ;  and  Italy  experienced  a  similar  fate.  At  the  close  of  this 
conflict  the  age  of  the  crusades  was  also  closing.  Europe  had 


§  7i]  Causes  of  Division  75 

thrown  itself  upon  the  Saracen  world  to  recover  the  Holy  Land 
with  immense  enthusiasm,  but  without  definite  system  or  good 
leadership,  and  after  establishing  the  kingdom  of  Jerusalem  had 
ended  by  losing  all.  But  the  economic  and  indirect  political 
results  of  the  crusades  constituted  a  revolution  in  history.  Com- 
merce increased  rapidly,  great  cities  multiplied  and  accumulated 
wealth  and  through  wealth  power,  money  circulated  in  larger  quan- 
tities, the  condition  of  the  serf  was  improved,  the  third  estate 
rose  to  political  influence,  the  state  by  taxation  and  a  paid  army 
was  made  independent  of  the  feudal  system,  and  in  alliance  with 
the  new  conditions  overthrew  that  system.  It  was  the  time 
when  medieval  economic  and  political  conditions  passed  away 
and  modern  began.  France  and  England  were  the  two  states  in 
condition  to  profit  the  most  from  these  changes,  and  their  later 
medieval  history  is  that  of  one  long  struggle,  on  the  part  of 
France  to  secure  possession  of  all  her  territory  and  to  organize 
a  strong  state,  and  on  the  part  of  England  to  retain  her  French 
possessions.  For  a  century  France  gained  nothing.  Then 
Philip  Augustus  conquered  northwestern  France  from  John,  and 
his  son  and  grandson  secured  southeastern  through  the  troubles 
of  the  Albigenses.  After  an  interval  came  the  long  struggle  of 
the  Hundred  Years'  War,  in  which  twice  the  English  nearly 
conquered  France  and  an  English  king  was  crowned  in  Paris 
but  in  the  end  the  French  nation,  under  the  lead  of  Joan  of  Arc 
expelled  their  enemies  and  reestablished  their  independence. 
In  the  meantime  in  government  the  French  kings  had  been  able 
to  create  an  absolutism,  and  the  English  barons  and  commons 
a  limited  and  constitutional  monarchy.  Germany  had  never 
recovered  either  the  imperial  power  or  national  unity,  nor  were 
national  governments  possible  in  Italy  or  Spain. 


CHAPTER   I 

THE  BREAKING  UP  OF  CHARLEMAGNE'S  EMPIRE 

71.    Causes  of  Division. —  The  unity  of  Christian  Europe  Numerous 
which  Charlemagne  had  established  did  not  last.     The  time 
had  been  too  short  to  weld  the  different  peoples  together 
into  a  single  nation,  and  the  causes  of  separation  were  too 
many  and  too  powerful  to  be  overcome.     Local  patriotism 


76       Breaking  up  of  Charlemagne  s  Empire       [§  72 


Communi- 
cation from 
place  to  place 
very  slow 
and  difficult. 


The  locality 
becomes  the 
economic 
and  political 
unit. 


or  tribal  feeling,  —  we  may  very  soon  begin  to  speak  of  this 
as  national  feeling,  —  the  constant  tendency  of  the  counts 
and  barons  to  make  themselves  independent,  the  working  of 
the  Prankish  idea  that  the  king's  territories  must  be  divided 
among  his  heirs,  combined  with  the  fact  that  the  genius  of 
the  Carolingian  house  comes  to  an  end  with  Charlemagne, 
were  too  strong  for  the  still  feeble  idea  of  the  Empire  and 
even  for  the  more  real  world  monarchy  of  the  Church. 

72.  Economic  Condition. —  One  great  difficulty  in  the  way 
of  ruling  so  large  a  state  as  Charlemagne's  underlay  all  the 
others,  and  made  it  almost  impossible  for  a  united  govern- 
ment to  be  maintained.  This  was  the  difficulty  of  commu- 
nication from  one  place  to  another  in  those  days.  Roads 
and  bridges  had  fallen  rapidly  out  of  repair  when  the  Roman 
supervision  had  come  to  an  end,  and  the  means  of  convey- 
ance were  now  very  primitive  and  slow.  It  was  a  time 
when  there  was  very  little  commerce  carried  on  between  one 
part  of  the  country  and  another,  and  even  very  little  money 
in  circulation.  Each  little  portion  of  the  country  depended 
very  largely  on  itself  to  supply  its  own  needs.  Now  we  may 
be  very  sure  that  if  the  difficulties  in  the  way  of  commerce 
were  so  great  that  men  gave  up  such  a  universal  practice  as 
trying  to  make  money  by  conveying  goods  from  one  place 
to  another,  the  government  would  find  it  very  difficult  to 
keep  up  communication,  to  know  what  was  going  on  in  dis- 
tant parts  of  the  state,  and  to  maintain  its  authority  in  widely 
separate  places.  Charlemagne's  institution  of  the  missi 
dominici  had  been  very  wisely  planned  to  meet  this  difficulty 
by  carrying  the  authority  of  the  king  down  into  each  locality, 
but  this  office  rapidly  lost  its  efficiency  under  his  successors, 
and  even  went  out  of  general  use. 

The  result  was  that  each  little  locality  was  thrown  upon 
its  own  resources  to  supply  not  merely  what  it  needed  in  the 
way  of  goods,  but  also  what  it  needed  in  the  way  of  govern- 
ment and  protection.  This  meant  at  last  the  local  indepen- 
dence of  the  count  or  baron  against  which  the  Carolingians 
had  so  long  struggled.  In  other  words,  this  meant  the  final 


§§  73>  74]  The   Treaty  of  Verdun  77 

establishment  of  the  feudal  system,  and  this  is  the  age  when 
feudalism  becomes  the  prevailing  form  of  political  organiza- 
tion for  Europe,  and  its  growth  is  one  of  the  forms  of  the 
dissolution  of  the  Empire. 

73.  Lewis  I.  the  Pious.  —  The  Empire  of  Charlemagne   Lewis  I., 
passed  to  the  next  generation  undivided,  for  only  one  of  his  8l4~84°- 
sons  survived  him.     He  was  called  Lewis  the  Pious,  because 

of  his  devotion  to  the  Church,  and  in  his  case  this  meant  a 
degree  of  submission  which  seems  to  us  superstitious  in  a 
sovereign.  He  has  also  been  called  Lewis  the  Debonnaire, 
which  means  the  Good-natured,  and  in  such  times  to  be 
a  king  who  seemed  to  everybody  good-natured  was  to  be  a 
weak  king.  This  was  the  character  of  Lewis.  He  was  a 
weak  king.  He  could  not  keep  control  of  things  as  his 
father  had  done.  In  the  last  years  of  his  reign  he  had  many 
quarrels  with  his  three  sons,  who  were  anxious  to  enter  into 
the  inheritance,  but  were  never  satisfied  with  the  divisions 
of  it  which  were  made.  At  his  death,  Lothair,  the  eldest, 
became  emperor,  and  kingdoms  were  given  to  the  other 
two,  —  Lewis  and  Charles. 

74.  The  Treaty  of  Verdun.  —  The  brothers  quarrelled  at  The  "  Oath 
once,  and  in  just  a  year  after  the  death  of  their  father,  the   of  Styas- 
great  battle  of  Fontenay  was  fought,  the  two  younger  being  Oman, 
united  against  Lothair.     The  two  brothers  won  the  victory,   Periods, 
and  the  next  spring  cemented  their  alliance  by  the  "  Oath   ^"^ton 
of  Strasburg,"  which  has  come  down  to  us  and  is  the  earliest  Europe,  ' 
specimen  we  have  of  the  languages  which  have  grown  into  25~28. 
modern  French  and  German.     Lothair  was  forced  to  accept 

their  terms,  and  in  the  following  year  the  great  treaty  of  Ver-   843. 
dun  was  made  —  the  most  permanent  in  its  influence  on  the 
map  of  Europe  of  any  treaty  ever  made.     The  way  in  which  410-412; 
these  three  brothers  divided  their  father's  empire  should  be   Emerton, 
carefully  fixed  in  mind  because  it  helps  us  to  understand   Br*J^?''  2  ' 
many  things  that  have  happened  in  history  even  down  to  the   Empire, 
present  time,  and  it  explains  some  of  the  peculiar  features  76-78. 
of  the  map  of  Europe  as  it  now  exists. 

Lothair  was  recognized  as  emperor.     In  all  the  divisions 


78         Breaking  up  of  Charlemagne  s  Empire      [§  75 


The  division 
made  by  the 
treaty  of 
Verdun. 


The  place  of 
the  little 
states  of 
Europe. 


of  these  times  the  Empire  is  never  divided.  Every  one 
believed  that  to  be  one  and  indivisible.  The  territory  of  the 
Empire  might  be  cut  up  into  kingdoms,  but  there  was  only 
one  emperor.  To  Lothair  was  given  a  very  peculiar  terri- 
tory, and  in  this  lies  the  significance  of  the  division  for  later 
history.  He  was  given  Italy  of  course,  because  that  con- 
tained Rome,  and  starting  from  Italy  a  long  narrow  strip  of 
land  following  first  the  course  of  the  Rhone  and  then  that  of 
the  Rhine  to  the  North  Sea.  As  Charles'  kingdom  after- 
wards became  France,  and  Lewis'  Germany,  the  effect  of 
this  arrangement  was  to  put  between  these  two  states  a  very 
important  strip  of  territory  to  which  at  the  beginning  neither 
had  a  valid  claim.  When  some  time  later  the  title  of  em- 
peror became  attached  to  the  kingdom  of  Germany,  this 
fact  seemed  to  give  that  country  the  best  right  in  the  inter- 
mediate land,  and  for  a  time  at  least  Germany  did  acquire 
the  larger  share  of  it,  but  after  a  time  the  French  language 
began  to  make  inroads  into  these  regions,  and  following  it 
the  French  government  obtained  possession  of  many  pieces 
of  the  territory.  Some  of  these  Germany  has  recently  re- 
covered, and  very  possibly  the  question  to  whom  they  shall 
finally  belong  is  not  yet  settled. 

It  was  in  this  territory  of  Lothair  also  that  small  states 
had  an  opportunity  to  form  themselves.  Five  of  these  have 
had  some  important  place  in  history,  and  three  of  them, 
Holland,  Belgium,  and  Switzerland,  still  exist.  Just  south 
of  Switzerland  was  the  county  of  Savoy,  which  grew  into  the 
duchy  of  Savoy,  and  then  into  the  kingdom  of  Sardinia,  and 
finally  into  the  present  kingdom  of  Italy.  As  near  Switz- 
erland on  the  other  side  was  the  county  of  Burgundy,  which 
became  attached  later  to  the  French  duchy  of  Burgundy 
and  promised  with  it  at  one  time  to  grow  into  a  rich  and 
powerful  state  and  to  include  nearly  all  the  northern  part  of 
Lothair' s  land. 

75.  The  End  of  the  United  Empire.  —  In  the  period 
which  followed  this  treaty  many  subdivisions  were  made, 
and  the  power  of  the  general  government,  that  is  of  the 


§75] 


The  End  of  the  United  Empire 


79 


Empire,  was  constantly  growing  less.  For  a  little  time  The  last 
Charles  the  Fat,  son  of  Lewis  of  Germany,  became  king  of  c'harhT 
all  the  larger  kingdoms  as  well  as  emperor,  but  he  could  not  magne's 


THE  CATHEDRAL  AT  WORMS 


master  the  difficulties  which  confronted  him,  and  was  finally  whole 

deposed.     This  may  serve  as  well  as  any  event  of  the  time  *^™' 

to  mark  the  dissolution  of  Charlemagne's  united  empire,  periods, 

and  the  point  at  which  the  organization   of  the  modern  440-443- 


8o       Breaking  up  of  Charlemagne's  Empire       [§  76 


887. 


Saracens, 
Hungarians, 
and  North- 
men. 
Oman, 
Periods, 
Chap.  XXIV. 


The  last  of 
the  German 
migrations. 
Keary, 

Vikings  in 

Western 
Christendom 
(Putnam)  ; 
Johnson,  The 
Normans  in 
Europe 
(Epochs). 

The  extent 
of  the  incur- 
sions of  the 
Northmen. 
Johnson, 
Normans, 
Chap.  II. 

In  America, 
Am.  Hist. 
Leaf.  No.  3-, 
Old  South, 

3i; 
Fiske, 

Discovery  of 
America, 
I.  151-226. 


nations  begins.  It  is  some  time  yet  before  they  have  a  defi- 
nite existence,  but  their  formation  is  the  most  important 
fact  of  the  period  which  follows. 

76.  The  New  Barbarian  Invasions. — The  difficulties 
which  general  government  had  to  contend  with  in  this  age 
were  greatly  complicated,  and  the  insecurity  which  made  easy 
the  growth  of  little  local  powers  was  everywhere  greatly 
increased  by  incursions  of  barbarians  from  almost  all  direc- 
tions. The  Saracens  troubled  the  southern  frontiers.  The 
Hungarians  were  beginning  the  invasions  from  the  east 
which  lasted  a  long  time  and  finally  gave  rise  to  modern 
Hungary.  But  most  harassing  of  all  were  the  attacks  of  the 
Northmen,  which  affected  every  coast  and  which  were  so 
unexpected  and  swift  that  general  defence  was  almost  impos- 
sible and  each  locality  had  to  do  the  best  it  could  for  itself. 

The  invasions  of  the  Northmen  were  the  last  of  the  Ger- 
man invasions.  They  were  the  only  German  people  left 
who  had  not  already  taken  part  in  this  movement.  That 
they  made  their  attacks  by  sea  was  due  to  their  situation, 
and  in  this  fact  and  in  all  details  of  method  their  invasion 
is  exactly  like  the  earlier  Saxon  conquest  of  Britain.  Danes 
and  Norwegians  composed  most  of  the  bands  which  went 
to  the  west,  and  the  Swedes  those  going  east,  where  in  the 
neighborhood  of  the  Baltic  a  kingdom  was  established  under 
the  dynasty  of  Ruric,  which  in  after  times  expanded  into 
the  empire  of  Russia. 

77.  The  Northmen.  —  All  the  coasts  of  the  world  which 
were  within  reach  were  visited  by  these  adventurous  rovers  : 
all  the  British  islands,  the  Atlantic  coasts  of  Europe  and 
Africa  down  to  the  desert,  the  whole  Mediterranean,  and  to 
the  west  Iceland,  Greenland,  and  some  part  of  eastern 
North  America.  Wherever  they  found  anything  which  they 
wanted  they  took  it,  and  all  Europe  was  in  fear  of  them  for 
a  hundred  years.  They  made  people  everywhere  extremely 
concerned  about  the  means  of  defending  themselves,  and 
this  led  to  a  great  age  of  building  walls  around  towns,  and 
of  strong  castles  which  might  protect  the  country  districts, 


§  78]  Rollo  in  Normandy  8 1 

Such  a  time  sifted  out  also  the  skilful  leaders  of  defence 
from  the  poor  ones,  and  some  of  the  later  great  families  of 
Europe  got  their  start  in  this  way. 

The  Northmen  founded  a  number  of  colonies ;  for  ex- 
ample, in  Iceland,  northern  Scotland,  and  northeastern 
Ireland.  But  we  are  especially  interested  in  two  of  their 
colonies,  because  they  had  so  much  to  do  with  our  own  his- 
tory, —  that  of  Normandy  in  northern  France,  and  that  of 
England  itself. 

78.   Rollo  in  Normandy  and  the  Danes  in  England.  —  The  leader 
Early  in  the  tenth  century  a  great  force  of  the  Northmen   of  the  North- 
.  „  i  I          i     j        •      j   -r»  i    men  becomes 

was  in  northern  France,  where  they  had  seized  Rouen  and   duke  of 
were  threatening  the  rest  of  the  kingdom,  when  the  Caro-   Normandy, 
lingian  king,  Charles  the  Simple,  proposed  to  their  leader,   Freeman 

3    Gorman  Con- 

Rollo,  that  he  should  settle  down  with  his  men  in  perma-   guest,  i. 107- 
nent  possession  of  the  country  and  become  his  vassal  for  it.   I2o; 
This  Rollo  consented  to  do,  and  so  was  created  in  the  course 
of  time  the  great  duchy  of  Normandy,  which  came  up  the   34-41. 
Seine  almost  to  Paris,  and  embraced  the  whole  north  cen- 
tral coast  of  France.     Here  more  and  more  Northmen  set- 
tled.    They  became   Christians  and  were  quickly  civilized, 
dropping   their  own  language  and  customs  and  adopting 
those  of  their  new  home.     The  dukes  of  Normandy  were 
in  general  faithful  vassals  of  the  French  kings,  but  they  were 
very  independent  and  were  for  a  long  time  as  powerful  as 
their  sovereigns. 

In  England  the  colonization  affected  a  larger  portion  of   The  North- 
trie  country,  and  the  whole  of  it  was  at  one  time  a  Danish   men  were 

....  /.     i        .  i       i    ,         i        />  i-i    called  Dan 

kingdom.     The  conquest  of  the  island  by  the  Saxons  had   in  Eng]and. 
founded,  as   we  have  seen,  seven  independent   kingdoms.   Green,  Con 
The  next  stage  in  the  history  of  England  was  the  formation 
of  a  single  kingdom  by  the  union  of  all  the  seven.     But  it    vikings, 
took  a  long  time  to  decide  which  one  of  the  kingdoms  was   Chap.  XII. 
to  unite  the  others  under  its  rule.     For  a  while  Northum- 
berland and  Mercia  strove  with   one  another  for  the  su- 
premacy.     Then  just   after   the   close    of    Charlemagne's 
reign,  Wessex  rose  to  be  the  ruling  state  under  King  Ecg- 


82        Breaking  up  of  Charlemagne  V  Empire      [§  79 


Alfred  the 
Great,  871- 
901. 

Stubbs,  62 ; 
Powell, 
Alfred  and 
the  Danes 
(Contem- 
poraries). 


A  united 
England 
forming. 


A  Scandina- 
vian empire. 
Green,  Con- 
quest, Chap. 
VIII.; 
Freeman, 
Norman  Con- 
quest, L, 
Chap.  V. 


berht.  But  in  the  next  generation,  and  before  the  union 
was  completed,  the  attacks  of  the  Danes  became  very  fre- 
quent. Soon  after  the  middle  of  the  century  they  began  to 
make  permanent  homes  in  England  and  speedily  overran 
the  country  north  of  the  Thames.  Here  they  made  one  of 
their  leaders  king,  and  at  once  advanced  to  the  conquest 
of  Wessex. 

79.  Alfred    the    Great.  —  This    was  the  condition  of 
things  when  Alfred  became  king.     He   was  a  brave  and 
skilful  warrior,  but  at  first  the  enemy  was  too  strong  for  him, 
and  he  was  forced  to  abandon  the  field  and  even  to  conceal 
himself  in  the  swamps  and  among  the  peasantry.     Finally 
he  collected  new  forces  and  gained  a  great  and  decisive  vic- 
tory at  the  battle  of  Ethandun.     After  this  the  Danes  were 
willing  to  make  peace,  to  recognize  Alfred  as  the  lord  of 
their  king,  whose  kingdom  was  bounded  by  the  Thames,  to 
become  Christians,  and  to   settle   down   peacefully  in  the 
land.     y-Elfred  reigned  for  nearly  twenty-five  years  after  this 
treaty,  and  ruled  in  his  little  kingdom  as  wisely  as  Charle- 
magne in  his  great  empire.     He  did  a  great  deal  for  learn- 
ing, translated  many  books  himself,  reorganized  the  army 
and  the  navy,  improved  the  laws,  and  left  to  his  people  the 
memory  of  a  noble  character. 

80.  The  Second  Danish  Invasion.  —  The  successors  of 
Alfred  undertook  the  work   of  recovering   northern  Eng- 
land from  the  Danes,  and  pushed  it  steadily  though  slowly 
forward  until  by  a  little  past  the  middle  of  the   tenth  cen- 
tury  they  had  carried  their  rule  as  far  as  Edinburgh.     A 
united  English  nation  was  rapidly  forming  throughout  the 
territory  occupied  by  the  Teutonic  settlers,  Saxons,  Angles, 
and    Danes,  when    at  the  end  of  the   tenth   century  there 
came  a  new  Danish  attack.     This  differed  from  the  earlier 
one  in  the  fact  that  its  object  was  less  to  find  a  new  land  for 
the  Danes  to  dwell  in  than  to  conquer  England  and  annex 
it  to  a  great  Scandinavian  monarchy  ruling  the  whole  north 
of  Europe. 

Two  Saxon  kings  strove  to  defend  England  against  these 


§  8o]  The  Second  Danish  Invasion  83 

invasions,  ^Ethelred  the  Unready,  or  the  king  without  coun- 
sel,—  so  called  because  he  never  seemed  to  know  what  to 
do,  —  with  very  little  success,  and  his  son,  Eadmund  Iron- 
side, with  greater  skill  and  vigor.     Eadmund  died,  however, 
within   a  few  months  of  his  father,  and   then  the   Danish 
king,  Cnut,  of  whom  so  many  stories  are  told  us,  became   The  reign 
undisputed  king  of  all  England.     Cnut  was  really  a  great  ofCnut- 
man,  and  he  ruled  a  great  kingdom,  uniting  England,  Den-   stubbs  73. 
mark,  and  Norway,  and  other  lands  about  the  Baltic.     Eng- 
land he  strove  to  rule  not  as  a  conqueror,  but  as  a  native 
king,  as  indeed  he  was  to  a  large  portion  of  the  people,  and 
in  his  reign  the  union  of  all   the  various  elements  into  a 
nation  went   rapidly  forward.     Cnut's  kingdoms  separated 
on  his  death ;  and  though  two  of  his  sons  succeeded  in  turn 
in  England,  their  reigns  were  short,  and  on  the  death  of 
the  last  the  English  were  glad  to  restore  the  old  West  Saxon   1043. 
line  in  the  person  of  Eadward,  the  brother  of  Eadmund 
Ironside. 


Topics 

Why  was  not  the  united  government  created  by  Charlemagne  main- 
tained? What  was  the  condition  of  commerce?  Why?  The  effect 
on  government?  What  would  be  the  effect  on  our  civilization  of  a  re- 
turn to  the  last  century's  methods  of  travel  and  transportation?  The 
character  of  Lewis  I.  Give  the  boundaries  of  the  divisions  made  by 
the  treaty  of  Verdun,  and  state  the  influence  of  this  division  on  the 
later  map  of  Europe.  How  long  after  Charlemagne's  death  did  his 
empire  remain  united  in  name?  What  parts  of  the  Empire  were 
attacked  by  the  barbarians?  The  character  of  the  attack  of  the 
Northmen.  What  parts  of  the  world  did  they  visit?  Their  per- 
manent settlements  in  France  and  England.  Reign  and  character  of 
Alfred.  Character  of  the  second  Danish  invasion  of  England.  The 
empire  of  Cnut.  By  which  one  of  the  original  Saxon  states  was  the 
united  kingdom  of  England  formed? 

Topics  for  Assigned  Studies 

Lewis  the  Pious.  Oman,  Periods,  Chap.  XXIII.  Henderson,  Germany, 
Chap.  VI.  Emerton,  Europe,  13-25.  Adams,  Civilization,  170- 
173.  Zeller,  III.  The  Division  of  817.  Henderson,  201. 


84         Breaking  up  of  Charlemagne  s  Empire 

Alfred  the  Great.  Hughes,  Alfred  the  Great.  (Macmillan.)  Pauli, 
Alfred  the  Great  (Bohn),  contains  translation  from  Alfred. 
Green,  Conquest  of  England  (Harper),  Chap.  IV.  English 
People,  I.  75-82.  Freeman,  Norman  Conquest,  I.  33-35.  Keary, 
Vikings,  384-404. 

Cnut.  Green,  Conquest,  Chap.  IX.  English  People^  I.  99-102.  Free- 
man, Norman  Conquest,  I.,  Chap.  VI. 


CHAPTER   II 

THE  FEUDAL  SYSTEM 

81.  The  Conditions  which   gave  Rise  to  Feudalism. —   Partly  po- 

While  the  older  Empire  was  falling  to  pieces  and  the  new  litica1'  Partl> 
.     ,  ,  .  .  ,  .  ,     .      ~     ^   f  economic, 

independent  monarchies  were  taking  on  their  first  forms,  a 

great  system,  half  political  and  half  economic  in  character, 
was  coming  into  existence,  —  a  system  which  has  had  a 
most  profound  influence  on  all  later  history.  This  was 
feudalism.  The  double  character  of  this  institution,  partly 
political  and  partly  economic,  shows  that  two  distinct  sets 
of  causes  were  at  work  to  produce  it.  Underlying  both  was 
probably  one  prevailing  condition  of  things  which  favored 
the  action  of  these  causes.  This  was  the  difficulty  of  in- 
tercommunication which  followed  the  destruction  of  the 
Roman  system  of  roads  and  bridges,  and  the  substitution 
t)f  more  primitive  methods  in  both  government  and  com- 
merce for  the  highly  organized  Roman  civilization. 

As  government  proved  by  degrees  in  the  age  of  decline  The  inde- 
unable  to  do  its  work  throughout  the  wide  extent  of  the  pendenceof 
Empire,  the  localities  were  more  and  more  thrown  on  them-   hootTingov- 
selves  to   provide   for  their  own  necessities  in  the  way  of  eminent  and 
protection  and  order  and  the  enforcement  of  law.     So  also   commerce- 
economically,  with   the  decline  of  commerce  and   the -in- 
creasing scarcity  of  money,  each  locality  was  in  the  same 
way  thrown  on  its  own  resources  to  supply  its  own  needs. 
Again,  it  was  inevitable  that  in  a  time  of  little  commerce 
the  chief  form  of  wealth  should  be  land;  and  on  one  side 
that,  in  a  time  of  a  very  scanty  currency,  the  rich  man,  who 
would  get  an  income  from  his  wealth,  should  be  obliged  to 

8* 


86 


The  Feudal  System 


[§82 


The  im- 
portance of 
land. 


Taine,  An- , 
dent  Regime 
(Holt),S-9. 


Their  origin 
Roman. 


The  feudal 
theory  of  the 
state. 
Emerton, 
Europe, 

494-507 ; 

Adams, 

Civilization, 

217-222. 


rent  his  land  for  services,  and  on  the  other,  the  man  who 
had  only  his  personal  services  with  which  to  earn  his  sup- 
port should  be  obliged  to  sell  them  for  the  use  of  land. 
Both  these  causes  tended  to  the  same  result.  The  state 
was  broken  into  fragments  becoming  more  and  more  in- 
dependento  The  rich  and  strong  man  who  could  furnish 
protection  to  a  smaller  or  larger  territory  became  its  ruler. 
The  duties  and  rights  usually  belonging  to  the  government 
passed  into  his  hands.  The  military  force  and  the  local 
fortification,  which  kept  off  the  enemy,  —  that  is,  the  castle, 
—  belonged  to  him.  The  court  which  enforced  the  law  was 
his  court.  He  was  able  to  obtain  and  pay  his  little  army 
by  renting  his  lands  to  the  fighting  class,  who  paid  him  in 
military  service.  He  and  they  furnished  support  to  the 
laboring  class  by  renting  these  same  lands  to  the  men  who 
cultivated  them  and  so  paid  for  them  by  their  work  in 
ploughing  and  harvesting,  thus  forming  the  serf  class  at  the 
bottom  of  this  system. 

82.  The  Forms  of  the  Feudal  System.  —  The  institutions 
which  regulated  these  relations  and  formed  the  foundation 
of  the  feudal  law  go  far  back  for  their  origin  into  Roman 
times,  when  the  imperial  government  began  to  decline  and 
to  be  unable  to  protect  the  provinces,  but  by  the  ninth 
century  they  had  been  so  transformed  by  the  operation  of 
these  new  causes  as  to  be  quite  different  from  their  originals. 
Some  idea  must  be  obtained  of  the  forms  into  which  they 
grew,  because  of  their  permanent  influence  on  social  organi- 
zation and  on  some  departments  of  law. 

The  theory  of  the  feudal  system  which  has  come  down 
to  us  represents  it  as  a  much  more  orderly  and  regular  or- 
ganization than  it  was  in  reality  at  the  time  of  its  height 
in  the  tenth  and  eleventh  centuries.  This  is  because  the 
theory  was  put  into  shape  by  lawyers,  who  drew  up  law 
books  based  upon  the  feudal  law  at  a  time  when  the  system 
itself  was  falling  into  decay,  and  who  naturally  systematized 
the  law  as  far  as  possible.  This  is,  however,  of  less  impor- 
tance for  our  present  purpose,  because  it  was  very  largely 


§  82]          The  Forms  of  the  Feudal  System  87 

through  their  work  that  permanent  influence  was  given  to 
feudal  institutions.  In  this  theory  the  king  was  the  lord, 
or  suzerain,  of  the  whole  kingdom.  Next  to  him  were  the 
great  barons,  or  peers  of  the  realm,  who  held  large  portions 
of  the  kingdom  as  his  vassals.  Their  territories  in  turn  were 


EDINBURGH  CASTLE 

divided  among  their  vassals,  who  were  thus  the  rear  vassals 
of  the  king,  and  so  on  down  to  the  smallest  piece  of  land 
which  would  give  a  man  income  enough  from  its  cultivation 
by  serfs  to  enable  him  to  make  fighting  his  whole  business. 
The  name  "  vassal "  must  not  be  supposed  to  have  carried 
with  it  any  reproach  or  dishonor  in  feudal  days.  Quite  the 


88 


The  Feudal  System 


[§§  83, 84 


France  the 
most  feudal 
of  countries. 
Tout, 

Periods,  82- 
93,  with  map. 


Relief,  hom- 
age, and  in- 
vestiture. 
Hallam, 
Middle  Ages, 
I.  170-181 ; 
Emerton, 
Europe,  488- 


contrary.  The  vassal  was  a  noble,  and  throughout  the  feudal 
ranks  all  were  at  the  same  time  vassals,  except  the  highest, 
and  suzerains,  except  the  lowest ;  indeed,  so  strong  was 
the  idea  that  all  land  must  be  held  of  some  one,  that  it 
was  sometimes  said  that  the  king  was  God's  vassal  for  his 
kingdom. 

83.  The  Feudal  System  in  France.  —  It  was  in  France 
that  the  facts  most  nearly  corresponded  to  this  theory,  but 
the  correspondence  was  by  no  means  complete  even  there. 
The  kingdom  was  divided  up  into  a  number  of  great  feudal 
baronies.     In  the  north  was  the    duchy  of  France,  which 
belonged  to  the  Capetian  family,  the  duchy  of  Normandy, 
which  was  held  by  the  descendants  of  Rollo  the  Northman ; 
the  county  of  Brittany  at  the  western  corner,  and  that  of 
Flanders  at  the  eastern  ;  while  nearer  to  the  duchy  of  France 
lay  on  the  west  the  county  of  Anjou,  and  on  the  east  the 
county  of  Champagne.     In  the  centre  on  the  eastern  side 
was  the  duchy  of  Burgundy,  sometimes  held  by  the  Cape- 
tians ;  and  in  the  south  was  the  great  duchy  of  Aquitaine 
and  the  county  of  Toulouse.     But  these  great  baronies  were 
not  all  held  of  the  king,  nor  were  they  equal  in  rank,  while 
by  no  means  all  the  lords  of  the  smaller  baronies  held  their 
lands  of  the  great  barons.     Some  of  them  were  the  king's 
immediate  vassals.     It  was  only  when  the  feudal  system  was 
overthrown  as  a  political  institution  and  the  feudal  baron 
was  transformed  into  the  modern  noble,  that  the  grades  of 
rank  and  title  became  regular  and  fixed.     In  the  tenth  and 
eleventh  centuries,  customs  and  practices  —  and  these  were 
what  made  law  then  —  differed  very  widely  in  the  different 
localities,  and  the  real  feudal  system  is  characterized  by  a 
great  deal  of  what  seems  to  us  confusion. 

84.  The  Feudal  Rights  and  Obligations.  —  When  a  vas- 
sal died  his  heir  had  no  legal  right  to  succeed  to  the  fief 
because  it  was  land  which  his  father  had  held  merely  as  a 
tenant.     He  must  obtain  the  lord's  permission,  and  pay  a 
large  sum  for  it,  called  the  "  relief,"  though  the  lord  was  re- 
quired by  custom  to  grant  this  permission  unless  he  had 


§  85]  The  Serf  Class  89 

some  very  good  reason  for  not  doing  so.  Before  succeed-  494;  Duruy, 
ing,  the  vassal  must  perform  the  ceremony  of  "  homage," 
and  take  an  oath  to  be  faithful  to  his  lord,  and  sometimes,  Perm,  iv. 
also,  an  oath  of  fealty  or  political  allegiance.  He  then  re-  No-3; 
ceived  "  investiture  "  of  the  fief,  and  this  completed  his  legal  s^j-es> 
right  to  the  holding.  When  certain  circumstances  arose  No.  4. 
affecting  the  lord  or  his  family,  the  vassal  was  required  to 
pay  an  "aid."  There  were  usually  only  three  of  these:  The  three 
when  the  lord  was  taken  prisoner  and  had  to  be  ransomed ; 
when  his  eldest  son  was  knighted ;  and  when  his  eldest 
daughter  was  married.  In  certain  other  circumstances, 
affecting  the  vassal,  the  lord  had  a  right  to  a  payment  or  to 
the  fief  itself.  One  of  these  was  the  relief  just  spoken  of. 
Another  was  the  right  of  wardship  when  the  vassal  was  a 
minor.  This  gave  the  lord  all  the  income  of  the  fief  as  long 
as  the  minority  lasted.  A  third  was  the  right  of  marriage, 
or  the  right  of  the  lord  to  select  a  husband  for  the  heiress 
of  a  fief,  on  the  ground  that  he  must  be  sure  that  the  new 
holder  of  the  land  would  be  acceptable  to  himself  and  fully 
able  to  perform  the  duties  by  which  the  fief  was  held.  Very 
often  the  lord  simply  sold  to  the  heiress  the  right  to  make 
her  own  selection.  Escheat  occurred  when  the  vassal  left 
no  heirs,  and  then  the  fief  fell  back  entirely  into  the  posses- 
sion of  the  lord. 

85.    The  Serf  Class.  —  These  regulations,  and  indeed  The  cuiti- 
the  whole  body  of  the  feudal  law,  affected  the  vassals  only,   vators  of  the 
or  the  fighting  class.     But  these  lands  had  also  to  be  culti-  Emerton, 
vated  to  keep  people  alive.     This  was  done  by  the  serf,  or  Europe, 
laboring  class,  and  the  same  lands  which  were  held  by  the  s^o-S20; 

'    .          Duruy,  Mtd 

vassals  under  the  feudal  regulations,  or  as  the  expression  die  Ages, 
was,  by  "  noble  "  tenures,  were  also  held  by  serfs  under  dif-  208-213. 
ferent  regulations,  or  by  servile  tenures.     Each  lord,  instead 
of  granting  out  to  vassals  who  paid  military  service  the  whole 
of  the  fief  which  he  held,  kept  in  his  own  hands  a  part  of  it, 
which  was  called  the  "  domain  "  lands  of  the  fief.     This  he 
granted  to  serfs,  who  paid  him  in  labor  or  by  giving  him  a 
part  of  the  crops  which  they  raised,  and  these  payments  of 


90 


The  Feudal  System 


[§86 


The  origin  of 
the  serf  class 
(seep.  28). 


The  serf  is 
the  slave  on 
the  way  to 
freedom. 
Adams, 
Growth  of 
French 
Nation,  66- 
68. 


the   serfs  formed   the   main  support  of  the  lord  and  his 

family. 

We  have  seen  how  the  serf  class  began  to  be  formed  in 
the  last  days  of  the  Roman  Empire,  on  account  of  the  grow- 
ing scarcity  of  laborers.  To  keep  the  soil  in  cultivation,  the 
state  gave  to  the  slave  a  little  piece  of  land,  and  took  away 
the  master's  right  to  remove  him  from  it.  It  was  not  a  very 
large  amount  of  legal  right  which  the  slave  secured  in  this 
way,  but  it  was  a  beginning,  and  it  led  in  time  to  the 
change  of  the  whole  slave  class  into  serfs.  By  the  end  of 
the  tenth  century  the  slavery  of  Christian  men  by  Christian 
men  had  almost  entirely  disappeared  from  Europe,  and  it 
never  returned.  In  the  history  of  labor,  serfdom  represents 
an  intermediate  stage  between  slavery  and  free  labor.  It 
is  the  condition  through  which  the  slave  passes  in  being 
transformed  into  the  freeman. 

86.  The  Condition  of  the  Serf  slowly  Improving.  — 
Looked  at  in  this  way  the  serf  is  one  who  has  a  part  but 
not  all  of  the  rights  of  a  freeman.  As  time  goes  on  he  is 
securing  more  and  more  of  these,  until  at  last  he  cannot  be 
distinguished  from  a  freeman.  This  is  exactly  the  history 
of  medieval  serfdom.  The  general  condition  which  had 
led  to  the  change  at  first,  the  scarcity  of  cultivators,  con- 
tinued throughout  the  whole  period,  and  kept  securing  to 
the  serf  better  and  better  terms  for  his  labor.  The  prog- 
ress was  very  slow  during  the  first  half  of  the  Middle  Ages, 
because  until  the  cities  began  to  fill  up  and  manufactures 
to  increase  there  was  almost  no  place  to  which  the  serf 
could  go  to  better  his  condition.  If  he  left  the  piece  of 
land  which  he  held,  he  ran  great  risk  of  starving  to  death. 
But  there  was  much  new  land  brought  into  use  during  these 
centuries  by  clearing  and  draining,  and  this  made  now  and 
then  a  strong  demand  for  labor  from  which  the  serf  always 
gained  something.  In  the  last  half  of  the  Middle  Ages  we 
shall  see  new  causes  coming  into  operation  which  carried 
on  this  advancement  much  faster. 

As  serfdom  represents  a  transition  stage  in  the  history  of 


§  86]      Condition  of  the  Serf  slowly  Improving       91 

labor,  we  should  expect  to  find  the  individual  serfs  on  a  Numerous 
domain  standing  in  different  grades  of  that  transition.     And  gradati°ns 

.    ,        of  serfdom, 
this  is  the  usual  condition  of  things,     borne  serfs  of  the   Hallam, 

manor  at  the  bottom  are  hardly  to  be  distinguished  from  Middle  Ages, 
slaves.     Their  rights  are  very  few,  and  the  lord's  arbitrary  \^^^n 
power  over  them  is  very  great.     Others  have  made  more  ush  Constitu- 
advancement   and   are   protected   in   a  larger  number   of  tionai  His- 
rights,  while  at  the  top  may  be  a  class  hardly  to  be  distin-   g^ion  817. 
guished  from  freemen. 

In  picturing  to  ourselves  the  organization  of  society  in  Vassals  were 
feudal  times,  we  should  be  careful  to  distinguish  between  r 
the  vassal  and  the  serf.     They  were  two  entirely  distinct 
classes,  subject  to  different  kinds  of  law,  and  very  sharply 
separated  from  one  another  in  the  days  when  the  feudal 
system  was  at  its  height. 


Topics 

What  economic  conditions  assisted  in  the  rise  of  feudalism?  What 
political?  Why  was  the  land  so  important  in  the  feudal  system?  Why 
was  protection,  which  we  obtain  so  easily,  so  difficult  to  get  in  those 
days?  How  far  back  in  time  do  the  forms  of  the  feudal  system  go? 
What  was  the  feudal  theory  of  the  state?  Where  most  nearly  realized? 
How  nearly  there?  Explain  the  most  important  feudal  rights  and 
obligations.  Explain  the  terms  "  suzerain  "  and  "  vassal."  State  fully  the 
difference  between  vassal  and  serf.  What  was  the  place  of  the  serf  in 
the  feudal  system?  How  did  the  serf  class  originate?  How  did  the 
general  feudal  conditions  improve  the  position  of  the  serf  ? 

Topics  for  Assigned  Studies 

The  origin  of  the  feudal  system.  Adams,  articles  in  Andover  Review, 
Vol.  VII.,  and  Civilization,  194-217.  Emerton,  Introduction  to 
the  Middle  Ages,  Chap.  XV.  Penn.  IV.,  No.  3. 

The  manor  and  its  working  population.  Penn.  III.,  No.  5.  Andrews, 
The  Old  English  Manor.  (Johns  Hopkins  Press.) 


CHAPTER   III 


Three  states 
assume  their 
modern 
form. 


No  real 

national 
unity  yet 
possible. 


Tribal 
disunion. 


THE  RISE  OF  THE  NEW  NATIONS 

87.  General  Conditions.  —  While  the  Danes  were  attack- 
ing   and    conquering    England,    great    changes   were   also 
taking   place   on  the  continent   of    Europe.     The  dynasty 
of    the    Carolingians    disappeared   from    history   in   all   its 
branches,  and  the  great  states  which  were  emerging  from 
the  empire  of  Charlemagne  began  to  assume  the  appear- 
ance and  to  organize   the   governments   which    they   were 
to  retain  until  almost  the  present   time.     These  were  the 
states  of  Germany,  France,  and  Italy. 

One  fact,  it  must  be  remembered,  characterizes  all  these 
countries  alike  during  this  period  ;  that  is,  separation  into 
fragments,  the  lack  of  any  real  national  unity.  We  saw  in 
the  age  that  followed  Charlemagne  the  causes  which  were 
at  work  to  make  it  impossible  to  maintain  unity.  In  the 
tenth  century  these  causes  were  still  at  work,  and  it  was 
still  impossible  to  overcome  them  entirely.  With  this 
century  we  come  to  a  time  when  something  like  modern 
national  feeling  begins,  and  aids  very  possibly  in  the 
establishment  of  new  dynasties,  but  it  is  not  strong  enough 
to  unify  the  nation,  or  even  to  assist  in  the  establishment 
of  a  strong  government.  We  have  to  notice  how  in  these 
various  countries  the  new  dynasties  take  the  place  of  the 
old,  how  they  attack  the  difficulties  of  government,  with  what 
degree  of  success  or  failure,  and  to  what  extent  these  states 
are  coming  to  be  like  the  modem  ones  of  the  same  name. 

88.  The    Beginning    in   Germany.  —  In   Germany   the 
ordinary  causes  of  separation  were  reinforced  by  the  old 

92 


§  89]  The  Saxon  Kings  93 

tribal  differences  which  had  not  yet  died  out  and  which 
in  one  way  strengthened  themselves  in  this  period.  Saxons, 
Franks,  Bavarians,  and  Alemanni  or  Suabians,  each  retained 
a  local  patriotism,  and  in  the  weakness  of  the  state  tended 
to  rally  around  some  one  of  the  local  families  which  by 
getting  possession  of  the  office  of  duke  strove  to  found  a 
local  dynasty.  The  state  was  weakened  also  by  the  plun- 
dering raids  or  more  serious  attempts  at  conquest  of  the 
Hungarians,  a  Tartar  race  that  had  followed  the  Huns  and 
the  Avars  into  the  Danube  valley,  and  who  were  now  trying 
to  force  their  way  up  the  river  into  central  Germany,  as  the 
Turks  did  later. 

On  the  deposition  of  Charles  the  Fat  the  Germans  chose  Arnulf, 
as  king  Arnulf,  a  German  Carolingian  who  strove  with  much  888-899. 

Oman, 
energy  and  success  to  maintain  a  strong  government ;  but   perioaSt 

his  line  died  out  in  a  few  years,  and  they  were  obliged  to  Chap. 

make  a  new  choice.     Disregarding  the  French  Carolingians  ^^011 

the  other  side  of  the  Rhine,  they  selected  Conrad  of  Fran-  Europe,  ' 

conia.     Like  Arnulf  he  struggled  manfully  to  maintain  the  90-100. 
authority  of  the  crown,  but  with  less  success.     The  power 

of  the  dukes  was  greater  than   it  had  been,  and  Conrad   Conra(J  L» 

911—910. 

came  at   last   to   recognize   the    fact   that   the    king   must  Oman, 

depend  for  the  power  to  rule  the  state  on  the  resources  of  Periods,  475; 

his  own   family.     With   remarkable   patriotism,  before  his  £™^°n'IOO 

death  he  advised  the  Germans  to  transfer  the  crown  to  the  Henderson, 

strongest  of  the  dukes,  Henry  of  Saxony.  Germany, 

89.   The  Saxon  Kings.  —  Both  Henry  and  his  son  Otto  I. 

were  very  able  men.     They  beat  off  the  Hungarians,  and  gI8-936. ' 

forced  the  great  nobles  who  were  striving  for  independence  Otto  i.,  the 
into  submission.     They  attempted   also  to  bring  about  a      T^ 

permanent  reduction  of  the  power  of  the  dukes  by  with-  Tout, 

drawing  from  their  control  all  the  lands  belonging  to  the  Periods, 

king  within  their  territories,  and  by  granting  to  the  bishops  Emerton 

the  same  political  powers  over  their  lands  that  were  pos-  Europe, 

sessed  by  the  counts  and  the  dukes.     These  measures  were  I03-"4. 

-  .  /•  i  i     i         i  11-  /-    Henderson, 

for   a  time  successful,  and    by  the  year  950  the  king  of    Germany, 

Germany  was  really  master  of  the  state,  and  the  German   119-128; 


94 


The  Rise  of  the  New  Nations        [§§  90, 9' 


Scheffel, 

Ekkehard 

(novel). 

Map, 

Putzger, 

No.  15. 

No  national 

government 

had  taken 

form  in  Italy. 

Henderson, 

Germany, 

128-141 ; 

Emerton, 

Europe, 

115-129. 


962. 
Bryce, 

Empire, 
80-88. 

The  title  of 
emperor 
attached  to 
that  of  king 
of  Germany. 
Bryce, 
Empire, 
122-145. 


Otto  III., 

983-1002. 
The  emperor 
of  Rome 
loses  power 
as  king  of 
Germany. 
Bryce, 
Empire, 
145-149 ; 
Tout, 
Periods, 

40-47 ; 

Emerton, 

Europe, 

149-161. 


nation  was  in  a  fair  way  to  be  formed.  Then  occurred  an 
event  which  had  the  most  momentous  consequences  both 
for  Germany  and  for  the  world.  Otto  was  invited  to  go 
down  into  Italy. 

90.  The  Empire  revived  by  Otto  I.  —  Italy,  like  all  the 
states  at  this  time,  was  broken  into  fragments.     It  differed 
from,  the  others,  however,  in  the  fact  that  no  one  of  the  local 
dynasties  was  strong  enough  to  establish  even  the  form  of 
a  national  government  which  could  have  any  permanence, 
and  begin  the  construction  of  a  nation.     They  were  in  per- 
petual conflict  with  one  another  for  supremacy,  and  out  of 
this  conflict  came  the  invitation  to  Otto.     In  95 1  he  made 
a  first  expedition,  in  which  he  contented  himself  with  forcing 
several  of  the  local  princes  to  recognize  him  as  their  lord. 
Ten  years  later  he  responded  to  another  invitation,  and  this 
time  he  was  crowned  king  of  Lombardy  and  emperor  of 
Rome. 

Since  Arnulf,  no  king  of  Germany  had  been  crowned 
emperor  of  Rome,  but  the  act  of  Otto  united  the  two 
crowns  in  such  a  way  that  from  his  time  the  chosen  king 
of  Germany  was  supposed  to  have  a  right  to  the  imperial 
crown  if  he  would  go  to  Rome  to  receive  it.  This  was  the 
founding  of  "  the  Holy  Roman  Empire  of  the  German 
Nation,"  which  lasted  in  form  at  least  to  the  opening  of  the 
nineteenth  century.  It  was  destined  to  have  most  disas- 
trous consequences  both  for  Germany  and  for  Italy,  and 
these  began  to  show  themselves  at  once. 

91 .  The  Effect  of  the  Revival  of  the  Empire.  —  The  short 
reign  of  Otto  II.,  filled  with  strife  and  a  third  of  it  spent  in 
Italy,  was  followed  by  a  long  minority,  and  then  Otto  III. 
became  king  and  emperor.     He  was  of  a  highly  imaginative 
mind,  and  because  he  was  descended  through  his  mother 
from  one  of  the  Greek  dynasties  which  had  held  the  Empire 
at  Constantinople,   he   believed    that  he  represented  in  a 
peculiar  way  the  ancient  emperors.     Germany  seemed   to 
him  of  little  account,  and  all  his  life  was  centred  in  Italy  and 
Rome.     In  the  reigns  of  these  two  Ottos  the  power  of  the 


§  92]  The  Beginning  in  France  95 

German  king  which  the  first  two  Saxons  had  built  up  with 
such  difficulty  went  rapidly  to  pieces.  The  last  sovereign 
of  the  family,  Henry  II.,  was  a  good  man,  but  not  a  strong 
king,  and  he  could  only  begin  the  recovery  of  what  had  been 
lost. 

On  the  death  of  Henry  II.  the  Saxon  family  became  ex-   The  second 
tinct,  and  the  Germans  went  back  to  Franconia  and  elected  German 
another  Conrad,  probably  of  the  same  family  as  Conrad  I.   R^very 
He   proved   to   be  a  vigorous   and   determined  king    and  under  the 
rapidly  reconstructed  the  royal  power.     The  kingdom  of   !Lrst 

I>  ,  ,        JT       .        .       ,  .  -,     Francomans 

Burgundy  was  annexed  to  the  Empire  in  his  reign,  and   Conrad  n., 
though  he  sought  the  imperial  crown  in  Italy,  he  did  not   1024-1039. 
allow  his  interests  there  to  interfere  with  his  power  in  Ger-     °ut'  , 

Periods, 

many.     Since  the  time  of  the  first  Conrad  the  feudal  system  47-6o; 

had  been  introduced  into  Germany,  and  one  of  the  ways  by  Emerton, 

which  Conrad  II.  strengthened  his  power  was  by  encouraging  -&™-&t. 

the  independence  of  the  smaller  nobles  and  protecting  their  Henderson, 

interests  against  the  dukes  and  great  barons.     At  his  death  Germany> 
Conrad  left  the  royal  power  far  stronger  than  it  had  ever         *73' 

been  before,  and   Germany   more   thoroughly    centralized  poiicyofthe 

under  a  single  government.   The  reign  of  his  son  Henry  III.  Franconians. 
opens  a  new  age  in  the  history  of  the  Empire. 

92.   The  Beginning  in  France.  —  By  this  time   also  a  The  origin  of 

new  dynasty  had  firmly  established  itself  in  France.     In  the  j!^enCape" 

troublous  times  which  followed  the  first  attack  of  the  North-  Adams, 

men,  a  family  of  unknown  origin  had  come  into  possession  French. 

of  Paris,  because  they  furnished  the  most  skilful  and  vigor-  Nahon>  54- 
ous  leadership  to  be  had  against  the  invaders.     From  this 
point   their  lands  grew  into  a  little  feudal  state  including 
Orleans  and  commanding  the  two  great  rivers  of  northern 

France.  Two  families 

On  the  deposition  of  Charles  the  Fat,  the  head  of  this  rivals  for  the 

family,  Eudes,  son  of  Robert  the  Strong,  was  made  king  of  Kitchen 

France.     But  this  was  not  a  permanent  change  of  dynasty.  France, 

He  was  succeeded  by  Charles  the  Simple,  a  Carolingian,  L  l69-i78; 
who  gave  Normandy  to  Rollo,  and  for  a  hundred  years  the 


crown  was  transferred  back  and  forth  from  one  family  to  the  Chap.  iv0j 


The  Rise  of  the  New  Nations        [§§  93'  94 


Emerton, 

Europe, 
400-420 ; 
Zeller,  IV. 


The  first  four 

Capetians, 

987-1108. 

Kitchen, 

France, 

I.  185-189; 

Adams, 

French 

Nation, 

Chap.  VI. 


The  last 
Saxon  king, 
Edward  the 
Confessor, 
1042-1066. 
Green, 
English 
People, 
I.  103-107 ; 
Stubbs,  76. 


other.  Hugh  the  Great,  who  was  the  head  of  the  new 
family  during  the  middle  years  of  the  tenth  century,  might 
have  made  himself  king  if  he  had  chosen,  but  he  preferred 
to  sustain  the  Carolingians.  On  the  death  of  Louis  V.  in 
987,  Hugh  Capet  was  made  king,  and  from  his  reign  on  the 
Capetians  have  held  the  throne  of  France  in  unbroken  suc- 
cession as  long  as  kings  have  reigned  there  at  all. 

93.  Kings  of  Little  Power.  —  In  truth,  during  all  this 
time  and  for  another  century  still  the  king  had  only  nominal 
power.     The  feudal  system  was  at  its  height  in  France,  and 
the  great  barons  who  divided  its  territory  among  themselves 
were  really  independent  sovereigns,  each  in  his  own  land, 
and  they  would  allow  to  the  king  no  control  over  their 
subjects.      The   early  Capetians  had  a  strong  position  in 
northern  France  and  ruled  as  their  own  one  of  the  most 
powerful  of  these  feudal  states,  the  duchy  of  France,  and 
they  were  very  faithfully  supported  by  the  Church.     These 
two  things  were  the  source  of  what  power  they  had  as  kings, 
but  the  next  three  kings  after  Hugh  Capet, —  Robert,  Henry, 
and  Philip,  —  whose  reigns  fill  the  whole  eleventh  century, 
could  do  no  more  than  make  a  beginning.     They  kept  se- 
cure possession  of  the  crown  and  prepared  the  way  for  better 
things,  and  that  was  success  enough  in  such  an  age  as  theirs. 

94.  The  Norman  Conquest  of  England.  —  In  England  as 
well  as  in  these  other  states  the  old  dynasty  comes  to  an 
end  and  a  new  one  takes  its  place.     After  the  two  sons  of 
Cnut  the  English  made  Eadward  the  Confessor  king,  brother 
of  Eadmund  Ironside,  but  a  very  different  man.     He  had 
passed  his  youth  during  the  time  of  the  Danish  kings  in 
Normandy,  which  was  his  mother's  home,  and  he  had  be- 
come more  Norman  than  Saxon.     He  liked  to  follow  Nor- 
man ways,  and  to  have  Normans  about  him  at  the  court. 
Besides,  he  was  a  man  of  rather  weak  character,  likely  to  be 
under  the  influence  of  some  one  else.     As  a  result  much  of 
his  reign  was  occupied  with  the  struggle  of  Saxon  and  Nor- 
man parties  which  prepared  the  way  for  the  Norman  con- 
quest after  his  death. 


§  94]         The  Norman  Conquest  of  England 


97 


Eadward  left  no  children,  and  the  English  elected  Harold, 
son  of  the  great  Earl  Godwin  who  had  been  the  leader  of 
the  Saxon  party ;  but  William,  duke  of  Normandy,  insisted 
that  the  throne  had  been  promised  to  him  by  Eadward,  and 
that  Harold  had  taken  an  oath  to  support  his  claims.  He 
immediately  collected  a  great  army  and  soon  landed  on  the 
southern  coast  of  England  not  far  from  the  town  of  Has- 
tings. Harold,  who  had  only  just  beaten  an  invading  army 
under  the  king  of  Norway  in  the  north  of  England,  made  a 
brave  fight  for  his  crown  in  the  battle  of  Hastings,  but  was 
defeated  and  slain.  William  then  marched  through  the 
country,  turning  a  great  circle  to  the  north  side  of  London, 
which  then  surrendered  and  accepted  him  as  king.  There 
was  some  resistance  in  other  parts  of  the  kingdom  and  some 
rebellion  against  the  Norman  king,  but  William  subdued  all 
opposition  with  vigor  and  often  with  great  severity,  and 
finally  the  whole  land  was  brought  into  obedience. 


Topics 

What  three  states  of  the  continent  began  to  assume  a  modern  form 
after  the  dissolution  of  Charlemagne's  empire?  How  near  was  this  to 
national  unity  in  each  case?  What  difficulties  were  there  to  be  over- 
come in  Germany?  What  was  done  by  the  Germans  on  the  extinction 
of  their  branch  of  the  Carolingian  house?  The  two  great  kings  of 
the  first  German  dynasty.  Their  measures  to  strengthen  the  royal 
power.  Why  were  these  interrupted?  The  situation  in  Italy.  The 
effect  on  Germany  of  the  revival  of  the  Empire.  On  Italy.  What  was 
the  relation  of  the  two  titles,  "  Emperor  of  Rome  "  and  "  King  of  Ger- 
many" ?  How  does  the  reign  of  Otto  III.  show  the  effect  of  the  re- 
vival of  the  Empire?  Policy  followed  by  the  second  German  dynasty 
to  strengthen  the  royal  power.  The  origin  of  the  Capetians.  Com- 
pare the  substitution  of  a  local  dynasty  in  France  for  the  Carolingians 
with  that  in  Germany.  The  power  of  the  crown  under  the  first  four 
Capetians.  The  character  of  the  last  Saxon  king.  What  did  the  Eng- 
lish do  on  the  extinction  of  the  Saxon  line ?  Had  William  any  right 
to  the  English  throne?  How  did  he  get  the  throne? 


Harold  king 

Freeman, 

William  the 

Conqueror 

(Macmillan)p 

51-62 ; 

Tennyson, 

Harold, 

(drama)  ; 

Bulwer, 

Harold 

(novel). 

The  battle  of 

Hastings, 

1066. 

Freeman, 

William  the 

Conqueror, 

82-99 ;  Social 

England, 

I.  231-244; 

Sources, 

Stubbs, 

79-91;  Gee 

and  Hardy, 

54-59;  Penn, 

III.,  No.  2; 

Henderson, 

7 ;  Kingsley, 

Hereward 

(novel). 


98  The  Rise  of  the  New  Nations 

Topics  for  Assigned  Studies 

The  Holy  Roman  Empire.  Dante's  De  Monarchia ;  translated  in 
Church,  Dante.  (Macmillan.)  Bryce,  Holy  Roman  Empire, 
Chap.  VII.  Freeman,  essay  in  Historical  Essays,  I. 

The  battle  of  Hastings.  Freeman,  Norman  Conquest,  III.  301-339. 
Original  accounts,  all  in  Bohn :  Orderic,  I.  480-488.  William  of 
Malmesbury,  274-281.  Henry  of  Huntingdon,  209-212.  Mat- 
thew of  Westminster,  I.  559-564.  See  the  controversy  on  the 
battle  in  the  volumes  of  the  English  Historical  Review. 


CHAPTER   IV 

EMPIRE  AND   PAPACY 

95.  The  Papacy  during  the  Tenth   Century.  —  During  Great  decline 

the   age   when   the   feudal   system   was  at   its  height,  the  of  papal  in- 

papacy  had  suffered  in  common  with  all  general   govern-  ^o^' 

ments  a  great  decline.     At  the  middle  of  the  tenth  century,  Church  His- 


its  authority  in  Europe   was  almost  nothing,  and  in  Italy  *"?•  IL 

IT-.  •  i  i      /-  i         i    ,-       •  •        i     •  298  1  Schafr, 

and  Rome  it  was  used  as  the  tool  of  local  factions  in  their  church  HIS- 

conflicts  with  one  another.     From   this  condition   it   was  tory,  iv.  279- 

rescued  for  a  time  by  the  Ottos,  who  appointed  a  series  of  ^.7:...A(JfmS| 

3  Civilization, 

reforming  popes  and  brought  the  papacy  under  the  control  227-238. 

of  the  Empire  as  it  had  been  in  the  days  of  Charlemagne. 

These  reforms  were  followed  by  a  speedy  relapse,  as  soon 

as  the  hand  of  the  Emperor  was  less  felt,  in  the  reigns  of 

Henry  II.  and  Conrad  II.     Soon  after  the  death  of  Conrad  Three  rival 

we  find  three  popes  at  once,  each  claiming  the  papacy  and  P°Pes- 

each  refusing  to  recognize  the  rights  of  the  others.     It  was 

a  situation  which  called  for  the  intervention  of  the  emperor 

as  loudly  as  in  the  time  of  Otto  I. 

In  the  meantime  there  had  been  forming  and  growing  A  clear 

stronger  and  stronger  in  the  Church  a  theory  of  the  absolute  theory  of 

power  of  the  pope,  as  the  especial  representative  of  God  in  p^macy" 

his  moral  government,  which  was  much  clearer  and  more  "Dictate" 

logical  than  any  that  had  been  taught  before.     It  may  be  yj^re^ 

put  briefly  in  this  way:  The  Spirit  of  God  dwells  in  His  derson,  366; 

Church,  guiding  it  in  the  right  path  on  all  important  occa-  also  in 

sions.     The  pope  as  the  centre  and  representative  of  the  Mathews- 
whole  Church  is  especially  under  this  divine  influence,  and 
will  not  be  allowed  to  make  any  serious  mistake  in  deciding 

99 


100 


Empire  and  Papacy 


[§96 


Three  great 

reforms. 

Adams, 


disputed  questions.      Therefore   all  parts   of  the   Church 
should  yield  him  implicit  obedience. 

96.    The  Reforms  of   Cluny.  —  These  ideas   had   been 
embodied  in  the  law  books  which  were  now  current  in  the 


MILAN  CATHEDRAL 


Civilization, 
239-244 ; 
Emerton, 
Europe, 
194-200. 


Church,  and  they  had  been  taken  up  and  made  still  more 
definite  by  the  leaders  of  a  strong  reform  movement  which 
had  started  from  the  monastery  of  Cluny  in  eastern  France. 
These  reformers  saw  more  clearly  than  had  ever  been  seen 
before  that  if  the  ideal  papacy  was  to  be  realized  in  fact, 
the  Church  and  the  pope  must  be  entirely  independent  of 


97]       Power  of  the  Empire  under  Henry  III     101 


the  State.  The  special  reforms  which  they  demanded  were 
all  directed  to  this  end.  In  the  first  place,  the  pope  must 
be  chosen  by  the  Church.  The  emperors  must  have  no 
longer  any  power  of  appointment.  In  the  second  place, 
the  bishops  and  great  officers  of  the  Church,  also,  in  the 
different  countries  must  be  freely  elected  by  the  Church 
without  dictation  from  the  State,  nor  could  the  State  even 
be  allowed  to  grant  to  the  prelate  investiture  of  the  lands 
which  formed  the  endowment  of  his  office.  These  lands  in 
the  feudal  age  were  looked  upon  as  a  fief,  and  the  bishop 
was  considered  a  baron,  so  that  the  State  had  really  some 
right  to  claim  a  voice  in  his  appointment.  It  was  the 
demanding  of  this  reform  which  gave  rise  to  the  great 
investiture  conflict  with  the  Empire.  Finally  the  rule  which 
had  been  of  long  standing  in  the  Church,  that  priests  should 
not  be  married,  was  to  be  rigorously  enforced,  and  all  the 
clergy  separated  entirely  from  the  world  and  its  interests. 

To  carry  out  these  reforms  would  demand  very  great 
changes,  and  it  hardly  seemed  possible  that  they  could  be 
realized  in  an  age  of  so  general  corruption.  But  the  time 
proved  more  favorable  than  could  have  been  anticipated, 
and  the  century  which  followed  saw  an  enormous  increase 
in  the  independence  of  the  Church  and  in  the  power  of 
the  pope. 

97.  The  Power  of  the  Empire  under  Henry  III.  —  The 
result  of  the  policy  which  Conrad  II.  had  followed  in  Ger- 
many had  been  to  make  the  king  very  strong  again.  His 
son,  Henry  III.,  is  the  most  powerful  German  king  of 
history,  and  Germany  in  his  reign  had  the  strongest  govern- 
ment and  was  the  nearest  to  a  united  nation  in  the  modern 
sense  of  any  of  the  states  of  Europe.  The  strength  and 
the  union  depended,  however,  far  more  on  the  character 
and  vigor  of  the  monarch  than  in  a  modern  state,  and  the 
government  was  likely  to  go  to  pieces  very  quickly  if  any- 
thing went  wrong  with  the  king.  But  for  the  time  being 
the  State  was  so  strong  that  Henry  III.  could  safely  give 
much  attention  to  affairs  in  Italy. 


Circum- 
stances favoi 
the  Church. 


Henry  III., 

1039-1056. 

Tout, 

Periods, 

96-103.  Map, 

Putzger, 

No.  15. 


102 


Empire  and  Papacy 


[§98 


The  emperor 
gives  the 
papacy  to  the 
reformers. 
Stephens, 
Hildebrand, 
(Epochs 
Ch.  Hist.), 
20-22 ; 
Fisher, 
Church  His- 
tory, 173. 


The  minority 
of  Henry  IV. 

Stephens, 
Hildebrand, 
Chap.  VI. 


The  car- 
dinals. 
Alzog, 
Church  His- 
tory, II. 

344-348 ; 

Fisher, 
essay  in 
Discussions 
(Scribner)  ; 
the  decree 
in  Mathews. 

The  investi- 
ture strife. 
Alzog, 
Church  His- 
tory, II. 
481-511; 
Emerton, 
Europe, 
Chap.  VIII.; 
Tout, 
Periods, 
Chap.  VI. 


The   three   popes   whom   he   found  in   Rome   were   all 

deposed,  and  another  was  appointed  in  their  place.  He 
was  a  German,  and  in  succession  Henry  appointed  four 
popes,  all  Germans  and  probably  all  reformers.  Certainly 
with  the  third  of  these  popes,  Leo  IX.,  the  party  of  the 
Cluny  reformation  came  into  possession  of  the  papacy,  and, 
if  not  under  Leo,  at  least  soon  after,  the  man  who  is 
especially  identified  with  this  great  age  of  papal  history 
began  to  direct  the  policy  of  the  Church.  This  was  Hil- 
debrand, who  afterward  himself  became  pope  as  Greg- 
ory VII. 

98.  The  Beginning  of  the  Conflict.  —  If  Henry  III.  had 
lived  longer,  he  would  probably  have  continued  to  control 
the  popes,  and  the  Church  would  have  been  unable  to 
secure  its  independence  so  early  as  it  did.  But  his  early 
death  was  the  opportunity  of  the  papacy.  Henry's  son  was 
then  but  six  years  old,  and  a  long  minority  followed  during 
which  Germany  was  divided  between  hostile  factions,  and 
no  continuous  or  determined  intervention  in  Italy  was 
possible.  By  a  decree  of  1059  the  papacy  declared  its 
independence  of  the  emperor  in  the  choice  of  the  pope, 
which  was  to  be  henceforth  made  by  the  college  of  cardi- 
nals. 

In  Germany  the  strifes  of  the  long  minority  had  greatly 
weakened  the  government,  and  when  Henry  IV.  himself 
began  to  rule,  his  character  did  not  make  it  easy  for  him 
to  recover  the  power  of  his  father.  A  great  rebellion  of 
the  Saxons  was  hardly  subdued,  when  he  found  himself 
involved  in  open  and  desperate  conflict  with  Gregory  VII., 
who  had  just  been  made  pope.  This  conflict  fills  the  whole 
of  his  reign  and  almost  the  whole  of  his  son's.  It  was 
upon  the  special  question  of  the  appointment  of  bishops, 
and  is  known  as  the  investiture  strife,  because  of  the  great 
interest  of  both  Church  and  State  in  this  ceremony  in  the 
feudal  age.  In  reality  it  was  a  struggle  for  the  indepen- 
dence of  the  papacy  from  the  Empire,  and  for  a  position 
of  equality  with  it  as  a  great  European  power. 


§  IOQ]    Third  German  Dynasty,  the  Hohenstaufen    103 

99.  The  Conflict  and  its  Results.  —  At  first  things  went  The  scene  at 
decidedly  in  favor  of  the  pope.  All  the  elements  of  oppo-  Canossa. 
sition  to  Henry  in  Germany  joined  the  party  of  the  pope,  I077' 
and  the  emperor's  friends  even  stood  aloof,  for  his  life  was 
such  that  many  believed  the  excommunication  was  deserved. 
The  isolation  of  Henry  forced  him  to  that  famous  scene  of 
humiliation  at  Canossa,  where  he  met  Gregory,  humbly  con- 
fessed his  sins  as  a  penitent,  and  received  the  absolution  of 
the  pope.  There  could  be  no  reconciliation  between  the 
Empire  and  the  papacy  at  this  time,  but  Henry  succeeded 
in  dividing  for  the  moment  his  enemies  and  in  gaining  an 
opportunity  to  form  the  party  of  his  friends.  When  he  was 
excommunicated  a  second  time,  it  was  easier  to  see  the 
political  motive  of  the  act  than  in  the  first  case ;  and  only 
at  the  end  of  his  life,  when  his  son  turned  against  him,  did 
his  fortunes  again  reach  the  lowest  point. 

Henry  V.,  though  he  had  joined  the  party  of  the  Church 
against  his  father,  was  obliged  to  take  up  his  father's  cause 
as  soon  as  he  became  emperor  himself.     The  strife  was  only 
settled  in  1122  by  the  Concordat  of  Worms,  which  was  a  Worms. 
fair  compromise,  giving  to  the  Church   the  choice  of  the   Henderson, 
bishop,  but  allowing  the  State  to  reject  the  candidate  if  it   MathewsY" 
did  not  approve  of  him.     In  the  larger  question  of  the  in-   in  England, 
dependence  and  power  of  the  pope,  the  conflict  closed  with   Gee  and 

Hardy,  63 ; 

a  great  victory  for  the  papacy,  which  never  again  came  un-   Emerton, 
der  the  control  of  the  emperors,  as  it  had  once  been,  and   Europe,  269; 
which  was  from  this  time  on  one  of  the  greatest  powers  of 
the  world.  246. 

loo.   The  Third  German  Dynasty,  the  Hohenstaufen. —  Theempe- 
Henry  V.  was  the  last  of  the  Franconian  dynasty.     After  ™rs  aban<Jon 

,       .  J  Germany  for 

the  interval  of  a  single,  reign,  a  new  dynasty  obtained  the   itaiy. 
crown  of  Germany  and  of  the  Empire,  the  Hohenstaufen,  Adams, 
one  of  the  most  brilliant  families  of  all  history.     But  Ger- 
many  was  now  greatly  changed  from  the  times  of  Henry  III.   Baizani,  The 
The  power  which  had  been  lost  in  two  generations  of  civil  p°Pes  and  the 
war  could  not  be  recovered.     The  great  emperors  of  this    (Epochs 
new  age,  Frederick  I.,  Henry  VI.,  and'  Frederick  II.,  seek  to  Ch.  Hist.). 


104 


Empire  and  Papacy  [§§  100, 102 


Absorption 
in  an  Italian 
state. 


The  Norman 

kingdom  of 

Sicily. 

Tout, 

Periods, 

103-109 ; 

Emerton, 

Europe, 

223-229 ; 

Johnson, 

Normans 

(Epochs), 

75-8 1 ', 

Gibbon, 

Chap.  LVL 


form  in  Italy  rather  than  in  Germany  the  basis  of  the  im- 
perial power.  Frederick  I.  does  not  actually  abandon  Ger- 
many. It  still  remains,  nominally  at  least,  his  residence; 
but  he  makes  many  and  long  visits  to  Italy,  and  freely 
spends  all  the  resources  he  can  draw  from  Germany  in  the 
attempt  to  conquer  his  enemies  there.  Henry  VI.  and 
Frederick  II.  hardly  visit  Germany  at  all,  and  plainly  regard 
it  as  second  in  importance  and  interest  to  Italy. 

1 01.  The  Danger  to  the  Papacy. — The   policy  of  the 
Hohenstaufen  emperors    to    form  a  strong  government   in 
Italy  brought  them  at  once  into  conflict  with   two    deter- 
mined and  powerful  enemies.     The  one  was  the  pope.     If 
Italy  were  formed  into  a  single  state,  the  independence  of 
the  popes  would  be  destroyed,  as  they  believed,  and  the 
great  power  which  they  had  now  attained  in  Europe  and 
even  their  headship  of  the  Church  would   be  threatened. 
It  was  the  same  danger  over  again  which  had  menaced  the 
papacy  in  the  advance  of  the  Lombards  in  the  eighth  cen- 
tury.    It  is  very  probable  that  these  fears  would  have  been 
realized   in  the  Middle  Ages,  though   when    the   temporal 
sovereignty  of  the  popes  was  at  last  destroyed  by  the  pres- 
ent Italian  kingdom,  these  consequences  did  not  follow. 

This  danger  became  a  very  immediate  one  when  the  mar- 
riage of  Henry  VI.  with  the  heiress  of  the  Norman  kingdom 
of  Sicily  brought  that  rich  and  military  state  into  the  hands 
of  the  emperor.  Some  Norman  adventurers  had  established 
themselves  in  southern  Italy  early  in  the  eleventh  century, 
and  begun  a  little  state  which  grew  rapidly  and  soon  be- 
came formidable.  After  some  wars  with  the  popes,  the 
Norman  rulers  formed  an  alliance  with  them,  and  were 
accepted  as  the  vassals  of  the  papacy  by  Nicholas  II.  This 
alliance  had  proved  of  great  assistance  to  the  popes  in  their 
conflict  with  the  Franconian  emperors,  but  now  the  Norman 
kingdom  was  on  the  side  of  their  enemies,  and  was  to  be 
made  the  very  foundation  of  their  power. 

102.  The  Cities  of  Northern  Italy. — The  other  enemy 
of  the  Hohenstaufen,  and  the  one  which  finally  prevented 


§   102] 


The  Cities  of  Northern  Italy 


105 


the  accomplishment  of  their  plans,  was  the  great  cities  of 
northern  Italy.  These  had  been  growing  rapidly  rich  and 
strong  during  the  Franconian  period  through  the  develop- 
ment of  commerce,  and  had  made  themselves  as  indepen- 
dent as  were  the  feudal  princes  of  Germany.  That  indepen- 
dence was  of  course  as  much  threatened  by  the  plans  of  the 


Frederick  I., 
1152-1190. 
Bryce,  Em- 
pire, Chap. 
XL;  Free- 
man, in  His- 
torical 
Essays,  L; 


HARBOR  OF  PALERMO 

Hohenstaufen  as  was  that  of  the  popes,  and  the  cities  were 
resolved  to  protect  it  to  the  utmost.  They  allied  themselves 
with  the  popes,  and  formed  with  one  another  the  Lombard 
League,  that  they  might  use  their  united  strength.  Frederick 
I.  found  some  allies  among  the  cities,  and  was  at  first  suc- 
cessful. At  one  time  the  city  of  Milan,  which  was  the  lead- 
ing city  of  the  League,  was  totally  destroyed.  The  ancient 


Emerton, 

Europe, 

282-312; 

Tout, 

Periods, 

Chap.  XL; 

Henderson, 

410-430. 


io6 


Empire  and  Papacy 


[§§  103, 104 


fhe  Lom- 
bard 
League. 
Duffy,  Tus- 
can Republics 
(Nations), 
Chaps.  VII. 
and  IX.-XI. 

The  battle  of 
Legnano, 
1176.     Peace 
of  Venice. 
Henderson, 
425,  and 
Mathews. 
Peace  of 
Constance, 
Mathews. 

The  Gueiphs, 
the  German 
rivals  of  the 
Hohen- 
staufen. 


Their  power 
broken  by 
Frederick  I. 
Tout, 
Periods, 
264-269. 


Innocent 
III., 

1198-1216. 
Alzog, 
Church  His- 
tory, II. 
574-586; 


Roman  law,  which  had  begun  to  be  actively  studied  in  these 
cities  with  the  growth  of  commercial  interests,  Frederick 
tried  to  some  extent  to  use  to  assist  his  plans,  because  it 
was  the  law  of  a  strong  monarchy  and  because  he  was  in 
name  the  emperor  of  Rome.  Finally,  in  the  great  battle 
of  Legnano,  Frederick's  army  was  destroyed,  and  he  was 
forced  in  the  treaty  of  Constance  to  recognize  the  virtual 
independence  of  the  cities. 

103.  Guelf   and  Ghibelline.  —  Frederick   might  perhaps 
have  succeeded  in  this  battle  if  it  had  not  been  for  the  oppo- 
sition in  Germany  of  the  great  rival  house,  that  of  the  Guelfs. 
They  had  been  rivals  of  the  Hohenstaufen  for  the  crown  to 
succeed  the  Franconian  dynasty,  and  had  never  become  rec- 
onciled to  their  defeat.     As  the  most  conspicuous  leaders  of 
the  opposition  to  the  emperor,  their  name  was  taken  as  that 
of  the  party  of  the  pope  and  the  cities  in  Italy,  while  those 
who  favored  the  emperor  were  called  Ghibellines.     These 
names  continued  in  use  for  the  political  parties  in  the  Italian 
cities,  and  become  of  especial  interest  to  us  again  in  con- 
nection with  the  life  of  Dante.     After  the  battle  of  Legnano, 
Frederick  turned  his  whole  strength  against  Henry  the  Lion, 
who  was  the  head  of  the  Guelfs,  drove  him  into  exile,  and 
confiscated  his  lands.     The   Guelfs   never  recovered  their 
power  in  Germany,  though  the  son  of  Henry  the  Lion,  Otto 
IV.,  became  emperor  for  a   few  years   after  the  death  of 
Henry  VI.,  —  and  as  emperor  was  forced  to  be  a  Ghibelline 
against  the  pope.     They  recovered  part  of  their  lands,  and 
some  of  these,  Hanover  and  Brunswick,  they  retained  into 
the  nineteenth  century. 

104.  The  Papacy  at  its  Highest  Point  of  Power.  —  Henry 
VI.  was  a  very  able  diplomatist,  and  he  came  near  accom- 
plishing by  negotiation  what  his  father  had  failed  to  do  by 
force.     But  as  his  plans  seemed  on  the  point  of  being  real- 
ized he  suddenly  died,  leaving  his  son,  the  future  Frederick 
II.,  a  mere  infant.    The  long  minority  which  followed  is  filled 
with  the  reign  of  the  most  powerful  pope  of  history,  Inno- 
cent III.     Circumstances  favored  him  throughout  all  Europe, 


§  104]         The  Papacy  at  its  Highest  Point 


107 


and  he  exercised  a  power  which  was  really  above  kings,  and 
came  near  to  being  that  imperial  power  which  the  theory  of 
the  Holy  Roman  Empire  would  have  given  to  the  emperors. 
He  humbled  the  kings  of  England,  France,  and  Germany ; 
directed  a  great  crusade ;  and  destroyed  the  first  great 
heresy  which  had  arisen  in  the  west,  that  of  the  Albigenses. 
Frederick  II.  owed  the  possession  of  the  throne  of  Germany 
and  of  the  Empire  to  the  support  of  Innocent  III.  against 
the  Guelf  emperor,  Otto  IV.,  but  he  was  soon  involved  in 
the  old  conflict  with  the  papacy  and  the  cities.  In  this 
strife  he  depended  mainly  on  the  resources  which  he  could 
draw  from  Sicily,  and  though  this  kingdom  was  rich,  it  proved 
unable  to  sustain  the  long  strain  of  this  war.  Frederick 
gained  some  great  victories,  but  in  the  end  he  failed  as  his 
grandfather  had  done.  The  city  states  of  Italy  secured  their 
local  independence.  In  Germany,  also,  left  so  long  to  itself, 
the  cause  of  local  independence  strengthened  itself,  and 
both  these  great  states  pass  at  this  time  into  that  condition 
of  hopeless  division  into  fragments  from  which  they  have 
been  rescued  only  in  recent  times.  The  papacy  gained  even 
more  from  the  conflict  than  had  the  little  states  of  Italy  and 
Germany,  and  is  henceforward  one  of  the  great  powers  of 
Christendom,  not  in  military  strength,  but  in  influence  and 
moral  power,  while  the  Empire,  which  had  behind  it  such  a 
great  past,  sinks  now  to  be  a  mere  title  and  a  theory. 


Emerton, 

Europe, 

3H-344; 
Tout, 
Periods, 
Chap.  XIV. 


Frederick  I U 
1215-1250. 
Alzog, 
Church  His- 
tory,  II. 
586-600; 
Freeman, 
essay  in 
historical 
Essays,  I. 

The  first 

result  of  the 

conflict. 

Adams, 

Civilization, 

247-248, 

256-257. 


PAPAL  KEYS 


io8  Empire  and  Papacy 

Topics 

Position  of  the  papacy  during  the  tenth  century.  The  idea  of  the 
reformers  in  regard  to  the  position  of  the  pope.  The  three  great  re- 
forms demanded  by  Cluny.  What  circumstances  favored  the  reform 
party?  The  power  of  Henry  III.  and  his  relation  to  the  papacy.  Ef- 
fect of  the  death  of  Henry  III.  What  was  the  "  investiture  "  question? 
Begun  by  what  pope  ?  What  led  Henry  IV.  to  go  to  Canossa  ?  How 
was  the  question  finally  settled  ?  What  was  the  policy  of  the  third 
German  dynasty  in  regard  to  the  Empire  ?  Why  was  this  especially 
dangerous  to  the  papacy  ?  Why  opposed  by  the  Italian  cities  ?  The 
origin  of  the  Kingdom  of  Sicily.  Its  relation  to  the  papacy.  How  did 
the  Hohenstaufen  family  obtain  it  ?  Its  bearing  on  their  plans  ? 
What  was  the  Lombard  League  ?  The  result  of  the  Italian  plans  of 
Frederick  I.  The  original  and  the  later  meaning  of  the  names  Guelf 
and  Ghibelline  ?  The  power  of  Innocent  III.  The  result  of  the 
reign  of  Frederick  II.  What  change  had  taken  place  in  this  period 
in  the  positions  of  the  Empire  and  the  papacy  ? 

Topics  for  Assigned  Studies 

Henry  IV.  at  Canossa.     Stephens,  Hildebrand  (Epochs,  Ch.  Hist.). 

125-134.     Tout,  Periods,  129-132.     Emerton,  Europe,  251-255. 

Henderson,  385. 
Guelf  and  Ghibelline.     Browning,  Guelphs  and  Ghibellines  (London  ; 

Methuen).     Machiavelli,  History   of  Florence  (Bohn),  Book  L, 

Chap.  V.     Duffy,    Tuscan  Xefublics  (Nations),  Chap.  X.     Tout, 

Ptriods,  Chaps.  X.,  XI. 


CHAPTER  V 


THE  CRUSADES 

Books  for  Reference  and  Further  Reading 

Kugler,  Geschichte  der  Kreuzziige.  (Berlin;  II  marks.)  The  best 
manual  of  the  external  facts  of  the  age. 

Prutz,  Kulturgeschichte  der  Kreuzziige.  (Berlin;  14  marks.)  Very 
full  on  all  sides  of  the  life  of  the  age. 

Von  Sybel,  Geschichte  des  ersten  Kreuzzugs.  2d  edition.  (Leipzig; 
10  marks.)  Detailed  and  critical.  A  translation  of  the  first 
edition  is  antiquated. 

Archer  and  Kingsford,  Kingdom  of  Jerusalem.     (Nations.) 

Cox,  The  Crusades.     (Epochs.) 

Chronicles  of  the  Crusades.  (Bohn;  $1.50.)  Translations  of  chronides 
of  crusades  of  Richard  I.  and  Louis  IX. 

Pears,  The  Fall  of  Constantinople.     Fourth  crusade.     (Harper;  $2.50.) 

Gray,  7'he  Children's  Crusade.     (Houghton;   $1.50.) 

Oman,  Art  of  War  in  the  Middle  Ages.  (Putnam.)  Military  criti- 
cism of  the  crusades,  pp.  229-350. 

105.  Place  of  the  Crusades  in  History. — Almost  at  the 
same  time  with  the  beginning  of  the  conflict  between  the 
Empire  and  the  papacy,  there  begins  another  great  Euro- 
pean movement,  which  is  as  thoroughly   characteristic  of 
the   Middle  Ages,  but  which  also  forms  the   turning-point 
towards   modern   history,  —  the   crusades.     In   the    causes 
and  motives  which  brought  them  about,  the  crusades  are 
typically  medieval ;  in  the  results  which  followed  from  them 
they  began  the  transformation   of  the   medieval  into  the 
modern. 

106.  Motives  of  the  Crusaders. — The  crusaders  them- 
selves   were    personally  influenced    by    two    very    strong 
motives.     One  was  the  religious — the  belief  that  pilgrim- 
ages, especially  to  such  holy  places  as  those  in  Palestine, 

109 


The  turning- 
point  toward 
modern 
history. 


Religious 
and  worldly 
motives 
together. 


IIO 


The  Crusades 


[§  107 


Adams, 

Civilization, 
259-268 ; 
Archer, 
Jerusalem, 
1-17; 
Cox, 

Crusades, 
Chap.  I. 


The  advance 
of  the  Turks. 
Archer, 
Jerusalem, 
17-25. 


Council  of 
Clermont. 
Cox, 
Crusades, 
Chap.  II.; 
Archer, 
Jerusalem, 
28-34;  Penn. 
I.,  No.  2. 
The  march 
of  the  first 
crusade, 
1096. 
Archer, 
Jerusalem, 
Chap.  III.; 
Scott,  Count 
Robert  of 


would  be  the  best  penance  for  their  sins.  The  other  was 
the  love  of  adventure  and  the  enjoyment  of  personal  combat, 
which  is  a  little  later  so  prominent  a  feature  of  the  age  of 
chivalry.  Mingled  with  these  motives  were,  even  from  the 
beginning,  more  selfish  ones  —  the  desire  of  the  leaders 
to  secure  principalities  for  themselves  from  the  conquests 
made,  and  motives  of  commercial  gain,  which  become 
especially  active  in  the  later  crusades. 

107.  The  Beginning  of  the  First  Crusade.  — The  special 
occasion  of  the  first  crusade  was  the  advance  of  the  Seljuk 
Turks.  We  have  already  seen  their  rise  into  power  in  the 
caliphate  of  Bagdad,  and  they  continued  to  push  steadily 
to  the  west.  About  twenty  years  before  the  first  crusade 
they  captured  the  city  of  Jerusalem  from  the  Fatimite 
caliphs  of  Egypt,  and  the  pilgrims  from  the  west  began  at 
once  to  suffer  grievously  from  their  more  barbarous  disposi- 
tion. At  the  same  time  their  progress  in  Asia  Minor 
alarmed  the  Greek  emperors  at  Constantinople,  who  began 
to  fear  the  total  destruction  of  their  empire.  Their  call 
upon  the  West  for  help  came  just  at  the  time  when  the 
West  was  beginning  to  be  aroused  by  the  stories  of  the 
returning  pilgrims,  and  when  the  rapidly  increasing  power 
of  the  popes  gave  them  an  interest  in  heading  a  great  Euro- 
pean religious  movement  of  the  sort. 

Pope  Urban  II.  proclaimed  the  crusade  and  preached  it 
at  the  council  of  Clermont  in  southern  France,  where  his 
sermon  aroused  great  enthusiasm.  "  God  wills  it,"  cried 
the  great  audience,  and  this  became  the  watchword  of  the 
crusaders.  The  first  crusade  was  composed  almost  wholly 
of  Frenchmen  or  Normans.  It  marched  in  four  divisions 
to  Constantinople,  one  from  the  region  of  Lorraine,  west 
of  the  Rhine,  one  from  the  north,  and  one  from  the 
south  of  France,  and  one  led  by  the  Normans  of  southern 
Italy.  The  year  before  their  march  a  great  crowd  of  un- 
armed peasants  and  rabble  of  the  lower  orders  had  been 
led  in  advance  by  Peter  the  Hermit  and  Walter  the  Penni- 
less, expecting  to  take  possession  of  the  Holy  Land  by 


BIRD'S-EYE  VIEW  OF  RHODES,  TIME  OF  THE  CRUSADES 


112 


The  Crusades 


[§108 


Paris  miracle,   but   perishing   miserably   of  hunger   and   by   the 

(novel).  sword  of  the  Turks  in  Asia  Minor. 

The  conquest       io8.   The  Results  of  the  First  Crusade. — The   real  cru- 

of  the  Holy  sa(je   ha(j   mucn   trouble    at   Constantinople   in   arranging 


•HE 

CRUSADES 

SCALE  OF  MILES 


0       10      20      30      40      50      60      70      g 

Date  of  Crusades 
.  1090-99,  First  Crusade 

— 1U7-49,  Second  Crusade 

(Ham,  a,fir,t  to  G-jnitfmlinopk) 

f1189-91,  Third  Crusade 

5  West 


Sal, 


SICILY 


Tripoli, 


10  Longitude  East 


Land. 
Cox, 

6^!^;  * 
Archer, 


matters  with  the  emperor,  who  had  not  expected  quite  so 
much  help,  and  feared  the  crusaders  almost  as  much  as 
tne  Turks,  and  after  getting  free  from  Constantinople,  the 
crusaders  met  with  great  suffering  and  loss  in  their  march 
tnrough  Asia  Minor.  At  the  northern  end  of  Palestine 
the  great  fortress  of  Antioch  had  to  be  taken.  This  was 


§  io8]         The  Results  of  the  First  Crusade  113 

accomplished  only  after  a  long  siege  and  very  heavy  losses,   Penn.  I. 
and  the  crusaders  had  no  sooner  obtained  it  than  they  were   No-  * 
besieged   in  turn   by   a  great  army  of  Turks   which  was 
advancing  to  occupy  the   Holy  Land.     The  Turks   finally 


om  Greemvich         HO 


retired,  however,  alter  inflicting  still  further  losses  on  the 
Christians,  and  the  way  was  at  last  open  to  Jerusalem.  That 
city  had  been  recovered  by  the  Saracens  of  Egypt,  and 
from  them  the  crusaders  took  it  by  storm  in  the  middle  of 
the  summer  of  1099,  three  years  after  their  departure  from 
Europe. 


The  Crusades 


[§  109 


The  kingdom 
of  Jerusalem. 
Archer, 
Jerusalem, 
Chap.  VII. 


The  second 

crusade, 

1147. 

Archer, 

'Jerusalem, 

Chap.  XIV. 

Cox, 

Crusades, 

Chap.  V. 


The  third 

crusade, 

Saladin  and 

Richard  I., 

Coeur-de- 

Lion, 

1189-1192. 

Scott,  The 

Talisman 

(novel). 


The  army  of  the  crusaders  was  now  reduced  to  less  than 
one-tenth  the  number  with  which  they  were  said  to  have 
left  Europe,  and  nearly  all  of  these  returned  home  on  the 
capture  of  Jerusalem.  The  garrison  left  in  the  Holy  Land 
would  hardly  have  been  able  to  hold  it  but  for  the  divisions 
and  civil  war  which  existed  among  their  enemies,  and  the 
reinforcement  constantly  received  from  small  bodies  of 
knights  who  came  every  year  to  make  individual  crusades 
of  their  own.  The  conquests  of  the  first  crusade  were 
organized  at  its  close  as  the  kingdom  of  Jerusalem,  but  as 
the  only  political  system  with  which  the  crusaders  were 
familiar  was  the  feudal,  the  king,  Godfrey  of  Bouillon,  the 
ablest  and  least  selfish  of  the  leaders,  had  no  real  power. 
The  great  barons  of  the  kingdom  were  as  independent  as 
those  in  France  at  the  same  time. 

109.  The  Second  and  Third  Crusades.  —  Europe  was 
aroused  to  the  second  crusade,  about  fifty  years  after  the 
first,  by  the  capture  of  Eclessa  by  the  Turks.  This  was  a 
fortress  to  the  east  of  the  Euphrates,  and  its  loss  seemed 
to  expose  the  Holy  Land  to  a  dangerous  attack  from  that 
side.  The  crusade  was  led  by  Conrad  III.,  king  of  Ger- 
many, and  Louis  VII.,  king  of  France.  They  tried  to  reach 
Palestine  by  the  overland  route,  but  failed  to  force  their 
way  through  Asia  Minor,  and  made  the  last  part  of  the 
journey  by  water.  An  attempt  to  take  Damascus  failed,  and 
the  crusade  really  accomplished  nothing. 

A  little  later  the  power  of  the  great  Sultan  Saladin  arose 
in  Egypt,  and  in  1187  he  captured  the  city  of  Jerusalem. 
This  called  forth  the  third  crusade,  the  most  brilliant  and 
the  best  known  of  the  series.  The  old  Hohenstaufen  Em- 
peror Frederick  L,  Philip  Augustus,  of  France,  and  Richard 
the  Lion-Hearted  of  England  were  its  leaders.  Frederick 
died  on  the  way,  Richard  and  Philip  quarrelled,  and  the  king 
of  France  returned  home,  and  though  the  strong  fortress 
of  Acre  was  captured  from  the  Saracens,  little  else  was 
accomplished,  and  Jerusalem  remained  in  the  hands  of 
Saladin. 


§110] 


The  Later  Crusades 


KNIGHT  TEMPLAR 


no.  The  Later  Crusades. — The  fourth  crusade  started 
almost  immediately  on  the  failure  of  the  third.  It  was  pro- 
claimed by  Innocent  III.,  the  most  powerful  of  the  popes, 
and  was  organized  with  the 
highest  hopes.  Its  decision 
to  go  by  water,  however,  and 
the  bargain  which  it  made 
with  Venice  for  transporta- 
tion, placed  it  at  the  mercy 
of  that  unscrupulous  com- 
mercial republic.  With  much 
hesitation  the  crusaders  con- 
sented to  attack  Constanti- 
nople, with  some  idea  of 
obtaining  a  base  of  opera- 
tions against  Palestine,  but 
really  in  the  interest  of  Ven- 
ice in  her  conflict  for  control 
of  the  commerce  centring 

there.  The  attack  was  successful.  The  Greek  emperor  was 
driven  out.  The  so-called  Latin  Empire  was  established 
with  Baldwin  of  Flanders  as  emperor.  The  territory  of  the 
Empire  was  divided  into  feudal  states,  and  the  Venetians 
obtained  the  supremacy  which  they  desired.  This  Empire 
maintained  a  declining  existence  for  about  sixty  years,  when 
the  Greek  emperors  in  alliance  with  the  Genoese,  the  com- 
mercial rivals  of  the  Venetians,  recovered  their  old  position. 
The  later  crusades  are  of  little  interest.  The  emperor 
Frederick  II.  recovered  Jerusalem  by  a  treaty,  but  it  was  re- 
tained only  a  short  time.  Louis  IX.  of  France,  just  before 
the  middle  of  the  thirteenth  century,  made  an  attack  on 
Egypt  to  conquer  the  Holy  Land  there,  but  was  unsuccessful. 
His  attack  on  the  Turks  in  Tunis  twenty  years  later  is  usu- 
ally reckoned  the  last  of  the  regular  crusades.  Individual 
efforts  continued  to  be  made  for  some  time  later,  but  Euro- 
pean states  and  sovereigns  could  no  longer  be  aroused  to 
such  great  expeditions  as  once.  Other  interests  had  arisen 


The  fourth 
founds  the 
Latin  Em- 
pire, 1202. 
Pears,  Con- 
stantinople ; 
Oman, 
Byzantine 
Empire, 
(Nations), 
Chaps.XXII. 
and  XXIII.; 
Penn.  III., 
No.  i. 


1261. 


The  decline 
and  end  of 
the  crusades 

Chronicles 
(Bohn), 
Penn.  I., 
No.  4. 


Ii6  The  Crusades  [§  no 

to  occupy  their  attention  which  seemed  to  them  of  more 
immediate  importance,  and  indeed  the  spirit  of  the  whole 
world  had  changed,  largely  through  the  influence  of  the 
crusades  themselves. 


Topics 

Why  is  the  age  of  the  crusades  a  most  important  one  in  history? 
What  motives  especially  influenced  the  crusaders?  What  had  the  ad- 
vance of  the  Turks  to  do  with  the  first  crusade?  What  divisions  com- 
posed the  first  crusade  ?  What  did  it  accomplish  ?  The  character  of 
the  kingdom  of  Jerusalem.  What  was  the  occasion  of  the  second 
crusade?  How  did  its  route  differ  from  that  of  the  first?  What  did 
it  accomplish?  What  event  led  to  the  third  crusade?  Who  were  its 
leaders?  What  did  it  gain?  The  peculiar  character  of  the  fourth 
crusade?  How  was  Venice  interested?  Why  was  the  government 
established  by  this  crusade  called  the  "  Latin  Empire  "  ?  How  long 
did  the  age  of  the  regular  crusades  continue  ? 

Topics  for  Assigned  Studies 

The  crusade  of  Richard  I.  Archer,  Crusade  of  Richard  /.  (Con- 
temporaries.) Chronicles  (Bohn).  Archer,  Jerusalem  (Nations), 
305-348.  Cox,  Crusades  (Epochs),  Chap.  VII.  Tout,  Periods, 

295-304. 

Arms  and  armor  of  crusading  age.  Oman,  Art  of  War,  Book  VI., 
Chap.  VI.  Archer,  Jerusalem  (Nations),  Chap.  XXIII.  Fling, 
Studies,  II.,  No.  5. 


SARACENIC  ARMS 


CHAPTER  VI 

THE  CHANGES  WHICH  FOLLOWED  THE  CRUSADES 

in.  The  Direct  Results  of  the  Crusades. —  The  crusades   intellectual 
had  a  most  profound  effect  on  the  people  of  Europe.     The  stimulus. 

f  •  j       •        i       l     AT-    j  j     Adams, 

age  was  one  of  great  stir  and  stimulus.     Mind  was  aroused,    civilization, 
The  crusaders  were  brought  into  contact  with  better  civiliza-   270-276; 
tions  than  their  own,  and  were  taught  that  they  had  many  ^m^t°n' 
things  yet  to  learn.     Before  the  age  of  the  crusades  had  388-397. 
closed,  and  produced  at  least  in  part  by  them,  there  occurs 
the  great  intellectual  epoch  of  the  thirteenth  century  which 
created  the  scholastic  system  in  philosophy  and  founded  the 
universities  of  Europe.     This  intellectual  and  scientific  awak- 
ening of  Europe  we  shall  take  up  in  detail  at  a  later  point. 

An  even  more  immediate  effect  of  the  crusades  was  the   The  growth 
stimulus  which  they  gave  to  commerce,  and  the  changes  ^fdc°IJJ1smerc 
which  followed  in  this  direction  were  as  far  reaching  and   civilization, 
profound  as  the  intellectual.     There  had  always  been  some  279-290; 
commerce  since  the  days  of  the  Romans,  specially  in  some  J™^!°n> 
parts  of  Europe  as  in  the  towns  along  the  seacoasts,  but  in  521-540. 
most  regions  of  the  West  it  had  been  very  scanty  and  irregu-   zimmern 
lar.     There  are  indications  of  increasing  trade  all  through  Hansa 
the  eleventh  century,   but  the  crusades  when  they  began 
acted  immediately  to  increase   commercial  intercourse  in 
various  ways.     They  created  a  strong  demand  for  transpor- 
tation both  of  men  and  of  supplies.     They  brought  a  num- 
ber of  new  articles  into  use  in  the  West  for  which  there 
arose  at  once  a  good  demand.     An  interesting  example  of 
these  new  articles  is  sugar.     They  also  introduced  the  mer- 
chants of  Europe  to  new  peoples  with  whom  to  trade,  and 

"7 


Ii8       Changes  which  followed  the  Crusades      [§ 


Increase  in 
number  and 
power  of  the 
cities. 
Adams, 
Civilization, 
290-300 ; 
Fling, 

Studies,  II., 
Nos.  8  and  9. 

The  "third 
estate." 
Adams, 
Civilization, 
304-310.  . 


The  demand 
for  security. 


The  demand 
for  better 
law. 


improved  their  knowledge  of  commercial  routes  and  of  the 
science  of  navigation. 

112.  The  Rise  of  the  Third  Estate.  —  Certain  results  of 
this  increased  commercial  activity  began  to  appear  at  once. 
One  of  these  was  the  rapid  growth  of  cities  in  all  the  coun- 
tries of  Europe,  with  large  population  and  with  great  ac- 
cumulations of  wealth.     This  meant  the  rise  of  a  new  class 
beside  the  others  who  had  up  to  this  time  controlled  public 
affairs.     This  fact  is  called  the  rise  of  the  third  estate.     In 
medieval  language  the  first  estate  was  the  clergy,  and  the 
second   was  the  baronage.     Now  for  the  first   time    there 
appears  a  third,  that  of  the  mercantile  and  manufacturing 
class,  and  from  its  numbers  and  its  wealth  it  has  power  to 
make  its  demands  listened  to  and  to  enforce  them.     The 
two  older  estates  can  no  longer  control  the  state  alone. 
They  must  now  share  their  power  with  the  third  estate. 

1 13.  The  Third  Estate  on  the  Side  of  Strong  Government. 
—  One  of  the  things  which  this  new  class  began  to  demand 

at  once  was  security  —  both  for  the  protection  of  property 
and  for  safer  and  better  means  of  communication.  The 
growing  government  of  the  state  found  great  assistance  from 
this  source  in  its  efforts  to  suppress  lawlessness,  and  to 
bring  the  private  wars  of  the  barons  to  an  end.  The  in- 
dividual noble  also  soon  found  it  profitable  to  put  the  roads 
and  fords  of  his  fief  in  order  and  to  build  bridges,  charging 
the  merchants  tolls  for  his  services,  or  to  furnish  an  armed 
escort  to  their  caravans  of  wagons  from  one  place  to  an- 
other. He  did  not  realize  that  in  doing  these  things  he 
was  aiding  to  destroy  the  economic  conditions  which  sus- 
tained the  feudal  system  and  his  own  power. 

Another  demand  of  the  third  estate  was  for  better  systems 
of  law  and  of  law  courts.  It  was  of  great  importance  to  the 
merchant  that  law  should  be  uniform  and  should  be  system- 
atically enforced.  To  supplement  the  defective  local  laws 
for  this  purpose  they  brought  into  use  in  many  parts  of 
Europe  the  old  Roman  law,  which  had  been  highly  de- 
veloped on  the  side  of  commercial  law.  The  study  of  the 


§ii3l  The  Rise  of  the  Third  Estate 


119 


Roman  law  in  the  code  of  Justinian  had  begun  in  Italy  just  The  Roman 
before  the  crusades,  and  from  there  it  had  spread  to  other  law* 
parts  of  Europe,  especially  after  the  founding  of  the  univer- 
sities.    As  for  law  courts  the  purposes  of  the  commercial 
classes  were  better  served   by  national  courts  than  by  the 
iocal  courts  of  the  feudal  baronies. 


government 


GRAND  CANAL,  VENICE 

In  these  ways  the  growth  of  the  towns  and  of  their  wealth  The  growth 
assisted,  directly  or  indirectly,  in  the  great  political  trans- 
formation which  took  place  in  Europe  from  the  beginning 
of  the  thirteenth  century  on  —  the  substitution  of  more  gen- 
eral and  more  uniform  government  for  the  narrow  and  local 
political  arrangements  of  the  feudal  system.  The  Roman 
law,  if  taken  by  itself  alone,  was  a  strong  influence  in  this 
direction,  for  it  was  the  law  of  a  centralized  and  powerful 


I2O       Changes  which  followed  the  Crusades      [§  114 


Destroys  the 
economic 
foundation 
of  the  feudal 
system. 
See  very 
interesting 
statement, 
Dialog,  de 
Scac.  L, 
VII.,  in  Hen- 
derson, 55, 
and    Stuhbs, 
193 ;  Ashley, 
English 
Economic 
History,  I. 
43-49- 


Taxation 
begins  to 
support  the 
State. 


Feudalism 
attacked  on 
all  sides. 


government,  and  it  breathed  throughout  the  spirit  of  such  a 
system. 

114.  The  Effect  of  the  Increased  Use  of  Money.  —  An- 
other most  important  result  of  the  increase  of  commerce 
was  the  large  amount  of  money  which  it  necessarily  brought 
into  use.     This  fact  was  even  more  destructive  of  the  feudal 
system  than  the  rise  of  the  third  estate  with  its  new  de- 
mands, for  it  cut  from  under  that  system  its  whole  economic 
foundation.     The  regime  of  barter  was  no  longer  necessary. 
The  owner  of  land  could  now  obtain  an  income  from  it  in 
the  form  of  money,  and  he  could  purchase  with  this  the 
services  which  he  needed  to  much  greater  advantage  than 
when  he  rented  his  land  directly  for  services.     So  the  man 
who   had   services   to  sell    could  now  exchange   them  for 
money.     The  feudal   relationship  had  become  so  strongly 
intrenched  in  society  that  naturally  it  passed  out  of  use  very 
slowly,  but  the  specially  important  change  now  made  is  that 
it  became  no  longer  necessary.     The  purpose  which  it  had 
once  served  better  than  anything  else  was  now  still  better 
served  in  another  way. 

The  increased  use  of  money  also  affected  the  feudal  sys- 
tem as  decisively  on  its  political  side.  The  State  was  no 
longer  dependent  on  it  for  the  formation  of  its  army  or  for 
any  other  public  service.  The  government  could  now 
derive  an  income  in  money  from  a  regular  system  of  taxa- 
tion, and  with  the  money  thus  obtained  it  could  provide  an 
army,  more  effective  because  more  directly  and  completely 
under  its  control,  and  it  could  provide  in  the  same  way  for 
all  other  public  necessities.  In  England  the  king  had  be- 
gun to  take  money  from  his  vassals  in  place  of  their  military 
services  before  the  third  crusade,  and  from  the  beginning 
of  the  thirteenth  century  the  governments  of  the  different 
states  gradually  introduced  regular  taxation  and  made  them- 
selves independent  of  the  feudal  services. 

115.  The  Fall  of  the  Feudal  System.  —  Of  course  the 
natural  inclination  of  all  sovereigns  was  to  develop  their 
governments  along  just  these  lines,  for  their  own  power  was 


§§  1 1 6, 117]        Institutions  of  the  Cities  12 1 

in  this  way  very  greatly  enlarged  and  strengthened.     Thus 

in  all  ways,  by  the  natural  ambition  of  the  kings,  by  the 

demands  of  the  commercial  classes  for  security  and  uniform 

government,  by  the  destruction  of  its  economic  foundation, 

and  by  the  growing  financial  independence  of  the  State,  the 

feudal  system  was  attacked  and  gradually  destroyed  both  as 

a  political  and  as  an  economic  system.     In  two  ways  it  re-   The  perma 

mained  and  exerted  an  influence  on  later  times.     One  was 

as  a  system  of  land  law  by  which  the  ownership,  inheritance,  feudai 

and  sale  of  land  were  regulated.     The   other  was  in  the  system. 

systems   of  nobilities  which  took  the  place  of  the  feudal 

baronage  in  all  the  European  countries.     The  titles,  legal 

distinctions,  social  privileges,  and  various  caste  regulations 

of  these   nobilities   were  based  on  feudal  usages,  though 

very  much  modified  from  the  earlier  days  when  they  were 

something  more  real  than  the  marks  of  mere  nobilities. 

116.  Changes  affecting  the  Serf  Class.  —  Upon  the  serf  increased 
class  these  economic  changes  had  as  great  an  effect  as  upon 

any  other.     The  growth  of  the  towns  offered  the  serf  a  place 
to  which  he  could  escape  from  the  hard  conditions  of  agri- 
cultural life.     The  rise  of  manufactures  gave  him  the  pos- 
sibility of  a  livelihood  by  which  he  could  support  himself. 
Soon  the  landlord  found  himself  forced  by  this  competition 
to  grant  them  better  and  better  terms  if  he  wished  to  retain 
his  laborers.     The  introduction  of  money  transformed,  for 
the  serf  as  well  as  for  the  vassal,  payments  of  services  into 
payments  of  money,  and  left  him  free  to  sell  his  services 
for  the  best  terms  he  could  make.     This  was  the  emanci-   in  what 
pation  of  the  serf  and  his  transformation  into  a  free  laborer,   emandpa- 
Like  the  other,  it  was  a  slow  change,  and  was  only  completed  sisted. 
in  the  Middle  Ages  in  a  few  of  the  more  advanced  regions  Ashley, 
of  the  West.     In  some  of  the  more  backward,  indeed,  it  E»slish . 

....  .  Economic 

was  not  made  until  in  the  nineteenth  century.  History,  I. 

117.  Institutions  of  the  Cities.  —  In  the  cities  the  mer-  *9~33- 
cantile  and  manufacturing  classes  were  universally  organized  The  guilds, 
in  corporations  or  guilds,  somewhat  like  our  trades  unions. 

They  differed  radically  from  these,  however,  in  one  or  two 


122       Changes  which  followed  the  Crusades      [§  n? 

points.  Employers  and  workmen  were  members  together 
of  the  same  guild,  and  the  masters  or  employers  passed 
regularly  through  the  lower  grades  of  apprentice  and  jour- 
neyman before  reaching  the  higher  grade.  The  purpose 
of  the  guild  was  not  so  much  to  look  after  the  interests  of 


A  HANSEATIC  SHIP 

laborers  or  of  capitalists  in  their  conflict  with  one  another, 
—  labor  and  capital  were  closely  identified,  almost  in  the 
same  set  of  persons,  —  as  to  regulate  methods  of  manufac- 
ture, the  quality  of  goods,  and  prices,  and  other  conditions 
of  competition.     In  a  very  large  number  of  the  medieval 
governed  the   towns,  these  guilds  were  the  governing  bodies,  electing  the 
towns.  aldermen  and  other  officers  of  the  city,  and  having  the  sole 


§ii/]  Institutions  of  the  Cities  123 

direction  of  its  affairs,  so  that  persons  desiring  the  right  of 
voting  or  taking  part  in  the  government  sought  the  privilege 
of  being  enrolled  in  some  one  of  these  guilds,  though  they 
might  have  nothing  to  do  with  the  trade  which  it  represented. 

In  some  countries,  where  the  government  did  not  prove   The  city 
strong  enough  to  reunite  the  State  after  the  period  of  divi-  leagues, 
sion  into  the  feudal  fragments,  especially  in  Germany,  the    T 
cities  sought  to  protect  their  interests  and  accomplish  the    Towns 
results  which  should  have  been  brought  about  by  the  gen-    (Natlons)« 
eral   government,  by  means  of  unions  among   themselves. 
The  greatest   of  these  was   the    Hanseatic  League,  which 
almost  made  a  state  and  which  was  very  powerful  in  the 
north  of  Europe  for  several  generations. 


Topics 

What  was  the  intellectual  effect  of  the  crusades?  The  commercial? 
What  was  the  effect  upon  the  cities?  What  is  meant  by  the  third 
estate?  What  is  the  class  corresponding  to  the  third  estate  at  the 
present  time?  Why  was  the  third  estate  interested  in  the  formation  of 
strong  governments?  What  change  in  the  matter  of  law  did  it  assist 
in  bringing  about?  Why  does  more  money  come  into  circulation  at 
this  time?  What  effect  has  this  on  the  feudal  holding  of  land?  How 
does  it  affect  the  relation  of  the  State  to  feudalism?  The  beginning  of 
modern  taxation.  How  was  the  position  of  the  serf  affected  by  these 
changes?  In  what  did  the  emancipation  of  the  serf  consist?  The 
purposes  served  by  the  guilds.  The  city  leagues.  The  Hanseatic 
League.  Make  a  list  of  all  the  ways  in  which  the  feudal  system  was 
affected  in  this  age. 

Topics  for  Assigned  Studies 

The  medieval  towns,  chiefly  English.  Green,  Town  Life  in  Fifteenth 
Century.  2  vols.  (Macmillan.)  Luchaire,  Les  Communes 
Fran$aises.  (Paris;  7.50  francs.)  Cunningham,  Growth  of  Eng- 
lish Industry  and  Commerce  (Cambridge  Press,  Macmillan),  I. 
197-214.  Green,  English  People,  I.  206-225.  Zimmern,  Hansa 
(Nations),  82-125;  Penn.  II.,  No.  i;  Stubbs,  82,  87,  164,307. 

The  English  guilds.  Gross,  Guild  Merchant  (Clarendon),  I.  106- 
126,  167-191.  Cunningham,  Industry  and  Commerce,  I.  309—318. 
Ashley,  English  Economic  History  (Putnam),  I.  68-96.,  II., 
Chap.  II. 


CHAPTER  VII 


The  State 

attacks  the 

feudal 

system. 

Adams, 

Civilization, 


The  first 

Capetians. 

Tout, 

Periods, 

70-82 ; 

Adams, 

French 

Nation 

(Macmillan), 

Chap.  VI. ; 

Zeller,  IV. 

Four  great 

kings. 


See  table  of 
French  kings 
on  p.  235. 


THE  FORMATION  OF  THE  FRENCH  NATION 

118.  General  Conditions  in  France.  —  In  the  various 
ways  which  have  just  been  described,  the  economic  changes 
which  followed  the  expansion  of  commerce  undermined  and 
weakened  the  feudal  system.  At  the  same  time  in  the  most 
fortunately  situated  countries  feudalism  was  exposed  to  a 
vigorous  attack  from  without.  The  time  had  now  come 
when  national  governments  could  be  formed,  and  their  ex- 
istence necessarily  meant  the  destruction  of  the  local  inde- 
pendence of  the  feudal  baron.  These  new  governments 
arose  first  of  all  in  France  and  England,  and  these  two 
countries  are  so  closely  connected  during  all  this  period  of 
the  Middle  Ages  that  their  history  is  almost  that  of  a  single 
state. 

We  have  seen  how  weak  the  first  Capetian  kings  were, 
and  how  little  their  authority  was  recognized  in  fact  by  the 
great  feudal  barons  who  divided  the  land  of  France  among 
themselves.  The  first  four  generations  of  the  Capetian  dy- 
nasty seem  to  have  been  able  to  do  no  more  than  to  secure 
possession  of  the  crown  for  their  family.  The  real  work 
of  making  the  French  government  and  forming  the  French 
nation  began  with  Louis  VI. 

In  the  first  two  hundred  years,  —  the  period  which  laid 
the  foundations  and  made  success  certain, — there  were 
four  kings  who  did  the  most  of  the  work,  whose  reigns 
accomplished  far  more  than  all  the  others  in  bringing  about 
the  final  result.  These  were  Louis  VI.,  Philip  II.,  Louis  IX., 
and  Philip  IV.  During  the  reigns  of  the  other  kings  of  the 

124 


119,120]          The  Work  of  Louis    VI 


125 


period,  but  little  which  had  been  won  by  the  great  kings 
was  lost  even  if  but  little  was  done  to  advance  the  work, 

119.  Two  Great  Difficulties.  —  To  create  modern  France 
these  early  Capetian  kings  had  two  very  difficult  things  to 
accomplish.     They  had  in  the  first  place  to  bring  the  terri- 
tory of  France  under  their  direct  rule ;  that  is,  to  recover  it 
from  the  possession  of  the  great  baronso     This  was  in  many 
cases  a  work  of  real  conquest   and  annexation,  so   inde- 
pendent were  many  of  the  feudal  lords,  and  it  was  made 
still  more  difficult  by  the  fact  that  one  of  these  barons,  the 
duke  of  Normandy,  was  also   king   of  England.     In  the 
second  place,  they  had  by  degrees  to  create  new  institutions 
of  government,  to  form  the  constitution  of  the  State,  as  their 
rule  was  gradually  extended  over  more  and  more  of  France. 
One  of  the  chief  reasons  why  the  government  of  France 
down  to  the  French  Revolution  was  an  absolute  monarchy 
is  to  be  found  in  the  fact  that  the  work  of  making  the  con- 
stitution fell  to  the  kings  alone.     The  barons,  who  in  Eng- 
land had  so  much  to  do  in  forming  the  constitution,  were 
occupied  in  France  in  defending  their  own  independence 
against  the  king,  and  were  at  last  conquered  and  forced  to 
complete  submission. 

120.  The  Work  of  Louis  VI.  —  Louis  VI.  was  hardly  able 
to  do  more  than  to  mark  out  the  road  which  later  kings 
were  to  follow,  but  his  vigorous  opening  of  the  way  was  at 
the  time  a  great  advance.     His  greatest  actual  success  was 
in  reducing  the  minor  barons  of  his  own  feudal  state,  the 
duchy  of  France,  to  obedience,  so  that  its  resources  were 
entirely  at  the  command  of  later  kings.     He  asserted,  how- 
ever, the  superior  rights  of  the  sovereign  over  the  great  fiefs 
as  opportunity  served,  and  began  the  policy  so  long  followed 
of  taking  advantage  of  the  frequent  quarrels  in  the  English 
royal  family  and  of  trying  to  get  their  French  lands  into  the 
hands  of  some  one  who  was  not  at  the  same  time  king  of 
England. 

Just  at  the  end  of  his  reign  Louis  secured  a  great  oppor- 
tunity for  his  son  by  marrying  him  to  Eleanor,  the  heiress  of 


To  recover 
and  unite 
the  territory 
of  France. 


To  create  a 
government 
for  the 
nation. 


Louis  VI., 
1108-1137. 


Kitchin, 

France, 

I.  249-260; 

Tout, 

Periods, 

274-282; 

Adams, 

French 

Nation, 

73^78 : 

Zeller,  IV. 


Eleanor, 
heiress  of 

Aquitaine. 


126          Formation  of  the  French  Nation    [§§  121, 122 


The 

dominions  of 
Henry  II.  of 
England. 
Green, 
Henry  II. 
(Macmillan), 
Chap.  II. 


Philip  II., 
1180-1223. 
Tout, 

Periods,  291- 

294, 393-405 ; 

Adams, 
French 
Nation, 
81-88 ; 
Zeller,  IV. 


the  duchy  of  Aquitaine,  the  largest  of  the  feudal  baronies 
of  France.  But  Louis  VII.  and  his  wife  did  not  get  on  well 
together.  He  lacked  the  energy  of  his  father,  and  Eleanor, 
who  was  masculine  in  character  and  lively  in  disposition, 
had  but  little  respect  for  him  and  took  no  pains  to  conceal 
the  fact.  Finally  Louis  divorced  her,  and  she  immediately 
married  Henry  of  Anjou,  who  shortly  became  King  Henry 
II.  of  England. 

121.  France  threatened  by  the  Angevin   Empire.  —  This 
marriage  made  the  dominions  of  Henry  almost  an  empire ; 
for  besides  the  whole  southwestern  quarter  of  France  which 
his  wife  brought  him,  he  held  also  the  northwestern  quarter, 
partly  from  his  father,  the  count  of  Anjou,  and  partly  from 
his  mother,  who  was  the  granddaughter  of  William  the  Con- 
queror.    This  was  about  two-thirds  of  France  as  it  then 
existed,  and  it  was  more  than  six  times  the  territory  which 
Louis  VII.  had  under  his  direct  rule.     It  seemed  almost  as 
if  all  France  would  be  united  in  the  end  under  the  king  of 
England  and  the  two  nations  become  one.     This  would  not 
at   that  time  have  been  so  difficult  as  later,  because  the 
French  language  was  quite  generally  spoken  in  England  by 
the  higher  classes,  many  of  whom  looked  upon  themselves 
as  more  French  than  English. 

122.  The  First  Great  Advance, —  Against  this  danger  the 
next  king  of  France,  Philip  II.,  contended  most  vigorously. 
He  took  the  part  of  Henry's  sons  in  their  wars  upon  their 
father,  and  when  Richard  became  king,  of  John  against  him, 
and  then  of  Arthur  of  Brittany  against  John,  always  against 
the  reigning  king  of  England  whoever  he  might  be.     He 
gained  but  little  success,  except  to  prevent  the  growth  of 
the    English   power,  until  John   became   king.     Then   his 
opportunity   came.      John   was   not   lacking   in   ability  or 
courage,  but  he  was  careless,  and  selfishly  bent  on  his  own 
pleasures,  and  his  energy  only  flashes  up  at  intervals  into  a 
strong  defence  against  the  French  king's  attack.     His  cause 
was  a  bad  one,  for  he  had  committed  some  serious  offences 
against  the  feudal  law.    He  had  married  the  betrothed  bride 


§122] 


First  Great  Advance 


127 


of  one  of  his  own  vassals,  and  had  refused  to  appear  at  the 
court  of  his  suzerain,  Philip,  to  answer  to  the  charges  made 
against  him  on  this  account.  So  the  court  had  decreed  the 
confiscation  of  his  French  fiefs,  and  Philip  was  executing 
this  sentence.  There  was  a  suspicion  also  that  John  had 
murdered  Arthur,  whom  he  had  taken  prisoner,  and  this  did 


Hutton, 
Philip 

Augustus 
(Macmillan) 
63-87. 

France  gains 
Normandy 
and  Anjou. 


•'.-<•& 


NOTRE  DAME,  PARIS 

not  help  his  cause,  though  it  never  has  been  proved  that 
Arthur  was  murdered.  Philip  was  entirely  successful,  and 
the  English  king  lost  all  his  lands  north  of  the  Loire.  This 
was  the  first  great  success  of  the  Capetian  kings  and  one  of 
the  greatest  in  their  history.  It  multiplied  the  territory  in 
their  hands  by  three  or  four  and  almost  made  the  kingdom 
of  France  a  reality. 


128 


Formation  of  the  French  Nation          [§  123 


The 

Albigensian 
crusade,  a 
step  in  the 
expansion  of 
France. 
Hutton, 
Philip 
Augustus, 
180-196 ; 
Emerton, 
Europe, 
333-342 ; 
Waldenses, 
Hale,  In  His 
Name 
(novel) . 


The  begin- 
ning of 
government 
institutions. 
Hutton, 
Philip 
Augustus, 
123-138 ; 
Emerton, 
Europe, 

423  ff. ; 

Adams, 
Civilization, 
321  ff. 

Louis  IX., 

1226-1270. 

Tout, 

Periods, 

405-427 ; 

Adams, 

French 

Nation, 

89-95; 
Zeller,  V. 


The  way  was  prepared  in  the  reign  of  Philip  II.  for  an- 
other great  annexation  in  southeastern  France  by  the  Albi- 
gensian crusade,  though  these  lands  were  not  actually  added 
to  the  king's  domain  till  some  time  later.  The  Albigenses 
were  a  sect  accused  of  heresy,  and  they  certainly  held  some 
peculiar  religious  notions.  Theirs  was  the  first  great  re- 
bellion against  the  medieval  Church,  and  it  was  very  severely 
repressed.  The  pope  proclaimed  a  crusade  against  them ; 
that  is,  he  offered  the  same  spiritual  rewards  to  all  who 
would  go  to  make  war  upon  them  that  would  be  gained  by 
going  to  the  Holy  Land.  The  crusade  was  led  by  a  French 
baron,  Simon  de  Montfort,  the  father  of  Earl  Simon,  so  fa- 
mous in  English  history,  and  many  took  part  in  it,  while  the 
king  watched  it  from  a  distance,  conscious  no  doubt  that 
France  would  reap  the  greatest  advantage  in  the  end  from 
the  ruin  of  the  local  barons,  as  was  indeed  the  case. 

The  territory  of  France  had  expanded  so  greatly  under 
Philip  that  the  simple  machinery  of  earlier  times  no  longer 
sufficed  to  do  the  business  of  the  State,  and  a  beginning  of 
institutional  growth  was  made.  The  lands  under  the  rule 
of  the  king  were  divided  into  districts,  and  to  each  of  these 
an  officer  was  appointed  whose  duty  it  was  to  represent 
the  king,  to  look  after  his  interests,  and  to  see  that  his  law 
was  obeyed  by  all.  This  was  the  beginning  of  an  adminis- 
trative system  which  has  continued  with  some  slight  changes 
of  form  and  name  under  all  the  governments  which  France 
has  had  down  to  the  present  time. 

123.  The  King  begins  to  make  himself  Obeyed.  —  The 
reign  of  Philip's  son,  Louis  VIII.,  was  a  short  one,  and 
Louis  IX.  began  his  reign  with  a  long  minority.  An  attempt 
of  the  French  barons  with  the  help  of  the  English  king, 
Henry  III.,  to  undo  the  work  of  the  last  hundred  years  was 
a  failure,  and  Louis  found,  when  he  reached  his  majority, 
the  royal  power  undiminished.  He  is  known  in  history  as 
St.  Louis,  and  as  he  supremely  loved  justice  and  peace,  his 
canonization  was  deserved.  The  universal  confidence  of 
the  people  in  his  character  was  of  great  assistance  in  the 


§124] 


The  King  Supreme  in  France 


129 


chief  work  of  his  reign  —  the  suppression  of  private  war 
and  the  establishment  of  national  law  courts.  These  two 
rights  were  chief  among  those  which  marked  the  indepen- 
dence of  the  feudal  baron  —  the  right  of  making  war  at 
his  will  and  that  of  holding  a  court  from  which  there  was 
no  appeal  to  any  higher  court.  Both  these  rights  Louis 
attacked  and  greatly  limited  without  completely  destroying 
them.  Louis  also  continued  the  work  of  his  grandfather  by 
developing  the  administrative  machinery,  and  he  prepared 
the  way  for  that  of  his  grandson  by  beginning  the  organiza- 
tion of  the  national  finances. 

124.  The  King  becomes  the  Strongest  Power  in  France. 
—  The  grandson  of  Louis  who  continued  his  work,  was 
Philip  IV.,  the  Fair.  In  the  making  of  French  institutions 
his  reign  was  the  greatest  of  all.  By  its  close  the  monarchy 
was  the  strongest  power  in  France,  and  the  political  inde- 
pendence of  the  feudal  baron  was  practically  broken.  All 
parts  of  the  government  machine  shared  in  this  advance, 
while  the  chief  work  of  the  reign  was  to  complete  the 
organization  of  the  courts,  to  introduce  a  modern  system  of 
taxation  and  national  financial  machinery,  making  the  State 
independent  of  the  feudal  system  for  its  income,  and  to 
begin  a  national  legislature  by  the  addition  of  representa- 
tives of  the  third  estate,  the  cities  and  towns,  to  the  other 
two  estates,  creating  thus  the  Estates  General.  This  institu- 
tion contained  of  course  a  danger  for  the  monarchy  in  the 
possibility  that  it  might,  as  in  England,  bring  the  kings 
under  a  responsibility  to  itself  for  their  acts.  But  there 
never  came  a  time  when  the  Estates  General  were  able  to 
do  this.  The  kings  called  it  together  only  when  they  had 
need  of  it  for  their  own  purposes,  and  managed  to  keep  it 
almost  always  under  strict  control. 

Philip  IV.  had  thought  at  one  time  soon  after  the  begin- 
ning of  his  reign  that  the  time  had  come  to  complete  the 
conquest  of  the  English  lands  in  France,  and  he  had  brought 
on  a  war  with  King  Edward  I.,  but  he  soon  found  his 
hands  so  occupied  with  a  strife  with  Pope  Boniface  VIII. 


Philip  IV., 
1285-1314. 
Rapid  pro- 
gress in 
institution- 
making. 
Kitchin, 
France, 

I.3S4ff.I 

Adams, 

French 

Nation, 

95-103; 

Zeller,  V. 


An  attempt 
to  conquer 
southwestern 
B'rance. 


130          Formation  of  the  French  Nation     [§§  125,126 


Boniface 
VIII. 

Poole, 
Wycliffe 
(Epochs, 
Ch.  Hist.), 
Chap.  I.; 
his  bulls, 
Henderson, 
432  ff. ;  Gee 
and  Hardy, 
87. 

The  succes- 
sion strictly 
limited  to  the 
male  line. 
Adams, 
French 
Nation, 
103-107 ; 
Kitchin, 
France, 
I.  384- 


Philip  VI., 
1328-1350. 
The  Hun- 
dred Years' 
War  begun. 
Warburton, 
Edward  III. 
(Epochs), 

37-41 ; 

Kitchin, 
France, 

I-39I-399: 
Froissart, 
Chronicles 
(Macmillan) ; 
Zeller,  VI. 

The  first 
period  of 
the  war. 
The  English 
victorious. 
Froissart, 
Chronicles, 
Bk.  I. 


over  the  question  whether  the  lands  of  the  Church  should 
be  subject  to  his  new  system  of  national  taxation,  and  also 
with  the  people  of  Flanders,  who  were  the  allies  of  the 
English  from  commercial  reasons,  that  he  was  obliged  to 
give  up  these  plans.  They  could  not  be  taken  up  again 
until  the  reign  of  Philip  VI.,  the  first  king  of  the  Valois 
family. 

125.  The  Salic  Law.  —  Three  sons  of  Philip  IV.  had  suc- 
ceeded him  in  rapid  succession,  and  each  of  these  had  left 
at  his  death  no  son.     Under  these  circumstances  that  law 
of  succession   to   the    French   throne  was  adopted  which 
was  afterward  called  the  Salic  law,  according  to  which  the 
crown   could   not  descend   to   a  woman  nor  be  inherited 
through  a  woman.     On  the  death  of  Charles  IV.,  the  last 
son  of  Philip,  Edward  III.  of  England,  who  was   Philip's 
grandson,  laid  claim  to  the  throne,  but  the  French  nation 
applied  the  Salic  law  strictly,   as  it  was  natural  that  they 
should  against  the  king  of  England,  and  gave  the  crown  to 
Philip  of  Valois,  the  cousin  of  Charles  IV. 

126.  The  First  Period  of  the  Great  Struggle  with  Eng- 
land. —  There  were  grounds  in  plenty  on  which  to  renew 
the  conflict  with    England,  and   soon   after   his   accession 
Philip  opened  the  long  war  which  is  known  as  the  Hundred 
Years'  War.     Though   France  suffered  terribly  during  this 
period,  Philip  can  hardly  be  blamed  for  bringing  on  the 
war,  for  it  was  a  necessary  one  both  for  the  monarchy  and 
for  the  nation.     So  long  as  the  English  held  great  portions 
of  the  national  territory  there  could  be  no  permanent  peace, 
and   France  could  not  be  complete.     Soon  after  the  war 
opened    Edward   assumed    the    title   of   king   of    France, 
though  he  evidently  did  so  as  a  war  measure  and  with  no 
expectation  of  making  himself  actual  king. 

The  Hundred  Years'  War,  during  its  first  period,  is  one 
of  the  most  brilliant  and  interesting  wars  of  history,  the  last 
war  of  the  age  of  feudalism  and  chivalry,  now  rapidly  com- 
ing to  an  end.  It  was,  however,  entirely  indecisive  of  the 
real  question  at  issue.  The  English  gained  the  overwhelm- 


§  127]       Henry  VI.  becomes  King  of  France          131 

ing  victories  of  Cr£cy  and  Poitiers  against  great  odds  by  the 
use  of  the  terrible  long-bow,  and  they  captured  the  seaport 
of  Calais,  and  made  it  a  strong  fortress  to  protect  their  com- 
merce passing  through  the  Channel  from  the  French  priva- 
teers. France,  exhausted  by  the  English  invasions,  by  the 
Black  Death,  and  by  her  own  revolted  peasants,  with  her 
king,  John,  a  prisoner  in  London,  captured  in  the  battle  of  John, 
Poitiers,  did,  indeed,  agree  in  the  treaty  of  Ere" tigny  to  grant 
Guienne  in  full  sovereignty  to  Edward  in  return  for  his  sur- 
render of  the  title  of  king  of  France ;  but  the  treaty  was 
never  carried  out,  and  Charles  V.,  the  successor  of  John, 
after  careful  preparation,  renewed  the  war. 

Success  now  turned  to  the  French  side.     Their  cause  was   Charles  V., 
very  skilfully  managed,  allowing  no  advantage  to  the  Eng-   th^  '^^lise' 
lish,  but  taking  carefully  every  advantage  which  they  offered.   The  French 
Edward  III.  seems  to  have  lost  his  mind  in  his  old  age,  and  victorious, 
the  Black  Prince  was  suffering  from  the  disease  of  which  he  Kitchin, 
soon  died,  so  that  there  was  no  good  leadership  on  the  Eng- 
lish  side  to  match  that  on  the  French.     Slowly  they  were 
driven  back  to  a  small  territory  near  the  sea,  but  the  great  French 
city  of  Bordeaux  with  the  lands  around  it  the  French  could  Natwn' 

119—125 ; 

not  yet  recover.     In  government  Charles  V.  was  as  skilful  Zeiier,  VII. 
as  in  war.     He  held  the  Estates  General  in  check,  and  laid 
the  foundations  of  royal  independence  in  taxation  and  in 
a  standing  army,  thus  advancing  greatly  the  French  absolute 
monarchy. 

127.  The  King  of  England  becomes  King  of  France. —  An  insane 

The  reign  of  Charles  V.  is  a  little  period  of  prosperity  in  kingt 

France  between  two  long  periods  of  disaster  and  suffering.  Charles  VI., 

His  son,  Charles  VI.,  was  insane   during  the  most  of  his  Kitchin, 

reign,  and  the  nation  was  divided  into  factions  contending  France, 

for  power  and  finally  fighting  with  one  another  in  open  civil  2eUer~v?ii  • 

war.     England,  during  the  same  time,  was  hardly  in  better  Monstreiet,  ' 

condition,  and  the  war  between  the  two  countries  was  practi-  Chronicles, 

TJl-      T  ^A^ 

cally  suspended.     At  last  Henry  V.  came  to  the  throne  in  especially 
England,  young  and  full  of  ambition,  and  he  was  tempted  Chaps, 
by  the  helpless  state  of  France  to  renew  the  war  and  to  36>  I46'  alo> 


132         Formation  of  the  French  Nation    [§§  128, 129 


Henry  V.  of 
England 
almost  com- 
pletes the 
conquest 
of  France. 
Church, 
Henry  V. 
(Macmillan) ; 
Kitchin, 
France,  I. 
500-512. 


The  tide 
turned 
against  the 
English. 
Lowell, 
Joan  of  Arc, 
(Houghton)  ; 
Green,  Eng- 
lish People, 
I-552-558; 
Kitchin, 
France,  I. 
522-539. 
Monstrelet, 
Chronicles, 
Bk.  II.,  first 
successes, 
Chaps. 

57-64 1 
capture,  86 ; 
trial,  105. 


hope   that    he   might   really    make   himself   king  of   that 
country. 

Everything  went  at  first  in  his  favor.  He  won  the  great 
victory  of  Agincourt,  which  was  almost  a  repetition  of  those 
of  Cre"cy  and  Poitiers  ;  he  occupied  the  whole  northern  and 
southwestern  parts  of  France,  including  Paris.  The  duke 
of  Burgundy,  one  of  the  most  powerful  princes  of  the  time, 
went  over  to  his  side,  partly  because  his  father  had  been 
murdered  by  the  leaders  of  the  opposite  faction,  the  Or- 
leanist,  and  partly  because  the  commercial  connection  be- 
tween England  and  Flanders,  which  was  now  under  his  rule, 
was  still  so  strong ;  and  finally  the  court  party,  the  queen 
acting  in  the  name  of  the  insane  king,  recognized  his  right 
to  the  throne  in  succession  to  Charles  VI.  Henry  died 
before  Charles,  but  his  son,  Henry  VI.,  was  crowned  king 
of  France  in  Paris.  The  English  soon  after  laid  siege  to 
Orleans,  and,  if  it  should  fall,  apparently  all  France  would 
be  theirs,  and  Charles  VII.,  the  rightful  king,  would  be 
forced  to  seek  refuge  abroad. 

128.  Joan  of  Arc.  —  At  this  moment  appeared  Joan  of 
Arc,  a  simple  country  girl,  who  was  fully  persuaded   that 
she  was  called  by  divine  voices,  which  had  spoken  to  her 
in  visions,  to  drive  out  the  enemies  of   France.     Her  un- 
wavering belief  in  herself  and  her  inspired  mission  restored 
to  the  French  soldiers  and  nation  the  confidence  they  had 
lost.     The   tide    began  to  turn  against    the  English.     The 
siege  of  Orleans  was  raised.     The  way  was  opened  for  the 
crowning   of  Charles   VII.  in   the  city  of  Rheims,  where 
the  French   kings    had   always   been  crowned.     With   this 
event  the  real  work  of  Joan  —  the  arousing  of  a  national 
enthusiasm  and  the  restoration  of  confidence  to  the  French 

—  was  finished ;  but  very  soon  after,  when  she  fell  into  the 
hands  of  the  English,  they  foolishly  did  all  that  they  could 
to  make  her  leadership  permanent  by  making  her  a  martyr, 
for  they  burned  her  at  the  stake. 

129.  The  Final  Triumph  of  France.  —  Nothing  which  the 
English   could   do  after  this  checked   the  advance  of  the 


§  i3°]         Louis  XL  and  Charles  the  Bold 


133 


French.  Charles  VII.  followed  the  methods  of  his  grand- 
father, Charles  V.,  in  conducting  the  war,  and  refused  to 
allow  the  English  any  advantage  in  the  field.  The  sym- 
pathies of  the  French  people  behind  the  English  lines  were 
always  with  the  cause  of  their  own  nation,  and  they  gave 
it  every  assistance  possible.  Finally  the  duke  of  Burgundy 
abandoned  the  English  side  and  took  up  the  cause  of 
France.  The  leaders  of  the  English  did  as  well  as  they 
could  with  a  hopeless  cause,  but  step  by  step  they  were 
driven  back,  till  soon  after  the  middle  of  the  century  all 
that  they  had  ever  held  in  France  was  lost,  except  the 
very  strong  fortress  of  Calais,  which  for  another  century 
continued  to  defend  the  commerce  of  England  passing 
through  the  Channel. 

Thus  ended  the  long  struggle  which  for  350  years  the 
French  kings  had  renewed  in  almost  every  generation  to  ex- 
pel the  kings  of  England  from  the  territories  of  France,  and 
thus  was  almost  completed  also  the  geographical  formation 
of  France,  as  it  existed  at  the  beginning  of  modern  history. 
Three  considerable  provinces  yet  remained  to  be  annexed, 
Burgundy,  Provence,  and  Brittany,  but  these  were  all  joined 
to  France  before  the  fifteenth  century  closed. 

In  the  conduct  of  the  government  as  in  that  of  the  war, 
Charles  VII.  followed  the  policy  of  Charles  V.  His  reign 
completed  the  absolute  monarchy,  freed  the  king  from  all 
outside  control,  and  reduced  almost  to  a  form  the  national 
legislature,  the  Estates  General,  which  scarcely  ever  meet 
again  in  French  history  except  in  times  of  civil  strife  and 
disorder. 

130.  Louis  XI.  and  Charles  the  Bold.  —  Louis  XI.  con- 
tinued the  policy  of  his  father  with  even  greater  skill  and  by 
the  methods  of  a  cunning  and  unprincipled  diplomacy.  A 
combination  of  the  princes  and  great  nobles,  formed  to  over- 
throw if  possible  the  absolute  power  of  the  king,  he  broke 
up  and  defeated.  The  plans  also  of  the  dukes  of  Burgundy 
to  create  a  strong  middle  kingdom  between  France  and 
Germany  ended  in  failure  in  his  reign.  The  duke  Charles 


Charles  VII., 
1422-1461. 
Masson, 
Mediceval 
France 
(Nations), 
Chap.  XIII.; 
Zeller,  IX. 


The  geo- 
graphical 
completion 
of  France. 
Kitchin, 
France,  II. 
8-15. 


The  absolute 
monarchy 
also  com- 
pleted. 
Adams, 
French 
Nation, 
I33-I3S. 

Louis  XI., 

1461-1483. 

Masson, 

Mediceval 

France, 

Chap.  XIV. 

Kitchin, 
France,  II. 
53-86,  with 
map; 


134 


Formation  of  the  French  Nation         [§  r3° 


Com  mines, 
Memoirs 
(Holm); 
Zdler,  IX.; 
Scott,  Anne 
of  drier  stein 
and  {turn/in 

/  >Mf  7(1(1 1(/ 

(novels)  ; 
see  p.  301. 

Austria  ob- 
tains the 
Netherlands. 


the  Bold  was  defeated  by  the  brave  mountaineers  of  Switzer- 
land and  then  slain  in  battle  in  an  attempt  to  conquer  Lor- 
raine. At  once  Louis  seized  upon  the  duchy  of  Burgundy 
as  a  vacant  fief  of  the  crown,  and  he  was  strong  enough  to 
retain  it,  though  Mary  of  Burgundy  kept  possession  of  Flan- 
ders and  the  other  territories  of  her  father  and  carried  them 
to  the  house  of  Austria  by  her  marriage  with  Maximilian  I. 
With  the  next  reign,  that  of  Charles  VIII.,  France  passes 
into  the  current  of  a  new  age,  the  age  of  transition  to  mod- 
ern history. 


Topica 

What  was  the  situation  of  tin-  lirst  Capetian  kings  in  France  ?  What 
was  the  task  before  them  and  what  were  its  especial  difficulties  ?  How 
much  was  accomplished  by  Louis  VI.  ?  Of  what  territories  was  Fleanor 
heiress  f  What  led  to  her  marriage  with  Henry  II.?  The  effect  of 
this  marriage  on  the  position  ol  the  <  'apetians  in  France.  The  policy 
of  Philip  II.  against  the  Knglish.  What  gave  him  his  opportunity  and 
what  did  he  gain  from  it  ?  What  did  France  gain  from  the  Alhigensian 
crusade  ?  Why  was  this  a  crusade  ?  The  institutional  beginning  under 
Philip  II.  Why  was  Louis  IX.  rightly  eanoni/.cd  ?  How  did  he 
strengthen  the  royal  power  i  What  new  institutions  under  Philip  IV.  ? 
Why  could  he  not  push  the  conquest  of  the  Knglish  lands  ?  The 
"Salic  law."  What  reasons  had  Philip  VI.  for  beginning  the  Hun- 
dred Years'  NVar  f  The  character  of  (he  lirst  period  of  the  war.  The 
treaty  of  Bretigny.  The  policy  and  successes  of  Charles  V.  The  con- 
dition of  France  under  ( 'harles  VI.  Why  was  Henry  V.  able  so  nearly 
toeon<|iier  France  ?  The  situation  when  Joan  of  An'  appeared.  What 
did  she  do  for  the  French  ?  The  result  of  the  war.  How  nearly  was 
France  now  completed  geographically?  How  nearly  was  France  an 
absolute  monarchy  ?  The  plans  of  Charles  the  Hold.  What  became 
of  his  lands  ? 

Topics  for  Assigned  Studies 

The  long-how.  Oman,  Art  of  J!'<n;  Hooks  VII.,  VITT.  Archery 
(Badminton  Library;  Longmans),  105-120.  Social  England,  II. 

1 7.!- 1  74.      1  )ovle.    'I'hf   ll'/iiff  Company  (novel). 

The  battles  of  Crecv  and  Poitiers.  Oman,  .-/;•/  of  Ifiir,  600-615,  625- 
<>}|.  Warburton,  /•  </;i'<;r«/  //A,  loi-iu,  I54-I(>2.  (Ireen,  Eng- 
lish People,  \.  410  ft.  In  Froissart's  Chronicles,  Book  I. 


The  Capetian  Kings  of  France 


135 


The  Capetian  Kings  of  Franco 


Hugh  Capet,  987. 
Robert,  996. 
Henry  I.,  1031. 
Philip  I.,  1060. 
Louis  VI.,  1108. 
Louis  VII.,  1137. 
Philip  II.,  1180. 
Louis  VIII.,  1223. 

Louis  IX.,  1226. 

I 
Philip  III.,  1270. 


Philip  IV.,  1285. 
I 


I  I  I  I 

Louis  X.,    Philip  V.,   Charles  IV.,    Isabella. 
1314.  1316.  1322.  | 

Edward  III. 
of  England. 


Charles  of  Valois. 
Philip  VI.,  1328. 
John,  1350. 
Charles  V.,  1364. 
Charles  VI.,  1380. 
Charles  VII.,  1422, 
Louis  XL,  1461. 
Charles  VIII.,  1483. 


CHAPTER  VIII 

ENGLAND 

Books  for  Reference  and  Further  Reading 

Stubbs,    Constitutional   History   of  England.     3   vols.     (Clarendon; 

$2.60  each.)     Also  full  on  the  political  history. 
Round,  Feudal  England.     (Lond.,  Sonnenschein  ;  I2s.  6d.~)  —Geoffrey 

de  Mandeville.     (Longmans;   $5.00.)     Critical  studies  on  the  Nor- 
man period. 
Norgate,  England  under  the  Angevin  Kings.     2  vols.     (Macmillan; 

$5.00.) 
Wylie,  History  of  England  iinder  Henry  IV.     4  vols.     (Longmans  ; 

$20.50.)     Very  detailed  study  of  the  first  Lancastrian. 
Ramsay,  Lancaster   and    York.     2  vols.     (Clarendon;    $9.00.)     The 

fifteenth    century.     Very  fully   and    carefully   studied,    especially 

military  affairs. 
The  Paston  Letters.    Edition  of  Gairdner.    3  vols.    (Macmillan;   $6.00.) 

Edition  of  Fenn.     (Bohn.)     Very  interesting  pictures  of  life  at 

about  the  middle  of  the  fifteenth  century. 
Gardiner,   Atlas  of  English   History.     (Longmans;    $1.50.)     A  very 

helpful  little  atlas. 

On  all  points  of  English  history  constant  reference  should  be  made 
to  the  articles  in  the  Dictionary  of  National  Biography  (Macmillan, 
$3.75  per  volume),  many  of  which  contain  the  best  accounts  we  now 
have  of  their  portions  of  the  history. 

A  contrast  to       131.  General  Character  of  English  History.  —  English  his- 

French  ^ory  follows  a  very  different  course  from   that  of  France. 

Adams  ^ne  government  which  had  been  established  by  the  Norman 

Civilization,     conquest  was  a  strong  and  powerful  monarchy.     All  the  land 

188,3396°.       of  England  was  subject  to  it,  and  the  feudal  barons  had  no 

independent  political  rights.     Geographically  while  the  Ca- 

petian  kings  were   creating  France,  the  kings  of  England 

were  losing  their  French  territories,  and  were  extending  their 

136 


§§  i32>  J33l     Henry  IL  Abroad  and  at  Home         137 

rule  over  Wales  and  into  Ireland,  and  were  trying  to  do  the 
same  in  Scotland.     In  the  growth  of  the  English  constitu- 
tion, also,  the  process  was  in  contrast  to  that  in  France,  for 
instead  of  growing  more  absolute  the  English  kings  were 
growing  less  so,  and  the  new  government  machinery  which   The  forming 
was  coming  into  use  was  placing  all  the  time  more  and  more  °** ^^  nt 
limitations  on  the  exercise  of  their  will.     This  constitutional 
side  of  English  history  is,  however,  so  important  for  us  be- 
cause it  is  the  constitution  we  have  inherited,  that  we  shall 
study  it  by  itself. 

132.  Period  of  the  Norman  Kings.  —  William  the  Con-  Thedis- 
queror  had  been  followed  as  king  of  England  by  two  of  his 

sons  in  succession,  William  II.  and  Henry  I.,  and  both  had  reign, 

ruled  as  very  strong  kings.     Henry  I.  left  no  son,  and  he  «35-"54' 

had  pledged  the  English  barons  to  accept  his  daughter  Ma-  Chronicles  in 

tilda  as  their  sovereign,  but  on  his  death  her  cousin  Stephen,  Bohn : 

who  was  a  brilliant  and  popular  young  man,  persuaded  them  William  of 

to  place  him  on  the  throne  instead.     He  proved  to  be  a  J^^-  UTy' 

very  weak  king,  and  during  his  reign  there  were  great  dis-  Henry  of 

orders  in  England,  partly  because  the  king  could  not  control  f^ngdo11' 

the  turbulent  barons,  and  partly  because  Matilda  and  her  R0ger  d'e 

party  were  continually  trying  to  get  the  throne  away  from  Hoveden,  I. 

him.     Matilda  had  married  Geoffrey,  count  of  Anjou,  and  g^^5s4' 

finally  their  son  Henry,  who  had  invaded  England,  entered  piantagenets 

into  a  treaty  by  which  Stephen  was  to  remain  king  as  long  as  (Epochs), 
he  should  live  and  on  his  death  Henry  was  to  succeed  him. 

133.  Henry  II.   Abroad   and   at  Home.  —  Within   a  few  Henry  IL, 
months  Stephen  died,  and  Henry  of  Anjou  became  Henry  II.  ^^T^ents 
of  England.     He  ruled  wide  lands  on  the  continent,  as  has  on  the  judi- 
been  described  in  connection  with  French  history,  but  his  cial  reforms, 
real  power  was  much  less  than  it  seemed,  for  the  French  j"5^^. 
barons  were  turbulent  and  hard  to  control,  and  in  the  last  penn.'i., 
part  of  his  reign  his  wife  and  his  sons  were  continually  at  No-  6i  Hen< 
war  with  him,  so  that  none  of  his  plans  for  the  extension  of 

his  power  in  France  was  successful.  In  England  his  chief 
work  was  to  institute  a  system  of  king's  or  national  courts  with 
judges  going  about  from  county  to  county  both  to  try  cases 


138 


England 


[§ 


St.  Thomas 
of  Canter- 
bury. 

Button,  St. 
Thomas  of 
Canterbury 
(Contempo- 
raries). 


and  to  hold  the 
sheriffs  to  their 
duties  as  the  ad- 
ministrative and 
financial  officers 
of  the  State. 
This  led  him  to 
try  to  limit  the 
independence 
of  the  Church 
courts  and 
brought  on  a 
quarrel  with  his 
former  friend 
Thomas  Becket, 
archbishop  of 
Canterbury. 
Angry  words 
which  he  spoke 
in  a  moment  of 
passion  led  to 
the  murder  of 
the  archbishop, 
and  Henry  was 
forced  by  popu- 
lar feeling  to 
yield  something 
of  his  demands, 
but  the  organi- 
zation which  he 
gave  to  the  law 
courts  of  the 
State  is  still  to 

CANTERBURY  CATHEDRAL  be  seen   in   OUr 

judicial  system, 

and   several  of  the  judicial   institutions   whose  growth   he 
encouraged,  like  the  jury,  we  have  still  in  use. 


134, 135] 


Henry  s  Two  Sons 


139 


134.  England  and  Ireland. — The  English  claim  to  rule 
Ireland  dates  from  the  reign  of  Henry  II.     The  island  was 
at  this  time  in  a  very  backward  condition  both  in  civilization 
and  in  religion,  and  the  popes  were  anxious  to  bring  the 
Irish  Church  into  better  order  if  possible.     Almost  at  the 
beginning  of  Henry's  reign  Pope  Adrian  IV.  is  said  to  have 
issued  a  bull  giving  Henry  the  right  to  enter  Ireland  and 
take  possession  of  it,  based  on  the  claim  of  the  popes  to  all 
islands.     It  was  many  years  before  Henry  found  opportunity 
to  go  himself  to  the  island,  but  Norman  barons  had  begun 
to  go  over  earlier  and  to  enter  into  alliances  with  the  native 
chiefs,  and  in  this  way  to  form  little  principalities  for  them- 
selves.    It  was  probably  this  fact  more  than  any  other  which 
finally  determined  Henry  to  cross  into  Ireland.     He  received 
the  submission  of  the  Normans  and  of  some  of  the  native 
chiefs,  and  began  the  reform  of  the  Church,  but  his  stay  was 
very  short,  and  all  that  he  did  amounted  to  no  more  than  to 
establish  a  claim  which  future  conquest  might  make  a  reality. 

135.  Henry's  Two  Sons.  — Two  of  Henry's  sons,  Richard 
and  John,  reigned  after  him  and  were  both  very  bad  kings. 
Richard  had  little  interest  in  England  as  compared  with  the 
crusade  or  with  the  more  exciting  feudal  life  of  his  French 
possessions.     England  was  of  use  to  him  mainly  as  a  place 
from  which  to  draw  money,  and  he  did  not  hesitate  to  sell 
for  cash  almost  any  valuable  right,  among  others  the  claim 
of  the  English  kings  to  the  overlordship  of  Scotland  which 
had  come  down  from  Anglo-Saxon  times. 

John's  government  led  to  more  open  opposition  because 
he  was  himself  more  openly  tyrannical.  The  increasing  ex- 
penses of  the  State  forced  him  to  try  to  provide  a  secure 
national  income,  that  is,  to  begin  a  system  of  regular  taxation, 
and  this  could  not  be  done  without  a  violation  of  some  of 
the  fundamental  principles  of  the  feudal  law.  The  angry 
barons  found  an  ally  in  the  most  powerful  of  the  popes, 
Innocent  III.,  who  made  an  issue  with  the  king  over  the 
right  of  appointment  to  the  archbishopric  of  Canterbury. 
Finally,  to  avoid  the  consequences  of  yielding  in  England, 


The  begin- 
ning of  the 
occupation 
of  Ireland. 
Green, 
Henry  II., 
Chap.  VIII.; 
Green, 
English 
People,  I. 
175-178. 

Adrian's 
bull, 

Henderson, 
p.  10; 
Barnard, 
Strongholds 
Conquest  of 
Ireland 
(Contempo- 
raries). 


Richard  I., 
1189-1199. 
Stubbs, 
Plantagenets , 
Chap.  VI. ; 
chronicles  in 
Bohn;   Scott, 
Ivanhoe 
(novel). 


John, 

1199-1216. 

Stubbs, 

Plantagenets^ 

Chap.  VII.; 

chronicles 

in  Bohn ; 

Shakspere, 

King  John 

(drama). 

John's  grant 
to  the  pope. 


140 


England 


[§136 


Gee  and 

Hardy,  75 ; 
Henderson, 
430;  Stubbs, 
284. 

Forced  to 
sign  the 
Magna 
Charta. 
Roger  of 
Wendover 
(Bohn),  II. 
303-324. 


Edward  L, 
1272-1307. 
Legislation, 
Tout, 
Edward  1. 
(Macmillan), 
Chap.  VII.; 
Social  Eng- 
land, II. 
32-38 ; 
Stubbs,  457, 
469,  478 ; 
Henderson, 
148  ff. 

The  con- 
quest of 
Wales. 
Tout, 

Edward  /., 
Chap.  VI. 

The  con- 
quest of 
Scotland. 
Tout, 

Edward  /., 
Chaps.  X. 
and  XII.; 
Stubbs, 
Plantagenets, 
Chap.  XL ; 
Green, 
English 
People,  I. 


John  gave  up  to  the  pope  and  became  his  vassal  for  the  king- 
dom of  England,  one  of  the  most  signal  triumphs  of  the 
papacy  in  the  field  of  its  political  claims.  But  the  advantage 
which  John  gained  from  this  step  was  only  temporary.  The 
great  plan  which  he  formed  to  recover  the  lands  which  he 
had  lost  in  France  and  to  overcome  all  his  enemies  in  alli- 
ance with  Flanders  and  with  his  nephew,  the  Guelf  em- 
peror Otto  IV.,  was  defeated  by  the  great  victory  of  Philip 
II.  in  the  battle  of  Bouvines,  and  John  was  soon  forced  by 
the  barons  of  England  to  sign  the  Magna  Charta,  the  be- 
ginning of  the  conscious  growth  of  the  English  limited 
monarchy. 

136.  The  Greatest  of  the  Angevin  Kings.  —  Henry  III. 
was  a  weak  king,  greatly  under  the  influence  of  favorites, 
and  his  long  reign  was  full  of  civil  strife,  of  importance 
chiefly  in  the  constitutional  history  of  England.  His  son, 
Edward  L,  in  marked  contrast  to  Henry,  was  one  of  the 
greatest  of  English  kings.  He  was  as  much  a  lawyer's  king 
as  his  contemporary  Philip  IV.  of  France,  and  has  been 
called  the  English  Justinian,  but  in  the  political  history  of 
England  he  ranks  as  conquering  king.  In  the  first  part  of 
his  reign  the  conquest  of  Wales,  which  had  long  been  linger- 
ing, was  at  last  completed  and  the  country  brought  finally 
under  English  rule  and  law.  As  an  honor  to  his  new  sub- 
jects, Edward's  son  Edward  was  made  the  first  Prince  of 
Wales. 

The  conquest  of  Scotland,  which  Edward  later  undertook, 
was  not  so  easy  a  matter.  A  disputed  succession  there  gave 
him  an  opportunity  to  interfere  and  to  reassert  the  over- 
lordship  of  the  English  kings,  and  when  he  attempted  to 
make  his  supremacy  a  real  one,  even  Balliol,  whom  he  had 
made  king,  turned  against  him.  Edward's  armies  were 
victorious  in  the  field,  but  the  conquest  of  the  people  was 
another  matter.  Wallace,  whom  Scotland  afterward  ideal- 
ized and  turned  into  a  national  hero,  made  a  brave  defence, 
but  one  marked  by  all  the  horrors  of  savage  warfare,  and 
Bruce,  the  national  candidate  for  the  throne,  though  for  a 


§  136]      The  Greatest  of  the  Angevin  Kings          141 

long  time  on  the  side  of  Edward,  at  last   took   the   lead  341  ft, 

against  the  invader.     At  one  time  it  seemed  as  if  Edward  *%£ 

had  incorporated  Scotland,  as  well  as  Wales,  into  England,  the  Bruce 

but  just  before  his   death   a  new   insurrection   of  Bruce's  (Heroes), 

called  him  into  the  field.  Matthew  of 


THE  TOWER  OF  LONDON 


The  king  of  the  next  generation,  Edward  II.,  displayed  Westminster 

all  the  weak  and  bad  traits  of  the  Angevin  family.     He  lost  (Bohn),  II. 

all  that  his  father  had  gained,  wasted  the  revenues  of  the  ^    ?  ' 

State,  and  allowed  his  favorites  to  govern  as  they  would  in  I307_I327.'' 

his  place  and  to  enrich  themselves.     In  the  end  his  wife  Marlowe, 


142 


England 


[§§  i37, 138 


Edward  II. 
(drama). 

Edward  III.. 
1327-1377. 
A  brilliant 
age. 

Warburton, 
Edward  III. 
(Epochs)  ; 
Ward,  Life 
of  Chaucer 
(Harper)  ; 
Social 

England,  II. 
202-231 ; 
Chaucer's 
Prologue 
(Clarendon); 
Ashley, 
Edward  III. 
and  his 
Wars 

(Contempo- 
raries). 

A  rapid 
decline. 


Skeat,  Piers 
the  Plowman 
(Claren- 
don) ;  Smith, 
Troublous 
Days  of 
Richard  II. 
(Contempo- 
raries). 


Henry  V., 
1413-1422. 
Church, 
Henry  V. 
(Macmil- 
lan) ;    Gaird- 
ner,  Lancas- 
ter and  York 


joined  the  opposition  to  him  and  he  was  forced  to  yield  the 
throne  to  his  son,  Edward  III. 

137.  The  Hundred  Years'  War.  —  Nearly  all  the  reign  of 
Edward  III.  was  filled  with  the  great  Hundred  Years'  War 
with  France,  of  which  we  have   had  the  story  elsewhere. 
It  was  for  a  time  the  most  brilliant  age  that  England  had 
seen.     The  surprising  victories  which  were  won  in  France 
and  Scotland  and  other  successes  wakened  a  new  national 
pride  and  enthusiasm  ;  many  were  enriched  by  the  plunder 
brought  home  from  abroad ;  there  was  also  much  commer- 
cial activity ;    and  life  was  easy  and  bright.     This  reflects 
itself  in  the  first  great  age  of  English  literature,  especially  in 
the  poems  of  Chaucer,  which  give  us  such  interesting  pic- 
tures of  English  life  in  this  age,  filled  with  the  spirit  of  the 
genial  poet  who  had  such  an  intense  enjoyment  of  life  in 
the  world  and  of  the  world  itself. 

But  the  last  part  of  Edward's  reign  was  clouded  with 
many  misfortunes.  England  suffered  from  the  Black  Death 
as  severely  as  France,  and  the  peasants  here  also,  believing 
that  they  were  wrongfully  oppressed  by  the  land-owners, 
took  arms  and  tried  to  better  their  condition  in  a  hopeless 
civil  war  which  is  known  as  Wat  Tyler's  insurrection.  Lang- 
land's  poems,  contemporary  with  Chaucer's  but  seeing 
rather  the  hard  side  of  life,  give  us  many  pictures  of  the 
wretched  condition  of  the  lower  classes.  At  the  same  time 
the  English  arms  abroad  were  meeting  with  constant  ill-for- 
tune from  the  new  military  methods  of  Charles  V.  of  France. 
The  next  generation  under  Edward's  grandson,  Richard  II., 
is  one  of  party  strife  and  revolution,  mainly  of  interest  in 
the  history  of  the  English  constitution,  and  it  resulted  in  the 
accession  of  the  house  of  Lancaster  to  the  throne. 

138.  The  House  of  Lancaster.  — With  the  second  Lancas- 
trian king,  Henry  V.,  a  young  and  ambitious  sovereign  be- 
gan to  reign,  who  could   not  resist  the  temptation    which 
divided  and  distracted  France  offered,  and  he  invaded  that 
unhappy  country  apparently  with  the  full  intention  of  mak- 
ing himself  its  king.     This  war  fills  his  reign  and  almost  the 


§  138]  The  House  of  Lancaster  143 

whole  of  that  of  his  son,  Henry  VI.,  and  ended  at  last,  as  it  (Epochs), 

deserved  to,  in  failure  and  the  loss  of  the  lands  in  France  S?a£'V';, 

which  the  English  kings  had  held  so  long.  plays  on  tt 

Henry  VI.  was  weak  in  mind  —  he  was  the  grandson  of  whole 

Charles  VI.  of  France  —  and  not  able  to  rule  the  State  with  Penod- 
a  strong  hand.     The   long   course   of  disasters  in  France, 


THE  GREAT  SEAL  OF  ENGLAND 

which  no  one  seemed  able  to  check,   gave   rise   to   much  Henry  VI., 
popular   dissatisfaction  with  the  government    and    made  it  I422-i46i. 
easy  to  form  a  strong  opposition  party.     The  king's  uncle, 
the  duke  of  Gloucester,  was  a  man  of  selfish  ambition,  dis- 
appointed because  he  did  not  possess  the  power  in  the  State  Social  Eng- 
which  he  thought  he  ought  to  have,  and  he  did  not  hesitate  land>  n- 
to  make  himself  the  leader  of  the  discontented  party.     The  Gairdner, 
strife  between  this  opposition  party  and  the  government  grew  Lancaster 


144 


England 


C§i39 


and  York, 

134-159 ; 

Green, 

English 
People,  I. 
547  ff-,  559  #• 


The  charac- 
ter of  the 
war. 
Gairdner, 

Lancaster 
and  York, 
161  ff. ; 
Ramsay, 
Lancaster 
and  York,- 
Thompson, 
Wars  of 
York  and 
Lancaster 
(Contempo- 
raries). 

The  Yorkist 
kings. 
Stevenson, 
The  Black 
Arrow  ; 
Church, 
Chantry, 
Priest  of 
Barnet, 
Bulwer,  Last 
of  the 
Barons 
(novels). 

Bosworth 
Field,  1485. 


more  and  more  bitter  as  time  went  on.  On  the  death  ot 
the  duke  of  Gloucester,  his  place  as  leader  was  taken  by 
the  duke  of  York,  whose  title  by  descent  to  the  throne  was 
better  than  that  of  the  king.  Soon  the  strife  became  one 
for  the  control  of  the  government,  for  the  king's  mind  was 
gone,  and  it  rapidly  passed  into  actual  civil  war. 

139.  The  Wars  of  the  Roses.  —  This  was  the  beginning 
of  the  Wars  of  the  Roses,  between  the  houses  of  York  and 
Lancaster,  though  the  duke  of  York  did  not  advance  his 
claim  to  the  throne  until  after  the  opening  battles  of  the 
war  had  been  fought.  At  first  Parliament  refused  to  enter- 
tain his  claim,  but  after  his  death  his  son  boldly  proclaimed 
himself  king  as  Edward  IV.  The  civil  war  which  followed 
was  a  war  of  the  nobles  and  their  retainers.  The  nation 
at  large  had  comparatively  little  interest  in  it,  and  though 
there  was  unusual  slaughter  of  the  leaders,  quarter  not  often 
being  given,  the  general  suffering  and  destruction  of  property 
was  not  great. 

Edward  IV.  was  a  vigorous  and  able  king  who  ruled  with 
a  strong  hand,  as  was  his  brother,  Richard  III.,  who  obtained 
the  crown  by  putting  his  nephews  out  of  the  way.  All  the 
princes  of  the  house  of  Lancaster  had  now  been  killed 
except  the  young  Henry  Tudor,  earl  of  Richmond,  who  had 
been  sent  to  France  for  safety  when  a  boy.  There  he 
waited  for  his  opportunity,  which  came  with  the  growing 
unpopularity  of  Richard.  When  he  knew  that  the  time  was 
ripe  in  England  he  landed  with  a  small  force,  was  soon 
joined  by  many  opposed  to  the  king,  and  advancing  to  meet 
Richard  won  the  decisive  battle  of  Bosworth  Field,  in  which 
Richard  was  killed,  and  was  at  once  recognized  as  King 
Henry  VII. 


Topics  145 


Topics 

Compare  the  general  course  of  English  history  with  that  of  France. 
The  character  of  Stephen's  reign.  What  things  hampered  the  plans 
of  Henry  II.  abroad?  His  chief  work  at  home.  The  quarrel  with 
Archbishop  Thomas.  The  beginning  of  English  rule  in  Ireland.  The 
character  of  Henry's  sons.  Why  did  John  become  the  vassal  of  the 
pope?  What  events  in  England  followed  the  battle  of  Bouvines? 
What  conquests  were  made  by  Edward  I.?  How  was  Scotland  lost? 
The  character  of  the  first  part  of  Edward  III.'s  reign.  Of  the  second 
part.  How  did  the  house  of  Lancaster  gain  the  throne?  How  did 
party  strife  begin  in  the  reign  of  Henry  VI.?  How  did  this  lead  to 
the  Wars  of  the  Roses?  The  character  of  this  war.  The  government 
of  the  Yorkist  kings.  The  accession  of  Henry  VII. 

Topics  for  Assigned  Studies 

Thomas  a  Becket.  Green,  Henry  //.,  Chap.  VII.  Stubbs,  Plantagc- 
nets,  Chap.  IV.  Green,  English  People,  I.  164-170.  Froude, 
Thomas  a  Becket.  (Longmans;  6  sh.)  Freeman,  Historical 
Essays,  II.  Roger  de  Hoveden  (Bohn),  I.  335-341.  Roger  of 
Wendover  (Bohn),  II.  15-19.  Documents  in  Stubbs,  135  ff.  Gee 
and  Hardy,  68  ff.  Henderson,  1 1  fi.  Penn.  I.,  No.  6. 

The  Black  Death  and  its  effects.  Jessopp,  in  the  Coming  of  the  Friars. 
(Putnam.)  Social  England,  II.  133-146.  Rogers'  Six  Centuries 
of  Work  and  Wages  (Putnam),  Chaps.  VIII.  and  IX.  Sergeant, 
Wyclif  (Heroes),  Chap.  XV.  The  Statute  of  Laborers.  Hender- 
son, 165.  Penn.  II.,  No.  6. 

Shakspere's  character  of  Richard  III.  Gairdner,  Richard  III. 
(Longmans.)  Gairdner,  Lancaster  and  York,  210-227.  Social 
England,  II.  318-319.  Henry  Cabot  Lodge  in  Scribner's  Maga- 
zine, February,  1897,  presents  very  vigorously,  but  with  some 
exaggeration,  the  argument  against  Shakspere's  portrait. 


146  England 


The  Kings  of  England 

William  I.,  1066. 

I 


I  I  I 

William  II.,     Henry  I.,  noo.  Adela. 
1087.                       |  | 

Matilda.  Stephen,  1035. 

Henry  II.,  1154. 
Richard  I.,  1189. 
John,  1199. 
Henry  III.,  1216. 
Edward  I.,  1272. 
Edward  II.,  1307. 
Edward  III.,  1327. 

Edward,  the  Lionel.     John,  duke  of  Lancaster.     Edmund,  duke  of  York, 

Black  Prince.  |                                 | 

|  1 1  Richard,   m.   heiress  of 

Richard  II.,  Henry  IV.,  1399.  John  Beaufort.       Lionel. 

Henry  V.,  1413.    John.  Richard,  duke  of  York. 


Henry  VI.,  1422.   Margaret,  m. 

Edmund  Tudor.  Edward  IV., Richard  III., 

|  1461.  1483. 

Henry  VI  I.,  1485.  | 

Edward  V.,  1483. 


CHAPTER  IX 

THE  OTHER  STATES  OF  EUROPE 

140.   The  Situation  in  Germany  and  Italy.  —  The  long  NO  national 
conflict  between  the  Empire  and  the   Papacy,  which  had   govern- 
grown  out  of  their  rival  claims  to  the  headship  of  the  Chris-   Adams, 
tian  world,  left  behind  it  only  the  ruins  of  a  national  gov-    Civilization, 
ernment  in  Germany,  and  hardly  so  much  as  this  in  Italy.   3s6  ff> 
Both    countries  were    hopelessly  divided    into    many  small 
states,  whose  governments  were  really  independent,  but  no 
one  of  these,  with  the  possible  exception  of  some  of  the 
great  city  states  of  Italy,  had  size  or  strength  enough  to  take 
rank  among  the  states  of  Europe   until  towards  the  close 
of  the  Middle  Ages. 

Immediately  after   the   fall   of  the   great   Hohenstaufen   The  "Great 
dynasty,  a  little  after  the  middle  of  the  thirteenth  century,   Inter' 
came  a  period  which  is  known  as  the  Great  Interregnum.    1256^1273. 
It  was  not  strictly  an  interregnum,  for  there  were  emperors   Henderson, 
in  name,  but  they  were  foreign  princes,  like    the   king  of   Ge^afy> 
Castile  and  Richard,  the  brother  of  Henry  III.  of  England, 
and  they  made  no  attempt  to  rule  Germany.     The  period 
fills  a  whole  generation,  and  in  it  Germany  grew  accustomed 
to  the   absence   of  any  national   government,   and   to  the 
exercise  of  all  sovereign  rights  by  the   rulers  of  the  small 
States.  National 

So  firmly  intrenched  was  this  local  independence  at  the  fmpoTsrbiTin 
close  of  this  generation  that  no  later  emperor  ever  made   Germany, 
any  attempt  to  break  it  down,  but  all  recognized  the  impossi-   Bryce-  Holy 

,  .,.  -  .  .         ,  ,    Roman  Em- 

bmty  of  reconstructing  a  strong  national  government,  and  pire 
chey  all  made  use  of  the  opportunity  which  the  office  of  Chap.  XV. 

147 


148 


The  Other  States  of  Europe     [§§  141,  H2 


Rudolf  of 

Hapsburg, 

1273-1291. 

Lewis, 

Germany 

(Harper), 

239-243. 


Ottokar  of 

Bohemia. 

A  war  of 

Slavs  and 

Germans. 

Maurice, 

Bohemia 

(Nations), 

80-106. 


The  house  of 

Luxemburg. 

Lewis, 

Germany, 

249  ff. ; 

Leger, 

Austro- 

Hungary 

(Putnam), 

Chap.  XL; 

map, 

Putzger, 

No.  18. 


emperor  afforded  them  to  create  a  family  state  of  their  own, 
or  to  enlarge  and  strengthen  the  one  already  possessed  by 
their  house.  The  greatest  of  the  states  created  in  this  way 
was  Austria,  which  came  in  the  end  to  be  one  of  the  great 
powers  of  Europe. 

141.  The  Foundation  of  Austria. — The  founder  of  Austria 
was  Rudolf  of  Hapsburg,  who  was  elected  emperor  at  the 
end  of  the  Great  Interregnum.     He  was  before  his  election 
a  mere  count  with  small  possessions  and  little  power,  and 
this  was  very  likely  the  reason  why  the  electors  chose  him 
for  emperor,  but  he  was  a  man  of  much  vigor  and  strength 
of  character,  and  would  perhaps  have  made  a  great  emperor 
in  better  times.     In  his  reign  the  long  conflict  of  the  Slav 
and  the  German  for  the  possession  of  the  border  lands  be- 
tween them  broke  out  into  open  war.    Ottokar  II.,  king  of 
Bohemia,  had  brought  under  his  rule  a  powerful  dominion 
on  the  borders  of  Germany  and  had  even  added  to  it  some 
German  territories   in  the    southeast,  including  the    duchy 
of  Austria.     It  seemed  as  if  the  tide,  which  had  long  been 
running  steadily  in  favor  of  the  Germans,  might  be  turning, 
and  a  Slavic  dynasty  be  about  to  rule  over  German  lands. 
But  this  did  not  prove  to  be  the  case.      When  Ottokar  re- 
fused to  do  homage  to  Rudolf  for  the  lands  he  held  of  the 
Empire,   all  Germany  supported   the   emperor   in    his   war 
upon   him.      Ottokar   was    defeated    and    deprived   of  his 
German    territories,  and  the  larger  share  of  these  Rudolf 
bestowed  upon  his  own  sons.     In  this  way  Austria  came 
into   the  possession  of  the  house  of  Hapsburg,  which  still 
retains  it. 

142.  A  Period  of  Many  Dynasties. — The  electors  feared 
probably  that  the  Hapsburg  family  had  gained  a  dangerous 
power  under   Rudolf,  for  they  were  unwilling  to  continue 
it  in  the  possession  of  the  Empire,  and  for  a  century  and  a 
half  there  was  no  settled  dynasty  of  emperors.     But   the 
other  houses  all  followed  the  example  of  the  Hapsburgs. 
The  most  important  of  them  was  the  Luxemburg  family, 
whose  first   emperor  was  Henry  VII.,  from  whom  Dante 


§  H3]  The  Hussite  War  149 

hoped  to  see  the  restoration  of  the  Holy  Roman  Empire 
in  Italy.  To  him  the  opportunity  came  to  marry  his  son 
to  the  granddaughter  and  heiress  of  Ottokar  II.,  and  so  to 
obtain  all  that  remained  of  his  dominions.  This  appeared 
to  be  a  greater  gain  thnn  even  that  which  Rudolf  had 
made,  but  the  house  of  Luxemburg  was  not  destined  to  a 
long  life,  and  all  that  it  brought  together  went  at  last  by 
marriage  and  inheritance  to  swell  the  possessions  of  the 
Hapsburgs. 

143.  The  Hussite  War.  —  The  last   of  the   Luxemburg  John  HUSS. 
emperors,  Sigismund,  was  involved  in  another  long  Slavic   Maurice, 
war,  which  has  a  double  meaning,  as  in  part  a  war  between  chaps" vi  I 
the  races  and  in  part  a  great  religious  war.     John  Huss,  a  andvill.; 
professor  in  the  university  of  Prague,  who  had  read  the   p°ole- 
books  of  Wycliffe  of  England,  and  learned  to  believe  in  ^^-^ 
his  teachings  in  opposition  to  the  doctrines  of  the  Catholic 
Church,  began  to  teach  them  in   Bohemia  and   obtained 
many  followers  among  the  people.     Finally  this  movement 
became  so  nearly  a  rebellion  against  the  Church  that  the 
great  council  which  had  been  called  together  at  Constance 
to  settle  the  troubles  in  regard  to  the  papacy  summoned 
Huss  to  come  before  them  and  explain  his  teachings.     He 
went  under  the  promise  of  a  safe  return  from  the  emperor, 
but  was  condemned  by  the  council  and  burned  at  the  stake. 

His  followers  in  Bohemia  took  arms  to  defend  their  faith,   A  national 
and  a  war  of  twenty  years  began.     It  came  in  the  end  to  and  religious 
be  really  a  war  for  the  national  independence  of  Bohemia,   Maurice 
which  had  now  been  for  a  century  under  German  kings,  but  Bohemia, 
the    religious   cause    furnished   additional    inspiration    and   SJapj'  IX~ 
enthusiasm.     In  spite  of  their  bravery  and  of  their  desper-   Austro- 
ate  resistance  the  Hussites  were  at   last   subdued,  partly  Hungary, 
because   they    were    not    united   among    themselves ;  but       ap' 
though  they  continued  to  be  ruled  by  German  kings,  the 
Church  granted  them  some  concessions  in  matters  of  reli- 
gious practice  which  they  were  willing  to  accept.     Once  The  conflict 

6       .  L        -n    t          •  j  of  Slav  and 

again  in  later  times  the  Bohemians  attempted   to  secure  German  not 
national  independence  by  war  and  failed,  and  it  is  only  yet  ended. 


150 


The  Other  States  of  Europe 


[§i44 


The  Ger- 
mans win 
Slavic  lands 
by  coloniza- 
tion. 

Tuttle,  His- 
tory of 
Prussia 
(Houghton), 
I.  112-118; 
Lewis, 
Germany, 
229  ff. 

The  Hohen- 
zollern  create 
modern 
Prussia  out 
of  Branden- 
burg. 
Tuttle, 
Prussia,  I. 
64-70. 


Switzerland. 
Putzger, 
No.  18,  side 
map. 


within  the  past  few  years  that  by  peaceable  means,  through 
the  introduction  of  democratic  institutions  and  a  constitu- 
tion, they  have  begun  to  drive  the  Germans  out  of  power. 
This  conflict,  which  has  lasted  so  many  centuries,  is  still 
being  waged  with  great  bitterness  on  both  sides,  but  the 
ultimate  victory  seems  now  likely  to  fall  to  the  Slav. 

In  another  portion  of  the -Slavic  world,  on  the  southern 
shores  of  the  Baltic  Sea,  the  Germans  were  winning  large 
territories  during  these  centuries.  This  was  in  the  main  by 
peaceful  colonization  under  the  direction  of  the  Order  of 
the  Teutonic  Knights.  From  this  colonization  came  the 
Baltic  provinces  of  Prussia,  and  also  those  of  Russia  which 
are  German,  all  territory  that  was  once  Slavic. 

144.  The  Rise  of  Other  German  States.  —  The  founda- 
tions of  the  great  state  which  we  now  call  Prussia,  as  well 
as  those  of  Austria,  were  laid  in  this  period.  The  central 
territory  around  which  other  lands  were  gradually  gathered 
by  the  house  of  Hohenzollern  to  form  the  modern  kingdom 
was  the  electorate  of  Brandenburg.  This  state  was  granted 
early  in  the  fifteenth  century  to  Frederick  of  Hohenzollern 
by  the  emperor  Sigismund,  first  as  security  for  a  loan  and 
later  in  full  possession.  The  Hohenzollern  princes  managed 
their  new  dominion  with  great  care  and  skill  and  began  at 
once  the  process  of  enlargement  by  the  annexation  of 
neighboring  lands,  which  they  have  continued  down  to  the 
present  time. 

Another  state  whose  history  is  interesting,  the  republic 
of  Switzerland,  has  its  origin  in  this  period.  The  Austrian 
princes  had  some  lands  and  feudal  rights  in  the  neighbor- 
hood of  the  three  original  cantons,  Uri,  Schwyz,  and  Unter- 
walden.  and  they  naturally  tried  to  extend  these  and  to 
form  out  of  them  a  little  state  of  which  they  should  have 
the  political  sovereignty,  as  many  princes  were  doing  in 
other  parts  of  Germany.  Here,  however,  they  had  to  deal 
with  a  people  who  had  long  been  free  and  accustomed  to 
rule  themselves.  The  Swiss  did  not  propose  to  submit 
to  any  foreign  rule,  and  they  defended  their  mountain 


§§145,146]  Spain  151 

valleys  with  success  against  all  the  strength  of  Austria. 
After  generations  wove  many  stirring  legends  about  this 
early  struggle  for  independence,  some  of  which  Schiller 
used  as  the  foundation  of  his  great  drama  "  Wilhelm  Tell."  j 

145.  Italy.  —  In  Italy  there  was  even  less  pretence  of  re-  The  en> 
spect  for  the  emperors'  authority  than  in  Germany.     Those  perors  less 
who  went  to  Rome  to  be  crowned  were  not  allowed  to  inter-   JhanTn' 
fere  in  the  actual  government  of  the  states.     They  might  Germany. 

sell  or  give  away  titles  and  even  valuable  rights,  but  they  Adai7ns>  . 

J  .      J    Civilization, 

could   exercise  no  real   power  themselves,  and   sometimes  36offi, 

the  cities  treated  them  with  open  contempt  and  insult. 
Almost  the  whole  of  north  Italy  was  divided  among  the 
city  states  which  were  constantly  contending  with  one  an- 
other for  the  enlargement  of  their  territories  or  for  com- 
mercial supremacy.  The  most  powerful  of  these  states  were 
Venice,  Milan,  Florence,  and  Genoa,  though  the  power  of 
the  last  was  rapidly  declining  at  the  close  of  this  period. 

In  government  many  changes  occurred  in  these  city  states  The  leading 
after  the  middle  of  the  thirteenth  century.  Venice  became  ^es  of 
a  close  oligarchy,  Milan  a  monarchy  under  the  Visconti, 
and  later  under  the  Sforza  family,  and  in  Florence,  where 
there  was  more  of  a  tendency  towards  democracy  than  in 
the  cities  generally,  the  Medici  family  were  able  to  establish 
a  virtual  monarchy  through  the  forms  of  the  Republic.  In 
the  south  the  Norman  kingdom  of  Sicily,  which  the  Hohen- 
staufen  had  possessed,  was  divided  into  two  during  the  most 
of  this  age.  In  the  island  of  Sicily,  the  house  of  Aragon, 
which  claimed  to  represent  the  Hohenstaufen,  succeeded 
in  establishing  itself;  but  on  the  mainland,  the  house  of 
Anjou,  which  had  been  called  in  by  the  popes,  was  in  power. 
In  this  way  there  came  to  be  two  kingdoms  of  Sicily.  Cen- 
tral Italy  was  still  a  loose  and  unorganized  monarchy  with 
the  pope  as  its  sovereign. 

146.  Spain.  —  Spain  did  not  come  into  existence  as  a  The  growth 

united  state  until  the  accession  of  Ferdinand  and  Isabella  and  union 

IT  r    i       f  f          i  i-      i  •  /-»°f  the  states 

in  the  last  part  of  the  fifteenth  century.     Its  history  for  the  Of  Spain. 

preceding  seven  hundred  years  had  been  filled  with  war- 


152 


The  Other  States  of  Europe 


[§i47 


Watts, 

Christian 

Recovery  of 

Spain 

(Nations) ; 

Lane-Poole, 

Moors 

(Nations)  ; 

Tout, 

Periods, 

Chap.  XX. 


Spanish 
character 
made  by 
Spanish 
history. 


A  second 
race  of 
Turks. 
Creasy, 
Ottoman 
Turks 
(Holt)  ; 
Freeman, 
Ottoman 
Power 
(Macmil- 
lan) ;   Lane- 
Poole, 
Turkey 
(Nations). 

Fall  of  Con- 
stantinople. 
Gibbon, 
Chap. 
LXVIII.; 
Freeman, 
Ottoman 


fare  with  the  Moors  or  with  dynastic  conflicts.  At  the 
time  of  the  Mohammedan  conquest  at  the  beginning  of  the 
eighth  century,  some  bits  of  northern  Spain  had  remained 
unconquered.  Later,  Charlemagne  had  recovered  a  part  of 
northeastern  Spain  from  the  Saracens.  In  these  territories 
several  little  Christian  states  arose  and  began  the  long  task 
of  driving  out  the  Moors.  Five  of  these,  beginning  earlier 
or  later,  have  a  long  history.  They  are,  in  order  from  the 
east,  Aragon,  Navarre,  Castile,  Leon,  and  Portugal.  Na- 
varre was  early  shut  out  from  any  chance  of  further  expan- 
sion when  the  territories  of  Aragon  and  Castile  came  together 
on  its  southern  frontier,  and  Leon  was  finally  absorbed  by 
Castile,  but  three  large  states  remained  until  the  marriage 
of  Ferdinand  of  Aragon  and  Isabella  of  Castile  created  the 
kingdom  of  Spain.  The  predominantly  military  and  reli- 
gious character  of  Spanish  history,  during  so  many  centuries 
of  conflict  with  the  Moors,  had  made  the  nation  a  brave 
and  high-spirited  race  of  soldiers,  devotedly  attached  to  the 
Church,  and  this  is  the  character  with  which  Spain  enters 
upon  the  next  age  of  history. 

147.  The  Rise  of  the  Ottoman  Empire.  —  In  the  south- 
east of  Europe,  events  occurred  during  this  period  which 
have  been  followed  by  the  most  important  consequences 
down  to  the  present  time.  We  have  already  had  the  his- 
tory of  the  rise  into  power  of  the  Seljuk  Turks  in  the 
eastern  caliphate  and  of  their  conflicts  with  the  crusaders. 
About  the  beginning  of  the  fourteenth  century,  another  tribe 
of  Turks  —  the  Osmanlis  or  Ottomans  —  began  to  found  an 
empire  in  western  Asia  Minor.  They  were  a  race  of  fine 
soldiers,  and  one  of  their  early  rulers  organized  the  dreaded 
corps  of  the  Janissaries,  composed  of  Christian  boys  brought 
up  by  their  captors  as  Mohammedans  and  trained  to  a  mili- 
tary life  under  the  strictest  discipline.  Soon  after  the  mid- 
dle of  the  century,  the  Turks  had  obtained  a  footing  on  the 
European  side  of  the  straits,  and  from  that  point  their  do 
minion  spread  rapidly  over  the  Greek  lands  and  up  into  the 
Danube  valley.  Before  very  long  the  Eastern  Empire  was 


§  H7]         The  Rise  of  the  Ottoman  Empire 


153 


reduced  to  a  little  territory  about  Constantinople,  and  in 
1453  that  city  also  was  captured,  and  the  Roman  Empire 
in  the  East  brought  to  an  end,  after  surviving  for  a  thou- 
sand years  the  fall  of  the  Empire  in  the  West.  The  Turks 
were  not  as  yet  satisfied  with  the  conquests  which  they  had 
made,  and  their  attempts  to  force  their  way  into  central 
Europe  are  important  elements  in  the  history  of  the  next 
age. 


Power, 

114-120; 

Lane-Poole, 

Turkey, 

102-133  5 

Oman, 

Byzantine 

Empire, 

Chap. 

XXVI. 


CARVING  FROM  A  MOSLEM  SCREEN 


154  The  Other  States  of  Europe 


Topics 

Why  had  Germany  and  Italy  failed  to  obtain  national  governments? 
The  "  Great  Interregnum."  The  policy  followed  by  the  later  emperors? 
How  did  the  Hapsburgs  obtain  Austria?  What  possessions  were  ob- 
tained by  the  Luxemburg  family?  Where  did  these  finally  go?  What 
wars  between  Slav  and  Germans  in  this  period?  What  other  ques- 
tion in  the  Hussite  war?  How,  besides  by  war,  did  the  Germans  gain 
Slavic  land,  and  where?  How  did  the  Hohenzollern  family  gain 
Brandenburg?  The  origin  of  Switzerland.  The  leading  states  of  Italy 
and  their  governments.  What  difference  between  the  north  and  the 
south  of  Italy?  The  origin  of  the  Spanish  states.  What  two  processes 
run  through  Spanish  history?  When  and  how  was  modern  Spain 
formed?  The  effect  of  Spanish  history  on  Spanish  character.  The 
rise  of  the  Ottoman  Empire. 


Topics  for  Assigned  Studies 

The  freeing  of  Switzerland.     Buchheim,  Wilhelm  Tell.     (Clarendon.) 

Introduction,    pp.    xxxviii-lxii.       Hug    and    Stead,    Switzerland 

(Nations),  Chaps.  X.  and  XI. 
The    character   of    the    Cid.     Clarke,    The    Cid.     (Heroes.)     Watts, 

Christian    Recovery    of  Spain    (Nations),    Chap.    III.      Lane- 

Poole,  Moors  of  Spain   (Nations),   191-213. 
The  regulation  of  the  German  electorate.     Bryce,  Holy  Roman  Empire, 

225-238.     Text  in  Henderson,  220-261. 


Topics  for  Review 

The  states  which  were  formed  from  Charlemagne's  empire. 

The  history  of  the  title  "  Emperor  of  Rome  "  during  this  period. 

What  actual  power  attached  to  it  in  different  ages? 

The  experiences  of  the  city  of  Constantinople  during  this  period.     Of 

the  city  of  Jerusalem. 
Compare  the  political  development  of  the  states  of  England,  France, 

and  Germany. 
The  history  of  commerce. 
The  position  of  the  working  classes,  and  the  influences  which  affected 

them. 

The  rise  of  the  papacy  to  European  power, 
The  results  which  followed  the  crusades. 


Important  Dates  for  Review 


155 


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PART    III 

RENAISSANCE  AND  REFORMATION 

Books  for  Reference  and  Further  Reading 

Pastor,  History  of  the  Popes  from  the  Close  of  the  Middle  Ages.  Trans- 
lated from  the  German  by  F.  J.  Antrobus.  (London  ;  Kegan 
Paul ;  3  vols.,  36^.) 

Janssen,  History  of  the  German  People  at  the  Close  of  the  Middle  Ages. 
(St.  Louis  ;  Herder;  8  vols.;  $18.50.) 

Both  translations  from  the  German  as  yet  unfinished.     Pastor  is 
a  fine  specimen  of  Catholic  scholarship.     Janssen,  also  Catholic, 
has  been  very  severely  criticised,  but  is  very  interesting. 
Creighton,  History  of  the  Papacy  from  the  Great  Schism  to  the  Sack  of 

Rome.     6  vols.     (Longmans;  $12.00.) 

Symonds,  The  Renaissance  in  Italy.     7  vols.     (Holt ;   $14.00.)     Con- 
densed in  I  vol.  by  Pearson.     (Holt ;  $1.75.) 
Burckhardt,    The  Civilization  of  the  Renaissance  in  Italy.     2  vols. 

(Macmillan  ;  $4.00.) 

Kostlin,  Life  of  Luther.     (Scribner  ;   $2.50.) 
Fisher,  The  Reformation.     (Scribner  ;   $2.50.) 

Hausser,  The  Period  of  the  Reformation.  1517-1648.  (Am.  Tract 
Soc.;  $2.00.) 

University  lectures  given  in  1859,  but  still  a  very  useful  book. 
Froude,  History  of  England.     12  vols.     (Scribner;   $18.00.) 
Busch,  England  under  the  Tudors.  Vol.  I.    Henry  VII.    (1485-1509). 
Translated  from  the  German  by  Miss  Alice  M.  Todd  and  the  Rev. 
A.  H.  Johnson,  M.A.,  with  an  Introduction  by  Mr.  James  Gairdner, 
Editor  of  "  The  Paston  Letters."     Demy  8vo,  cloth.     (London ; 
Innes ;  net  16^.) 

Robinson  and  Rolfe.  Petrarch,  the  First  Modern  Scholar  and  Man  of 
Letters.  (Putnam  ;  $2.00.)  Translations  of  Petrarch's  letters  with 
notes. 

Whitcomb,  Source-Book  of  the  Italian  Renaissance.  (Penn.)  An- 
nounced. 


158  The  Revival  of  Learning 

SUMMARY 

With  the  beginning  of  the  fifteenth  century  conditions  began 
to  favor  a  real  revival  of  learning  as  they  had  never  done  before. 
In  the  previous  century  even,  the  revival  had  been  begun  by 
Petrarch  in  collecting  the  Latin  classics  and  awakening  a  taste 
for  their  study.  The  fifteenth  century  opened  with  the  revival 
of  Greek  and  the  recovery  of  the  Greek  writings.  By  the  middle 
of  the  century  a  true  scientific  method  had  been  restored,  espe- 
cially in  the  study  of  language  and  of  history.  Then  came  at 
once  the  invention  of  printing,  which  cheapened  books  immensely 
and  spread  the  results  of  the  new  learning  broadcast  over  Europe. 
The  century  closed  with  the  great  oceanic  discoveries,  the  sea 
route  to  India  and  the  New  World.  The  first  generation  of  the 
sixteenth  century  brought  the  Renaissance  to  an  end,  involved 
in  the  revolutionary  conflicts  which  followed  the  Reformation, 
but  not  until  it  had  produced  its  finest  product  in  two  directions 
in  the  great  age  of  Italian  art  and  in  the  scientific  criticism  and 
earnest  practical  spirit  of  Erasmus,  and  taken  the  first  long  step 
of  modern  physical  science  in  the  work  of  Copernicus.  Mean- 
while another  line  of  great  interest  runs  through  the  fifteenth 
century  —  the  attempt  to  change  the  constitution  of  the  Church 
and  to  modify  some  of  its  teachings.  Under  the  influence  of  the 
kings  of  France  the  popes  had  lived  for  more  than  half  a  century 
at  Avignon.  The  increasing  complaints  of  Europe  had  led  to 
an  attempt  to  restore  the  papacy  to  Rome,  but  the  only  result 
had  been  to  split  the  Church  in  two  with  two  opposing  popes. 
Then  arose  the  theory  of  the  supremacy  of  the  general  council 
in  the  government  of  the  Church,  and  the  attempt  to  carry  this 
out  in  the  councils  of  Pisa  and  of  Constance  early  in  the  fifteenth 
century.  The  council  of  Constance  succeeded  in  restoring  the 
unity  of  the  Church  and  almost  in  providing  for  regularly  recur- 
ring representative  assemblies,  which  would  have  changed  the 
constitution  of  the  Church  into  that  of  a  limited  monarchy.  Con- 
temporary with  this  movement,  Wycliflfe  in  England  led  a  revolt 
against  some  of  the  most  characteristic  teachings  of  the  medieval 
Church,  and  when  this  failed,  John  Huss  took  up  the  same  ideas 
in  Bohemia,  where  they  led  to  a  long  religious  and  race  war  with 
the  Germans,  though  Huss  himself  was  burnt  as  a  heretic  by  the 
council  of  Constance.  The  demand  for  reform,  however,  con- 
tinued to  grow  stronger  throughout  the  fifteenth  century,  and  at 
last  found  its  leader  in  Luther,  who  opened  the  Reformation  by 


§148]  A   Transitional  Epoch  159 

posting  his  theses  against  the  current  ideas  of  indulgences.  In 
the  midst  of  general  excitement  Luther  was  gradually  led  on  to 
a  position  of  open  rebellion  against  the  old  Church,  and  when 
the  brilliant  assembly  of  the  Diet  of  Worms  failed  to  overawe 
him,  he  was  placed  under  the  ban  of  the  Empire.  The  political 
situation  of  Europe  was  such,  however,  that  Charles  V.  found  no 
opportunity  during  the  life  of  Luther  to  enforce  this  edict  The 
French,  determined  rivals  for  the  possession  of  Italy,  maintained 
at  first  almost  constant  war;  the  pope,  anxious  to  protect  the 
independence  of  his  little  state,  was  a  most  uncertain  ally ;  and 
the  Turks  on  the  east  threatened  the  conquest  of  the  whole 
Danube  valley.  Charles  was  obliged  for  years  to  suspend  the 
execution  of  the  edict,  and  finally  to  make  a  peace  with  the 
Protestants  which  referred  the  points  in  dispute  to  a  general 
council  of  the  Church.  Outside  Germany  the  Scandinavian  states 
adopted  the  teachings  of  Luther ;  England  separated  itself  from 
the  papacy,  and  by  degrees  became  Protestant ;  from  Geneva 
a  new  type  of  Protestantism  of  a  decidedly  political  and  militant 
sort,  taught  by  Calvin,  spread  through  France  and  Holland  and 
into  England.  Hardly  was  Calvinism  well  established  before 
European  history  turned  rapidly  into  the  period  of  the  religious 
wars. 


CHAPTER    I 
THE   REVIVAL  OF  LEARNING 

148.    A  Transitional  Epoch.  —  By  the  beginning  of  the  fif-  Gradual 
teenth  century  it  is  evident  that  the  medieval  period  is  draw-   character  ol 
ing  to  a  close.     It  is,  of  course,  not  possible  to  fix  upon  any  transitions 
exact  date  when  mankind  passes  out  of  one  great  age  of  its 
history,  which  we  distinguish  as  an  age  by  itself  because  it 
has  certain  well-marked  and  definite  characteristics  of  its 
own,  and  goes  on  into  another  epoch  of  the  same  nature  but 
with  different   characteristics.     Every  such   transition  is  a 
very  gradual  one  and  is  not  perceived  by  the  men  who  are 
bringing  it  about.     When  we  look  back  upon  such  a  period 
from  a  much  later  time,  we  can  see  the  passing  away  of  the 
old  characteristic  traits  and  the  coming  in  of  the  new. 


i6o 


The  Revival  of  Learning 


[§ 


Character  of 
this  age. 


Renaissance 
and  Refor- 
mation. 


A  second 
birth. 
Symonds, 
Age  of  the 
Despots, 
Chap.  I.; 
Adams, 
Civilization , 


The  fifteenth  and  the  first  half  or  the  sixteenth  centuries 
form  an  age  which  has  many  of  the  marks  of  such  a  transi- 
tional epoch.  The  old  influences  and  the  new  are  mingled 
together  and  are  contending  with  one  another  for  the  pos- 
session of  the  field.  Gradually  the  new  show  themselves  to 
be  the  stronger.  Some  of  the  old  ideas  and  institutions 
give  way  entirely  to  new  ones  ;  others  are  transformed  ; 
others  still  remain,  but  under  such  changed  conditions  as 
make  them  something  different  from  what  they  were,  and 
new  forces  come  in  the  end  so  clearly  into  the  lead  as  to 
give  their  coloring  to  the  times,  so  that  we  can  see  clearly 
that  the  world  has  moved  on  into  a  new  stage  of  its  history. 
In  every  age  which  is  not  a  time  of  dead  stagnation  such 
changes  are  going  on.  But  some  periods  are  so  revolu- 
tionary in  their  character,  so  full  of  striking  and  dramatic 
changes,  that  they  appear  in  a  peculiar  sense  epochs  of 
transition. 

This  is  the  character  of  the  fifteenth  and  the  first  half  of 
the  sixteenth  century.  The  striking  changes  of  this  time, 
affect,  as  we  shall  see,  almost  every  department  of  human 
activity.  In  two  directions,  however,  the  intellectual  and 
the  religious,  they  were  so  peculiarly  revolutionary  as  to 
have  given  their  names  to  the  period.  This  is  the  age  of 
the  Renaissance  and  the  Reformation.  The  fifteenth  cen- 
tury is  especially  characterized  by  the  first,  the  sixteenth  by 
the  second. 

149.  The  Meaning  of  Renaissance.  — The  term  "Renais- 
sance "  is  an  especially  good  one  with  which  to  designate  the 
intellectual  revolution.  It  was  a  new  or  second  birth.  The 
methods  of  intellectual  work,  the  literary  and  artistic  feel- 
ing, the  way  of  looking  at  life  and  its  purposes,  which  the 
fifteenth  century  brought  into  vogue,  were  not  then  intro- 
duced into  human  history  for  the  first  time.  They  had  all 
been  in  use  or  strongly  felt  before.  But  for  a  long  time 
they  had  been  lost  to  sight,  or  the  same  as  lost,  and  now 
they  were  revived.  So  great  was  the  change,  so  rich  and  full 
was  the  world  into  which  it  introduced  mankind,  that  com- 


§§  150,151]     Learning  in  the  Middle  Ages 


161 


mon  consent  has  rightly  called  it  a  second  birth  time  of  the 
race. 

1 50.  The  Place  of  the  Middle  Ages  in  History.  —  Accord- 
ing to  the  view  of  history  which  is  embodied  in  this  word, 
between  the  life  of  the  ancient  world  and  the  life  of  the 
modern  there  lies  a  period  during  which  the  human  mind 
was  unconscious,  unconscious  of  itself  and  of  its  powers  of 
what  men  had  already  done  and  of  what  remained  still  to 
do ;  a  period  during  which  life  was  not  felt,  to  be  so  much 
concerned  with   this  world    as   with   the    preparation   for 
another. 

Whether  this  view  be  a  correct  one  or  not,  it  is  certainly 
true  that  the  Middle  Ages  are  below  the  level  of  either 
ancient  or  modern  times  in  intellectual  civilization.  This 
is  probably  because  it  was  the  period  in  which  the  Teutonic 
barbarians  who  had  taken  possession  of  the  West  were  being 
raised  to  a  point  where  they  could  comprehend  and  go  on 
with  the  work  of  civilization  which  Greece  and  Rome  had 
begun.  As  a  distinct  period  in  the  history  of  civilization, 
therefore,  it  begins  to  draw  to  a  close  when  men  begin  to 
appreciate  at  its  true  worth  the  intellectual  results  of  classic 
times.  The  fourteenth  century  is  the  age  in  which  this 
appreciation  in  the  true  sense  begins,  and  in  the  fifteenth 
it  becomes  more  general.  This  is  the  age  of  the  revival  of 
learning  or  of  the  Renaissance. 

151.  Learning  in  the  Middle  Ages.  —  It  is  not  true  that 
all  knowledge  disappeared  during  the  Middle  Ages.     A  very 
great  deal  was  preserved  by  the  Church,  especially  in  the 
monasteries,  but  it  took  on  a  peculiar  character,  not  like 
that  of  ancient  times,  and  often  it  was  entirely  misunder- 
stood.    Greek  certainly  could  be  read  by  here  and  there  a 
man  only,  and  that  very  imperfectly.     But  many  of  the  best 
Latin  writers,  like  Vergil  and  Ovid,  were  in  frequent  use. 
Their  use,  however,  was  not  as  literature,  but  almost  wholly 
as  text-books  of  language  and  grammar,  to  teach  vocabulary 
and   forms   of  sentence   construction.     The   literary  sense 
hardly  existed   at  all,   or   expressed   itself  feebly  and  in 


Not  a  period 
of  mental 
activity. 
Adams, 
Civilization, 
Chap.  I. 


The  civiliz- 
ing of  the 
Teutonic 
race. 


Formal 
learning, 
but  no 
literature. 


Symonds, 
Revival  of 
Learning, 
58-69. 


1 62 


The  Revival  of  Learning 


[§152 


No  science 
or  art. 


The  ninth 
century. 


The  eleventh 
century. 


Poole, 

Illustrations 
of  Medieval 
Thought, 
85-101. 


strange  form  in  the  lives  of  the  saints  who  wrought  wonder- 
ful miracles,  or  a  little  later  in  the  romantic  legends  of 
heroes,  like  Alexander  or  Arthur,  in  which  perhaps  there 
moved  a  faint  breath  of  history.  Those  who  attempted  to 
write  more  formal  history  slavishly  followed  one  another  for 
the  times  before  their  personal  knowledge,  and  the  Bible 
narrative  formed  the  common  foundation  of  all. 

With  the  knowledge  of  Greek  that  of  the  natural  sciences 
also  practically  disappeared.  Most  men,  even  among  those 
who  had  the  education  of  the  times,  believed  that  the  earth 
is  round  and  the  centre  of  the  motion  of  the  sun  and  the 
planets.  Astrology  as  a  means  of  foretelling  the  future  and 
alchemy  as  a  search  for  the  philosopher's  stone  or  the 
elixir  of  life,  came  the  nearest  of  anything  to  real  scientific 
work.  Even  mathematics  fell  far  behind  the  point  of  an- 
cient knowledge.  Art,  also,  hardly  existed  outside  the 
Church,  which  kept  alive  the  tradition  of  painting  in  rude 
altar  pictures,  and  something  better  in  the  architecture  of 
the  cathedrals,  but  a  true  artistic  feeling  was  as  rare  as  the 
literary. 

152.  Medieval  Revivals.  —  There  was,  however,  no  little 
progress  during  the  course  of  the  Middle  Ages  from  the 
lowest  point  of  ignorance,  which  was  reached  in  the  sixth 
and  seventh  centuries,  and  this  progress  is  marked  by 
several  epochs  of  distinct  revival  which  are  preliminary  to 
the  final  one  of  the  fifteenth  century.  The  first  of  these 
was  Charlemagne's  revival  of  schools,  of  which  we  have  had 
the  history.  Better  schools  and  better  Latin  style  were 
permanent  results  of  his  efforts.  At  the  end  of  the  tenth, 
and  in  the  first  half  of  the  eleventh  centuries,  there  is  a 
second  revival  in  which  we  can  trace  a  Greek  influence 
coming  from  the  Empire  in  the  East  through  the  marriage 
connection  of  Otto  II.  with  the  Byzantine  court,  and  an 
Arab  influence  from  the  higher  aesthetic  and  intellectual 
civilization  in.  Spain.  Sylvester  It.,  who  had  been  the  tutor 
of  Otto  III.,  and  whose  strange  learning  made  people  sus- 
pect him  of  magic  and  communication  with  the  Evil  One 


§  153]  The  Age  of  Scholasticism  163 

even  after  he  became  pope,  is  one  of  the  most  famous  men 
of  this  revival.  We  can  trace  back  into  this  age  also  the 
beginnings  of  those  methods  of  philosophical  speculation 
which  afterwards  gave  rise  to  the  great  systems  of  schol- 
asticism. 

153.   The  Age  of  Scholasticism.  — Two  centuries  later,  in  The  thir- 
the  last  part  of  the  twelfth  and  the  first  of  the  thirteenth  teenth 
centuries,  occurred  a  still  more  active  and  interesting  re-   pishe^' 
vival.     The  intellectual  keenness  and  vigor  of  the  time  has   Christian 
scarcely   ever   been  surpassed.     Mind  was,  indeed,  far  in  ^^'. 
advance  of  the  materials  with  which  it  had  as  yet  to  work,   Bacon, 
and  of  the   general   preparation  in  other  directions  for  a  Advancement 
true  revival.     The  characteristics  also  of  the  leaders  were 
purely  intellectual  without  those  artistic  and  literary  ele-   iv.  5. 
ments  which  seem  to  have  been  necessary  to  the  Renais- 
sance.    Material  limited  to  a  single  line,  and  a  passion  for 
abstract  speculation  determined  the  character  of  the  epoch. 
It  was  the  great  age  of  Scholasticism. 

The  influence  of  one  side  of  the  Arabian  civilization,  the  The  scho- 
philosophical,  was  strongly  felt  in  this  period.  Through  lastlc 
them  came  a  knowledge  of  much  more  of  the  Greek  philos-  * 
ophy  than  had  been  known  to  the  earlier  Middle  Ages.  It 
was  still  an  incomplete  and  very  one-sided  knowledge.  It 
was  Aristotle  without  Plato,  and  of  Aristotle  it  was  his  for- 
mal or  deductive  logic  almost  alone.  This  fell  in  very  well, 
however,  with  the  tendencies  of  the  time,  which,  from  the 
fact  that  almost  all  educated  men  were  interested  first  of 
all  in  theology,  were  chiefly  speculative.  The  rules  of  de- 
ductive logic  were  a  sufficient  guide  in  the  construction  of 
great  systems  of  thought  from  the  foundation  of  doctrine 
which  the  Church  supplied  in  the  works  of  the  early  fathers, 
and  Aristotle,  as  the  great  teacher  of  logic,  acquired  an  ab- 
solute authority  which  no  one  could  dispute.  In  the  field 
of  theology  this  was  one  of  the  greatest  age's  of  history  and 
has  had  a  decisive  influence  on  all  later  thinking.  St. 
Thomas  Aquinas,  who  was  probably  the  highest  product  of 
the  time,  put  into  definite  form  the  great  Catholic  doc- 


1 64 


The  Revival  of  Learning 


[§i54 


Rise  of  the 

universities. 
Foundation 
charter  of 
Heidelberg. 
Henderson, 
262  ff. 


trines,  and  exercises  still  an  influence  hardly  equalled  in 
this  field. 

154.  The  Founding  of  the  Universities.  —  In  another  di- 
rection the  age  of  Scholasticism  exerted  a  permanent  influ- 
ence upon  the  intellectual  history  of  the  world.  This  was  in 
the  organization  of  the  universities  of  Europe.  The  in- 
tense eagerness  to  learn  which  characterized  the  times, 


ST.  JOHN'S  COLLEGE,  OXFORD 

seized  upon  the  best  of  the  already  existing  schools  and 
transformed  them.  The  number  of  the  students  grew 
enormously,  and  at  the  same  time  the  number  and  the  skill 
of  the  teachers.  The  branches  of  learning  began  to  be  dif- 
ferentiated from  one  another,  and  teachers  and  students  to 
specialize  in  their  studies.  New  methods  of  study  were 
also  introduced —  dialectics  in  theology  and  the  use  of  Justin- 
ian's code  in  law.  With  the  increase  in  numbers,  these 
schools  took  on  a  more  definite  organization  and  became 


§  I55l      The  Renaissance  comes  first  in  Italy         165 

great  self-governing  communities  of  a  democratic  cast,  or  at 
least  democratic  after  a  certain  stage  in  the  course  of  edu- 
cation had  been  reached.  Together  they  formed,  indeed, 
a  kind  of  international  community,  with  a  common  lan- 
guage, very  frequent  migration  from  one  to  another,  and  a 
recognized  standing  in  any  one  for  those  who  held  the 
degrees  of  another.  In  most  of  these  universities,  the 
student  life  and  much  of  the  instruction  centred  in  the  col- 
lege system,  which  survives  to-day  in  the  English  univer- 
sities. 

There   was    so  much   that  was    truly  scientific   both  in   No  true 
ideal  and  in  method  in  these  schools  that  it  seems  strange  • revival  of 
that  they  did  not  lead  to  a  complete  revival  of  learning. 
The  reasons  for  the  failure  are  the  same  as  those  given  for 
that  of  the  thirteenth-century  movement  as  a  whole,  —  the 
lack  of  material,  the  need  of  a  more   general  preparation, 
and  the  absence  of  a  literary  sense.     Scholasticism   seized 
upon  the  universities  and  intrenched  itself  so  strongly  in 
them  that  when  the   true  revival  came  it  found  there  its 
bitterest  opponents. 

155.  The  Renaissance  comes  first  in  Italy.  —  The   Re-   Conditions 
naissance  waited  some  generations  longer  before  the  general  ™ost  favora< 

0  ble  in  Italy, 

conditions  became  favorable.  It  was  in  Italy  that  the  prep- 
aration was  first  made.  Here  the  constantly  extending 
commerce  of  two  or  three  centuries  had  led  to  great  accum- 
ulation of  wealth,  the  growth  of  great  cities,  and  the  collect- 
ing together  of  the  materials  of  culture.  These  were  soon 
followed  by  the  awakening  of  a  literary  and  artistic  feeling, 
the  growth  of  a  native  literature  and  art,  and  the  perception 
of  the  fact  that  there  had  been,  long  before,  ages  of  high 
culture,  and  great  writers  and  artists.  Italy  led  all  Europe 
in  the  Renaissance  because  these  conditions  were  first 
combined  in  that  country. 

In  Italy,  indeed,  one  of  the  greatest  works  of  modern   Dante, 
literature   precedes   the   real   revival   of  ancient    learning.   I265-i32i- 
If  there  show  themselves  in  Dante  a  more  human  and  in- 
timate feeling  for  the  ancient  world  and  its  great  men,  a 


166 


The  Revival  of  Learning 


[§156 


The  work  of 

Petrarch, 

1304-1374. 

Symonds, 

Revival  of 

Learning, 

70-98 ; 

Adams, 

Civilization, 

375-377- 


Th  e  begin- 
ning of 
Renaissance 
art. 


closer  and  more  kindly  observation  of  nature,  and  a  greater 
independence  of  judgment  than  was  usual  before  him,  he 
still  remains  in  almost  everything  a  thorough  man.  of  the 

Middle  Ages. 
The  most  that 
can  be  said  is 
that  he  reveals 
the  first  faint 
light  of  the  com- 
ing day. 

156.  The  Be- 
ginning in  the 
Age  of  Petrarch. 
—  It  is  in  the 
generation  of  Pe- 
trarch and  Boc- 
caccio that  the 
day  breaks. 
These  two  men 
alone  almost  cre- 
ated a  new  liter- 
ature in  the  lyr- 
ical poetry  of  the 

first  and  the  prose  tales  of  the  second.  But  Petrarch  him- 
self believed  that  his  Latin  poems  would  bring  him  greater 
fame  than  his  Italian  lyrics,  and  his  devotion  to  the  ancient 
classics  was  his  strongest  passion.  He  sought  through  all 
the  countries  of  the  West  that  were  open  to  him,  in  the 
neglected  libraries  of  the  churches  and  monasteries,  for  the 
writings  of  the  great  authors  of  antiquity,  and  had  them 
copied  whenever  he  could  not  purchase  them.  This  repre- 
sents the  first  stage  of  the  Renaissance,  an  eager  love  for 
the  treasures  of  the  classic  world  and  the  collecting  together 
of  all  that  was  left  of  them  as  the  material  of  devoted  study. 
In  the  same  age,  even  a  little  earlier  than  Petrarch,  Giotto 
had  opened  a  new  epoch  in  painting,  seeking  to  give  a  true 
representation  to  nature  and  human  life  as  they  really  exist. 


DANTE  ALIGHIERI 


§§  157, 158]     Scientific  Method  Recovered  167 

157.  The  Revival  of  Greek.  —  Petrarch  could  not  read  Greek 
Greek,  though  he  earnestly  desired  to  do  so.  and  the  second  learned  from 

-   .  ........  r  .1       i  the  Eastern 

stage  of  the  revival  of  learning  is  the  recovery  of  the  know-   Empire, 
ledge   of  the    Greek  language.      This  was   acquired    from   Symonds, 
teachers  who  came  to  Italy  from  the  Eastern  Empire  in  the   R*™*?0/ 
generation  immediately  following  Petrarch  and  before  the   108-113.  ' 
close   of  the  fourteenth  century.     As  the  Ottoman  Turks 
steadily  progressed  in  their  conquests  of  the  territories  of 
the  Greek  emperors,  shutting  them  up  to  a  constantly  de- 
creasing circle  of  land  around  Constantinople,  many  Greek 
scholars  abandoned  the  East,  and  in  other  ways  intercourse 
between  the  two  parts  of  the  Christian  world  became  more 
frequent.     The  Eastern  emperors  hoped  to  secure  the  mili- 
tary aid  of  the  West  in  a  new  crusade,  and  the  popes  hoped 
that  the  time  had  come  when  the  whole  of  Christendom 
should  be  united  under  their  authority.     For  a  moment  this 
last  hope  seemed  to  be  realized  in  the  decisions  of  the  council 
of  Florence.     But  in  the  end  both  pope  and  emperor  were 
disappointed.     The  one  permanent  result,  aside  from  the 
triumph  of  the  Turks,  was  the  revival  of  the  study  of  Greek 
in  the  West. 

As  soon  as  Greek  could  be  read,  there  was  the  same   Greek 
eager  desire  to  collect  Greek  manuscripts,  as  there  had  been  writinss 

recovered. 

and  still  was  to  get  together  tne  Latin,  and  great  numbers  of 
these  were  brought  into  Italy  before  Constantinople  passed  out 
of  Christian  hands.  By  1450  the  learned  world  was  in  pos- 
session of  the  larger  share  of  those  remains  of  classical  liter- 
ature, both  Latin  and  Greek,  which  have  ever  been  recovered. 

158.  Scientific  Method  Recovered. — The  third  and  final  The  revival 
stage  of  the  Renaissance,  regarded  as  a  revival  of  learning,   ofscience 
followed  immediately  on  the  recovery  of  Greek.    This  was  the  the  Renais- 
awakening  of  the  scientific  spirit.    Petrarch  had  foreshadowed  sance.    On 
this  as  he  did  many  traits  of  the  full  Renaissance,  and  it  had   Pe^rch;  ;>ee 

article  with 
been  slowly  growing  since  his  time,  but  it  is  the  character-   translation, 

istic  mark  of  the  middle  of  the  fifteenth  century.     Its  first    Yale 
great  field  was  in  the  criticism  of  the  texts  that  had  been   Vol>  L 
recovered   to   ascertain   exactly  what   had   been  originally 


i68 


The  Revival  of  Learning 


[§ 


The  inven- 
tion of 
printing. 


Rapid  spread 
of  printing. 
Janssen, 
German 
People,  I. 
9-24. 

Symonds, 
Revival  of 
Learning, 
368-391. 


written,  and  in  the  reconstruction  of  ancient  history  and 
mythology.  But  it  was  the  genuine  scientific  spirit  of 
questioning  and  criticism,  using  the  method  of  collection 
and  comparison,  and  it  soon  branched  out  into  wider  fields. 
1 59.  The  Invention  of  Printing.  —  Just  at  the  middle  of 
the  century  came  a  most  wonderful  invention  which  gave  an 
unparalleled  impulse  to  learning  and  literature,  and  to  the 

whole  intellectual  life  of 
mankind.  This  was  the  in- 
vention of  printing.  From 
whence  the  suggestions 
were  derived  which  led  to 
this  invention  we  do  not 
know,  nor  even  with  cer- 
tainty by  whom  it  was 
made,  though  the  place  was 
somewhere  in  the  Rhine 
valley.  To  develop  the  art 
of  printing  books  from  its 
nearest  precursor,  the  print- 
ing of  wood  engravings, 
two  important  steps  would 
be  necessary :  first,  to  cut 
the  engraved  words  into 
single  letters,  that  is,  mov- 
able type,  so  that  different 
sentences  could  be  printed 

with  the  same  characters ;  and  second  to  adapt  the  press  to 
the  process  of  making  copies.  It  is  quite  possible  that  these 
two  steps  may  have  been  taken  at  slightly  different  times 
and  by  different  men.  Though  it  cannot  now  be  said  with 
certainty  by  whom  these  steps  were  taken,  the  evidence 
seems  to  indicate  that  it  is  from  Gutenberg,  that  we  first 
have  the  art  in  its  perfected  form.  He  certainly  was  print- 
ing at  Mainz  at  the  middle  of  the  century.  From  here  the 
new  art  spread  rapidly  in  all  the  countries  of  Europe,  par- 
ticularly in  Italy,  where  the  way  was  especially  prepared  for 


GUTENBERG'S  PRESS 


$§  1 60, 161]    The  Renaissance  North  and  South      169 

it.     Almost  every  Italian  city  had  its  printing  business,  and 
Venice  became  the  first  centre  of  the  book  trade. 

The  early  printers  found  a  great  work  already  waiting  to   Books  first 
occupy  them  for  many  years  in  two  classes  of  book  for  which  Pnnted- 
there  was  a  peculiar  demand.     These  were  theological  and 
religious  books  for  which  the  Church  made  a  great  market, 
and  the  works  of  the  classic  authors  which  the  revival  of 
learning  had  brought  into  demand.     Twenty  editions  of  St. 
Augustine's  "  City  of  God  "  were  printed  before  the  year 
1500,  and  nearly  one  hundred  of  the  Latin  Bible,  while  there 
were  more  than  thirty  of  one  of  the  minor  poems  of  later 
Latin  literature. 

1 60.  Results  of  the  Invention  of  Printing.  —  In  two  ways  Books 

the  invention  of  printing  immediately  became  a  powerful   increasedin 
.,,  •        i       •        11  11  t-  T      •         number  and 

influence  in  the  intellectual  advancement  of  men.  It  in-  decreased  in 
creased  enormously  the  number  of  copies  of  a  book  in  exist-  price. 
ence,  so  that  it  became  easily  accessible  everywhere  and  to 
everybody ;  and  it  reduced  the  price  of  books  so  that  whole  Hearth 
classes  to  whom  they  had  been  impossible  luxuries  now  found  (novel), 
them  within  their  reach.  Printed  books  of  the  fifteenth 
century  are  not  extremely  rare.  A  library  in  Munich  pos- 
sesses more  than  twenty  thousand  specimens ;  probably 
thirty  thousand  editions  were  published  before  1500;  and 
the  price  of  books  fell  off  four-fifths.  This  was  one  of  the 
greatest  intellectual  revolutions  of  history,  not  in  the  dis- 
covery of  new  truth,  but  in  making  knowledge  the  common 
possession  of  all  men.  In  bringing  the  Middle  Ages  to  an 
end  and  introducing  the  modern,  it  was  even  more  effectual 
than  the  invention  of  gunpowder,  which  was  coming  into 
general  use  at  the  same  time  and  revolutionizing  the  art  of 
war  and  society  itself  by  depriving  the  noble  class  of  its 
advantages  in  castle  walls  and  armor  and  the  exclusive  pro- 
fession of  arms. 

161.  The  Renaissance  South  and  North  of  the  Alps.  —  In  Character 
Italy,  where  the  first  enthusiasm  for  the  revival  of  learning  °fthe 
had  been  awakened,  where  such  vast  results  in  the  restoration  in  Ital 

of  knowledge  had  been  achieved,  and  where  the  product  in 


The  Revival  of  Learning 


[§162 


George  Eliot, 

Romola 

(novel). 


Character 

of  the 

Renaissance 

in  northern 

Europe. 

Seebohm, 

The  Oxford 

Reformers 

(Longmans); 

Seebohm, 

Protestant 

Revolution, 

Pt.  II., 

Chap.  II. 


Erasmus  in 
England. 


His  purposes 
and  methods. 


literature  and  art  was  even  richer  than  that  in  learning,  the 
Renaissance  remained  its  own  chief  object.  Knowledge 
was  sought  for  its  own  sake  alone.  The  most  intense  pride 
was  felt  in  the  possession  of  full  classical  learning  and  an 
elegant  Latin  style,  and  the  principal  results  of  the  age  were 
a  culture  somewhat  superficial  in  character  and  a  science 
which,  aside  from  the  great  work  it  accomplished  in  the 
classical  field,  was  fruitless. 

North  of  the  Alps,  among  the  nations  of  Teutonic  race, 
the  Renaissance  advanced  to  further  results.  The  first  stage 
of  this  is  to  be  seen  most  clearly  in  England,  in  the  last  year 
of  the  fifteenth  and  the  first  of  the  sixteenth  century.  There 
a  little  group  of  scholars  in  the  university  of  Oxford,  of  whom 
Colet,  who  founded  St.  Paul's  School  in  London  to  further 
the  new  methods  of  education,  and  Thomas  More,  Henry 
VIII. 's  minister,  were  the  leaders,  sought  knowledge  for  the 
sake  of  reform.  Their  purpose  was  to  study  the  New  Tes- 
tament and  the  writings  of  the  early  Church  in  order  to  find 
out  the  real  character  of  the  original  Christianity,  and  to  use 
this  knowledge  to  remove  from  the  Christianity  of  their  time 
the  corruptions  and  abuses  which  had  come  in. 

162.  Erasmus. — About  1498  a  young  Dutch  scholar, 
Erasmus  of  Rotterdam,  came  to  Oxford  to  study  Greek  be- 
cause he  was  at  the  time  too  poor  to  go  to  Italy,  where  every 
one  went  to  learn  Greek  who  could  afford  to  do  so.  He 
had  already  been  for  some  time  a  student  at  the  university 
of  Paris,  where  he  had  made  a  considerable  reputation  for 
learning,  and  he  was  destined  to  attain  the  highest  fame  and 
the  widest  influence  of  any  scholar  of  the  age.  At  Oxford  he 
formed  a  close  friendship  with  Colet  and  More,  and  seems 
to  have  been  inspired  by  them  with  their  earnest  and  practi- 
cal purposes.  At  any  rate  he  became  from  this  time  on  a 
most  earnest  advocate  of  reform,  and  a  determined  enemy 
of  the  current  abuses. 

These  purposes  he  labored  for  in  two  ways.  In  one  he 
made  use  of  his  remarkable  literary  talents,  and  poured  tor- 
rents of  ridicule  over  the  follies  and  ignorance  of  the  monks 


§  1 62]  Erasmus  171 

and  scholastics,  the  supporters  of  the  old  abuses.  His  "  Col-  Fisher, 
loquies  "  and  his  "  Praise  of  Folly  "  were  read  everywhere 
throughout  Europe  and,  though  men  laughed,  their  eyes  were  7  " 
opened  to  the  necessity  of  reformation.  In  another  way 
Erasmus  devoted  the  great  resources  of  his  scholarship  to 
the  same  end.  His  life  work  was  the  preparation  of  care- 
fully critical  editions  of  the  New  Testament  and  of  the  writ- 
ings of  the  early  fathers  of  the  Church.  His  purpose  was  first 
to  ascertain  just  what  had  been  originally  written,  as  nearly 
as  possible,  and  just  what  it  had  meant  to  those  who  wrote 
it,  and  then  to  give  these  results  in  accessible  form  to  all 
scholars.  It  was  his  intention  that  they  should  be  made 
known  ultimately  to  the  ignorant  as  well  as  to  the  learned, 
and  this  intention  he  himself  directly  helped  to  realize  by 
his  paraphrases  of  the  New  Testament  narratives  which  were 
long  in  use  in  the  Protestant  churches.  His  edition  of  the 
New  Testament  was  published  in  1516,  in  time  to  be  of  The  New 
great  use  to  Luther  in  his  translation.  It  was  republished  Testament- 
many  times  in  different  places  in  Europe  and  formed  the 
joundation  until  very  recent  times  both  of  the  accepted  or 
standard  text  of  the  Greek  original  and  of  the  Protestant 
translations  of  the  New  Testament. 

Erasmus  lived  for  some  years  after  Luther's  first  attack   Erasmus  and 
on  the  Catholic  Church,  but  though  he  sympathized  with   Luther- 
him  fully  in  his  desire  for  reformation,  he  did  not  agree  with   Reformation, 
Luther  in  several  very  important  matters.     He  did  not  be-   127-132. 
lieve  in  the  use  of  violent  and  revolutionary  methods  to  bring 
about  the  reformation,  while  Luther  preferred  to  break  the 
Church  in  two  rather  than  leave  it  unreformed,  and  he  did 
not  believe  in  the  Augustinian  doctrines  of  theology  which 
Luther  held  to  against  those  of  the  Church.     Erasmus  has 
been  called  a  coward  because  while  he  went  so  far  with 
Luther  in  demanding  a  reformation  he  was  not  ready  to  go 
all  the  way  with  him.     But  Sir  Thomas  More,  who  believed 
as  Erasmus  did,  was  not  a  coward,  for  he  willingly  died  for 
his  convictions,  and  we  have  no  right  to  suppose  that  Eras- 
mus did  not  go  as  far  as  he  honestly  could. 


ij2  Topics 


Topics 

Character  of  the  age.  Meaning  of  the  term  "  Renaissance."  What 
great  work  in  civilization  was  accomplished  during  the  Middle  Ages  ? 
How  much  positive  knowledge  had  the  Middle  Ages  ?  Revivals  of 
learning  before  the  Renaissance.  The  source  and  character  of  scholas- 
ticism. The  rise  and  character  of  the  universities.  Why  did  the  re- 
vival of  learning  come  first  in  Italy  ?  The  relation  of  Dante  to  it. 
What  was  accomplished  by  Petrarch  ?  How  was  Italy  taught  Greek  ? 
In  what  ways  were  the  methods  of  modern  science  first  applied  ?  The 
invention  of  printing  and  its  results.  Characteristics  of  the  Renaissance 
in  the  north  of  Europe.  The  purposes  and  work  of  Erasmus.  Why 
did  he  not  become  a  Protestant  ? 


Topics  for  Assigned  Studies 

The  universities.  Rashdall,  The  Universities  of  Europe  in  the  Middle 
Ages.  2  vols.  (Clarendon.)  Laurie,  The  Rise  of  Universities. 
(Appleton.)  Compayre,  Abelard  and  the  Origin  of  the  Universi- 
ties. (Scribner.)  Mullinger,  Cambridge,  and  Brodrick,  Oxford 
(Epochs  Ch.  Hist.). 

The  medieval  student.  In  Rashdall,  Universities,  Penn.  II.,  No.  3, 
and  Haskins,  Am.  Hist.  Review,  Vol.  III. 

Erasmus.  Drummond,  Erasmus.  2  vols.  Froude,  Life  and  Letters 
of  Erasmus.  (Scribner.)  Both  contain  many  translations  from 
Erasmus.  Translations  of  the  Praise  of  Folly  and  of  the  Collo- 
quies (London ;  Reeves  and  Turner),  and  in  numerous  other 
editions.  Seebohm,  Oxford  Reformers.  (Longmans.)  Very  full 
on  Erasmus'  purposes,  with  translations.  For  political  ideas,  see 
More's  Utopia.  See  also,  Penn.  I.,  No.  I. 


CHAPTER   II 

THE  IMMEDIATE   RESULTS  OF  THE   REVIVAL 

163.  Advance  in  Knowledge.  —  Before  the  end  of  Eras-  Advance  in 
mus'  life   the   intellectual   history  of  the  world  had  been  two  direc' 
carried  forward  in  two  very  different  directions.     In  both 

human  knowledge  had  been  advanced  far  beyond  that  of 
the  classical  times  which  it  had  been  the  especial  object 
of  the  Renaissance  to  restore.  In  one  direction  the  earth 
had  been  explored,  its  form  and  size  determined,  and  new 
continents  laid  open  to  European  enterprise,  and  in  the 
other  the  true  place  of  the  earth  in  the  solar  system  and  its 
relation  to  the  sun  and  the  planets  had  been  determined. 

164.  The  Commercial  Situation  of  the  Fifteenth  Century. —  India  the 
The  increasing  knowledge  of  the  fifteenth  century,  combined  goal* 
with  commercial  ambition  and  rivalry,  led  to  the  great  ex- 
plorations of  the  age.     Then,  as  in  the  time  of  the  crusades, 

the  object  of  the  merchant  was  to  reach  India  and  obtain 
a  share  in  the  exceedingly  profitable  trade  in  Oriental  goods. 
The  new  ambition  of  the  fifteenth  century  was  to  discover 
some  route  by  which  India  itself  might  be  reached,  and 
thus  avoid  the  difficulties  which  beset  the  routes  through 
the  Mohammedan  countries  of  western  Asia  and  Egypt. 
This  was,  besides,  a  real  necessity  for  the  new  nations,  like 
Spain  and  Portugal,  which  were  anxious  to  share  in  the  com- 
merce of  the  time.  The  northern  Mediterranean  routes  were 
practically  closed  by  the  advance  of  the  Turkish  conquests. 
The  natural  and  easy  route  through  Egypt  was  a  virtual 
monopoly  of  the  Venetians  through  the  especially  favorable 
arrangements  which  they  had  with  the  rulers  of  that  country. 


174  Immediate  Results  of  the  Revival       [§  165 


Navigation 
still  cautious. 
Map  of  the 
discoveries, 
Putzger, 
No.  32. 


The  west 
coast  of 
Africa. 
Fiske,  Dis- 
covery of 
America,  I., 
Chap.  IV. 


Some  new  non-Mediterranean  route  to  India  must  be  dis- 
covered, or  the  hope  of  sharing  in  the  riches  of  the  Eastern 
trade  must  be  given  up. 

Long  before  the  beginning  of  the  fifteenth  century  medi- 
eval commerce  had  begun  to  adventure  out  into  the  Atlan- 
tic, though  it  was 
still  timid,  afraid  of 
strange  dangers,  and 
rarely  bold  enough 
to  go  out  of  sight  of 
land.  The  magnetic 
needle  had  become 
known  in  the  West, 
probably  as  early  as 
the  twelfth  century, 
but  its  most  impor- 
tant application  to 
the  art  of  navigation 
was  not  yet  fully  un- 
derstood. The  first 
great  discoveries  of 
the  fifteenth  century 
were  made  by  ex- 
plorers who  still  crept 
along  the  coast  and 
were  unwilling  to  lose 
sight  of  it  for  any 
long  period. 

165.  The  Portu- 
guese Discoveries.— 
These  first  discover- 
ies were  those  of  the 
Portuguese  along  the 
west  coast  of  Africa. 

They  began  perhaps  in  the  desire  of  the  nation  to  con- 
tinue its  conquests  from  the  Moors  in  northwestern  Africa, 
since  further  conquests  in  the  Spanish  peninsula  were  no 


ARMOR  OF  COLUMBUS 

(The  Arsenal,  Madrid) 


1 66] 


Columbus 


175 


longer  possible  on  account  of  the  expansion  of  Castile, 
which  had  reached  the  Atlantic  south  of  Portugal.  It 
was  soon  found,  however,  that  there  were  profitable  arti- 
cles of  commerce  to  be  had  in  Africa,  and  the  Portuguese 
were  attracted  further  down  the  coast.  The  classical  tra- 
dition of  a  passage  around  Africa  was  revived,  and  before 
long  the  Portuguese  became  possessed  with  the  ambition 
of  reaching  India  by  this  route. 

This  direction  was  largely  given  to  their  efforts  by  a  prince 
of  their  royal  family,  Prince  Henry  the  Navigator.  He  took 
up  his  residence  on  the  retired  promontory  of  Cape  St. 
Vincent,  collected  all  the  information  that  he  could,  made 
himself  familiar  with  the  best  scientific  knowledge  of  his 
time,  and  gave  his  life  to  encouraging  the  explorations  of 
his  countrymen  toward  the  south. 

Prince  Henry  did  not  live  to  see  the  final  success  of  his 
plans.  Progress  was  very  slowly  and  cautiously  made. 
About  all  that  each  expedition  did  was  to  turn  one  of  the 
difficult  headlands  on  the  African  coast,  and  learn  that  so 
far  at  least  the  dangers  of  the  ocean  and  the  horrors  of  the 
torrid  zone  were  mythical.  Encouraged  by  this  result,  they 
next  passed  the  next  cape,  and  returned  to  report  their  safety. 
Only  about  1484  was  the  equator  finally  crossed.  The  next 
expedition,  that  of  Bartholomew  Diaz  in  1486,  was  carried 
by  a  storm  around  the  Cape  of  Good  Hope,  as  it  was  named 
on  his  return,  and  found  reason  to  hope  that  the  extremity 
of  the  continent  had  been  reached. 

It  was  ten  years  before  this  discovery  was  followed  up  by 
a  voyage  to  India,  and  in  the  meantime  another  explorer, 
de  Covilham,  going  through  Egypt  and  Ethiopia,  had  crossed 
from  the  east  coast  of  Africa  to  India  and  returned.  In 
1497  Vasco  da  Gama  passed  around  Africa,  sailed  up  the 
east  coast  to  Mozambique,  found  Arabic-speaking  pilots, 
and  crossed  to  India.  After  an  absence  of  over  two  years 
he  returned  to  Lisbon  with  the  goods  of  the  Orient  acquired 
in  a  direct  voyage. 

1 66.   Columbus.  —  Before  Vasco  da  Gama  set  out  upon 


Prince 
Henry  the 
Navigator, 
1394-1460. 


The  Cape 
of  Good 
Hope 
discovered. 


The  Portu- 
guese reach 
India. 
Stephens, 
Portugal, 
185-192. 


Columbus' 
ideas  and 
character. 
Adams, 
Civilization, 
388  ff 


176  Immediate  Results  of  the  Revival       [§  166 

this  voyage,  the  greatest  discovery  of  the  age  had  been 
made.  Columbus  had  come  to  believe,  as  did  the  scholars 
of  his  time  in  common  with  those  of  the  classical  world,  that 
the  earth  is  round.  He  believed  it  to  be  much  smaller  than 


COLUMBUS 


it  is  and  reasoned  that  by  sailing  west  one  could  reach  India 
with  no  very  long  voyage.  He  not  merely  believed  this,  but 
he  had  the  courage  to  risk  everything  to  prove  its  truth. 
The  great  difficulty  which  he  had  to  overcome  was  that  of 
persuading  others  of  its  probability,  the  scholastic  clergy  who 
were  the  advisers  of  kings,  the  kings  themselves  who  must 


§  l67]  Columbus'  Discoveries  177 

furnish  the  means  for  an  expedition,  and  the  sailors  who 
must  man  it,  and  whose  superstitious  terrors  were  especially 
hard  to  overcome.  The  most  remarkable  thing  about  Co- 
lumbus was  not  his  belief  that  by  sailing  west  he  would  reach 
India,  but  it  was  the  courage  which  led  him  to  dare  to  try 
the  voyage  and  to  stick  to  it  until  he  reached  the  land. 
This  marks  better  than  any  other  single  event  of  the  time 
the  age  when  medieval  superstitions  were  dying  out,  and 
modern  knowledge  and  daring  based  on  knowledge  were 
born  together. 

167.  Columbus' Discoveries. — Portugal  and  England  both  America 
declined  to  venture  anything  on  Columbus'  ideas,  and  Spain  dlscovered- 
was  only  with  difficulty  persuaded.     The  voyage  occupied 
far  less  time  than  that  to  India.     He  sailed  on  the  30!  of 
August,  1492,  and  returned  on  the  i5th  of  March  of  the 
next  year  and  announced  his  success.     He  thought  the  coast 
of  Cuba  which  he  had  reached  was  that  of  the  continent  of 
Asia,  and  he  believed  he  had  opened  a  new  route  to  India. 
In  a  later  voyage  he  did  touch  the  continent  of  South  Amer- 
ica, but  not  until  after  North  America  had  been  seen  by 
Cabot  in  the  employ  of  England.     For  as  soon  as  the  sue-   Other  ex- 
cess and  safety  of  these  distant  expeditions  were  proved,  all  Plorers- 

r       u         «       L.  T-i      jj°ld  South, 

nations  became  ambitious  ot  a  share  in  them.     England  and   ^os. 

France  joined  Spain  and  Portugal  in  exploration,  and  new   17,20,34-37; 
discoveries  were  almost  daily  made.     Especially  important   Le^f^os 
were  the  discovery  of  the  Pacific  Ocean  by  Balboa  in  1513,  and  13; 
and  the  voyage  of  Magellan,  who  set  out  in   1519,  passed   Cassell's 
through  the  straits  at  the  southern  extremity  of  South  Amer-   ^^ 
ica  which  now  bear  his  name,  crossed  the  Pacific,  to  which   No.  32. 
he  gave  its  name,  and  really  reached  the  East  Indies  too  late 
to  undeceive  Columbus,  who  died  supposing  that  he  had  done 
this.     There  he  was  killed  by  the  natives,  but  his  lieutenant 
continued  the  voyage  to  the  west,  passed  the  Cape  of  Good 
Hope,  and  finally  returned  to  Spain,  proving  the  earth  to  be 
a  sphere  and  obtaining  the  first  real  evidence  of  its  size. 

The  share  of  these  events  in  the  great  intellectual  revolu-   A  new  age 
tion  of  the  age  is  nowhere  very  fully  indicated  by  the  writers  intellectually- 


Immediate  Results  of  the  Revival        [§  168 


Commerce 
oceanic. 


of  the  time,  but  it  must  have  been  very  large.  The  geographi- 
cal horizon  could  not  be  so  enormously  widened  without  a 
corresponding  broadening  of  human  vision  in  all  directions. 
Mankind  were  entering  into  possession  of  a  whole  world  of 
knowledge  and  new  ideas,  as  they  were  physically  into  the 
possession  of  the  whole  globe. 


CORTES 

168.  The  Economic  Results.  —  In  another  direction,  in  the 
economic  conditions  of  the  world,  as  great  a  revolution  was 
wrought  by  these  events  as  in  the  intellectual.  Commerce 
ceased  to  be  Mediterranean  and  became  oceanic,  as  it  is  to- 
day. The  Mediterranean  Sea  was  no  longer  the  centre  of 
the  world.  The  countries  open  to  the  Atlantic,  like  Spain, 
Portugal,  Holland,  and  England,  became  the  great  commer- 
cial nations  of  Europe.  Venice  lost  her  supremacy,  though 
she  struggled  hard  to  maintain  it.  Lisbon  became  in  sue- 


§  169]     First  Great  Step  in  Physical  Science        179 

cession  the  distributing  point  of  Oriental  goods,  and  the 
Portuguese  founded  the  first  European  empire  in  the  East 
Indies.  The  consumer  shared  in  the  benefits  of  these 
changes,  for  the  price  of  spices  fell  to  one-half  at  a  single 
stroke.  At  the  same  time  the  stores  of  the  precious  metals  increased 
of  Mexico  and  Peru  began  to  be  poured  into  the  markets  of  q^n^cl 
Europe  as  a  result  of  the  Spanish  discoveries  and  conquests  siiver. 
in  America.  While  the  goods  imported  into  Europe  fell  in 
price  in  consequence  of  the  better  commercial  facilities  of 
the  time,  those  produced  by  labor  in  Europe  itself  sold  for 
higher  prices  because  of  the  declining  value  of  gold  and 
silver.  It  was  a  time  of  improvement  and  prosperity  for  the 
laboring  classes  where  they  were  economically  free  enough 
to  take  advantage  of  the  rise  in  prices,  as  they  were  in  Eng- 
land and  in  most  of  France.  Where  they  were  not  able  to 
dispose  freely  of  their  labor  and  its  products,  as  in  Germany, 
it  was  a  time  of  great  discontent  and  of  attempts  to  change 
their  conditions  by  violence  and  insurrection,  as  we  shall  see 
hereafter. 

169.  The  First  Great  Step  in  Physical  Science.  —  While  Copernicus, 
Columbus  and  the  Portuguese  were  laying  open  the  earth  to  1473-IS43- 
human  knowledge,  another  great  explorer  was  tracing  out 
the  geography  of  the  solar  system.  This  was  Copernicus, 
who  was  born  in  Poland  in  1473.  He  was  sent  to  Italy  to 
complete  his  university  studies,  and  there  became  especially 
interested  in  mathematics  and  astronomy.  Very  early  in 
his  studies  he  came  to  the  conclusion  that  there  must  be  a 
simpler  explanation  of  the  movements  of  the  heavenly 
bodies  than  the  one  which  everybody  believed  at  the  time, 
the  ancient  Ptolemaic,  which  made  the  earth  the  centre  of 
the  universe.  The  scientific 

That   real   science   had  now  begun,  as  compared  with  method  of 
medieval  methods  of  study,  can  be  seen  in  the  fact  that  no  Fo^hTs^own 
more  correct  methods  of  investigation  could  be  employed  statement  of 
to-day  in  the  study  of  a  similar  problem  than  those  which  his  method. 

_,         J    .  ,    J  see  Yale  Re- 

Copermcus  used.     He  first  examined  the  ancient  scientific  vieWf  I>  l60i 
writings  to  see  if  any  suggestion  of  another  explanation  had  n.  &. 


i8o  Immediate  Results  of  the  Revival        [§  169 

been  made,  and  found  in  them  a  theory  which  seemed  to 
him  more  reasonable.  Then  he  began  to  study  and  com- 
pare all  the  observations  which  he  could  find  recorded  and 
others  which  he  made  himself,  until  he  was  convinced  that 
this  theory  accorded  with  the  facts  much  better  than  the 
Ptolemaic.  All  his  life,  however,  he  devoted  to  the  collec- 
tion of  further  proof,  which  was  at  the  beginning  of  modern 


The  first 
work  of 
modern 
science. 


LORENZO  MAGNIFICO 

From  a  portrait  in  Berlin 

astronomy,  without  observatories  or  instruments,  a  very 
slow  and  difficult  process.  His  conclusions  he  did  not  pub- 
lish until  the  very  end  of  his  life  in  1543.  A  copy  of  the 
printed  book  was  brought  to  him  as  he  lay  on  his  death-bed. 
This  was  the  first  great  step  in  the  advance  of  modern 
science,  and  two  things  about  it  are  especially  important  to 
notice.  The  first  is  that  it  begins  in  the  use  of  a  new 
method,  that  of  observation  and  comparison.  The  second 


Art  and  Literature 


181 


is  that  our  science  rests  upon  the  work  which  the  students 
of  the  ancient  world  accomplished  in  their  time,  and  this  is 
as  true  of  the  other  sciences  as  it  is  of  astronomy. 

170.  The  End  of  the  Renaissance. — When  Copernicus' 
book  was  published,  Erasmus  had  long  been  dead,  and  civil 
war  was  just  about  to  begin  between  the  Protestants  and  the 
Catholics  in  Germany,  the  first  in  a  long  series  of  civil  wars 
over  religion  which  laid  waste  almost  every  country  of 
Europe.  In  these  political  revolutions  and  conflicts,  the 
age  of  the  Renaissance  came  to  an  end.  It  had  been  an 
age  of  wonderful  intellectual  progress,  and  it  had  prepared 
the  way  for  other  great  changes,  and  made  them  necessary. 
It  is  not  unnatural  that  these  now  occupied  the  chief  atten- 
tion of  men  to  the  comparative  exclusion  of  science  and 
the  pursuit  of  knowledge.  After  an  interval  of  almost  a 
hundred  years,  another  age  of  great  scientific  discovery 
comes  on,  the  seventeenth  century. 

171.  Art  and  Literature.  —  Great  as  was  the  Renaissance 
on  its  purely  intellectual  side,  it  was  even  greater  as  an  age 
of  art  and  literature.  In  this  direction,  again,  Italy  led  the 
world,  and  her  achievement  in  the  fifteenth  and  early  six- 
teenth centuries,  in  the  fine  arts  at  least,  remains  to  the 
present  time  unequalled.  The  great  wealth  with  which  her 
cities  were  stored  was  employed  with  lavish  hand  to  en- 
courage artists  of  all  kinds  and  to  beautify  both  the  cities 
and  private  residences  with  every  species  of  art.  Of  the 
rulers  the  Medici  at  Florence  are  especially  famous  for 
their  liberal  patronage  of  art  and  literature,  and  many  of 
the  popes,  like  Nicholas  V.,  who  founded  the  Vatican  library, 
strove  to  make  Rome  the  capital  of  the  world  in  literature 
and  art  as  in  religion. 

The  names  of  the  greatest  of  these  artists  are  familiar  to 
all  the  world,  Leonardo  da  Vinci,  Raphael,  and  Michael 
Angelo,  whose  long  life  spans  almost  the  whole  of  the 
period,  but  there  is  a  crowd  of  lesser  names  which  would 
have  rendered  any  less  wonderful  age  illustrious.  Correg- 
gio,  Titian,  and  Cellini  are  only  less  famous  than  those  first 


The  Renais- 
sance ends 
in  an  age  of 
revolution. 
In  Italy, 
Symonds, 
Catholic 
Reaction,  I. 
204-228. 


Favorable 
conditions  in 
Italy. 


The  artists 
of  Italy. 


Italian 
literature. 


Art  and 
literature  in 
northern 
Europe. 


182  Immediate  Results  of  the  Revival       [§  171 

named.  The  age  is  distinguished  also  by  the  fact  that  its 
artists  are  almost  equally  great  in  more  than  one  branch  of 
art  at  the  same  time.  Michael  Angelo,  for  example,  is  an 
artist  of  the  first  rank  in  sculpture,  painting,  and  architect- 
ure at  once. 

In  the  literature  of  the  age,  Italy  is  not  so  unrivalled  as  in 
art,  and  no  work  of  these  generations  equals  the  earlier  work 
of  Dante  and  of  Petrarch.  But  Ariosto  in  poetry,  and 
Machiavelli  in  history,  and  in  the  scientific  observation  of 
politics,  are  names  which  will  never  be  forgotten. 

Northern  Europe  in  the  last  age  of  the  Renaissance  pro- 
duced a  few  names  which  are  still  remembered.  Holbein 
and  Albert  Diirer  in  art,  and  Hans  Sachs  and  Ulrich  von 
Hutten  in  literature  belong  to  Germany.  Holland  had  led 
the  way  in  the  north  in  painting  and  had  done  much  to  im- 
prove the  methods  of  the  art.  France,  if  she  produced  no 
great  artists  of  her  own,  called  those  of  Italy  into  her  ser- 
vice—  both  Leonardo  da  Vinci  and  Cellini  spent  some  time 
at  Paris  —  and  in  literature  she  gave  us  Montaigne  and 
Rabelais. 


Topics 

What  was  the  motive  of  exploration  in  the  fifteenth  century  ?  The 
character  of  fifteenth  century  navigation.  The  discoveries  made  by  the 
Portuguese.  The  characteristics  of  Columbus.  His  and  other  discov- 
eries in  the  West.  The  economic  results  of  the  age  of  discoveries. 
Copernicus'  method  of  work  and  his  discoveries.  What  brought  the 
age  of  the  Renaissance  to  an  end  ?  The  art  and  literature  of  the  age. 


Topics  for  Assigned  Studies 

Prince  Henry  of  Portugal.  Beazley,  Prince  Henry  (Heroes). 
Stephens,  Portugal  (Nations),  Chap.  VII. 

Columbus.  Fiske,  Discovery  of  America.  2vols.  (Houghton.)  His 
difficulties  and  the  discovery,  I.,  Chap.  IV.  Toscannelli's  letter  to 
Columbus,  I.  356.  Winsor,  Columbus.  (Houghton.)  The  dis- 
covery, Chap.  IX.  Old  South,  Nos.  29,  33,  71.  Am.  Hist.  Leaf., 
No.  i. 


CHAPTER   III 

REVOLUTION  ATTEMPTED  IN  THE  GOVERNMENT  OF 
THE  CHURCH 


172.  The  Papacy  at  Avignon.  —  In  the  early  years  of  the 
fifteenth  century,  at  a  time  when  the  revival  of  learning  was 
just  beginning,  events  of  a  very  different  sort  were  occurring 
which  had  an  important  share  in  preparing  the  way  for  the 
great  religious  revolution  which  brought  the  age  of  the  Re- 
naissance to  an  end.  A  great  change  in  the  position  and 
character  of  the  papacy  had  been  brought  about  as  a  result 
of  the  quarrel  between  Boniface  VIII.  and  Philip  IV.  of 
France.  Boniface  entertained  the  highest  ideas  of  the  rights 
and  duties  of  the  pope  in  the  world,  the  logical  conclusion 
of  the  position  created  by  the  great  popes,  Gregory  VII. 
and  Innocent  III.,  but  he  found  that  decided  changes  had 
taken  place  in  the  last  few  generations.  Strong  national 
governments  had  been  forming,  and  these  disputed  his  claims 
to  authority,  especially  those  of  France  and  England.  The 
conflict  with  France  was  a  bitter  one,  and  it  resulted  in  the 
death  of  Boniface.  Shortly  afterward  Philip  IV.  secured 
the  election  of  a  French  pope,  and  persuaded  him  and  his  fol- 
lowers in  succession  to  leave  the  city  of  Rome  and  to  take  up 
their  residence  in  Avignon  on  the  Rhone,  where  they  came 
almost  completely  under  the  influence  of  the  kings  of  France, 
with  the  result  to  make  the  other  states,  especially  those  that 
were  on  friendly  terms  with  France,  suspicious  of  the  mo- 
tives of  the  popes  and  reluctant  to  obey  them  as  formerly. 

There  was  another  result  also  of  this  change  of  residence 
which  was  no  less  important.  The  love  of  luxury  and  of 

183 


The  pontifi- 
cate of  Boni- 
face VIII. , 
1294-1303. 


See  his  bulls. 
Gee  and 
Hardy,  87 ; 
Henderson, 
432-437. 


The  removal 
from  Rome 
to  Avignon. 
Adams, 
Civilization, 
Chap.  XVI. 


1 84 


Revolution  Attempted  [§§  i?3»  J74 


The  growth 
of  luxury  in 
the  Church. 
Poole. 
Wycliffe. 


Pastor, 
Popes,  I. 
58-75. 
See  the 
English 
statutes  of 
Provisors 
and  Praemu- 
nire,  Gee 
and  Hardy, 
103,  112-125; 
Penn.  II., 
No.  5,  and 
declaration 
of  German 
Diet;   Hen- 
derson, 437. 

Popes  at 

Rome  and  at 

Avignon, 

1378.  Fisher, 

Church 

History, 

250-254  ; 

Poole, 

Wycli/e, 

126-130. 

The  effect  of 
the  schism. 
Pastor, 
Popes,  I. 
138-159. 


Reform  ideas 
growing 
more 
extreme. 


extravagant  ways  of  living  seems  to  have  grown  rapidly  in 
the  new  capital.  The  expenses  of  a  brilliant  court  were 
always  increasing,  and  new  methods  of  enlarging  the 
revenues  of  the  papacy  must  be  constantly  devised.  This 
produced  of  course  further  dissatisfaction  throughout  the 
Church.  Everywhere  men  began  to  feel  that  the  luxury  of 
the  clergy  was  opposed  to  the  real  simplicity  of  Christianity, 
and  the  demand  for  a  moral  reformation  in  head  and  mem- 
bers soon  made  itself  heard,  and  as  a  preliminary  step  to 
this  that  the  popes  should  return  to  Rome  as  the  divinely 
appointed  capital  of  the  Christian  world.  Petrarch  gives 
voice  to  this  demand  in  several  of  his  Italian  poems. 
Finally  in  1378  Gregory  XL,  under  the  especial  influence  of 
St.  Catherine  of  Sienna,  did  return  to  Rome. 

173.  The  Great  Schism.  —  On  his  death  there  was  much 
excitement  in  the  city.     The  people  demanded  the  election 
of  a  pope  who  would  remain  at  Rome,  and  Urban  VI.  was 
chosen.     But  the  French  cardinals  were  unwilling  to  give 
up  the  more  enjoyable  life  of  Avignon,  and,  asserting  that 
the  first  election  had  been  forced  by  the  mob,  they  elected 
another  pope,  who  took  up  his  residence  at  Avignon.     There 
were  thus  two  popes  at  once.     Each  one  claimed  to  be  the 
only  rightful  pope,  and  each  proclaimed  the  excommunica- 
tion and  deposition  of  the  other. 

Such  a  condition  of  things  was  violently  opposed  to  the  be- 
lief of  the  time  that  the  Church  must  be  one  and  undivided. 
The  people  of  the  West  were  obliged  to  divide  themselves 
between  the  two  popes,  and  the  result  was  great  confusion 
and  uncertainty.  Governments  were  influenced  in  their 
obedience  mainly  by  political  reasons,  and  disputes  as  to 
rights  and  authority  were  of  constant  occurrence.  Naturally 
also  the  cost  of  maintaining  two  courts  was  greater  than  that 
of  one,  and  the  financial  burdens  kept  growing  heavier  and 
heavier. 

174.  The  Demand  for  Reform.  — The  demand  for  reform 
became  louder  and  louder.     The  university  of  Paris  took 
the  lead  in  efforts  to  heal  the  schism.     The  first  attempt  was 


I75l       Wycliffe's  Attempt  at  Reformation 


I8S 


to  get  the  two  popes  to  resign  at  the  same  time,  to  leave 
the  way  open  for  the  election  of  a  single  pope  on  whom  all 
Europe  could  unite.  This  failed  through  the  fear  of  each 
pope  that  the  other  would  gain  some  advantage  over  him  in 
the  process.  Then  the  university  and  others  began  to  ad- 
vocate the  idea  that  a  general  council  as  representing  the 
whole  Church  would  have  a  right  to  depose  a  pope,  if  there 
were  any  sufficient  reason  for  such  a  step,  and  to  elect  an- 
other in  his  place. 

This  was  an  idea  full  of  danger  for  the  strong  monarchy 
of  the  popes  which  had  been  forming  in  the  Church  since 
very  early  in  its  history.  If  it  should  come  to  be  believed 
that  a  council  could  depose  a  pope  who  refused  to  resign, 
then  there  would  be  an  authority  in  the  Church  higher  than 
the  pope,  and  a  limited  monarchy  would  be  the  result. 
Just  at  present,  however,  there  seemed  to  be  no  other  way 
out  of  the  difficulty. 

In  1409  a  council  met  at  Pisa  which  had  been  called  by 
some  of  the  cardinals.  It  declared  both  the  popes  deposed 
and  elected  one  to  take  their  place,  who  took  the  name  of 
Alexander  V.  But  neither  of  the  other  popes  would  yield, 
and  as  each  had  still  some  adherents,  and  was  still  acknow- 
ledged by  a  part  of  the  Church,  while  the  rest  obeyed  the 
new  pope,  there  were  now  three  popes,  and  matters  were 
worse  than  ever. 

175.  Wycliffe's  Attempt  at  Reformation.  —  In  the  mean- 
time this  unsettling  of  old  beliefs  and  this  demand  for  a 
reformation  in  the  lives  of  the  clergy  had  been  favorable  to 
the  rise  here  and  there  of  parties  who  insisted  upon  more 
decisive  changes.  In  England  Wycliffe,  beginning  perhaps 
in  support  of  the  political  opposition  of  the  State  to  the 
pope  at  Avignon,  and  in  demanding  simpler  living  on  the 
part  of  the  clergy,  had  gone  on  to  attack  some  of  the  funda- 
mental beliefs  of  the  Catholic  Church,  to  insist  on  the  right 
of  every  one  to  read  the  Bible  in  English,  and  to  take, 
indeed,  almost  the  same  positions  as  the  Protestants  after- 
wards. He  was  protected  by  the  duke  of  Lancaster  during 


Fisher, 

Christian 

Church, 

254-256; 

Poole, 

Wycliffe, 

131-137; 
Pastor, 
Popes,  I. 
76-83. 


The  danger 

to  the 

papacy. 

Alzog, 

Church 

History,  II. 

922-926. 


The  council 
of  Pisa  in- 
creases the 
difficulty. 
Pastor, 
Popes,  I. 
178-191. 


Wycliffe's 
ideas. 
Wycliffe's 
New  Testa- 
ment, and 
books  from 
his  Old 
Testament, 
editions  of 
Skeat 
(Clarendon). 

Poole, 
Wycliffe, 
61-111; 
Social  Eng- 
land, II. 
157-172. 


1 86 


Revolution  Attempted          [§§  i?6>  i?7 


The  persecu- 
tion of  the 
Lollards. 
Gee  and 
Hardy,  no 
and  126-139. 


Wycliffe's 

ideas  carried 

to  Bohemia. 

Poole, 

Wycliffe, 

151-165; 

Alzog, 

Church 

History,  II. 

952-967. 


Religious 
and  political 
reform 
together. 


his  life,  so  that  the  Church  was  not  able  to  put  an  end  to  his 
teachings.  They  were  accepted  by  a  considerable  body  of 
people  in  England  who  are  known  as  Lollards,  and  some 
of  them  encouraged  the  peasants  in  their  insurrection  under 
Wat  Tyler,  though  this  was  not  intended  by  Wycliffe. 
When  the  house  of  Lancaster  came  to  the  throne  in  Eng- 
land it  no  longer  agreed  with  their  policy  to  protect  the 
Lollards,  and  in  the  persecution  which  followed  these  very 
soon  disappeared  as  a  party,  though  there  is  some  evidence 
that  their  teachings  were  cherished  among  the  common 
people  until  the  time  of  the  Protestant  reformation. 

176.  Huss  and  the  Hussites. — Although   the    Lollards 
were  destroyed  in  England,  the  teachings  of  Wycliffe  were 
carried  to  Bohemia,  and  there  gave  rise  to  a  new  demand 
for   great   changes,  and  to  a  violent  religious   and    racial 
civil  war.     At  the  time  of  Wycliffe  there  was  a  close  con- 
nection between  the  universities  of  Prague  and  Oxford,  ai?d 
many  Bohemian  students  learned  the  doctrines  of  Wycliffe 
and  brought  his  books  home  with  them.     In  Bohemia  John 
Huss  became  the  leader  of  this  party  which,  like  Wycliffe's, 
was  almost  the   same    as   the  Protestant,  and   which   was 
rapidly  extended  by  the  ability  and  influence  of  Huss. 

There  was  at  that  time,  as  we  have  already  seen,  a  race 
conflict  going  on  in  Bohemia,  as  there  is  to-day,  a  part  of 
that  struggle  on  the  border  line  between  Slav  and  German 
which  runs  through  all  history.  In  the  mind  of  the  Bohe- 
mian the  party  of  Huss  and  of  reform  became  identical 
with  the  party  of  national  independence,  and  so  drew  to 
itself  a  powerful  national  support.  Wycliffe's  teachings 
were  formally  condemned  by  the  Church,  and  then  those 
of  Huss,  but  he  refused  to  recognize  the  authority  of  the 
Church  in  such  matters  and  publicly  burned  the  papal  bull 
as  did  Luther  afterwards. 

177.  The  Council  of  Constance.  —  This  was  the  situation, 
then,  in  the  Church  when  a  second  general  council  met. 
There  were  three  popes  contending  with  one  another ;  the 
Church  was    divided   between   them ;    there    was   a  loud 


§  1 78]  The  Council  and  Huss  187 

demand  for  moral  and  financial  reforms  ;  and  the  Bohemian  The  council 
nation  in  open  opposition  to  the  pope  was  insisting  upon  °fConstancc 
still  more  sweeping  changes.     There  was  surely  need  of  a  ptsher,41 
great  council  if  ever.     It  was  called  first  through  the  influ-    Church 
ence   of  the   emperor   Sigismund,   the   temporal   head   of  H^ory^ 
Christendom,  and  on  the  eve  of  the  meeting  of  the  council   p00ie, 
this  call  was  repeated  by  Gregory  XII.,  the  pope  at  Rome 
whom  the  Church  regards  as  the  one  legitimate  pope.     It 
was  a  large  and  brilliant  assemblage  which  met  at  Con- 
stance at  the  end  of  1414,  and  it  was  thoroughly  represen- 
tative of  the  Church  in  the  West. 

The  council  decided  that  its  first  duty  was  to  heal  the  The  Church 
schism  and  give  to  the  Church  one  universally  acknowledged  united  under 
head.     It  secured  the  voluntary  abdication  of  Gregory  XII. 
The  other  two  popes,  who  refused  to  abdicate,  it  deposed, 
and  their  adherents  withdrew  their  obedience.     Then  with 
some  representatives  of  the  council  added  to  their  body  the 
cardinals  elected  a  new  pope,  Martin  V.,  and  the  division 
of  the  Church  was  at  an  end. 

178.   The  Council  and  Huss.  —  Before  this  work,  which   Huss 
occupied  many  months,  was  completed,  the  case  of  Huss  condemned, 
had  been  taken  up  for  decision  by  the  council.     As  some 
of  his  teachings  were  clearly  in  opposition  to  the  accepted 
doctrines  of  the  Church,  and  as  he  refused  to  give  up  his 
right  of  deciding  for  himself  or  to  acknowledge  the  supreme 
authority  in  matters  of  belief  of  a  general  council  of  the 
Church,  he  was  condemned  and  burnt  as  a  heretic.     His 
friend  and  follower,  Jerome  of  Prague,  suffered  the  same 
fate.     But  the  Bohemians  refused  to  submit.     Some  efforts 
of  the  king  to  repress  the  national  movement   were   fol- 
lowed by  open  insurrection.     The  emperor  Sigismund,  who  Tne  Hussites 
shortly  after  inherited  the  throne,  was  able  to  pacify  the  resist. 
country  only  after  long  years  of  bloody  war,  in  which  not  A^0P*  249' 
merely  Bohemia,  but  neighboring  states  of  Germany,  suf-    church 
fered  severely.     He  succeeded  in  the  end  only  by  impor-  History,  II. 
tant  concessions  to  the  demands  of  the  Bohemian  reformers, 
which  were  made  with  the  consent  of  the  council  of  Basle. 


188 


Revolution  Attempted 


[§ 


The 

attempted 

change  of 

Church 

constitution. 

Adams, 

Civilization, 

410-415. 


The  papacy 
escapes  this 
danger. 


One  of  their  demands  which  was  allowed  them,  the  right  to 
receive  the  wine  as  well  as  the  bread  in  the  celebration  of  the 
mass,  had  given  a  name  to  their  party,  that  of  the  Utraquists 
or  Calixtines. 

179.  The  Council  fails  to  reform  Government  or  Conduct. 
—  In  the  matter  of  the  moral  and  financial  reform  of  the 
Church  the  council  of  Constance  did  not  succeed  so  well. 
The  rules  which  it  adopted,  it  had  no  means  of  enforcing, 
and  the  temptation  to  abuses  continued  too  strong  to  resist. 
The  most  important  regulation  which  it  passed  called  for 
the  meeting  of  other  general  councils  at  stated  intervals,  to 
exercise  a  general  supervision  of  the  government  of  the 
Church  as  a  supreme  legislative  body  representing  the  whole 
of  Christendom.  Had  this  regulation  been  carried  out  it 
would  have  changed  the  constitution  of  the  Church.  The 
pope  could  not  be  the  supreme  head  of  the  Church  under 
such  an  arrangement,  and  a  great  degree  of  national  inde- 
pendence and  perhaps  of  local  diversity  of  beliefs  and  forms 
would  have  been  easily  possible. 

The  papacy  recognized  the  danger  at  this  crisis  of  its 
history  and  skilfully  prevented  the  growth  of  a  system  of 
regular  councils.  The  council  of  Basle,  which  attempted  to 
carry  on  the  ideas  of  the  council  of  Constance,  ended  in 
ignominious  failure,  and  though  the  Church  of  France  suc- 
ceeded at  the  time,  in  the  Pragmatic  Sanction  of  Bourges, 
in  securing  considerable  national  independence,  the  process 
went  no  further.  The  reformation,  which  had  been  sought 
by  constitutional  means  within  the  Church,  was  to  come  a 
hundred  years  later,  but  it  was  to  succeed  only  by  means  of 
revolution  and  civil  conflict. 


Topics  189 


Topics 

What  were  the  events  which  led  to  the  removal  of  the  papacy  from 
Rome  to  Avignon  ?  What  was  the  effect  on  the  character  and  position 
of  the  papacy?  How  did  the  "great  schism"  arise?  How  did  the 
efforts  to  heal  the  schism  endanger  the  position  of  the  pope?  The 
result  of  the  council  of  Pisa.  What  were  the  reform  ideas  of  Wycliffe? 
The  fate  of  the  Lollards.  Where  were  Wycliffe's  ideas  carried  on? 
What  other  influence  strengthened  the  party  of  Huss?  What  did  the 
council  of  Constance  do  in  regard  to  the  schism?  In  regard  to  Huss? 
Why  did  it  not  succeed  in  reforming  the  Church? 


Topics  for  Assigned  Studies 

Wycliffe.  See  references  in  the  text.  Sergeant,  Wyclif.  (Heroes.) 
Alzog,  Church  History,  II.  947-952.  Gee  and  Hardy,  105-112. 
Wycliffe's  Septem  Hereses,  in  Pamphlet  Library,  Religious  Pam- 
phlets. (Holt.)  Penn.  II.,  No.  5. 

The  council  of  Constance.  See  references  in  the  text.  Pastor,  Popes, 
I.  195-207.  Alzog,  II.  858-874.  Penn.  III.,  No.  6. 


CHAPTER   IV 


Changes  of 
the  fifteenth 
century. 


France 
under 
Louis  XI., 
1461-1483. 


THE  POLITICAL  CHANGES  OF  THE  AGE 

1 80.  Politics  become  International.  — The  Protestant  revo- 
lution of  the  sixteenth  century  was  dependent  for  its  success 
upon  the  great  intellectual  changes  of  the  fifteenth  century, 
and  also  upon  the  long-continued  repression  and  failure  of 
earlier  attempts  at  reformation.     But  it  was  also  dependent 
in  no  small  degree  for  the  character  of  its  success  and  for 
its  geographical  distribution  upon  the  political  situation  of 
Europe  at  the  time.     The  last  half  of  the  fifteenth  century 
was  an  age  of  transformation  in  the  political  sphere  as  far 
reaching  as  any  of  the  other  changes  of  the  time.     It  is  the 
age  from  which  we  must  date  the  rise  of  modern  international 
politics,  the  rivalries  of  governments,  now  well  organized  and 
stable,  with  one  another  for  the  possessions  of  their  weaker 
neighbors,  for  conquests  at  the  expense  of  one  another,  and 
even  for  a  position  of  supremacy  in  Europe.     Such  rivalries 
had  been  of  course  foreshadowed  in  medieval  times,  when 
circumstances  allowed,  but  they  had  been  the  occasional  and 
not  the  ordinary  concern  of  the  governments.     In  the  last 
years  of  the  fifteenth  century  was  laid  the  foundation  for  the 
rivalry  between  France  and  the  house  of  Hapsburg  which 
lasted  for  centuries  and  involved  Europe  in  many  disastrous 
wars.      The    beginning  was   in  the  conflicting   claims   and 
interests  of  France  and  Spain. 

181.  The    Condition   of    France. — We   have   seen   how 
France  emerged  from  the  Hundred  Years'  War  with  England 
under  Charles  VII.  with  the  monarchy  almost  absolute,  and 
how  the  next  king,  Louis  XL,  defeated  the  efforts  of  the 

190 


§  l82]  The  Creation  of  Spain  191 

great  nobles  and  princes  to  destroy  the  royal  authority,  as 
well  as  those  of  the  duke  of  Burgundy,  Charles  the  Bold,  to 
form  an  independent  kingdom  between  France  and  Germany. 
Louis  XL  had  seen  clearly  enough  that  the  interests  of  France 
and  Spain  abroad  were  likely  to  lead  to  a  collision  between 
them.  In  his  efforts  to  watch  the  plans  of  Spain  and  to  pre- 
pare to  meet  them,  he  had  done  much  to  introduce  the 
machinery  of  modern  diplomacy,  especially  that  of  resident 
foreign  ministers.  But  the  domestic  problems  of  France 
were  still  so  pressing  during  his  reign,  there  was  still  so  much 
to  be  done  to  consolidate  both  the  kingdom  and  the  royal 
power,  that  he  was  not  free  to  throw  his  whole  strength  into 
a  foreign  war. 

182.    The  Creation  of  Spain.  —  The  same  thing  was  only  The  reign  of 
a  little  less  true  of  Ferdinand  of  Spain.     His  reign  was  much   Ferdinand, 
longer  than  that  of  Louis  and  continued  on  into  the  sixteenth  conquest 
century  and  the  time  of  open  war,  but  during  the  first  years   and  union, 
of  his  rule  he  was  occupied  with  the  same  problems  as  the 
king  of  France.     The  double  process  of  conquering  all  the 
territory  of  Spain  from  the  Moors  and  of  uniting  all  the  Chris- 
tian kingdoms  into  a  single  one,  which  had  been  going  on 
for  so  many  centuries,  was  to  be  completed.     In  1492,  the 
year  of  the  discovery  of  America,  the  last  Moorish  kingdom, 
Granada,  was  annexed.     Already  by  the  marriage  of  Ferdi- 
nand and  Isabella,  the  two  largest  Christians  states,  Castile 
and  Aragon,  had  been  brought  together.     Only  in  1512  was 
Ferdinand  able  to  seize  the  Spanish  half  of  Navarre.     Por- 
tugal he  never  obtained,  though  he  laid  skilful  plans  through 
the  intermarriage  of  the  royal  families  to  bring  about  the 
union  in  time. 

In  the  other  direction,  in  his  efforts  to  form  a  centralized  Absolutism 
and  absolute  monarchy,  he  did  not  come  so  near  complete   created* 
success,  but  he  did  much  more  than  to  make  the  beginning. 
During  the  last  century  there  had  been  much  anarchy  in 
Spain.     Under   the   strong   government  of  Ferdinand  and 
Isabella  this  was  brought  to  a  speedy  end.     The  influence 
of  the  great  nobles  in  public   affairs  was   reduced.      The 


192 


Political  Changes  of  the  Age    [§§  183, 184 


Economic 
mistakes  of 
intolerance. 
Prescott, 
Ferdinand 
and  Isabella, 
Pt.  I.,  Chap. 
XVII.,  and 
Pt.  II., 
Chap.  VII. 


Spain,  the 
first  great 
power  of 
Europe. 


The  policy  of 
Henry  VII. 
Green, 
English 


lawyers  were  called  in  to  take  their  place.  Their  castles 
were  destroyed  unless  they  served  the  national  defence. 
Many  robber  barons  were  severely  dealt  with.  The  sov- 
ereigns also  formed  a  virtual  alliance  with  the  league  of  the 
cities,  and  thus  secured  a  strong  support  against  the  nobles 
and  a  military  force  independent  of  the  feudal  levies  which 
proved  of  considerable  value  for  a  time,  as  in  the  conquest 
of  Granada.  Over  the  national  Church  of  Spain,  Ferdinand 
and  Isabella  also  secured  control  and  the  right  of  making 
nominations  to  its  higher  offices. 

183.  Result  of  Ferdinand's  Policy,  Remote  and  Immedi- 
ate. —  One  serious  mistake  of  policy  was  due  to  the  narrow- 
ness and  intolerance  of  the  age.     In  1492  all  the  Jews  who 
remained  faithful  to  their  religion  were  ordered  to  leave  the 
country.      They  were  very  numerous  in  Spain  and  added 
much  to  its  wealth.     A  little  later  the  unconverted  Moors 
of  Granada  were  expelled  in  the  same  way,  though  they  had 
made  a  garden  of  the  land.     These  were  hard  blows  struck 
at  the  economic  prosperity  of  Spain,  but  the  effects  were 
only  slowly  felt,  or  were  for  a  long  time  concealed  by  the 
artificial  sources  of  wealth  which  were  at   the  same   time 
opened  in  America. 

In  that  generation  Spain  suddenly  rose  from  a  group  of 
weak  and  unorganized  states  to  be  a  powerful  monarchy, 
and  the  first  aspirant  for  a  European  supremacy.  Ferdinand 
saw  clearly  that  France  would  be  the  most  dangerous  rival 
of  Spain  for  this  position,  and  the  chief  object  of  his  foreign 
policy  was  to  unite  the  interests  of  the  other  great  states  of 
Europe  with  those  of  Spain  and  so  to  combine  them  all 
against  France.  The  marriage  alliances  which  he  formed 
to  further  this  policy  with  England  and  the  house  of  Haps- 
burg  exercised  an  influence  over  later  history  such  as  few 
royal  marriages  have  done. 

184.  England.  —  In   England  the   third    quarter  of  the 
fifteenth  century  is  filled  with  the  Wars  of  the  Roses,  which 
closed  in  1485  with  the  coming  to  the  throne  of  Henry  VII. 
of  the  house  of  Tudor,  who  united  the  warring  factions  by 


§§  185, 1 86]  Germany  —  Italy  193 

his  marriage  with  Elizabeth  of  York,  daughter  of  Edward  IV.   People,  II. 

The  chief  object  of  his  reign  was  to  secure  the  permanent  ^"77 ; 

r    i  •     7-      r       -i  j  •  i  •      Moberly, 

possession  of  the  crown  in  his  family,  and  it  was  more  this  Earfy 

than  any  plans  of  active  interference  on  the  continent  that  Tudors 

led  to  the  Spanish  marriage  which  was  to  prove  so  eventful  ??°.chs? ' 

in  the  history  of  England.     His  oldest  son,  Prince  Arthur,  Henry  vn. 

was  married  to  Catherine  of  Aragon,  the  daughter  of  Ferdi-  (Macmiilan) 

nand  and  Isabella,  and  on  his   death  soon  after   she  was  oHclgn 

married  again  to  Prince  Henry,  who  became  the  heir  to  the  chap.'ix. 
throne. 

185.  Germany.  —  Germany  remained  in  this  age  as  power-  The  house  of 
less  as  before,  but  the  house  of  Hapsburer  was  rising  rapidly  HaPsbur£ 

.  '     becomes 

to  a  European  position.     Already  in  possession  of  extensive   a  European 
territories  in  southern  Germany  and  just  securing  hereditary  power, 
possession  of  the  imperial  crown,  it  secured  in  two  genera-   ^egjr> 
tions  a  most  remarkable  extension  of  its  power  by  its  fortu-   Hungary, 
nate  marriages.     Maximilian  I.  married,  in  1478,  Mary  of  2SI-2SS- 
Burgundy,  daughter  and  heiress  of  Charles  the  Bold,  and 
thus  obtained  the  rich  provinces  of  the  Netherlands,  and 
their  son,  Philip,  married  Joanna,  daughter  of  Ferdinand 
and  Isabella.     By  these  two  marriages  all  the  great  domin- 
ions of  Charles  V.  were  brought  together,  and  the  idea  of  a 
world  empire  almost  realized. 

186.  Italy.  —  Italy  was  the  first  battlefield  of  the  rival  The  scene  of 

powers,  the  scene  of  the  first  in  that  long  series  of  struggles   division  and 
1  .  ,  ,   r      ,    .  •  =6 .        local  conflict. 

tor  supremacy  on  one  side  and  for  balance  of  power  on  the   Johnson 

other  which  the  nineteenth  century  has  scarcely  seen  ended  Periods, 
notwithstanding  the  rise  of  new  and  larger  interests.  Italy  7~14* 
taken  by  itself  was  at  this  time  the  scene  of  a  conflict  for  a 
local  balance  of  power  which  was  in  miniature  like  that  of 
Europe.  It  was  still  divided  into  numerous  small  states, 
under  governments  of  widely  different  sorts,  and  intensely 
jealous  of  one  another.  These  states  maintained  little 
armies  of  professional  soldiers  commanded  by  adventurers, 
the  condottieri,  and  occasionally  engaged  in  wars,  which 
their  soldiers  had  a  way  of  making  not  very  bloody.  But 
if  possible  they  preferred  to  gain  their  ends  by  the  methods 


194 


Political  Changes  of  the  Age 


[§  187 


of  diplomacy  and  intrigue,  and  in  these  methods  Italy  was 
the  schoolmaster  of  Europe.  Machiavelli,  who  was  for  a 
long  time  the  representative  of  Florence,  was  one  of  the 
first  great  diplomatists  of  modern  history. 


Venice. 


THE  DUOMO,  FLORENCE 

187.  The  Five  Leading  States  of  Italy.  —  Five  states  of 
Italy  are  of  especial  interest  in  this  opening  period  of  inter- 
national politics.  Venice,  rich  and  powerful,  but  before 
the  close  of  the  age  to  undergo  the  ruin  of  her  commercial 
monopoly,  was  trying  to  form  a  continental  dominion  in 
northeastern  Italy,  and  so  was  intimately  concerned  in  the 


§  1 88]  France  begins  the  Struggle  195 

course  of  local  politics.     In  Milan,  Ludovico  the  Moor  was  Milan, 
plotting  to  secure  the  succession  in  place  of  his  nephew,  the 
rightful  duke,  and  so  was  anxious  for  any  outside  assistance 
possible.    Florence  was  under  the  Medici,  but  was  the  scene   Florence, 
at  the   close  of  the   century  of  great  popular   excitement  ^£hJtvelUi 
aroused  by  the  passionate  and  eloquent  preaching  of  Sav-   Florence 
onarola,  who  proclaimed  a  great  religious  revival,  the  neces-    (Bohn). 
sity   of  righteous   living,   and  the  coming   of  the    foreign   chap.  VII.; 
invader  as  the  scourge  of  God  upon  the  wicked,  and  de-   Armstrong, 
manded  the  restoration  of  political  liberty  to  Florence.    In  ^^  de 
the  States  of  the  Church  the  situation  was  especially  inter-    (Heroes), 
esting.    The  popes  of  the  last  part  of  the  fifteenth  century  The  States  oi 
looked  upon  the  papacy  rather  as  an  opportunity  for  them-   the  Church, 
selves  and  their  families  than  as  an  office  of  high  responsi- 
bility to  Christendom.    Alexander  VI.,  who  was  pope  at  the 
beginning  of  the  struggle  between  France  and  Spain,  is  an 
extreme   example  of  this  view  of  the  papal  office.      His 
ambition  was  to  build  up  in  central  Italy  out  of  the  lands  of 
the  Church  and  such  others  as  could  be  joined  to  them  a 
kingdom  in  the  permanent  possession  of  his  family,  strong 
enough,  it  might  be,  to  absorb  all  Italy  and  to  protect  it 
against  the  pretensions  of  the  foreigner.    This  he  almost  suc- 
ceeded in  doing.    Caesar  Borgia,  with  great  political  skill  but 
by  utterly  unscrupulous  and  criminal  means,  ably  seconded 
the  plans  of  his  father,  the  pope,  and  did  found  a  very 
promising  beginning  of  such  a  state,  only  to  see  it  break  to 
pieces  in  his  hands  on  the  death  of  his  father.     In  the  south   Naples, 
the  kingdom  of  Naples,  or  the  continental  half  of  the  king- 
dom of  Sicily,  was  held  by  a  branch  of  the  house  of  Aragon, 
but  was  claimed  by  both  France  and  Spain  and  was  the 
immediate  object  of  their  rivalry.  The  reign  of 

188.   France  begins  the    Struggle.  —  Before  Ferdinand  ^J"les 
of  Spain  was  ready  to  open  the  conflict  France  had  made    I483_i498. 
the  first  move  under  the  young  and  visionary  Charles  VIII. ,   Masson, 
who  dreamed  of  restoring  the  Eastern  Empire  and  the  king-  ^^td 
dom  of  Jerusalem  by  driving  out  the  Turks,  and  who  hoped  304-314; 
to  find  in  southern  Italy  a  base  of  operations  for  this  exten-  Zeiier,  X. 


Political  Changes  of  the  Age 


[§189 


The  tempta- 
tion in  Italy. 
Symonds, 
Age  of 
Despots, 
Chap.  X. 


Rapid  suc- 
cess of  the 
French. 
Johnson, 
Periods, 

17-25 ; 

Duffy, 

Tuscan 

Republics, 

Chap. 

XXVI.; 

Commines, 

Memoirs, 

Bk.  VII. 


sive  enterprise.  Charles  VIII.  had  succeeded  his  father 
Louis  XI.  at  the  age  of  thirteen.  His  elder  sister,  Anne  of 
Beaujeu,  had  acted  as  regent  with  great  ability  for  some 
years.  She  overcame  easily  an  insurrection  of  the  great 
nobles  led  by  the  duke  of  Orleans,  the  last  danger  of  the  sort 
which  threatened  the  crown  for  almost  a  hundred  years. 
She  defeated  an  attempt  of  the  Estates  General  to  recover 
something  of  their  lost  power,  and  finally  she  married  the 
young  king  to  the  heiress  of  the  duchy  of  Brittany,  the  last 
of  the  great  feudal  states  of  France  proper  which  had  not 
been  absorbed  in  the  crown. 

As  the  result  of  the  vigorous  policy  of  the  last  two  reigns, 
continued  by  his  sister,  Charles  VIII.  found  himself  at  lib- 
erty in  1494  to  employ  all  the  resources  of  France  in  assert- 
ing the  right  to  the  kingdom  of  Naples  which  he  had 
inherited  from  the  house  of  Anjou.  The  situation  in  Italy 
seemed  especially  favorable.  From  many  sides  came  invi- 
tations to  him  to  interfere.  Ludovico  the  Moor  hoped  to 
profit  from  any  change.  Savonarola  was  anxious  for  the 
appearance  of  the  "  scourge  of  God."  Enemies  of  the  Bor- 
gia family  wished  to  use  the  French  to  ruin  the  plans  of 
Alexander  VI. 

189.  The  First  Invasion  of  Italy.  —  Charles  crossed  the 
Alps  late  in  the  summer  at  the  head  of  a  brilliant  army,  with 
the  largest  train  of  artillery  which  had  up  to  that  time  ever  been 
brought  together.  His  success  was  rapid  and  complete. 
At  Milan  he  was  well  received,  and  soon  after  his  departure 
the  young  duke  died  of  an  opportune  fever.  Florence  did 
not  find  much  favor  at  his  hands,  for  he  gave  to  Pisa  its  lib- 
erty and  restored  to  power  the  Medici,  who  had  been  ex- 
pelled by  the  people  under  Savonarola's  lead.  At  Rome 
he  trained  his  cannon  on  the  castle  of  St.  Angelo,  forced 
the  pope  to  grant  him  the  investiture  of  Naples,  and  held 
Caesar  Borgia  for  a  time  as  a  hostage  for  his  father.  Na- 
ples fell  into  his  hands  without  a  battle,  and  he  assumed 
there  the  imperial,  insignia  and  called  himself  king  of 
Jerusalem. 


§  I91!    Rapid  Changes  in  the  Italian  Situation        197 


The  fate  of  his  expedition  is  typical  of  that  of  all  the 
French  expeditions  of  the  period.  Speedy  successes  were 
followed  by  just  as  speedy  a  reaction  and  the  loss  of  all. 
Italy  rose  behind  his  army.  The  pope,  Venice,  and  Milan 
formed  a  league  against  him,  with  the  support  of  Maximilian 
of  Austria  and  Ferdinand  of  Spain.  The  king's  army  cut 
its  way  through  to  France,  but  the  force  which  had  been 
left  to  hold  Naples  was  driven  out  at  once,  and  nothing 
remained  of  the  conquest  so  easily  made. 

190.  A  New  French  Claim  on  Italy.  —  Charles  VIII.  was 
killed  by  an  accident  before  he  was  able  to  repeat  the  at- 
tempt, and  was  succeeded  by  his  cousin,  Louis  XII.     Louis 
had  a  new  interest  in  Italy,  for  through  his  grandmother  he 
claimed  the  rights  of  the  Visconti  family  to  the  duchy  of 
Milan.     It  was  the  attempt  of  Louis  XII.  to  assert  his  rights 
in  northern  and  southern  Italy  that  brought  the  great  powers 
of  the  world  together  for  the  first  time  in  combinations  and 
wars  to  maintain  the  balance  of  power. 

The  new  king  began  the  undertaking  at  once.  Milan  was 
quickly  overrun,  and  Ludovico  the  Moor  died  soon  after  in 
prison.  Then  an  arrangement  was  made  with  Ferdinand 
the  Catholic  for  a  division  of  Naples.  The  French  army 
did  the  work  of  conquering  the  country,  and  in  as  short  a 
time  as  on  the  invasion  of  Charles  VIII.  But  Louis  was 
no  match  for  Ferdinand  in  promising  one  thing  and  intend- 
ing another.  The  Spanish  suddenly  claimed  the  whole,  and 
though  the  French  fought  for  their  share,  they  could  not 
keep  it. 

191.  Rapid  Changes  in  the  Italian  Situation.  —  Milan  was 
not  held  much  longer,  but  its  loss  illustrates  the  rapid  turns 
of  Italian  politics.     In   1503  Alexander  VI.  died  and  was 
succeeded  by  Julius  II.,  who  was  hostile  to  the  Borgia  family, 
and  whose  great  ambition  was  to  form  the  papal  states  into 
a  strong  monarchy,  which  he  finally  accomplished.     These 
plans  brought  him  into  conflict  with  the  Venetians,  who  had 
occupied  some  of  the  papal  lands,  and  who  also  held  some 
territories  belonging  to  the  duchy  of  Milan.     Julius  easily 


Failure  as 

rapidly 

follows. 


Louis  XII., 
1498-1515. 
Johnson, 
Periods, 

33-541 

Masson, 

Mediceval 

France, 

314-325; 

Zeller,  XL 


Conquest  of 
Milan  and 
Naples. 


Louis  XII. 

the  victim  of 

the  papal 

policy. 

Johnson, 

Periods, 

54-78. 


198 


Political  Changes  of  the  Age 


[§  192 


A  new  world 
empire. 


Elements  of 
weakness  in 
the  empire  of 
Charles  V. 


formed  the  league  of  Cambray  with  France  and  Austria  to 
humble  Venice.  Louis  XII.  again  did  the  fighting,  only  to 
find,  after  the  Venetians  had  submitted,  that  the  tables  were 
turned  against  him  once  more,  for  the  pope  formed  the  Holy 
League  as  soon  as  the  French  seemed  too  powerful  in  Italy. 
Venice,  Spain,  England,  and  Austria  united  with  him.  The 
French  were  beaten  in  Italy,  and  the  Sforza  family  returned 
to  Milan,  while  Ferdinand  seized  Navarre,  and  Henry  VIII. 
invaded  France,  where  he  won  the  somewhat  absurd  Battle 
of  the  Spurs.  Louis  was  compelled  to  yield,  and  to  give  up 
his  claims  upon  Italy. 

192.  The  Dominions  of  Charles  V.  —  Louis  XII.  died 
within  a  few  weeks  of  this  treaty,  and  the  next  years  saw 
a  great  change  in  Europe.  The  thrones  of  Spain  and  the 
Empire  became  vacant  and  were  united  in  the  possession  of 
Charles  V.,  the  grandson  of  both  Ferdinand  and  Maximilian, 
who  held  at  the  same  time  the  Netherlands,  the  Two  Sici- 
lies, and  America.  The  idea  ,of  a  world  monarchy,  which 
Christendom  had  so  long  cherished,  and  the  plans  of  Ferdi- 
nand the  Catholic  for  European  supremacy  seemed  about 
to  be  realized  together.  In  reality  the  conditions  were  pre- 
pared for  a  long  and  evenly  balanced  conflict.  The  three 
strongest  states  of  Europe  were  ruled  by  young,  able,  and 
intensely  ambitious  sovereigns,  —  Henry  VIII.  of  England, 
Francis  I.  of  France,  and  Charles  V.,  —  and  the  Protestant 
reformation  was  just  beginning. 

On  the  map  of  Europe  the  dominions  of  Charles  V.  seemed 
like  a  reconstruction  of  the  Roman  Empire,  but  their  real 
was  far  less  than  their  apparent  strength.  They  were 
widely  separated  from  one  another,  and  it  was  not  easy  to 
maintain  secure  communication  between  them  in  time  of 
war.  Germany  was  sharply  divided  into  two  hostile  parties 
and  constantly  on  the  verge  of  civil  war.  The  title  of  Em- 
peror was  a  great  dignity,  but  Charles  V.  would  have  been 
stronger  against  his  enemies  if  he  had  possessed  the  terri- 
tories of  Austria  and  left  the  Empire  to  some  one  else. 
That  he  had  Austria,  indeed,  brought  against  him  one  most 


§  193]     The  Imperial  Election  and  its  Results       199 

dangerous  enemy ;  for  the  Turks,  now  for  more  than  half  a 
century  in  possession  of  Constantinople,  had  already  begun 
to  push  up  the  Danube  valley,  and  the  defence  of  central 
Europe  against  their  victorious  advance  must  make  its  last 
and  most  desperate  stand  around  Vienna.  On  the  other 


THE  EMPEROR  CHARLES  V. 

band,  France  held  all  its  strength  and  resources  closely 
concentrated  in  the  hands  of  its  king,  and,  in  the  actual 
condition  of  things,  she  was  an  even  match  for  the  power  of 
Charles  V.,  which  seemed  so  much  greater. 

193.   The  Imperial  Election  and  its  Results.  —  On  the  Three  rivals 
death  of  Maximilian  I.,  in  1519,  the  three  young  kings  of  ^om^n 
England,  France,  and  Spain  were  rivals  for  the  election  to   crown. 


2OO  Political  Changes  of  the  Age  [§  194 

Johnson,  the   imperial   crown.     The   German  princes  did  not  fully 

Periods,  trust  any  one  of  them,  and  would  have  preferred  to  elect 

Seebohm,  one  °^  their  own  number,  Frederick  the  Wise  of  Saxony, 

Revolution,  the  sovereign  of  Luther,  but  he  thought  himself  too  old  or 

H"~ssfr         was  to°  w*se  to  accePt  so  neavy  an  honor  in  such  perilous 
Reformation,   times.     The  election  was  then  made  in  favor  of  Charles  of 
32-41;  Jans-  Spain,  who  became,  as  Emperor.  Charles  V. 
^opfeer\\aH       This  election  meant  of  course  war  between  Charles  and 
263-284.          Francis.     It  would   have   meant  war  if  Francis  had  been 
The  danger     elected.     But  as  things  were,  the  situation  might  well  seem 
to  France.       to  threaten  the  existence  or  at  least  the  unity  of  France. 
The  dominions  of  Charles  extended  along  its  whole  fron- 
tier, both  east  and  south.      The  duchies  of  Brittany  and 
Burgundy  had  been  only  lately  annexed,  and  Ferdinand  had 
at  one  time  forced  Louis  XII.  to  agree  to  give  them  up. 
Henry  VIII.  had  still  some  hopes  of  recovering  the  old  Eng- 
lish possessions  in  France.     In  Italy  the  conflicting  claims  of 
the  two  sovereigns  would  have  led  to  war  even  if  the  greater 
rivalry  of  European  position  had  not  existed.      This  war 
was  the  first  stage  in  the  conflict  between  France  and  the 
More  than       house  of  Hapsburg  which  dominates  all  the  international 
two  centuries  politics  of  Europe  from  the  beginning  of  the  sixteenth  to 
between          tne  en(^  °f  tne  eighteenth  century,  and  which  has  affected 
France  and     so  disastrously  the  position  of  both  powers  in  the  world  of 
Austria.          to-day.     For  Charles  and  Francis  the  immediate  object  of 

contention  was  Italy, 

Francis  I.  in        194.    France   still  seeks  Dominion  in  Italy.  —  Already, 
Italy,  and  the   immediately  on  his  accession  in  iziz,  Francis  I.  had  taken 

results  for  .  ^TT    ,      ,      .  .       ,. 

France.  UP  tne  plans  which  Louis  XII.  had  given  up  in  discourage- 

Kitchin,          ment.     He  had  invaded  Italy  with  a  splendid  army,  beaten 
France,  II.      tke  £ne  jnfanj-ry  of  the  Swiss,  who  were  in  the  service  of  the 
Zeiier,  XII.      duke  of  Milan,  in  the  great  battle  of  Marignano,  and  at 
once  occupied  Milan.     Francis  was  now  completely  master 
of  northern  Italy,  but  his  victory  had  given  him  other  ad- 
vantages  of  great   importance    in   the  history  of   France. 
With  the  Swiss  he  made  the  so-called  "  Perpetual  Peace," 
by  which  their  soldiers  entered  the  service  of  France.     It 


§  194]      France  still  seeks  Dominion  in  Italy        201 

was  perpetual  until  the  French  Revolution  destroyed  it  with  • 
almost  all  other  existing  arrangements.  With  the  pope  he 
made  a  concordat  by  which  the  Pragmatic  Sanction  of 
Bourges  was  so  modified  that  the  control  of  the  French 
Church  passed  into  the  hands  of  the  king.  This  was  the 
foundation  of  the  later  '•  liberties  of  the  Gallican  Church." 

This  was  the  situation  in  Italy  at  the  imperial  election  in  The  begin 
1519.  But  in  the  meantime  a  series  of  events  of  another 
sort  had  begun  and  was  proceeding  rapidly  in  Germany,  tion. 
which  introduced  a  new  complication.  The  demand  for  a 
reformation  in  the  Church,  which  had  now  been  making 
itself  heard  for  two  hundred  years,  had  found  a  new  leader, 
and  in  his  hands,  as  in  the  case  of  Wycliffe  and  of  Huss,  the 
movement  was  not  confining  itself  to  a  demand  for  the 
reform  of  abuses,  but  was  going  on  to  attack  some  of 
the  doctrines  held  most  fundamental  by  the  Church.  The 
attack  in  this  case,  however,  was  far  more  dangerous  than 
those  of  a  hundred  years  before. 


Topics 

The  rise  of  international  politics.  What  kept  Louis  XI.  occupied 
in  France?  How  was  Spain  created  geographically  ?  What  changes 
in  government  were  made  by  Ferdinand?  His  foreign  policy.  Re- 
sults of  his  reign  for  Spain.  The  policy  of  Henry  VII.  The  two  great 
marriages  in  the  house  of  Hapsburg,  and  their  results.  Why  was  Italy 
the  object  of  contention  among  the  great  powers?  Its  leading  states. 
How  was  the  struggle  for  Italy  opened?  The  invasion  of  Charles  VIII. 
Louis  XII.'s  new  claim  and  his  invasion.  The  policy  of  Julius  II. 
What  dominions  were  united  under  Charles  V.,  and  how  did  each 
come  to  him?  Why  was  his  empire  less  strong  than  it  seemed?  The 
election  to  the  Roman  Empire  in  1519.  How  was  the  position  of 
Charles  V.  a  danger  to  France?  What  did  Francis  I.  accomplish  by 
his  first  invasion  of  Italy  ? 

Topics  for  Assigned  Studies 

Louis  XL  of  France.  See  references  on  p.  233.  Commines,  Memoirs. 
(Bohn.)  Character  of  Louis,  Chaps.  X.-XIII.  Zeller,  IX. 
Willert,  Reign  of  Louis  XI.  (Rivington.)  Kirk,  Charles  the 


2O2  The  Genealogy  of  Charles    V. 

Bold.     3  vols.     (Lippincott.)     Louis  at  Peronne,  Willert,  131- 
139.     Commines,  Book  II.,  Chaps.  VII.-IX. 

Ferdinand  in  Spain.  Burke,  History  <  of  Spain.  Vol.  II.  (Longmans.) 
Mariejol,  U  Espagne  sous  Ferdinand  et  Isabelle.  (Paris.)  Pres- 
cott,  Ferdinand  and  Isabella,  I.,  Chap.  VI.  Johnson,  Periods, 
91-106. 

The  Genealogy  of  Charles  V 

Austria.           The  Netherlands  Aragon  and  the         Castile  and 

and  Burgundy.  Two  Sicilies.             America. 
Maximilian  I.,  =  Mary,  d.  1482. 

d  mig  Ferdinand  VII.,  =  Isabella,  d.  1504. 


d.  1516. 


Philip,  d.  1506.  -      Joanna,        Catherine  of 

Called  Philip  I.  of  Spain,  |             the  mad  queen,      Aragon 

after  the  death  of  Isabella,  i  —  —  I        d.  1555.      m.  Henry  VIII 

Charles  V.,  Ferdinand  I., 

d.  1558.  d.  1564. 

Philip  II.,  The  Austrian 

d.  1598.  Hapsburgs. 

The  Spanish  Hapsburgs. 


CHAPTER  V 

THE  REFORMATION  OF  LUTHER 

195.  Luther's  Theological  Beliefs. —  Luther  had  been  led  Justification 
by  a  most   earnest  religious  spirit  to  give  up  the  study  of  J^jjj1*' 
the  law  and  to  become  a  monk.     In  the  cloister  he  had  Luther, 
been  led  by  a  strong  philosophical  tendency  of  mind  to  28~56; 
examine  most  carefully  the  foundations  of  theological  belief,  ciwlilation 
As  a  result  he  had  adopted  the  system  of  St.  Augustine,  the  426-433. 
patron  saint  of  the  order  of  friars  which  he  had  entered. 

To  Luther  the  doctrine  of  "justification  by  faith"  seemed 
to  be  the  corner  stone  of  this  system,  and  this  doctrine, 
most  earnestly  and  intensely  held,  seemed  to  call  upon  him 
to  cry  out  against  one  of  the  greatest  abuses  of  the  time. 
This  was  the  preaching  which  frequently  accompanied  the 
sale  of  indulgences,  and  which  was  often  an  abuse  also  in 
the  sight  of  the  current  theology  of  the  Church. 

196.  Indulgences.  — A  letter  of  indulgence  was  a  written  What  an 
document,  granted  by  some  one  in  authority  in  the  Church,   ™^}g™* 
by  which,  in  view  of  some  pious  act,  the  temporal  penalties  translation  of 
of  sin  were  said  to  be  remitted  or  changed  in  character  in  an  indui- 
favor  of  the  holder.     The  letter  itself,  which  was  written  in  f^n°f 
Latin  as  an  official  document  of  the  Church,  stated  that  the  scribners 
remission  was  of  no  avail  without  due  repentance  and  for-   Monthly, 
saking  of  sin.     For  three  centuries  or  more,  it  had  been    (May>  l876)€ 
customary  in  the  Church  to  grant  these  letters  in  return  for 
donations  of  money  to  be  applied  to  charitable  uses  or  to 

advance  the  interests  of  the  Church,  on  the  theory  that  the 
gift  of  alms  was  a  pious  act  which  might  take  the  place  of 
penance  in  other  forms.  Of  course  such  a  source  of 

203 


204 


The  Reformation  of  Luther 


Popular 
misconcep- 
tion of 
indulgences. 


Chaucer's 

Prologue, 

lines 

669-714. 

The  ninety- 
five  theses 
concerning 
indulgences. 


Intellectual 
preparation 
for  revolt. 


revenue  was  a  great  temptation,  and  subject  to  glaring 
abuse  in  times  of  general  moral  decline,  and  in  later  times 
the  granting  of  indulgences  in  return  for  donations  of  money 
has  been  discountenanced  or  forbidden  by  the  Church. 

It  is  certain  that  the  practice  was  popularly  very  much 
misunderstood.  Few  could  read  the  language  in  which  the 
letter  was  written.  The  ignorant  thought  that  the  payment 
of  money  was  all  that  was  required,  and  also  that  they  could 
in  this  way  escape  the  eternal  as  well  as  the  temporal  penal- 
ties of  sin.  Whether  the  preaching  of  Tetzel,  who  was 
selling  indulgences  in  the  neighborhood  of  Wittenberg, 
encouraged  these  misconceptions  or  not  is  a  matter  of 
doubt ;  but  if  he  was  not  one,  there  certainly  were  many 
unscrupulous  agents  who  took  every  advantage  they  could 
of  the  popular  belief,  as  Chaucer  seems  to  have  thought 
when  he  wrote  the  "  Canterbury  Tales  "  in  Wycliffe's  time. 

197.  Luther  posts  his  Theses.  —  In  October,  1517,  fol- 
lowing a  university  custom,  Luther  published  a  general 
challenge  to  debate  on  the  subject  of  indulgences  by  post- 
ing on  the  door  of  the  castle  church  in  Wittenberg,  ninety- 
five  theses,  or  propositions,  which  he  offered  to  defend 
against  all  comers.  In  these  theses  he  attacked  the  abuses 
and  proclaimed  what  he  believed  to  be  the  true  doctrine. 
They  were  written  in  Latin  and  were  addressed  to  the  univer- 
sity world,  but  within  two  weeks  they  had  been  made  known  to 
all  Germany.  The  current  of  discontent  with  the  moral  and 
financial  wrongs  which  the  masses  believed  they  were  suffer- 
ing from  those  who  had  control  of  the  government  of  the 
Church  had  been  so  long  held  back  that  when  the  way  was 
opened  its  depth  and  strength  surprised  the  world. 

The  intellectual  changes  which  had  taken  place  by  this 
time  were  also  a  preparation  for  a  widespread  revolt  against 
the  Catholic  Church.  Not  only  had  men  acquired  the  habit 
of  questioning  authority  and  of  looking  upon  old  beliefs  with 
doubt,  but  also  they  had  grown  accustomed  to  intellectual 
independence  and  to  new  and  strange  ideas.  The  progress 
of  classical  learning,  also,  especially  in  the  work  which  Eras- 


MARTIN  LUTHER 


206 


The  Reformation  of  Luther 


[§198 


Luther  at 
first  intends 
no  revolu- 
tion. 
Kostlin, 
Luther, 

95-149; 
Johnson, 
Periods, 
I53-IS7. 


The  real 
question  was 
authority  or 
private 
judgment. 


The  steps  of 

Luther's 

progress. 


The  declara- 
tion of  war. 


mus  had  done,  had  furnished  the  reformers  in  easily  acces- 
sible shape  the  material  for  attacking  the  historical  claims 
of  the  papacy. 

198.  Luther  gradually  led  to  Open  Rebellion.  —  Still 
Luther  was  himself  surprised  by  the  effect  which  the  publi- 
cation of  his  theses  had  produced.  He  had  up  to  this  time 
intended  no  revolt  against  the  Church,  and  he  was  for  a  long 
time  unconscious  of  the  result  towards  which  things  were 
tending.  Gradually  he  was  led  on  by  the  skilful  attacks 
which  were  made  on  the  weak  points  of  the  theses  to  take 
one  position  after  another  until  he  found  himself  in  open 
rebellion. 

The  real  test  question,  and  that  which  led  to  the  final 
breach,  was  that  of  the  infallible  authority  of  the  Church  and 
of  the  pope.  The  doctrine  of  the  infallibility  of  the  pope 
was  not  at  that  time  formally  held  by  the  Church,  though 
it  was  practically  the  belief  of  a  great  many  churchmen,  but 
it  was  universally  held  that  the  Church  was  infallible  when 
speaking  through  a  general  council,  like  that  which  had 
condemned  John  Huss.  Luther  would  no  doubt  have 
agreed  to  this  at  the  time  he  posted  the  theses. 

On  this  question  Luther  was  by  degrees  forced  along  to 
a  position  of  complete  opposition  to  the  Church.  First, 
in  the  year  after  the  posting  of  the  theses,  in  a  conference 
with  a  legate  sent  by  the  pope  to  quiet  if  possible  the  com- 
motion which  had  arisen  in  Germany,  he  asserted  that  the 
pope  might  be  in  error  and  that  he  would  be  if  he  was  not 
in  accord  with  the  Bible.  Second,  as  the  result  of  a  great 
debate  at  Leipsic  with  Dr.  Eck,  he  was  forced  to  admit 
that  a  general  council  of  the  Church  could  make  a  wrong 
decision  and  that  one  had  a.ctually  done  so  when  Huss  was 
condemned.  This  was  in  the  year  in  which  Charles  V.  was 
elected  emperor. 

In  the  summer  of  the  next  year,  the  pope,  Leo  X.,  issued 
a  bull  in  which  he  announced  that  Luther  would  be  excom- 
municated if  by  the  middle  of  the  next  winter  he  had  not 
confessed  his  errors  and  become  reconciled  to  the  Church, 


§§  199, 2oo]  The  Diet  of  Worms  207 

This  was  the  bull  which  Luther  publicly  burned  in  Witten- 
berg in  December  of  1520.  This  act  was  a  kind  of  open 
declaration  of  war,  but  it  did  not  make  Luther  any  more 
of  a  rebel  against  the  authority  of  the  Church  than  his 
earlier  declarations  had  done. 

199.  The  Protestant  Position  in  Regard  to  Authority.  —  The  actual 
In  taking  this  stand  against  the  infallibility  of  the  Church, 

Luther  did  not  intend  to  deny  the  existence  of  an  infallible  tion  in 
authority  in  matters  of  religion.     He,  and  most  of  the  early   conflict  for 
Protestants,  believed  that  the  absolute  truth  could  be  known  gee^dams 
and  declared  by  the  body  of  true  believers,  though  the   Civilization, 
actual  position  in  which  they  stood  with  reference  to  the  439.  n-  *• 
Catholic  Church  was   inconsistent  with   this  belief.     What 
they  really  asserted  in  that  position  was  the  right  of  any  one 
man  to  determine  for  himself  what  is  the  truth,  under  his 
responsibility   to    God   alone.      Practically   the   Protestant 
world  acted  on  this  principle,  for  it  divided  into  many  parties 
on  questions  of  theology  and  interpretation,  and  it  has  con- 
tinued divided  ever  since.     At  first  most  of  these  parties 
were  bitterly  hostile  to  one  another  because  they  thought 
their  differences  so  very  important.     Recently  they  have 
come  very  generally  to  recognize  the  fact  that  the  points 
of  likeness  are  more  numerous  and  important  than  those 
of  difference,  and  to  act  accordingly. 

200.  The  Diet  of  Worms.  —  The  first  Diet  of  the  Empire   Charles  V. 
under  the  new  emperor,  Charles  V.,  was  summoned  for  the   really  con' 
spring  of  1521.     Germany  hoped  that  here  would  be  settled  the  inteiT 
many  questions  of  political  as  well  as  of  religious  reform,  but   national 
the  result  was  disappointing.     In  truth,  Charles  was  not  able  ^flul^e'  ^ 
to  look  at  German  questions  purely  from  the  German  point  politics  on 
of  view.     The  general  interests  of  his  wide  dominions  were  the  Reforma« 
always  in  his  mind,  and  this  must  be  remembered  in  order  Ranke^ 

to  understand   his  relation   to   the   Reformation.     At   the  Popes, 
time  of  the  meeting  of  the   Diet  of  Worms,  the  difficulty  ^ohn)' 
which  seemed  the  most  pressing  was  the  position  of  the  chap.'in. 
French  in  northern  Italy,  which  Francis  I.  was  still  holding. 
To  the  pope  this  was  an  equal  danger*     For  the  moment 


208 


The  Reformation  of  Luther 


[§201 


Luther 
before  the 
Diet,  1521. 


Charles  V. 
personally 
opposed  to 
Protestant- 
ism. 


War  makes 
five  years' 
delay. 


pope  and  emperor  each  had  need  of  the  other,  and  their 
desires  and  interests  were  in  harmony  with  reference  both 
to  Germany  and  to  Italy. 

Luther  was  summoned  to  the  Diet  under  a  safe-conduct, 
and  had  no  hesitation  in  going,  though  his  friends  feared 
for  his  safety.  At  the  Diet,  when  called  on  to  acknowledge 
the  opinions  which  he  had  taught,  he  asked  for  a  day's  de- 
lay, and  then  boldly  reaffirmed  his  position,  saying  that  he 
could  not  do  otherwise.  The  sentence  of  the  Diet  placed 
Luther  under  the  ban  of  the  Empire  and  ordered  his  books 
to  be  destroyed.  On  his  return  from  Worms,  Luther  dis- 
appeared, having  been  secretly  carried  by  his  friends  to 
the  castle  of  the  Wartburg,  near  Eisenach.  Here  he  re- 
mained nearly  a  year,  writing  and  translating  the  New 
Testament. 

201.  No  Opportunity  to  enforce  the  Edict  of  the  Diet. — 
This  decision  of  the  Diet  against  Luther,  though  the  result  of 
an  understanding  between  Charles  and  the  pope,  was  not 
opposed  to  the  real  opinion  of  Charles.  He  never  had  any 
sympathy  with  Luther's  ideas,  and  if  his  hands  had  been 
free  to  do  as  he  would  have  liked  in  Germany,  he  would 
have  put  an  end  to  the  Reformation  by  force.  The  new 
teachings  owed  their  long  freedom  from  attack  and  the  op- 
portunity which  they  had  to  spread  and  strengthen  them- 
selves in  Germany  to  the  political  difficulties  in  which 
Charles  was  involved  elsewhere. 

It  was  five  years  after  the  Diet  of  Worms  before  the  em- 
peror came  to  a  time  when  he  even  thought  that  he  could 
take  decisive  measures  against  heresy  in  Germany.  War 
had  begun  between  him  and  Francis  I.  in  the  spring  of 
1521.  Towards  the  end  of  the  summer  the  troops  of  the 
emperor  and  the  pope  drove  the  French  out  of  Milan.  In 
the  spring  of  the  next  year  Henry  VIII.  of  England  declared 
war  against  France,  and  in  the  same  year  Charles  of  Bour- 
bon, constable  of  France,  a  relative  of  the  king's,  and  the 
most  powerful  noble  of  France,  made  angry  by  a  dispute 
over  an  inheritance,  joined  Charles  and  Henry  in  war  upon 


2IO 


The  Reformation  of  Luther     [§§  202-204 


The  French 
lose  and 
recover 
Milan. 
Johnson, 
Periods, 
172-176 ; 
Kitchin, 
France,  II. 
191  if. 


Francis  I. 
captured  by 
the  Spanish. 
Kitchin, 
France,  II. 
199  ff. 

Charles  V. 

demands 

too  much. 

Johnson, 

Periods, 

181-184; 

Hausser, 

Reformation, 

106-112. 


The 

emperor's 
plans 
agairrst 
heresy  inter- 
rupted. 


Francis  and  in  a  project  to  partition  his  kingdom  among 
them. 

202.  Events  in  Italy.  —  It  would  seem  as  if  the  odds 
were  entirely  against  France,  but  the  allies  accomplished 
nothing  in  proportion  to  their  strength.     The  French  were 
indeed  driven  entirely  from  Italy,  with  the  death  of  the 
Chevalier  Bayard,  one  of  the  last  and  finest  products  of  the 
age  of  chivalry,  but  an  attempt  to  carry  the  war  into  south- 
ern France  by  Charles  of  Bourbon  was  not  successful.     He 
was  forced  to  retreat  before  a  great  army  with  which  Francis 
now  advanced.     By  a  skilful  march  the  French  passed  by 
their  enemies,  appeared  suddenly  before  Milan,  and  forced 
the  Spanish  garrison  to  abandon  the  city  without  a  blow. 

This  was  a  good  beginning  for  the  recovery  of  Italy,  but 
the  French  success  went  no  farther.  Francis  began  the 
siege  of  Pavia.  Bourbon  advanced  against  him  with  a  large 
army,  and  in  the  battle  which  followed  the  French  were 
totally  defeated  and  the  king  was  taken  prisoner. 

203.  The  Treaty  of  Madrid. — The  battle  of  Pavia  was 
in  February,  1525.     For  nearly  a  year  Francis  remained  a 
prisoner   in  the   hands  of  Charles.     The  terms  which  the 
emperor  demanded  for  his  release  were  so  high  that  Fran- 
cis could  not  bring  himself  to  consent  to  them.     At  last, 
worn  out  with  his  confinement  and  seeing  no  prospect  of 
any  more  favorable  terms,  Francis  yielded  and  agreed  to 
the  demands  of  Charles.     The  treaty  of  Madrid  was  signed 
in   January,    1526.     Francis    engaged    to    abandon   all   his 
claims  in  Italy,  and  to  surrender  Burgundy,  Flanders,  and 
Artois  to   the    emperor.      Had  Charles  been  satisfied  with 
reasonable  conditions,  he  might  have   secured  their  fulfil- 
ment, but  as  it  was  Francis  had  -no  intention  of  keeping 
the  treaty. 

204.  Enforcement  of  the  Edict  again  Prevented.  —  For 
the  moment,  however,  Charles  thought  that  all  opposition  to 
him  in  Europe  was  at  an  end,  and  he  immediately  sent  word 
to  Germany  that  he  should  take  measures  at  once  for  the 
suppression  of  heresy.     Before  he  could  do  this  he  became 


§  205]     Peace  between  France  and  Charles  V.       2 1 1 


aware  that  the  situation  of  things  in  Europe  had  decidedly 
changed.  The  pope,  —  now  Clement  VII.,  one  of  the 
Medici,  and  greatly  interested  in  Italian  politics,  —  the 
Venetians,  and  Francis  I.  had  formed  a  league  against  him, 
and  war  was  about  to  begin. 

To  meet  this  new  combination  Charles  would  need  all  his 
resources,  and  could  not  afford  to  run  the  risk  of  a  civil  war 
in  Germany.  In  consequence  the  Diet  of  Speyer,  which 
met  in  June  of  1526,  instead  of  renewing  the  edict  of  the 
Diet  of  Worms,  declared  that  each  state  might  conduct  itself 
in  regard  to  the  religious  question  as  it  "  thought  it  could 
answer  to  God  and  to  the  Emperor."  This  meant  that  for 
the  present  the  edict  of  Worms  was  suspended,  but  that  the 
time  might  come  sometime  when  the  emperor  would 
call  the  States  to  an  account  for  not  obeying  it.  This  was, 
however,  the  best  that  could  be  expected,  and  under  this 
arrangement  a  German  army  largely  made  up  of  followers 
of  Luther,  and  commanded  by  one  of  them,  entered  Italy, 
in  1527,  stormed  the  city  of  Rome,  and  made  the  pope  a 
prisoner.  Before  Charles  could  draw  any  advantage  from 
these  events,  a  new  French  army  invaded  Italy,  took  posses- 
sion of  many  cities  in  the  north,  passed  Rome,  and  began  the 
siege  of  Naples.  Then  fortune  turned  again.  The  Genoese 
abandoned  the  French  side,  and  a  plague  reduced  the  French 
so  greatly  that  the  siege  had  to  be  given  up,  and  finally  only 
a  small  fragment  of  the  army  returned  to  France. 

205.  Peace  between  France  and  Charles  V.  —  Now  all 
parties  were  tired  of  the  war.  In  June,  1529,  the  treaty  of 
Barcelona  was  made  between  the  pope  and  the  emperor, 
and  in  July  that  of  Cambray,  or  the  Ladies'  Peace,  between 
Charles  and  Francis.  Before  these  treaties  were  actually 
signed,  Charles  had  concluded  that  the  time  was  at  last 
come  when  he  could  deal  with  the  religious  difficulty  in  Ger- 
many according  to  his  will.  The  second  Diet  of  Speyer  was 
summoned  to  meet  in  February  of  that  year.  For  the  mo- 
ment nothing  interrupted  the  emperor's  plans.  The  Diet 
decided,  by  a  majority  vote,  that  the  decision  of  the  first 


The  first  Diet 
of  Speyer. 
The  edict  of 
Worms 
suspended. 
Ranke, 
History  of 
Germany, 
Bk.  IV., 
Chap.  II. 


The  sack 

of  Rome, 

Valdez' 

account. 

Seebohm's 

Protestant 

Revolution, 

157-160 ; 

Johnson, 

Periods,  186. 


The  treaty  of 
Cambray. 


The  second 
Diet  of 
Speyer. 
Ranke, 


212 


The  Reformation  of  Luther     [§§  296,  207 


Germany, 
Bk.  V., 

Chap.  V. ; 
Hausser, 

Reformation, 
113  ff. 

The  "  Pro- 
test." 
Fisher, 

Reformation , 
117;    extract, 
Schilling, 
Quellenbuch, 
76. 


Luther 
opposed  to 
fanaticism. 


Reasons  for 

the  peasant 

revolt 

mainly 

economic. 

Seebohm, 

Protestant 

Revolution, 

59-68, 


Diet  of  Speyer  should  be  no  longer  valid,  but  that  the  edict  of 
the  Diet  of  Worms  should  be  enforced  at  once. 

206.  The  "Protestants"  and  their  Strength.  —  Against 
this  action  of  the  Diet,  the  supporters  of  Luther  entered  a 
formal  protest,  declaring  that  in  matters  of  religion  the  ma- 
jority had  no  right  to  bind   the  minority,  "  for  every  one 
must  give  an  account  of  himself  to  God."     It  was  from  this 
act  of  protest  that  the  name  "  Protestants  "  was  given  to 
those  who  followed  the  teachings  of  Luther.     It  was  signed 
by  five  princes,  the  chief  being  Saxony,  Brandenburg,  and 
Hesse,    and   by   fourteen    cities,    and    this    represents   the 
strength    of    Protestantism    in    Germany    ten    years    after 
Luther's  open  breach  with  the  Church. 

During  these  years  the  new  doctrine,  besides  making  prog- 
ress among  the  people,  had  passed  through  its  age  of  trial, 
from  the  elements  of  fanaticism  and  revolution  which 
accompany  every  great  change.  While  Luther  was  at  the 
Wartburg,  fanatics  had  proclaimed  extreme  opinions  and 
occasioned  great  excitement  at  Wittenberg  and  elsewhere 
in  Saxony.  Luther  had  felt  it  his  duty  to  leave  his  retreat 
to  put  a  stop  to  this  movement. 

207.  The  Great  Peasant  War. — Towards  the  end  of  the 
year  1524,  a  far  more  serious  danger  threatened  Germany. 
For  a  hundred  years  the  peasants  had  been  growing  more 
and  more  discontented  with  their  lot.     This  was  partly  due 
to  the  fact  that  in  places  and  for  individuals  the  burdens 
laid    upon   them    by   their  lords  had  been  really  growing 
heavier.     It  was  probably    still    more  due  to  the  fact  that 
during  these  hundred  years  great  changes  had  been  taking 
place  as  a  result  of  which  they   saw  the  condition  of  the 
classes  above  them  greatly  improved,  comforts  multiplied, 
intelligence  increased,  and  wealth    much  more    easily   and 
rapidly  accumulated,  while  they,  bound  down  by  old  cus- 
toms now  very  strictly  interpreted,  were  not  able  to  take 
advantage  of  these  changes  and  had  no  share  in  the  im- 
provements taking  place. 

Now,  as  in  England  in  the  time  of  Wycliffe,  the  constant 


§§  208,  209]     The  First  Attack  of  the  Turks  213 

appeal  to  the  Bible  and  the  new  religious  teachings   with   Character  of 

their  spirit  of  freedom,  encouraged  the  peasants  and  fur-   the  revolt- 

-         „  .  Hausser, 

nished  them  with  arguments  and  proofs.     Open  msurrec-   Keformationt 

tion  had  been  tried  many  times  in  the  century,  but  now,  92-105; 

beginning  in  southwestern  Germany,  it  spread  rapidly  and  J^1"^11' 

with  fury  over  all  that  part  of  the  Empire.     In  many  places  176-180; 

the  peasants  paid  their  debts  of  suffering,  now  that  their  Goethe,  Goetz 

turn  had  come,  with  horrible   cruelties   inflicted   on    their  JJ^^f****" 

lords.     In  some  of  the  smaller  cities  the  artisan  class  sym-  (drama) ; 

pathized   with   the   peasants,    and   carried    the   town   with  the  peasants1 

them.     It  seemed  for  a  time  as  if  the  revolution  would  artic]es» 

be   successful.  Seebohm, 

208.  The  Insurrection  put  Down.  —  Luther  sympathized  J*0****** 
with  the  demands  for  reform  which  the  peasants  made,  but  H./NO.  6.' 
with  their  methods  he  had  no  sympathy,  and  he  saw  that  Position  of 
their  triumph,  in  their  present  spirit,  would  mean  the  ruin  Luther. 
of  society  and  of  his  own  cause.     Consequently  he  urged  Kostlm, 
the  princes  to  put  the  insurrection  down  by  force,  and  he  3I5_32I 
did  this  with  the  impetuosity  and  violence  of  language  which 

was  natural  to  him  when  he  was  excited. 

By  degrees  the  princes  with  their  organized  forces  took   The  peasants 
the  field.     Against   them,  so  much  better  armed  and  dis-   Sained 
ciplined,  the  peasants  had  no  chance  of  success,  and  were   trying  force. 
everywhere  defeated  and  slaughtered.     In  very  few  places 
in  Germany  did  the  insurrection  result  in  any  improvement 
of  their  condition.      The  slower  economic  forces  were  on 
their  side.,  however,  and  in  time  gave  them  more  rights  and 
freedom,  though  in  all  probability  their  appeal  to  force  in 
an  attempt  to  hurry  on  the  process  really  hindered  it,  and 
perhaps  in  some  regions  held  it  back  entirely  until  the  age 
of  the  French  Revolution. 

209.  The  First  Attack  of  the  Turks. — The  expectation  The  edict  of 
which  Charles  V.  entertained  at  the  second  Diet  of  Speyer,   |^te£"  can" 
that  now  the  time  had  come  for  putting  down  heresy,  was   enforced. 
doomed  to  disappointment  as  it  had  been  before.     In  this 

case,  however,  the  interruption  came  not  from  France,  but 
from  the  Turks. 


214 


The  Reformation  of  Luther     [§§210,211 


The  advance 
of  the  Turks 
unites 
Germany. 


Charles 
believes  the 
lime  has  now 
come. 
Kostlin, 
Luther, 
402-426 ; 
Alzog, 
Church 
History,  III. 

75-87 ; 

Johnson, 
Periods, 
198  ff. 

The  Protes- 
tants refuse 
to  submit. 


The  League 
of  Schmal- 
kalden  and 
the  peace  of 
Nuremberg. 


The  conquering  age  of  the  Turks  was  not  yet  over,  though 
it  was  about  to  close.  The  last  of  their  great  sultans,  Sulie- 
man  II.  the  Magnificent,  was  now  reigning.  He  had  lately 
overcome  the  Hungarians  and  was  determined  to  push  on  into 
central  Europe.  In  September  the  Turks  appeared  before 
Vienna,  and  began  its  siege.  It  was  a  moment  of  great 
danger  for  Germany.  If  Vienna  fell,  central  Europe  would 
lie  open  to  invasion.  Before  this  danger  religious  differences 
were  suspended,  and  Protestant  and  Catholic  alike  prepared 
for  the  defence  of  the  fatherland.  In  a  few  weeks,  how- 
ever, Sulieman  found  that  he  could  not  take  Vienna,  and 
retired  with  his  army. 

210.  The  Diet  and  "Confession"  of   Augsburg.  —  This 
was  really  a  new  triumph  for  Charles  V.     He  had  succeeded 
with  no  effort  of  his  own  over  this  new  enemy,  and  he  had 
given   no  promises   of  lenity   to   the   Protestants.      In  the 
spring  of  1530,  he  came  himself  to  Germany,  resolved  now 
to  enforce  his  will. 

The  Diet  met  at  Augsburg.  Here  the  emperor  informed 
the  Protestant  princes  that  toleration  would  now  cease,  and 
demanded  that  they  should  obey  the  earlier  edicts  against 
the  followers  of  Luther.  They  answered  firmly  that  they 
could  not  do  so.  Charles  then  asked  for  a  statement  of 
the  points  in  which  they  differed  from  the  Catholic  faith. 
In  answer  to  this  the  first  formal  declaration  of  the  Protes- 
tant belief  was  drawn  up,  the  "  Confession  of  Augsburg," 
and  read  to  the  Diet.  In  conclusion  the  Diet  decreed  that 
the  Protestants  should  be  allowed  until  the  next  spring  to 
submit,  and  it  was  understood  that  then  measures  would  be 
taken  against  them. 

211.  The    Emperor's    Plans   again   Postponed.  —  When 
spring  came  the  emperor  hesitated.     Peace  with   France 
was  insecure.     The  Turks  were  threatening.     All  through 
1531   he  allowed  things  to  drift,  but  the  Protestants  had 
taken    steps   to    provide   for   their    defence.     Luther    was 
opposed  to  civil  war,  but  the  princes  were  resolved  not  to 
yield  without  a  struggle.    In  March  they  formed  the  League 


§2ii]        Emperors  Plans  again  Postponed          215 

of  Schmalkalden,  promising  to  defend  one  another  with  all 
their  forces.  In  1532,  before  the  emperor  was  ready  for 
extreme  measures,  came  another  Turkish  invasion.  This 
time  the  Protestant  princes  were  in  a  position  by  their 
union  to  demand  concessions  of  Charles,  and  he  was  con- 
strained to  yield.  By  the  peace  of  Nuremberg  it  was 
agreed  to  suspend  all  hostilities  until  the  religious  differ- 
ences  could  be  settled  by  a  general  council.  The  Protes- 
tants then  joined  the  emperor,  and  the  Turks  were  obliged 
to  retreat  again. 

Fifteen   years   passed   before   the   situation   changed  in  The  Protes- 
Germany  in  any  material  degree  in  the  emperor's  favor, 


, 

The  council  which  he  had  hoped  to  have  called  for  a  free  Hausser, 

discussion  of  the  differences  in  religion  he  could  not  bring  Reformation, 

about  as  he  desired.     Two  wars  with  France,  in   one   of  S^on 

which  the  Turks  took  part,  had  kept  him  occupied.     And  Periods,  ' 

in  these  years  Protestantism  had  spread   rapidly  in  north  205-219. 
and  central  Germany  and  strengthened  greatly  its  power 
of  resistance. 


Topics 

Luther's  leading  theological  belief.  What  was  an  indulgence? 
How  popularly  misunderstood?  What  did  Luther  assert  in  his 
"theses"?  What  were  "theses"?  How  were  the  theses  received? 
Why?  What  were  the  steps  by  which  Luther  advanced  to  open 
opposition  to  the  Church?  The  Protestant  position  in  regard  to 
authority  in  the  Church.  What  motives  influenced  Charles  V.  at  the 
Diet  of  Worms?  Why  was  the  edict  not  enforced  at  once?  The  situ- 
ation in  Italy.  What  led  to  the  treaty  of  Madrid?  Why  was  not  the 
edict  of  Worms  now  enforced?  The  first  Diet  of  Speyer.  The  sack 
of  Rome.  The  second  Diet  of  Speyer.  Why  was  its  decision  not  en- 
forced? The  origin  of  the  name  "Protestant."  What  plan  did  the 
Protestant  states  form  for  protection?  What  did  they  secure  in  the 
peace  of  Nuremberg?  How  long  did  this  arrangement  last,  and  its 
results?  What  led  to  the  great  peasant  war?  Did  the  peasants  wish 
economic  or  political  freedom?  Character  of  the  revolt.  Its  result 
Why  was  it  opposed  by  Luther? 


2I5  The  Reformation  of  Luther 

Topics  for  Assigned  Studies 

Luther's  theses.     Kostlin,  Luther,  82-94.     Alzog,  Church  History,  III. 

11-15.    Translation  in  Penn.  II.,  No.  6. 
The  Diet  of  Worms.     Kostlin,  Luther,  222-245.     Seebohm,  Protestant 

Devolution.     (Epochs.)      115-135-     Alzo&   Church  History>  IIL 

36-42.     Hausser,  Reformation,  42-47. 


CHAPTER  VI 


THE  LATER  AGE  OF  THE   REFORMATION 

212.  The  Reformation  in  the  North  of  Europe.  —  Outside 
of  Germany   the   whole   Teutonic    north   of    Europe   had 
fallen  away  from  the  Catholic  Church.     Both  in   England 
and  in  the   Scandinavian  countries   the  governments   had 
much   to  do  with    the    introduction  of  the    new  forms  of 
faith,  but  Protestantism  had  soon  taken  a  strong  hold  of  the 
mass  of  the  people. 

In  England  at  first  the  change  was  a  peculiar  one.  It 
was  the  throwing  off  of  the  supremacy  of  the  pope,  but  not 
the  adoption  of  the  Protestant  faith.  The  personal  interest 
of  the  king  determined  the  step.  Henry  VIII.  desired  to 
be  freed  from  his  marriage  with  Catherine  of  Aragon,  the 
daughter  of  Ferdinand  and  Isabella,  by  whom  he  had  no 
male  heir,  and  who  had  once  been  contracted  to  his  elder 
brother,  Arthur.  Aside  from  motives  of  passion,  which 
may  have  influenced  him,  Henry  may  well  have  desired  to 
have  the  succession  to  the  crown  placed  beyond  the  possi- 
bility of  dispute,  as  any  statesman  might,  remembering  the 
Wars  of  the  Roses,  still  so  recent  in  English  history. 

213.  Henry  VIII.  takes  the  Place  of  the  Pope.  — The 
pope  refused  to  annul  the  marriage.     But  Henry  was  a  king 
who  was  both  accustomed  and  determined  to  have  his  own 
way,  and  the  divorce  which  the  pope  could  not  grant  him 
he  procured  from  an  English  Church  court  under  the  arch- 
bishop of  Canterbury.    This  act  necessarily  brought  matters 
to  a  square  issue  between   Henry  and  the  pope,  and  by 
degrees  the  papacy  was  deprived  of  all  its  powers  in  Eng- 

217 


Government 
on  the  side 
of  change. 


The  peculiar 

character  of 

the  first 

change  in 

England. 

Seebohm, 

Revolution, 

Pt.  III.. 

Chap.  II.; 

Fisher, 

Reformation, 

316-325; 

Alzog, 

Church 

History,  III. 

191-202; 

Perry, 

Reformation 

in  England 

(Epochs 

Ch.  Hist.)  ; 

Blunt, 

Reformation 

of  the  Church 

of  England. 


218 


Later  Age  of  the  Reformation    [§§  214,215 


The  "  act  of 

supremacy," 

1534- 
Gee  and 
Hardy,  243 ; 
Penn.  I. 
No.  i. 

England 
not  yet 
Protestant. 


Edward  VI., 

1547-1553 ; 

Mary  1., 


Fisher, 
Reformation , 

325-331 ; 

Alzog, 
Church 
History,  III. 
202-208 ; 
Tennyson, 
Queen  Mary 
(drama). 


The  rise  of 
Calvinism. 
Hausser, 
Reformation, 

24x-255 I 
Johnson, 
Periods, 
271-276. 


land,  and  finally  the  Act  of  Supremacy  was  passed,  by 
which  the  king  was  declared  to  be  "  the  only  Supreme  Head 
on  earth  of  the  Church  of  England." 

This  step  made  England  independent  of  the  Roman 
Church,  but  it  made  at  first  no  other  change.  The  teachings 
and  forms  of  Protestantism  were  not  adopted,  and  the  sub- 
jects of  Henry  were  placed  in  a  difficult  position,  for  he  put 
to  death  on  one  side  those  who  still  held  to  the  supremacy 
of  the  pope,  like  Sir  Thomas  More,  the  author  of  "  Utopia," 
and  on  the  other  those  who  favored  Protestant  doctrines. 
Gradually,  however,  these  teachings,  which  had  much  in 
harmony  with  the  spirit  of  the  English  nation,  spread  among 
the  people.  Under  Henry  himself  the  Bible  was  translated 
into  English  and  placed  in  the  churches  to  be  read  by 
any  one. 

214.  England  becomes  Protestant.  —  Henry's  son,  Edward 
VI. ,  was  still  a  child  at  the  death  of  his  father,  and  those 
who  governed  England  in  his  name  were  favorable  to  Prot- 
estantism, so  that,  though  the  reign  was  short,  it  was  one  of 
rapid  change.     From  it  dates  the  English  Prayer  Book  and 
the  use  of  English  in  all  the  services  of  the  Church.     Queen 
Mary,  who  followed  Edward,  was  the  daughter  of  Henry  and 
Catherine  of  Aragon,  and  it  was  hardly  possible  for  her  to 
be  otherwise  than  Catholic.     Her  efforts  to  reestablish  the 
power  of  the  pope,  her  marriage  with  her  cousin,  Philip  II. 
of  Spain,  and    her   persecution  of  the   Protestants,  which 
gained  for  her  the  name  of  "  Bloody  Mary,"  were  all  of  no 
avail,  and  after  her  short  reign  her   sister  Elizabeth  had 
no  difficulty  in  restoring  Protestant  institutions  and  her  own 
supremacy    in   the   Church.      In    her    reign    Protestantism 
became  the  religion  of  the  great  body  of  the  English  nation. 

215.  Calvinism.  —  In  the  meantime  in  the  Latin  king- 
dom of  France  a  new  phase  of  Protestantism  had  arisen 
which  was  destined  to  have  a  great  influence  upon  England 
and  the  United  States.     This  was  Calvinism.     John  Calvin, 
born  not  far  from  Paris,  had  been  educated  for  the  profes- 
sion of  the  law,  but  while  still  a  student  he  had  accepted  the 


§2is]  Calvinism  219 

teachings  of  Luther,  and  at  the  age  of  twenty-six  he  pub- 
lished a  most  remarkable  book,  "  The  Institutes  of  the 
Christian  Religion,"  the  first  scientific  treatise  on  Protestant 
theology.  In  1536  he  took  up  his  residence  at  Geneva, 
where  he  spent  the  remainder  of  his  life.  There  he  was 
able  to  carry  out  his  ideas  of  republican  government  in 
the  Church  and  of  a  state  founded  on  the  Bible  and  con- 
trolled by  religion.  Geneva  became  a  kind  of  city  of 
refuge  for  persecuted  Protestants  from  all  the  West  of 
Europe,  and  a  training  school  of  the  new  ideas  in  Church 
and  State. 

Calvin's  was  a  legal   mind   and  inexorably  logical,  and  Calvin's 
starting  with  the  idea  of  the  supremacy  of  God's  will  in  the  teachings 
universe  as  the  most  fundamental  of  all  truths,  he  developed 
a  system  which  has  seemed  to  the  modern  world,  in  its  ex- 
treme form,  —  where  predestination  determines  everything, 
and  the  individual  has  no  true  choice  and  no  control  over 
his  own  destiny,  —  too  harsh  and  merciless.     But  it  was  a 
system  which,  from  its  very  hardness,  made  strong  men.     It 
taught,  in  contrast  with  Luther's  feeling,  the  supreme  duty  of 
defending  the  truth  and  of  resisting  evil  even  in  the  State. 
This  spirit  of  Calvinism,  which  will  fight  for  the  right  to  the 
death   and   never   yield,  we   can   trace  throughout  all  the 
countries  of  the  West  of  Europe,  where  the  conflict  was 
waged  in  the  next  age,  in  Scotland,  England,  Holland,  and 
France,  and  in  America,  and  we  should  recognize  in  it  one 
of  the  most  powerful  forces  determining  the  final  results  of 
the  period  of  the  religious  wars.     Calvinism,  made  no  per- 
manent contribution  to  the  institutions  of  civil  liberty.     The  Calvin's 
theocratic  state,  taking  the  Bible  as  its  law  and  rigidly  en-   political 
forcing  a  formal   and   sombre   moral   code,   which   Calvin      irit  notjn 
maintained  in  Geneva  during  his  lifetime,  and  which  was  institutions, 
attempted  in  some  of  the  New  England  colonies,  especially 
in  the  New  Haven  colony,  passed  away  in  the  end  without 
leaving  a  permanent  constitutional  influence.     But  the  rein- 
forcement which  the  spirit  of  Calvinism  brought  at  a  critical 
time  to  the  hereditary  spirit  of  the  Anglo-Saxon  race,  in  the 


220 


Later  Age  of  the  Reformation     [§§216,217 


The  Refor- 
mation in 
France 
and  Holland. 
Fisher, 
Reformation, 
242-256 ; 
Penn.  III., 
No.  3. 


Political 
elements 
among  the 
Huguenots. 


Protestant- 
ism in 
Holland. 


Reformation 

in  the 

Catholic 

Church. 

Ward, 

The  Counter 

Reformation 


defence  of  liberty  and  of  the  government  of  the  people,  must 
be  gratefully  recognized. 

216.  Reformation  in  France  and  Holland. — The  teach- 
ings of  Calvin  found  the  way  prepared  for  ready  acceptance 
and  great  results  in  France.     Even  before  Luther  some  of 
his  ideas  in  the  way  of  religious  reform  had  been  taught  in 
France  and  had  found  adherents.     The  influence  of  Luther's 
reformation  followed  speedily  and  rapidly  increased  the  party 
which  had  been  scarcely  more  than  begun.     The  govern- 
ment, which  was  really  in  a  position  to  deal  more  consist- 
ently with  such  a  movement  than  was  the  government  of 
the  Empire,  followed  no  steady  policy  of  repression,  and 
the  party  of  the  reformers  continued  to  grow  through  the 
early  years  of  the  period.     The  effect  of  Calvin's  teaching 
was  not  merely  to  give  to  this  party  the  reinforcement  of 
new  converts,  but  all  the  strength  that  comes  from  regular 
organization  and  clearly  defined  aims. 

This  party,  which  comes  in  time  to  be  known  as  that  of 
the  Huguenots,  was  naturally  far  stronger  in  France  among 
the  middle  and  upper  classes  than  among  the  lower.  In 
central  and  southern  France  it  received  a  strong  reinforce- 
ment from  the  elements  representing  the  older  local  and 
feudal  independence  of  the  country,  and  in  the  age  of  the 
religious  civil  wars  has  quite  as  much  the  character  of  a 
political  as  of  a  religious  party. 

In  the  northern  province  of  the  Netherlands  the  ground 
had  also  been  prepared  for  the  sowing  of  Calvin  through  a 
kind  of  local  self-government  in  political  affairs  and  a  sturdy 
sense  of  independence  among  the  people,  who  retained  in 
many  ways  primitive  Teutonic  characteristics.  The  Dutch 
Protestants  were  real  Puritans  in  belief  and  conduct,  but  like 
the  Huguenots  and  the  English  Puritans,  their  importance 
lies  in  the  age  of  struggle  which  follows  the  Reformation. 

217.  The  Counter  Reformation.  —  The  term  "  Reforma- 
tion "  has  rather  become  limited  in  formal  history  to  the 
rise  of  the  Protestant  churches,  but  we  ought  not  to  over- 
look the  fact  that  in  nearly  every  sense  the  word  is  to  be 


§218] 


The  Society  of  Jesus 


221 


as  truly  applied  to  the  history  of  the  Catholic  Church  in 
this  age.  The  old  abuses  in  government  and  conduct  of 
which  the  fifteenth  century  so  bitterly  complained  disap- 
peared and  have  never  again  characterized  the  government 
of  the  Church  as  a  whole.  The  popes  of  the  middle  of  the 
sixteenth  century  were  decidedly  reforming  popes,  and  the 
papacy  has  never  since  fallen  to  the  hands  of  such  a  man  as 
Alexander  VI.  If  in  some  ways,  in  doctrine  and  in  the  mo- 
narchical tendency  of  the  government,  the  Catholic  Church 
emphasized  the  medieval  tendency,  it  was  because  the  body 
of  the  Church  was  unconvinced  by  the  arguments  of  the  re- 
formers and  held  to  the  old  beliefs  from  firm  conviction. 

It  was  the  work  of  the  council  of  Trent  to  formulate  in 
definite  statement  those  points  of  doctrine,  and  to  establish 
controlling  precedents  for  the  future  by  its  practice  in  regard 
to  those  points  of  government  which  the  reformers  had 
especially  attacked.  In  belief  it  proclaimed  the  divine 
mission  of  the  Church  to  know  and  teach  the  truth  for  all 
its  members,  and  in  government,  by  recognizing  that  the 
supreme  legislative  power  rested  in  the  pope,  it  completed 
the  establishment  of  the  papacy  as  an  unlimited  monarchy. 
These  conclusions  were  not  reached  in  the  council  without 
some  opposition,  and  its  sessions  were  interrupted  for  long 
intervals,  partly  because  of  the  political  uncertainties  of  the 
period.  In  general,  however,  the  decisions  of  the  council 
were  in  accord  with  the  tendencies  which  had  long  prevailed 
in  the  history  of  the  Catholic  Church  and  which  have  con- 
tinued to  characterize  it  down  to  the  present  time. 

218.  The  Society  of  Jesus.  —  During  the  same  period  the 
revival  in  the  Catholic  Church  was  accompanied  with  the 
organization  of  many  new  monastic  orders,  of  more  modern 
spirit  and  methods  than  those  of  the  Middle  Ages.  The 
most  important  of  these  was  the  Jesuit  order,  or  the  Society 
of  Jesus.  Founded  by  a  Spanish  noble  and  soldier,  Loyola, 
upon  the  military  model,  to  be  the  army  of  Christ  and  the 
pope,  its  fundamental  principle  was  the  strict  and  unques- 
tioning obedience  of  the  soldier.  In  method,  as  compared 


(Epochs 
Ch.  Hist.)  ; 
Fisher, 
Reformation 
390  ff. 


The  council 
of  Trent, 

IS4S-I563. 

Ward, 

Counter 

Reformation^ 

Chap.  III.; 

Symonds, 

Catholic 

Reaction, 

Chap.  II.; 

Alzog, 

Church 

History,  III. 

340-360; 

Penn.  II., 

No.  6. 


The  Jesuit 

order. 

Shorthouse 

John 

Inglesant 

(novel). 


222 


Later  Age  of  the  Reformation  [§218 


with  earlier  monastic  orders,  its  leading  characteristic  was  the 
practice  of  mingling  with  the  world  in  all  sorts  of  occupa- 
tions wherever  influence  was  to  be  acquired  or  something 

gained  for  the  cause  of 
Catholicism.  To  educa- 
tion, diplomacy,  and  the 
confessional,  especially  to 
acting  as  the  confessors  of 
persons  in  positions  of  po- 
litical activity,  the  early 
Jesuits  devoted  particular 
attention,  and  in  all  direc- 
tions their  efforts  were  of 
great  value  in  checking  the 
spread  of  Protestantism 

^    ^    ^    making    SOmC 

recovery  of  what  had  been 
lost.  In  somewhat  later  times  the  methods  of  the  Jesuits 
excited  the  suspicion  of  all  the  European  governments,  and 
their  influence  has  been  much  less  than  in  the  sixteenth 
century. 


IGNATIUS  LOYOLA 


Topics 

Just  what  was  the  change  in  the  English  Church  made  by  Henry 
VIII.?  Why  did  he  persecute  both  Protestants  and  Catholics?  Why 
was  Mary  naturally  a  Catholic?  And  Elizabeth  a  Protestant?  The 
religious  and  political  ideas  of  Calvin.  Their  influence  on  character. 
Why  were  they  suited  to  the  Anglo-Saxon  race?  Their  influence  on 
liberty.  What  combination  of  elements  in  the  Huguenot  party?  The 
character  of  Protestantism  in  the  Netherlands.  The  reformation  in 
the  Catholic  Church.  In  the  papacy.  The  decisions  of  the  council  of 
Trent.  The  fundamental  idea  and  the  methods  of  the  Jesuit  order. 


Topics  for  Assigned  Studies 

John  Calvin.  Fisher,  Reformation,  Chap.  VII.  Baird,  Rise  of  the 
Huguenots,  I.  198-216.  Alzog,  Church  History,  III.  143-155 
Froude,  essay  in  Short  Studies,  Vol.  II.  Penn.  III.,  No.  3. 


Topics  for  Review  223 

The  Jesuit  order.  Symonds,  Catholic  Reaction,  Chap.  IV.  Ward, 
Counter  Reformation,  31-46.  Alzog,  Church  History,  III.  373- 
385. 

Topics  for  Review- 
An  outline  intellectual  history  of  the  period. 

An  outline  economic  history  of  the  period. 

The  various  ways  in  which  preparation  had  been  made  for  the  Reforma- 
tion. '  , 

The  various  earlier  attempts  at  Reformation. 

In  what  ways  did  the  political  situation  in  Europe  protect  the  Reforma- 
tion in  Germany? 

Group  together  all  the  results  of  the  Reformation. 

Sketch  the  constitutional  history  of  the  Catholic  Church  in  this  period. 


224 


Important  Dates  for  Review 


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PART   IV 

THE   STRUGGLE   OF    THE    NATIONS  FOR 
SUPREMACY  AND  EXPANSION 


No  reference  can  be  made  to  general  works  covering  the  period  of 
the  following  part  which  are  of  value  for  our  purpose.     See  the  genera! 
bibliography  at  the  beginning  of  the  volume,  and  the  special  bibliog 
raphies  which  follow. 

SUMMARY 

The  age  of  the  religious  wars  opened  in  Germany,  where  at  the 
close  of  his  reign  Charles  V.  was  able  to  begin  his  long-deferred 
attack  upon  the  Protestants.  The  war  was  indecisive,  however, 
and  the  Peace  of  Augsburg  which  closed  it  left  so  many  ques- 
tions unsettled  that  it  was  a  truce  rather  than  a  peace.  In  France 
a  whole  generation  was  occupied  by  wars  between  Huguenot  and 
Catholic  of  the  most  selfish  character  on  both  sides,  and  closed 
only  by  the  accession  of  the  Huguenot  Henry  IV.  to  the  throne 
as  Catholic  king,  and  by  the  edict  of  Nantes,  which  allowed  the 
Huguenots  almost  political  independence  in  the  State.  In  the 
Netherlands  the  efforts  of  Philip  II.  to  destroy  Protestantism  led 
to  a  heroic  resistance  and  finally  to  the  independence  of  the  north- 
ern provinces  and  to  the  foundation  of  a  great  naval  and  colonial 
power.  In  England  the  nation  rallied  around  the  Protestant 
queen,  Elizabeth,  against  th  attempts  which  were  made  to  de- 
throne her,  and  in  the  struggle  with  Spain  laid  the  foundations 
of  a  future  world  empire.  The  practical  absolutism  which  they 
were  willing  to  allow  Elizabeth  because  of  the  national  danger 
they  would  not  tolerate  in  her  successor,  and  when  the  Stuarts 
obstinately  clung  to  their  prerogatives,  the  Puritan  party  led  a 
rebellion  against  Charles  I.,  put  him  to  death,  and  established 

225 


226  The  Age  of  Religious  Wars 

a  temporary  republic  under  Cromwell.  In  Germany  many  causes 
of  dissension  between  Catholics  and  Protestants  at  last  led  to  the 
terrible  Thirty  Years1  War,  in  which  the  land  suffered  the  horrors 
of  savage  warfare  from  the  armies  of  adventurers  like  Wallen- 
stein,  and  from  foreign  invaders,  the  Danes,  the  Swedes  under 
Gustavus  Adolphus,  and  the  French  under  Richelieu.  The  abso- 
lutism which  had  been  forming  so  rapidly  in  France  in  the  last 
part  of  the  Middle  Ages  was  completed  by  Richelieu,  who  forced 
the  Huguenots  to  submission,  and  then  the  great  nobles,  and 
prepared  France  for  a  great  career  of  foreign  conquest.  The 
treaties  of  Westphalia,  which  closed  the  Thirty  Years1  War,  left 
Germany  exhausted  and  the  Empire  a  mere  name,  while  the 
strength  of  Spain  had  completely  decayed.  When  Louis  XIV. 
assumed  the  government,  France  was  the  most  powerful  state  of 
Europe,  and  there  seemed  to  be  nothing  to  prevent  him  from 
reaching  the  frontier  of  the  Rhine  and  absorbing  a  large  part  of 
the  Spanish  possessions.  But  these  plans  failed  through  the  re- 
sistance of  the  little  republic  of  Holland,  and  though  Louis  was 
able  to  cripple  his  enemy,  aided  by  England  under  Charles  II., 
in  the  last  part  of  his  reign,  England,  rid  of  the  Stuart  policy 
forever  by  the  Revolution  of  1688,  united  with  all  Europe  against 
France  in  the  great  war  of  the  Spanish  Succession.  Louis  seated 
his  grandson  on  the  throne  of  Spain,  but  France  was  exhausted 
for  a  long  time,  and  no  real  union  of  the  States  took  place.  The 
first  part  of  the  eighteenth  century  saw  the  rapid  rise  of  Russia 
through  the  reforms  of  Peter  the  Great  and  his  conquests  from 
the  Swedes  and  the  Turks,  and  of  Prussia  through  the  careful 
husbandry  of  the  Hohenzollern  family,  which  prepared  the  way 
for  the  conquests  of  Frederick  the  Great.  He  seized  the  prov- 
ince of  Silesia  from  Maria  Theresa  and  forced  her  to  yield  it 
to  him,  and  later  defended  its  possession  with  brilliant  energy 
against  almost  all  Europe  in  the  Seven  Years1  War.  But,  looked 
at  in  the  largest  way,  this  war  was  only  an  incident  in  the  strug- 
gle for  colonial  empire  between  France  and  England  which  fills 
the  century,  and  was  settled  not  in  Europe,  but  by  the  victories 
of  Clive  in  India  and  the  capture  of  Quebec  in  America.  Eng- 
land's mistake  in  attempting  to  force  the  colonies  to  share  the 
expenses  of  this  war  gave  all  her  old  rivals  an  opportunity  to 
unite  in  revenge,  and  she  was  obliged  to  acknowledge  the  inde- 
pendence of  the  United  States.  A  new  empire  was  opened, 
however,  to  the  Anglo-Saxon  race  as  one  consequence,  by  the 
immediate  occupation  of  Australia.  Meanwhile  the  corruption 
of  the  government,  the  enormous  burden  of  taxation,  and  odious 


Summary  227 

class  distinctions,  combined  with  the  spread  of  a  critical  spirit 
and  the  knowledge  of  better  things  in  England  and  America, 
prepared  the  way  for  a  revolution  in  France.  Once  begun,  the 
revolution  was  rapidly  swept  on  to  extremes,  as  it  destroyed  the 
relics  of  the  old  feudal  system  and  the  absolutism  of  the  king. 
The  Reign  of  Terror  only  prepared  the  way  for  a  new  absolutism, 
and  in  the  one  successful  general  in  the  war  against  all  Europe, 
Bonaparte,  the  man  was  ready  to  exercise  it.  The  consulship 
was  a  preparation  for  the  Empire  which  was  proclaimed  when 
Napoleon  seemed  at  the  height  of  his  power.  For  many  years 
this  power  increased  rather  than  diminished,  but  France  was 
growing  weak  under  constant  drains,  and  at  last  the  terrible 
losses  in  Russia  could  not  be  made  good,  and  Napoleon  fell. 
His  desperate  effort  to  recover  himself  which  ended  in  the  battle 
of  Waterloo  closed  his  history.  At  the  congress  of  Vienna  sov- 
ereigns and  diplomats  disposed  of  the  nations  as  they  thought 
good,  but  the  longing  for  free  government  and  for  national  unity 
which  had  begun  among  the  people  in  the  age  of  revolution  could 
not  be  rooted  out.  Revolutionary  movements  kept  occurring  at 
intervals  all  over  Europe,  and  resulted  in  the  grant  of  constitu- 
tions here  and  there,  but  final  success  was  reached  only  in  the 
great  period  from  the  close  of  the  Crimean  War  to  that  of  the 
Franco-Prussian.  Then  in  little  more  than  a  decade  Italy 
secured  a  national  existence  under  the  lead  of  the  house  of 
Savoy,  and  Germany  under  Prussia,  and  almost  every  State  in 
Europe  obtained  a  more  or  less  complete  self-government. 
Russia  alone  remained  true  to  the  old  absolutism  and  to  her  tra- 
ditional desire  to  absorb  the  Turkish  Empire.  This  the  Western 
nations  combined  to  prevent  in  the  Crimean  War,  and  later  in  the 
congress  of  Berlin,  but  in  the  closing  years  of  the  nineteenth 
century  the  Eastern  Question  seemed  to  be  losing  its  relative 
importance  before  the  rise  of  world  politics,  due  mainly  to  the 
enormous  expansion  of  the  Anglo-Saxons,  and  the  desire  of 
other  nations  to  emulate  their  success  if  possible.  This  world 
expansion  of  a  race,  and  the  transformation  of  the  world  itself 
which  has  accompanied  it,  was  made  possible  only  by  the  in- 
tellectual and  scientific  advances  of  the  age.  Rapidity  of  pro- 
duction before  undreamed  of  demanded  the  widest  possible 
extension  of  markets,  and  this  was  made  possible  in  turn  by 
revolutionary  improvements  in  the  means  of  communication  by 
the  use  of  steam  and  electricity.  Together  these  things  have 
not  merely  carried  the  most  energetic  and  adaptable  of  the  mod- 
ern races  over  the  whole  globe,  but  they  have  led  to  accumula- 


228 


The  Age  of  Religious  Wars 


[§219 


tions  of  wealth  which  seem  almost  fabulous,  and  to  a  general 
dissemination  of  comforts  and  conveniences  which  our  grand- 
fathers would  not  believe  possible.  As  history  passes  into  the 
twentieth  century  the  world  seems  to  be  on  the  eve  of  even 
greater  transformations. 


An  age  of 
civil  war. 


France. 


Spain. 


England. 


CHAPTER   I 

THE  AGE  OF  RELIGIOUS   WARS 

219.  The  General  Character  of  the  Age.  —  About  the 
middle  of  the  sixteenth  century,  a  new  age  opens  in  the  his- 
tory of  Europe.  It  is  an  age  in  which  almost  every  country 
is  involved  in  war  —  in  most  cases  civil  war,  growing  di- 
rectly out  of  the  Reformation,  though  as  the  period  comes 
to  an  end  we  can  see  rising  questions  of  international  poli- 
tics, the  rivalry  of  nations  with  one  another,  and  especi- 
ally the  rivalry  between  France  and  the  house  of  Hapsburg. 
At  the  beginning  of  the  period,  France  withdraws  from 
Italy,  and  turns  its  attention  to  the  Rhine  valley,  where  in 
the  end  it  is  to  pay  so  dearly  for  the  conquests  it  makes 
from  Germany.  Italy  thus  left  to  itself  falls  under  the  prac- 
tically undisputed  control  of  the  Spanish  Hapsburgs.  France 
passes  almost  immediately  into  an  age  of  religious  civil  war, 
from  which  it  emerges  in  a  condition  to  take  up  again  plans 
of  national  aggrandizement  only  after  two  generations.  In 
the  same  years,  Spain  is  engaged  in  a  long  and  unsuccessful 
effort  to  subdue  the  revolted  Netherlands,  which  would 
have  meant  the  reestablishment  of  the  Catholic  religion 
over  a  Protestant  people. 

During  the  same  time  also,  England  passed  through  a 
very  critical  period,  in  constant  danger  of  rebellion  and 
revolution,  stimulated  often  by  Spain,  in  the  interest  of  the 
old  form  of  faith,  and  succeeded  in  protecting  her  national 
independence  and  religion  only  by  the  exercise  of  the  ut- 
most vigilance  and  discretion  on  the  part  of  the  government 


§  220]     First  Period  of  the  Schmalkaldic  War       229 


Germany  opened  the  period  of  religious  civil  wars  in  the  Germany. 
Schmalkaldic  War.  This  was  closed  by  the  treaty  of  Augs- 
burg, which  in  form  established  toleration  for  Catholics  and 
Lutherans,  but  it  left  unsettled  many  causes  of  disagree- 
ment, and  while  the  other  nations  were  passing  through 
their  civil  wars,  the  parties  in  Germany  were  watching  one 
another  with  constantly  increasing  jealousy.  At  last,  when 
the  seventeenth  century  was  well  under  way,  the  war  broke 
out,  the  Thirty  Years'  War,  the  greatest  and  most  destruc- 
tive of  all  these  civil  wars,  a  religious  war  in  its  early  stages, 
but  changing  toward  the  end  into  a  war  of  European  states. 
The  close  of  the  period  saw  also  in  England  a  great  civil 
war  between  king  and  Parliament,  a  war  in  form  upon  con- 
stitutional questions,  but  deriving  much  of  its  character  and 
spirit  from  the  influence  of  Calvinism. 

220.  The  First  Period  of  the  Schmalkaldic   War.  —  In 

1546,  Charles  V.  was  able  to  begin  the  war  against  the  Prot- 
estants which  he  had  been  obliged  to  postpone  so  many 
times.     The  treaty  of  Crespy  had  given  him  peace  with 
France.     Francis   was   drawing   to   his   end.     He  died  in 

1547,  and  his  successor,  Henry  II.,  seemed  for  some  years 
to  care  only  for  the   pleasures  of  the  court.     The  Turks 
were  also  no  longer  to  be  feared.     On  the  other  hand,  the 
Protestants  were  now  much  stronger  than  when  last  threat- 
ened by  the  emperor  with  war,  and  had  they  been  united 
and  well  led,  they  would  have  been  too  strong  for  Charles. 
As  it  was,  his  successes  were  gained  by  the  help  of  the  ruler 
and  army  of  a  Protestant  state,  by  the  able  but  unscrupu- 
lous Maurice  of  Saxony.     He  was  the  head  of  the  younger  Maurice  of 
Saxon  line  and  was  ambitious  of  larger  territories  and  higher  Saxony* 
titles.     During  the  first  years  everything  went  in  Charles' 

favor.  He  gained  the  great  victory  of  Miihlberg,  captured 
and  held  in  close  imprisonment  the  two  chief  Protestant 
princes,  John  Frederic,  Elector  of  Saxony,  and  Philip  of 
Hesse,  and  Maurice  was  rewarded  for  his  treason  by  the 
Electorate  and  the  larger  part  of  the  territories  of  his 
cousin.  Soon  afterward,  the  siege  of  Magdeburg,  which 


Religious 
war  begins 
in  Germany. 
Hausser, 
Reformation^ 
196-215 ; 
Johnson, 
Periods, 
220-239 ; 
map, 
Putzger, 
No.  21. 


230 


The  Age  of  Religious  Wars     [§§221,222 


Maurice  of 
Saxony  and 
France 
against 
Charles. 
Hausser, 
Reformation, 
226-234 ; 
Johnson, 
Periods, 
239-246 ; 
Zeller,  XIV. 


Charles 
defeated. 


seemed  the  last  stronghold  of  Protestantism,  was   begun 

by  Maurice. 

221.  The  Turning-point  of  the  War.  —  Then  the  situa- 
tion suddenly  changed.     Gradually  it  had  become  evident 
to  Germany  that  Charles  had  other  plans  than  those  for  the 
supremacy  of  Catholicism.     He  seemed  to  be  intending  to 
establish  a  strong  imperial  power  by  the  overthrow  of  the 
princes,  and  to  transfer  the  succession  from  his  brother,  the 
German  Ferdinand,  to  his  son,  the  Spanish  Philip.     Maurice 
quickly  saw  that   the  time  was  ripe  for  a  second  treason 
which  would  be  equally  profitable  with  the  first.     He  had 
been  offended  by  the  treatment  of  his  father-in-law,  Philip 
of  Hesse,  by  the  emperor,  but,  a  still  stronger  motive,  here 
was  an  opportunity  to  obtain  the  consent  of  the  Protestant 
princes  to  the  gifts  which  Charles   had  made  him.     At  the 
same  moment,  Henry  II.  of  France,  fearing  the  increasing 
strength  of  Charles  in  Germany,  was  thinking  of  interfer- 
ing.    An  arrangement  was  readily  made  between  him  and 
the  Protestant  princes,  by  which  they  were  supplied  with 
money,  and  he  was  allowed  to  take  possession  for  France  of 
the  "  Three  Bishoprics,"  Metz,  Toul,  and  Verdun,  "  cities 
which  have  belonged  to  the  Empire  but  where  the  French 
language  has  been  spoken,"  as  the   treaty  said.     This  was 
the  first  step  of  France  in  the  policy  of  securing  the  frontier 
of  the  Rhine,  and  though,  after  peace  had  been  made  in 
Germany,  the  Emperor  made  a  vigorous  attempt  to  recover 
these  lands,  he  failed  and  they  remained  in  the  possession 
of  France. 

222.  The  Close  of  the  War.  —The  Emperor  did  not  sus- 
pect what  was  going  on,  and  when  everything  was  ready,  so 
sudden  was  the  attack  of  Maurice,  that  Charles  escaped  only 
with  difficulty  and  by  night  through  the  passes  of  the  Alps. 
The  work  of  years  was  speedily  undone,  and  Charles  was 
forced  to  give  up  all   his  plans,  and  to  leave  the  practical 
direction  of  affairs  to  his  brother  Ferdinand.     The  war  was 
really  closed  by  the  convention  of  Passau  in  1552,  and  this 
was  followed  in  1555  by  the  definitive  peace  of  Augsbuig. 


§  224]       Power  and  Character  of  Philip  II.          231 


CANNON  OF  THE  XVIth  CENTURY 


This  established  religious  toleration  of  a  very  imperfect  kind. 
It  gave  to  the  government  of  each  State  the  power  to  decide 
what  should  be  the  legal  religion  of  its  land,  and  then  to  do 
what  it  pleased  with 
the  adherents  of  any 
other,  though  if  it  de- 
cided to  expel  them, 
they  should  be  al- 
lowed to  take  their 
property  with  them. 
Under  this  treaty 
peace  was  maintained  in  Germany  until  the  beginning  of 
the  Thirty  Years'  War  in  1618,  but  very  soon  questions 
began  to  arise  which  were  not  thought  of  when  the  treaty 
was  made,  and  whose  practical  settlement  seemed  to  one 
party  or  the  other  a  violation  of  its  terms. 

223.  Abdication  of  Charles  V.  — Very  soon  after  the  con- 
clusion of  the  peace  of  Augsburg,  Charles  V.,  disappointed 
in  all  his  great  plans  and  worn  with  disease,  abdicated  all 
his  crowns,  and  retired  to  spend  the  rest  of  his  days  in  the 
cloister  of  San  Yuste  in  Spain.     His  brother  Ferdinand  suc- 
ceeded him  in  the  German  possessions  of  the  family,  and 
was  elected  emperor,  and  his  son  Philip  obtained  his  other 
possessions  in  Spain,  Italy,  the  Low  Countries,  and  America. 
It  was  much  to  the  advantage  of  France  and  of  the  rest  of 
the  world  as  well,  that  Charles  had  not  been  able  to  unite 
his  vast  dominions  into  a  universal  monarchy,  but  the  power 
of  the  house  of  Austria,  even  though  divided,  still  over- 
shadowed the  world,  and  for  generations  yet  was   to   be 
feared  and  resisted  until  at  last  its  decline  became  evident 
to  all. 

224.  The  Power  and  Character  of  Philip  II.  — At  the 
outset,  however,  the  power  of  Philip  II.  was  as  great  as  that 
which  Charles  V.  had  had  at  any  time.     If  he  did  not  have 
Austria  and  the  Empire,  he  escaped  in  that  way  the  difficul- 
ties and  embarrassments  which  had  constantly  hampered  his 
father  on  their  account.     When  he  began  to  reign  his  con- 


The  peace 

of  Augsburg. 

Hausser, 

Reformation^ 

234-240 ; 

Johnson, 

Periods, 

247-249. 

The 

important 

clauses  in 

Schilling, 

Quellenbuck, 

96.      - 


Spain  and 
Austria 
separated, 
IS56. 

Penn.  III., 
No.  3. 


As  powerful 
as  Charles  V. 


232 


The  Age  of  Religious  Wars 


[§224 


trol  was  undisputed  over  the  resources  of  Spain,  Spanish 
Italy,  the  Netherlands,  and  America.  With  power  so  much 
greater  than  any  of  his  contemporaries  possessed,  Philip  might 
reasonably  hope  to  accomplish  anything  that  he  desired. 
That  he  failed  in  his  purposes,  lost  some  of  the  best  portions 


PHILIP  II. 


The  charac- 
ter and 
ideals  of 
Philip. 
Motley, 
Dutch 


of  his  empire,  and  exhausted  the  remainder  was  due  to  his 
personal  character  and  policy. 

The  more  popular  qualities  of  Charles  V.'s  early  life  did 
not  descend  to  his  son.  Philip  was  cold  and  unapproach- 
able, secretive  in  disposition,  hard  and  unpitying,  and 
inflexibly  obstinate  when  his  purpose  was  once  formed. 
His  government  was  a  typical  despotism,  as  he  sincerely 
believed  all  government  should  be,  in  which,  though  he 


§  225]  Philip  and  Mary  of  England 


233 


might  listen  to  the  opinions  of  others,  every  decision  was  his 
own,  and,  when  once  reached,  not  to  be  questioned  by  the 
highest.  From  some  source  Philip  had  derived  a  strong 
religious  tendency  which  was  the  controlling  influence  in 
shaping  his  policy,  and  which  determined  the  result  of  his 
reign.  The  tendency  was  toward  a  somewhat  formal  and 
theoretical  religion,  and  it  was  not  of  a  sort  to  control  his 
personal  morals,  but  it  may  on  that  very  account  have  exer- 
cised an  even  more  decisive  influence  over  his  public  policy. 
To  Philip  the  supreme  thing  in  the  world  was  the  Church. 
The  highest  duty  of  every  monarch  was  to  support  and  de- 
fend it. 

In  his  own  case,  the  way  of  duty  seemed  entirely  plain. 
With  all  the  vast  resources  at  his  command,  he  must  devote 
himself  to  keeping  down  heresy  where  it  was  not  already 
supreme,  and  to  recovering  as  many  as  possible  of  the  prov- 
inces which  the  Church  had  lost.  He  did  not  recognize  the 
depth  of  the  current  nor  the  impossibility  of  turning  it  back, 
and  because  he  thus  faced  the  past  and  not  the  future,  he  hast- 
ened the  decline  of  Spain,  which  had  perhaps  already  begun. 
It  certainly  was  the  blindest  political  policy  to  drive  out  and 
destroy  by  persecution  the  Moors  still  left  in  southern  Spain, 
but  he  was  undoubtedly  sincere  in  saying,  as  he  did  of  the 
Netherlands,  that  he  had  rather  not  reign  at  all  than  to 
reign  over  heretics. 

225.  Philip  and  Mary  of  England.  — The  power  of  Philip 
might  seem  at  his  accession  to  render  resistance  hopeless, 
but  a  type  of  Protestantism  had  already  arisen  in  the  countries 
where  the  issue  must  be  decided,  in  Holland  and  in  England, 
well  fitted  for  the  conflict.  This  was  Calvinism,  whose 
controlling  spirit  of  resistance  to  tyranny  we  have  already 
noticed. 

Philip  had  been  married,  some  months  before  the  abdica- 
tion of  his  father,  to  Queen  Mary  of  England.  It  was  a 
union  very  dear  to  Mary,  though  very  unpopular  with  her 
subjects,  and  both  she  and  Philip  hoped  that  it  would  increase 
the  power  of  the  great  Catholic  monarchy  and  secure  the 


Republic 
(Harper),  I, 
139-146 ; 
Johnson, 
Periods, 
309-313. 


His  mission, 
to  suppress 
heresy. 


Philip  must 
contend  with 
Calvinism. 


The  mar- 
riage of 
Philip  and 
Mary. 


234 


The  Age  of  Religious  Wars     [§§  226, 227 


Green, 

English 

People,  II. 

246-261 ; 

Froude, 

England, 

VI.,  Chap. 

XXXIII.; 

Creighton, 

Elizabeth 

(Epochs), 

29-47. 


Elizabeth, 

1558-1603. 

Her  situation 

and 

character. 

Creighton, 

Elizabeth, 

128-148 ; 

Green, 

English 

People,  II. 

295-302. 


Documents. 
Prothero, 
1-20 ; 
Gee  and 
Hardy, 
416-508. 


complete  triumph  of  the  Church  which  both  so  much  desired. 
Mary,  as  the  daughter  of  Catherine  of  Aragon,  could  hardly 
avoid  being  a  Catholic.  If  she  were  a  Protestant,  she  would 
proclaim  her  own  illegitimacy.  In  her  short  reign  she  did 
all  that  she  could  to  bring  England  back  into  the  old  way. 
She  undid  the  legislation  of  her  father,  restored  the  suprem- 
acy of  the  pope,  tried  to  destroy  the  influences  which  had 
begun  to  work  during  the  reign  of  her  brother,  and  put 
many  Protestants  to  death.  But  she  was  disappointed  in  all. 
There  was  no  child  from  her  marriage  with  Philip  to  carry 
on  her  plans  ;  England,  though  not  yet  Protestant,  endured 
sullenly  her  methods  of  rule ;  Philip,  disappointed  also  in 
what  he  had  hoped  to  gain  from  England,  gave  her  no  sym- 
pathy nor  personal  support ;  and  finally  Providence  itself 
seemed  to  desert  her  when  Francis  of  Guise  captured  Calais, 
which  the  English  had  held  for  two  hundred  years  against 
all  the  efforts  of  France.  She  was  succeeded  in  the  same 
year  by  Elizabeth. 

226.  England  again  Protestant.  —  Elizabeth,  as  the  child 
of  the  marriage  which  had  overthrown  the  supremacy  of  the 
pope,  was  just  as  necessarily  constrained  to  be  Protestant  as 
Mary  to  be  Catholic.     Her  situation  was,  however,  critical, 
and  demanded  that  she  should  proceed  with  caution.     Eng- 
land was  probably  still  more  than  half  Catholic.     No  one 
who  was  more  Catholic  than  Englishman  could  regard  her 
as  legitimately  sovereign.     The  true  heir  of  the  crown  in  his 
eyes  was  Mary  Stuart,  queen  of  Scotland  and  wife  of  the 
king  of  France,  and  she  had  already  assumed  the  arms  and 
style    of  queen   of  England.     England  was   a   small  land, 
and,  even  if  it  had  been  thoroughly  united,  no  match  for  the 
great   Catholic  powers.     It  was  with  great  discretion   that 
Elizabeth  met  the  difficulties  with  which  her  reign  opened, 
and,  though  the  sovereign  became  again  the  head  of  the 
Church,  it  was  some  years  before  the  laws  began  to  bear 
hard  upon  the  Catholics. 

227.  The  Situation  in  the  Netherlands.  —  It  was  in  the 
Netherlands  that  Philip's  plans  received  their  first  decided 


§  228]         Netherlands  under  the  Hapsburgs  235 

check,  and  the  opposition  which  they  met  with  there  was  Political 

one  of  the  most  decisive  influences  leading  to  their  final  fail-  constltution. 

ure.     As  we  have  seen,  the  Netherlands  had  descended  to  Reformation, 

Charles  V.  from  his  grandmother,  Mary,  daughter  of  Charles  285-290; 


the  Bold,  duke  of  Burgundy.     Their  political  constitution 

was  a  peculiar  one  and  had  an  important  bearing  on  the    (Lippincott), 

events  of  this  period.     The  provinces  of  the  Netherlands  Bk-  n- 

were  seventeen  in  number,  each  a  separate  state,  dating 

back  to  the  old  feudal  days.     Each  of  these  little  states  was 

entirely  independent  of  all  the  others  politically,  and  had  its 

own  legislature,  laws,  and  government.     The  only  form  of 

union  between  them  was  that  which  is  known  in  modern 

times  as  a  "  personal  union,"  consisting  in  the  fact  that  they 

all  had  the  same  sovereign.     Besides  this  political  separation, 

there  were  more  natural  differences  of  languages,  economic   Separated 

character,  and  to  some  extent  of  former  political  relationship, 

which  divided  the  provinces  into  two  groups.     The  people 

of  the  northern  provinces  spoke  a  German  language,  were 

attracted  by  their  situation  to  the  sea,  which  had  led  them  to 

develop  extensive  fisheries  and  commerce,  and  their  rulers 

had  held  their  lands  under  the  German  emperors.     The 

people  of  the  southern  provinces  spoke  a  dialect  of  French, 

depended  chiefly  in  the  country  on  agriculture  and  in  the 

towns  on  great  manufacturing  industries,  which  had  grown 

up  since  the  crusades,  while  a  considerable  portion  of  them 

had  originally  belonged  on  the  west  side  of  the  boundary 

line  between  France  and  Germany. 

228.   The   Netherlands    under  the   Hapsburgs.  —  These  Charles  v. 
provinces  had  obtained  from  their  earlier  rulers  very  con-    p"d. 
siderable  political  privileges  in  the  way  of  making  their  laws 
and  voting  their  taxes,  and  to  these  liberties  they  were  de- 
votedly attached.     Charles  V.,  when  he  became  their  sover- 
eign, had  paid  little  attention  to  their  rights  and  had  ruled 
much  as  he  pleased.     But  the  Netherlanders  looked  upon 
him  as  a  native  of  their  country,  and  he  had  also  popular 
qualities  which  won  men  to  grant  him  his  will.     Philip  II., 
however,  seemed  to  them  a  true  Spaniard,  and  he  did  not 


236 


The  Age  of  Religious  Wars     [§§  229, 230 


Religious 
persecution 
leads  to 
resistance. 


Philip's 

measures 

and  their 

effect. 

Prescott, 

Philip  //., 

Bk.  II., 

Chap.  II.; 

Motley, 

Dutch 

Republic,  L 

261-268 ; 

Hausser, 

Reformation, 

290-306. 

Indepen- 
dence 
declared. 
Old  South, 
72; 

Johnson, 
Periods, 
Chap.  VI 1 1.; 
Hausser, 


appear  to  care  to  be  thought  anything  else.  His  dark  and 
forbidding  manners  made  him  no  friends,  and  when  he 
began  to  advance  further  even  than  Charles  in  the  way  of 
arbitrary  government,  his  measures  excited  an  opposition 
which  his  father  had  never  met. 

229.  The  Beginning  of  Resistance  to  Philip.  —  Spanish 
officials  in  the  place  of  native,  and   garrisons   of  Spanish 
troops,  even  heavier  taxes  than  they  had   ever   yet   paid, 
arbitrarily  laid,  might  not  have  led  to  open  rebellion.     When 
to  these  was  added  religious  persecution,  armed  resistance 
followed.     Protestantism  had  made  its  way  into  the  German 
provinces  of  the  north,  coming  in  the  end  to  be  of  a  Cal- 
vinistic  type,  while  the  provinces  of  the  south  had  remained 
Catholic,  —  another  and  finally  one  of  the  most  important  dif- 
ferences between  the  two  groups.     This  heretical  religion, 
of  course,  Philip   could  not  tolerate.     His   own  provinces 
must  all  be  Catholic  whatever  the  rest  of  the  world  might 
be.     The  introduction  of  the  Spanish  inquisition,  the  division 
of  the  country  into  numerous  new  bishoprics  for  its  better 
control,  and  the  merciless  execution  of  heretics  led  to  the 
first  steps  in  resistance.     The  nobles  protested  against  the 
invasion  of  their  political  privileges.     The  Protestants  united 
and  drew  up  the  Compromise  of  Breda,  a  declaration  of 
their  rights.     They  took  in  earnest  the  name  of  Beggars,  — 
Gueux,  —  which  had  been  given  them  in  derision,  and  ac- 
cepted as  their  leader  William  of  Nassau,  Prince  of  Orange, 
one  of  the  richest  nobles  of  the  country,  a  man  brave  and 
prudent,  who  was  called  William  the  Silent,   from  a  wise 
habit  of  holding  his  tongue. 

230.  The  Independence  of  the  United  Netherlands.  — The 
conflict  was  obstinately  fought  on  both  sides,  and  long  unde- 
cided.    The  military  skill,  the  thousands  of  executions  and 
unheard-of  exactions  of  the  duke  of  Alva  were  of  no  avail. 
The  country  might  be  almost  ruined,  but  the  Catholic  prov- 
inces were  driven  to  take  part  with  the  Protestant  against 
the  Spanish  troops.     A  somewhat  milder  policy  which  fol- 
lowed succeeded  no  better  in  the  main  purpose.     Though 


§  230]    Independence  of  the  United  Netherlands      237 

the  Catholic  provinces  in  the  end  remained  under  the  Span-  Reformation, 

ish  rule,  the  Protestant  laid  the  foundations  of  a  new  govern-  ^av^ 

ment  in  the  Union  of  Utrecht   in   1579,  and  soon   after  xxni.  and 

declared   their  complete  independence  of  Spain.     It  was  xxiv. 

more  than  twenty-five  years,  however,  before  they  obtained  indepen- 
peace  and  a  recognition  of  their  independence.     William 
the  Silent  was  murdered  in  1584,  but  his  son  Maurice  suc- 


WlLLIAM   THE  SILENT 

ceeded  him.  Elizabeth  of  England  sent  the  Netherlanders 
some  little  aid,  but  their  greatest  relief  came  from  the  great 
loss  which  Philip  met  with  in  the  destruction  of  the  Armada, 
and  from  his  taking  part  in  the  civil  war  in  France.  At  last, 
just  before  his  death,  Philip  gave  the  Netherlands  to  his  son- 
in-law,  the  archduke  of  Austria,  and  he,  after  failing  in  his 
turn  to  conquer  them,  recognized  in  1609  the  independence 
of  the  seven  United  Provinces,  and  this  was  formally  con- 
ceded by  the  public  law  of  Europe  in  the  peace  of  West- 
phalia in  1648. 


238 


The  Age  of  Religious  Wars     [§§  231, 232 


Civil  strife 
continued. 


Growth  of 
Protestant 
feeling  in 
England. 


The  earlier 
life  of  Mary 
Stuart. 
Creighton, 

£lizabetkt 
65-82. 


The  close  of  the  war  for  independence  was  not  the  end 
of  troubles  for  the  Dutch.  Civil  and  religious  conflict  fol- 
lowed, between  a  monarchical  party  led  by  the  house  of 
Nassau,  holding  to  the  strict  Calvinistic  faith,  and  a  repub- 
lican party  which  accepted  the  teachings  of  Arminius  (d. 
1609),  who  rejected  predestination  and  the  theology  founded 
upon  it,  and  built  an  opposing  system  upon  the  basis  of  hu- 
man free  will  The  monarchical  party  finally  triumphed,  and 
the  leader  of  the  republican,  Oldenbarnevelt,  was  executed. 

231 .  England.  —  In  his  plans  for  the  recovery  of  England 
for  the  Catholic  Church,  Philip  had  no  better  fortune.     The 
method  of  his  warfare,  attack  by  conspiracy  and  revolution 
upon  a  government  which  all  Englishmen  of  whatever  faith  re- 
garded as  the  legal  and  constitutional  government,  identified 
in  the  minds  of  the  mass  of  the  people  the  cause  of  Protes- 
tantism with  that  of  national  independence,  and  began  that 
deep-seated   fear  of  the  political   designs  of  the   Catholic 
Church  which  has  been  in  the  past,  at  least,  a  characteristic 
of  Anglo-Saxon  Protestantism. 

232.  Mary  Queen   of   Scots. — The  character  of  Mary 
Stuart,  the  Catholic  candidate  for  Elizabeth's  throne,  was  not 
a  help  to  her  supporters.      A  daughter  of  Mary  of  Guise, 
brought  up  from  infancy  at  the  French  court  as  the  future 
wife  of  Francis  II.,  light  hearted  and  fond  of  amusement, 
and  enjoying  intensely  the  lively  society  of  Paris,  she  was 
forced,  when  only  nineteen,  by  the  death  of  her  husband  to 
return  to  Scotland,  which  had  been  lately  converted  by  the 
uncompromising  John  Knox  to  the  austere  faith  of  Calvin. 
It  is  not  strange   that   Mary  was  unable   to  adapt  herself 
exactly  to  the  situation.     The  crisis  was  reached  upon  her 
marriage  to  the  earl  of  Bothwell  within  a  few  months  of  the 
murder  of  her  second  husband,  Lord  Darnley,  —  a  murder 
which  it  was  supposed    Bothwell    had  committed,  perhaps 
with  the  connivance  of  Mary.     To  avoid  the  storm  which 
this  aroused,  she  abdicated  in  favor  of  James  VI.,  her  infant 
son  by  Darnley,  and  fled  to  England  to  seek  refuge  with  her 
cousin  and  sister  queen,  Elizabeth. 


§232:1 


Mary  Queen  of  Scots 


The  presence  of  Mary  in   England  was  a   considerable  The  execu 
embarrassment  to  Elizabeth,  who  could  hardly  fail  to  sym- 
pathize  with   her   troubles   as   a   sovereign.     But   political 
necessity  seemed  to  her  and  to  her  ministers  to  indicate  but 


QUEEN  ELIZABETH 

one  safe  course,  and  Mary  was  imprisoned.     She  did  not  Froude, 
cease,  however,  in   confinement,    to  be   made   the   centre   En£land> 
of  plots  against  Elizabeth,  nor  to   be   recognized   by   the 
pope  and  the  king  of  Spain  as  the  rightful  queen  of  England. 


240 


The  Age  of  Religious  Wars     [§§  233, 234 


Creighton, 
Elizabeth, 
175-178. 
The  petition 
of  Parlia- 
ment, 
Prothero, 
109. 

Reasons  for 
the  conquest 
of  England. 


The  destruc- 
tion of  the 
Armada, 
1588. 


The  demand 
for  a  more 
complete 
reformation. 


Finally,  after  she  had  been  imprisoned  nineteen  years,  a 
conspiracy  was  detected  which  involved  the  murder  of 
Elizabeth  as  well  as  the  overthrow  of  the  government,  and, 
as  the  evidence  seemed  to  indicate  a  guilty  knowledge  on 
the  part  of  Mary,  Elizabeth,  with  real  or  feigned  reluctance, 
consented  to  her  execution. 

233.  The  Invincible  Armada.  — The  execution  of  Mary, 
the  aid  which  Elizabeth  was  giving  to  the  revolted  Nether- 
landers,    and  the    injuries   which   Spanish    commerce   was 
receiving  from  the  English  cruisers  now  determined  Philip 
to  exert  all  his  strength,  overwhelming  as  he  believed  and 
as  England  feared,  and  with  one  blow  be  revenged  upon  the 
upstart  little  kingdom,  and  restore  a  lost  province  to  the 
Church. 

In  the  summer  of  1588,  the  Invincible  Armada  set  sail. 
All  England,  Catholic  and  Protestant  alike,  rallied  to  oppose 
it.  The  smaller  but  swifter  and  better  handled  English 
ships  sailed  around,  and  clung  to  the  skirts  of  the  great 
Spanish  fleet  and,  in  a  nine  days'  continuous  battle  as  it 
passed  through  the  Channel,  practically  defeated  it.  As 
the  remaining  ships  were  attempting  to  return  to  Spain  by 
sailing  around  Scotland  and  Ireland,  they  were  dispersed 
by  storms,  and  hardly  one-third  reached  home.  This  was 
a  great  blow  to  the  naval  supremacy,  the  resources,  and 
the  prestige  of  Spain  from  which  she  never  recovered.  It 
was,  also,  the  last  attempt  of  Philip  II.  to  conquer  England, 
but  it  was  only  the  beginning  of  the  English  triumphs 
over  Spain,  so  intimately  connected  with  the  rise  of  her 
commercial  and  colonial  empire,  which  we  shall  study  in 
another  place. 

234.  The  Rise  of  the  Puritan  Party. — The  troubles  of 
Elizabeth  with  the  Catholics,  did  not  exhaust  her  religious 
difficulties.     The  English  Church  had  retained  many  things 
in  its  forms  which  had  belonged  to  the  old  Church,  and  this 
was  true  to  some  extent,  also,  of  its  teachings.     But  many  in 
England  had  accepted  the  full  teachings  of  Calvin.     During 
the  reign  of  Mary  numbers  had  taken  refuge  from  persecu- 


§  235]  Opposing  Parties  in  France  241 

tion  in  Geneva,  and  they  had  returned,  hoping  to  establish 
Calvinism  in  England.  These  men  now  refused  to  con- 
form to  the  English  Church,  but  for  opposite  reasons  from 
those  of  the  Catholics.  For  them  the  Reformation  had  not 
gone  far  enough.  This  party  was  itself  divided  into  two. 
One,  for  a  long  time  the  most  numerous  and  influential  in 
England,  was  the  Puritan,  so  called  from  its  desire  to  purify 
the  Church  from  all  Catholic  form.  They  believed,  however, 
in  a  national,  established  Church.  The  other  party,  for 
many  years  small  and  obscure,  was  sometimes  called  the 
Brownist,  from  one  of  its  leaders,  and  sometimes  the 
Separatist  from  its  special  teaching  that  each  separate 
church  should  be  an  independent,  democratic  community, 
determining  all  questions  for  itself. 

The  government   felt   obliged   to   punish  these  extreme  The  Pilgrims 
Protestants  for  non-conformity,  as  it  did  the  Catholics,  and   in  Holland. 
soon  after  the  reign  of  Elizabeth  closed,  a  community  of   G%£sis0f 
the  Separatists  took  refuge  in  Holland  from  this  persecution,   New  Eng. 
and  some  years  later  still  formed  the  little  colony  of  Plymouth    churches> 
in  New   England.     Many  Puritans   coming   later   to    New   209~22' 
England   organized  there  churches  of  the  Separatist  type,   England, 
and  these  are  known  in  the  history  of  America  as  Con-   Old  South, 
gregational,  while  those  retaining  more  nearly  the  original  S5' 
Puritan  organization  are  known  as  Presbyterian. 

235.  The  Opposing  Parties  in  France.  —  For  France,  the  An  unhappy 
last  half  of  the  sixteenth  century  was  a  most  unhappy  period  of 
period.  Ravaged  by  constantly  recurring  civil  wars,  reli- 
gious in  form  but  somewhat  selfish  in  character  and  revo- 
lutionary in  purpose,  and  ruled  by  incompetent  kings  and 
an  utterly  corrupt  court,  government  was  almost  undone 
and  all  classes  and  interests  suffered  severely.  The  Protes- 
tants of  France,  as  we  have  seen,  differed  from  those  of 
other  countries  in  the  fact  that  they  formed  a  great  political 
party  in  the  nation,  led  by  powerful  nobles  and  princes  of 
the  royal  family,  and  strove  to  secure  their  main  object,  a 
kind  of  independent  position  in  the  State,  quite  as  much 
from  political  as  from  religious  reasons. 


242 


The  Age  of  Religious  Wars 


[§236 


Government 
follows  no 
consistent 
policy. 
Penn.  III., 
No.  3; 
Zeller,  XIV. 


Catherine 
de'  Medici 
and  her 
policy. 
Kitchin, 
France,  II. 
294-310 ; 
Zeller,  XV. 


The  first  war. 
Vassy,  1562. 
Baird, 
Rise  of  the 
Huguenots 
(Scribner), 
II.  19-26. 


The 

Huguenots 
a  state 
within  the 
State. 


The  Reformation  had  an  independent  and  early  beginning 
in  France,  but  it  received  much  aid  from  the  German  move- 
ment, and  still  more  from  Calvin.  At  first  the  government 
paid  little  attention  to  it,  but  finally  Francis  I.  and  Henry  II. 
adopted  the  policy  of  repression,  irregularly  carried  out. 
During  the  short  reign  of  Francis  II.,  the  same  policy  was 
continued,  as  the  king  was  under  the  control  of  the  Guises, 
the  uncles  of  his  wife  Mary  Stuart,  and  they  were  devoted 
Catholics. 

On  his  death,  in  1560,  his  brother,  Charles  IX.,  became 
king  at  the  age  of  ten.  His  mother,  Catherine  de'  Medici, 
an  ambitious  woman,  but  up  to  this  time  without  influence 
upon  public  affairs,  now  resolved  to  rule  in  the  name  of  her 
son.  This  she  hoped  to  accomplish  by  balancing  the 
Catholic  party  of  the  Guises  with  the  Protestant  party  led 
by  the  Bourbon  princes,  Antony  of  Navarre  and  his  brother, 
the  Prince  of  Conde.  This  was  a  very  difficult  part  to  play 
on  account  of  the  bitterness  of  faction,  and,  though  Cath- 
erine was  aided  by  the  unusual  abilities  of  her  minister,  the 
Chancellor  L'Hopital,  who  was  tolerant  from  conviction,  it 
was  not  an  entirely  successful  policy. 

236.  The  Huguenot  Civil  Wars.  —  The  first  civil  war 
began  by  the  massacre  of  Vassy,  in  which  the  attendants 
of  Francis  of  Guise,  who  was  on  his  way  to  Paris,  attacked 
and  killed  many  of  a  Protestant  community  who  were  wor- 
shipping in  a  barn.  From  this  time  on  for  thirty  years 
there  was  a  constant  succession  of  wars,  separated  from  one 
another  by  brief  intervals  of  what  was  called  peace,  but  which 
differed  from  war  only  in  the  fact  that  the  strife  was  carried 
on  by  intrigues  at  the  court  rather  than  on  the  battlefield. 

The  peace  of  St.  Germain,  which  closed  the  third  war, 
is  the  mpst  important  peace  in  the  series,  and  the  interval 
between  that  and  the  beginning  of  the  fourth  war,  the 
most  important  interval.  The  peace  granted  to  the  Hugue- 
nots four  strong  fortress  towns  of  France,  which  they  were 
to  hold  and  control  entirely  independently  of  the  govern- 
ment. This  was  done  to  give  them  a  feeling  of  security, 


§  237]  The  First  of  the  Bourbons  243 

and  as  a  kind  of  pledge  that  the  terms  of  the  peace  would 
be  honestly  kept,  but  it  had  the  effect  of  giving  them  a 
basis  of  political  organization  and  of  making  them  a  little 
state  within  the  State. 

In  the  interval  before  the  next  war  the  effort  to  bring  Coligny  and 

Protestant  and  Catholic  together  was  more  nearly  successful   tlf  massacre 

r   ,  of  St.  Bar- 

man  at  any  other  time.     The  marriage  of  the  young  Henry   tholomew, 

of  Navarre,  now  the  head  of  the  Huguenots,  with  the  king's   1572. 
sister,  Margaret  of  Valois,  was  to  cement  the  union,  and  ^^ 
many  of  the  most  prominent  Protestants  were  attracted  to   History,  ill. 
the  festivities  at  Paris.     The  Admiral  Coligny,  the  ablest  of  276-279; 
the  Huguenot  nobles  and  one  of  the  ablest   Frenchmen 
of  the  time,  acquired  a  decided  influence  over  the  mind  of  Chap, 
the  young  king.     He  wished  to  return  to  the  policy  of  ex-   XVIII.; 
tending  French  territory  in  the  Rhine  valley,  and  to  turn   weyman, '' 
the  energies  of  the  nation  from  civil  strife  to  foreign  con-   House  of  the 
quest.   The  king  was  on  the  point  of  action,  but  his  mother, 
Catherine  de'  Medici,  began  to  be  alarmed   at  Coligny's 
influence  and  to  fear  the  loss  of  her  hold  on  power.     An 
attempt  to  assassinate  the  admiral  failed.     Then  the  king 
was  with  difficulty  persuaded  of  a  general  Huguenot  plot, 
and  gave  the  orders  which  led  to  the  massacre  of  St.  Bar- 
tholomew.  Thousands  were  murdered  in  Paris  and  through- 
out France,  but  a  new  spirit  filled  those  that  survived,  and 
the  Catholics  gained  little  in  the  end. 

237.   The  First  of  the  Bourbons.  —  On  both  sides,  mur-   The  last  of 
ders  were  frequent  during  these  wars,   and   many  of  the   the  Valois- 
leaders  perished   by  assassination.     In  1574,  Charles   IX. 
was  succeeded  by  his  brother,  'Henry  III.,  the  last  of  the 
Valois.     He  was  ambitious  to  rule  and  wished  to  form  a 
party  of  his  own,  but   he   could   not.     After   having   the 
duke  of  Guise  murdered  almost  in  the  royal  presence,  he 
was  himself  murdered  in   1589.     By  his  death,  Henry  of 
Navarre  was  left  the  rightful  king  of  France.     A  long  strug-    Henry  IV. 
gle  was  necessary,  however,  before  he  obtained  full  posses- 
sion  of  the  throne,  and  among  other  things  required  was   Henry  of 
his  conversion  to  the  Catholic  faith,  probably  not  a  diffi- 


244 


The  Age  of  Religious  Wars     [§§  238, 239 


Navarre 
(Heroes)  ; 
his  acces- 
sion, 

Chaps.  V. 
and  VI.; 
Johnson, 
432-437. 

The  close  of 
the  civil 
wars  and  the 
edict  of 
Nantes. 
Baird, 
Henry  of 
Navarre 
(Scribner), 
Chap.  XIV.; 
Johnson, 
Periods, 
442-445. 

Designs 
upon  the 
Rhine 
valley. 
Willert, 
Henry  of 
Navarre, 
Chap.  XI. 


The  causes 
of  strife  in 
the  Empire. 
Map  for  the 
war, 
Putzger, 
No.  22. 


cult  thing  for  him,  as  he  was  not  a  man  of  deep  convic- 
tions. 

By  1598  the  wars  were  over.  England,  which  had  hoped 
to  gain  something  at  the  expense  of  France  by  alliance 
with  the  Huguenots,  and  Spain  by  alliance  with  the  Catho- 
lics, were  both  repulsed ;  the  rebellious  nobles  and  cities 
were  forced  to  submit  to  a  reestablishment  of  strong  royal 
authority,  and  Henry  could  carry  out  his  plans  for  the 
restoration  of  prosperity  to  France,  wise  according  to  the 
knowledge  of  the  time,  in  which  he  had  the  aid  of  his  great 
minister,  Sully.  The  rights  of  the  Protestants  were  secured 
and  toleration  made  the  law  o.f  the  State  by  the  edict  of 
Nantes  of  April  13,  1598,  which  served  its  purpose  for 
almost  a  hundred  years. 

238.  The  Foreign  Plans  of  Henry  IV.  —  Having  secured 
the   internal  peace  and  begun  the   economic  recovery  of 
France,   Henry    IV.  was   just  about  to   renew    the    policy 
of  conquest  in  the  Rhine  valley,  when  he  was  assassinated, 
in  1610,     Had  Henry  been  granted  a  fe\v  years  longer,  he 
would  probably  have  made  larger  conquests  in  this  region 
than  Louis  XIV.  a  century  later,  and  at  much  less  cost,  for 
Germany  was  just  on  the  eve  of  civil  war,  Spain  was  ex- 
hausted by  the  losses  and  mistakes  of  the  last  half  century, 
and  England  and  Holland  would  not  have  been  ready  to 
oppose  the  designs  of  France  as  they  were  a  hundred  years 
later.     As  it  was,   France   fell    back   for    many   years  into 
weakness  and  internal  confusion.     Louis  XIII.  was  not  yet 
ten.     His   mother,  Mary  de'  Medici,  did  not  know  how  to 
rule,  and  the  nobles  and  leaders  of  all  parties  proved  utterly 
selfish  and  corrupt. 

239.  The  Beginning  of  the  Thirty  Years'  War.  — While 
France  was  torn  with  civil  war,  and  Spain  was  exhausting 
herself  in  efforts  to  conquer  the  revolted  Netherlands  and 
to   overthrow  Protestantism   in  western   Europe,   Germany 
was    slowly  drifting  toward   a  civil  war,   the   most   terrible 
in  its  effects  of  any  known  to  civilized  history.    The  immedi- 
ate successors  of  Charles  V,,  Ferdinand  I.  and  Maximilian  II., 


§  239]      Beginning  of  the  Thirty   Years    War        245 

were  liberal-minded  princes,  and  Protestantism  made  con- 
siderable advances  even  in  the  Austrian  territories.  The 
later  emperors,  especially  Rudolf  II.  and  Ferdinand  II.,  were 
entirely  under  the  influence  of  the  Jesuits,  and  determined 
to  restore  Catholicism  wherever  possible.  Each  party  in 
the  Empire  had  some  reason  to  complain  of  the  unfairness 
with  which  the  other  interpreted  the  terms  of  the  peace  of 
Augsburg.  The  Protestants  had  managed,  contrary  to  its 


A  SOLDIER  OF  THE  THIRTY  YEARS'  WAR 

spirit  at  least,  to  retain  the  endowments  and  government 
of  several  ecclesiastical  states  which  had  been  converted. 
In  1607,  Maximilian  of  Bavaria,  taking  advantage  of  a 
quarrel  which  had  arisen  between  the  citizens  and  a  mon- 
astery, had  seized  the  Protestant  free  city  of  Donauworth  and 
had  reestablished  Catholicism  there.  The  Protestant  states 
then  formed  the  "Union,"  under  the  lead  of  the  Elector 
of  the  Palatinate.  Immediately  the  Catholics  formed  the 
"  League,"  with  Maximilian  at  its  head. 


246 


The  Age  of  Religious  Wars     [§§  240,  241 


The  out- 
break in 
Bohemia. 
Gindely, 
Thirty  Years' 
War 

(Putnams), 
Chap.  II.; 
Gardiner, 
Thirty  Years' 
War 

(Epochs), 
Chap.  II., 
Sec.  2; 
Maurice, 
Bohemia 
(Nations), 
Chap.  XVII. 

The  over- 
throw of 
Frederick. 
Gardiner, 
Chap.  III., 
Sec.  i ; 
Gindely,  I., 
Chap.  VI. 


The  rise  of 

Wallenstein 

and  his 

methods. 

Gindely,  I. 

379-386; 

Gardiner, 

Chap.  V., 

Sec.  3.     See 

later  edict 

deposing 

him, 

Schilling, 

Quellenbuch, 

'45- 


240.  The  Bohemian  Period  of  the  War.  —  War  did  not 
begin,  however,  for  some  years,  and  then  in  consequence  of 
the  efforts  of  Ferdinand  to  favor  Catholicism  in  Bohemia, 
where  nearly  all  the  people  were  Protestants.     The  destruc- 
tion of  a  Protestant  church  in  Prague,  in  1618,  led  to  open 
hostilities.     The  people  rose,  threw  the  Catholic  councillors 
of  Ferdinand  out  of  a  window  of  the  castle,  after  the  Bohe- 
mian fashion,  deposed  the  king,  and  elected  in  his  place, 
Frederick,  the  Elector  Palatine.     He  was  the  head  of  the 
Union,  and  son-in-law  of  James  I.  of  England,  but  the  aid 
which  was  expected  from  these  sources  did  not  come.     On 
the  other  hand,   Ferdinand   had   the   support   of  Bavaria, 
Spain,  and  even  of  Protestant  Saxony,  and  in  Tilly  had  a 
general  far  superior  to  any  on  the  Bohemian    side.      The 
first  period  of  the  war  was  soon  over.     Frederick  was  de- 
feated in  the   battle  of  the  White   Mountain,  driven  from 
his  new  kingdom,  lost  his  dominions  in  the  Palatinate,  and 
even    his   electoral  office,  which  was   given  to  Maximilian 
of  Bavaria,  and   never  was   able    to    recover   his   position. 
Bohemia  was  left  at  the  mercy  of  Ferdinand,  who  deprived 
the  Protestants  of  their  rights  and  established  Catholicism 
by  force. 

241.  The  Danish  Period.  — These  successes  of  the  house 
of  Austria,  won  partly  by  the  help  of  Spanish  troops,  and 
these  violations  of  constitutional  right,  at  last  led  the  other 
Protestant  states  of  the  Empire  to  fear  for  their  own  safety. 
The  king  of  Denmark,  Christian  IV.,  a  German  prince,  as 
duke  of  Holstein  interfered,  and  the  Danish  period  of  the 
war  began  in  1624.    In  this  period,  Wallenstein  appeared  in 
the  service  of  Ferdinand,  at  the  head  of  a  great  army  which 
he  supported  and  paid  without  expense  to  the  emperor  by 
the  plunder  of  the  country  through  which  he  passed.     In 
carrying  out  this  plan  of  making  war  pay  its  own  expenses, 
he  made  but  little  distinction  between  friend  and  foe,  and 
as  his  method  was  generally  adopted  by  the  other  command- 
ers, and  as  the  armies  came  to  be  composed  of  adventurers 
and  professional  soldiers  from  all  parts  of  Europe,  attracted 


§  242]  Sweden  and  France  247 

by  the  privilege  of  living  as  licensed  freebooters,  the  suf- 
ferings of  the  German  people  can  be  easily  imagined. 

Success  was  still  on  the  Catholic  side.     Tilly  and  Wallen-  The  edict  of 
stein  were  more  than  a  match  for  the  leaders  on  the  other  Gardiner0"* 
side,  the  king  of  Denmark  was  driven  out,  north  Germany  chap,  vii.; 
was  almost  wholly  subdued,  and  Wallenstein  was  given  the  Gindely,  I. 
confiscated  duchy  of  Mecklenburg,  which  should  be  held  by  a  J?^tff'; 
reigning  prince.    As  a  result  of  these  successes,  the  emperor  Schilling, 
issued  in  1629  the  edict  of  Restitution,  which  marks  the    Q^ellenbuck, 
highest  point  of  his  success  and  shows  what  would   have 
followed  his   complete   triumph.      This   edict  ordered   the 
restoration  to  the  Catholic  Church  of  all  endowments  and 
ecclesiastical    governments   which    has   become    Protestant 
since  the  peace  of  Augsburg.     As  many  of  these  were  cases 
of  genuine  conversion,  and  as  it  affected  all  parts  of  Ger- 
many, it  was  an  edict  which  could  have  been  carried  out 
only  by  an  arbitrary  exercise  of  absolute  power. 

242.  Sweden  and  France. — But  a  change  was  now  at  The 

hand  in  the   character   of  the  war,  which    marks  a   great   ambition  of 

i  •      Ai        j  r    i  •  ^  i  %          Sweden  and 

change  in  the  deeper   currents  of  history  at  large.     Two   0fGustavus 

nations  of  Europe  had  been  for  some  years  watching  events  Adoiphus. 
in  Germany  with  increasing  interest.  One  of  these  was 
Sweden  on  the  north.  Sweden  was  at  that  time  a  much 
larger  and  more  powerful  state  than  it  has  been  in  recent 
history.  The  eastern  shore  and  the  southeastern  corner  of 
the  Baltic  were  in  its  possession,  and  it  was  ambitious  of 
making  that  sea  wholly  a  Swedish  lake.  During  the  first 
years  of  the  Thirty  Years'  War  it  had  been  engaged  in  a 
war  with  the  kingdom  of  Poland,  partly  with  this  in  view. 
Its  king  was  now  Gustavus  Adoiphus,  a  young  man  with  the 
ambition  which  conscious  ability  always  gives  —  a  military 
genius  who  was  at  the  same  time  a  most  devoted  and 
sincere  Protestant,  ready  to  avenge  the  injuries  of  the  Ger- 
man Protestants  on  religious  grounds,  even  if  the  interests 
of  Sweden  had  not  been  at  the  same  time  served. 

The  other  country  was  France.     During  the  minority  of 
Louis  XIII.,  and  for  a  few  years  after,  France  had  been 


248 


The  Age  of  Religious  Wars 


[§243 


The  rise  and  abandoned  to  faction,  to  intrigues,  and  strife  of  the  most  self- 
general  ish  sortj  which  had  reduced  the  royal  authority  to  almost 
Richelieu.       as  ^ow  a  Pomt  as  during  the  civil  wars,  and  prevented  the 
country  from  taking  any  part  in  European  affairs.     But  in 
1624  Richelieu  had  come  into  power.     From  this  date,  for 
almost  twenty  years,  he  followed,  without  wavering,  a  clear 
and  definite  policy  in  internal  affairs  the  supremacy  of  the 


GUSTAVUS  ADOLPHUS 

king,  and  in  external  affairs  the  dominion  of  France  in  Eu- 
rope. To  accomplish  these  things  required,  in  France,  the 
overthrow  of  the  political  independence  of  the  Huguenots 
and  of  the  power  of  the  nobles,  and  in  Europe,  the  over- 
throw of  the  house  of  Austria,  and  these  form  the  special 
objects  of  Richelieu's  policy. 

243.     Richelieu  centralizes  France.  —  Richelieu  began  to 
carry  out   his   foreign  policy  almost   as  soon  as  he  became 


§  244]     Richelieu  and  the  Thirty  Years    War        249 


minister,  by  preventing  the  Spanish  from  getting  possession 
of  the  Valteline  pass  in  northern  Italy,  the  key  to  the  line  of 
communication  between  the  lands  of  the  Spanish  Hapsburgs 
in  Italy  and  those  of  the  Austrian  Hapsburgs  in  Germany. 
But  he  found  out  at  once  that  France  was  not  prepared  for  a 
successful  struggle  for  European  supremacy  until  it  was  thor- 
oughly centralized  at  home.  The  conflict  with  the  Huguenots 
was  over  comparatively  soon.  Their  strongest  fortress,  La 
Rochelle,  was  taken  in  1628,  after  a  famous  siege  and  in  spite 
of  the  efforts  of  England  to  prevent  it.  But  little  further 
resistance  was  possible  for  them,  and  in  1629  Richelieu 
issued  the  edict  of  Alais,  which  deprived  them  of  the  politi- 
cal independence,  the  position  of  a  state  within  the  State, 
which  the  edict  of  Nantes  had  granted  them,  but  left  all 
their  religious  privileges  and  liberties  untouched. 

The  conflict  with  the  nobles  lasted  much  longer,  all 
through  the  life  of  Richelieu  and  even  on  into  the  ministry 
of  Mazarin,  but  they  were  in  the  end  entirely  subdued.  They 
fought  with  intrigue  and  conspiracy,  in  which  the  king's 
mother,  his  wife,  and  his  brother  Gaston,  often  had  a  part, 
and  which  were  as  often  directed  at  the  life  as  at  the  power 
of  Richelieu.  The  minister's  weapons  were  the  law  and 
judicial  executions  which  removed  some  of  the  highest 
nobles  of  the  kingdom.  His  strongest  support  was  the  fact 
that  Louis  XIII.  understood  and  heartily  approved  his  policy, 
so  that  the  most  powerful  influences  of  the  court  could  not 
turn  him  against  his  minister.  The  success  of  Richelieu's 
policy  gave  the  finishing  touches  to  the  absolute  monarchy 
and  made  the  king's  will  supreme  without  a  check. 

244.  Richelieu  and  the  Thirty  Years'  War.  —  At  the  date 
of  Ferdinand's  edict  of  Restitution,  Richelieu  was  not  quite 
ready  for  open  interference  in  the  war  in  Germany,  but  he 
was  ready  to  assist  others  to  prevent  any  further  extension 
of  the  Austrian  power.  He  aided  the  electors  in  forcing 
the  emperor  to  dismiss  Wallenstein,  whose  army  they  feared 
might  be  used  to  destroy  their  independence.  He  inter- 
fered to  make  peace  between  the  Swedes  and  Poland  so  that 


The  inde- 
pendence 
of  the 
Huguenots 
broken. 


The  nobles 

subdued. 

Bulwer, 

Richelieu 

(drama). 


Indirect 
interference. 


250 


The  Age  of  Religious  Wars 


[§244 


Richelieu 
and  Prot- 
estantism. 


Gustavus  Adolphus  might  be  at  liberty  to  give  his  whole 
attention  to  the  Protestant  cause  in  Germany,  and  he  after- 
wards supported  the  Swedish  army  with  liberal  supplies. 

These  events  meant  of  course  that  a  new  directing  influ- 
ence was  entering  into  the  religious  war.  Richelieu  was  a 
Catholic.  He  was  a  cardinal  of  the  Church.  But  the  great 
objects  of  his  life  were  political  without  reference  to  religion. 


RICHELIEU 

He  made  war  on  the  Huguenots,  but  left  them  all  their  re- 
ligious rights.  He  supported  Protestant  armies  and  sent  his 
own  to  fight  on  that  side,  that  he  might  weaken  the  Austrian 
power  and  put  France  at  the  head  of  Europe.  This  is  the 
passing  away  of  the  Reformation  as  an  influence  which  con- 
trols international  politics  and  the  action  of  States,  and  the 
beginning  again  of  the  conflict  by  diplomacy  and  war  for 
national  aggrandizement. 


§§  245,246]   Deaths  of  Gustavus  and  Wallenstein    251 

245.  Gustavus  Adolphus  in  Germany.  —  The  great  man  of  The  char- 

the  Thirty  Years'  War  was  Gustavus  Adolphus,  a  most  inter-  ^^JjJ 

esting  study  both  from  his  positive  characteristics  and  from  Gustavus 

his  apparent  contradictions.     Most  earnestly  devoted  to  the  Adolphus. 


Protestant  faith,  and  at  the  head  of  an  equally  devoted  army  *'  IL 


which  he  held  under  strict  discipline,  he  was  still  ambitious  Fletcher, 

for  himself  and  desirous  of  conquest  for  his  country.     A  Gusta<vu$ 

...  .  .  ,       .  -  ,T7   ,,  Adolph'us 

military  genius,  the  equal  or  even  the  superior  ot  Wallen-  (Heroes)  ; 

stein,  and  an  innovator  who  revolutionized  the  art  of  war  by  Dodge, 

the  lighter  arms  and  more  mobile  arrangements  which  he  gave  ^^J^ 

his  troops,  he  won  a  remarkable  series  of  successes  from  which  (Military 

he  gained  no  corresponding  advantages,  and  he  died  in  the  History, 
midst  of  his  career  at  the  moment  of  victory  over  Wallenstein.      oug  ton^* 

The  interference  of   the   Swedes  in   Germany  was   not  The  victories 

altogether  welcome  to  the  more  powerful  of  the  Protestant  ~ftl^f 

princes,  who  feared  their  ulterior  designs.    So  long  was  Gus-  Gardiner, 

tavus  Adolphus  in  forcing  his  way  through  the  territories  of  Chap,  viil.; 

the  Elector  of  Brandenburg  that  the'  great  city  of  Magdeburg  ^"Idely'  IL 
fell  before  the  assaults  of  Tilly,  and  was  almost  totally  de- 
stroyed, probably  by  its  own  defenders  to  deprive  the  victors 

of  their  advantage.     This  loss  was  soon  made  up  by  the  55-67; 

great  victory  which  Gustavus  won  from  Tilly  in  the  battle  of  contemP°- 

Breitenfeld,  near   Leipsic.      This    defeat  left  the  emperor  iTscWning! 

without  an  army  capable  of  holding  the  Swedes  in  check,  Quellenbuch, 

but  the  plans  of  Gustavus  seem  at  this  time  to  have  been  di-  I26' 
rected  to  other  objects  than  the  overthrow  of  the  emperor. 
Ferdinand  was  obliged  to  recall  Wallenstein  in  order  to  get 
a  new  army,  and  gave  him  a  position  almost  entirely  inde- 
pendent of  control. 

246.  The  Death  of  Gustavus  and  of  Wallenstein.  —  In  the  The  death  ol 

next  year  Gustavus  entered    Munich  after  again  defeating  Gustavus, 

Tilly,  who  was  mortally  wounded,  but  Wallenstein  prevented  *  32* 
his   further   advance  and  then  drew  him  off  into  Saxony, 
where,  in  the  battle  of  Liitzen,  Gustavus  was  killed,  though 
the  army  of  Wallenstein  was  defeated.     The  policy  of  Gus- 

tavus was  continued  by  Oxenstern,  the  minister  of  the  little  • 
Queen  Christina,  and  the  Swedish  army  remained  in  Ger- 


252 


The  Age  of  Religious  Wars 


[§247 


Wallenstein 
assassinated, 
1634. 

Gindely,  II. 
172-188 ; 
Gardiner, 
Chap.  IX., 
Sec.  4; 
Schiller, 
Wallen- 
stein 's  Lager, 


Die  Picco- 
lomini,  and 
Wallen- 
steiris  Tod 
(dramas). 

Richelieu 
actively 
interferes. 
Gardiner, 
Chap.  X. 

The  French 
successes 
compel 
peace. 


many  till  the  close  of  the  war,  through  the  days  of  its  great 
successes  were  past. 

The  death  of  Gustavus  more  than  balanced,  for  the  em- 
peror's cause,  the  defeat  of  Wallenstein,  and  it  was  followed 
by  other  successes.  Not  long  after,  the  emperor  became 
convinced  that  Wallenstein  was  engaged  in  treasonable  cor- 
respondence with  the  enemy,  and  was  planning  to  use  his 
army  in  some  design  of  his  own,  and  he  had  him  killed,  but 
was  able  to  retain  the  services  of  his  army.  The  successes 
of  Ferdinand  were  crowned  when,  in  1635,  the  Elector  of 


SWEDISH  LEATHER  CANNON 

From  the  time  of  the  Thirty  Years'  War 

Saxony,  to  secure  certain  advantages  for  himself,  made  a 
separate  peace  and  even  an  alliance  with  the  emperor. 

247.  The  French  Period  of  the  War. —Once  more  the 
house  of  Austria  seemed  about  to  triumph  in  Germany. 
Again  Richelieu  must  interfere  if  he  would  prevent  it,  and 
this  time  with  his  own  forces.  The  French  period  lasts  from 
1635  tiH  tne  dose  of  the  war. 

The  first  efforts  of  France  were  directed  against  the  prov- 
inces which  had  been  retained  by  the  Spanish  Hapsburgs 
in  the  Low  Countries,  where,  after  driving  back  a  Spanish 
invasion  which  had  threatened  Paris  for  a  moment,  Arras 


§  248]  The  Peace  of  Westphalia  253 

was  captured  and  the  province  of  Artois  conquered.  In  the 
south,  Roussillon  was  taken  possession  of,  and  Portugal  was 
aided  to  recover  her  independence  from  Spain.  The 
Swedish  army  soon  passed  under  French  control,  and  their 
successes  in  Alsace  and  the  Rhine  valley  made  for  the  ad- 
vantage of  France.  Richelieu  did  not  live  to  see  the  com- 
plete fulfilment  of  his  plans,  but  he  saw  enough  to  be 
confident  of  their  final  realization.  His  policy  was  con- 
tinued by  Mazarin,  his  successor  in  the  French  ministry.  In 
the  last  years  of  the  war,  two  young  French  generals  began 
their  career  who  were  destined  to  the  highest  military 
renown,  Turenne  and  Conde".  Their  repeated  victories,  the 
occupation  of  Bavaria,  the  capture  of  Passau  and  of  Prague, 
and  the  threatening  of  Vienna,  finally  drove  the  emperor, 
Ferdinand  III.,  reluctantly  to  consent  to  conditions  of 
peace. 

248.  The  Peace  of  Westphalia.  —  The  series  of  treaties  by  The  im- 
which  the  Thirty  Years'  War  was  brought  to  an  end  is  known   portance  of 
as  the  peace  of  Westphalia.     Considered  as  one,  it  consti-   GinddyClI. 
tutes  the  most  important  event  in  diplomatic  history  since   Chap,  x.; 
the  treaty  of  Verdun  in  the  ninth  century,  and  the  wide-    Gardiner» 

i  •  i*  ••  i  •    i      •  i  iij'i  C^n3.p.  .X.l.f 

reaching  dispositions  which  it  made  controlled,  with  some  sec.  2; 

slight  modifications,  the  political  and  geographical  arrange-  selected 

ments  of  Europe  till  the  age  of  Napoleon.  s'chnfin  ™ 

From  the  point  of  view  of  general  history,  the  peace  of  Queiienbuch, 

Westphalia  marks,  first  of  all,  the  great  advance  of  France  J59- 

towards  the  headship  of   Europe,  and  the   corresponding  The  great 


decline  of  the  house  of  Austria.     This  was  made  evident  in  * 


the  treaties  and  secured  for  the  future  in  two  ways.     In  the   Kitchin, 
first  place,  France  was  given  the  footing  on  the  Rhine  which   France<  HI. 
for  a  hundred  years  its  statesmen  had  been  hoping  to  attain. 
The  larger   part  of  Alsace  was   put   under  the  control  of 
France,  though  it  was  not  actually  ceded  to  her,  and  two 
great  fortresses  on  the  right  bank  of  the  river,  Breisach  and 
Philippsburg,  became  French.     She  thus  had  an  easy  entry 
for   her    armies    directly   into    Germany   in   the    event   of 
another  war.      This  position  on  the  upper  Rhine  enabled 


254 


The  Age  of  Religious  Wars     [§§  249*  250 


The  decline 
of  Austria. 
Bryce, 

Holy  Roman 

Empire, 

340-351. 


Map, 
Putzger, 
No.  22. 


Sweden  and 
the  German 
states. 


France  also  easily  to  extend  her  influence  over  the  small 
states  of  the  lower  valley,  and  a  few  years  later  she  organized 
the  League  of  the  Rhine  under  her  leadership,  which  made 
France  almost  as  much  a  German  power  as  Austria. 

249.  The  Empire  Destroyed.  —  In  the  second  place,  the 
treaties  made  the  Empire  in  law  what  it  had  been  in  reality 
for  more  than  two  hundred  years  —  a  mere  form,  though 
making  at  the  same  time  the  forms  somewhat  more  empty. 
Full  sovereignty,  with  the  right  to  make  treaties  and  alliances 
with  foreign  states,  limited  only  by  the  most  meaningless  con- 
ditions, was  given  to  each  of  the  more  than  three  hundred 
and  fifty  little  states  into  which  Germany  was  now  divided. 
The  position  of  emperor,  which  now  belonged  by  a  kind 
of  customary  right   to    the    Hapsburgs,  became   a   merely 
honorary  one,  a  kind  of  presidency  of  a  loose  confederation 
with  no  real  power  whatever.      As  a  result,  the  lingering 
ideas  of  a  German  nation,  which  had  existed  up  to  this  time, 
disappeared  completely.     Each  little  court  pursued  its  own 
utterly  selfish  and  corrupt  policy,  bitterly  jealous  of  all  the 
others  and  of  the  Empire,  and  even  such  a  man  as  Lessing 
could  rejoice  that  he  was  not  troubled  with  the  weakness 
of  patriotism.     Austria  was  reduced,  by  this  state  of  things, 
to  depend  upon  her  own  private  resources  in  future  strug- 
gles with   France,  and   Louis  XIV.  was  able   to  treat  the 
Empire  with  most  open  contempt  and  insult  with  perfect 
impunity. 

250.  The  Other  States  of  Europe  in  the  Peace. — The 
other  dispositions  of  the  treaties  are  of  comparatively  little 
importance.      Sweden,  Brandenburg,   and  Saxony  received 
large  additions  of  territory.     The  portion  of  the  Palatinate 
on  the  Rhine  was  restored  to  the  son  of  Frederick  with  an 
eighth  electorate  created  for  him,  but  Bavaria  retained  the 
part  of  the   Palatinate  which  joined  her  territory,  together 
with  the  old  seventh  electorate  which  had  been  given  her 
at  the  beginning  of  the  war.     The  edict  of  Restitution  was 
not   enforced   except  for  the  last  years  of  the  war.     The 
religious  arrangements  of  the  peace  of  Augsburg  were  con- 


§§251,252]      New  Era  in  English  History  255 

tinned  in  force,  and  the  Calvinistic  or  Reformed  Church, 
as  it  was  called,  was  admitted  to  its  privileges. 

Spain  refused  to  accept  this  peace  for  herself,  and  con-   Spain 
tinued  the  war  for  ten  years  longer,  hoping,  on  account  of    continues  the 
the  civil  conflicts  in  France,  to  be  able  to  extort  better  years> 
terms.      In  this  she  was  disappointed,  and  in  the  peace 
of  the  Pyrenees,  in  1659,  she  was  obliged  to  make  consider- 
able cessions  to  France,  both  in  the  Low  Countries  and  in 
the  south. 

251.  The  Sufferings   of  Germany. — The  misery  which  Thirty  years 
Germany  suffered  from  the  Thirty  Year's  War  can  hardly  be   °fasr^raege 
conceived.     At  the  end  of  two  hundred  years  the  losses  had   destroy  the 
scarcely  been  made  good.'   Armies  whose  business  it  was  gains  of  two 
to  make  all  they  could  from  the  country  had  been  marching  Q^ir^r 
through  the  land  for  almost  a  generation.     The  population  chap,  xi., 
was  reduced  one-half,  and  the  movable  property  two-thirds.   Sec-  ni-; 
Farmsteads  and   villages   even  disappeared,  much  of  the  ^ST U' 
country  fell  back  into  wilderness,  and  wild  beasts  that  had 

not  been  seen  in  the  memory  of  man  became  frequent  once 
more.  Manners  and  morals  suffered  with  the  rest,  and  the 
peasantry  especially  became,  as  they  remained  until  the 
present  century,  scarcely  more  than  beasts  of  burden  with 
no  sense  of  self-respect. 

252.  A  New  Era  in  English  History.  —  During  the  last  Theacces- 
period  of  the  Thirty  Years'  War,  a  civil  war  was  going  on  in  *lon  of  the 
England,  of  a  somewhat  different  character.     In  1603,  the  james  i., 
reign  of  Elizabeth,  the  last  of  the  Tudors,  came  to  an  end,   1603-1625. 
and  that  of  James  I.,  the  first  of  the  Stuarts,  began.     Con- 
sidered in  itself  alone,  this  was  an  event  of  no  small  impor- 
tance, since  it  brought  together  in  close  alliance  the  two 
kingdoms  of  England  and  Scotland  which  had  been  enemies 

of  one  another  for  so  many  centuries,  and  prepared  the  way 
for  the  still  closer  union  of  the  present  time.     But  in  the  A  great 
history  of  England,  the  accession  of  the  son  of  Mary  Stuart  ch*nge  in 
to  the  throne  marks  a  still  greater  change.     The  whole 
situation,  domestic  and  foreign,  was  now,  indeed,  very  dif- 
ferent from  that  which  had  existed  before  the  execution 


256 


The  Age  of  Religious  Wars 


[§252 


of  the  king's  mother,  Mary  Queen  of  Scots.  Spain  was  no 
longer  to  be  feared,  and  there  was  no  heir  to  the  designs 
of  Philip  II.  Such  designs  themselves  were  no  longer 
possible,  for  there  was  not  now  any  claimant  of  the  throne, 
like  the  Catholic  Mary  Stuart,  who  could  serve  as  the  centre 
of  treasonable  conspiracies. 

The  effect  of  these  changes  upon  the  share  taken   by 
England  in  the  international  politics  of  the  continent,  which 


English 
history 
returns  to  its 
old  channel. 


HOLY ROOD  PALACE 

was  much  less  during  the  first  half  of  the  seventeenth  than 
during  the  sixteenth  century,  was  not  their  most  important 
result.  In  national  politics,  the  result  was  the  opening  of 
a  new  era.  The  practical,  though  not  legal,  absolutism  — 
the  straining  of  the  constitution  almost  to  the  point  of  break- 
ing—  which  the  people  had  tolerated  in  the  Tudors  because 
of  the  dangerous  crisis  through  which  the  nation  was  pass- 
ing, was  no  longer  necessary.  The  absence  of  all  foreign 
danger  and  of  any  source  of  discontent  at  home  which  need 


§  253]  The  Stuarts  and  the  Puritans  2$? 

be  feared,  enabled  the  nation  to  return  to  its  special  work 
of  constitution  making.  Its  first  task,  and  that  which  occu- 
pied it  nearly  all  the  seventeenth  century,  was  to  bring 
the  king  completely  under  the  constitution  as  it  existed 
before  the  Tudors,  though  in  the  process  many  details  of 
the  constitution  were  greatly  clarified  and  perfected. 

253.   The  Stuarts  and  the  Puritans. — There  were  two  The  Stuart 
circumstances  which  concurred  at    this  time   to   reinforce   pharacter- 
what  seems  to  be  a  natural  Anglo-Saxon  tendency  to  render  Green, 
personal  and  arbitrary  government  impossible  by  means  of    English 
constitutional  limitations.     One  of  these  was  the  character  Pe°t e* 
of  the  king  and  of  his  successors.     The   French  contem- 
porary remark  that  James  I.  was  the  wisest  fool  in  Christen- 
dom has  never  been  improved  upon.     He  was  very  proud 
of  his  learning,  of  which  he  made  ostentatious  display,  but 
he  was  pedantic,  narrow,  and  foolish,  and  gained  more  ridi- 
cule  than  respect.      In  action   he  was  short-sighted  and 
obstinate.      Filled  with  the   most  extreme  notions  of  the 
sanctity  and  divine  right  of  kings,  he  was  not  disposed  to 
tolerate  any  interference  with  his  prerogatives  nor  even  any 
independence  on   the  part  of   Parliament,  but  his  policy 
lacked  the  definite  and  steady  guidance  of  a  strong  nature. 
He  commanded  neither  the  affection  nor  the  respect  of  his 
people,   and   lacked   entirely  the    popularity   and  brilliant 
qualities  which  had  helped  to  carry  the  arbitrary  govern- 
ment of  Henry  VIII.  and  Elizabeth.     The  short-sighted  and 
narrow  obstinacy  of  James,  with  his  unwavering  belief  in  the 
divine  right  of  absolutism,  and  his  vacillating  will  passed  to 
his  descendants  and  are  characteristics  of  the  Stuart  kings. 

The  second  of  the  circumstances  favoring  popular  resist-   The  Puritan 
ance  to  the  king  was  the  strength  of  the  Puritan  party  in  party. 
England.     This  had  increased  greatly  in  the  last  years  of  2^/S* 
Elizabeth,  and  was  destined  to  a  still  greater  growth  under  People,  III. 
James   and   to  a   leading  part   in   the    reign  of  Charles  I.   13~2I» 
Thoroughly  imbued  with  the  Calvinistic  idea  of  the  duty  of 
resisting  even  the  constituted  authorities  in  defence  of  the 
right,  and  familiar  with  the  constitutional  position  which 


258 


The  Age  of  Religious  Wars     [§§  254, 255 


His  foreign 

policy. 

Gardiner, 

First  Two 

Stuarts 

(Epochs), 

Chap.  II. 


King  and 
Parliament. 


The  Petition 
of  Right. 
See  refer- 
ences on  this 
period  in 
chapter  on 
the  English 
constitution. 


Charles 
strives  for 
indepen- 
dence. 
Gardiner, 


Parliament  had  once  occupied,  this  party  with  its  allies  was 
well  prepared  to  meet  the  Jacobite  doctrine  of  the  sin  of 
resistance  to  the  king,  and  to  conduct  the  struggle  for  a 
recovery  of  parliamentary  control. 

254.  The  Reign  of  James  I.  — James'  popularity  was  not 
increased  by  his  foreign  policy.      He  allowed  his    son-in- 
law,  Frederick,  the  Elector  Palatine,  to  be  ruined  in  the  early 
years  of  the  Thirty  Years'  War,  against   the  wishes  of  the 
people.     At   the    same    time   he  strove  without  success  to 
form  an  alliance  with  Spain,  cemented  by  the  marriage  of 
his  son  Charles  with  a   Spanish   princess,  and    though  the 
nation  no  longer  feared  Spain  as  once,  she  was  still  regarded 
as  their  hereditary  enemy. 

Under  the  first  of  the  Stuart  kings,  the  conflict  between 
the  royal  power  and  the  Parliament  went  no  further  than 
the  vigorous  assertion  of  claims  and  counter-claims.  Such 
positive  gains  as  were  made  were  on  the  parliamentary  side, 
which  insisted  with  determination  on  a  long  list  of  rights 
supported  by  earlier  precedent  —  to  control  taxation, 
whether  internal  or  on  foreign  commerce,  to  demand  re- 
forms as  the  necessary  condition  of  grants  of  money,  to 
impeach  the  king's  ministers,  and  to  criticise  and  discuss 
the  government's  policy  regarding  both  domestic  and  for- 
eign interests. 

255.  Charles  I.  and  Parliament.  —  Charles  I.  was  of  more 
pleasing  manners  than  his  father,  but  he  was  even  less  dis- 
posed to  yield  anything  of  his  rights  to  what  he  considered 
factious  opposition.     In  1628,  his  financial  necessities  com- 
pelled him  to  assent  to  the  Petition  of  Right,  the  second  in 
the  series  of  the  great  constitutional  documents  of  our  race, 
in  which  the  right  of  Parliament  to  vote  all  taxes,  and  the 
right  of  the  people  to  be  secured  from  arbitrary  imprison- 
ment and  trial,  were  clearly  affirmed. 

Charles  soon  showed,  however,  that  he  had  not  meant  by 
this  agreement  to  surrender  any  of  his  personal  authority. 
He  determined  to  rule  without  a  Parliament,  and  for  eleven 
years  he  did  not  call  one.  Two  able  ministers,  the  ear] 


§256] 


Civil  War  Begun 


259 


of  Strafford  and  Archbishop  Laud,  gave  him  their  assist- 
ance, and  in  the  Star  Chamber  and  the  Court  of  High 
Commission  he  had  the  means  of  arbitrary  trials  without  the 
intervention  of  any  jury.  To  assist  in  providing  a  revenue, 
an  obsolete  special  tax 
which  had  been  for- 
merly paid  by  the  mari- 
time counties  for  naval 
defence,  the  ship- 
money  tax,  was  re- 
vived and  extended  to 
all  England.  The  re- 
fusal of  Hampden  and 
others  to  pay  this  tax 
was  the  first  step  in 
open  opposition  to  the 
king. 

256.  Civil  War  Be- 
gun.—  It  was  in  Scot- 
land that  rebellion  be- 
gan. Efforts  of  Laud 
to  change  the  Pres- 
byterian worship  led, 
first  to  riot,  and  then  to  organized  resistance.  To  sup- 
port the  army  which  was  necessary  to  compel  obedience, 
Charles  was  obliged  to  summon  a  Parliament,  but  when 
they  showed  no  disposition  to  make  a  grant  before  a  re- 
dress of  grievances,  he  speedily  dissolved  them.  But  the 
Scottish  army  advanced  into  England,  and  the  king  was 
forced  to  yield. 

In  1640,  the  Parliament  known  as  the  Long  Parliament, 
and,  after  the  execution  of  the  king,  as  the  Rump,  came 
together.  Charles  sacrificed  Strafford  and  Laud  to  the  ven- 
geance of  the  commons,  hoping  that  they  would  demand  no 
further  concessions,  but  when  he  found  that  this  was  but  a 
beginning,  he  rashly  attempted  to  turn  the  tide  by  depriv- 
ing the  opposition  of  its  leaders,  and  demanded  in  the 


CHARLES  I.  OF  ENGLAND 


Stuarts, 
Chap.  IV.; 
Taylor, 
England 
under 
Charles  I. 
(Contem- 
poraries). 


Finance 

measures. 

Green, 

English 

People,  III. 

143-149. 


Scotland 

resists, 

1639. 


Charles 
yields  for  the 
moment, 
1641. 


26o 


The  Age  of  Religious  Wars 


[§257 


The  Inde- 
pendents put 
the  king  to 
death. 
Green, 
English 
People,  III. 
258-263 ; 
Boyle, 
Clarendon, 
219-223, 
(Clarendon) ; 
Gardiner, 
Documents, 
282-291. 


The  Com- 
monwealth. 


presence  of  the  House  the  arrest  and  delivery  to  him  of 
five  members,  including  Hampden.  The  storm  aroused  by 
this  act  rendered  reconciliation  no  longer  possible,  and 
Charles  abandoned  London,  which  was  devoted  to  the  par- 
liamentary side,  and  at  Nottingham,  on  the  226.  of  August, 
1642,  raised  the  standard  of  civil  war. 

257.  The  Great  Rebellion  and  the  Commonwealth.  —  In 
the  war  which  followed,  known  in  English  history  as   the 

Great  Rebellion, 
the  war  between  the 
Cavaliers  and  the 
Roundheads,  the  ex- 
treme Puritan  party, 
the  Independents, 
under  the  lead  of 
Cromwell,  soon 
came  to  the  front. 
Cromwell's  troop, 
the  Ironsides,  de- 
voutly religious, 
thoroughly  drilled, 
and  full  of  deter- 
mined courage,  was 
made  the  model  of 
the  army.  Defeated 
in  several  battles, 
especially  at  Naseby 
in  1645,  Charles 
took  refuge  in  Scotland,  but  was  delivered  to  Parliament  by 
the  Scots  in  1647.  After  the  failure  of  all  attempts  at  com- 
promise, and  the  expulsion  by  Cromwell  from  the  Long 
Parliament  of  the  members  who  were  opposed  to  extreme 
measures,  Charles  was  put  on  trial  before  a  special  High 
Court  of  justice,  condemned  to  death  a;;  a  tyrant  and 
traitor,  and  executed  on  the  pth  of  February,  1649. 

For  four  years  longer   the   diminished  Parliament   con- 
tinued to  rule  England  in  form.     Cromwell  was  occupied 


CROMWELL 


Topics  261 

with   his   army   in    putting  down  various   insurrections,  in 
conquering  Ireland,  where  there  were  many  friends  of  the 
Stuarts,  and  finally  in  meeting  the  Scots,  who  had  proclaimed 
Charles  II.  king  and  invaded  England  with  a  strong  army. 
In  the  two  great  battles  of  Dunbar  and  Worcester,  Cromwell 
completely  defeated    them,   and  Scotland  was    obliged   to 
acknowledge  the  government  of  the  Commonwealth.      In   Cromwell 
1653,  Cromwell  and  the  army  became  so  dissatisfied  with 
the  conduct  of  affairs  by  the  "  Rump,"  that  he  dissolved  it   1653. 
by  force,  and  soon   became  in  name,  what  he  had   really   Gardiner, 
been  for  some  time,  the  ruler  of  England,  under  the  title  of 
Lord  Protector. 


Topics 

The  character  of  this  age  in  the  different  countries  of  Europe. 
The  first  in  the  series  of  wars.  The  conduct  of  Maurice  of  Saxony. 
The  new  policy  of  France.  The  arrangements  made  by  the  peace  of 
Augsburg.  The  close  of  the  reign  of  Charles  V.  Compare  the  power 
of  Philip  II.  with  that  of  Charles  V.  His  idea  of  his  highest  duty. 
The  policy  of  Mary  of  England,  and  the  result.  Why  must  Elizabeth 
be  a  Protestant?  Her  rival  for  the  crown.  The  political  constitution 
of  the  Netherlands.  How  did  they  pass  to  the  Hapsburgs?  Causes 
of  separation  into  two  parts.  Measures  of  Philip  II.  The  rebellion 
and  independence  of  the  United  Provinces.  The  early  life  of  Mary 
Stuart.  Why  did  she  take  refuge  in  England?  Why  was  she  exe- 
cuted? The  history  of  the  Armada.  The  origin  and  ideas  of  the 
Puritans.  The  differences  between  Puritans  and  Separatists.  Which 
were  the  Pilgrims?  Characteristics  of  the  Huguenots.  The  policy  of 
Catherine  de'  Medici.  How  did  the  Huguenot  wars  begin?  The 
political  position  gained  by  the  Huguenots.  Reasons  for  the  massacre 
of  St.  Bartholomew.  The  character  and  policy  of  Henry  IV.  His 
foreign  plans.  The  edict  of  Nantes.  The  causes  of  the  Thirty  Years' 
War.  The  history  of  Frederick  of  the  Palatinate.  The  peculiar  methods 
of  Wallenstein.  Reasons  for  the  interference  of  Sweden  and  France. 
Richelieu's  policy  in  France.  Abroad.  His  attitude  towards  Protes- 
tantism. What  change  in  history  does  this  stand  for?  The  character 
of  Gustavus  Adolphus.  His  military  skill.  Why  was  Wallenstein 
assassinated?  The  importance  of  the  peace  of  Westphalia.  What  did 
France  gain  from  the  war?  In  what  position  was  Austria  left?  How 
had  the  Empire  become  so  weak?  In  what  condition  was  Germany 


262  The  Age  of  Religious  Wars 

left  by  the  war?  The  characteristics  of  the  Stuarts.  What  change 
now  occurs  in  English  history,  and  why?  The  attitude  of  the  Puritan 
party.  Why  was  James  I.  an  unpopular  king?  How  did  Charles  I. 
differ  from  him,  and  how  was  he  like  him?  By  what  measures  did 
Charles  try  to  restore  the  royal  power?  How  did  he  come  to  allow 
Strafford  to  be  executed?  Cromwell's  party.  The  end  of  the  Long 
Parliament. 

Topics  for  Assigned  Studies 

The  Armada.  Froude,  History  of  England,  XII.,  Chap.  XXXVI. 
Story,  British  Empire  (Nations),  I.  127-159.  Johnson,  Periods, 
373-377.  Kingsley,  Westward  Ho!  (Novel.)  Chaps.  XXIX. 
to  XXXI. 

The  rise  of  the  Puritan  party.  Hallam,  Constitutional  History  of  Eng- 
land, Chap.  IV.  Bacon,  Genesis  of  the  New  England  Churches. 
(Harper.)  73-90.  Fisher,  Reformation,  342-347.  Hinds, 
England  of  Elizabeth.  (Macmillan.)  Wakeman,  The  Church 
and  the  Puritans.  (Epochs  Ch.  Hist.)  Documents  in  Prothero, 
Select  Statutes.  (Clarendon.)  Bk.  VIII.  183  ff.  Gee  and  Hardy 
416  ff.  Religious  Pamphlets  in  Pamphlet  Library.  (Holt.) 

Policy  of  Richelieu  in  France.  Perkins,  Richelieu  and  Mazarin. 
(Putnam.)  I.,  Chap.  IV.  Kitchin,  France,  III.  6-10,  18-30, 
75-83.  Correard,  Textes,  p.  29. 

The  siege  of  La  Rochelle.  Perkins,  Richelieu  and  Mazarin,  I.  118- 
127.  Gardiner,  Thirty  Years'1  War,  Chap.  VI.,  Section  IV. 
Correard,  T^extes,  p.  27. 


Tudors*  Stuarts,  and  Hanoverians 


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iom                                oooo             O             (NojiN                         roro-h-t-             -^-in 

CHAPTER  II 

FRANCE  TRIES  TO  DOMINATE  EUROPE 

258.   The  Hapsburgs  in  1660.  —  In  1660,  after  the  close  Spain  weak 
of  the  war  with  Spain,  France  appeared  to  be  without  a  ^linin 
rival  in  Europe.     Spain  still  had  widely  extended  posses-   On  the  whole 
sions,  —  Naples,  Milan,  Franche-Comte" ,  and  the  Low  Coun-   age  see 
tries,— and  she  still  had  the  now  diminished  treasures  of  ^^.taiter 
America  at  her   command,  but   her  scattered    possessions  Ludwigs 
were  not  easy  to  defend,  and  the  old  energy  of  the  race,  its  XIV> 
splendid  military  capacity,  was  gone.     The  country  had  been   ( 
turned  from  the  path  of  the  sure  development  of  its  own 
resources,  partly  by  the  bigotry  of  its  rulers,  and  partly  by 
the  more  brilliant  attractions  of  the  New  World,  and  it  now 
plainly  showed  the  result  in  rapidly  declining  power.     The 
royal  family  seemed  to  reflect  the  condition  of  the  nation, 
for  it  had  passed  into  a  condition  of  physical  and  mental 
exhaustion,  which  brought  it  to  an  end  with  the  close  of  the 
century.     There  seemed  nothing  to  prevent  the  possessions 
of  Spain  in  the  Rhine  valley  from  falling  an  easy  prey  to  the 
designs  of  France. 

The  Austrian  Hapsburgs  showed  no  signs  of  the  exhaus-  Austria 
tion  of  their  Spanish  cousins.  Deprived  of  all  chance  of 
making  a  real  empire  of  Germany,  they  were  finding  a  com- 
pensation in  pushing  their  dominion  down  the  Danube 
valley,  where  the  loosening  hold  of  the  Turk,  just  beginning 
his  long  decrepitude,  gave  them  the  opportunity  to  recover 
Hungary.  But  under  these  circumstances  they  would  plainly 
have  less  reason  than  a  generation  before  for  opposing  the 
plans  of  France  in  northwestern  Germany. 

265 


266        France  tries  to  Dominate  Europe     [§§  259>  26° 


England  not 
likely  to 
interfere. 


Holland 
most  nearly 
interested. 


Her 

resources. 


259.  England  and  Holland.  —  England  was  still  in  its  age 
of  revolution :    1660  was  the  yea*  of  the  restoration  of  the 
Stuarts  and  the  monarchy  in  the  person  of  king  Charles  II., 
and,  though  Cromwell  had  shown  himself  at  times  disposed 
towards  a  vigorous  foreign  policy,  and  though  commercial 
interests  were  rapidly  increasing,  no  one  could  then  suppose 
that  England  would   take  a  leading  part  in  international 
affairs  within  a  generation. 

Still  less  could  any  one  suppose,  in  1660,  that  the  resist- 
ance which  was  destined  to  defeat  the  plans  of  the  Grand 
Monarque,  and  to  check  the  desired  advance  of  the  most 
powerful  state  of  Europe  would  come  from  the  little  Dutch 
Republic,  whose  independence  had  just  been  recognized  by 
Spain  and  the  Empire.  But  Holland  was  a  country  of 
resources  out  of  all  proportion  to  its  size,  and  of  the  most 
determined  resolution  to  protect  its  independence,  which  it- 
believed  threatened  by  the  designs  of  Louis.  Ideal  reasons 
also  were  not  wanting,  —  a  hatred  of  despotism  and  of  reli- 
gious intolerance,  which  were  now  embodied  in  Louis  XIV., 
as  they  had  once  been  in  Philip  II.  A  more  republican 
cast  had  lately  been  given  to  the  constitution  in  conse- 
quence of  the  failure  of  an  attempt  of  William  II. 's  to  make 
it  more  monarchical.  The  political  and  military  headship 
of  the  State  had  been  separated,  and  the  former  was  now  in 
the  hands  of  John  de  Witt,  Grand  Pensioner  of  Holland. 
During  the  war  of  independence,  the  eastern  colonies  of 
Portugal,  then  a  part  of  Spain,  had  been  seized  by  the 
Dutch,  and  with  the  East  Indian  trade  under  its  control, 
Holland  had  become  the  richest  country  of  Europe  and  the 
mistress  of  the  seas.  England  was  beginning  to  dispute 
that  position  with  her,  and  the  struggle  between  them  had 
been  opened  by  a  short  war  under  Cromwell,  but  as  yet 
Holland  had  not  suffered  greatly  from  the  rivalry.  It  was 
quite  as  much  the  armies  of  France,  as  the  fleets  of  England, 
that  ruined  the  Dutch  Republic. 

260.  The  Situation  in  France.  —  In  the  government  of 
France,  the  plans  of  Richelieu  had  been  as  successful  as  in 


i 


§261] 


Character  of  Louis  XIV. 


26; 


regard  to  the  European  position  of  the  country.  After  the 
death  of  Richelieu,  Cardinal  Mazarin  had  continued  his 
policy.  In  the  civil  war  of  the  Fronde,  during  the  minority 
of  Louis  XIV.,  an  attempt  had  been  made  to  check  the  prog- 
ress of  the  royal  power,  partly  in  the  interest  of  the  Parle- 
ment  of  Paris,  the  supreme  court,  which  tried  to  secure 
some  constitutional  right  to  limit  the  king's  prerogative,  and 
partly  in  the  interest  of  the  great  nobles  and  princes  related 
to  the  royal  house,  whose  more  selfish  object  was  to  recover 
political  power  for  themselves. 

Both  these  attempts  had  been  failures,  and  when  Louis 
XIV.  took  the  direction  of  the  government  into  his  own 
hands,  on  the  death  of  Mazarin  in  1661,  there  was  no  check 
on  the  will  of  the  king  and  no  constitutional  means  by 
which  public  opinion  could  express  itself.  The  Estates 
General  had  not  met  since  1614,  and  they  were  not  to  meet 
again  until  the  eve  of  the  Revolution  in  1789.  The  Parle- 
ment  of  Paris  was  obliged  to  yield  in  every  case,  however 
much  it  might  wish  to  oppose  the  king,  and  all  the  ministers 
were  entirely  dependent  upon  him. 

261.  Character  of  Louis  XIV.  —  Louis  XIV.  was  not  a 
genius  in  any  respect.  In  the  management  of  government 
affairs,  he  was  a  painstaking  and  hard  worker,  like  an  indus- 
trious business  man.  In  foreign  affairs,  he  intensely  desired 
the  aggrandizement  of  France  and  his  own  glory.  He  was 
ambitious  to  be  ranked  in  history  as  one  of  the  world's 
great  sovereigns  and  conquerors,  but  he  was  narrow  and 
short-sighted  in  determining  the  special  objects  of  his 
policy,  and  dependent  for  such  success  as  was  reached  on 
the  genius  of  others.  He  was  a  most  firm  believer  in  the 
divine  right  of  kings.  He  sincerely  thought  that  he  was 
responsible  to  God  alone  and  not  at  all  to  the  nation  for  the 
way  in  which  he  ruled.  Intolerant  of  opposition  or  of 
opinions  that  did  not  agree  with  his,  he  lived  upon  the 
grossest  flattery,  and  could  be  led  only  by  adroitly  persuad- 
ing him  that  the  object  desired  was  his  own.  But  in  spite 
of  all  his  faults  he  was,  as  all  his  age  believed  him,  a  great 


The  minority 

of  Louis 

XIV. 

Kitchin, 

France,  III. 

138  ff. ; 

Adams, 

French 

Nation, 

202-207,, 


Louis  XIV. 
absolute 
ruler  of 
France. 


An  ambi- 
tious 
plodder. 
A  contem- 
porary 
portrait, 
Correard, 
Textes,  112; 
Hassall, 
Louis  XIV. 
(Heroes), 
82-102 ; 
Kitchin, 
France, 
III.  142-152. 

Theory  of 
royal  power. 
Bossuet  on, 
in  Correard, 
Textes,  108, 
and  Schil- 
ling, Quellen- 
buch,  198. 


268 


France  tries  to  Dominate  Europe         [§  262 


The  finances 
in  confusion. 


The  fall  of 

Fouquet. 

Correard, 

Textes, 

129-139; 

Perkins, 

Regency, 

31-40; 
Hassall, 
Louis  XIV., 
103-123. 


king,  and  he  honestly  and  sincerely  sought  the  interests  of 
the  nation,  as  he  understood  them. 

262.   Colbert    and    the    Finances.  —  In    Colbert,    Louis 

had,  during  the  first 
part  of  his  reign,  a 
great  finance  minister 
whose  skill  provided 
the  resources  for  his 
undertakings.  At  the 
death  of  Mazarin,  the 
finances  of  France  were 
in  great  confusion. 
Corruption  in  their  ad- 
ministration was  the 
rule,  and  Mazarin  him- 
self had  not  scrupled 
to  comply  with  it.  The 
people  paid  heavy 
taxes,  but  the  collectors 
enriched  themselves  at 
the  expense  of  the 
State,  and  only  a  small 
proportion  reached  the 

treasury.  It  was  estimated  that  of  eighty-four  million 
paid  in  1661  only  twenty- three  were  received  by  the  govern- 
ment. 

Mazarin's  superintendent  of  finances,  Fouquet,  who  had 
acquired  an  enormous  fortune  by  these  methods,  fell  a  first 
victim  to  the  new  reforms.  No  one  had  supposed  at  first 
that  Louis  was  in  earnest  when  he  had  announced,  on  the 
death  of  Mazarin,  that  he  would  be  his  own  prime  minister, 
and  Fouquet  had  hoped  to  succeed  the  cardinal  in  the 
government  of  the  State  through  the  king.  It  was  the  dra- 
matic arrest  and  punishment  of  Fouquet  that  first  convinced 
the  court  that  Louis  meant  what  he  said.  Colbert,  who  had 
revealed  to  the  king  the  financial  methods  of  the  time,  was 
soon  put  in  control  of  the  revenues,  and  was  by  degrees 


Louis  XIV. 


§  263]  Colbert's  Economic  Measures  269 

given  other  responsible  offices,  until  he  had  nearly  the  whole 
administration  of  the  kingdom  in  his  hands. 

The  confidence  of  the  king  which  he  had  at  first,  he  fully   Colbert's 
deserved.     Probably  no  minister  in  history  ever  served  his   reforms- 
country  with  more  singleness  of  purpose.     He  attacked  the 
old  abuses  vigorously.     The  collectors  were  forced  to  restore 
to  the  treasury  their  ill-gotten  gains.     New  methods  brought 
in  greater  returns  to  the  State,  while  the  burdens  of  the  people 
were  reduced,  and  a  surplus  was  accumulated  which  was, 
perhaps,  a  temptation  to  the  king. 

263.  Colbert's  Economic  Measures. — The  efforts  of  Col-  The  protec- 
bert  for  the  good  of  France  were  not  confined  to  a  reform  of  \ 
the  taxation.  He  wished,  like  Henry  IV.,  to  increase  the 
national  wealth  and  bring  in  an  age  of  great  prosperity.  In 
his  measures  for  this  purpose  he  was  guided  by  two  ideas. 
One  was  that  manufactures  must  be  the  chief  source  of 
national  wealth  and  not  agriculture.  The  other  was  that  to 
secure  the  best  results  industry  must  be  under  strict  govern- 
ment supervision.  This  was  a  theory  of  paternalism  quite 
natural  to  the  time,  and  to  the  kind  of  government  prevail- 
ing in  France.  Colbert  could  hardly  know  that  the  most 
essential  condition  of  economic  prosperity  is  freedom,  free- 
dom to  make  changes,  to  introduce  new  methods,  and  to 
conform  to  varying  conditions.  He  placed  a  heavy  pro- 
tective tariff  on  foreign  goods,  introduced  many  new  lines 
of  manufacture,  brought  in  colonies  of  skilled  artisans  of 
many  kinds  from  abroad,  and  established  minute  regulations 
intended  to  secure  always  the  best  quality  of  product.  The 
result  was  at  first  largely  what  he  hoped  for,  but  the  class 
he  most  desired  to  serve  did  not  agree  in  the  end  that  his 
measures  had  been  of  benefit  to  them. 

Foreign  commerce,  also,  and  colonies  he  endeavored  to   Commerce 
develop  in  the  same  way.     The  East  and  the  West  India  and  colonie& 
Companies  were  organized,   and  others  of  the  same  kind, 
and   given    monopolies   of  their   goods.      The   valley   and 
mouth  of  the  Mississippi  were  occupied,  and  North  America 
seemed  likely  to  become  French,  but  in  the  settlement  of 

2E 


270        France  tries  to  Dominate  Europe     [§§  264, 265 


Colbert's  last 
days. 


The  mar- 
riage of 
Louis  XIV. 


The  "right 
of  devolu- 
tion." 
Airy, 

Louis  XIV. 
(Epochs), 
Chap.  XII.; 
Hassall, 
Louis  XIV., 
Chap.  V.; 
Perkins, 
Regency, 
52-67. 


colonies  a  strict  paternalism  prevailed,  as  everywhere  else, 
and  prepared  the  way  for  the  failure  of  the  French  in  com- 
petition with  the  freer  English. 

It  was  not  likely  that  a  minister  like  Colbert,  who  did  not 
hesitate  to  preach  economy  and  to  object  to  lavish  expen- 
ditures, would  be  able  to  control  the  finances  of  France  per- 
manently, under  a  king  like  Louis  XIV.  As  the  king  became 
more  devoted  to  the  worship  of  himself,  and  involved  in 
projects  for  his  own  glory,  the  influence  of  Colbert  declined. 
His  last  years  were  filled  with  disappointment  at  the  failure 
of  his  plans  to  make  income  equal  expenditure,  and  he  died 
unpopular  with  court  and  people  alike,  an  example  of  the 
ingratitude  of  kings. 

264.  Preparing  to  annex  Spain.  —  The   direction  which 
his  foreign  conquests  should  take  was  marked  out  for  Louis 
XIV.  by  the  treaty  of  the  Pyrenees,  which  had  closed  the 
war  with  Spain  in  1659,  as  well  as  by  the  weakness  of  that 
country.     This  peace   had   been  cemented  by  a  marriage 
between  Louis  and  Maria  Theresa,  the  eldest  daughter  of 
Philip  IV.  of  Spain,  but  the  treaty  had  provided  that  she 
should  renounce  all  her  rights  of  succession  to  the  throne  of 
Spain.     The    skilful   diplomacy   of  Mazarin,   however,  had 
secured  the  insertion  of  a  condition  which   rendered  this 
renunciation  of  no  effect.     It  was  to  become  valid  on  the 
payment  by  Spain  of  a  dower  of  five  hundred  thousand  crowns 
of  gold,  a  sum  which  Mazarin  knew  that  it  would  be  impos- 
sible for  Spain  to  raise.     The  first  successes  and  the  final 
failure  of  Louis  XIV.  were  alike  due  to  this  provision. 

265.  Louis  XIV.'s  First  War. —  In  1665  Philip  died  and 
was  succeeded  by  his  son,  Charles  II.     He  was  the  son  of 
Philip  by  a  second  marriage,  while  the  wife  of  Louis  was  a 
daughter  of  the  first.     Some  peculiar  provisions  were  dis- 
covered in  the  feudal  law  of  inheritance  prevailing  in  certain 
provinces  of  the  Spanish  Low  Countries,  by  which  the  chil- 
dren of  a  first  marriage  should  succeed  to  the  exclusion  of 
those  of  a  second.     That  these  were  not  provisions  of  the  pub- 
lic law,  but  related  only  to  private  inheritances,  made  no  par- 


§§  266,  267]        The  War  against  Holland 


271 


ticular  difference.  Louis  at  once  advanced  his  claim  to 
these  provinces,  and  a  fine  French  army  under  Turenne 
occupied,  almost  without  resistance,  some  of  the  strongest 
fortresses  of  the  Low  Countries. 

These  rapid  successes  of  Louis,  with  the  evident  fact 
that  Spain  could  not  defend  herself,  excited  the  immediate 
alarm  of  Holland.  She  was  able  to  form  the  Triple  Alliance 
with  England  and  Sweden,  still  regarded  as  one  of  the 
strongest  states  of  Europe,  and  offered  a  kind  of  armed 
mediation.  Louis'  first  answer  was  the  rapid  occupation 
of  the  province  of  Franche-Comt£,  a  part  of  the  territory  of 
the  former  dukes  of  Burgundy.  But  he  did  not  think  it  wise 
actually  to  enter  upon  a  war  with  the  Triple  Alliance,  and 
consented  to  the  treaty  of  Aix-la-Chapelle,  in  1668.  Franche- 
Comt£  was  restored  to  Spain,  but  a  line  of  strong  fortresses 
was  retained  on  the  borders  of  the  Low  Countries,  which 
promised  France  an  easy  entry  into  the  heart  of  that  country 
when  the  next  war  should  begin. 

266.  Louis  prepares  to  punish  Holland.  —  Louis  XIV.  was 
now  resolved  to  take  vengeance  upon  Holland  at  the  earliest 
possible  moment.     The  little  Calvinistic  republic  of  traders 
and  fishermen  which  had  dared  to  set  limits  to  the  ambition 
of  the  greatest  monarch  of  Christendom  must  be  taught  to 
know  its  place.     His  first  step  was,  by  skilful  diplomacy,  to 
deprive  Holland  of  her  allies.     It  was  not  difficult  to  gain 
Charles  II.  of  England.     To  fill  his  empty  pocket  and  to 
further  his  own  personal  designs,  he  was  ready  to  sell  his 
alliance  to  France,  and,  though  so  much  of  the  bargain  as 
became  known  was  very  unpopular,  the  weakening  of  Holland 
was  not  contrary  to  the  commercial  interests  of  England, 
which  had  already  had  two  great  naval  wars  with  the  Dutch 
within  twenty  years.     Sweden  was  also  gained  and  remained 
on  the  side  of  France  till  the  close  of  the  war,  and  Holland 
was  left  without  an  ally. 

267.  The  War  against  Holland.  —  In  the  spring  of  1672 
the  war  began.     Louis  himself  at  the  head  of  a  great  army, 
for  those  days,  of  more  than  100,000  men,  carefully  passing 


The  Triple 

Alliance 

checks 

Louis. 

Airy, 

Louis  XIV., 

Chap.  XIV. 


Peace  of  Aix« 
la-Chapelle. 


Holland 
isolated. 
Airy, 

Louis  XIV., 
Chap.  XVI. 


England 
against  the 
Dutch. 


Louis'  first 
successes. 
Kitchin, 
France,  III. 


272          France  tries  to  Dominate  Europe          [§  267 


185-189; 

Hassall, 
Louis  XIV., 
Chap.  VI. 


The  war 

becomes 

European. 

Kitchin, 

France,  III. 

191-205 ; 

Perkins, 

Regency, 

69-89. 


around  the  Spanish  Low  Countries  and  through  the  territo- 
ries of  his  German  allies  on  the  Rhine,  invaded  the  country 
from  the  south.  His  success  was  rapid  at  first.  The  south- 
ern part  of  the  land  was  occupied,  Utrecht  was  captured, 
and  Amsterdam  was  threatened.  But  Holland  was  no  less 
determined  in  her  resistance  to  the  new  representative  of 
intolerance  and  despotism  than  she  had  been  in  the  case  of 
Philip  II.  The  government  was  revolutionized.  John  de 
Witt  was  murdered  by  a  mob,  and  the  young  William  III. 
of  Orange  was  put  at  the  head  of  the  State.  Then  the  dykes 
were  cut  and  the  advance  of  the  French  was  checked. 

William  III.  immediately  sought  for  allies,  and  the  fear 
which  the  designs  of  Louis  XIV.  began  to  excite  in  Europe 
came  to  his  aid.  Spain,  the  emperor,  and  Brandenburg 

began  war,  and  public 
opinion  in  England 
forced  Charles  II.  to 
withdraw  from  the  side 
of  Louis.  The  war 
became  a  European 
war.  France  was  forced 
for  a  time  to  fight  on 
the  defensive,  but  the 
genius  of  Turenne,  until 
he  was  killed  in  1675, 
and  of  Conde,  until  he 
went  into  retirement 
soon  after,  were  more 
than  a  match  for  their 
enemies.  Franche- 
Comt£  was  again  occu- 
pied, and  further  for- 
tresses in  the  Spanish 
Netherlands  were  cap- 
tured. On  the  sea  the  Dutch  suffered  heavily,  their  great 
admiral  De  Ruyter  was  killed,  and  the  French  admiral  Du 
Quesne  gained  several  victories* 


Louis  DE  BOURBON,  THE  GREAT  CONDE 


§268] 


The  Period  of  the  "Reunions" 


2/3 


At  last  all  parties  were  ready  for  peace,  and  the  treaty  of 
Nimeguen  was  made  in  1678.  Holland  had  not  been 
humiliated  as  Louis  had  hoped,  and  received  favorable 
terms,  but  she  was  exhausted  by  the  strain  and  losses  of 
the  war.  The  gains  of  France  were  as  usual  at  the  expense 
of  Spain.  Franche-Comte"  was  now  retained  and  a  new  and 
better  frontier  drawn  in  the  Spanish  Netherlands. 

268.  The  Period  of  the  "Reunions." — The  period  of 
ten  years  which  followed  to  the  beginning  of  the  next  war 
is  filled  with  interesting  events,  and  forms  a  turning-point  in 
the  reign  of  Louis  XIV.  and  in  the  history  of  France.  In 
the  first  place,  Louis  had  come  off  so  well  against  a  strong 
European  coalition  that  he  still  believed  he  could  do  any- 
thing he  pleased,  and  he  acted  accordingly.  On  pretext  of 
the  phrase  "and  their  dependencies"  which  had  accom- 
panied the  cessions  from  Germany  in  the  recent  treaties,  he 
set  courts,  called  "Chambers  of  Reunion,"  at  work  in  the 
Rhine  valley  to  seek  out  every  indication  of  former  depend- 
ence on  the  lands  which  he  had  received,  and  to  declare 
that  these  new  territories  were  also  French.  More  than  a 
hundred  bits  of  territory,  large  and  small,  were  thus  annexed. 
In  1 68 1,  the  great  city  of  Strasburg,  a  free  city  of  the 
Empire,  was  seized.  At  the  same  time,  Casale,  a  fortress  in 
northern  Italy,  which  would  open  the  way  to  the  Spanish 
territories  of  Milan,  was  seized  in  the  same  way.  Genoa, 
which  had  long  been  an  ally  of  Spain,  was  bombarded, 
and  forced  to  the  most  humiliating  conditions  of  peace. 
Savoy  was  treated  almost  like  a  French  province ;  the  prin- 
cipality of  Orange  was  seized,  and  on  a  quarrel  with  the 
pope,  Avignon  was  taken  possession  of.  Spain  and  the 
Empire  were  powerless  to  resent  these  insults,  and  Austria 
was  threatened  with  and  soon  engaged  in  a  desperate  war 
with  the  Turks,  who  besieged  Vienna  in  1683,  and  were 
only  driven  back  by  the  army  of  John  Sobieski,  king  of 
Poland.  But  if  resistance  was  for  a  time  not  possible, 
Europe  was  growing  constantly  more  convinced  that  a  gen- 
eral combination  was  necessary  to  check  the  French  ad- 


The  peace 
of  Nime- 
guen. 
Airy, 

Louis  XIV.. 
Chap.  XXII, 


Annexations 
in  time  of 
peace. 
Hassall, 
Louis  XIV.t 
Chap.  VII.; 
Perkins, 
Regency, 
209-218; 
Kitchin, 
France,  IIL 
213-217. 


274         France  tries  to  Dominate  Europe    [§§  269,  270 


The  League 
of  Augsburg. 


The  edict  of 

Nantes 

revoked. 

1685. 


The  loss  to 
France. 


The  exhaus- 
tion of  war 
and  extrava- 
gance. 


vance.  In  1686,  Sweden,  Spain,  and  Austria,  with  other 
of  the  larger  German  states,  formed  the  League  of  Augsburg 
to  prevent  the  further  violation  of  treaties. 

269.  The  Revocation  of   the  Edict  of   Nantes.  —  In  the 
year  which  preceded  this  event,  Louis  XIV.,  by  an  act  of 
his  own,  had  injured  France  as  deeply  as  could  a  league  of 
its  enemies.     From  the  year  in  which  Mazarin  died,  he  had 
sanctioned  measures  of  increasing  severity  against  the  Protes- 
tants.    In  1685,  encouraged  perhaps,  rather  than  incited,  by 
the  advice  of  Madame  de  Maintenon,  which  fell  in  with  his 
own  intolerant    disposition,  hoping   by  so  pious  an  act  to 
appease  a  conscience  not  altogether  quiet,  wishing  to  add 
to  the  other  glories  of  his  reign  that  of  destroying  heresy 
and  making  France  of  one  faith,  he  revoked  the  edict  of 
Nantes,  which  had  been  granted  by  Henry  IV.,  in  1598. 

Since  the  overthrow  of  their  political  power  by  Richelieu, 
the  Huguenots  had  been  faithful  citizens  and  of  the  greatest 
service  to  France.  They  were  mainly  of  the  middle  class, 
artisans,  merchants,  and  landholders.  Some  of  Colbert's 
manufacturing  colonies  had  been  made  up  of  Protestants. 
They  formed  the  strength  of  France  upon  the  sea.  How 
much  the  prosperity  of  the  country  depended  on  them 
could  not  be  known  until  it  was  deprived  of  their  aid,  for  in 
spite  of  the  edicts  against  emigration  hundreds  of  thousands 
escaped  and  carried  to  other  lands  their  industrial  skill  and 
a  bitter  hatred  of  their  native  land.  Protestantism  was  not 
destroyed,  for  in  Louis'  last  war  arid  in  time  of  desperate 
need  the  rebel  Huguenots  in  the  south  of  France  kept  a 
French  army  from  fighting  the  foreign  invader,  but  the 
industry  of  France  was  undermined  and  the  navy  fatally 
weakened. 

270.  The  Resources  of   France  declining.  —  Already  the 
resources  of  the  State  were  beginning  to  feel  the  constant 
strain  of  war  and  of  extravagance  also,  for  peace   for  the 
next  hundred  years  was  as  costly  to  France  as  war.     The 
vast  building  and  other  works  at  Versailles,  where  the  king 
had  now  taken  up  his  permanent  residence,  the  daily  ex- 


§271] 


Charles  II.  in  England 


275 


penses  of  the  court,  and  the  pensions  and  salaries  of  the 
nobles,  required  enormous  sums.  Despite  the  efforts  of 
Colbert,  the  taxes  were  growing  heavier,  the  national  debt 
was  increasing,  and  the  old  confusion  was  coming  back 
into  the  management 
of  the  finances.  It 
was  a  crisis  in  the  his- 
tory of  France.  Had 
the  king  been  wise 
enough  to  see  that  the 
country  was  on  the 
verge  of  exhaustion, 
and  to  realize  the 
strength  which  the 
Huguenots  lent  to  the 
nation,  the  whole 
history  of  France 
might  have  been  dif- 
ferent. 

271.  Charles  II.  in 
England.  —  Events 
were  in  the  meantime 
taking  place  in  an- 
other country  which 
were  quite  as  important  as  these  in  their  bearing  on  the 
future  of  France,  and  more  important  still  in  their  bearing  on 
the  future  of  the  world.  England  passed  through  the  last  of 
the  Stuart  revolutions  and  entered  on  a  new  era  of  her  history. 
The  meaning  of  this  in  the  growth  of  her  constitution  and  of 
her  colonial  empire,  we  shall  study  in  another  place.  Here 
we  are  most  concerned  with  its  bearing  on  the  plans  of 
Louis  XIV.  and  on  the  supremacy  of  France  in  Europe. 

Charles  II.,  though  he  was  no  more  disposed  to  be  a 
constitutional  king  than  the  rest  of  the  Stuarts,  had  learned 
some  wisdom  from  the  disasters  of  his  father.  But  his 
reign  was  increasingly  unpopular.  He  seemed  to  have  no 
personal  interests  except  in  the  corrupt  pleasures  of  the 


COLBERT 


The  second 
Stuart 
period. 
See  refer- 
ences in 
Chap.  VIII. 


The  reign  of 
Charles  II., 
1660-1685. 


276         France  tries  to  Dominate  Europe    [§§  272>  273 


James  II., 

1685-1688. 


court.  His  extravagance  kept  him  always  in  need  of  money, 
and  he  sold  Dunkirk  to  the  French,  which  Cromwell  had 
secured  to  take  the  place  of  Calais,  and  he  accepted  the 
pensions  of  Louis.  He  was  willing  to  make  war  on  Protes- 
tant Holland  ;  plotted  to  restore  Catholicism  in  England,  with 
a  French  army  to  aid  him  if  necessary;  and  stretched  the 
laws  granting  indulgence  to  Catholics  and  dissenters  as  far 
as  he  dared.  But  he  knew  how  to  yield  when  the  popular 
opposition  became  too  strong,  and  he  managed  to  keep 
possession  of  the  crown  for  twenty-five  years  and  to  pass  it 
on  to  his  brother,  James  II.,  whose  known  adhesion  to  the 
Catholic  Church  had  made  a  large  party  in  the  State  anxious 
to  exclude  him  from  the  throne. 

272.  The  Revolution  of  1688.  —  James  II.  was  the  most 
narrow  and  obstinate  of  his  family,  and  his  determination 
to  be  the  means  of  the  restoration  of  Catholicism  carried 
him  perhaps  to  further  extremes  than  he  would  otherwise 
have  attempted.     He  assumed  the  right  to  suspend,  modify, 
or  extend  laws  made  by  the   Parliament,  to  interfere  with 
the  operation  of  the  courts,  and  to  increase  the  standing 
army  and  commission  Catholics  as  officers.     England  bore 
his  rule  with  patience  for  three  years,  looking  forward  to  the 
next  reign,  for  the  heir  to  the  throne  was  James'  daughter 
Mary,  married  to  her  cousin,  William  of  Orange. 

In  1688  a  son  was  born  to  the  king,  and  the  situation  was 
changed  at  once.  The  prospect  of  the  reign  of  a  James  III. 
could  not  be  endured,  and  an  invitation  was  soon  sent  to  Wil- 
liam to  come  to  England  and  take  possession  of  the  govern- 
ment. On  the  landing  of  William  the  power  of  James  at  once 
collapsed,  and  he  was  obliged  to  flee  to  France,  where  he  was 
William  in.  received  and  provided  for  by  Louis.  William  and  Mary  be- 
came joint  sovereigns  with  the  full  consent  of  the  nation,  and 
the  constitutional  principles  established  by  the  Revolution  of 
1688,  as  this  event  is  called  in  English  history,  were  put  into 
definite  form  and  made  law  in  the  Bill  of  Rights,  passed  in  1689. 

273.  The  War  of  the  League  of  Augsburg.  —  William  III. 
was  the  soul  of  the  opposition  to  Louis  XIV.,  and  he  was 


James 
deposed. 


§  274]  The  Spanish  Succession  277 

now  able  to  add  England  and  Holland  at  once  to  the  League   England 
of  Augsburg.     War  had  already  been  begun  by  Austria,  and  J^s*e 
in  1689  it  became  a  general  European  war.     The  day  of  Perkins, 
rapid   conquests  was   over,  but  France  maintained  herself  Regency, 
against  so  many  enemies  with  fair  success.     The  events  of 
the  war  are  of  little  importance.     The  attempt  of  James  II.   France,' ill. 
to  recover  his  throne  through  an  invasion  of  Ireland,  where  as1-*?1- 
he  had  many  partisans,  with  the  help  of  the  French,  was  a 
failure,  and  by  his  victory  in  the  battle  of  the  Boyne  Wil- 
liam III.  secured    his   position  in  England.     The   French 
barbarously  laid  waste  the  Palatinate,  to  which  Louis  had 
laid  claim  at  the  beginning  of  the  war,  to  prevent  its  occu- 
pation  by  the   enemy.      On   sea  the   French   fleets   were 
almost  destroyed  by  those  of  England  and  Holland.     On 
land  the  general   balance  of  the  war  was  in  favor  of  the  The  peace  of 
French,  but  in  1697  Louis  made  the   peace   of  Ryswick,   Ryswlck- 
granting  concessions  to  all  his  enemies. 

274.  The  Question  of  the  Spanish   Succession.  —  Louis  The  end  of 
was  moved  to  make  such  a  peace,  so  contrary  to  his  usual 
practice,  by  the  rapid  approach  of  another  event,  in  which   Morris, 
he  had  a  far  deeper  interest   than  he  could   have  in  any  Age  of  Anne 
possible  conquests  of  this  war.     Charles  II.  of  Spain  was  oha00^' 
plainly  approaching  the  end  of  his  life,  and  he  had  no  heir.   Kitchin, 
Louis  was   resolved   to   insist   upon   the   claim   for  which  France> m. 
Mazarin  had  prepared  the  way  in  the  treaty  of  the  Pyrenees,   2?2~2  4* 
and  to  which  Louis  had   looked  forward  as  the  crowning 
event  of  his  reign,  and  to  do  this  with  any  hope  of  success 
peace  was  necessary. 

Louis   had  little  hope  at  first  that  he  could  secure  the  Louis'  plans 
whole   Spanish   inheritance   for   a    French   prince.     There  ™**™y  to 
were  other  heirs  with  claims  as  good  or  better.     The  arch- 
duke Charles  of  Austria  and  Prince  Joseph  of  Bavaria  were 
descended  from  Spanish  princesses  who  had  not  renounced 
their  rights  of  succession,  as  had  the   mother  and  wife  of 
Louis,  though  the  Austrian  princess  through  whom  Prince 
Joseph  derived  his  immediate  claim  had  made  such  a  re- 
nunciation on  her  marriage.      Besides  this,  it  was   hardly 


278         France  tries  to  Dominate  Europe    [§§275>276 


The  Spanish 
Empire  to  be 
parcelled  out 
without 
leave. 
Hassall, 
Louis  XIV., 
Chap.  XII.; 
Green, 
English 
People,  IV. 
66-70. 


Spain  objects 
to  the 
partition 
treaties. 
Kitchin,  III. 
284  ff. 


Charles  II.'s 

will. 


The  will  of 
Charles  II. 
accepted. 


likely  that  Europe  would  allow  these  two  great  monarchies 
to  become  so  closely  allied  and  the  power  of  France  to  be 
so  greatly  increased  when  her  comparatively  small  gains  in 
the  Rhine  valley  had  been  so  bitterly  opposed. 

275.  The  Partition  Treaties. —  Louis'  first  plan,  therefore, 
was  to  arrange  in  advance  some  partition  of  the  Spanish 
territories   among   the    different    claimants,  which    Europe 
would  accept  without  a  war.     Two  such  treaties  of  partition 
were  drawn  up  and  consented  to  by  William  III.  of  England, 
whose  opposition  Louis  especially  feared.     William  wished, 
however,  to  avoid  war,  and  some  such  arrangement  was  ab- 
solutely necessary,  since  there  were  no  other  heirs  to  be 
considered.       The    second    treaty   of  partition   was    made 
necessary  by  the  death  of  Prince  Joseph,  whom  the  first  had 
assigned  to  the  throne  of  Spain.     The  kingdom  of  the  Two 
Sicilies  was  the  most  important  territory  given  France  by 
these  arrangements,  and  this  Louis  hoped  to  be  able  "to  ex- 
change for  Savoy  on  the  southeast  border  of  France. 

Very  naturally  the  parcelling  out  of  the  territories  of  what 
had  once  been  the  most  powerful  and  was  still  the  proud- 
est of  nations,  without  so  much  as  asking  consent,  as  if  Spain 
herself  were  about  to  die,  or  had  no  will,  was  deeply  resented 
by  the  Spanish.  They  proposed  to  dispose  of  their  own 
throne  and  in  such  a  way  as  to  preserve  the  integrity  of  their 
empire.  Their  natural  disposition  was  in  favor  of  the  house 
of  Hapsburg,  but  careful  consideration  convinced  them  that 
France  was  far  more  likely  to  be  able  to  prevent  the  disinte- 
gration of  their  dominions  than  Austria.  Accordingly,  a  short 
time  before  his  death,  Charles  II.  drew  up  a  will  in  which 
he  left  the  whole  of  the  Spanish  lands  to  the  duke  of  Anjou, 
the  second  son  of  the  Dauphin,  and  grandson  of  Louis  XIV. 

276.  France   annexes    Spain. — The  news  of  this  testa- 
ment, on  the  death  of  Charles  II.,  near  the  end  of  the  year 
1 700,  occasioned  a  moment's  hesitation  in  France.    To  take 
what  was  given  by  the  partition  treaty  with  less  risk  of  war, 
or  if  war  must  come  with  England  and  Holland  as  allies,  or 
to  try  for  the  whole  and  face  all  Europe  in  a  certain  war  with 


276] 


France  annexes  Spain 


279 


only  the  possible  help  of  Spain,  —  this  was  the  question.  The 
question  was  soon  decided.  The  prize  was  too  great  to  be 
refused,  and  Louis  introduced  his  grandson  to  the  court  with 
the  words,  "  Gentlemen,  this  is  the  king  of  Spain." 

It  now  seems 
likely  that  even  this 
triumph  of  Louis' 
would  have  been  ac- 
cepted by  Europe, 
so  tired  were  some 
of  the  leading  states 
of  the  constant  wars 
of  the  last  twenty- 
five  years,  if  he  had 
not  apparently  lost 
his  head  over  his 
great  success.  Eng- 
land and  Holland 
were  disposed  to 
give  their  consent 
in  return  for  com- 
mercial concessions, 
but  these  were  re- 
fused. Spain  was  to 
give  France  a  mo- 
nopoly of  some  of 
the  most  profitable 

lines  of  trade  with  America,  especially  that  in  negroes,  at  the 
expense  of  England  and  Holland.  James  II.  dying  at  this 
time,  France  immediately  recognized  James  III.  as  the  right- 
ful king  of  England.  Spain  was  openly  treated  as  if  it  were 
already  a  subject  state,  as  if  the  Pyrenees  were  indeed  no  more. 
Philip  V.  gave  formal  notice  that  he  retained  all  rights  of  suc- 
cession to  the  French  crown,  and  the  Low  Countries  were 
almost  annexed.  Such  things  could  not  be  passed  over,  and 
William  III.  had  no  difficulty  in  forming  the  Grand  Alliance 
of  all  the  chief  states  of  Europe,  whose  object  was  to  compel  a 


GOBELIN  TAPESTRY,  TIME  OF  Louis  XIV. 


Spain 

treated  as  if 
a  part  of 
France. 
Lecky, 
History  of 
England 
(Appleton), 
I.  27  ff. 


The  Grand 

Alliance. 
Schilling, 
Quellenbuck 
209. 


280        France  tries  to  Dominate  Europe     [§§  277> 


Great 

generals  and 
battles. 


The  dawn  of 

world 

politics. 


France 
makes  a 
brave 

defence,  but 
is  forced  to 
yield. 
Hassall, 
Louis  XIV., 
Chap.  XIII. 


partition  of  the  Spanish  Empire.  William  died  just  as  the 
war  was  opening,  but  he  was  succeeded  by  Anne,  the  sister 
of  his  wife  and  daughter  of  James  II.,  who  continued  his 
policy,  under  the  influence  of  the  Whig  party. 

277.  The  War  of  the  Spanish  Succession.  —  From  a  mili- 
tary point  of  view,  the  War  of  the  Spanish  Succession  is  one 
of  the  greatest  of  European  wars.     The  allies  had  two  very 
famous   generals,    the   English   duke  of  Marlborough  and 
Prince  Eugene  of  Savoy,  in  the  service  of  Austria.     France 
had  no  generals  equal  to  these,  and  sometimes  her  armies 
were  very  badly  led,  but  they  knew  how  to  fight,  and  such 
battles   as  those  of  Blenheim,    Ramillies,   Oudenarde,  and 
Malplaquet  are  among  the  greatest  of  history. 

The  War  of  the  Spanish  Succession  is  also  more  than  a 
European  war,  and  as  the  last  stage  of  the  Thirty  Years'  War 
marks  the  introduction  into  international  politics  of  new 
motives  and  guiding  principles,  so  this  war  indicates  the 
coming  on  of  a  new  era  in  history,  for  it  was,  in  some  degree 
at  least,  a  world  war,  and  was  fought  on  many  seas  and  in 
all  colonies.  In  American  colonial  history  it  is  known  as 
Queen  Anne's  War. 

278.  The  War  goes  against  Louis.  —  The  course  of  the 
war  was  decidedly  against  the  French  in  spite  of  the  bravery 
of  her  armies.     She  lost  great  battles.     Her  territory  was  in- 
vaded.    The  Huguenots  in  the    south  —  the  Camisards  — 
revolted.     The  Spanish  people  remained  true  to  Philip  V., 
but  at  one  time  he  was   driven  from  his  capital  which  was 
entered  by  the  archduke  Charles.     At  one  time  during  the 
war,  Louis  was  brought  to  offer  most  extensive  concessions 
in  return  for  peace,  but  the  allies  demanded  more  than  he 
could  yield  until  absolutely  conquered.     He  turned  almost 
in  despair  to  the  French  people,  in  an  address  which  was 
sent  throughout  the  country,  and  the  nation,  despite  its  in- 
tense suffering  and  exhaustion,  responded  with  an  enthu- 
siasm which  made  its   conquest  impossible.      Finally   the 
archduke  Charles  became  emperor,  and  as  Europe  had  no 
wish  to  restore  the  great  empire  of  Charles  V.,  and  as  Louis 


§§  279,280]  The  Rise  of  England  .      281 

was  still  ready  to  grant  concessions,  the  war  ended  with  the 
peace  of  Utrecht  in  1713. 

England  had  already  signed  preliminaries  of  peace.     This   Change  of 
was  due  to  the  fact  that  Queen  Anne  had  broken  with  her  Parties  in 
former  favorite,  the  duchess  of  Marlborough,  the  Whigs  had      ng 
lost  control  of  the  State,  and  the  Tories  had  come  into  power. 
They  favored  peace  and  had  now  the  support  of  the  queen. 
Marlborough  was  accused  of  peculation  and  passed  the  last 
years  of  the  reign  in  disgrace. 

279.    The  Peace  of  Utrecht.  —  Like  the  peace  of  Westpha-   The  Spanish 
lia,  that  of  Utrecht  concerned  almost  every  European  state.   ||°v^jions 
The  Spanish  people  retained  the  king  they  had  chosen,  but   Morris,' 
failed  of  the  purpose  for  which  they  had  chosen  him.     Spain  Anne, 
was  separated  from  all  her  European  possessions.     Austria   Hassaif^*' 
received  the  lion's  share  of  these  :  the  Spanish  Netherlands,   Louis  XIV., 
Milan,  Naples,  and  the  island  of  Sardinia.     The  duke  of  397-414; 
Savoy  received  the  island  of  Sicily  and  the  title  of  king.   ^l^T'm. 
A  few  years  afterwards  he  was  obliged  to  exchange  this  with   335-340. 
Austria  for  Sardinia,  and  from  this  came  the  title  of  king  of 
Sardinia,  retained  by  the  house  of  Savoy  until  the  formation 
of  the  present  kingdom  of  Italy.     Spain,  stripped  of  these   The  Spanish 
possessions  but  retaining  her  American  colonies,  was  given  to   Bourbons- 
Philip  V.,  the  grandson  of  Louis  XIV.     The  Bourbons  thus 
became  possessed  of  the  Spanish  throne,  the  only  one  they 
retain  at  the  present  day. 

280.     The  Rise  of  England.  —  The  gains  of  England  from  England's 
this  war  were  far  greater  than  those   of  any  other  state,   colonial 
though  they  seem  less  striking  than  those  of  Austria.     But  enlarged. 
Austria's  gains  were  more  apparent  than  real,  for  her  new 
possessions,  as  in  the  days  of  Charles  V.,  great   as    they 
seemed,  were  widely  scattered,  difficult  to  defend,  and  not 
a  real  source  of  strength.     England's,  however,  were  exactly 
in  the  line  of  her  future  greatness.     From  Spain  she  received 
the  command  of  the  Mediterranean,  the  fortress  of  Gibraltar, 
and  the  island  of  Minorca  containing  the  strongly  fortified 
naval  station  of  Port  Mahon,  and  she  was  given  also  control 
of  the  supply  of  negroes  to  the  Spanish  colonies,  a  very  profi- 


282 


France  tries  to  Dominate  Europe         [§  281 


England 
beginning  to 
take  a  first 
place  in  the 
world. 


table  trade  at  that  time.  She  had  successfully  begun  in  this 
war  also  the  conquest  of  North  America  from  the  French. 
France  ceded  to  her  all  her  claims  on  New  Foundland  and 
the  Hudson  Bay  territories,  and  Acadia  or  Nova  Scotia. 

England's  navy  was  now  rapidly  growing  stronger,  while 
those  of  France  and  Holland  were  growing  weaker.  Her 
commerce  was  widely  extending.  During  the  reign  of  Anne 
she  had  made  a  treaty  with  Portugal  which  made  that  coun- 
try, once  the  greatest  commercial  and  colonial  state  of 
Europe,  almost  her  commercial  vassal.  As  the  treaty  of 


A  NORTH  VIEW  OF  GIBRALTAR 


The  exhaus- 
tion of 
France. 
Contempo- 
rary 
accounts. 


Westphalia  marks  the  decline  of  the  house  of  Hapsburg  and 
the  rise  of  France  to  the  first  place  in  Europe,  so  that  of 
Utrecht  marks  the  decline  of  France  and  the  rise  of  England 
to  a  first  place,  not  now  in  Europe  merely  but  in  the  world, 
281.  France  Unable  to  prevent  the  Rise  of  England. — 
But  this  change  was  not  a  sudden  one.  A  long  and  desper- 
ate struggle  was  still  necessary  to  complete  it.  Louis  XIV. 
had  gained  from  the  War  of  the  Spanish  Succession  what  he 
had  set  out  to  gain,  —  the  throne  of  Spain  for  his  grandson ; 
but  it  was  at  a  fearful  cost,  and  it  proved  of  no  value  in  the 


§§  282,  283]      End  of  the  Stuart  Dynasty  283 

end.     The  last  half  of  the  reign  of  Louis  XIV.  had  been  filled  Correard, 
with  more  disasters  for  France  than  the  king  knew  of.     The    Tex*es> 
resources  of  the  country  were  exhausted.    Its  industry  under- 
mined.    Its  commerce  almost  destroyed.     Agriculture  was 
weighed  down  by  a  heavy  burden  of  taxation,  and  had  suf- 
fered from  bad  seasons  as  well  as  from  the  drain  of  men  into  the 
army.    The  peasantry  were  in  a  most  miserable  condition 
and  sometimes  even  starving  to  death.     The  finances  were 
in  disorder.     The  court  was  still  prodigally  wasteful  and  cor- 
rupt, and  all  power  of  reformation  seemed  lost. 

Bigotry  and  mistaken  policy  had  turned  France  into  the   Recovery  in 

way  which  Spain  had  entered  a  century  before.     She  was  splte  of  the\ 
i       .  11-  government, 

not  destined  to  follow  it  to  the  same  end,  but  it  was  not  the 

government  which  prevented  this  result.  It  was  the  French 
nation  which  saved  itself  with  that  immense  recuperative 
power  which  is  one  of  its  marked  characteristics.  French 
industry  and  frugality  accumulated  new  resources  in  spite  of 
taxes  and  government  squandering,  and  in  another  century 
could  endure  vast  expenditure  of  men  and  money  in  a  new 
struggle  against  all  Europe,  far  greater  than  Louis  XIV.'s. 
But  for  the  present  France  was  exhausted,  and  in  the  struggle 
with  England  which  was  to  settle  in  the  next  fifty  years  the 
colonial  empire  of  the  world,  this  is  the  most  essential  fact. 

282.  The  Beginning  of  Louis  XV.'s  Reign.  —  Louis  XIV.  The  regency, 
was  succeeded  by  his  great  grandson,  Louis  XV.,  then  five 
years  old.  The  regent  was  Philip  of  Orleans,  nephew  of 
Louis  XIV.,  a  most  corrupt  man.  To  keep  himself  in  power 
he  formed  an  alliance  with  England  against  Philip  V.  of 
Spain,  who,  notwithstanding  his  renunciation  of  all  rights  of 
succession  in  France,  was  plotting  to  make  himself  regent.  The  "  Quad- 

This  alliance,  joined  afterwards  by  Austria  and  Holland,  and   rAuP.le 

J  Alliance. 

so  becoming  the  "  Quadruple  Alliance,"  led  to  a  war  with   perkins, 

Spain  which  had  no  important  results,  except  to  increase  Regency, 

the  financial  difficulties  of  France  and  to  show  how  little  ^P-*11- 

Louis  XIV.'s  War  of  the  Spanish  Succession  had  led  to  a  France,' ill. 

union  of  Spain  and  France.  3Sl  & 
283.  The  End  of  the  Stuart  Dynasty.  —  Just  before  the 


284 


France  tries  to  Dominate  Europe         [§  283 


Accession  of 
George  I. 
See  table, 
p.  361- 
Morris, 
Anne,  Chap. 
XVIII. ; 
Lecky, 
England,  I. 
177-183. 

Thackeray, 
Henry 
Esmond 
(novel) ; 
Pamphlets 
by  Steele, 
Swift,  and 
Bolingbroke, 
in  Political 
Pamphlets, 
Pamphlet 
Library. 

The  union 

with 

Scotland. 

Morris, 

Anne, 

Chap.  XVI. ; 

Green, 

English 

People,  IV. 

90  ff. 


end  of  Louis  XIV.'s  reign,  Queen  Anne  of  England  had  died. 
This  event  had  been  looked  forward  to  by  the  extreme  sup- 
porters of  the  Stuart  family  in  the  hope  that  something 
might  then  lead  to  the  accession  of  James  III.,  the  "  Old 
Pretender."  But  if  any  plots  had  been  made  to  secure  him 
the  throne  they  completely  failed,  and  George  I.  of  Hano- 
ver was  quietly  acknowledged  king,  according  to  the  Act  of 
Settlement  which  had  been  passed  before  the  death  of  Wil- 
liam III.  By  this  act,  failing  heirs  of  William  or  of  Anne, 
Parliament  had  settled  the  succession  on  the  nearest  Protes- 
tant heirs  of  the  throne,  the  descendants  of  Elizabeth,  daugh- 
ter of  James  I.,  who  had  married  the  unfortunate  Frederick 
of  the  Palatinate.  Thus  began  the  house  of  Hanover,  or  of 
Guelf,  which  still  reigns  in  England. 

Another  event  in  the  reign  of  Anne  of  equal  importance 
for  the  future  of  Great  Britain,  was  the  union  of  England 
and  Scotland  into  one  kingdom.  By  the  accession  of  James 
of  Scotland  to  the  English  throne,  there  had  been  formed 
what  would  now  be  called  a  "  personal  union,"  by  which  the 
two  kingdoms  had  one  sovereign  and  followed  in  general  a 
common  policy,  but  each  retained  its  own  Parliament  and 
local  government.  In  1707  by  the  Act  of  Union,  Scotland 
obtained  representation  in  the  English  Parliament  and 
ceased  to  have  its  own.  The  result  proved  a  real  union  of 
the  two  peoples  into  one,  of  great  importance  in  the  age  of 
expansion  which  was  just  beginning. 


Topics 

What  reasons  can  you  give  for  the  decline  of  Spain?  Why  did  it 
seem  that  France  would  have  free  hand  in  Europe  about  1660  ?  What 
interest  had  Holland  in  the  case  ?  What  was  now  the  character  of  the 
French  constitution  ?  The  character  of  Louis  XIV.  The  changes 
made  by  Colbert.  The  importance  of  the  marriage  of  Louis  XIV. 
Louis'  first  war.  His  feeling  towards  Holland.  Louis'  second  war. 
How  does  the  period  of  the  "  reunions "  show  Louis'  power  in  Eu- 
rope ?  The  revocation  of  the  edict  of  Nantes  and  its  consequences. 
Did  the  American  colonies  gain  anything  by  this  ?  The  effect  of  Louis' 
wars  on  France.  The  relation  of  England  under  Charles  II.  to  France. 


Topics  285 

The  reasons  for  the  Revolution  of  1688.  Its  effect  on  France.  The 
third  war  of  Louis.  The  question  of  the  Spanish  succession.  What 
prevented  its  settlement  as  Louis  would  have  liked  ?  Spain's  feeling  on 
the  subject.  What  brought  on  the  War  of  the  Spanish  Succession  ? 
Its  character.  Its  effect  on  France.  The  treatment  of  Spain  in  the 
peace  of  Utrecht.  The  gain  of  England  from  the  war.  The  effect  of 
Louis'  reign  on  France.  The  policy  of  the  regent.  The  accession  of 
the  house  of  Hanover  in  England.  The  union  with  Scotland. 


Topics  for  Assigned  Studies 

The  reforms  of  Colbert.  Perkins,  France  under  the  Regency  (Hough- 
ton),  Chap.  IV.  Hassall,  Louis  XIV.  (Heroes),  123-130.  Cor- 
reard,  Textes,  140-207. 

The  revocation  of  the  edict  of  Nantes.  Perkins,  Regency,  169-204. 
Hassall,  Louis  XIV.,  241-252.  Kitchin,  France,  III.  224-234. 
Text  and  contemporary  comment.  Correard,  7  extes,  230-240. 
German  translation,  Schilling,  Quellenbuch,  191. 


CHAPTER  III 


Changes  in 

north- 
eastern 
Europe. 


Sweden  a 
great  power. 


THE  RISE  OF  RUSSIA  AND   PRUSSIA 

284.  The  Position  of  Sweden. — While  the  War  of  the 

Spanish  Succession  was  introducing  the  change  which  we 
have  noticed  in  the  relative  positions  of  France  and  Eng- 
land, changes  were  taking  place  in  the  northeast  of  Europe 
which,  so  far  as  the  European  politics  of  the  eighteenth  and 
nineteenth  centuries  are  concerned,  were  of  even  greater  in- 
fluence,' and  in  the  world  politics  of  the  nineteenth  century 
of  almost  equal  consequence.  Sweden,  which  at  the  close 
of  the  Thirty  Years'  War  had  been  one  of  the  great  powers  of 
Europe,  rapidly  declined  into  the  second  rank ;  Russia, 
which  until  this  time  had  never  been  thought  of,  became  a 
strong  European  state  and  began  its  enormous  expansion  ; 
and  Prussia  rapidly  rose  in  power  and  became  the  rival  of 
Austria. 

The  Thirty  Years'  War  left  Sweden  with  a  military  reputa- 
tion and  a  geographical  position  which  made  her  one  of  the 
first  states  of  Europe.  This  had  been  gained  by  the  wise 
policy  and  the  genius  of  her  kings,  by  religious  enthusiasm 
which  had  inspired  her  armies,  and  by  unusually  favorable 
conditions  among  her  neighbors.  The  place  which  she 
had  taken  she  could  hardly  hope  from  her  own  resources  to 
maintain.  The  successes  of  the  elector  of  Brandenburg  in 
the  second  of  Louis  XIV.'s  wars  made  this  evident,  though 
he  gained  nothing  from  them  at  the  time.  Sweden,  how- 
ever, kept  her  territories  and  her  position  until  the  sud- 
den rise  of  a  new  power  overthrew  the  balance  in  the 
northeast. 

286 


Early  History  of  Russia 


28; 


285.  The  Early  History  of  Russia.  —  Russia  was  occupied  From  the 

by  the  Scandinavians,  at  the  time  of  the  great  Northmen  t^°t:h^men 

invasions  in  the  ninth  century,  as  we  have  seen.     The  dy-  R0manoffs. 

nasty  of  Ruric  which  was  established  at  that  time  remained  Rambaud, 


BALTIC  LANDS  Hi 


/xm,/iV«./<-    II'.-*'     23  frnm    Greenwich'  'jy 


in  power  for  more  than  seven  hundred  years,  though  there 

was  for  much  of  that  time  no  united  government       The  (London); 

Northmen,  here  as  everywhere  else,  adopted  the  language  Jjf^J 

and  civilization  —  or  lack  of  civilization  —  of  the   country  (Nations). 


288 


Rise  of  Russia  and  Prussia     [§§  286>  287 


Not  really  a 

European 

state. 


Obstacles  to 
overcome. 
Schuyler, 
Peter  the 
Great, 
2  vols. 
(Scribner), 
1689-1725. 


and  became  Slavs.  They  were  in  closer  connection  with 
the  Greek  Empire  than  with  any  other  civilized  state,  and 
in  the  tenth  century  received  Christianity  from  there,  and 
were  organized  as  a  part  of  the  Greek  Church  under  the 
Patriarch  of  Constantinople,  a  relation  which  continued  until 
the  conquest  of  the  Empire  in  the  east  by  the  Turks.  At 
the  time  of  the  great  Mongol  invasion  in  the  thirteenth  cen- 
tury, Russia  came  under  their  rule  which  lasted  two  cen- 
turies and  a  half.  In  the  second  half  of  the  fifteenth  century, 
the  Prince  of  Moscow,  Ivan  the  Great,  a  descendant  of 
Ruric,  threw  off  the  Mongol  yoke,  got  possession  of  Nov- 
gorod, the  great  commercial  city  of  the  north,  and  founded 
modern  Russia.  At  the  end  of  the  sixteenth  century  the 
house  of  Ruric  became  extinct,  and  after  a  few  years  of  civil 
strife  Michael  Romanoff  was  made  czar,  the  founder  of  the 
house  of  Romanoff. 

286.  Russia  in  the  Seventeenth  Century.  —  Still  through 
all   the   seventeenth    century  Russia  was  not  a   European 
power.     She  was  shut  out  from  all  contact  with  the  West. 
Sweden  had  possession  of  all  the  shores  of  the  Baltic,  and 
the  Turks  of  all  the  north  shore  of  the  Black  Sea.     In  civil- 
ization, political  influence,  or  interest  for  other  states,  Russia 
might  as  well  not  have  been  a  Christian  state ;  she  was  up 
to  this  time  no  more  a  part  of  Christendom  than  was  China. 
One  of  the  most  striking  characteristics  of  the  nineteenth 
century  has  been  the  extension  of  European  international  law 
and  close  political  relationship,  to  that  common  system  which 
we  call  Christendom,  over  the  whole  world.     The  first  step  in 
this  expansion  of  Christendom  was  the  sudden  entering  of  the 
European  system  by  Russia  in  the  reign  of  Peter  the  Great. 

287.  The  Changes  made  by  Peter  the  Great.  —  From  the 
beginning  of  his  reign  in   1689,  when  at  the  age  of  seven- 
teen he  began  to  rule  alone,  Peter  was  resolved  to  intro- 
duce western  civilization  into  Russia,  and  to  make  her  one 
of  the  great  powers  of  Europe.     To  do  this  he  had  two 
great  obstacles  to  overcome.     One  was  the  opposition  of 
the  "  Old  Russian  "  party,  bitterly  opposed  to  all  change, 


§287] 


Changes  made  by  Peter 


289 


against  which  he  had  to  contend  almost  to  the  end  of  his 
reign.  The  other  was  the  isolated  position  of  Russia,  cut 
off  from  access  to  the  sea,  which  could  be  remedied  only  by 
successful  wars  with  Sweden  and  Turkey. 

Peter's  work  in  Russia  was  a  revolution.     He  had  from   Peter's 
youth  a  band  of  friends  from  the  countries  of  the  West  who 
encouraged  his  efforts,  and  he  increased  their  number.     He 


Rambaud, 
Russia,  II, 
Chap.  II. 


PETER  THE  GREAT 

called  into  Russia  artisans,  merchants,  officers,  and  artists. 
He  organized  a  new  army  to  take  the  place  of  the  old  royal 
body-guard,  the  Strelitz,  who  had  assumed  too  much  power. 
He  compelled  the  nobles  to  submit  to  his  absolute  authority, 
forced  them  to  hold  their  lands  of  him,  made  nobility 
depend  upon  service,  and  created  many  new  nobles  and 
deposed  many  old  ones.  He  subjected  to  cruel  punishment 
his  sister  and  even  his  only  son  when  they  joined  the  opposi- 
tion to  his  reforms.  He  undertook  journeys  to  Holland  and 


290  Rise  of  Russia  and  Prussia  [§  288 

to  England  to  learn  ship-building  and  to  study  the  methods 
of  the  western  states.  He  began  the  construction  of  a  fleet 
while  his  only  harbor  was  Archangel  on  the  White  Sea, 
frozen  half  the  year.  The  founding  of  St.  Petersburg  as  a 
new  capital,  in  conquered  territory,  open  to  the  Baltic,  and 
so  in  connection  with  the  West,  symbolizes  the  result  of  his 
reign.  Russia  had  been  made  a  new  state,  facing  Europe 
instead  of  Asia. 

The  first  2gg     Russia  against  Sweden.  —  In  opening  the  way  to 

Turks°n  tQe  sea>  Peter's  first  success  was  gained  from  the  Turks. 
Taking  advantage  of  Austria's  attack  on  Turkey  in  the 
Danube  valley,  he  pushed  through  to  the  Black  Sea,  and  in 
the  peace  of  Carlowitz,  in  1699,  forced  the  Turks  to  cede 
to  him  the  strong  town  of  Azof  at  the  mouth  of  the  Don. 
Immediately  after  this  began  the  great  war  with  Sweden 
which  led  to  the  fall  of  that  state. 

Charles  xii.  jn  ^97  Charles  XII.  came  to  the  throne  of  Sweden  at 
i^-iyiT  the  a§e  of  seventeen.  This,  thought  all  the  neighbors  of 
Moms,  Sweden  who  wished  to  partition  her  territories,  was  an  oppor- 

Ageof  Anne,  tum'ty  not  to  be  neglected.  Denmark,  Russia,  and  Poland, 
BainP  '  whose  king  was  the  elector  of  Saxony,  formed  an  alliance 
Charles  xii.  against  the  young  king.  But  they  did  not  know  with  whom 

(Heroes). 


Charles  XII.  proved  to  be  a  great  military  genius,  but  one 
successes.        lacking  the  political  insight  of  Peter  the  Great.     He  at  once 
Rambaud,       attacked  the  Danes,  and  in  three  months,  before   any  of 
ChatTi  H  '      t^ie^r  a^es  could  come  to  their  aid,  he  forced  them  to  make 
peace.     Then  he  turned  immediately  against  Peter,  and  at 
Narva  dispersed  a  Russian  army  much  larger  than  his  own. 
Here  he  made  his  first  mistake.     Without  following  up  his 
advantage  and  forcing  Peter  to  make  peace  as  he  had  made 
the  Danes,  he  turned  back  and  marched  against  Poland, 
whose  king  he  regarded  as  a  personal  enemy.     Here  he  was 
equally  successful.     Augustus  II.  was  dethroned,  and  a  Polish 
noble,  Stanislaus  Leczinski,  was  elected  in  his  place.     Then 
he  advanced  against  Saxony  and  finally  forced  Augustus  to 
make  peace  and  renounce  the  Polish  throne,  (1708). 


§§  289,  290]    First  Promotion  of  the  Hohenzollern     291 

289.  The  Fall  of  Charles  XII.  —  But  in  these  operations  Mazeppa 
he  had  used  up  several  years  more  indeed  than  were  neces-  fnd,thef 
sary,  for  he  had  lingered  long  in  Poland,  pleased  perhaps  at  puitava, 
being  courted  by  Louis  XIV.  on  one  side,  and  by  the  allies  1709- 
on  the  other,  who  were  now  in  the  midst  of  the  War  of  the 
Spanish  Succession,  and  in  these  years  Peter  had  not  been 

idle.  He  had  beaten  the  Swedes  in  battle,  taken  possession 
of  several  Baltic  provinces,  and  in  one  of  them  had  founded 
St.  Petersburg.  When  at  last  Charles  returned  to  the  Rus- 
sian war,  he  made  his  second  great  mistake.  Instead  of 
going  back  to  the  North  he  let  himself  be  persuaded  by  a 
revolted  Cossack  chieftain,  Mazeppa,  to  attack  Moscow. 
But  the  Cossacks  gave  him  no  real  assistance,  and  in  the 
great  battle  of  Puitava,  in  the  summer  of  1 709,  he  was  com- 
pletely defeated  by  Peter,  and  escaped  with  only  a  few  fol- 
lowers into  Turkey. 

The  war  which  he  persuaded  the  Sultan  to  make  against  Charles  in 
Russia  brought  him  no  permanent  advantage,  though  Peter  Turkey- 
was  obliged  to  give  Azof  back  to  the  Turks.     Charles  wasted 
several  more  years  in  Turkey,  trying  to  induce  the  Sultan  to 
renew  the  war,  and  was  at  last  practically  imprisoned  there. 
When  he  escaped  in  1717  the  situation  had  so  changed  in 
the  North  that  no  recovery  by  Sweden  was  possible.     The 
old  enemies  were  all  in  the  field.     Augustus  was  again  king 
of  Poland.     The  Danes  were  threatening  the  capital  of  his 
kingdom.     New    enemies    had   joined  the   rest,  Branden- 
burg, now  the  kingdom  of  Prussia,  England,  and  Holland. 
Charles  kept  up  the  war,  however,  until  he  was  killed  at  Charles 
the  siege  of  Frederickshall  in  1718.     Sweden  then  made  killed  and 
peace  at  the  expense  of  her  southern  and  eastern  Baltic  humbled, 
provinces.     Bremen  and   Verden  went  to  Hanover,  Pom-   1718. 
crania  to  Prussia,  and  the  rest  to  Russia.     Sweden's  short 
history  as  a  power  of  the  first  rank  was  over.     Russia  and 
Prussia  had  each  taken  a  long  step  forward. 

290.  The  First  Promotion  of  the  Hohenzollern. — At  the  Modem 
death  of  Peter  the   Great   in   1725,   Europe  knew  that  a  J^Tof* 
power  had  risen  in  the  East  that  must  be  taken  into  account   Frederick 


292 


Rise  of  Russia  and  Prussia 


[§291 


the  Great. 

Tuttle, 
History  of 
Prussia, 
4  vols. 
(Houghton). 


The  Hohen- 
zollern  first 
obtain 
Nuremberg. 
Tuttle, 
Prussia,  I., 
Chap.  111. 


Then  Bran- 
denburg, 

1415- 
Map  of 
growth  of 
Prussia, 
Putzger, 
No.  30. 

The  Rhine 
provinces 
and  the 
duchy  of 
Prussia. 
Tuttle, 
Prussia,  I., 
Chap.  IV. 


The  Great 
Elector, 
1640-1688. 
Tuttle, 
Prussia,  I., 
Chap.  V. 


in  the  future.  She  hardly  felt  the  same  as  yet  in  regard  to 
Prussia.  It  was  the  work  of  Frederick  the  Great  to  bring 
his  country  forward  into  the  rank  of  a  first-rate  power. 
But  Frederick's  work  was  only  the  natural  conclusion  of  a 
long  line  of  preparation  steadily  followed  by  his  ancestors 
through  several  centuries. 

The  origin  of  the  Hohenzollern  family  was  similar  to  that 
of  the  Hapsburgs.  When  they  first  appear  in  history  they 
are  counts  of  a  little  territory  on  the  borders  of  Switzerland. 
Shortly  afterward  Frederick  of  Hohenzollern  was  made 
burggraf  of  Nuremberg.  In  this  office  the  family  displayed 
the  frugal  middle  class  traits  which  have  always  character- 
ized it,  and  at  the  beginning  of  the  fifteenth  century  the 
Frederick  of  the  day  was  able  to  lend  to  the  Emperor 
Sigismund  a  large  sum  of  money  in  final  payment  of  which 
he  was  made  elector  of  Brandenburg,  which  had  fallen  in  to 
the  Empire  by  the  extinction  of  the  family  of  Albert  the 
Bear.  Then  began  the  process  by  which  the  present  king- 
dom of  Prussia  has  been  created  —  the  union  under  a  single 
rule  of  a  great  number  of  the  little  independent  states  into 
which  North  Germany  was  at  that  time  divided. 

291.  The  Chief  Steps  in  the  Making  of  Prussia.  —  We 
can  follow  only  the  most  important  steps  of  this  growth. 
At  the  beginning  of  the  seventeenth  century,  the  inheritance 
of  the  dukes  of  Juliers  and  Cleves  was  claimed,  and  a  good 
part  of  it  finally  secured,  the  origin  of  Prussia's  Rhenish 
provinces.  In  1618  the  duchy  of  Prussia,  the  lands  of  the 
old  German  order,  which  since  the  Reformation  had  been 
held  as  a  secularized  duchy  by  a  younger  branch  of  the 
family,  fell  in  to  the  elector,  but  was  held  as  a  part  of 
the  kingdom  of  Poland.  The  reign  of  the  Great  Elector, 
Frederick  William,  was  a  time  of  rapid  progress.  At  the 
close  of  the  Thirty  Years'  \Var,  Brandenburg  received  east 
Pomerania,  and  the  secularized  ecclesiastical  states  of  Mag- 
deburg, Halberstadt,  Minden,  and  Cammin.  During  a 
considerable  part  of  his  reign  engaged  in  successful  war 
with  Sweden,  he  was  however  obliged  by  Sweden's  ally, 


Rise  of  Russia  and  Prussia 


[§291 


the  Great. 

Tuttle, 
History  of 
Prussia, 
4  vols. 
(Houghton). 


The  Hohen- 
zollern  first 
obtain 
Nuremberg. 
Tuttle, 
Prussia,  I., 
Chap.  III. 


Then  Bran- 
denburg, 

1415- 
Map  of 
growth  of 
Prussia, 
Putzger, 
No.  30. 

The  Rhine 
provinces 
and  the 
duchy  of 
Prussia. 
Tuttle, 
Prussia,  I., 
Chap.  IV. 


The  Great 
Elector, 
1640-1688. 
Tuttle, 
Prussia,  I., 
Chap.  V. 


in  the  future.  She  hardly  felt  the  same  as  yet  in  regard  to 
Prussia.  It  was  the  work  of  Frederick  the  Great  to  bring 
his  country  forward  into  the  rank  of  a  first-rate  power. 
But  Frederick's  work  was  only  the  natural  conclusion  of  a 
long  line  of  preparation  steadily  followed  by  his  ancestors 
through  several  centuries. 

The  origin  of  the  Hohenzollern  family  was  similar  to  that 
of  the  Hapsburgs.  When  they  first  appear  in  history  they 
are  counts  of  a  little  territory  on  the  borders  of  Switzerland. 
Shortly  afterward  Frederick  of  Hohenzollern  was  made 
burggraf  of  Nuremberg.  In  this  office  the  family  displayed 
the  frugal  middle  class  traits  which  have  always  character- 
ized it,  and  at  the  beginning  of  the  fifteenth  century  the 
Frederick  of  the  day  was  able  to  lend  to  the  Emperor 
Sigismund  a  large  sum  of  money  in  final  payment  of  which 
he  was  made  elector  of  Brandenburg,  which  had  fallen  in  to 
the  Empire  by  the  extinction  of  the  family  of  Albert  the 
Bear.  Then  began  the  process  by  which  the  present  king- 
dom of  Prussia  has  been  created  —  the  union  under  a  single 
rule  of  a  great  number  of  the  little  independent  states  into 
which  North  Germany  was  at  that  time  divided. 

291.  The  Chief  Steps  in  the  Making  of  Prussia.  —  We 
can  follow  only  the  most  important  steps  of  this  growth. 
At  the  beginning  of  the  seventeenth  century,  the  inheritance 
of  the  dukes  of  Juliers  and  Cleves  was  claimed,  and  a  good 
part  of  it  finally  secured,  the  origin  of  Prussia's  Rhenish 
provinces.  In  1618  the  duchy  of  Prussia,  the  lands  of  the 
old  German  order,  which  since  the  Reformation  had  been 
held  as  a  secularized  duchy  by  a  younger  branch  of  the 
family,  fell  in  to  the  elector,  but  was  held  as  a  part  of 
the  kingdom  of  Poland.  The  reign  of  the  Great  Elector, 
Frederick  William,  was  a  time  of  rapid  progress.  At  the 
close  of  the  Thirty  Years'  War,  Brandenburg  received  east 
Pomerania,  and  the  secularized  ecclesiastical  states  of  Mag- 
deburg, Halberstadt,  Minden,  and  Cammin.  During  a 
considerable  part  of  his  reign  engaged  in  successful  war 
with  Sweden,  he  was  however  obliged  by  Sweden's  ally, 


§  292]        The  Father  of  Frederick  the  Great          293 

Louis  XIV.,  to  give  up  his  conquests,  and  secured  only  the 
independence  of  the  duchy  of  Prussia  of  Poland,  and  the 
reputation  of  having  a  fine  army. 

More  important   than    his   conquests   was   his   work   in  Absolutism 
the  organization  of  the   government.     He   centralized  his  founded' 
scattered  states  into  a  single  whole.     He  broke  the  power 
of  the  nobles  and  of  the   local   legislatures   where   these 
existed,  and  established  the  absolute  rule  of  the  sovereign. 
His  successor  joined  the  alliance  against  Louis  XIV.  in  the 
War  of  the  Spanish  Succession,  and  Europe  in  the  peace  of 
Utrecht,  the  same  peace  which  gave  the  title  of  king  to   The  title  of 
the  house  of  Savoy,  recognized  his  right  to  the  title  of  king   kingj 
"in  Prussia,"  which  he  had  assumed  in  1701  with  the  con-   pruss\a,  I. 
sent  of  the  Emperor.  289-302. 

292.  The  Father  of  Frederick  the  Great.  —  The  second  Frederick 
king  in  Prussia,  his  son  and  successor,  the  famous  father  of  wilham  *•» 
Frederick  the  Great,  the  drill  sergeant,  the  corporal,  the 
head  of  the  tobacco  parliament,  was  a  coarse  and  brutal 
barbarian  who  cared  nothing  for  art  or  knowledge,  and  was 
only  interested  in  his  soldiers.  He  was  ambitious  to  have 
a  large  and  finely  drilled  army,  but  he  was  unwilling  to  risk 
it  in  battle,  and  took  no  part  in  the  wars  of  his  time,  except  in 
the  last  years  of  the  great  war  against  Sweden.  In  the  peace 
which  followed  the  death  of  Charles  XII.,  he  gained  west 
Pomerania  for  Prussia.  His  chief  service  was  to  hand  on  to 
his  son  Frederick  the  army,  which  the  Great  Elector  had 
founded,  more  than  doubled  in  size,  and  made  one  of  the 
best  in  Europe,  and  a  large  surplus  in  the  treasury. 

When  Frederick  II.  came   to  the  throne  circumstances   Prussia 
were  most  favorable  for  a  long  step  forward  towards  the  des-   ready  for  *he 
tiny  which  the  different  labors  of  her  rulers  had  been  during  Austria!  * 
so  long  a  time  preparing  for  Prussia,  —  to  take  the  place  of  Turtle, 
leadership  in  Germany  which  Austria  had  been  obliged  to  %*ssta?  n-> 
give  up.     To   obtain    this  a  desperate  struggle  would   be   Longman, 
necessary,  but  Prussia  was  more  favorably  situated  in  north   Frederick 
Germany  than  Austria  in  south.     She  was  stronger  than  any  **  J^f 
one  realized,  and  her  young  king  was  to  prove  himself  a  31-42. 


294 


Rise  of  Russia  and  Prussia 


[§293 


The  house  of 
Hapsburg 
extinct, 
1740. 


Frederick 
the  first  to 
strike. 
Tuttle, 
Prussia,  II. 

42-56 I 
Longman, 
Frederick, 
42-46. 


genius  in  the  art  of  war.  The  full  fruits  of  Frederick's 
policy  in  the  actual  headship  of  Germany,  Prussia  did  not 
gather  for  a  hundred  years,  but  before  the  close  of  his  reign 

it  was  plain  to  all  Europe  that 
there  were  two  great  powers 
in  Germany  of  fairly  equal 
strength. 

293.  The  Pragmatic  Sanc- 
tion of  Charles  VI.  — The  op- 
portunity for  which  everything 
was  prepared  came  in  the  very 
year  of  Frederick's  accession. 
The  emperor,  Charles  VI.,  was 
the  last  male  descendant  of  the 
house  of  Hapsburg.  In  the 
last  years  of  his  reign  it  had 
been  the  chief  object  of  his 
policy  to  provide  against  the 
partition  of  the  Austrian  ter- 
ritories and  to  secure  the  un- 
divided inheritance  to  his 
daughter  Maria  Theresa.  This 
he  had  sought  to  accomplish 
by  the  Pragmatic  Sanction,  a 
new  law  of  succession  in  her 
favor,  to  which  he  had  secured 
the  consent  of  most  of  the 
states  of  Europe  by  treaties. 

His  death  in  October,  1 740, 
revealed  at  once  the  worth- 
lessness  of  these  treaties.  All 
Europe  seemed  to  consider 
the  time  arrived  to  bring  Aus- 
tria to  an  end.  The  electors  of 
Bavaria  and  Saxony  advanced 
claims  to  the  inheritance. 
Spain  and  France  showed  themselves  ready  to  assist.  But 


GIGANTIC  GRENADIER  OF 
FREDERICK  WILLIAM  I. 


§§  294>  295]       Maria   Theresa  and  Frederick  295 

Frederick  was  first  in  the  field.  Before  the  end  of  1 740, 
without  waiting  for  an  answer  from  Maria  Theresa  to  his 
claims,  and  without  a  declaration  of  war  he  marched  his 
army  into  the  Austrian  province  of  Silesia. 

294.  The  War  of  the  Austrian  Succession.    1740-1748. —  Frederick 
His  success  was  rapid.     The  Austrians  were   defeated   at 
Mollwitz.    An  alliance  was  formed  with  France.     The  elector 

of  Bavaria  was  recognized  as  Emperor.      Moravia  was  in-  Prussia,  n.t 
vaded  and  another  victory  gained,  and  in  June,  1742,  Maria   ^hap.  IIL~ 
Theresa  was  ready  to  make  peace  with  Frederick,  that  she   Longman, 
might  use  all  her  strength  against  her  other  enemies.     The  Frederick, 
peace  of  Breslau  gave  to  Prussia  the  province  of  Silesia  with  46~56* 
a  million  and  a  half  of  inhabitants.      But  it  was  not  yet  in 
secure  possession. 

The  tide  which  had  been  running  against  Maria  Theresa  The 
now  turned  in  her  favor.     She  threw  herself  on  the  devotion  Austrians 
of  the  Hungarians,  and   they  responded  with  enthusiasm.  grouncj 
The  Bavarians  were  driven  back.     Prague  was  recovered. 
The  English  allies  of  Austria  defeated  the  French  at  Det- 
tingen.     Saxony  and  Savoy  abandoned  the  allies  and  joined 
the  Austrians.     Frederick  began  to  fear  that  Maria  Theresa 
would  recover  Silesia  and  he  renewed  the  war.     Rapidly  he  Frederick's 
gained  the  victories  of  Hohenfriedberg,  Soor,  and  Kessels-  second  war. 
dorf,  and  captured  Prague,  while  the  French  defeated  the  pllttle> 
English  at   Fontenoy.      Now  Frederick  thought  he  could  Chap.  viii'. 
again  make  peace  with  safety,  and  in  the  peace  of  Dresden,  Longman, 
1 745,  the  cession  of  Silesia  was  confirmed,  while  he  recognized 
Maria  Theresa's  husband,  Francis  of  Lorraine,  as  Emperor. 

295.  Maria  Theresa  determined  to  punish   Frederick. —  Frederick 
During  the  war  Frederick  II.    had  twice   abandoned   his  cannot  be 
allies  without  hesitation  to  secure  advantages  to  himself,  but  forgiven- 
when  a  general  peace  was  made  at  Aix-la-Chapelle  in  1748 

the  conquests  which  he  had  made  were  sanctioned  by  Eu- 
rope. Frederick  was,  however,  the  only  one  of  her  enemies 
whom  Maria  Theresa  could  not  forgive.  The  especial  per- 
fidy of  his  attack  on  Silesia,  the  loss  of  that  great  province, 
the  impudence  of  the  little  kingdom  of  Prussia  in  assuming 


296  Rise  of  Russia  and  Prussia  C§  295 


Europe 
against 
Prussia. 
Hassall, 


STONE  BRIDGE  AT  PRAGUE 

so  much  power  and  threatening  the  Austrian  leadership  in 
Germany,  all  combined  to  make  her  determined  to  crush 
Frederick  in  another  war. 

Her  plan  was  to  form  a  great  European  combination 
against  the  little  state,  and  to  raise  up  so  many  enemies  that 
resistance  would  be  hopeless ;  that,  as  the  Austrian  Chan- 


§  296]     France  abandons  her  Hereditary  Enmity     297 


cellor  v.  Kaunitz.  said,  they  might  force  upon  Frederick  the 
fate  which  Henry  the  Lion  had  once  undergone.  Saxony, 
Sweden,  and  Poland  were  not  difficult  to  secure.  The 
Empress  Elizabeth  of  Russia  hated  Frederick  almost  more 
than  Maria  Theresa,  and  was  impatient  for  the  war  to  begin. 
The  most  difficult,  but  a  very  necessary,  ally  to  secure  was 
France. 

296.  France  abandons  her  Hereditary  Enmity.  —  Austria 
and  France  had  been  constant  enemies  for  more  than  two 
hundred  years.  It  seemed  like  reversing  all  history  for  them 
to  join  in  an  alliance  against  any  other  state.  But  there 
were  reasons  on  both  sides.  Austria  did  not  hesitate  to 
make  the  suggestion,  and  she  found  France  ready  to  listen. 
The  French  statesmen  no  longer  feared  Austria.  That  fear 
belonged  to  a  stage  of  history  now  outgrown.  On  the  other 
hand  France  did  fear  that  the  increasing  power  of  Prussia 
would  threaten  her  influence  in  north  Germany,  and  her 
conflict  with  England  for  colonial  empire  made  a  war  with 
that  country  inevitable ;  in  fact,  it  was  going  on  almost 
without  a  pause  during  this  interval  of  peace  in  Europe. 

An  arrangement  which  England  made  with  Prussia  early 
in  1756  to  secure  the  neutrality  of  Hanover,  of  which  King 
George  was  sovereign,  was  immediately  followed  by  an 
alliance  between  France  and  Austria.  The  object  of  Maria 
Theresa's  policy  was  not  the  mere  recovery  of  Silesia.  It 
was  practically  the  partition  of  Prussia,  and  she  hoped  by 
this  means  to  be  permanently  rid  of  her  rival  in  Germany. 
It  seemed  as  if  the  plan  must  succeed.  Frederick's  only 
ally  was  England,  and  England's  interest  in  the  war  was 
not  chiefly  in  Europe.  It  was  in  the  colonial  struggle  with 
France  which  was  now  at  its  height,  as  we  shall  see  else- 
where, and  raging  with  equal  fierceness  in  North  America 
and  in  India.  The  war  now  beginning  in  Europe  was  the 
greatest  of  these  wars,  the  French  and  Indian  War  of  Ameri- 
can colonial  history.  Indeed,  we  may  almost  say  that  the 
war  which  began  with  Spain  in  1739  continued  unbroken 
until  the  peace  of  Paris  in  1763. 


Periods, 
Chap.  VI II.; 
Tuttle, 
Prussia,  III., 
Chaps.  VI. 
and  VIII.; 
Longman, 
Frederick,      , 
Chap.  VII. 


Almost  a 
reversal  of 
history. 


England 
Prussia's 
only  ally. 


A  struggle 
for  colonial 
empire. 


298 


Rise  of  Russia  and  Prussia 


[§297 


Frederick 
will  not  wait 
to  be 
attacked. 
Tuttle, 
Prussia,  IV., 
Chap.  I. 


Great 
victories. 


The  odds 

against 

Prussia. 

Hassall, 

Periods, 

Chap.  IX. 

Longman, 

Frederick^ 

Chaps. 

VIII.-XI., 

and  XV. 


Prussia 
maintains 
herself  to 
the  end. 
Bracken- 
bury, 
Frederick 
the  Great 
(Military 
history, 
Putnam's). 


297.  The  Seven  Years'  War  (1756-1763). —The  allies 
intended  to  begin  the  war  in  1757,  but  Frederick,  who  was 
kept  informed  of  the  negotiations  by  secret  agents  in 
Vienna  and  Dresden,  determined  to  attack  before  their 
preparations  were  complete.  At  the  end  of  August,  1756, 
he  invaded  Saxony,  shut  up  the  Saxon  army  in  Pirna, 
defeated  an  Austrian  force  that  came  to  their  aid,  forced 
them  to  surrender,  and  in  less  than  a  month  was  in  entire 
possession  of  Saxony,  which  he  treated  as  if  it  were  annexed 
to  Prussia. 

The  next  year  brought  all  his  enemies  into  the  field,  but 
it  closed  on  the  whole  in  favor  of  Frederick.  He  was  de- 
feated by  the  Austrians  at  Kolin  and  forced  out  of  Bohemia, 
but  he  later  gained  the  great  victories  of  Rossbach  over  the 
French,  and  of  Leuthen  over  the  Austrians,  which  saved 
Silesia. 

But  the  odds  were  really  too  great  for  Frederick.  Rus- 
sian and  Swedish  armies  were  in  Prussian  territory.  The 
losses  which  his  armies  sustained,  in  victories  as  well  as  in 
defeat,  could  not  be  made  good.-  England  supplied  money 
but  not  men.  Berlin  was  captured  by  the  Russians. 
Nearly  all  Saxony  and  Silesia  were  lost.  The  country 
held  by  the  enemy  was  laid  waste,  and  the  sufferings  of  the 
people  were  extreme.  But  Frederick  met  these  disasters 
with  fortitude,  though  with  occasional  thoughts  of  suicide, 
and  displayed  the  greatest  military  genius.  He  reorganized 
his  defeated  armies,  faced  his  multitude  of  foes,  won  from 
them  occasional  victories,  and  made  them  purchase  every 
advance. 

In  1760  the  death  of  George  II.  of  England  resulted  in 
the  withdrawal  of  the  supplies  from  that  country,  and  the 
following  year  showed  the  strength  of  Prussia  almost  ex- 
hausted. But  at  the  beginning  of  1762  the  death  of  Eliza- 
beth of  Russia  turned  the  tide.  Her  successor,  Peter  III.,  was 
an  ardent  admirer  of  Frederick's,  and  he  made  peace  at  once. 
Two  considerable  victories  in  the  same  year  were  followed 
by  the  recovery  of  Saxony  and  Silesia.  All  hope  of  destroy- 


§§  298,  299]          Catherine  II.  of  Russia  299 

ing  Prussia  seemed  now  at  an  end.  France  also  had  lost 
all  her  colonies,  and  was  tired  of  the  war.  Early  in  1  763 
peace  was  made  between  the  several  parties  to  the  war. 
The  peace  of  Hubertsburg  between  Austria  and  Prussia  left 
to  Frederick  all  his  possessions  at  the  beginning  of  the  war. 

298.  Prussia  a  Great  Power.  —  Maria  Theresa  was  obliged  Prussia  a 
to  reconcile  herself  to  the  loss  of  Silesia.  Prussia  was  hence- 
forth  recognized  without  dispute  as  one  of  the  great  powers 
of  Europe,  and  as  a  leader  in  German  affairs,  though  Aus- 
tria maintained  a  rival  leadership  until  1866.  A  few  years 
after  the  peace,  when  the  line  of  the  electors  of  Bavaria 
became  extinct,  Prussia  was  able  to  defeat  the  plans  of 
Austria  for  getting  possession  of  this  the  largest  of  the 
south  German  states,  and  organized  a  league  of  the  princes 
—  called  the  Furstenbund  —  to  prevent  the  increase  of  Aus- 
trian power  in  Germany. 

After  the  war  Frederick   devoted  himself  with   all   the   Economic 
power  of  a  paternal  despotism,  and  with  success,  to  making  C 


good  to  his  people  the  losses  of  the  war  and  to  restoring  the   Carlyle, 
prosperity  of  the   country.      Before  the  close  of  his  life,   Frederick 

J  J  'the  Great, 

Prussia  was  to  receive  another  large   increase  of  territory   Bk>  Xxi., 
through  the  first  partition  of  Poland.     In  this  act  the  two  Chap.  II. 
new  powers,  Russia  and  Prussia,  whose  sudden  rise  was  so 
largely  due  to  unjust  wars  and  the  disregard  of  the  rights 
of  others,  fitly  joined  hands  against  their  weaker  neighbor 
in  a  crowning  act  of  robbery. 

299.   Catherine  II.  of  Russia  (1762-1796).  —  From  the  The  plans 
death  of  Peter  the  Great  to  the  accession  of  his  daughter  Qr^tter  th 
Elizabeth  in  1741,  the  history  of  Russia  is  one  of  frequent   resumed. 
revolutions,  and  the  policy  of  Peter  was  but  little  advanced. 
It  was  taken  up  again  by  Elizabeth,  who  forced  Sweden  to 
give  up   Finland,   but  who  gained  nothing  from   her  war 
against  Frederick  the  Great.     Peter  III.,  who  succeeded  her, 
was  thrown  into  prison  by  his  wife,  a  German  princess,  who 
seized  the  throne  and  became  the   famous  Catherine  II. 
The  plans  of  Peter  the  Great  for  the  extension  of  Russia 
to  the  West,  she  made  the  controlling  objects  of  her  policy. 


300 


Rise  of  Russia  and  Prussia     [§§  3°°>  3°i 


A  weak  state. 

Rambaud, 

Russia,  II. 

n8ff.; 

Hassall, 

Periods, 

Chap.  XI. 


Constitu- 
tional 
anarchy. 


Universal 
corruption. 


Russia  about 
to  absorb 
Poland. 


Sweden,  Poland,  and  Turkey  were  to  be  forced  to  allow 
Russia  a  more  direct  outlet  towards  Europe. 

300.  The  Condition  of  Poland.  —  The  death  of  Augustus 
III.,  in  1763,  gave  Catherine  an  opportunity  to  bring  the 
Russian  influence  into  the  control  of  Poland,  where  it  had 
been  rapidly  extending  for  some  years.     The  condition  of 
this  country  had  for  a  long  time  invited  the  interference  of 
her  ambitious  neighbors.      It  occupied  a  large  territory  in 
the  centre  of  eastern  Europe,   extending   from  the   Baltic 
almost  to  the  Black  Sea,  and  from  the  Carpathian  Moun- 
tains to  beyond  the  Dneiper.     It  had  a  population  of  twelve 
millions  ruled  by  about  one  hundred  thousand  nobles.     In 
form  the  constitution  was  a  monarchy,  but  the  king  was  elec- 
tive and  was  only  a  figurehead.     All  real  power  was  in  the 
hands  of  the  nobles,  or  it  may  be  said  in  the  hands  of  each 
noble.    Since  any  act  of  the  Diet  could  be  vetoed  by  a  single 
member  —  the  liberum  veto,  as  it   was  called  —  a  practical 
right  of  nullification  existed  for  every  noble. 

The  nobles  were  a  high-spirited  and  brave  class,  but 
utterly  corrupt  and  selfish.  The  peasantry  were  sunk  in  the 
lowest  serfdom  and  degradation,  hardly  human  beings.  A 
middle  class  was  wholly  lacking.  The  business,  falling  to 
the  free  burgher  of  western  Europe,  was  entirely  in  the 
hands  of  the  Jews,  who  were  without  political  rights  and  had 
of  course  no  interest  in  the  State.  The  destruction  of 
Poland  was  a  well-merited  punishment  of  the  selfish  cor- 
ruption of  its  ruling  class,  who  would  not  allow  reformation 
or  abandon  their  privileges  in  the  interest  of  the  nation, 
but  who  did  stand  ready  in  large  numbers  to  sell  themselves 
to  the  Russian  or  the  Prussian.  These  facts,  however,  do 
not  justify  the  open  violation  of  right  and  justice  by  those 
who  destroyed  the  State. 

301.  The  First  Partition  of  Poland.  —  Catherine  secured 
the    election   in   succession   to    Augustus  III.  of  a   former 
favorite  of  her  own,  Stanislaus  Poniatowski.     An  attempt  to 
reform  the  constitution  in  the  interest  of  a  stronger  govern- 
ment was  defeated  by  the  veto  and  a  Russian  army,  and  the 


The  First  Partition  of  Poland 


301 


influence  of  Catherine  increased  so  rapidly  in  the  country 
that  the  fear  of  Frederick  the  Great  was  excited  lest  the 
whole  kingdom  should  be  absorbed  by  Russia,  and  the  Baltic 
provinces  of  Prussia  be  threatened,  and  perhaps  even  the 
existence  of  the  State  as  it  once  had  been  by  Elizabeth. 

Since  the  reform  of  Poland  seemed  impossible,  and  the   Frederick 
country  could  be  maintained  in  its  present  condition  only 


FREDERICK  THE  GREAT 

by  a  great  European  war  01  doubtful  issue,  Frederick  pro- 
posed to  Austria  that  they  should  protect  themselves  from 
the  designs  of  Catherine  and  obtain  compensation  for  her 
increase  of  power  by  forcing  her  to  abandon  to  them  a  part 
of  the  spoils.  With  great  reluctance,  Maria  Theresa  al- 
lowed herself  to  be  persuaded  to  this  step,  and  with  great 
difficulty  Catherine  was  made  to  see  the  wisdom  of  yielding 
part  of  her  prey.  The  fall  from  power  in  France  of  the 


302 


Rise  of  Russia  and  Prussia     [§§  302>  3°3 


The  partition 
made,  1772. 
Map, 
Putzger, 
No.  25. 


War  with 
Turkey. 
Rambaud, 
Russia,  II. 
156-165. 


Russia 
reaches  the 
Black  Sea. 


The  other 
states  of 
Europe 
interested  in 
the  disposi- 
tion of 
Turkey. 
Hassall, 
Periods, 
Chap.  XIII. 


duke  of  Choiseul,  who  wished  to  preserve  the  independence 
of  Poland,  aided  the  conspirators,  and  the  first  partition  was 
carried  through  in  1772.  The  share  of  Prussia  was  only 
half  as  large  as  Austria's,  and  one-third  Russia's,  but  it  was 
of  especial  value  to  her  since  it  united  the  outlying  duchy 
of  Prussia  for  the  first  time  with  the  rest  of  her  territories 
by  continuous  possessions,  and  so  afforded  a  strong  guar- 
antee for  its  safety. 

302.  Further    Russian    Advance.  —  Before    the   second 
partition  of  Poland  took  place,  Russia  had  made  a  great 
advance  in  another  direction.     The  Turks  had  declared  war 
in  1770,  in  aid  of  the  Polish  patriotic  -party,  but  fortune  had 
been  against  them.     A  Russian  army  reached  the  Danube. 
Still  more  astonishing  a  Russian  fleet  suddenly  appeared  in 
Grecian  waters,  having  sailed  around  all  Europe  and  through 
the  straits  of  Gibraltar,  and  surprised  and  almost  destroyed 
the  Turkish  fleet.     Constantinople  itself  nearly  fell  into  the 
hands  of  the  Russians.     In  the  peace  which  was  made  in 
1774,  Russia  recovered  the  conquests  which  had  formerly 
been  made  by  Peter  the  Great,  and  more,  with  the  right  to 
navigate  the  Black  Sea  and  to  exercise  a  protectorate  in 
favor   of  the    Christians  in   the  Turkish   Empire,  and   the 
Crimea  was  declared  independent  of  Turkey.      This   was 
the  first  great  gain  which  Russia  had  made  at  the  expense 
of  Turkey,  and  the  sudden  success  of  the  Russian  arms  was 
a  further  revelation  to  Europe  of  the  rising  power  of  the 
new  Empire. 

303.  The  Rise  of  the  Eastern  Question.  — This  was  the 
beginning  also  of  the  great  "  Eastern  Question  "  in  the  inter- 
national politics  of  Europe,  which  seems  to-day  no  nearer 
solution  than  it  did  more  than  a  century  ago.     Catherine 
believed  that  she  would  be  able  to  settle  it  in  her  own  reign 
by  taking  what  she  pleased  of  the  possessions  of  the  Sultan. 
But  Austria,  for  centuries  interested  in  extending  its  power 
down    the    Danube,  could  not  take  this  view  of  the  case. 
And  when  Russia  and  Austria  united  in  a  treaty  of  partition 
in  1780,  by  which  Austria  was  to  take  Bosnia,  Herzegovina, 


§  3°4]  Poland  at  last  Destroyed  303 

and  Servia,  —  a  part  of  which  it  actually  received  at  the 
close  of  the  last  war  between  Russia  and  Turkey,  —  and 
Russia  was  to  carry  her  boundaries  to  the  mouth  of  the 
Danube,  then  the  other  states  of  Europe  became  at  once 
interested  in  the  great  extension  of  power  which  seemed 
thus  to  open  before  these  two  countries. 

France  could  not  be  bribed  even  by  the  promise  of  Egypt  Turkey 
to  consent  to  this  arrangement,  but  remained  as  she  had  saved,  but 
long  been  the  ally  of  Turkey.  Turkey  defended  herself  as 
best  she  could  against  the  Russian  and  Austrian  armies. 
Sweden  took  advantage  of  the  war  to  attack  Russia  and 
threatened  St.  Petersburg.  Finally  the  accession  to  the 
throne  in  Austria  of  Leopold  II.,  who  was  not  in  favor  of 
continuing  the  war,  induced  Catherine  to  consent  to  peace. 
Russia  received  the  Crimea  and  other  territory  on  the  north 
of  the  Black  Sea,  \\ith  the  right  to  maintain  a  fleet  on  that 
sea,  and  Austria  made  a  small  annexation,  but  the  Turkish 
Empire  still  survived  to  be  a  perpetual  source  of  interna- 
tional plots,  jealousies,  and  wars. 

304.   Poland  at  last  Destroyed. — This   peace  was  fol-  The  second 

lowed  in  the  next  year,  1793,  by  the  second  partition  of   Partition- 

,      ,  .  .      .       *  .        ^       .        Rambaud, 

Poland.     Another  attempt  had  been  made  by  King  Stanis-   Kussia>  n> 

laus  to  reform  the  constitution,  and  this  had  received  the  165-179. 
sanction  of  the  king  of  Prussia,  now  Frederick  William  II. 
Catherine,  however,  refused  to  accept  it  and  raised  an  oppo- 
sition party  in  Poland.  A  Russian  army  then  invaded  the 
country.  A  Prussian  army  immediately  entered  from  the 
other  side.  It  was  hoped  that  it  came  to  support  the  con- 
stitution as  the  king  had  agreed,  but  it  at  once  joined  the 
Russian  troops.  A  victory  gained  by  Kosciusko  did  no 
good,  and  the  second  partition  was  soon  completed.  In 
this  Austria  had  no  share.  Prussia's  was  nearly  twice  as 
large  as  in  the  first  partition,  but  Russia's  was  still  the  lion's 
share. 

Kosciusko  and  his  party  refused  to  submit  and  still  at-  The  third 
tempted  to  resist  by  arms,  but  their  cause  was  hopeless,  and  Partition- 
their  efforts  only  served  to  bring  on  the  end  at  once.  The 


304 


Rise  of  Russia  and  Prussia 


[§305 


New  states 
had  risen 
and  old  ones 
fallen. 


The  decline 
of  France. 


third  partition  took  place  in  1795.  Austria  had  again  part 
in  this,  but  her  share  and  Prussia's  were  as  usual  much  less 
than  that  which  Catherine  took.  Almost  all  Poland  had 
been  absorbed  in  Russia.  But  the  extension  of  territory 
was  the  least  important  gain  which  Russia  had  made.  Her 
whole  western  frontier  now  bordered  on  the  great  states  of 
central  Europe,  on  Prussia  and  Austria,  and  she  had  en- 
tered as  intimately  into  European  politics  as  the  oldest 
Christian  state. 

305.  A  Revolution  in  the  Political  Situation  of  Europe. 
—  These  events  constituted  a  revolution  in  the  affairs  of 
Europe.  Two  new  states  had  entered  the  first  rank  of 
powers  and  three  had  disappeared.  Sweden  had  fallen 
from  the  first  rank,  Poland  had  entirely  ceased  to  exist, 
and  Turkey  had  revealed  to  the  world  her  great  weakness. 
These  three  states  had  been  the  allies  of  France  in  her 
conflicts  with  the  house  of  Hapsburg.  Put  into  other  words 
then,  these  rapid  changes  in  Europe  in  the  eighteenth  cen- 
tury meant  that  France  had  been  unable  to  maintain  the 
great  position  which  she  had  held  under  Louis  XIV.  And 
this  was  true.  The  rapid  rise  of  Russia  and  Prussia  was 
accompanied  with  the  decline  of  France.  But  as  we  shall 
see  in  another  place  this  age  of  her  political  decline  was 
an  age  of  wide  intellectual  influence  upon  all  Europe,  and  of 
preparation  for  a  new  age  of  political  leadership  greater 
than  any  state  had  exercised  since  the  days  of  Rome,  —  the 
age  of  Napoleon. 

Topics 

The  power  and  possessions  of  Sweden  in  1700.  The  early  history 
of  Russia.  The  reforms  of  Peter  the  Great.  Charles  XII.  of  Sweden. 
The  gains  of  Russia  from  Sweden.  The  origin  of  the  Hohenzollern. 
Their  great  promotion.  In  what  way  was  Prussia  formed  ?  The  Great 
Elector.  The  preparation  for  Frederick  the  Great.  What  gave  him 
his  opportunity  against  Austria  ?  What  was  gained  from  Austria  ? 
Maria  Theresa's  policy  of  revenge.  Why  did  France  join  Austria  ? 
What  was  the  interest  of  England  in  the  matter  ?  The  course  of  the 
Seven  Years'  War.  How  did  the  war  leave  Prussia  in  Europe  ?  In 
Germany  ?  The  condition  of  Poland.  The  history  of  the  first  parti- 


Topics  305 

tion.  Russian  advance  towards  the  south.  What  is  the  "  Eastern 
Question"?  How  did  it  arise?  The  final  destruction  of  Poland. 
The  change  in  the  European  situation  made  in  this  age. 


Topics  for  Assigned  Studies 

The  father  of  Frederick  the  Great.     Tuttle,  Prussia,  I.,  Chaps.  IX-XI. 

Longman,  Frederick  the  Great,  Chap.  III.     Carlyle,  Frederick  the 

Great,  Bk.  IV.,  Chap.  IV. 
The  first   partition  of  Poland.     Perkins,  Louis  XV.,  1.,  Chap.  XXI. 

Rambaud,  Russia,   II.,  122-130.      Carlyle,  Frederick  the  Great, 

Bk.  XXI.,  Chap.  IV. 


CHAPTER   IV 


THE  STRUGGLE   FOR  COLONIAL   EMPIRE 


Books  for  Reference  and  Further  Beading 

Lucas,  Historical  Geography  of  the  British    Colonies.     Introduction^ 

(Clarendon;   $1.00.) 

Payne,  History  of  European  Colonies.     (Macmillan;   $l.io.) 
Seeley,  The  Expansion  of  England.     (Little,  Brown  &  Co.;   $1.75.) 
Story,  Building  of  the  British  Empire.     2  vols.      (Nations.) 
Parkman,  Half  Century  of  Conflict.     2  vols.     Montcalm  and  Wolfe. 

2  vols.     (Little,  Brown  &  Co.;   $8.00.) 

Perkins,  France  under  Louis  XV.     2  vols.     (Hough  ton;   $4.00.) 
Lecky,  History  of  England  in  the  Eighteenth  Century.     7  vols.     (Ap- 

pleton;   $7.00.) 
Mahan,  Influence  of  Sea  Power  upon  History.     (Little,  Brown  &  Co.; 


France  loses 
more  than 
supremacy 
in  Europe. 


306.  The  Dawn  of  the  Age  of  World  Politics.  —  In  the 

international  politics  of  Europe,  France  had  declined,  dur- 
ing the  eighteenth  century,  from  the  position  of  commanding 
influence  which  she  had  occupied  when  the  century  opened. 
In  the  same  century,  a  position  of  far  more  commanding  in- 
fluence than  any  limited  to  the  continent  of  Europe  merely, 
and  one  which  France  could  very  likely  have  gained  if  she 
had  followed  a  wiser  policy,  was  finally  lost  to  her.     For 
this  century  covers  almost  the  whole  of  and  finally  decides 
the  struggle  between  France  and  England  for  colonial  em- 
pire, for  a  commanding  position  in  the  world  as  a  whole,  not 
in  a  single  continent,  and  the  decision  goes  against  France. 
This  is  almost  the  same  as  saying  that  in  this  century  new 
m  commerce   interests  begin  to  guide  the  policy  of  European  states,  or  at 
and  colonies,    least  of  some  of  them,  interests  not  connected  with  those 

306 


World 
supremacy 


§  307}  First  Modern  Colonial  Powers 

which  concerned  the  balance  of  power  in  Europe,  but  with 
the  question  of  a  wider  balance  of  power,  or  rather  with  the 
struggle  to  overcome  all  rivals  and  to  obtain  an  exclusive 
commercial  and  colonial  control  of  all  seas  and  continents. 
This  new  interest  was  slow  in  making  itself  felt  as  a  guiding 
influence  in  the  eighteenth  century.  England  was  the  first  England  first 
to  be  moved  by  it,  very  greatly  to  her  advantage.  France  Jealizes  the 
followed  some  little  distance  after  and  partly,  but  not  fully, 
realized  the  importance  of  the  interests  at  stake  before  the 
struggle  was  concluded.  It  is  only  of  the  nineteenth  cen- 
tury and  perhaps  only  the  last  half  of  it,  that  we  can  say  that 
these  new  questions  have  been  steadily  pushing  those  of 
merely  European  international  politics  down  into  a  second- 
ary place. 

307.  The  First  Modern  Colonial  Powers.  —  France  was  not  Other  colo- 
the  first  rival  of  England  in  this  struggle,  nor  were  either  nial  P°wers- 
France  or  England  the  first  of  the  world's  great  commercial 
and  colonial  powers. 

We  have  already  studied  the  expansion,  during  the  age  of  Portugal  and 
the  Renaissance,  of  the  medieval  Mediterranean  commerce   sPain- 
into  the  ocean  commerce  of  modern  times  in  consequence 
of  the  discoveries  of  the  Portuguese  in  Africa  and  India,  and 
of  the  Spanish  in  America.    Both  these  nations  immediately 
took  possession  of  the  countries  which  their  explorers  had 
reached,  and  so  began  the  first  age  of  European  colonial 
history. 

The    Portuguese    established    their    factories    along    the   in  India  and 
coasts  of  India  and  in  the  East  India  Islands,  and  under  g™e"ec^ 
the   Viceroy   Albuquerque   exercised  a  kind   of    authority  Albuquerque 
over   the   whole    East.      In   the   West,    Cortez   conquered   (Macmiiian). 
Mexico  for  Spain,  and  Pizarro  conquered  Peru.     The  fabu- 
lous riches  of  these  western  lands  attracted  to  them  large 
numbers  of  Spaniards.     At  one  time  there  was  a  fever  of 
emigration  in  Castile  almost  like  the   rush   for   newly  dis- 
covered and  rich  gold-fields  in  these  days.     There  were  very 
many  more  Spaniards  who  went  to  America  than  there  were 
of  Portuguese  who  went  to  the  East. 


308 


Struggle  for  Colonial  Empire    [§§  3°8?  3°9 


But  no 

colonies  in 

the  English 

sense. 

Lucas, 

Introduction, 

61-67 ; 

Payne, 

European 

Colonies, 

39-53- 


The  Spanish 
the  first 
world 
empire. 


In  conflict 
with  Spain. 
Lucas, 

Introduction, 
74-81 ; 
Payne, 
Colonies, 


Still  neither  of  these  nations  established  colonies  in  our 
understanding  of  that  word.  The  Portuguese  establishments 
in  India  were  trading-stations,  to  which  men  went  for  a  time 
to  make  themselves  fortunes  and  then  to  return  home  to 
enjoy  the  results.  The  Spanish  in  America  were  garrisons, 
and  overseers  of  mines,  and  adventurers,  whose  object  was 
the  same,  to  send  or  carry  back  to  Spain  as  much  wealth  as 
possible,  gained  from  the  new  country.  The  Spanish  estab- 
lishments grew  in  the  end  into  a  much  more  permanent  and 
real  colonization  than  the  Portuguese,  but  this  was  not  their 
original  intention.  The  idea  of  finding  in  these  lands  a  new 
home  for  the  people,  where  another  nation  of  the  same 
blood  and  language  as  the  mother  nation  should  grow  up, 
to  enlarge  at  once  the  power  of  the  State  and  the  prosperity 
of  its  citizens,  had  not  yet  arisen. 

308.  Spain's  World  Power  Threatened.  — We  have  seen 
elsewhere  how  successful  at  first  this  policy  was  of  drawing 
as  much  wealth  as  possible  for  the  home  country  from  the 
colony,  and  what  was  its  final  effect.     The  mines  of  America 
added  much  to  the  resources  of  Charles  V.  in  his  conflict  for 
empire  in  Europe.     When  under  his  son  Philip  II.  Portu- 
gal was  absorbed  in  the  Spanish  monarchy  and   the    East 
Indies  were  added  to  the  West  in  the  possession  of  Spain, 
it  seemed  as  if  a  real  world  empire  were  about  to  be  es- 
tablished.    But  the  reign  of  Philip  saw  the  rise  of  two  new 
commercial  and  colonial  powers,  near  together  in  time  and 
under  very  similar  circumstances,  partly  at  least  as  the  result 
of  his  own  mistaken  policy,  as  Spain  and  Portugal  had  risen 
together  in  the  age  of  the  Renaissance. 

309.  The  Rise  of  the  Dutch  Empire.  —  One  of  these  was 
a  country  which  at  the  beginning  of  Philip's  reign  had  been 
his  own,  and  which  his  despotism  and  intolerance  had  driven 
into  independence.     Familiar  with  the  sea  from  before  the 
time  when  Caesar  wrote  his  description  of  them,  depending 
for  a  large  part  of  their  livelihood  upon  the  difficult  and 
dangerous  ocean  fisheries,  the  best  training-school  of  sailors, 
and  having  also  already  a  good  beginning  of  commerce,  the 


§  3IQ]        Beginning  of  the  English  Empire  309 

rapid  rise  of  the  Dutch  into  a  great  naval  and  commercial 
power  need  not  surprise  us.  Hard  blows  were  to  be  struck 
the  Spanish  power  on  many  seas,  and  the  native  vigor  of  the 
Dutch,  reinforced  by  the  tremendous  energy  excited  by 
their  desperate  struggle  for  independence,  carried  them 
far. 

It  was  Portugal,  after  her  absorption  in  Spain,  that  suf- 
fered the  heaviest  actual  losses  from  the  attacks  of  the  Dutch, 
and  in  the  East  Indies  the  new  colonial  empire  of  Holland 
was  created.  She  took  the  great  Spice  Islands  and  Ceylon, 
and  established  factories  on  both  the  east  and  west  coast  of 
India. 

In  1602  the  East  India  Company  was  founded,  followed   New  Nether- 
soon   by   the   West    India   Company,  which   founded   the   lands  and 
colony  of  New  Netherlands  in  America.     Soon  afterward  story,  °° 
the  settlement  of  Batavia  was  made  in  the  East,  destined  to  British 
great  prosperity,  and  in  no  long  time  the  Cape  of  Good  EmPtre>  *• 
Hope  was  occupied  by  an  agricultural  colony  for  the  supply- 
ing of  ships  on  the  long  India  voyage.     The  East  India 
commerce  was  still  very  profitable,  though  less  so  than  it  had 
once  been  ;  Amsterdam  became  the  chief  entry  and  distrib- 
uting port  for  Oriental  goods  for  Europe  ;  and  a  large  part 
of  the  world's  carrying  trade  was  in  the  hands  of  the  Dutch. 

310.    The  Beginning  of  the  English  Empire.  —  But  in  Contempo- 
the  meantime  another  commercial  power  was  rising,  not  so   rary  with 'the 
rapidly  as  Holland,  but  very  largely  out  of  the  same  condi- 
tions, —  a  power  which  was  destined,  not  to  destroy  the  com- 
merce of  Holland,  but  to  sec  a  limit  to  its  expansion.     This 
was  England. 

In  very  early  times,  owing  to  their  situation,  the  English  The  English 
had  become  a  sea- going  people.     At  the  opening  of  the  ne(jessariiy 
thirteenth  century  England  had  asserted  her  right  to  rule  the 
narrow  seas.     Her  commercial  connection  with  Flanders, 
and  still  more  with  the  territories  which  she  held  in  the 
southwest  of  France,  created  interests  which  exercised   a 
decisive  influence  upon  her  foreign  policy  in  the  fourteenth 
century.     Before  the  close  of  the  fifteenth,  her  navigators 


3io 


Struggle  for  Colonial  Empire 


[§310 


had  had  a  fair  share  in  the  explorations  of  the  time,  and  to 
one  of  them,  Cabot,  had  fallen  the  honor  of  first  seeing  the 
continent  of  America. 

Still  through  the  whole  sixteenth  century,  the  great  age  of 
struggle  with  Spanish  and  Portuguese  commerce,  or  at  least  until  the  very 
Spain.  end  of  it,  England  was  not  a  sea  power.  It  was  the  conflict 

with  Philip  II.,  the  struggle  for  the  defence  of  religious  and 
political  independence,  as  in  the  case  of  Holland,  which  be- 


The  Empire 
begins  in  the 


Story, 

British 

Empire, 


THE  MOSQUE  AT  DELHI 


Bk.  I., 

Chaps.  1IL- 
VI. 

The  warfare 
in  the  Span- 
ish main. 
The  Last 
Fight  of  the 
Revenge 
(Arber 
Reprints)  ; 
Payne, 


gan  the  naval  glories  of  English  history  and  turned  the  atten- 
tion of  her  people  to  distant  commercial  enterprises. 

It  was  a  most  attractive  warfare.  Rich  plunder,  strange 
adventures,  and  the  striking  of  hard  blows  at  the  bitterest  of 
enemies,  all  were  to  be  had  at  one  time.  It  is  not  strange 
that  with  these  inducements,  and  with  the  energy  and  enthusi- 
asm of  a  young  race  in  an  age  of  great  events  on  every  side, 
the  deeds  of  the  English  seamen  in  the  first  age  of  the  struggle 
for  empire  have  never  been  surpassed  in  any  later  one. 


The  First  English  Colonies 


311.  The  First  English  Colonies.  —  In  one  sense  the 
modern  colonial  supremacy  of  the  Anglo-Saxon  race  is  de- 
served, for  the  real  colony,  as  a  new  home  of  the  people,  in 
distinction  from  the  trading-station,  was  begun  by  Englishmen. 
It  was  the  work,  however,  of  the  people  themselves  and  not 
of  the  government. 

Perhaps  this  honor  is  hardly  to  be  given  to  the  first  per- 
manent English  settlement  in  America,  that  of  Jamestown  in 
1606.  But  whatever  may  have  been  the  original  intention 
which  influenced  the  first  settlers  to  undertake  the  enterprise, 
it  very  soon  found  its  great  source  of  wealth  in  tobacco  and 
not  in  gold,  and  grew  into  an  agricultural  colony,  the 
planters  with  their  families  looking  upon  the  country  as 
their  home.  The  same  thing  may  be  said,  both  as  to  origi- 
nal intention  and  later 
history,  of  the  Dutch 
colony  which  was  estab- 
lished at  New  Amster- 
dam in  1614.  But  in 
1 6 20  there  was  founded 
at  Plymouth,  in  New 
England,  a  settlement 
whose  purpose  was 
from  the  start,  not  to 
open  up  trade  or  to  dis- 
cover mines,  but  to  find 
a  new  and  permanent 
home  for  the  founders 
and  their  posterity. 

These  were  the  Pil- 
grims, of  the  extreme  Puritan  party,  called  Independents,  who 
had  fled  from  England  to  Holland  to  escape  the  persecution 
of  the  State  in  the  early  part  of  the  reign  of  James  I.,  and 
afterwards  abandoned  Holland  for  America,  to  keep  them- 
selves from  absorption  in  the  Dutch,  to  preserve  their  lan- 
guage, race,  and  institutions.  They  were  followed  in  ten 
years  by  much  larger  numbers  of  the  Puritans,  who  founded 


WILLIAM  PENN 


Voyages  of 
Elizabethan 
Seamen 
(Clarendon); 
Froude, 
English 
Seamen  in 
XVL 
Century 
(Scribner) ; 
Kingsley, 
Westward 
Ho!  (novel). 

The  first  real 

colonies 

English. 

Lucas, 

Introduction, 

90-99. 

Virginia  and 
Plymouth. 
Green, 
English 
People,  III. 
167-171 ; 
Am.  Hist. 
Leaf.,  27  and 
29;  Old 
South,  48-51 


The 
Pilgrims. 


The 

Puritans. 


312 


Struggle  for  Colonial  Empire     [§§  3I2~3r4 


Founded 
from  various 
motives. 


Sweden's 
colony. 


Beginning 
about  the 
middle  of  the 
seventeenth 
century. 
Story, 
British 
Empire,  I. 


the  colonies  of  Salem  and  Massachusetts  Bay,  and  a  little 
later  of  Connecticut  and  New  Haven.  In  America  these 
Puritans  all  became  Independents,  and  organized  the  churches 
called  Congregational. 

312.  The  Thirteen  Colonies.  —  This  beginning  of  colonies 
was  followed  by  many  others  of  different  kinds  —  Maryland 
for  the  Catholics,  Pennsylvania  for  the  Quakers,  Rhode  Island 
for  the  oppressed  of  all  names,  the  Carolinas  by  a  corpora- 
tion of  English  gentlemen,  Georgia  for  the  debtor  class  — 
during  the  seventeenth  and  the  last  not  until  near  the  middle 
of  the  eighteenth  century.     It  is  a  very  interesting  indication 
of  the  feeling  that  was  now  beginning  to  grow  up  in  Europe 
about  colonies,  or  at  least  trading-stations,  in  the  new  parts 
of  the  world,  and  their  relation  to  the  position  of  a  power  of 
the  first  rank,  that  Sweden  during  the  time  of  her  greatness 
in  the  Thirty  Year's  War  attempted  to  secure  her  share  in 
the   division  of  North  America,  and  began  the  colony  of 
Delaware.     The  same  feeling  is  indicated  by  the  attempt  of 
the  Great  Elector  to  obtain  trading-stations  for  the  rising 
state  of  Prussia  on  the  coast  of  Africa,  a  little  later  in  the 
same  century.      His  experiment  was  even  less  successful 
than  that  of  Sweden. 

313.  Conflict  between  England  and  Holland. — The  Thir- 
teen Colonies  of  North  America  were  only  begun  when  the 
conflict   came   on   between    England   and    Holland.     This 
was  hardly  to  be  avoided  on  account  of  their  conflicting  in- 
terests in  the  East.     England  had  begun  to  try  for  a  share 
in  this  rich  trade  as  early  as  Holland.     Her  East  India  Com- 
pany was,  indeed,  organized  first,  in  the  year  1600.     It  was 
a  little  more  than  fifty  years  after  this  date  before  their  rival- 
ries brought  the  countries  to  actual  war  with  one  another, 
but  their  traders  were  fighting  for  the  possession  of  the  mar- 
kets of  the  East  and  for  favorable  stations  before  the  begin- 
ning of  declared  war.     The  massacre  of  the  English  residents 
at  Amboyna  by  the  Dutch,  in  1623,  is  only  the  worst  of 
many  incidents  in  these  conflicts  before  actual  war  began. 

314.  Government  Colonial  Policy,  Laws,  and  War.  —  It  is 


§  3T5]      Power  of  Holland  broken  by  France         313 

from  the  time  of  Cromwell's  rule   that  we  may  date   the  Thebegin- 

beginning  of  a  continuous  commercial  and  colonial  policy  on  nin&  of 

-.._..,  TT         r  .  government 

the  part  of  the  English  government.     How  far  we  have  a  coioniai 

right  to  attribute  such  a  policy  to  Cromwell  himself,  as  one  policy, 
consciously  and  understandingly  chosen,  is  doubtful.  Prob- 
ably in  this  as  in  other  things  he  did  not  see  very  far  into 
the  future,  but  did  with  great  vigor  and  decision  the  thing 
that  seemed  at  the  moment  to  be  the  wisest.  But  with  him 
began  the  measures  which  long  characterized  English  policy, 
to  defend  and  develop  commerce  and  the  colonies,  not  as 
colonies  mainly  but  as  feeders  of  commerce,  by  acts  of  Par- 
liament and  whenever  necessary  by  war. 

In  1651  was  passed  the  first  Navigation  Act,  which  forbade   The  first 
the  importation  of  goods  into  any  English  possession  except  ^tvlgf tlon 
in  English  vessels  or  in  the  vessels  of  the  country  producing  ^m.  Hist*, 
the  goods.     This  was  aimed  directly  at  the  great  carrying  Leaf.,  19. 
trade  of  the  Dutch,  and  was  intended  to  transfer  this  to 
English  ships.     Laws  of  this  kind,  successively  passed,  re- 
mained in  force  until  into  the  nineteenth  century.     In  the   The  first 
next  year  came  the  first  war  with  Holland,  a  war  of  fleets,   ^°nial  wai; 
which  lasted  two  years  and  closed  without  decisive  results, 
though  the  advantage  was  chiefly  with  England.     In  a  war 
of  Cromwell's  with  Spain- was  made  the  first  important  Eng- 
lish colonial  conquest,  the  island  of  Jamaica. 

315.  The  Power  of  Holland  broken  by  France.  —  The  ruin   In  the 
of  Holland,  however,  as  a  great  commercial  power,  was  in 
the  end  not  so  much  the  act  of  England  as  of  Louis  XIV., 
though  he  had  the  help  of  England  in  a  part  of  the  process. 
A  short  war  between  England  and  Holland  a  few  years  after 
the  restoration  of  Charles  II.  led  to  no  more  decisive  con-   Green, 
elusion  than  that  of  Cromwell,  but  it  is  remarkable  for  the   ^f^h 
appearance  of  a  hostile  fleet  in  the  Thames  within  sight  of  nT.  371-375, 
London,  and  for  the  conquest  of  New  York,  though  this  was 
really  made  before  the  war  began. 

In  the  great  Dutch  war  which  Louis  XIV.  made  upon  the   England's 
Dutch  Republic,  to  punish  the  little  state  for  having  dared  to  ^J,,^  ^ 
check  by  the  Triple  Alliance  his  conquests  in  the  Spanish  this  age. 


314 


Struggle  for  Colonial  Empire 


England 
fighting  for 
Holland. 


In  the  age  of 
Louis  XIV. 


Netherlands,  the  French  monarch  had  the  aid  of  Charles  II. 
under  a  secret  treaty  and  for  an  annual  pension,  until  in 
the  last  part  of  the  war  public  opinion  forced  him  to  with- 
draw. This  was  the  last  war  which  England  made  upon 
Holland,  the  last  war  between  them  until  Holland  joined  the 
enemies  of  England  in  the  war  of  the  American  Revolution. 
In  the  later  wars  of  Louis  XIV.  the  two  countries  were  allies 
against  the  French.  But  these  long  and,  during  some  of  the 
time,  desperate  wars  had  exhausted  the  wealth  and  greatly 
weakened  the  power  of  the  Dutch.  It  was  too  small  a  state 


CHAMPLAIN 

for  so  long  and  violent  a  strain.  On  the  other  hand  the 
English  commerce  had  been  rapidly  extending  as  the  Dutch 
declined,  and  England  now  left  Holland  behind  in  the  race 
as  both  had  earlier  distanced  Portugal  and  Spain. 

316.  The  Beginning  of  Rivalry  with  France.  —  But  these 
wars  of  Louis  XIV.  were  not  over  before  it  became  evident 
to  the  colonists  in  North  America,  and  more  slowly  to  the 
government  at  home,  that  there  was  a  new  and  perhaps 


Colonial  Wars 


315 


more  dangerous  rival  in  the  field,  with  whom  a  conflict  must 
now  begin.     This  was  France. 

The  French  had  established  a  settlement  in  North  Amer- 
ica, in  1605,  before  the  English,  but  the  English  colonies, 
once  begun,  rilled  up  more  rapidly  with  settlers.  On  the 
other  hand  the  French  occupation  was  more  widely  extended, 
and  they  came  to  hold,  before  the  close  of  the  seventeenth 
century,  an  important  strategic  position  which  gave  them  a 
very  decided  advantage  in  a  struggle  for  the  possession  of 
the  continent.  From  Louisiana  up  the  Mississippi  and  Ohio 
rivers  to  the  Great  Lakes  and  Canada,  they  laid  claim  to  the 
whole  interior,  and  would  shut  the  English  in  between  the 
mountains  and  the  Atlantic.  In  America  the  French  saw 
the  advantage  which  they  possessed,  but  it  was  impossible 
to  persuade  the  government  at  home  to  make  full  use  of 
it.  France  was  too  deeply  interested  in  the  politics  of  the 
continent  of  Europe  to  realize  the  rise  of  these  new  and 
greater  interests  until  the  opportunity  was  passed. 

317.  The  Advantages  of  the  English. — This  one  advan- 
tage of  position  was  the  chief  one  which  the  French  pos- 
sessed.    Almost  everything  else  was  in  favor  of  the  English. 
Their  colonies  were  filled  with  a  much  larger  number  of  per- 
manent settlers.    The  bigotry  of  the  French  government  came 
to  their  aid,  for  it  refused  to  allow  homes  in  the  colonies  to 
the   Huguenot   exiles,  and  they  added   to  more  than  one 
of  the  Thirteen  Colonies  a  valuable  element  which  would 
have  gone  to  the  side  of  the  French  had  it  been  allowed. 
The  French  government  also  extended  its  paternal  despotism 
to  the  colonies,  from  the  days  of  Colbert,  vexing  them  with 
minute  and  unsuitable  regulations,  which   hampered   their 
free  development,  while  the  English  colonies  were  especially 
fortunate  in  being  left  almost  entirely  to  themselves. 

318.  Colonial  Wars.  — The  last  two  wars  of  Louis  XIV. 's 
had  been  colonial  as  well  as  European  wars.     The  first  is 
called  in  American  colonial  history  King  William's  War,  and 
the  second,  which  was  in  Europe  the  War  of  the  Spanish 
Succession,  is  known  as  Queen  Anne's  War.    These  were 


In  North 

America. 

Payne, 

Colonies, 

80-89. 


The  French 
have  the 
advantage 
of  position. 


Numbers 
and  inde- 
pendence. 


French 

colonial 

policy. 

Parkman, 

Old  Regime, 

Chaps.  XII.- 

XVI.; 

Lucas, 

Introduction, 

81-89. 

King 
William's 
and  Queen 
Anne's  Wan 


316 


Struggle  for  Colonial  Empire 


Parkman, 
Half 
Century, 
Chaps.  III.- 
V.;  VII.-IX. 


An  interval 
of  peace, 
I7I3-I743. 


The  found- 
ing of 
foreign 
dominions 
easy. 


mainly  wars  of  the  colonists  with  one  another  to  which  the 
home  governments,  absorbed  in  the  European  struggle,  paid 
little  attention.  They  show  clearly  enough,  however,  that  in 
America  the  great  conflict  was  opening,  and  that  the  colonists 
realized  the  importance  of  the  issue.  Neither  led  to  decisive 
results,  though  in  the  second  Nova  Scotia — Acadia  —  was 
conquered,  mainly  by  the  efforts  of  the  New  England  colonists, 
and  was  ceded  to  England  at  the  peace  of  Utrecht,  together 
with  Newfoundland  and  the  Hudson  Bay  territory. 

Queen  Anne's  War  was  followed  by  thirty  years  of  peace, 
during  which  the  colonies  of  both  nations  in  America  were 
developing  very  rapidly,  the  English  more  rapidly  than  the 
French  in  population  and  resources.  In  Europe,  France 
was  becoming  by  degrees  more  conscious  of  the  real  char- 
acter of  the  conflict  before  it,  and  was  endeavoring  to  pre- 
pare for  it  by  the  strengthening  of  her  fleets  and  the 
encouragement  of  commercial  enterprises,  but  she  could 
not,  unfortunately  for  her  future,  get  rid  of  the  belief,  in 
which  she  had  been  trained  for  so  many  generations,  of  the 
superior  importance  of  European  politics  and  of  the  great 
danger  which  threatened  her  from  the  house  of  Austria. 
Spain  also  was  alarmed  at  the  progress  which  the  unauthor- 
ized English  commerce  with  her  colonies  was  making. 
This  she  now  endeavored  to  stop,  and  she  also  strengthened 
her  fleets,  and  made  an  alliance  with  France. 

319.  The  Situation  in  India.  —  It  was  in  India,  however, 
that  the  greatest  changes  occurred  in  this  quarter  of  a 
century.  The  situation  there  was  one  especially  favorable 
to  the  building  up  of  a  foreign  dominion.  The  Empire  of 
the  Great  Mogul  was  falling  to  pieces,  and  numerous  little 
states  were  gaining  an  insecure  kind  of  independence,  with 
the  natural  result  that  there  was  more  anarchy  than  good 
government,  and  that  it  was  easy  for  a  strong  outside  power 
to  gain  a  footing  in  alliance  with  one  native  state  or  another 
and  begin  the  creation  of  a  territorial  dominion.  It  was 
easy,  indeed,  for  two  outside  powers  to  carry  this  process  on 
until  they  came  into  collision  with  one  another. 


§320] 


King  George  s  War 


317 


This  change,  by  which  a  trading  company  was  transformed 
into  the  political  ruler  of  wide  territories  and  millions  of 
human  beings,  was  a  most  revolutionary  one,  but  ?t  was 
well  under  way  before  the  next  war  between  France  and 
England  began.  As  in  America,  so  in  India,  the  French 
had  at  the  beginning  of  the  war  much  the  stronger  position. 
They  had  also  the  decided  advantage  in  the  first  war  in 
India  of  commanders  of  genius. 

320.  King  George's  War.  —  Frederick  the  Great's  attack 
on  Maria  Theresa,  in  order  to  seize  the  province  of  Silesia 
and  to  lead  in  the  partition  of  the  Austrian  dominions, 
opened  the  war  between  France  and  England.  England 
was  on  the  side  of  Maria  Theresa,  but  if  France  had  been 
for  her,  England  would  have  been  against  her,  as  was  the 
case  in  the  next  war.  Before  this  European  war  broke  out 
England  and  Spain  had  come  to  blows,  in  consequence  of 
the  attempts  of  the  Spanish  to  break  up  the  English  com- 
merce with  their  colonies.  Throughout  this  was  for  Eng- 
land a  commercial  war,  and  this  clearness  of  aim  went  far  to 
balance  the  better  position 
of  France  in  the  colonies, 
for  France  did  not  realize 
even  yet  as  clearly  as  Eng- 
land what  was  at  stake. 

The  war,  which  lasted 
from  1741  to  1748,  did 
not  end  in  the  triumph  of 
either  nation,  but  the  pe- 
riod is  characterized  by  a 
very  rapid  extension  of 
the  French  power  in  In- 
dia, and  hardly  less  so  in 
America.  In  India  the 
French  interests  were  in 
the  hands  of  Dupleix,  a 

most  able  and  successful  statesman,  who  marked  out  the  way 
to  empire  which  the  English  have  since  followed,  —  conquest 

2£ 


France  has 

the  best 
position. 


In  Europe 
the  War  of 
the  Austrian 
Succession. 
Green, 
English 
People,  IV. 
164-173. 

England  and 
Spain  at  war, 
I739- 


DUPLEIX 


The  French 

gaining  a 

stronger 

position  in 

India; 

Perkins, 

Louis  XV., 

I.,  Chap.  IX.; 

Malleson, 

Dupleix 

(Macmillan)} 


318 


Struggle  for  Colonial  Empire      [§32I>322 


and  in 
America. 


The  capture 
and  return  of 
Louisburg. 
Parkman, 
Half 
Century, 
Chaps.  XIX. 
and  XX. 


The  war  does 
not  stop  in 
America. 
Parkman, 
Montcalm, 
Chap.  VII. 


here,  alliance  there,  and  drilled  native  soldiers  to  supplement 
his  European  troops.  Had  the  French  officers  in  India  been 
more  ready  to  cooperate  heartily  with  one  another,  and  had 
home  government  been  willing  to  put  its  strength  into  their 
support,  the  issue  would  most  likely  have  been  different.  In 
America,  also,  the  French  became  during  this  war  con- 
scious of  the  great  advantages  of  their  geographical  position 
in  the  interior  of  the  continent,  and  they  began  to  connect 
Canada  and  Louisiana  with  a  chain  of  fortified  posts  along 
the  great  rivers,  —  a  measure  which  excited  the  serious  alarm 
of  the  English  colonists. 

321.  The  Close  of  the  War.  —  Only  one  event  of  the 
war  is  important  here.     That  was  the  capture,  in  1745,  of 
the  strong  fortress  of  Louisburg,  the  "  Gibraltar  of  America," 
by  troops  of  the  New  England  colonies.     At  the  close  of 
the  war,  Louisburg  was  returned  to  France  in  exchange  for 
Madras  in  India,  which   had    been  taken  by  the   French. 
The  people  of  New  England  thought  this  was  a  sacrifice  of 
their  interests,  and  to  a  certain  extent  they  were  right,  but 
for  the  interests  of  the  Empire  at  large  —  and  we  have  now 
a  right  to  speak  of  the  Empire  —  the  recovery  of  Madras 
more  than  outweighed  the  surrender  of  Louisburg.     These 
two  events,  however,  the  conspicuous  success  of  the  New 
England  troops  and  the  apparent  heartless  disregard  of  the 
interest  of  the  colonies  by  the  home  government,  became 
important  influences  preparing  for  the  American  Revolution. 

322.  The  Interval  of  Nominal  Peace.  — So  clearly  was  it 
seen  in  the  colonies  that  the  conflict  must  go  on  until  one 
party  or  the  other  was  forced  to  yield,  that  the  peace  of 
Aix-la-Chapelle,  which  the  two  nations  signed  in  Europe  in 
1748,   hardly  made  a   pause  in  the  war  in  America,  and 
suspended   it  only  in    form   in    India.     For   the   Thirteen 
Colonies  the  occupation  of  the  interior  was  a  matter  of  the 
most  vital  importance,  since  on  it  depended  all  opportunity 
of  future  expansion.     They  could  not  sit  quietly  by  and  let 
the  French  take  possession.    Washington's  expedition,  Brad- 
dock's  disastrous  attack  on  Fort  Duquesne,  and  the  attack 


§  323]  The  Great  Colonial  War  319 

on  the  upper  French  posts  near  Lake  George,  were  all 
attempts  of  the  colonists  to  break  through  the  barrier  which 
the  French  were  erecting  against  them,  and  they  were  not 
the  less  real  war  because  no  formal  declaration  had  been 
made. 

In  India  France  lost  her  advantages  through  the  blind-  AndCHve 
ness  of  the  authorities  at  home.     Dupleix's  operations  were  fene^  U 
cut  short  because  they  were  too  expensive,  and  then  the  Wilson, 
English  succeeded   in   getting   him    recalled    because   his   clive> and 
schemes  might  lead  to  a  renewal  of  the  war.     There  was  Lo^ciive 
no  other  genius  on  the  French  side,  but  one  immediately   (Macmilian), 
arose  on  the  English.     Clive  began  to  profit  by  the  lessons 
which  Dupleix  had  taught,  and  to  open  a  new  war,  under 
the  thin  veil   of  aiding  one  native  state  against  another. 
His  brilliant  capture  and  defence  of  Arcot  took  place  before 
the  declaration  of  war. 

323.   The   Great    Colonial  War.     1756-1763.  —  Maria  The 
Theresa's  war  of  revenge,  in  which  she  united  almost  all  "  French  and 
Europe  against  Frederick  the  Great,  the  Seven  Years'  War  £ AmeriST 
of  European  history,  was  the  signal  for  the  next  war  in  the   story, 
colonial  struggle.     This  was  the  great  and  final  war  of  the  Brifisfl 
series,  for  since  its  close  France  has  never  been  able  to  rival   85^101'' 
England  for  colonial  empire.      Her  empire  was  everywhere   Payne, 
ruined.     In  America  the  English  attacked  the  French  posts    Colomes^ 
along  the  whole  line  and  with  success.     Montcalm  made  a  Bradley,' 
brave  defence,  but  Wolfe  purchased  Quebec  with  his  life   Wolfe  (Mac- 

and  thus  forced  the  surrender  of  Montreal  and  all  Canada.   JJJ .  0   :.u 

Old  boutn, 

At  the  end  of  the  war  France  withdrew  entirely  from  North  73. 
America,  ceding  her  western  possessions  to  Spain,  and  her   Parkman, 
northern  to  England.  Montcalm, 

In  India  Lally-Tollendal  made  a  vigorous  defence  but  ChaP-XXXL 
with  no  better  success.  He  was  obliged  at  last  to  surrender. 
Clive  won  the  great  victory  of  Plassy,  which  carried  with 
it  the  conquest  of  almost  all  Bengal.  And  at  the  peace 
France  gave  up  everything  but  five  trading-stations  which 
she  promised  not  to  fortify. 

England  also  made  important  gains  in  the  West  Indieg 


320 


Struggle  for  Colonial  Empire 


[§324 


The  ministry 
of  William 
Pitt. 
Lecky, 
England,  II. 

555-565 ; 

Green, 
English 
People,  IV. 
176  ff. 


The 
American 

colonies  less 

dependent 

on  England. 

Lecky, 

England, 

111.290-333; 

Green, 

English 

People,  IV. 

187-200. 


France 
rejoices  in 
the  prospect 
of  revenge. 


and  in  Africa.  It  was  a  great  war,  the  most  brilliant  in  the 
modern  history  of  England.  A  national  enthusiasm  was 
aroused  again  as  under  Elizabeth.  Horace  Walpole  wrote  : 
"  We  need  to  enquire  every  morning  what  new  victory  there 
has  been,  lest  any  escape  us."  These  great  successes  had 
been  won  for  England  not  merely  by  the  generals  in  the 
field,  but  largely  by  the  energy  which  a  great  minister, 
William  Pitt,  afterwards  earl  of  Chatham,  infused  into  the 
administration  at  home.  He  was  not  able,  however,  to 
make  his  influence  felt  at  the  conclusion  of  the  peace,  for 
he  had  lost  office  on  the  accession  of  George  III.  in  1760, 
because  of  the  king's  alliance  with  the  Tory  party. 

324.  The  Ultimate  Consequences  of  this  War.  —  This  great 
war  involved,  however,  in  the  course  of  a  few  years,  further 
consequences  which  went  far  to  balance,  looked  at  in  one 
way  at  least,  all  the  gains  which  had  been  won  by  it  at  first. 
In  the  first  place  the  conquest  of  Canada  removed  from  the 
great  American  colonies  the  constant  danger  which  had 
made  them  closely  dependent  upon  the  aid  of  England. 
They  had  long  been  left  to  manage  their  own  affairs  with 
scarcely  any  interference  from  the  mother  country,  and 
these  affairs  had  now  become  equal  in  importance  to  those 
of  the  smaller  states  of  Europe.  They  had  lately  grown 
accustomed  to  raise  and  direct  military  enterprises  of  con- 
siderable extent  from  their  own  resources  and  with  their 
own  officers.  There  had  been  good  training-schools  for 
both  the  statesman  and  the  soldier.  It  is  only  what  might 
be  expected  that,  without  an  enemy  to  be  feared  upon  the 
continent,  the  colonists  should  decide  for  independence 
upon  the  first  serious  difficulty  with  the  home  government. 

At  the  close  of  the  war  some  of  the  French  statesmen  had 
realized  this  great  change  which  had  been  made  in  the  situa- 
tion of  the  Thirteen  Colonies  by  the  transfer  of  Canada  to 
England  and  the  probable  consequences,  and  had  rejoiced  at 
the  prospect  of  revenge  in  the  not  distant  future  at  the  hands 
of  England's  own  colonies. 

In  the  second   place    the  war   immediately  created   the 


GEORGE  WASHINGTON 


§  325]  English  Colonies  to  be  taxed  321 

difficulty.     The  enormous  cost  of  the  war  gave  rise  to  an  The  question 

extremely  difficult  question,  so  difficult  indeed  that  England  of  the 

,         ,      ,  ,  r        j  expenses  or 

after  more  than  a  hundred  years  has  not  found  any  answer  defence. 

to  it.     This  is  the  question  of  the  way  in  which  the  expense  Am.  Hist. 
of  defending  the  Empire  ought  to  be  divided  between  the  Leaf'»  2I*    . 
mother   country   and   the   colonies.      In    1763   it  was   an 
entirely  new  question.      It  had  never  risen  before  in  the 
history  of  the  world.      Neither  the  English  government  nor 
the  colonies  had  any  experience  to  guide  them  in  the  diffi- 
culty.   It  ought  not  to  be  surprising  that  the  wrong  thing  was 
done,  perhaps  on  both  sides. 

325.   The  English  Ministry  determines  to  tax  the  Colonies.  The  case  for 
—  The  English  government  determined  to  lay  taxes  upon   England, 
the  colonies  by  act  of  Parliament.     The  colonies,  on  the  Burke1  s 
principle  that  they  could  only  be  taxed  by  their  own  repre-   speech  on 
sentatives,  determined  to  resist  the  collection  of  these  taxes  ^^f 'ptl1 
by  a  war  of  independence  if  necessary.     So  far  as  the  strict   (Longmans), 
letter  of  the  law  is  concerned  there  can  be  no  doubt  that 
the  English  government  was  within  its  rights.     The  colonies 
were  in  every  particular  subject  to  the  laws  made  in  Parlia- 
ment.   Repeatedly,  in  the  past,  Parliament  had  passed  as 
oppressive  laws  as  these,  with  special  reference  to  the  col- 
onies, and  they  had  been  submitted  to.     The  cabinet  of 
George  III.  had  reason  to  believe  that  these  new  measures 
might  be  successfully  carried  through. 

On  the  other  hand  there  can  be  just  as  little  doubt  that,   The  case  for 
not  merely  the  attempt  at  taxation,  but  the  whole  practice 
of  governing  great  communities  of  Englishmen  by  a  distant 
parliament  in  which  they  had  no  voice,  was  in  violation  of  pendence 
the  spirit  and  fundamental  principles  of  the  English  consti-    (^ou 
tution.     England  came   during   the   nineteenth   century  to 
admit  this  in  practice  with  the  great  colonies  of  that  time, 
but  this  was  not  until  long  after  the  American  Revolution, 
and  was  due  to  the  rise  of  new  influences.     The  colonies 
were   right  in  the  general  position  which   they  took,  and 
England  ought  to  have  seen  it  and  to  have  realized  that  the 
colonists  were  still  Englishmen.      It  was  only  a  hundred 


322 


Struggle  for  Colonial  Empire     [§§  326>  327 


Compromise 
the  proper 
settlement. 


Royal  and 

party 

obstinacy. 


Many 
motives  at 
work  in  the 
colonies. 


The  colonies 
declare  their 
indepen- 
dence. 
Woodburn's 
Lecky's 
American 
Revolution 
(Appleton). 


years  before  that  she  had  gone  through  revolution  and  civil 
war  to  secure  these  principles  for  all  her  citizens. 

326.  Compromise  not  possible.  —  This  was  a  question  for 
compromise,  for  the  calm  and  careful  comparison  of  the  two 
positions.     If  this  could  have  been  done  the  result  would 
have  been  very  different.     But  it  was  impossible.     There 
were  reasons  on  both  sides  which  shut  up  this  way  out  of 
the  difficulty. 

On  the  English  side  it  was  very  unfortunate  that  the  man- 
agement of  this  crisis  fell  to  the  hands  of  George  III.  and 
a  Tory  ministry.  Not  that  the  Tories  were  entirely  respon- 
sible for  the  attempt.  These  measures  had  been  fore- 
shadowed by  Whig  ministers  and  would  undoubtedly  have 
been  tried  by  a  Whig  cabinet.  But  the  Whigs  would  have 
been  more  ready  to  yield  and  to  oppose  the  king.  The 
Tories  were  on  principle  opposed  to  such  concessions,  and 
they  held  office  largely  by  their  compliance  with  the  obsti- 
nacy of  the  king.  In  the  second  place  there  was  in  the 
Parliament  and  the  government  so  little  understanding  of 
the  actual  situation  in  the  colonies  that  the  danger  of  push- 
ing things  to  an  extreme  was  not  appreciated. 

On  the  other  hand,  it  is  probable  that  there  were  other 
motives  in  the  colonies  for  pushing  the  dispute  on  to  inde- 
pendence than  appeared  on  the  surface.  Perhaps  those 
which  have  been  suggested  by  English  historians,  local  pride, 
personal  ambition,  and  the  influence  of  fiery  oratory,  were 
less  effective  than  the  willingness  of  a  community  heavily  in 
debt  to  another  to  try  what  relief  might  be  found  in  the 
issue  of  war.  At  any  rate  the  spirit  of  concession  was  no 
more  active  in  America  than  in  England. 

327.  The  War  of  the  Revolution.  —  In  a  situation  of  this 
sort,  the  quarrel  soon  became  bloody.     Battles  were  fought, 
and  on  July  4th,  1776,  came  the  Declaration  of  Indepen- 
dence.    In  the  war  the  apparent  odds  were  all  against  the 
Americans,  but   England  was   undertaking   the   impossible 
task  of  keeping  down  a  whole  population  by  military  force. 
The  Americans  lost  New  York  and  Philadelphia,  but  they 


§  328]         The  Empire  apparently  broken  up  323 

gained  a  great  success  in  forcing  the  surrender  of  Burgoyne 
at  Saratoga.  This  was  soon  followed  by  the  alliance  with 
France,  which  was  anxious  to  take  vengeance  for  its  misfor- 
tunes in  the  past.  Not  long  after,  Spain  and  Holland  joined 
the  war  against  their  old  commercial  enemy. 

These  events  greatly  changed  the  character  of  the  conflict  The  revolt 
for  England.     It  now  became  a  war  not  merely  to  preserve   Thirteen 
the  Thirteen  Colonies,  but  to  preserve  the  whole  Empire.   Colonies 
It  was  fought  in  every  quarter  of  the  globe,  especially  in  becomes  a 


£c  vkcLTvLld  f-tr* 

THE  DECLARATION  OF  INDEPENDENCE 

Facsimile  (reduced)  of  the  first  lines  of  Jefferson's  original  draft 

India,  the  Mediterranean,  and  the  West  Indies.     The  bal-  world  war. 
ance  of  defeat  and  victory  was  about  evenly  divided.     The  pj^JJ' 
French  had  the  experience,  not  recent  with  them,  of  some   chap.  xil. 
naval  victories.     Suffren  won  a  series  of  brilliant  successes 
in  India.     Cornwallis  was  forced  to  surrender  at  Yorktown.  * 


On  the  other  hand,  De  Grasse  was  beaten  in  the  West  Indies,  &a  Power, 

and  a  combined  French  and  Spanish  fleet  near  Gibraltar.  Chap.  XII, 

328.  The  English  Empire  apparently  broken  up.  —  At  the  England 

peace  in  1783,  England  recognized  the  independence  of  the  eivesuP 


324 


Struggle  for  Colonial  Empire 


[§329 


many 

possessions. 
Lecky, 
England,  IV. 
274-289. 


No  commer- 
cial loss. 


Loss  of 
Empire 
stimulates  its 
growth. 


Ill-feeling 
between 
America  and 
England. 

See  Green, 
English 
People,  IV. 
266-271. 


United  States,  and  thus  lost  her  greatest  colonies,  and  the 
only  ones  she  had  at  that  time  in  which  a  new  English  nation 
was  growing  up.  In  Africa,  France  recovered  Senegal,  and 
in  the  West  Indies  two  islands.  To  Spain  was  given  back 
Florida,  and  in  the  Mediterranean  Minorca,  but  she  failed 
in  the  great  effort  which  she  made  to  regain  possession  of 
Gibraltar.  In  India  nothing  was  lost.  So  far  as  the  French 
were  concerned,  things  remained  as  they  were,  but  the  Eng- 
lish Empire  was  rapidly  advancing  under  the  vigorous  but 
unscrupulous  policy  of  Warren  Hastings. 

329.  The  Revenge  of  France  more  Apparent  than  Real. — 
The  revenge  which  France,  in  alliance  with  the  other  beaten 
colonial  rivals  of  England,  had  taken,  was  in  appearance 
complete.  But  in  reality  it  proved  to  be,  except  in  one  par- 
ticular, in  appearance  only.  In  commerce  England  lost 
nothing.  The  colonies  were  no  longer  compelled  by  law  to 
trade  with  her,  but  they  continued  to  do  so  from  interest, 
and  the  rapid  development  of  the  United  States  which  fol- 
lowed independence  had  its  effect  on  commerce,  so  that  in 
twenty  years  this  had  increased  to  undreamed  of  proportions. 

On  the  growth  of  Empire  also  the  revenge  of  France  had 
an  opposite  effect  to  that  intended.  England  sought  com- 
pensation for  her  loss,  as  we  shall  see,  in  other  regions  which 
she  would  probably  have  long  left  unoccupied  if  she  had  still 
possessed  the  American  colonies.  The  United  States  also 
grew  into  a  nation  and  took  possession  of  the  great  West,  as 
it  most  likely  could  not  have  done  if  it  had  remained  under 
the  government  of  England.  The  Anglo-Saxon  Empire  in 
the  world  is  to-day  larger  and  stronger,  the  French  Empire 
is  smaller,  than  would  have  been  the  case  if  the  American 
colonies  had  not  become  independent. 

In  one  particular  the  results  were  not  so  fortunate.  The 
American  Revolution  split  the  Anglo-Saxon  Empire  into  two 
halves,  and,  with  other  events  which  followed,  taught  the 
people  of  the  two  parts  to  dislike  and  distrust  one  another. 
Fortunately  these  feelings  have  been  growing  weaker  of  late, 
and  more  natural  ones  have  begun  to  take  their  place,  and 


Topics  325 

we  may  perhaps  reasonably  hope  that  now  all  possibility  of 
danger  from  them,  which  might  sometime  make  the  revenge 
of  France  a  real  one,  is  happily  over. 


Topics 

The  first  colonial  powers.  Their  possessions.  How  differ  from  the 
English?  How  did  the  Dutch  Empire  begin?  Their  colonial  posses- 
sions. What  circumstances  like  the  Dutch  in  the  beginning  of  the 
English  Empire?  The  first  real  colonies.  The  Thirteen  Colonies. 
The  beginning  of  the  conflict  with  the  Dutch.  What  was  the  govern- 
ment policy  expressed  in  the  Navigation  Acts?  The  effect  of  Louis 
XIV.'s  wars  upon  Holland.  The  French  and  English  in  North 
America.  In  India.  What  advantages  had  the  English  in  America? 
The  French  in  India?  The  first  colonial  wars  with  France?  The 
third  war,  King  George's.  What  is  the  meaning  of  the  fact  that  the 
colonists  keep  up  the  war  during  the  interval  of  peace  in  Europe? 
What  gains  were  made  by  the  English  from  the  fourth  colonial  war? 
What  unfavorable  results  followed  it?  Give  both  sides  of  the  question 
of  taxation.  Why  not  compromise?  How  did  the  Revolution  become 
a  world  war?  The  losses  of  England.  Why  less  than  they  seemed? 
What  positive  advantages? 


Topics  for  Assigned  Studies 

Clive  wins  India.  Perkins,  Louis  XV.,  I.,  Chap.  X.  Lecky,  England, 
II.  541-550.  Story,  British  Empire,  II.  56  ff.  Macaulay's  essay. 

Englishmen  on  the  right  to  tax  the  colonies.  Lecky,  England,  III. 
333-361.  Green,  English  People,  IV.  225-240.  Story,  British 
Empire,  II.  128-140.  See  also  Burke's  and  Chatham's  contem- 
porary speeches,  in  many  editions. 

Compare  in  object,  spirit,  and  language,  the  Declaration  of  Inde- 
pendence (Old  South,  3);  the  Magna  Charta  (Old  South,  5); 
the  Petition  of  Right  (Old  South,  23;  Gardiner,  i);  and  the  Bill 
of  Rights  (Old  South,  19). 


326 


Struggle  for  Colonial  Empire 


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1 

CHAPTER  V 


THE  FRENCH  REVOLUTION  AND  NAPOLEON 

330.  The  Intellectual  Leadership  of  France.  —  During  the 
eighteenth  century  France  had  not  been  able  to  maintain 
her  leadership  in  the  international  politics  of  Europe,  and 
in  the  struggle  for  colonial  empire  she  had  been  defeated 
by  England ;  but  in  another  direction,  in  intellectual  influ- 
ence, and  in  the  preparation  of  the  nations  of  Europe  for 
the  next  great  stage  of  political  advancement,  through  revo- 
lution and  war  to  civil  liberty,  France  exercised  a  leader- 
ship which  is  a  compensation,  in  its  real  service  to  mankind, 
for  all  that  she  had  lost.     At  the  close  of  the  century  she 
led  again  in  the  revolution  itself.     And  in  the  wars  which 
followed,  with    enormous    loss    and    suffering,   though  with 
great  military  glory  which  is  dear  to  the  French  heart,  she 
opened  the  doors  of  all  the  continent  of  Europe  to  the  forms 
of  free  government  which  the  Anglo-Saxons  had  long  en- 
joyed. 

331.  The  Deists.  —  Near  the  end  of  the  seventeenth  cen- 
tury there  arose  in  Europe  a  school  of  thinkers  who  are 
called  Deists  from  some  of  their  teachings  about  religion. 
Their  ideas  were  a  result  of  the  marvellous  scientific  advance 
of  the  seventeenth  century,  and  were  characterized,  like  the 
thinking  of  all  such  ages,  by  a  tendency  to  criticise  and  call 
in  question  many  old  beliefs.     Early  in  the  next  century 
several  French  members  of  this  school  began  to  criticise  the 
government  of  France.     It  was  at  a  time  when  the  selfish 
policy  of  Louis  XIV.  had  brought  such  misery  upon  the 
French  people,  when  a  corrupt  and  extravagant  government 

327 


France  leads 
Europe 
to  free 
government. 


A  school  of 
critical  and 
sceptical 
thinkers. 


328        The  French  Revolution  and  Napoleon     [§  332 


The  influ- 
ence of 
England. 


Montes- 
quieu. 
Lowell, 
Eve  of 
French 
Revolution. 
(Houghton), 
126-153. 

Voltaire. 

Morley, 

Voltaire 

(Macmil- 

lan); 

Lowell, 

Eve,  51-69. 

Rousseau. 
Morley, 
Rousseau 
(Macmillan). 

The  abuses 
denounced 
were  very 
real. 
Adams, 
French 
Nation, 
Chap.  XV.; 
Penn.  IV., 
No.  5. 


seemed  to  be  forcing  the  nation  under  heavier  and  heavier 
burdens  at  home,  and  to  be  powerless  to  maintain  its  pres- 
tige abroad.  In  other  words,  it  was  a  time  when  absolute 
government,  which  had  so  long  existed  in  France,  seemed 
to  have  failed,  or  at  least  when  it  should  be  forced  to  defend 
itself  and  prove  its  right  to  further  existence. 

332.  Voltaire,  Montesquieu,  and  Rousseau. —  Two  of  the 
greatest  leaders  of  this  school,  Voltaire  and  Montesquieu, 
had  spent  some  time  in  England,  and  had  there  studied  the 
constitution  of  a  limited  monarchy,  and  observed  the  pros- 
perity and  freedom  from  oppresssive  exactions  and  galling 
caste  privileges  of  the  people.     What  they  had  learned  in 
this  way  enabled  them  not  merely  to  criticise  the  abuses  in 
France  more  sharply,  but  also  to  describe  the  kind  of  gov- 
ernment which  should  exist. 

This  was  especially  done  by  Montesquieu,  whose  praise  of 
the  English  constitution  had  a  great  influence  throughout 
Europe,  and  even  on  those  who  framed  the  government  of 
the  United  States.  Voltaire  obtained  a  reputation  and  an  al- 
most autocratic  authority  in  Europe,  such  as  have  hardly  been 
enjoyed  by  any  other  in  the  history  of  literature.  Rousseau, 
a  third  leader  of  the  same  school,  urged  a  return  to  nature 
in  education,  society,  and  government.  All  the  little  courts 
of  Germany  in  the  eighteenth  century  were  making  them- 
selves as  French  as  possible,  and  following  the  example  set 
by  Versailles  as  closely  as  they  could,  so  that  the  writings  of 
these  men  had  as  much  influence  in  Germany  as  in  France ; 
they  profoundly  affected  and  for  a  long  time  theories  of 
education  and  government. 

333.  Abuses  existing  in  France.  —  It  is  one  thing,  how- 
ever, to  influence  philosophical  theories  about  things  and 
quite  a  different  one  to  bring  about  an  actual  revolution  in 
the  State.     If  the  abuses  in  France  had  not  been  so  mon- 
strous and  so  plain  to  every  one,  these  writings  would  have 
had  no   such    effect.     They  were   often    exaggerated    and 
declamatory ;  scarcely  one  of  them  is  a  permanent  part  of 
literature ;    and   in   their  zeal  against  superstition,   selfish- 


§333] 


Abuses  existing  in  France 


329 


ness,  and  corruption,  they  often  failed  to  distinguish  between 
the  false  and  the  true.  But  the  abuses  were  too  glaring 
and  universal  to  be  denied,  when  these  writings  turned  the 
light  upon  them,  and  this  made  the  revolution  necessary. 

The  nation  was  practically  divided  into  two  classes,  the   The  privi- 
privileged  and  the  non-privileged.     To  the  first  everything   leses  of  the 
seemed  to  be  given  and  of  them  nothing  demanded,  while   orders, 
the  second  class  had  to  meet  all  the  expenses.     The  privi- 


VERSAILLES 

leged  orders  were  two,  the  clergy  and  the  nobles.     To  them  Taine, 
were  reserved  all  the  offices  in  the  court,  the  State  and  the   *™?£ 
army.     Many  of  them  also  received  large  pensions  from  the    (Holt), 
public  treasury.      Two-thirds  of  all    the  land  belonged  to   13-85- 
them,  and  its  cultivators  paid  them  heavy  dues  besides  the 
other  burdens  which  they  bore.     They  were  exempt,  legally 
or  illegally,  from  almost  all  the  State  taxes,  which  there- 
fore rested  with  greater  weight  than  was  just  on  the  other 
orders. 


33°        The  French  Revolution  and  Napoleon     [§  334 


France  on 
the  verge  of 
bankruptcy. 
Lowell,  Eve, 
230-242. 


The  experi- 
ment of 
John  Law. 
Perkins, 
Regency, 
428-519; 
Adams, 
French 
Nation, 
237  ff- 


A  burden- 
some 
method 
of  tax 
collecting. 
Taine, 
Ancient 
Regime, 

349-373  I 
Lowell,  Eve, 
207-229. 


334-  The  Financial  Condition  of  France.  —  This  burden  ot 
taxes  and  the  general  financial  condition  of  the  government 
was  one  of  the  most  decisive  causes  of  the  revolution. 
France  had  entered  the  century  heavily  in  debt  because  of 
the  wars  of  Louis  XIV.,  and  these  debts  had  constantly 
grown.  Salaries  and  pensions,  reckless  extravagance  at  the 
court,  the  cost  of  wars  which  were  of  frequent  occurrence 
through  the  whole  century,  these  kept  pushing  France 
nearer  and  nearer  to  bankruptcy. 

A  great  experiment  had  been  made  at  the  beginning  of 
the  reign  of  Louis  XV.,  under  the  Regency,  to  relieve  the 

treasury  by  the  issue  of  an 
irredeemable  paper  currency, 
under  the  direction  of  the 
Scotch  banker,  John  Law, 
but,  after  causing  immense 
speculative  excitement  and 
making  and  destroying  great 
fortunes,  this  proved  a  false 
hope. 

The  burden  of  the  taxation 
was  greatly  increased  for  the 
people  by  the  method  of  its 
collection.  The  State  did 
not  collect  the  taxes  but  sold 
the  right  of  collection  to 
private  individuals,  the  reve- 
nue farmers,  who  took  pains 
MARIE  ANTOINETTE  to  make  themselves  rich  from 

their  contracts  by  forcing  the 

people  to  pay  much  larger  sums  than  the  treasury  received. 
The  well-to-do  in  each  community  were  made  responsible 
for  the  taxes  of  the  less  frugal,  so  that  often  a  heavy  penalty 
was  placed  on  industry  and  saving.  In  some  parts  of 
France  the  peasantry  were  reduced  almost  to  the  condi- 
tion of  wild  beasts,  and  in  places  the  land  fell  back  into 
wilderness. 


§§  335?  336]     Failure  of  attempted  Reforms  331 

335.  Attempts  at  Reform.  —  It  was  impossible  that  this  Revolution 

condition  of  things  should  last,  but  there  were  only  two  ways  the  alterna- 

,  live  of 

out  of  it,  —  reform  by  the  government  as  it  existed  or  the  fanure. 

overthrow  of  the  government  and  the  substitution  for  it  of  Adams, 


some  other  kind  of  a  government  which  should  be  able  to 

2\a,tion, 

relieve  the  nation  of  its  burdens  and  of  their  causes.     The   250-257. 
impossibility  of  securing  reformation  under  the  government 
of  the  king  led  to  the  opening  steps  of  the  revolution. 

This  was  not  until  the  alternative  of  bringing  about   a  The  kings 
reformation  under  the  existing  government  had  been  tried.  were  sreatlJ 
Louis  XV.  was  one  of  the  most  selfish  of  kings  that  ever 
reigned.     He  knew  that  the  State  seemed  to  be  drifting  to 
ruin,  but  he  said,  "  Let  those  that  come  after  me  look  out 
for  that."     No  change  was  possible  while  he  lived.     Louis 
XVI.  was  a  much  better  man,  but  he  was  too  weak  for  his 
place.     He  could  not  resist  the  pressure  of  a  corrupt  court 
whose  privileges  were  threatened  by  any  reformation. 

Louis  promised  one  of  his  early  ministers,  Turgot,  who   The  reform 
was  one  of  the  first  of  political  economists  and  who  knew  ™^!ls*?rs" 
the  changes  which  should  be  made,  that  he  would  support   correard, 
him  in  his  reforms.     But  when  the  test  came  he   failed  to    Textes, 
do  so  and  Turgot  had  to  give  up  his  ministry.     The  more   p^^y 
moderate  reforms  of  Necker,  later  in  the  reign,  also  raised   NO.  2. 
too  heavy  a  storm  for  the   king.     The  war  which    France    Necker. 
made  to  aid  the  American  colonies  and  to  take  vengeance 
on   England    plunged   the    State   still    deeper    into    debt. 
Finally  in   despair,  after  trying  every  expedient  except  a 
genuine  reformation,  the  government   decided   to  call   to- 
gether the  representatives  of  the  nation,  the  Estates  General, 
to  see  if  they  could  suggest  any  way  out  of  the  difficulty. 

336.  The  Danger  of  calling  together  the  Estates  General.  Revoiution- 
—  It  seems  to  us  now  as  if  the  privileged  orders  ought  to 
have  been  able  to  see  that  this  experiment  was  likely  to  be 
far  more  dangerous  to  them  than  even  the  reforms  of 
Turgot.  The  new  ideas  of  liberty  and  equality,  of  a  state 
of  nature  in  which  all  men  stood  on  the  same  level,  and 
of  the  right  of  the  people  as  a  whole  to  determine  what  the 


332        The  French  Revolution  and  Napoleon     [§  337 


The  Third 
Estate  has 
the  best  of 
leadership. 
May  5,  1789. 
Speeches  of 
Mirabeau. 
Stephens, 
Speeches,  I. 
47  and  55 ; 
and  Indiana, 
Mod.  Hist., 
No.  i. 

The  Third 

Estate 

demands 

union. 

Stephens, 

French 

Revolution, 

I-  55-63. 


It  declares 
itself 
supreme, 
June  17. 


This  was 
revolution, 
See  Indiana, 
Mod.  Hist., 
No.  2. 


government  should  be,  were  now  the  prevailing  fashion 
and  had  won  many  adherents  even  among  the  nobles  and 
the  clergy.  It  was  almost  certain  that  an  attempt  would 
be  made  in  the  Estates  General,  as  legally  standing  for  the 
whole  nation,  to  bring  the  government  under  the  control  of 
the  people  and  of  these  ideas. 

This  was  at  any  rate  exactly  what  did  happen.  When 
the  Estates  General  came  together,  it  was  found  that  certain 
of  the  nobles  like  Mirabeau,  and  of  the  clergy  like  Sieyes, 
filled  with  the  new  ideas,  had  had  themselves  elected  repre- 
sentatives of  the  Third  Estate,  or  non-privileged  order,  and 
they  ac  once  took  the  leadership  of  its  policy.  To  put  the 
people  into  power  two  things  must  be  done :  the  other  two 
orders  must  be  forced  to  accept  the  leadership  of  the  Third 
Estate,  and  then  the  king  and  the  government  must  be 
made  subject  to  the  legislature. 

337.  The  Struggle  for  One  Chamber.  —  In  earlier  times 
the  Estates  General  had  met  as  three  separate  chambers 
each  estate  by  itself  and  each  having  a  single  vote.  Now 
the  Third  Estate,  which  had  a  small  majority  of  all  the 
deputies  elected,  demanded  that  they  should  meet  as  a 
single  chamber  in  which  each  deputy  should  have  a  vote. 
This  would  mean  that  the  privileged  orders  accepted  the 
leadership  of  the  Third  Estate,  and  very  naturally  they  refused. 

The  struggle  lasted  for  more  than  a  month,  the  Third 
Estate  refusing  to  allow  any  business  to  be  done.  Finally 
on  motion  of  Mirabeau  they  declared  themselves  the 
representatives  of  the  people  of  France,  and  on  motion 
of  Sieyes  they  assumed  the  name  of  the  National  Assembly, 
and  the  power  to  regulate  the  taxation  without  the  consent 
of  the  other  estates. 

Such  action  was  of  course  revolutionary,  for  it  was  not 
sanctioned  by  the  old  constitution  of  France,  but  was  really 
in  violation  of  it.  It  brought  matters  to  a  crisis  at  once  and 
led  to  the  second  step  in  the  development  of  the  revolution, 
the  conflict  between  the  Third  Estate  and  the  king.  In 
reality  in  calling  together  the  Estates  General  at  all,  the 


§§  33&>  339]     The  King  completely  Overcome  333 

king  had  practically  abandoned  the  theory  of  absolute 
monarchy,  as  held  by  Louis  XIV.,  that  the  king  determined 
everything  for  the  good  of  his  people  under  a  responsibility 
to  God,  but  not  to  the  nation.  But  the  king  and  the  court 
did  not  yet  recognize  this,  and  a  struggle  with  the  Assembly 
was  necessary  to  make  it  evident. 

338.  The  Struggle  with  the  King.  —  On  this  action  of  Louis  orders 
the  Third  Estate  the  king  determined  to  interfere  in  per-  the  houses 
son,  and  a  session  of  the  three  estates  was  held  at  which  he  separately, 
attended.      He  promised  that  in  the  future  taxes  should 

be  voted  by  the  representatives  of  the  nation,  but  he  ordered 
the  estates  to  meet  and  vote  separately,  and  to  take  up 
only  financial  questions. 

On  the  departure  of  the  king  the  Third  Estate  refused  to  The  Third 

adjourn  as  they  had  been  directed  to,  and  on  the  king's   Estate 

J  J  .    refuses  to 

master  of  ceremonies  repeating  the  order,  Mirabeau  cried  obey> 
out :  "  Tell  your  master  that  we  are  here  by  the  will  of  the 
people,  and  we  can  be  driven  out  only  by  the  bayonet." 
This  was  drawing  the  issue  sharply  between  the  people  and 
the  king,  but  Louis  did  not  accept  the  challenge.  He  passed 
over  the  refusal  of  the  Assembly  and  allowed  them  to  score 
the  first  point.  At  his  request,  indeed,  the  deputies  of  the 
other  estates  joined  the  Third,  and  their  first  victory  over 
him  was  thus  complete,  and  the  way  well  opened  for  the 
second. 

339.  The  King  completely  Overcome.  —  Immediately  the  The  king 
National  Assembly,  going  on  in  the  way  of  revolution,  began   j."^tance 
to  take  measures  for  the  transformation  of  the  entire  con-   Stephens, 
stitution.     Then  the  king  made  up  his  mind  to  appeal  to   Periods, 
force,  and  troops  began  to  be  collected  near  Paris.    Necker,   5I~57' 
who  stood  in  the  popular  opinion  for  the  reform  party  in 

the   cabinet,   was  removed  from    his   ministry  and   exiled. 

These  measures  brought  to  the  front  at  once  the  most  The  first 
terrible  ally  of  the  Third  Estate,  the  mob  of  Paris,  to 
whose  influence  the  bloody  excesses  of  the  revolution  were 
due.  This  mob  now  took  possession  of  Paris  amid  the 
greatest  excitement.  The  old  government  of  the  city  was 
2  F 


334        The  French  Revolution  and  Napoleon     L§  339 


July  14. 
Stephens, 
French 
Revolution, 
I.,  135-145. 


overthrown,  its  head  was  murdered,  and  a  new  revolutionary 
government  was  put  into  power.  A  city  militia  was  organ- 
ized, the  first  of  the  National  Guards.  The  Bastille,  symbol- 
izing to  the  mind  of  the  mob  the  tyranny  and  abuses  of  the 
old  regime,  was  stormed  and  its  commander  murdered  after 
surrender. 


THE  TAKING  OF  THE  BASTILLE 


The  king 

surrenders. 


Louis  yielded  at  once  to  the  storm.  He  promised  to  send 
away  the  troops  and  to  recall  Necker.  He  went  to  Paris 
and  was  received  with  wild  enthusiasm.  He  recognized 
the  new  mayor,  and  the  National  Guards  with  Lafayette 
as  their  commander,  and  put  on  the  tricolor  cockade. 
This  was  the  complete  surrender  of  the  king.  The  nobles 
who  were  most  bitterly  opposed  to  change  with  the  king's 


§§  340,  34i]       Rise  of  Opposing  Parties 


335 


brother,  the  Comte  d'Artois,  at  their  head,  recognized  the 
fact  that  the  revolution  could  not  now  be  held  back  and 
fled  from  France,  the  first  of  the  emigres. 

340.  Revolution  Completed.  —  The  revolution  was  indeed 
in  full  tide,  and  its  progress  from  this  time  rapid.      The 
other  cities  set  up  citizen  governments  like  that  of  Paris. 
The  peasants  rose  and  sacked  the  castles  of  the  nobles  and 
destroyed  the  evidence  of  their  feudal  services.     Finally  on 
the  night  of  the  4th  of  August,  the  National  Assembly,  in  a 
session  of  intense    excitement,  swept   away  all  the  odious 
privileges  of  the  old  regime,  and  decreed  in  law  the  reign 
of  equality  in  France. 

The  making  of  a  new  constitution  was  not  so  easy  as  the 
destroying  of  the  old.  The  French  were  very  familiar  with 
philosophical  theories  of  government,  but  they  had  never 
had  any  actual  experience  in  making  constitutions  or  in 
governing  themselves,  and  they  had  all  this  to  learn.  It 
ought  not  to  surprise  us  that  they  did  not  succeed  very  well 
at  first.  It  was  not  until  September,  1791,  that  the  new 
constitution  was  finished  and  accepted  by  the  king. 

341.  The  Rise  of  Opposing  Parties.  —  Meantime  many 
events  of  importance  had  occurred.     In  October,  1789,  the 
king  and  his  family  had  been  forced  by  the  mob  to  leave 
Versailles  and  take  up  their  residence  in  Paris,  where  he 
would  be  more  directly  under  control.     On  the  first  anni- 
versary of  the  taking  of  the  Bastille,  a  striking  ceremony 
took  place  in  Paris  called  the  "  national  federation,"  at  which 
the  king,  the  Assembly,  the  officers  of  the  State,  the  National 
Guard,  now  organized   throughout  France,  and  the  people 
present,  took  a  solemn  oath  of  fidelity  to  the  nation  and  the 
law. 

Notwithstanding,  in  June,  1791,  the  king  attempted  to 
escape  from  Paris  with  his  family  and  to  reach  the  fron- 
tier, but  he  was  recognized  and  brought  back.  The  endow- 
ment lands  of  the  clergy  were  taken  possession  of  by  the 
Assembly  for  the  benefit  of  the  nation,  and  the  Church  was 
reorganized  and  given  a  civil  constitution  as  a  department 


The  old 
regime 
destroyed. 
Penn.  I., 
No.  5. 


A  new 

constitution. 

Stephens, 

French 

Revolution, 

I.  Chap.  IX. 

Taine, 

French 

Revolution 

(Holt),  I., 

187-216. 

The  progress 
of  events. 


The  king 
tries  to 
escape. 


336        The  French  Revolution  and  Napoleon     F§  342 


Two  parties 
forming. 


Mirabeau. 


The  clubs. 


The 

Assembly 
dissolved. 


The  finances 
still  in 
disorder. 


The  seizure 
of  the 
Church 
lands. 


of  the  State.  The  old  provinces  of  France  had  been  abol- 
ished and  the  country  divided  for  administrative  purposes 
into  new  divisions  called  departments. 

Before  the  new  constitution  was  finished  the  Assembly 
began  to  divide  into  parties,  especially  into  two,  a  party  in 
favor  of  a  limited  monarchy  somewhat  after  the  English 
model,  and  a  party  in  favor  of  a  republic.  Robespierre 
was  a  leader  of  the  latter  and  Mirabeau  of  the  former.  So 
long  as  Mirabeau  lived  his  influence  was  very  strong  in  the 
Assembly,  and  the  constitution  adopted  embodied  many  of 
his  ideas.  His  death  on  April  2,  1791,  was  a  great  loss  to 
the  moderate  party. 

The  clubs  organized  in  Paris,  at  whose  meetings  ques- 
tions of  government  were  debated,  often  in  a  purely  theo- 
retical way  and  sometimes  with  great  excitement,  began 
to  exercise  an  influence  on  the  people  and  on  the  Assembly. 
The  Jacobin  club,  at  first  moderate,  became  finally  more 
vigilant  under  the  lead  of  Robespierre.  That  of  the  Cor- 
deliers, led  by  Danton,  was  early  an  advocate  of  the  extreme 
revolution.  On  the  flight  of  the  king,  the  republican  party 
attempted  to  establish  a  republic,  but  they  were  dispersed 
by  the  National  Guards  under  Lafayette.  This  was  the 
first  open  break  between  the  two  parties. 

342.  Financial  Difficulties  still  Continue.  —  On  the  adop- 
tion of  the  constitution  and  its  acceptance  by  the  king,  the 
Assembly,  which  had  been  called  in  1789,  and  which  now 
called  itself  the  Constituent  Assembly,  was  dissolved  Sep- 
tember 30,  1791. 

The  meeting  of  the  Estates  General  had  been  forced  upon 
the  king  by  the  impending  bankruptcy  of  the  State.  The 
representatives  of  the  people,  however,  showed  themselves  no 
more  able  to  find  a  wise  and  permanent  solution  of  this  diffi- 
culty than  had  the  absolute  government.  After  the  failure 
of  some  attempts  to  fill  the  treasury,  it  was  proposed  to  take 
possession  of  the  endowment  lands  of  the  Church.  These 
were  more  than  half  the  area  of  France,  and  their  value,  if  it 
could  be  realized,  would  relieve  the  government  of  its  pre* 


3343] 


Paper  Money  based  on  Land 


337 


ent  difficulties  and  make  some  provision  for  the  future.  It 
was  argued  that  these  lands  had  been  given  to  the  Church  in 
trust  by  the  nation,  to  provide  for  religious  services,  education 
and  charity ;  that  the  clergy  had  not  fulfilled  these  obliga- 
tions ;  that  instead  their  wealth  had  led  to  corruption  and 
scandal ;  and  that  in  consequence  the  nation  had  a  right  to 
resume  the  lands,  both  to  its  benefit  and  to  that  of  the 
Church,  it  was  asserted.  The  vote  of  resumption  was 
passed  in  November,  1789,  and  the  lands  were  offered  for 
sale.  It  was  soon  found  that  sales  would  be  slow,  as  possi- 
ble purchasers  feared  a  speedy  counter  revolution  and  the 
consequent  loss  of  their  whole  investment. 

343.  Paper  Money  based  on  Land.  —  In  December  it  was 
voted  to  try  a  most  attractive  plan.  Paper  money  was  to  be 
issued,  secured 
by  these  national 
lands,  and  thus 
their  value  be 
realized  for  the 
State.  In  theory 
this  seemed  a 
most  satisfactory 
arrangement. 
The  actual  value 
was  in  the  land 
behind  the  notes, 
which  would 
therefore  circu- 
late readily  and 
relieve  the  nation  of  its  embarrassments.  The  first  issue  was 
for  400,000,000  francs.  But  this  succeeded  so  well,  and  was 
so  easy  a  way  to  solve  problems  which  did  not  seem  to  admit 
of  any  other  solution,  that  one  issue  quickly  followed  another, 
with  the  inevitable  results. 

In  a  few  years  the  purchasing  power  of  the  paper  money, 
the  so-called  assignats,  declined  to  one  four-hundredth  of 
its  face  value,  and  the  printing-presses  could  not  work  fast 


FACSIMILE  OF  AN  ASSIGNAT  (REDUCED) 


Stephens, 
French 
Revolution, 
I.  297-303. 
Civil  consti- 
tution of  the 
clergy. 
Penn.  I., 
No.  5. 


"  The  land 
secures  the 
notes." 
Stephens, 
French 
Revolution, 
I.  351-362. 
A  speech  of 
Mirabeau's. 
Stephens, 
Speeches^ 
I.  197. 


The  results 
of  inflation. 


338        The  French  Revolution  and  Napoleon     [§  344 


The  Legisla- 
live  Assem- 
bly, Oct.  i, 
1791. 


The 
Girondists. 


War  de- 
clared by 
France, 
Apr.  20, 
1792. 


Penn. ' 
No.  5. 


The  war 
goes  against 
the  French. 


enough  to  supply  the  needs  of  the  government.  The  ex- 
periment only  postponed  the  real  solution  of  the  problem 
of  meeting  the  financial  needs  of  the  State,  and  still  further 
complicated  it.  Later  governments  had  to  devise  new 
measures,  and  these  included  at  least  a  partial  repudiation. 

344.  The  Beginning  of  a  Long  War.  —  From  this  date 
revolutionary  France  drifted  rapidly  into  a  war  with  Europe 
which  scarcely  ceased  until  the  battle  of  Waterloo.     A  new 
Assembly,  the  Legislative  Assembly,  met  the  day  after  the 
adjournment  of  the  Constituent.     It  was  composed  of  men 
without  experience,  for  the  old  deputies  had  forbidden  their 
own  reelection.     Its  control  was  at  first  in  the  hands  of  the 
constitutional  monarchists  and   moderate    republicans,  the 
party  of  the  Girondists,  but  the  extreme  republicans  were 
well  represented.     Outside  the  Assembly  their  influence  was 
rapidly  extending,  especially  through  the  aid  of  the  Jacobin 
and  its  affiliated  clubs. 

On  the  Rhine  frontier  of  France  the  emigres,  the  nobles 
who  had  abandoned  France,  were  collecting  and  organizing 
for  an  attempt  to  reverse  the  revolution.  The  republicans 
believed  that  the  king  and  the  court  sympathized  with  their 
plans  and  stood  ready  to  assist  them.  This  belief  seemed  to 
be  confirmed  by  the  rapid  veto  by  the  king  of  the  measures 
of  the  Assembly  against  the  emigres  and  for  the  national  de- 
fence. Austria  was  plainly  preparing  to  interfere  in  France 
against  the  revolution,  and  Prussia  had  formed  an  alliance 
with  her  for  the  same  purpose.  The  emperor,  Leopold  II., 
refused  any  explanation  of  his  preparations  or  of  his  relations 
with  the  emigres,  and  in  April,  1792,  the  Assembly  declared 
war  with  the  consent  of  the  king. 

345.  The  First  Step  towards  the  Republic.  —  The  war  at 
first  went  everywhere  against  the  French.     Enthusiasm  was 
a  poor  substitute  for  discipline  and  experience,  and  the  best 
officers  of  France  were  on  the  other  side.     The  people  of 
Paris  believed  that  the  successes  of  the  enemy  were  due  to 
the  treason  of  the  court,  and  a  mob  took  possession  of  the 
Tuileries  and  forced  the  king  to  a  new  declaration  of  his 
fidelity  to  the  nation. 


§  346]  The  Republic  Proclaimed  339 

On  the  news  of  this  the  duke  of  Brunswick,  at  the  head  The  mob 

of  the  Prussian  army  which  was  advancing  on  Paris,  issued   forces  the 

.     . ,  .     .          .  .  r   suspension 

his  famous  manifesto,  threatening  to  hold  the  citizens  of  Of  the  king. 

Paris  responsible  for  any  injury  to  the  royal  family.  This 
excited  the  mob  beyond  all  bounds.  The  palace  was 
stormed,  the  Swiss  guards  murdered,  and  the  king  forced 
to  take  refuge  in  fear  of  his  life  in  the  chamber  of  the 
Assembly.  The  mob  demanded  the  republic  at  once,  and 
the  Assembly  voted  the  suspension  of  the  king  from  all  his 
functions,  and  called  a  convention  to  decide  the  question  of 
the  form  of  government.  This  was  the  famous  loth  of 
August,  1792.  The  king  remained  a  prisoner  in  Paris  in 
the  Temple. 

346.   The  Republic  proclaimed  and  the  King  executed.  —  The  massa- 
The  commune  was  now  in  possession  of  the  capital  under  cres  of 
Robespierre,  Marat,  and  their  friends.     They  organized  its  Stephens/1' 
defence  with  great  energy,  but  the  Prussians  continued  to  French 

advance,  and  to  gain  success  after  success.     It  seemed  as  if  Kevo^tion, 

II  141-150. 
nothing  could  check  them,  and  the  mob,  in  an  insane  passion 

of  anger  at  the  supposed  royalist  traitors  who  were  aiding 
their  advance,  burst  open  the  prisons  and  massacred  more 
than  a  thousand  men  and  women,  on  the  2d  and  3d  of 
September.  But  within  a  few  days  the  French  army  gained 
an  advantage  over  the  Prussians  in  the  battle  of  Valmy,  and 
the  immediate  danger  was  past. 

On  the  next  day  after  this  battle,  the  Convention  unani-  The 
mously  declared  the  monarchy  abolished.     But  it  was  not  ™°"arvchj 

abolished. 

so  easy  to  decide  what  to  do  next.     The  Girondists  had  a  cariyie, 
majority  at  the  opening  of  the  Convention,  but  the  Jacobins,   French 
or  the  "Mountain,"  had  a  larger  number  than  in  the  last   ^J^y  **' 
Assembly,  and  between  the  two  parties  was  the  "  Plain,"  or  Chaps.  VI, 
the  "  Marsh  "  as  it  was  called  in  derision,  containing  a  large   and  VII> 
number  of  undecided  members,  whom  the  French  method   Ro^T 
of  allowing  free  entry  into  the  galleries   of  the  mob  was   pierre's. 
likely  to  convert  to  the  side  of  the  extremists.  Mo 

The  battle  of  Valmy  was  speedily  followed  by  other  sue-   ^a  4. 
cesses.     The  invaders  were  driven  out.     Belgium  was  occu- 


340        The  French  Revolution  and  Napoleon     [§  34? 


French 
successes. 


The  king 
executed, 
fan.  21, 
1793- 


Europe 
combines 
against  the 
revolution. 


A  stronger 

executive 

necessary. 


The  Reign 

of  Terror. 

Stephens, 

French. 

Revolution, 

II.,  Chap.  X.; 

Carlyle, 

French. 

Revolution, 

Bks.  VI.- 

VIII. 

A  speech  of 


pied,  annexed  to  France,  and  divided  into  departments. 
The  conquest  which  the  French  monarchy  had  been  striv- 
ing for  during  more  than  two  centuries  was  made  by  the 
republic  in  two  months.  This  was  followed  by  the  execu- 
tion of  the  king.  The  Girondists,  irresolute  before  the 
superior  energy  of  the  Jacobins,  yielded ;  Louis  was  put  on 
trial  before  the  Convention,  and  declared  guilty  of  high 
treason  by  almost  a  unanimous  vote,  and  finally  condemned 
to  death  by  a  small  majority. 

347.  War  against  All   Europe.  —  The  execution  of  the 
king,  together  with  the  violation  of  international  law  which 
had  taken  place,  and  the  evident  intention  of  extensive  con- 
quest on  the  part  of  the  republic,  combined   all   Europe 
against  France.     War  existed  with  Austria  and  Prussia,  and 
on  the  ist  of  February,  1793,  it  was  declared  against  Eng- 
land, Holland,  Spain,  Naples,  and  Sardinia.      These  were 
great  odds,  and  the  first  results  were  disastrous  to  France 
Belgium  was  lost,  and  the  enemy  everywhere  made  advances 

These  disasters  led  to  a  step  which  resulted  finally  in  if 
change  of  government  in  France  and  prepared  the  way  foi 
Napoleon.  The  first  Committee  of  Public  Safety  was  elected 
by  the  Convention,  and  soon  after,  the  second,  which  re- 
mained in  power  for  a  year.  The  object  of  this  step  was 
to  strengthen  the  executive  authority,  in  view  of  the  public 
danger,  and  to  avoid  a  divided  responsibility.  Its  power 
continued  to  increase,  as  was  inevitable  in  times  of  so  great 
confusion,  and  it  passed  in  the  end,  through  the  stages  of 
the  Directory  and  the  Consulate,  into  the  Empire. 

348.  The  Reign   of  Terror,  followed  by  Reorganization 
and  Success.  —  The  two  years  which  followed  the  election 
of  the  first  Committee  of  Public  Safety,  from  the  spring  of 
1793  to  that  of  1795,  were  fil^d  with  events  of  the  greatest 
importance  to  France  and  to  Europe.     In  the  Convention 
the  extremists  quickly  gained  the  upper  hand,  the  Girondists 
were  expelled,  the  Reign  of  Terror  began  and  raged  in  Paris 
and  throughout  France,  until  passion  was  exhausted  and  the 
leaders  of  all  parties  had  been  guillotined,     Then  the  more 


§§  349>  35°]        Bonaparte  forces  Austria 


341 


moderate  recovered  power,  the  Girondists  were  recalled, 
and  Europe  became  aware  that  the  days  were  over  when 
the  French  were  resolved  to  revolutionize  all  the  world  at 
the  point  of  the  bayonet. 

On  the  frontiers  the  French  armies  had  been  made  over. 
New  officers  had  arisen,  and  the  men  had  been  brought 
under  strict  discipline.  Continuous  successes  were  the 
result.  Not  merely  was  Belgium  recovered,  but  Holland 
also  was  conquered,  and  though  not  annexed  to  France,  it 
was  transformed  into  the  Batavian  republic,  and  made  a 
close  ally.  Important  successes  were  also  gained  in  the 
south.  Some  of  the  states  of  Europe  were  now  ready  for 
peace,  and  in  the  spring  of  1793  the  number  of  the  enemies 
of  France  was  reduced.  But  England  and  Austria  remained 
in  the  field.  England's  successes  on  the  sea  had  been  very 
great  and  almost  all  the  French  and  Dutch  colonies  were  in 
her  hands. 

349.  The  Work  of  the  Convention.  —  In  1795  the  Con- 
vention   established    the   constitution   which   it   had   been 
elected  to  make,  called  the  constitution  of  the  year  III.     It 
vested  the  legislative  power  in  a  legislature  of  two  housds, 
and  the  executive  in  the  Directory  of  five  members  elected 
by  the  legislature,  one  going  out  of  office  each  year.     The 
legislative  work  of  the  Convention  in  other  directions  was 
of  great  importance.     It  established  a  uniformity  of  weights 
and  measures,  adopted  the  republican  calendar,  began  the 
formation   of  a   code   of  laws,  and   organized   with   great 
ability  a  new  system  of  national  education. 

350.  Bonaparte   forces   Austria  to   make  Peace.  —  The 
new  government  had  the  war  against  England  and  Austria 
to  carry  on,  but  the  military  situation  of  France  was  now 
much  improved.     The  war  department  was  in  the  hands  of 
Carnot,  the  "  Organizer  of  Victory,"  who  conducted  it  with 
great  skill.     Bonaparte  had  also  risen  by  this  time  to  such 
a  military  reputation  that  the  conduct  of  the  war  in  Italy 
was  confided  to  him  over  older  and  more  experienced  gen- 
erals.    He  quickly  justified  the  confidence.     In  ten  days 


Danton's. 
Stephens, 
Speeches,  II 
265. 

Renewed 

military 


The  new 

republican 

constitution. 


Bonaparte's 
first  cam- 
paign in 
Italy, 

1796-1797. 
Stephens, 
Periods, 

173-193 ; 

Morris, 
Napoleon, 
Chap.  II.; 
Fyffe, 


342        The  French  Revolution  and  Napoleon     [§  35  * 


Europe, 
Chap.  III. 


The  treaty  of 
Campo- 
Formio. 
Lanfrey, 
Napoleon  1. 
(Macmillan), 
I.,  Chap.  IX.; 
Penn.  II., 
No.  2. 


The  way 

preparing  for 
the  Empire. 


LAZARE  CARNOT 


he  forced  the  Sardinians  to  withdraw  from  the  war,  and  in 
six  weeks  he  had  defeated  the  Austrian  armies,  occupied 

Milan,  and  begun  to  levy  heavy 
contributions  from  the  Italian 
states.  New  armies  from  Aus- 
tria were  beaten  one  after  an- 
other, and  the  fortress  of  Mantua 
was  forced  to  surrender.  In 
March,  1 797,  Bonaparte  invaded 
Austria  itself,  and  in  a  month 
had  compelled  the  emperor  to 
sue  for  peace. 

The  war  was  closed  by  the 
treaty  of  Campo-Formio.  Aus- 
tria recognized  the  annexation 
of  Belgium,  the  extension  of 
France  to  the  Rhine,  and  the 

republics  in  alliance  with  France  which  had  been  formed 
in  Italy,  the  Ligurian  around  Genoa,  and  the  Cisalpine 
around  Milan.  Venice,  which  Bonaparte  had  seized,  was 
given  to  Austria  in  compensation,  and  was  retained  by  her 
until  late  in  the  nineteenth  century.  This  treaty  completed 
the  sanction  of  Europe  to  the  great  conquests  which  the 
republic  had  made.  England  alone  refused  to  be  a  party 
to  it. 

351.  Revolution  within  the  Revolution.  — Before  the  re- 
turn of  Bonaparte  to  Paris,  a  series  of  coups  d'etat,  of  revo- 
lutionary appeals  to  force  in  violation  of  the  constitution, 
but  designed  to  keep  in  power  the  party  which  had  made 
it,  had  been  begun  ;  and  these  prepared  the  way  by  clear 
precedents  for  Bonaparte's  arbitrary  assumption  of  power 
two  years  later.  The  first  of  these  was  against  the  mon- 
archical party  which  had  begun  to  recover  strength  in 
France.  By  the  aid  of  troops,  two  Directors  and  about  fifty 
deputies  were  expelled  from  office  and  new  elections  or- 
dered. A  second,  the  next  May,  was  against  the  Jacobins, 
who  were  beginning  to  acquire  a  majority  in  the  legislature. 


§§  35 2>  353]    Strong  Government  Demanded 


343 


352.  Bonaparte  in  Egypt.  —  A  few  days  later  Bonaparte 
set  sail  for  Egypt,  to  restore  if  possible  the  French  suprem- 
acy in  the  Orient  and  to  destroy  that  of  England.     By  the 
conquest  of  Egypt  he  hoped  to  be  able  to  aid  the  insurrec- 
tion of  Tippoo  Sahib  in  India,  and  to  injure  fatally  the  Eng- 
lish power  there.     The  famous  battle  of  the  Pyramids  gave 
him  the  country,  and  he  a  little  later  beat  off  the  army  which 
the  sultan  sent  against  him.     But  Nelson's  victory  in  the 
battle  of  the  Nile  cut  off  his  communication  with  France, 
and  the  British  hold  of  India  proved  too  strong  to  be  shaken. 
In  the  meantime,  changes  in  France  seemed  to  open  a  brill- 
iant prospect  of  advancement  for  himself,  and  he  returned 
after  an  absence  of  a  year  and  a  half,  escaping  the  English 
cruisers  with  marvellous  good  fortune. 

353.  A  Strong  Government  Demanded.  —  On  every  hand 
in  France  the  strong  man  was  now  demanded,  and  the  only 
strong  man  in  whom  every  one  had  confidence  was  Bona- 
parte.    The  Directory  was  unpopular  and  weak,  and  seemed 
able  to  govern  only  by  repeated  coups  d'etat.     Their  con- 
duct of  foreign  affairs,  as  arbitrary  and  unprincipled  as  that 
of  the  early  republic,  had  enabled  England  to  renew  the 
European  coalition  against  the  French,  and   the  war  was 
going   against    them,    especially   in   Italy,    where    a   skilful 
Russian  general,  Suvarov,  carried  all  before  him.     Steady 
government  at  home,  better   generalship   abroad,  was   the 
desire  of  all. 

With  the  aid  of  one  of  the  Directors,  Sieyes,  who  had 
kept  his  head  above  water  through  every  storm,  a  revolu- 
tion was  quickly  carried  through.  Troops  dispersed  a 
part  of  the  legislature;  Consuls  were  put  in  the  place  of  the 
Directors,  Bonaparte  among  them ;  the  constitution  was 
revised  in  favor  of  a  stronger  executive,  and  the  Consuls 
were  made  the  permanent  executive  with  Bonaparte  as  the 
first  Consul  and  real  ruler  of  France,  a  position  which  he 
henceforth  held.  The  first  and  longest  step  had  been  taken 
toward  the  making  of  a  new  absolute  government  in  France, 
as  unlimited  in  power  as  the  old  monarchy,  but  with  the  old 


An  attack  on 
the  Empire 
of  England, 
1798-1799. 
Lanfrey, 
Napoleon  /., 
I.,  Chaps.  X. 
and  XL; 
Morris, 
Napoleon, 
Chap.  III. 


The  weak- 
ness of  the 
Directory. 


Bonaparte 
put  into 
power  by  a 
revolution, 
Nov.  1799. 
Stephens, 
Periods, 
210-217 ; 
Fyffe, 
Europe, 

135-144; 
Morris, 
Napoleon, 
6977. 


344        The  French  Revolution  and  Napoleon     [§  354 


England 
even  con- 
sents to 
peace  with 
France. 
Stephens, 
Periods, 
217-225. 


The  Treaty 
of  Amiens, 
1802. 

Bonaparte's 
attempt  on 
Louisiana, 
1802. 


THE  THREE  CONSULS 


feudal  distinctions  and  privileged  orders  swept  away.     That 
much  at  least  the  revolution  had  accomplished. 

354.  Bonaparte  turns    the   Tide    of   War.  —  Bonaparte 
quickly  restored  order  to  all  departments  of  the  government 

at  home,  and  victory  to  the 
French  arms  in  the  war. 
He  went  himself  to  Italy, 
gained  the  victory  of  Ma- 
rengo,  and  drove  out  the 
Austrians.  Along  the  Dan- 
ube also  they  were  forced 
to  fall  back,  and  before 
the  close  of  the  year  1800 
to  make  peace  again,  with 
a  recognition  of  all  the 
French  conquests.  Rus- 
sia had  already  withdrawn 
from  the  coalition.  Eng- 
land again  remained  alone 
to  carry  on  the  war  a  year  or  two  longer.  But  England  and 
France  were  hardly  within  striking  distance  of  one  another. 
England  had  no  armies  on  the  continent.  France  had  no 
fleets  on  the  sea.  Nelson's  attack  on  Copenhagen  prevented 
Bonaparte  from  securing  the  Danish  fleet.  By  the  end  of 
1 80 1  both  parties  were  ready  to  end  the  useless  war,  and  the 
treaty  of  Amiens  was  made.  England  surrendered  nearly  all 
her  own  conquests  and  recognized  nearly  all  those  of  France. 

355.  The  Interval  of  Peace.  —  The  final  treaty  was  not  yet 
signed  when  Bonaparte  began  a  new  attempt  to  recover  the 
colonial  empire  of  France,  and  to  weaken  that  of  England, 
in  the  expedition  which  he  sent  to  recover  the  island  of  San 
Domingo,  which  had  revolted.     This  he  proposed  to  use  as 
a  base  of  operations  for  the  occupation  of  Louisiana  and  the 
restoration  of  French  power  in  North  America.     The  first 
step  failed  through  the  obstinate  resistance  of  the  revolted 
negroes  and  the  ravages  of  the  yellow  fever,  and  before  a 
second  could  be  taken  war  had  been  renewed  in  Europe. 


§356] 


The  War  Renewed 


345 


In   the  interval,   the  organization  of   France    had   been  Constitu- 

carried  forward.     The  balance  was  established  between  the  tional 

various  parties.     The  administrative  machinery  was  central-  Lanfrey* 

ized.    The  codes  were  completed.    An  agreement  was  made  Napoleon  /., 
with  the  pope,  and  the  Church  became  reconciled  to  the 
new  state  of  things.     The  constitution  was  twice  revised  in 


Morns, 


NAPOLEON 


the  interest  of  a  stronger  executive,  and  Bonaparte  was  made 
first  Consul  for  ten  years  and  then  for  life.  Everything  was 
so  arranged  that  a  little  later,  in  May,  1804,  the  Empire 
could  be  proclaimed  with  scarcely  a  change. 

356.  The  War  Renewed.  —  Neither  Napoleon  nor  Eng- 
land could  consider  the  peace  of  Amiens  as  much  more  than 
a  truce  and  the  war  began  again  in  the  spring  of  1803, 


Napoleon, 
Chap.  V.; 
Stephens, 
Periods, 
237-241. 
Napoleon  at 
the  height  of 
his  power. 
Stephens, 


346        The  French  Revolution  and  Napoleon     [§  357 


Periods, 
250-262 ; 
Blackmore, 
Springhaven 
(novel). 

The  Roman 

emperor 

deposed. 

Schilling, 

Quellenbuch, 

331; 
Bryce, 

Holy  Roman 
Empire, 
359-368. 

The  map  of 
Europe  torn 
to  pieces. 

The  "  con- 
tinental 
system," 
1806. 

Penn.  II., 
No.  2. 


Joseph  made 
king  of 
Spain,  1808. 


Austria's 

premature 

attempt. 

Maria 

Louisa. 

Sloane, 

Napoleon, 

III., 

Chap.  XX. 

The  exhaus- 
tion of 
France. 


through  the  fault  of  both.  Austria  and  Russia  also  took 
the  field  against  France,  but  with  the  usual  result.  Ulm  and 
Austerlitz  forced  Austria  to  retire.  Prussia  tried  to  take 
her  place,  but  lost  the  battle  of  Jena,  and  could  not  save 
Berlin.  Then  came  the  turn  of  Russia  which  finally  con- 
sented to  the  peace  of  Tilsit. 

This  was  the  moment  of  Napoleon's  greatest  success.  All 
the  continent  was  at  his  feet.  Boundary  lines  in  every  direc- 
tion were  wiped  out  and  redrawn  where  he  pleased.  His- 
tory and  the  former  relations  of  territories  were  not  in  the 
least  regarded.  His  allies  took  what  they  wished  at  the 
expense  of  his  enemies.  Two  of  his  brothers  became  kings. 
France  was  further  enlarged,  and  the  European  Empire 
of  Rome  and  of  Charlemagne,  of  which  Charles  V.  had 
dreamed,  was  created.  But  England  would  not  submit. 

357.  Napoleon  stretches  his  Power  too  Far.  —  The  tide 
was  now  about  to  turn.     The  change  began   through  two 
mistakes  of  Napoleon's,  whose  results  were  not  at  first  ap- 
parent.    The  one  was  his  attempt  to  strike  at  England,  by 
shutting  out  her  goods  from  the  markets  of  the  continent  — 
his  "  continental  system,"   which  had  the   effect  to  excite 
against   him  much  discontent  and  opposition.     The  other 
was  his  attempt  to  make  his  brother  Joseph  king  of  Spain. 
This  brought  into  the  field  against  him  an  enemy  he  had 
never  met  before,  the  determined  spirit  of  a  nation  in  de- 
fence of  its  independence,  and  it  opened  the  way  for  the 
celebrated  peninsula  campaign  of  Wellington,  which  weak- 
ened the  French  so  greatly. 

So  much  in  the  situation  seemed  encouraging  that  in 
1809  Austria  tried  the  experiment  of  war  again,  but  with 
no  better  success  than  earlier.  Wagram  was  an  old  time 
Napoleonic  victory,  the  emperor  had  to  give  up  more  terri- 
tory, and  to  allow  his  daughter,  Maria  Louisa,  to  become 
Napoleon's  wife,  in  the  place  of  Josephine  whom  he  dis- 
carded. 

358.  The  Beginning  of  the  End.  —  But  these  continuous 
wars,  if  they  seemed  to  leave  Napoleon  still  the  Dictator  of 


§§359.36o]  The  Charter  0/1814  347 

Europe,  were  steadily  exhausting  the  resources  of  France, 
especially  in  men,  and  it  was  becoming  more  and  more 
difficult  to  keep  the  quality  of  the  armies  up  to  the  level  of 

those  that  had  won  the  earlier  successes.     In  northern  Ger-  The  awaken- 

many  also  a  great  revolution  was  taking  place,  under  the  in&  of. 

lead  of  Prussia,  reforms  in  all  department  of  the  State,  and  penn.II., 

the  growth  of  that  sort  of  national  feeling  which  had  proved  No.  2. 
so  difficult  to  deal  with  in  Spain. 

Napoleon,  however,  did  not   seem   to   realize   that   the  The  invas- 

foundations  of  his  pdwer  were  weakening.     When  Russia  j°n  of 

became  unwilling  any  longer  to  adhere  to  the  continental  Morris' 

system  and  began  to  draw  towards  England,  he  resolved  to  Napoleon, 

treat  her  as  he  had  the  rest  of  Europe,  and  set  out  in  May,  273~286; 

1812,  on  the  invasion  which  led  to  his  fall.     At  first  he  was  war  and 

as  successful  as  ever.     He  drove  back  the  Russian  armies  Peace, 
and  entered  Moscow.     But  this  was  the  limit.     The  Rus- 
sians  burned  him  out  and  forced  him  to  retreat.     Then  his 
army  began  to  melt  away  before  the  winter  storms  and  the 

swift  attacks  of  the  Cossacks.    Prussia  believed  the  time  had  Europe  rises 

now  come  and  rose  against  him,  better  prepared  than  ever  a§alnst 

before.     Austria  quickly  followed.     At  Leipzig  in  one  of  the  Morris, 

greatest  battles  of  these  wars,  often  called  the  battle  of  the  Napoleon, 

nations,  his  army  was  almost  totally  destroyed.  ^d  xii^* 

359.  The  First  Restoration.  —  Napoleon  was  now  obliged  map, 
to  cross  to  the   French  side  of  the  Rhine.     The  terrible  Putzger, 
losses  which  his  armies  had  suffered  he  could  not  make      °' 29< 
good.     His  genius  was  as  great  as  ever,   but  he  had  no  ^^°0et°hne 
longer  the  same  material  to  work  with.     Steadily  he  was  island  of 
pushed  back,  and  in  the  spring  of  1814  his  enemies  entered  Elba«  I8l4- 
Paris.     The  Bourbons  were  restored  in  the  person  of  Louis 
XVIII.,  brother  of  Louis  XVI.,  but  the  old  absolute  monarchy 

was  not  restored.  The  new  king  promised  to  reign  as  a 
constitution  monarch.  Napoleon  was  sent  to  the  island  of 
Elba,  between  Corsica  and  Italy,  where  he  was  kept  in  honor- 
able confinement,  retaining  his  title  of  emperor. 

360.  The  Charter  of   1814.  —  Louis   XVIII.   began    his 
reign  with  many  indications  of  the  Bourbon  spirit.     He  put 


348        The  French  Revolution  and  Napoleon     [§  361 


Louis 

XVIII.  king 
by  divine 
right. 
Fyffe, 
Europe, 
368-380. 
The  Charter 
in  Penn.  I., 
No.  3. 


What  the 

revolution 

had 

permanently 

secured. 


A  new  map 
of  Europe  to 
be  made. 


Discontent 
in  France. 


aside  the  constitution  suggested  by  the  Senate.  He  claimed 
the  constitution-making  power  for  himself.  He  would  grant 
a  constitution  to  his  people.  Shortly  afterwards  he  issued  it, 
the  so-called  Charter  of  1814.  In  this  he  called  himself 
king  "  by  the  grace  of  God,"  and  dated  it  from  the  nine- 
teenth year  of  his  reign,  counting  from  the  death  of  Louis 
XVII.,  the  little  Dauphin  who  died  in  the  Temple  prison. 
It  was  made  very  evident  that  he  was  determined  to  be 
regarded  as  the  fountain  and  source  of  all  authority. 

But  the  work  of  the  revolution  could  not  be  set  aside. 
The  old  monarchy  was  impossible  even  for  a  Bourbon.  The 
representative  system  was  secured,  and  the  responsibility  of 
the  ministers  to  the  legislature.  All  Frenchmen  were  to  be 
equal  before  the  law,  in  taxation  and  in  eligibility  to  office. 
Private  property  as  transferred  by  the  revolution,  should  not 
be  disturbed.  The  right  of  suffrage  was  determined  by  a 
property  qualification.  The  constitution,  though  bestowed 
as  an  act  of  the  king's  good  grace,  was  not  an  illiberal  one. 
In  the  administrative  system  of  the  kingdom,  the  close 
centralization  which  had  been  devised  by  Bonaparte  was 
retained  and  has  become  apparently  permanent  in  France. 

361.  The  Congress  of  Vienna.  — The  removal  of  Napo- 
leon and  the  restoration  of  the  Bourbons  were  not  the  only 
things  the  allies  had  to  do.  Napoleon  had  at  one  time  made  a 
map  of  Europe  to  suit  himself.  This  of  course  the  ministers 
of  Europe  could  not  allow  to  stand,  but  they  must  agree 
among  themselves  on  the  new  one,  and  such  an  agreement 
was  not  easy  to  reach.  One  thing  was  quickly  settled. 
France  was  to  be  set  back  to  the  boundaries  of  1792,  and 
this  was  determined  upon,  and  accepted  by  France,  a  few 
weeks  after  the  entry  of  the  allies  into  Paris.  A  diplomatic 
congress  assembled  at  Vienna  to  settle  the  rest,  and  there 
the  allies  began  to  show  signs  of  quarrelling  over  the  spoils. 
News  of  this  was  carried  to  Napoleon  at  Elba. 

In  France,  also,  considerable  discontent  had  arisen  with 
the  new  government.  The  nation  began  to  fear  a  reaction- 
ary tendency  against  the  results  of  the  revolution,  and  not 


§§  362?  363]          The  Second  Restoration  349 

without  some  reason.  The  censorship  of  the  press  was  re- 
established. The  officers  of  Napoleon  were  sent  into  retire- 
ment and  their  places  supplied  with  the  nobles  who  had 
fought  against  him.  Lands  confiscated  by  the  revolution, 
but  not  yet  sold,  were  restored  to  their  old  emigre  owners. 
Napoleon  learned  of  this  feeling  in  France  also. 

362.  The  "Hundred  Days."  —  Suddenly  at  the  end  of   Napoleon's 
February,  1815,  he  left  Elba,  landed  in  the  south  of  France,  return  to 
and  began  to  advance  towards  Paris.     Everywhere  he  was 

well  received.  His  old  soldiers  joined  him.  Officers  and 
troops  sent  to  arrest  him  went  over  to  his  side.  In  twenty 
days  the  king  had  fled  and  he  was  in  Paris.  Here  he  tried 
to  persuade  Europe  by  solemn  assurances  that  he  would  not 
renew  the  war,  and  the  French  people  by  issuing  a  constitu- 
tion supplementary  to  that  of  the  Empire  that  he  would  not 
renew  his  despotism.  Neither  attempt  entirely  succeeded. 
The  allies  certainly  could  not  allow  him  to  reestablish  his  rule 
and  prepare  in  peace  for  the  inevitable  attempt  to  recover 
the  lost  frontiers,  and  they  immediately  declared  war. 

One  great  battle  ended  the  war.     This  fell  to  the  English  Waterloo, 
and  the  Prussians.     Wellington  held  firmly  his  position  at  June  l8» 
Waterloo  until  the  Prussians  came  up  and  Napoleon's  army 
was  totally  routed.     He  tried  to  secure  the  succession  of  his 
son  by  abdicating,  but  the  allies  restored  the  Bourbons  once 
more,  and  Napoleon  was  carried   by  the  English  to  the 
island  of  St.  Helena,  where  he  died  May  5,  1821. 

363.  The  Second  Restoration  and  the  Congress  of  Vienna.   Bourbon 
—  The  second  restoration  of  the  Bourbons  was  more  per-   reactlon- 
manent  than  the  first,  but  they  had  learned  little  by  their  ex-  Democracy 
perience.     Louis  XVIII.  showed  the  same  characteristics  as 

before  the  return  of  Napoleon.  The  reaction  against  the  revo- 
lution  grew  ever  stronger  until  it  led  to  another  revolution. 

The  Congress  of  Vienna  completed  its  work  in  1815.     A  The  work 
little  more  territory  was  taken  from  France  after  the  battle  c0*eress 
of  Waterloo.     Holland  was  made  a  kingdom  and  given  the  Stephens, 
Austrian  Netherlands  or  Belgium,  Switzerland  was  enlarged  Period*, 
and  its  neutrality  guaranteed.     Savoy  was  given  back  to  the  336~3S°; 


35O        The  French  Revolution  and  Napoleon      [§  364 


Fyffe, 
Europe, 
380-387  and 
411-418. 


Reaction  and 
absolutism 
only 
temporary. 


king  of  Sardinia,  and  the  Bourbons  restored  in  Naples  and 
Sicily.  Nearly  all  north  Italy,  Venice,  and  Lombardy  was 
put  under  the  rule  of  Austria,  which  retained  it  until  the 
formation  of  the  present  kingdom  of  Italy.  Prussia  received 
a  part  of  Saxony,  which  had  been  too  faithful  to  Napoleon, 
and  also  considerable  lands  in  the  Rhine  valley  taken  from 
the  small  German  states  of  a  former  time  and  from  France. 
England's  gains  were  colonial,  and  the  most  important  was 
the  Cape  Colony. 

364.  Results  of  the  Revolution  in  Europe  at  Large.  — 
The  diplomats  at  Vienna  could  treat  a  large  part  of  Europe 
as  if  they  were  the  absolute  owners  of  it,  disregarding  utterly 
the  feelings  of  the  inhabitants,  but  they  could  no  more  undo 
the  work  of  the  revolution  in  Europe  at  large  than  the  Bour- 
bons could  in  France.  The  way  had  been  made  open 
everywhere  for  constitutional  liberty,  and  if  it  did  not  at 
once  appear,  the  delay  was  only  temporary.  The  worst 
abuses  of  the  old  regime  had  disappeared.  Feudalism, 
serfdom,  and  insignificant  sovereignties  were  to  a  large 
extent  things  of  the  past.  A  new  national  spirit  had  been 
excited  in  countries  like  Germany,  which  had  long  been 
divided  into  fragments,  and  the  preparation  was  begun  for 
their  future  national  governmen.ts.  The  next  few  years 
might  be  characterized  by  reaction,  and  absolutism  seem 
to  triumph,  but  the  people  of  Europe  were  really  a  new 
people,  and  they  had  begun  to  cherish  the  spirit  of  liberty 
and  democracy  which  reigns  at  the  present  day. 


Topics 

The  compensation  of  France  for  her  political  decline  in  the  eighteenth 
century.  The  influence  of  England  on  French  thinkers.  The  leaders 
of  French  thought  and  their  ideas.  The  real  abuses  in  France.  Her 
financial  condition.  Why  were  not  reforms  carried  through?  The 
character  of  the  two  kings.  Why  was  the  Estates  General  called? 
Why  a  dangerous  experiment?  What  was  the  first  conflict  which 
introduced  the  revolution?  The  result  and  its  effect.  The  struggle 
with  the  king.  The  part  played  by  the  Paris  mob.  The  completion 


Topics  351 

of  the  revolution.  The  formation  of  two  parties.  The  clubs.  What 
were  the  assignats?  Why  necessary?  How  secured?  The  result. 
The  beginning  of  European  war.  What  led  to  the  suspension,  and 
what  to  the  execution,  of  the  king.  Effect  on  Europe.  Change  in  the 
executive  government  in  France.  The  Reign  of  Terror.  The  military 
successes  of  the  Republic.  The  constitution  of  the  year  III.  Bona- 
parte in  Italy.  Gains  in  the  treaty  of  Campio-Formio.  Why  did 
Bonaparte  invade  Egypt?  Result.  How  did  he  gain  political  office 
in  France?  What  preparation  had  there  been  for  this  step?  The 
treaty  of  Amiens.  How  did  Bonaparte  use  the  interval  of  peace? 
The  great  successes  of  Napoleon  in  the  next  war.  How  did  he  treat 
Europe?  What  were  his  mistakes?  What  were  the  causes  and  the 
successive  steps  of  the  overthrow  of  Napoleon?  The  first  restoration. 
Character  of  the  Bourbon  constitution.  What  things  encouraged 
Napoleon  to  return  to  France?  How  was  he  received  by  France? 
By  Europe?  Waterloo.  The  new  map  made  by  the  Congress  of 
Vienna.  Permanent  results  of  the  revolution  in  France.  In  Europe. 

Topics  for  Assigned  Studies 

The  execution  of  Louis  XVI.     Stephens,  French  Revolution   (Scrib- 

ner),  II.  212-221.     Carlyle,  French  Revolution,  Book  IV.,  Chap. 

VIII.     A  speech  of  Robespierre's.     Stephens,  Speeches  of  French 

Revolution  (Clarendon),  II.  357.     In  French. 
The  battle  of  Waterloo.     Sloane,  Napoleon  (Century  Co.),  IV.,  Chap. 

XXIII.      Ropes,    Campaign    of   Waterloo.     (Scribner.)     Morris, 

Napoleon  (Heroes),  Chap.  XIII. 

Important  Dates  for  Review 

1789.  May     .      .     .  Estates  General  meet. 

1791.  Sept.    .     .     .  The  new  constitution  proclaimed. 

1793.  Jan.      .     .      .  Louis  XVI.  executed. 

June     .     .     .  Reign  of  Terror  begins. 

1796 Bonaparte  in  Italy. 

1798 Bonaparte  in  Egypt. 

1799.  Nov.     .     .     .  Bonaparte,  Consul. 

1802 Treaty  of  Amiens. 

1804.  May     .     .     .  Bonaparte  made  emperor. 

1806 The  continental  system. 

1808 Joseph,  king  of  Spain. 

1810.  Apr.     .     .     .  Napoleon  marries  Maria  Louisa. 

1812 Invasion  of  Russia. 

1813.  Oct.      .     .     .  Battle  of  Leipzig. 

1814 Napoleon  at  Elba. 

1815.  June     .     .     .  Battle  of  Waterloo. 


CHAPTER  VI 


The  inter- 
national 
system  be- 
ginning to 
embrace  the 
whole  world. 


EUROPE  SINCE   1815 

Books  for  Reference  and  Further  Reading 

Fyffe,  History  of  Modern  Europe.     In  one  volume.     (Holt;   $2.75.) 
M tiller,  Political  History  of  Recent  Times.     (Harper;   $2.00.) 
Adams,  Democracy  and  Monarchy  in  France.     (Holt;   $2.50.) 
Andrews,    The  Historical  Development  of  Modern  Europe.     2  vols. 

(Putnam;    $5.00.)      Suggestive   and  instructive   commentary  for 

the  use  of  the  teacher. 

Seignobos,  Political  History  of  Modern  Europe.    Announced.     (Holt.) 
Holland,  The  European  Concert  in  the  Eastern   Question.     (Claren- 
don;  $3.75.)     Treaties  and  other  public  acts. 
Murdock,    The  Reconstruction  of  Europe.     (Houghton;  $2.00.)     On 

the  national  movement. 
Thayer,     The   Dawn   of  Italian    Independence,    1814-1849.     2   vols. 

(Houghton;   $4.00.) 
Lieber,    Civil  Liberty   and  Self  Government.     (Lippincott;    $3-15.) 

Interpretation  of  English  liberty,  especially  in  comparison  with 

French  ideas.     Contains  many  documents. 

365.   The  Nineteenth  Century  an  Age  of  Transition.  —  By 

the  year  1815  the  world  of  international  politics  had  begun  to 
be  considerably  larger  than  the  continent  of  Europe,  and  it 
has  been  expanding  ever  since.  Very  soon  after  that  date 
the  United  States  began  to  make  her  voice  heard  in  the 
councils  of  the  nations.  England  had  become  even  earlier 
so  much  more  concerned  with  the  affairs  of  the  larger  world 
that  she  had  begun  to  consider  all  questions  of  European 
politics  from  their  bearing  on  her  wider  interests,  as  she  still 
does.  Other  nations  have  become  by  degrees  interested  in 
the  same  way,  and  new  nations,  once  unthought  of  and 
lying  far  remote  from  Europe  and  its  local  questions,  like 

352 


§§  366, 367]         The  Absolutist  Reaction  353 

Japan,  have  entered  the  field  of  international  politics  and 
secured  immediate  and  strong  influence. 

The  nineteenth  century  is  in  this  respect  an  age  of  transi-   Local 
tion.    The  twentieth  century  will  before  its  close  have  ceased  European 

111111  f  •     T-  ^i  •  politics  still 

to  regard  the  local  balance  of  power  in  Europe,  or  the  minor  £f  great 
details  of  its  interior  boundary  lines,  as  the  leading  questions  interest, 
of  international  diplomacy.     There   are,  however,  running 
through  the  whole  of  the  nineteenth  century,  certain  lines  of 
European  political  movement  which  are  of  decided  impor- 
tance in  the  history  of  the  world. 

366.  Three  Lines  of  Great  Political  Changes.  — Of  these  Three  lines. 
lines   there   are   three  of  especial   interest,  which   can  be 

readily  traced,  and  whose  history  makes  up  in  large  part  the 
political  history  of  Europe.     They  are  : 

First :   The  continued  effects  of  the  French  revolution ;   The  struggle 
the  efforts  of  the  people  to  secure  a  larger  share  in  their  for  c°nstitu- 

.         :  tional 

governments,  and  of  the  sovereigns  to  prevent  this  ;  the  con-  government, 
sequent  revolutions  and  changes  of  government,  advancing  to 
the  result,  which  has  now  been  reached  almost  everywhere, 
of  the  triumph  of  liberal  government  and  of  the  democratic 
principle. 

Second  :   Closely  connected  with  the  first,  growing  largely  The  idea  of 
from  the  same  causes,  and  greatly  aided  by  the  increasing  nationality, 
influence  of  the  people  upon  their  governments,  the  move- 
ment to  secure  for  nations  long  broken  into  fragments  by 
the  arbitrary  dispositions  of  absolute  rulers,  a  political  unity 
whose  boundary  lines  should  correspond  to  the  territories 
occupied  by  the  nation,  and  whose  government  should  be  an 
expression  of  the  national  will.     This  has  resulted  in  a  very 
considerable   making  over  of  the   map   of  Europe  in  the 
interest  of  the  idea  of  nationality. 

Third :   The  Eastern   question,  occasioned   by  the   slow  The  Eastern 
dissolution  of  the  Turkish  Empire  and  the  rivalry  of  several  question. 
European  nations  for  the  inheritance.     An  essential  part  of 
this  is  the  enormous  expansion  of  Russia,  both  in  Europe 
and  Asia,  during  the  century. 

367.  The  Absolutist  Reaction. — The  first  results  which 


354 


Europe  since  1815 


The  sover- 
eigns want 
no  constitu- 
tions. 
Fyffe, 
Europe, 
Chap.  XI II. 


The  Holy 

Alliance, 

1815. 

Miiller, 

Recent 

Times,  2-5 ; 

Penn.  I., 

No.  3; 

Schilling, 

Quellenbuch, 

407. 


Metternich. 
Penn.  I., 
No.  3. 


The  univer- 
sities, and 
the  secret 
societies. 


followed  the  overthrow  of  Napoleon  by  the  allies  were 
disastrous  to  the  cause  of  free  government.  We  have  seen 
the  consequences  in  France,  where  the  restored  Bourbons 
had  granted  a  constitution,  but  where  the  whole  tendency 
was  towards  illiberal  government  and  the  limitation  of  the 
rights  of  the  people.  The  same  was  true  of  all  Europe, 
both  in  the  states  whose  rulers  had  been  compelled  to  grant 
constitutions  and  in  those  where  they  had  not  been.  The 
sovereigns  of  Europe  had  been  thoroughly  frightened  by  the 
revolution  and  they  did  not  propose  to  allow  it  to  proceed 
further. 

Three  months  after  the  battle  of  Waterloo  a  treaty  was 
signed  at  Paris  between  the  emperors  of  Russia  and  Austria 
and  the  king  of  Prussia.  Ostensibly  the  purpose  of  this 
alliance  was  to  make  the  precepts  of  the  Christian  religion 
prevail  everywhere,  in  the  relations  of  states  to  one  another 
and  of  governments  and  their  citizens.  On  this  account  it 
became  known  as  the  Holy  Alliance.  Whether  the  profes- 
sions originally  made  were  sincere  or  not,  the  Holy  Alliance 
came  very  soon  to  mean  an  agreement  between  the  sover- 
eigns to  interfere  in  any  state  which  was  threatened  with 
revolution,  and  to  force  the  people  to  submit  to  their  rulers. 
Count  Metternich  of  Austria  was  one  of  the  most  active  sup- 
porters of  the  policy  ;  he  possibly  gave  the  Holy  Alliance  this 
direction ;  and  the  arrangement  has  sometimes  been  called 
from  him  "  Metternich's  system."  Diplomatic  congresses 
were  held  at  frequent  intervals  to  carry  out  the  policy, 
almost  as  if  the  alliance  had  created  a  government  for  all 
Europe  with  a  regular  cabinet. 

368.  Revolutionary  Movements.  —  On  the  other  hand, 
the  people  did  not  propose  to  give  up  everything  without  a 
struggle.  In  Germany,  Italy,  and  Spain  the  movement 
against  absolutism  was  especially  active.  The  universities 
were  seats  of  vigorous  propaganda,  as  they  are  in  Russia 
to-day.  Secret  societies  were  organized,  the  Burschenschqft 
in  Germany,  the  Carbonari  in  Italy.  In  Germany  some  of 
the  sovereigns  thought  it  wise  to  yield  a  little.  The  king 


§369]  The  Monroe  Doctrine  355 

of  Prussia  made  some  concessions.  In  Bavaria,  Baden, 
Wiirtemberg,  and  Weimar  constitutions  were  granted.  But 
repression  quickly  followed.  Agitators  were  punished  and 
the  universities  put  under  special  supervision. 

In  Italy  and  Spain  insurrections  took  place  and  armed  Armed 

intervention  was  necessary.     In  1820,  in  the  kingdoms  of  insurrec- 
'  tions  put 

the  Two  Sicilies  and  of  Sardinia,  the  sovereigns  were  com-  down  by  the 
pelled  to  grant  constitutions.  At  the  Congress  of  Laybach  Holy 
the  next  year,  Austria  was  authorized  to  deal  with  these 
cases,  and  her  armies  overthrew  these  constitutions  and  NO.  3. 
repressed  agitation  in  Lombardy.  The  same  result  followed 
in  Spain.  There  a  constitution  had  been  established  in 
1812,  but  King  Ferdinand  VII.  had  taken  advantage  of 
later  events  to  get  rid  of  it.  In  1820  an  insurrection  of  a 
part  of  the  army  had  compelled  him  to  reestablish  this  con- 
stitution. Then  the  Holy  Alliance  interfered.  The  Con- 
gress of  Verona,  in  1822,  commissioned  France  to  do  the 
work,  and  a  French  army  made  Ferdinand  VII.  a  despotic 
sovereign  again. 

369.     The  Monroe  Doctrine.  — The  action  of  the  Con-  The 
gress  of  Verona  in  regard  to  Spain  had  consequences  out-  sPanish 
side  of  Europe  of  the  greatest  importance.     The  colonies  of  C0i0nies 
Spain  in  South  and  Central  America  had  taken  advantage  of  independent 
the  troubles  of  that  country  during  the  Napoleonic  wars  to 
declare  their  independence  and  to  establish  republican  gov- 
ernments of  their  own.     It  now  looked  as  if  the  interference 
of  the  Holy  Alliance  might  be  extended  so  far  as  to  attempt 
the  recovery  for  Spain  of  the  colonies  which  she  herself  had 
not  been  able  to  accomplish.     England,  which  had  favored 
the  independence  of  these  colonies,  was  opposed  to  such 
interference,  and  she  suggested  to  the  United  States  that  a 
declaration  to  the  same  effect  from  that  government  would 
aid  in  preventing  the  attempt. 

This  led  to  the  famous  Monroe  Doctrine,  which,  as  then   The  Monroe 
stated,  was  that  the  United  States  would  regard  any  attempt   Doctrine, 
of  the  allied  powers  to  extend  their  system  —  that  is,  the 
system  of  armed  interference  to  establish  a  government  op- 


356 


Europe  since  1815 


[§37o 


Charles  X., 

1824-1830. 

Miiller, 

Recent 

Times, 

96-101. 


The  revolu- 
tion of  1830. 
Fyffe, 
Europe, 
603-619 ; 
MUller, 
Recent 
Times, 

IO2-II2. 


posed  to  the  will  of  the  people,  Metternich's  system  —  to 
any  part  of  these  continents  as  an  unfriendly  act. 

370.    Further  Reaction  and  a  New  Revolution  in  France. 

—  The  great  days  of  the  Holy  Alliance  ended  with  the 
death  of  the  Czar,  Alexander  I.,  in  1825,  but  the  opposition 
to  free  government  had  the  upper  hand  for  a  few  years 
longer.  In  France,  Louis  XVIII.  was  succeeded  in  1824  by 
his  brother  Charles  X.,  who  as  the  Count  of  Artois  had  been 
the  leader  of  the  emigres  and  who  seemed  incapable  of 
learning  anything  from  experience.  Under  him  reaction- 
ary measures  rapidly  followed  one  another.  More  of  Napo- 
leon's officers  were  dismissed  from  the  army.  The  National 
Guard  was  dissolved.  The  press  was  placed  under  stricter 
control.  The  Church  was  given  more  authority.  A  large 

sum  was  appropri- 
ated to  pay  the 
emigres  for  the 
lands  of  which  they 
had  been  deprived 
by  the  revolution. 
And  finally,  in  July, 
1830,  the  king  at- 
tempted a  coup 
d'etat.  He  issued 
a  series  of  ordi- 
nances by  which  he 
practically  made  a 
new  constitution  in 
the  interest  of  his 
own  ideas. 

Immediately 
Paris  broke  out  in 

insurrection.  The  troops  proved  untrustworthy.  Lafayette 
was  put  at  the  head  of  a  provisional  government.  The  king 
fled  and  abdicated  in  favor  of  his  grandson,  the  Comte  de 
Chambord,  but  instead  the  duke  of  Orleans,  Louis  Philippe, 
was  proclaimed  king  of  the  French.  He  was  descended 


LAFAYETTE 


§  §  37  J  >  372]    Preparation  for  A  nother  Revolution      357 

from  a  brother  of  Louis  XIV.  ;  his  family  had  long  professed 

liberal  ideas  ;  he  was  himself  popular  with  the  people  and 

was  known  as  the  citizen  king.     The  constitution  was  imme-   Constitution 

diately  revised  to  secure  greater  freedom,  and  the  king  rec- 

ognized  the  right  of  the  people  to  determine  for  themselves 

the  form  of  their  government. 

371.     The  Consequences  of  the  Revolution  in  France.  —   Unsuccessful 
The  July  revolution,  as  it  is  called,  encouraged  the  friends  attempts  to 
of  liberal  government  throughout  Europe,  but  the  time  was   example  of 
still  too  early  to  overthrow  the  strongly  intrenched  sover-   France. 
eigns.     An  insurrection  in  Belgium   against   the  continued  ^yffe> 
rule  of  Holland  was  successful  and  the  two  states  were  sepa-  619-643  ; 
rated.      A   similar  one    in   Poland  against   Russia,  though   Miilier, 
bravely  fought,  was  a  failure,  and  resulted  in  the  loss  of  the 


constitution  which  had  been  secured  to  Poland  at  the  close  112-143. 
of  the  Napoleonic  period,  and  its  reduction  to  a  province 
of  the  Russian  Empire.  Insurrections  in  Italy  were  for  a 
moment  successful,  but  the  Austrian  troops  proved  again 
too  strong.  In  Spain  and  Portugal,  however,  constitutions 
were  secured  within  a  few  years  of  the  July  revolution,  but 
this  was  due  not  to  revolutions  but  to  disputes  as  to  the 
succession  in  the  royal  families  which  forced  the  rightful 
claimants  to  rely  upon  the  liberal  party  for  success. 

It  had  proved  easy  to  suppress  insurrections  for  a  time  at  Ideas  not 
least,  and  for  eighteen  years  longer  the  absolute  governments 
were  in  possession.  But  it  was  not  so  easy  to  suppress  liberal 
ideas,  and  the  longing  and  determination  of  the  people, 
and  these  were  making  steady  progress  through  these 
years.  In  the  new  revolution  which  was  to  advance  greatly 
the  realization  of  these  ideas,  France  was  still  as  before  the 
leader  of  the  nations. 

372.    Preparation  for  Another  Revolution.  —  The  reign  of  Louis 
Louis  Philippe  excited  no  enthusiasm  in  France.     It  was   phlhPPe>s 

....  .          government 

marked  abroad  by  a  policy  of  conciliation  and  concession   unpopular. 
which  was  not  flattering  to  French  pride,  and  at  home  by  a 
disposition  to  leave  the  constitution  as  it  was  formed  in 
1830  and  to  allow  no  extension  of  the  popular  influence. 


358 


Europe  since  1815 


[§§  373,  374 


The  growth 
of  socialistic 
ideas. 


The 

"  February  " 

revolution. 

Adams, 

Democracy 

and 

Monarchy, 

Chap.  VII.; 

Fyffe, 

Europe, 

Chap.  XIX.; 

Muller, 

Recent 

Times, 

186-192. 

The  attempt 
to  realize 
socialistic 
theories. 


But  the  demand  for  this  was  not  long  in  arising.  The  prop- 
erty qualification  required  for  the  suffrage  and  for  member- 
ship in  the  legislature  had  been  reduced  at  the  accession  of 
the  citizen  king,  but  they  were  still  so  high  as  to  place  the 
real  control  in  the  hands  of  a  minority  of  the  people. 
The  demand  for  an  extension  of  the  suffrage  was  made  by 
the  liberal  party  and  was  steadily  resisted  by  the  king. 

Meantime  the  artisan  class,  especially  in  Paris,  was  be- 
coming greatly  interested  in  economic  and  political  ques- 
tions. The  rapid  introduction  of  labor-saving  machinery, 
together  with  over-production  in  many  lines,  had  led  to  a  re- 
duction of  wages  and  had  even  thrown  many  workmen  out 
of  employment.  A  group  of  writers  of  much  ability  began 
to  propound  socialistic  and  communistic  theories,  and  in 
these  many  of  the  workmen  became  greatly  interested.  In 
this  way  was  prepared  a  party  which  in  the  next  revolution 
and  in  many  later  events  in  France  exercised  a  great  and 
sometimes  a  very  destructive  influence. 

373.  The    Revolution   of    1848. — The  revolution    came 
in   February,  1848.     The  signal  was  given  by    the  refusal 
of   the  government    to    allow    a    banquet    to    be    held   at 
which  the  liberal  party  proposed   to   advocate    the   exten- 
sion of  the  suffrage.     A  public  protest  of  the  liberal  leaders 
followed.     They  probably  did  not  intend  or  expect  a  revo- 
lution, but  events  rapidly  drifted  beyond  their  control.     The 
mob  took  charge.     The  king  showed  no  firmness  of  resis- 
tance and  abdicated.     But  the  people   of  Paris   organized 
a  provisional  government  and  the  Republic  was  proclaimed. 

374.  The  Second  Republic.  —  This  was  a  very  short-lived 
republic,  but  it  is  interesting  for  one  experiment  which  it 
tried.      Among  the   theories  held   by  the  Parisian  artisans 
was  one  which  asserted  the  right  of  every  man  to  a  liveli- 
hood, and  the  duty  of  the  State  to  insure  him  the  means 
of  procuring  it.     The  provisional  government,  which  found 
it  necessary  to   satisfy  the  demands   of  the  workmen  who 
had  carried  through  the  revolution,  determined  to  fulfil  this 
duty. 


§  375]          Revolution  in  Austria  and  Italy 


359 


National  workshops  were  opened  and  the  unemployed 
were  guaranteed  labor  by  the  State.  Though  the  wages 
were  small  the  number  of  the  state  workmen  was  found  to 
increase  very  rapidly,  it  became  very  difficult  to  keep  them 
profitably  employed,  and  the  government  was  at  last  com- 
pelled to  lay  a  special  tax  to  meet  the  expenses,  much  to 
the  discontent  of  the  rest  of  the  nation.  The  experiment 
lasted  four  months.  Then  the  Constituent  Assembly,  which 
had  been  called  to  frame  a  new  government,  closed  the 
national  workshops.  The  workmen  immediately  rose  in 
insurrection,  and  for  four  days  fought  like  savages,  throwing 
aside  the  restraints  of  civilized  warfare,  before  they  were 
subdued.  The  bourgeois,  or  middle  class  of  Paris,  long 
remembered  the  terrible  experience  of  these  days,  and  the 
dread  of  the  communistic  spirit  was  one  of  the  things  which 
made  easy  the  way  of  Louis  Napoleon  and  sustained  the 
despotism  of  the  second  Empire. 

375.  Revolution  in  Austria  and  Italy.  —  With  the  tri- 
umph of  this  French  revolution  of  1848,  it  seemed  for 
a  moment  as  if  constitutional  government  and  political 
freedom  were  about  to  triumph  in  the  whole  of  Europe. 
Everywhere  the  people  rose  against  the  absolute  sovereigns, 
and  their  speedy  success  showed  the  depth  of  the  prepara- 
tion which  had  now  been  made.  Even  in  Vienna  the  revo- 
lution could  no  longer  be  suppressed.  A  popular  insurrection 
forced  Metternich  into  exile  early  in  March,  and  made  the 
emperor  call  a  constitutional  convention  elected  by  uni- 
versal suffrage.  When  a  little  later  he  attempted  to  with- 
draw these  concessions  he  was  himself  forced  to  leave 
Vienna,  and  abdicated  in  favor  of  his  nephew,  Francis 
Joseph. 

In  all  the  Austrian  dominions  similar  events  took  place, 
and  the  Empire  was  for  a  time  threatened  with  dissolution. 
Prague  expelled  the  Austrian  troops,  and  Bohemia  proposed 
to  secure  a  government  of  its  own.  Hungary  did  the  same 
and  soon  went  a  step  further,  declared  its  independence 
and  organized  a  republic  under  Kossuth. 


National 
workshops. 
Miiller, 
Recent 
Times, 
192-196. 


Constitution 
in  Lieber, 
Civil  Liberty. 

Insurrection 
of  the 
workmen. 


Metternich 
and  the 
emperor 
driven  from 
Vienna. 
Leger, 
Austro- 
Hungary, 
Chaps.XXX. 
and  XXXII. 
See  Maurice, 
The  Revolu- 
tionary 
Movement  of 
1848-1849 
(London), 


In  Bohemia 

and 

Hungary. 


36o 


Europe  since  1815 


[§376 


In  Italy. 

Miiller, 

Recent 

Times, 

202-211; 

Fyffe, 

Europe, 

Chap.  XX. 


Italy  had  not  remained  behind  the  other  peoples. 
Indeed,  a  few  days  before  the  revolution  in  Paris,  the  king 
of  the  Two  Sicilies  had  been  compelled  to  grant  a  constitu- 
tion. In  Rome,  Pius  IX.,  who  had  been  lately  elected 
pope,  granted  a  constitution  in  March  and  seemed  to  give 
promise  of  a  liberal  disposition.  When,  however,  somewhat 
later  in  the  year,  he  withdrew  the  constitution,  the  people 
rose  again,  drove  him  out  of  the  city,  and  with  the  aid  of 


POPE  Pius  IX. 


The  house 
of  Savoy 
assumes  the 
lead  in  Italy. 


Mazzini  organized  a  republic.  Florence  did  the  same. 
Milan  and  Venice  expelled  the  Austrian  troops. 

This  was  the  opportunity  of  the  house  of  Savoy,  and  the 
way  in  which  it  was  used  prepared  for  them  the  throne 
of  a  united  Italy.  The  reigning  king  of  Sardinia,  Charles 
Albert,  put  himself  at  the  head  of  the  movement  for  national 
independence,  and  made  war  upon  the  Austrians,  at  first 
with  success,  and  Venice  and  Milan  accepted  his  rule. 

376.   Unsuccessful  Attempts  in  Germany.  —  In  Germany 


§  377]  Suppression  of  the  Revolution  361 

the  struggle  for  constitutional  liberty  was  closely  bound  up   Hindered  bj 
with  that  for  national  unity.     A  popular  movement  begin-   lackof 
ning  in  Baden  demanded  civil  rights,  the  freedom  of  the   un{ty. 
press,  and  a  constitutional  government   for   the  whole  of  Fyffe, 
Germany.     The  first  step  was  the  election  of  a  constituent 
assembly,  which  met  at  Frankfort,  in  May,  1848,  to  form 
a  government  and  a  constitution.  Recent 

Early  in  1849  tne  crown  of  a  new  German  Empire  was   ^™"' 
offered  by  the  Assembly  to  Frederick  William  IV.  of  Prussia.  Thg  ki     of 
This  proved  a  premature  realization  of  the  ambition  of  the   Prussia  will 
Hohenzollern  family,  for  the  king  declined  the  offer,  believ-   not  be 
ing  that  it  should  be  made  by  the  state  governments  of 
Germany.     Austria  and   some  of  the   other  larger  states  Schilling, 
refused  to  accept  the  constitution,  and  the  mission  of  the 
Assembly  finally  ended  in  failure.     In  Prussia  itself,  however, 
a   constitution  was   finally   secured,  with   a   representative 
assembly  of  a  limited  character. 

377.   The  Suppression  of  the  Revolution.  —  Not  merely  The  czar  of 

in  Germany  but  everywhere  else,  these  promising  beginnings  Russia 

'  .     J  ,  interferes, 

came  to  nothing  in  the  end.     The  czar,  Nicholas  I.,  even 

more  bitterly  opposed  to  liberty  than  Alexander  had  been, 
came  to  the  aid  of  the  Austrian  emperor.  An  army  of 
100,000  Russians  entered  Hungary,  overthrew  the  Republic, 
and  restored  the  Austrian  rule.  In  Vienna  and  Prague 
force  also  triumphed. 

The  Italians,  not  well  united  among  themselves,  suffered   Despotism 
several  defeats,  and  in  the  spring  of  1849,  Charles  Albert  reestablished 
abdicated  in  favor  of  his  son  Victor  Emanuel.     Milan  and   1]    ta  y> 
Venice  submitted.     In  Rome  the  Republic  was  destoyed  by 
French  troops  sent   by  Louis  Napoleon,  the  President  of 
France,  and  they  remained  to  sustain  the  pope's  absolute 
government  so  long  as  the  rule  of  Napoleon  III.  lasted. 
In   the  Two   Sicilies,  also,  the   constitution  was   annulled. 
All  Italy  was  thrown  back  into  the  old  condition,  except  in   except  in 
the  kingdom  of  Sardinia,  where  Victor  Emanuel  refused  to   Sardima' 
do  away  with  the  constitution  at  the  demand  of  Austria,  and 
thus  kept  the  hopes  of  Italy  centred  in  his  house. 


Europe  since  1815 


[§§378,379 


Louis 

Napoleon, 

President. 


The  coup 
d'etat  of 
Dec.  2,  1851. 
Victor  Hugo, 
History  of  a 
Crime  ; 
Muller, 
Recent 
Times, 

197  ff- 

New  consti- 
tution in 
Lieber, 
Civil  Liberty. 

The  second 
Empire. 
Revised 
constitution 
in  Lieber, 
Civil  Liberty. 

The  cause 
of  free  gov- 
ernment 
apparently 
hopeless. 


378.  The  Second  Empire  established  by  Napoleon  III.  — 

In  the  meantime  the  short-lived  second  Republic  in  France 
was  drawing  rapidly  to  its  end.  It  had  been  weak  from  the 
beginning  because  it  was  not  desired  by  a  majority  of  the 
people.  Louis  Napoleon  had  been  elected  President  by  a 
very  large  popular  majority,  and  was  laying  plans  to  make 
his  power  permanent.  He  set  himself  forward  as  the  cham- 
pion of  universal  suffrage  against  the  monarchically  inclined 
Assembly,  and  of  order  and  security  against  the  red  republi- 
cans, while  the  army  was  tired  of  the  long  inglorious  peace 
and  hoped  for  better  things  from  a  Bonaparte. 

By  a  sudden  coup  d'etat  on  the  2d  of  December,  he 
arrested  the  leaders  of  the  opposition,  dissolved  the  Assem- 
bly, and  called  for  a  vote  by  universal  suffrage  to  make  him 
President  for  ten  years  and  to  authorize  a  revision  of  the 
constitution.  An  attempt  to  raise  Paris  against  him  failed, 
and  the  popular  vote  was  overwhelmingly  in  favor  of  the 
change  of  government. 

This  was  but  a  step  to  the  second  Empire,  and  a  year 
later  that  was  proclaimed,  after  the  sanction  of  another 
popular  vote.  The  constitution  made  the  emperor  abso- 
lute. He  was  responsible  to  the  people  only,  his  ministers 
to  him  alone.  The  legislature  was  under  his  control ;  free- 
dom of  speech  ?,nd  of  the  press  were  no  more.  But  France 
had  secured  what  it  especially  wished  at  the  time,  a  strong 
government. 

379.  Free  Government  indirectly  Secured.  —  It  was  now 
sixty  years  since  the  opening  of  the  French  revolution,  and 
still  the  effort  to  secure  real  political  liberty  was  a  failure. 
Despotism   seemed   as   strongly   intrenched   almost    every- 
where as  before  the  age  of  revolutions  began.     In  some  few 
countries,  like  Prussia  and  France,  constitutions  existed  in 
name,  and  this  was  a  point  gained,  but  in  these  constitu- 
tions the  real  power  was   most  carefully  preserved    to  the 
sovereign.     The  cause  of  the  people  might  well  seem  hope- 
less, but  it  was  in  truth  just  on  the  eve  of  success.     It  had 
met  its  last  great  defeat. 


§§  38°>38i]       The  Independence  of  Greece  363 

The  final  triumph  of  constitutional  government  in  Europe  Secured  in 
was  secured,  however,  not   by  a  direct  effort  of  the  kind  alliance  with 

.     .  -      „  i       o    r.        T      the  cause  of 

which  was  made  in  the  revolutions  of  1830  and  1848.     It  national 
was  brought  about  rather  by  the  triumph  of  the  right  in  unity, 
another   cause,  that   of  national  unity  and   independence, 
which  had  been  all  along  closely  associated  with   it.     To 
this  we  must  now  turn  as  the  leading  movement  in  the  next 
stage  of  European  history. 

380.  The  Congress  of  Vienna  and  the  Idea  of  National-  The  diplo- 
ity .  —  The  Congress  of  Vienna,  in  rearranging  the  boundary  H^^1^ 
lines  which   Napoleon  had  moved  about  to  suit   himself,  nationality, 
treated  Europe  as  if  there  were  no  such  things  as  nations  Maps, 

to  be  considered.  Italy  was  divided  up  into  petty  states  as  ^J^g1"' 
the  interests  of  the  sovereigns  dictated.  Germany  was  treated 
as  arbitrarily  in  the  same  interest,  but  many  of  the  smaller 
states  of  earlier  times  which  had  been  wiped  out  by  the  dis- 
positions of  Napoleon  were  not  reestablished,  and  the  larger 
became  larger  still,  but  there  was  no  Germany.  The  Ger- 
manic Confederation,  which  was  established  with  a  Diet 
under  the  presidency  of  Austria,  was  as  empty  a  form  as 
the  old  Empire. 

Belgium,  though  differing  from  Holland  in  language,  reli-  Austria  their 
gion,  and  economic  interests,  was  made  a  part  of  it.  Poland  idea  of  a 
remained  divided,  and  though  a  part  of  it  was  given  a 
constitution  and  called  the  kingdom  of  Poland,  with  the 
czar  as  king,  this  was  a  form  and  disappeared  at  once  on 
the  first  attempt  to  make  it  more  real.  Meanwhile  such 
a  composite  empire  as  that  of  Austria,  which  corresponded 
to  no  nationality  but  included  several  great  races  or  parts 
of  several,  Germans,  Bohemians,  Hungarians,  Italians,  and 
others,  seemed  to  be  regarded  as  resting  on  as  natural  a 
foundation  as  any  true  nation. 

381.  The  Independence  of  Greece.  — But  the   spirit  of 
nationality  and   the  longing   for  independence,  which   are  nation  to 
perhaps  never  entirely  wanting,  had  been  newly  awakened  rise- 

by  the  uprising  of  the  peoples  against  Napoleon,  and  they  £U^gt 
were  no  more  destroyed  by  the  temporary  triumph  of  the  Chap.  XV. 


364 


Europe  since  1815 


[§382 


The  powers 
interfere. 


Belgium 
successful  in 
1830. 


Failure  in 
1848. 


opposite  principles  than  was  the  desire  for  political  liberty. 
Their  first  outbreak  in  actual  strife  was  in  the  insurrection 
of  the  Greeks  against  the  Turks,  which  began  in  1821. 
This  struggle  for  independence  involved  from  the  begin- 
ning of  course  the  perennial  Eastern  question,  and  was 
settled  at  last  as  a  part  of  that  question. 

Here  is  to  be  said  only  that  at  first  the  Greeks  were  left 
to  themselves,  because  the  powers  could  not  agree  upon 
their  action ;  and  after  more  than  five  years  of  heroic  re- 
sistance, aided  only  by  a  few  volunteers,  like  Lord  Byron, 
the  Turkish  warfare  characterized  as  always  by  horrible 
atrocities,  they  were  practically  subdued  by  Egyptian  troops 
in  the  Turkish  service.  Then  Russia,  on  the  accession  of 
the  new  czar,  Nicholas  I.,  interfered,  seconded  by  England 
and  France,  and  Turkey  was  compelled  to  acknowledge 
the  independence  of  Greece  in  1829.  An  attempt  to  or- 
ganize the  new  state  as  a  republic  proved  a  failure,  and 
Otto  of  Bavaria  became  its  first  king. 

382.  The  Attempts  following  the  Two  French  Revolu- 
tions.—  The  revolution  of  1830  in  France  enabled  the 
people  of  Belgium  to  break  their  connection  with  Holland 
and  to  found  a  government  representing  the  nation,  with 
Leopold  of  Saxe-Coburg-Gotha  as  king.  But  every  other 
attempt  to  realize  national  aspirations  failed.  Poland  lost 
even  the  little  that  it  had ;  Italy  remained  under  Austria. 

Again  in  1848  the  same  result  followed  most  promising 
beginnings,  as  we  have  seen.  The  Hungarians  organized 
a  republic.  The  Bohemians  drove  out  the  Austrians,  as 
did  the  Italians  from  north  Italy.  The  king  of  Sardinia 
threw  the  resources  of  his  little  state  into  the  struggle  for 
Italian  independence.  In  Germany  a  national  constitution 
was  drawn  up,  and  the  crown,  which  it  was  hoped  would 
be  that  of  a  united  nation,  was  offered  to  the  king  of 
Prussia.  But  Prussia  hardly  saw  as  yet  that  the  way  to  the 
realization  of  her  long-cherished  ambition,  to  expel  Aus- 
trian influence  and  to  become  the  leading  state  in  Germany, 
should  be  the  way  of  national  unity. 


§§  383>  384]  The  Policy  of  Cavour  365 

She   had  already,   unconsciously,   taken   one    long  step  The 


towards  this  result  in  the  Zollverein  which  she  had  organ-        . 

°    .      Muller, 

ized  in  1833,  in  spite  of  the  opposition  of  Austria.     This  Decent 
was  a  customs  union  between  most  of  the  German  states,    Times,  164. 
by  which  national  unity  on  one  most  important  side,  the 
commercial,  was  created,  and   a  strong  influence   towards 
political  unity  set  in  motion.     But  Frederick  William  now 
refused  the  crown  ;  the  constitution  could  not  be  put  into 
operation  ;  and  Austria  recovered  control  of  all  her  revolted 
races. 

383.  The  Spirit  of  Nationality  growing  stronger.  —  But  The  cause 
the  spirit  of  national  unity  and  independence   had  grown   of  unity 
much   stronger  in  spite  of  these   failures,  and   it  was  not  feeders. 
much  longer  to  be  held  down.     The  king  of  Prussia  soon 

made  an  attempt  to  form  a  political  union  between  a  part 
of  the  German  states,  but  gave  it  up  on  the  determined 
opposition  of  Austria.  In  Italy  the  house  of  Savoy  stood 
clearly  forth  as  the  declared  champion  of  union  and  inde- 
pendence. In  both  these  countries  the  central  core  of  a 
new  national  state  was  prepared. 

It  was  in  these  two  countries  also  that  the  current  ran   The  current 
most  strongly  in  this  direction.     Neither  had  ever  had  a  stKmgin 

.  .  Germany 

government  giving  expression  to  the  national  teeling  since  and 
they  had  become  conscious  of  such  a  feeling.  The  feudal 
system,  the  Holy  Roman  Empire,  the  policy  of  the  papacy, 
and  the  diplomacy  of  modern  Europe,  had  in  turn  kept 
them  broken  and  divided.  But  now  that  the  current  had 
begun  to  run,  it  ran  all  the  deeper  and  stronger  for  the 
long  holding  back. 

384.  The  Policy  of  Cavour.  —  It  was   ten  years   before  Cavour  win? 
another  opportunity  occurred.     In  the  meantime  the  king  al^s  for  lus 
of  Sardinia  had  made,  under  the  wise  guidance  of  his  min-   Fyffe,' 
ister,  Cavour,  a  shrewd  stroke  to  gain  the  gratitude  of  some  Europe, 

of  the  first  powers  of  Europe  by  joining  the  allies  against  xxn  • 

Russia  in  the  Crimean  war  and  sending  his  little  army  to  Muller' 

their  aid.     This   led   directly  to  the   desired   result.     The  Recent 

Congress  of  Paris,  which  followed  the  war,  was  not  willing  tma' 


366 


Europe  since  1815 


[§385 


270-292 ; 
Cesaresco, 
Liberation  of 
Italy 
(Scribner). 

War  with 
Austria. 


to  allow  Cavour  to  accomplish  his  plans  by  diplomatic 
means.  But  the  emperor,  Napoleon  III.,  was  ready  to 
enter  into  a  close  alliance  with  him. 

Encouraged  by  this,  Cavour  began  extensive  military 
preparations.  When  he  refused  to  explain  these  prepara- 
tions at  the  demand  of  Austria,  she  declared  war  and  sent 
a  large  army  into  Italy.  Napoleon  III.  immediately  sent 
against  it  a  still  larger  army.  The  Austrians  were  beaten 


The  people 
too  strong 
for  the 
diplomats. 


COUNT  CAVOUR 

in  three  great  battles.  Lombardy  and  Milan  were  occupied 
and  Venice  threatened.  But  Napoleon  did  not  wish  to 
go  too  far.  He  refused  to  drive  the  Austrians  from  Venetia. 
In  November,  1859,  he  concluded  the  treaty  of  Zurich  with 
Austria,  by  which  Lombardy  was  given  to  Victor  Emanuel, 
and  the  Italian  states  were  authorized  to  form  a  confederacy. 
385.  United  Italy.  —  But  matters  had  now  gone  too 
far  to  be  controlled  any  longer  by  diplomacy.  The  people 
took  matters  into  their  own  hands.  Everywhere  they  arose, 


§  3861  William  L  and  Bismarck  367 

expelled  the  rulers  of  their  little  states,  and  voted  their  own 
annexation  to  Sardinia.  All  central  Italy  down  to  the  States 
of  the  Church  had  done  this  by  March,  1860.  Napoleon  III. 
signified  that  he  would  acquiesce  in  these  arrangements  if 
compensation  were  granted  him  by  the  cession  to  France 
of  Savoy  and  Nice,  and  this  was  allowed  him,  —  the  largest 
permanent  annexation  of  territory  made  by  France  since 
the  reign  of  Louis  XIV. 

But  the  end  was  not  yet.     In  the  next  month  the  people   Garibaldi 
of  Sicily  rose  against  their  Bourbon  king.     Garibaldi  went   and  the 
to  their  aid.     In  a  short  time  the  whole  kingdom  of  the   j°^ 
Two  Sicilies  and  a  large  part  of  the  territories  of  the  pope 
had   been   freed,    and   had    put   themselves   under   Victor 
Emanuel.     In    February    of  the   next   year,    the   kingdom   The  king- 
of  Italy  was  proclaimed,  —  the  first  real  one  that  had  ex-   dom  of  Ital* 
isted   in   history,  —  with    a  constitution  and   parliamentary 
institutions.     Rome  was  not  yet  its  capital,  for  the  French 
troops  still  held  that  city  and  Victor  Emanuel  was  not  ready 
to  break  with  France,  and  Austria  still  kept  Venetia.     But 
the  occupation  of  Rome  and  Venice  could  only  be  delayed 
until  the  first  favorable  opportunity. 

386.   William   I.    and    Bismarck.  —  The   realization   of  William  I. 
German  aspirations  for  national  unity  was  deferred  for  ten  opens  a  new 
years  longer,  and  cost  in  blood  and  treasure  far  more  than   p^^  l86l 
had    Italian.     Frederick  William  IV.  of  Prussia,  who  had   Fyflfe, 
refused  the  imperial  crown  in  1848  and  who  had  been  un-   Europe, 
willing  to  oppose  Austria  with  the  necessary  determination,    xxill.; 
was  succeeded  in  1861  by  his  brother  William  I.     He  was   Malleson, 
a  man  of  different  stuff.     Early  in  his  reign  he  made  Otto  RQff°™ding 
von  Bismarck  his  leading  minister,  and  through  a  long  reign    German 
he  cordially  sustained  the  vigorous  and  determined  policy  Empire 

Of  his  Chancellor.  (Scribner). 

If  Frederick  William's  policy  had  been  to  wait  until  the  ^J^ 

chance  should  come  when  everything  would  be  favorable,  and  iron." 

Bismarck's  was  to  force  the  favorable  opportunity  and  to  Mulier, 

overturn  every  obstacle  with  violence  —  the  policy  of  blood  Times 

and  iron,  as  he  called  it  himself.     So  far  as  national  unity  304-309. 


368 


Europe  since  1815 


[§§387,388 


The  consti- 
tution 
overridden. 


The 

Schleswig- 
Holstein 
question. 
Miiller, 
Recent 
Times, 
309-318. 


Little 
Denmark 
the  first 
stepping- 
stone  in  the 
rise  of 
Prussia, 
1864. 


was  concerned  that  should  be  realized,  but  it  should  be  real- 
ized by  the  sword  of  Prussia,  and  the  new  nation  should  re- 
main under  the  dominant  control  of  Prussia.  From  the 
beginning  this  was  the  end  which  Bismarck  sought  to  reach, 
and  this  was  what  he  accomplished. 

387.  The  Army  made  ready.  —  The   first  necessity  for 
the  success  of  such   a   policy   was  a    strong   army.     This 
William  had  seen   before    Bismarck  entered  the  ministry; 
and  while  he  was  regent,  in  the  last  years  of  his  brother's 
reign,  he  had  begun  to  increase  the  size  of  the   standing 
army,  and  to  improve  its  organization  and  discipline.     In 
the    Prussian  legislature  a  majority  was  opposed   to    these 
measures,  and  repeated    dissolutions  failed   to    secure   the 
lacking  votes.     But   the   policy  could   not   be    abandoned. 
Soon  after  Bismarck  took  office,  it  was  announced  to  the 
legislature  that  the  government  would  go  on  with  its  plans 
without  the  required  constitutional  sanction.     It  was  only 
after  the  first  great  military  successes  of  this  army  that  the 
representatives  of  the  people  acquiesced  in  this  policy. 

388.  The  New  Prussia's  First  War. — The  opportunity 
to  try  the  army  came  very  soon.     The  king  of  Denmark 
was  the  sovereign  also  of  two  German  duchies,  Schleswig 
and    Holstein,    lying   directly    south    of   Denmark   proper. 
According  to  existing  diplomatic  arrangements,  these  were 
to  remain  separate  states  and  could  not  be  incorporated  in 
the  kingdom  of  Denmark.     At   the    end    of  1863    a   new 
constitution  was  made  for  Denmark,  which  was  arranged  to 
apply  to  Schleswig  also  in  such  a  way  as  practically  to  an- 
nex that  duchy  to  Denmark.     The  German  Confederation 
objected.     Denmark  persisted.     In  January,  1864,  an  army 
of    Austrian    and    Prussian    troops    invaded   the    country. 
Resistance  was  determined  but  hopeless  against  such  odds. 

Denmark  was  forced  out  of  the  country  in  a  few  weeks, 
and  in  October  ceded  the  duchies.  After  some  disagree- 
ment between  Austria  and  Prussia  as  to  the  disposition  to 
be  made  of  the  conquest,  Prussia  took  Schleswig  and 
Austria  Holstein.  The  immediate  gain  was  very  consider- 


BISMARCK 


370 


Europe  since  1815 


[§§  389,  390 


Prussia 

could  not 

unite 

Germany 

without  first 

overthrowing 

Austria. 


Careful 
preparation 
made  for 
the  war. 


The  odds 

against 

Prussia. 

Fyffe, 

Europe, 

Chap. 

XXIII.; 

Miiller, 

Recent 

Times, 

318-368; 


able  for  Prussia  and  almost  nothing  for  Austria.  Still  more 
important  was  the  fact  that  this  arrangement  would  be  likely 
to  afford  grounds  for  a  quarrel  with  Austria  as  soon  as 
Prussia  was  ready  for  it. 

389.  War  with  Austria  must  come.  —  This  conflict  was 
a  necessity,  both  for  the  realization  of  the  plans  of  Prussia 
and  of  the  hopes  of  German  patriots.     Prussia  could  not 
be  the  dominant  power  in  the  nation  unless  Austria  were 
humbled.     No  national  unity  was  possible  so  long  as  these 
rival  powers  stood  upon  an  equal  footing.     All  through  the 
middle  of  the  century  public  opinion  in  Germany  had  looked 
more  hopefully  to  Prussia  than  to  Austria  as  the  power  from 
which  unity  was  to  be  expected.     Lately,  feeling  had  begun 
to  turn  against  Prussia  on  account  of  the  violence  which  the 
government  had  shown  to  the  constitution  and  on  account 
of  its  treatment  of  the  Schleswig-Holstein  question. 

Bismarck  made  careful  diplomatic  preparation  for  the  com- 
ing war.  Measures  were  taken  which  it  was  hoped  would 
secure  the  neutrality  of  Napoleon  III.  With  Italy,  which 
was  more  than  willing  from  its  eagerness  to  obtain  Venice, 
a  close  alliance  was  made  for  the  event  of  a  war  of  either 
state  with  Austria.  Immediately  after  the  making  of  this 
treaty,  Bismarck  proposed  to  the  Diet  the  calling  of  an 
assembly  for  a  revision  of  the  constitution  of  the  Confeder- 
ation. This  could  only  mean  one  thing,  the  formation  of  a 
new  confederation  without  Austria.  The  Diet  decided,  how- 
ever, rather  in  favor  of  Austria.  Thereupon  Prussia  formerly 
withdrew  from  the  Confederation,  and  war  began  at  once. 

390.  The  "  Seven  Weeks'  "  War.  —  The  war  was  a  real 
civil  war.       On  the  side  of  Prussia  were  the    small  states 
of  the  north.     But  on  the  side    of  Austria  all   the  south, 
and  all  the  large  states  of  the  north,  like  Hanover,  Saxony, 
Nassau,  and  the    electorate  of  Hesse,  whose  governments 
had  the  most   to  fear  from  the   designs   of  Prussia.     The 
odds  seemed  to  be  against  William  and  his  minister,  but 
the  advantage  of  their  thorough  preparation  was  quickly 
manifest. 


§§39J>3923    Results  of  the  War  for  Austria  3/1 

The  war  was  soon  over.     It  has  been  called  the  Seven  Leger, 
Weeks'  War.     In  three  weeks,  indeed,  Austria  had  been  so 
thoroughly   beaten   in   the   great   battle  of  Koniggratz,  or 

Sadowa,  in  Bohemia,  that  no  further  resistance  was  for  the    , 

Austria 
moment  possible,  and  the  Prussian  army  reached  the  neigh-   quickly 

borhood  of  Vienna  before  an  armistice  was  arranged  through  beaten,  1866 
the  mediation  of  Napoleon  III.  The  allies  of  Austria  could 
not  hope  to  overcome  Prussia  alone,  and  were  obliged  to 
accept  the  result.  The  Italians  had  had  no  corresponding 
good  fortune  in  their  campaign.  They  had  been  beaten  on 
land  and  at  sea,  but  the  destruction  of  the  Austrian  army  at 
Sadowa  had  compelled  the  recall  of  her  Italian  troops  and 
the  abandonment  of  Venice. 

391.  The  Results  of  the  War  for  Germany.  —  The  peace   Prussian 
of   Prague,  which  closed  the  war,  did  not  create  German   annexations, 
unity,  but  it  made  its  creation  very  easy  on  the  next  oppor- 
tunity.    Austria  withdrew  from  Germany.     Prussia   made 

large  annexations.  Hanover,  Nassau,  Electoral  Hesse, 
Schleswig-Holstein,  and  Frankfort  were  taken,  and  thus  for 
the  first  time  her  provinces  on  the  Rhine  were  connected  by 
continuous  territory  with  those  in  the  east. 

Then  a  new  confederation  was  formed  with  the  other  The  new 
North  German  states,  a  union  whose  constitution  formed  the 
foundation  of  that  of  the  present  German  Empire.  The 
foreign  policy  of  the  Confederation  was  to  be  under  the 
control  of  Prussia,  and  its  military  resources  in  time  of  war. 
The  large  South  German  states,  though  not  members  of  this 
confederation,  in  a  short  time  made  secret  treaties  with 
Prussia,  by  which  their  troops  were  to  be  placed  under  the 
command  of  the  king  of  Prussia  in  case  of  war.  It  needed 
but  slight  changes  to  transform  this  arrangement  into  a 
federal  state,  the  present  Empire. 

392.  The  Results  of  the  War  for  Austria.  — The  with-   The  creation 
drawal  of  Austria  from  Germany  did  not  constitute  all  the   Hungary*" 
change  which  the  war  forced  upon  her.     Venice  was  ceded  under  con- 
to  Italy,  and  so  that  country  advanced  a  step  towards  national  stitutionai 

.  _  ,  ,    governments, 

completeness.    But  also  the  spirit  of  race  independence  and 


372 


Europe  since  1815 


[§§  393.  394 


Leger, 

Austro- 

Hungary, 

572-588. 


A  necessary 
war. 
Fyffe, 
Europe, 
Chap.  XXIV. 


Discontent 
in  France. 


of  constitutional  government  triumphed  elsewhere  in  the 
Empire.  Francis  Joseph  had  granted  a  constitution  to  the 
Empire,  after  the  war  with  Italy  and  France  in  1860,  but  it 
had  been  very  imperfectly  carried  out.  Now  Hungary  was 
created  a  separate  kingdom,  with  its  own  constitution,  minis- 
try, legislature,  and  local  self-government.  A  similar  consti- 
tution was  also  given  Austria,  and  the  two  states  were  united 
in  a  kind  of  federal  legislature  for  the  consideration  of  com- 
mon aifairs.  The  day  when  the  Bohemians  and  the  other 
races  under  Austrian  rule  should  obtain  their  local  inde- 
pendence was  postponed,  but  the  way  was  made  easier  by 
what  Hungary  had  gained. 

393.  The  Franco-Prussian  War  desired  by  Both  Govern- 
ments. —  Another  greater  and   more  glorious  war  was  to 
complete  the  process  of  nation  making  in  Germany,  the  war 
with  France.     This  was  a  war  which  seemed  equally  neces- 
sary to    the   governments    of  both   countries.      If  Prussia 
needed  it  to  complete  the  organization  of  the  new  Empire, 
Napoleon  III.  thought  that  by  a  victorious  war  with  Prussia, 
whose  growing  power  seemed  a  menace  to  France,  he  could 
strengthen  his  government. 

Things  had  not  been  going  well  with  the  emperor  of 
recent  years.  The  failure  of  his  attempt  in  Mexico  to 
overthrow  the  republic  and  set  up  an  empire  under  his  pro- 
tection had  reacted  against  him  in  France.  The  republican 
opposition  was  growing  constantly  stronger,  not  merely 
among  the  people,  but  in  the  legislature.  The  concessions 
which  Napoleon  made  from  time  to  time,  going  at  last  so 
far  as  to  grant  the  responsibility  of  the  ministry  to  the  legis- 
lature, failed  of  their  purpose  —  the  conciliation  of  the  oppo- 
sition. The  republicans  were  glad  to  get  anything  they  could, 
but  they  were  not  to  be  satisfied  short  of  everything.  A 
glorious  foreign  war,  especially  one  against  Prussia,  would 
arouse  the  enthusiasm  of  the  French  and  the  memories  of 
the  first  Empire,  and  secure  the  position  of  the  Napoleonic 
dynasty  for  another  generation. 

394.  The  Pretext  found  for  War.  —  When  two  countries 


§§395>3963          The  Course  of  the  War  373 

are  anxious  to  go  to  war  with  one  another,  an  excuse  can  A  revolution 
soon  be  found,  and  the  ostensible  reason  for  the  Franco-   in  Spain. 
Prussian  War  was  a  mere  excuse.    In  1868  the  Spanish  peo-  Receni 
pie,  tired  of  the  rule  of  their  Bourbon  queen,  Isabella,  had    Times, 
driven  her  out  by  a  revolution,  and  had  organized  a  republic.   409~417* 
But  Spain  was  not  yet  able  to  govern  herself  under  repub- 
lican forms,  and  in  a  few  years  they  began  to  look  about  for 
some  prince,  not  a  Bourbon,  who  would  rule  as  a  constitu- 
tional sovereign. 

Early  in  the  summer  of  1870,  Prince  Leopold,  of  the  France 
younger  Hohenzollern  line,  accepted  the  throne.     At  once   caTnTn°'t  allow 

*,  a  Hohenzol- 

.b  ranee  protested.     It  could  not  tolerate  the  reestabhshment   lern  in  Spain, 
of  the  monarchy  of  Charles  V.  in  favor  of  the  Hohenzollerns. 
Prince  Leopold  withdrew  his  acceptance.     France  then  de-   The  declara- 
manded  of  King  William  an  assurance  that  the  crown  of  !ion, °f^ar 

in  Schilling, 

Spain  should  not  be  accepted  at  any  future  time.     When  Quellenbuch, 

this  was  refused,  relations  were  broken  off  and  the  war  was  464- 
begun. 

395.  France  began  the  War  with  False  Hopes.  —  France  Disap- 
immediately  found   herself  disappointed  and  deceived   in  P°intedof 
more  ways  than  one.     She  had  expected  that  Austria  and 

the  South  German  states  would  join  in  the  war  against 
Prussia,  anxious  to  be  revenged  for  their  defeat  in  the  last 
war.  But  Austria  was  held  back  by  Russia,  and  the  South 
German  people  proved  themselves  as  enthusiastic  and  patri- 
otic as  those  of  the  north  in  resisting  the  hereditary  enemy. 
The  German  nation  was  at  last  united. 

France  had  believed  also  that  everything  was  well  pre-   Deceived  in 
pared  in  the  way  of  war  material  and  a  well- organized  and   resard  to  hel 
disciplined  army  for  a  rapid  advance  into  German  territory.   res0urces 
"  On  to  Berlin  "  was  the  cry  of  the  multitude.     In  this  she  was 
deceived.    Nothing  was  ready.   The  German  army  was  larger, 
in  better  order,  and  better  handled.     It  was  especially  rapid 
in  its  attack,  and  there  never  was  a  moment  when   the 
French  had  the  least  chance  of  invading  German  soil. 

396.  The  Course  of  the  War. — Within  two  months  the  Napoleon 
great  French  armies  which  were  to  capture  Berlin  had-sur-   ni.  and  his 


374 


Europe  since  1815 


[§396 


armies 
surrend 
Miiller, 
Recent 
Times, 
426-440. 


The 

republic 
proclaimed 
in  Paris. 
Sept.  4,  1870. 


rendered  to  the  enemy.     MacMahon  was  beaten  in  the  great 
battle  of  Worth,  and  later  his  reorganized  army 
was  compelled  to  surrender  at  Sedan,  where 
also  the  Emperor  Napoleon,  who  had  been 
present  at  the  battle,  sent  his  sword  to 
"his   brother"    King   William.      Ba- 
zaine   with  the  other  great   army 
held  out  for  a  few  weeks  longer 
in  the  fortress  of  Metz,  and 
then  surrendered  also. 
In  Paris  on  the  news 
of  Sedan  the  repub- 
lic had  been  pro- 
claimed and  a  pro- 
visional    govern- 
ment of  national 
defence  had  been 
organized.     After 
an  attempt  to  ne- 
gotiate with    Bis- 
marck, the  new 
government, 
which  refused   to 
pay  the  price  of 
the  cession  of  Al- 
sace and  Lorraine 
which     was     de- 
manded     for 
peace,    deter- 
mined  to  go   on 
with  the  war.    Be- 
fore the    end    of 
September,  hardly 
more    than    six 
GERMANIA  NIEDERWALD  MONUMENT         weeks    after     the 

first  fighting,  Paris 
was  completely  surrounded  by  the  German  lines. 


§§397. 398]      Alsace-Lorraine  and  Rome  375 

The  city  made  a  brave  defence.     It  endured  a  bombard-   France 
ment  of  three  weeks,  and  attempted  in  a  desperate  sortie  to  forced  to 
break  the  siege  lines.     Outside  the  city  also  the  efforts  of  the   Bismarck's 
provisional  government  had  no  better  result.     Their  armies  terms. 
in  the  various  provinces  all  met  with  defeat.     Finally  further 
resistance  became  hopeless,  and   an   armistice  was  agreed 
upon  at  the  end  of  January,  1871.     A  national  assembly  was 
elected  which  met  in  Bordeaux  to   arrange  the  terms   of 
peace.     France  was  obliged  now  to  accede  to  Bismarck's 
demand  and  give  up  Alsace  and   Lorraine,  to  pay  a  large 
war  indemnity,  and  to  allow  the  German  troops  to  hold  a 
part  of  France  until  it  was  paid. 

397.  The  Empire  of  Germany.  —  In  demanding  the  ces-  William  I., 
sion  of  these  provinces,  Bismarck  was  hardly  true  to  the   emperor  of 

,  .    .     .  ,  .         „         Germany. 

principle  of  nationality  to  which  he  owed  so  much.     For  See  on 
that  principle  had  now  completely  triumphed  in  Germany,   growth  of 
On  the  i8th  of  January,  in  the  hall  of  Louis  XIV.'s  palace  at   German  . 

J  r  unity  to  the 

Versailles,  the  German  Empire  had  been  proclaimed  with    Empire. 
William  I.  as  emperor,  and  all  the  States  united  under  one   Bryce, 
government.     This  triumph  of  the  principle  of  nationality  in 
Germany  carried  with  it  in  form  the  triumph  of  constitutional   399-445. 
government,  for  the  constitution  of  the  Empire  was  that  of  a 
limited  monarchy.     But  in  practice  the  imperial  ministries 
have  not  been  responsible  to  the  legislature,  and  the  German 
people  have  still  much  to  gain  before  they  have  entirely  free 
government. 

398.  Alsace-Lorraine  and  Rome. — In  the  case  of  Alsace  Aisace- 
and  Lorraine,  the  territory  had  indeed  at  one  time  belonged   Lorraine 

rccillv  3, 

to  Germany.     It  had  come  into  the  possession  of  France   forejgn 
at  various  times  and  in   different  ways.     Some  of  it  had  conquest, 
been  conquered  by  Louis  XIV.,  and  a  part  of  this,  like 
Strasburg,  by  a  most  violent  and  brutal  disregard  of  law 
and  right.      But  it  had  now  become  really  French,  and 
its  representatives  in  the  assembly  made   solemn   protest 
against   the    cession.      That    it   may   in    time    become   as 
truly  German  is  likely,  but  its  annexation  by  Germany,  in 
which  it  was  organized  as  a  separate  imperial  territory,  can 


376 


Europe  since  1815 


[§§399,400 


Rome  the 
capital  of 
Italy. 


The 
Commune. 


The  consti- 
tution very 
slowly 
created. 
Annals  Am. 
Acad.  Pol. 
and  Social 
Science, 
Vol.  VI.,  and 
Supplement, 
March,  1893. 


National 
unity  and 
constitu- 
tional 
governments. 


hardly  be  regarded  otherwise  than  as  a  conquest  of  force, 
like  Louis  XIV.'s. 

The  war  had  other  consequences  than  the  union  of  Ger- 
many. Napoleon  could  no  longer  protect  the  pope,,  In 
September,  1870,  the  Italian  troops  entered  Rome,  and  that 
city  became  the  capital  of  united  Italy.  In  France  the  re- 
sults were  still  more  important.  The  despotism  of  the 
second  Empire  was  at  an  end,  and  the  third  Republic  was 
begun. 

399.  The  Third  Republic  in  France.  —  The  way  of  the 
new  republic  was  not  easy  at  first.     It  had  many  dangers  to 
overcome.      The   communistic   party  in   Paris,  which   had 
aroused  so  much  fear  in  the  middle  classes  in  1848,  had  in- 
creased in   strength.      Now  it  rose   in  insurrection  again, 
seized  Paris,  and  held   it   several   weeks,  doing   enormous 
damage  before  it  could  be  subdued. 

Throughout  the  whole  of  France  the  republic  was  hardly 
desired  by  the  majority  of  the  people,  and  progress  in  the 
formation  of  a  final  republican  constitution  was  slow  and 
cautious.  It  was  five  years  before  the  legislature  contained 
a  republican  majority,  and  it  was  some  years  more  before 
the  constitution  was  completed,  and  the  country  began  to 
have  confidence  in  the  permanence  of  the  government. 
The  third  Republic  has  now,  however,  passed  through  several 
severe  crises  in  safety ;  its  legislatures  and  cabinets  have 
shown  themselves  less  subject  to  panic  in  times  of  threatened 
coup  d'etat  than  was  formerly  the  case  with  republican  gov- 
ernments in  France ;  and  the  people  seem  to  have  acquired 
calmness  and  self-control  and  to  be  learning  real  self-gov- 
ernment. We  may  hope  that  France  has  at  last  obtained 
a  free  government  by  the  people  in  the  place  of  paternal 
despotism. 

400.  The  Results  of  the  Period  in  Europe  at  Large.  —  By 
the  end  of  the  Franco- Prussian  War,  in  1871,  national  unity 
had  been  secured  by  Italy  and  Germany,  and  all  the  coun- 
tries of  Europe,  except  Russia,  had  gained  constitutional 
government.      These  governments  all  follow  more  or  less 


§  4oi] 


The  Eastern  Question 


377 


closely  the  model  of  limited  monarchy  created  by  England, 
and  where  they  are  administered  in  the  same  spirit,  as  is 
nearly  everywhere  the  case,  they  make,  as  the  constitution 
of  England  does,  a  virtual  republic. 


M.  THIERS 

401.  The   Eastern   Question.  —  During  the   last  quarter  More  than  a 
of  the  nineteenth  century,  the  great  interest  of  international   century  old- 
politics  in  Europe  has  been  the  "  Eastern  question."     This 
question  has  troubled  European  diplomacy  for  more  than 
a  hundred  years,  and  seems  after  all  this  time  no  nearer 
solution  than  at  the  beginning.     The  difficulty  has  not  been   The  real 
to  overthrow  the  Turk,  for,  if  he  had  been  left  to  himself,   difficulty- 
his  dominion  would  have  ended  long  ago,  but  it  has  been 
to  find  a  disposition  of  his  territories  which  would  satisfy 
all  the  interested  parties.      Russia,  Austria,  and  England, 
on  account  of  her  possession  of  India,  have  all  had  an  irn- 


378 


Europe  since  1815 


[§§  402, 403 


The  results. 


Its  origin. 
See  p.  402. 


Mahmoud 
II., 

1808-1839. 


The  value 

of  reforms. 

Fyffe, 

Europe, 

659-672; 

Miiller, 

Recent 

Times, 

155-159= 


The  inter- 
ference of 
Russia. 


mediate  concern  in  the  result,  and  the  other  states  have 
been  indirectly  interested  not  to  allow  too  great  an  exten- 
sion of  power  to  any  one  state. 

The  impossibility  of  reaching  an  agreement  among  the 
great  powers,  except  for  a  small  piece  at  a  time,  has  kept 
the  Turkish  Empire  a  long  time  dying,  and  it  has  exposed 
the  weaker  Christian  races  left  under  its  rule  at  different 
times  to  most  barbarous  atrocities ;  but  on  the  other  hand, 
in  a  part  of  European  Turkey,  it  has  led  to  a  recogni- 
tion, which  would  not  otherwise  have  been  made,  of  the 
principle  of  local  self-government  and  of  race  indepen- 
dence. 

402.  The  First  Stages  of  the  Question.  —  Near  the  close  of 
the  eighteenth  century,  as  we  have  seen,  Catherine  II.  had 
a  plan  for  the  disposition  of  European  Turkey  and  thought 
that  she  was  going  to  be  able  to  carry  it  through  with  the 
aid  of  Austria,  but  the  other  powers  stepped  in  and  she  was 
not  allowed  to  complete  the  work.     During  the  first  third 
of  the   nineteenth    century  there   was  a   considerable  re- 
vival of  strength  in  the  Turkish  Empire  due  to  the  vigor 
and  ability  of  the  sultan,  Mahmoud  II.     During  his  reign 
occurred  the  revolt  of  the  Greeks,  but  this  would  probably 
have  been  subdued  by  the  Turks  if  Russia,  England,  and 
France  had  not  taken  part  against  them. 

403.  Rise  of  Egypt  under  Mehemet  All.  —  At  the  same 
time   there  was   in    Egypt  a  most   remarkable   revival    of 
Mohammedan  power  under  the  pasha,  Mehemet  Ali,  one  of 
the  ablest  men  of  his  day.     He  began  with  well-considered 
political   and    military   reforms  in  his  own   province,  and 
appears  to  have  been  anxious  to  extend  the  benefit  of  these 
measures  to  the  whole  Empire,  as  the  first  minister  of  the 
sultan,  with  the  hope  of  bringing  back  the  great  days  of 
Turkish  history. 

He  was  opposed  at  Constantinople,  however,  and  was  at 
last  obliged  to  make  war  on  the  sultan.  His  troops  were 
at  once  successful,  and  conquered  all  Syria  and  a  large  part 
of  Asia  Minon  Then  Russia  interfered,  alarmed  at  his 


§  404]        Preliminaries  of  Crimean  War  379 

growing  power.  In  1833  Mehemet  All  agreed  to  a  peace 
with  Turkey  by  which  he  was  left  in  possession  of  Syria  and 
a  small  portion  of  Asia  Minor,  Russia  managing  as  usual  to 
secure  important  advantages  from  the  troubles  of  the  suc- 
cessor of  the  prophet. 

The  sultan,  however,  did  not  propose  to  allow  this  Finally 
arrangement  to  stand,  and  six  years  later  he  attacked  his 
too  ambitious  governor.  Success  was  again  on  the  side  of 
Mehemet  Ali,  and  again  the  intervention  of  Russia  was 
necessary.  But  by  this  time  the  interest  of  other  powers 
had  been  excited,  particularly  that  of  England,  because  she 
recognized,  as  Bonaparte  had  done,  that  the  way  of  dan- 
gerous attack  upon  India  lay  through  Egypt.  Russia  had 
to  admit  the  intervention  of  England,  Austria,  and  Prussia 
with  her  own.  The  allied  powers  attacked  Syria.  Mehemet 
Ali  was  of  course  compelled  to  submit.  His  conquests  in 
Asia  were  taken  from  him,  but  he  was  allowed  Egypt  as  a 
hereditary  possession  of  his  family,  with  local  autonomy  but 
under  the  suzerainty  of  Turkey.  By  another  treaty  the 
European  powers  guaranteed  the  integrity  of  the  Turkish 
Empire. 

404.  The  Preliminaries  of  the  Crimean  War.  —  If  this  Nicholas  I. 
arrangement  was  for  the  purpose  of  putting  Russia  under  r(j^™^the 
bonds  not  to  proceed  with  her  designs  in  regard  to  Turkey,  Catherine  II 
it  had  no  more  effect  than  such  treaties  usually  do  in  simi- 
lar cases.  In  ten  years'  time  Nicholas  I.  had  resumed  his 
plans,  on  a  scale  as  extensive  as  those  of  Catherine  II.,  and 
he  hoped  to  succeed  in  alliance  with  England,  as  she  had 
hoped  to  by  the  help  of  Austria  and  France.  Egypt,  which 
Catherine  had  offered  to  France,  he  offered  together  with 
Crete  to  England.  He  proposed  to  take  the  most  of 
European  Turkey  and  Constantinople  himself.  England 
refused  the  offer.  Then  he  demanded  of  the  sultan  the 
protectorate  of  the  Christians  in  Turkey,  which  in  former 
times  had  been  conceded  to  Russia  by  treaty  and  subse- 
quently withdrawn.  On  the  refusal  to  grant  this  he  began 
war. 


38o 


Europe  since  1815 


[§405 


England  and  405.  The  Crimean  War  (1854-1856).  — This  was  the  be- 
France  make  ginning  of  the  Crimean  War.  His  successes  early  demanded 
Russia.  tne  attention  of  England.  Napoleon  III.  also  had  reasons  of 

Fyffe,  his  own  for  interference,  and  he  was  not  sorry  to  have  the 

opportunity  for  a  war.     Later  the  king  of  Sardinia  joined 


Europe, 


SEBASTOPOL 


Times, 
253-270- 


Chap.  XXI.;  in  the  war  and  sent  fifteen  thousand  men  against  the 
CZSiT'  ^^  a^ies  attac^e(^  southern  Russia  through  the 
Black  Sea,  and  thus  forced  the  return  of  the  Russian  army 
from  beyond  the  Danube.  The  chief  event  of  the  war  was 
the  siege  of  Sebastopol,  which  the  Russians  were  finally 
obliged  to  yield.  In  the  course  of  the  war  Nicholas  I.  died 
and  the  more  liberal-minded  Alexander  II.  came  to  the 


§  4°6]  Russia  again  attacks' Turkey  381 

throne.     The  peace  of  Paris  in  1856  deprived  Russia  of  her  The  terms 
right  to  maintain  a  fleet  on  the  Black  Sea,  and  of  her  pro-   of  Peace- 
tectorate  of  the  Danubian  principalities,  Wallachia  and  Mol- 
davia.    A  short  time  afterwards   these  principalities  were 
united  to  form  that  of  Roumania  with  local  independence 
on  the  payment  of  a  tribute  to  Turkey. 

The  result  of  the  Crimean  War  was,  therefore,  the  intro-  Theprinci- 
duction  of  the  practice  of  forming  little  independent  states   pie  of 
out  of  European  Turkey,  corresponding  to  the  local  division   ^cognized 
of  races,  and  this  practice  has  since  been  carried  much 
further.     It  placed  a  barrier  of  independent  territory  be- 
tween Russia  and  the  Turkish  Empire,  and  this  result  was 
no  doubt  more  desired  by  the  allied  powers  than  any  recog- 
nition of  the  principle  of  nationality ;  but  it  is  not  to  be 
regretted  that  diplomacy  was  for  once  on  the  side  of  the 
people. 

406.   Russia  again  attacks  Turkey.     1877.  —  Alexander  Aiexan- 
II.  set  free  the  serfs  of  Russia  in   1863,  but  he  had  no  in-   Continues 
tention  of  abandoning  the  policy  of  his  ancestors  for  aggran-   Russia's 
dizement  at  the  expense  of  Turkey.     The  Franco-Prussian   P°licy- 
War  gave  him  an  opportunity  of  which  he  took  advantage   Europe, 
to  recover  the  right  to  keep  ships  of  war  on  the  Black  Chap.  XXV 
Sea.     Soon  afterwards  insurrections  of  the   Christians  be- 
gan in  the  Danube  valley,  which  the  Turks  undertook  to 
repress  in  their  usual  style  with  barbarous  cruelties.     The   The  Bui- 
Bulgarian  massacres  so  excited  the  horror  of  Europe,  es-  Sanan 

massacres. 

pecially  of  England,  that  Russia  believed  she  could  venture 
to  interfere. 

The  Turks  made  a  most  vigorous  defence,  especially  at  Russia 
the   fortress   at   Plevna,  under  Osman   Pasha,  but   he  was 
obliged  to   surrender   in   December,  1877.     The  Russians   Mtiller, 
now  crossed  the  Balkans,  and  advanced  to  the  neighborhood  Recent 
of  Constantinople.     It  was  the  plan  of  Alexander  to  form  a 
great  state  under  Russian  protection  of  almost  all  the  Euro- 
pean territories  of  Turkey,  and  to  this  the  sultan  consented 
in  the  treaty  of  San  Stefano.     This  would  never  do  for  the 
interests   of  Austria   and   England.     Lord   Beaconsfield — 


382 


Europe  since  1815 


[§§  407, 408 


In  general, 
Miiller, 
Recent 
Times, 

547-5541 
McCarthy, 
Our  Own 
Times,  II., 
Chap.  LXV. 

Russia. 


Austria. 


The  Balkan 

states. 

Miller, 

The  Balkan 

States 

(Nations). 


Russia  not 

entirely 
satisfied. 


Disraeli  —  especially  protested  against  it,  and  by  the  medi- 
ation of  Bismarck  a  congress  was  called  to  meet  at  Berlin 
and  make  arrangements  satisfactory  to  all. 

407.  The  Treaty  of  Berlin.    1878. — The  treaty  of  Berlin 
changed  entirely  the  dispositions   of  that  of  San  Stefano. 
Russia  gained  less,  Turkey  retained  more,  and  at  the  same 
time  the  small  states  of  the  Danube  valley  obtained  a  more 
independent   position.     To   Russia   was   given   a  strip   of 
territory    at   the    northwestern   corner   of   the    Black   Sea, 
which  carried   her  boundary  once   more   to    the  northern 
mouth   of  the   Danube,  and   in   Asia  an  addition   to  her 
lands  south  of  the  Caucasus,  including  the  cities  of  Kars 
and  Batoum. 

Austria  was  allowed  the  military  occupation  and  adminis- 
tration of  the  provinces  of  Bosnia  and  Herzegovina,  a  virt- 
ual annexation.  England,  by  an  arrangement  of  its  own 
with  the  sultan,  took  possession  of  Cyprus,  engaging  to  pay 
over  to  Turkey  the  surplus  revenue,  and  hoping  to  be  able 
from  there  to  watch  and  check  the  designs  of  Russia  in 
western  Asia. 

Russia's  great  Balkan  state  was  cut  to  pieces.  Macedonia 
went  back  to  Turkey  and  has  remained  under  the  sultan 
ever  since.  Bulgaria,  between  the  Danube  and  the  Balkans, 
was  made  a  principality  dependent  upon  Turkey,  and  the 
province  south  of  the  Balkans  was  left  to  Turkey,  but  was 
to  have  an  independent  administration  under  a  Christian 
governor.  The  sultan  agreed  to  make  some  small  additions 
to  Greece,  and  this  was  done  a  few  years  later.  The  older 
Danubian  principalities,  Roumania,  Servia,  and  Montenegro, 
were  made  independent  states. 

408.  Later  History  of  the  Balkan  States.  —  This  treaty, 
the  most  important  step  ever  taken  towards  the  settlement 
of  the  Eastern  question,  because  it  proceeded  according  to 
national  lines,  did  not  prove  a  final  settlement  because  it  did 
not  go  far  enough.     Russia  was  disappointed  of  the  con- 
trolling influence  which  she  hoped  to  exercise  in  Bulgaria, 
a  strong  party  in  that  state  favoring  an  independent  national 


3^4 


Europe  since  1815 


[§409 


Bulgaria    • 
advancing. 


Bulgaria's 

independent 

attitude. 


The  future  of 
the  Danube 
valley. 


The 

Armenian 

massacres. 


policy.  In  1885  the  South  Balkan  province,  eastern  Rume- 
lia,  elected  the  prince  of  Bulgaria  its  governor.  This  was 
equivalent  to  an  annexation,  and  Servia  at  once  took  arms 
to  prevent  it.  But  she  proved  no  match  in  the  field  for 
Bulgaria,  and  was  only  saved  from  conquest  by  the  interven- 
tion of  the  great  powers.  Rumelia  has  since  remained 
under  the  prince  of  Bulgaria. 

In  1886  the  first  prince  of  Bulgaria,  Alexander  of  Batten- 
berg,  who  proved  to  incline  too  much  to  the  national  party, 
was  forced  by  Russian  intrigues  to  abdicate,  but  Russia  was 
not  strong  enough  to  prevent  the  election  of  Prince  Ferdi- 
nand of  Saxe-Coburg-Gotha  as  his  successor ;  he  accepted 
the  position  without  the  international  sanction  required  by 
the  treaty  of  Berlin,  but  has  proved  himself  able  to  hold  it. 

These  small  Danubian  states  are  constitutional  monarchies, 
modelled  on  that  of  England,  which  are  fairly  well  managed, 
and  are  very  democratic  in  spirit.  They  have  an  intense 
national  feeling,  and  are  extremely  jealous  of  one  another. 
Each  is  eagerly  hoping  for  some  opportunity  for  expansion 
in  the  dissolution  of  the  Turkish  Empire,  and  each  is  watch- 
ing lest  some  one  of  the  others  should  gain  a  premature 
advantage.  What  the  final  outcome  will  be,  still  remains 
as  uncertain  as  ever,  but  it  will  hardly  be  possible  for 
Europe,  once  having  so  clearly  recognized  the  principle  of 
nationality,  to  recede  from  it  in  the  settlement  of  the  future 
of  European  Turkey. 

409.  Later  Phases  of  the  Eastern  Question.  —  After  a  few 
years  pause,  the  Eastern  question  again  advanced  to  a  sharp 
crisis  in  another  part  of  the  Empire.  Turkish  passion  —  the 
passion  of  a  dying  race  taking  vengeance  upon  any  of  the 
races  that  are  surplanting  it  which  it  still  has  in  its  power — 
broke  out  in  fearful  atrocities  against  the  Christian  Armeni- 
ans of  Asia.  The  material  for  the  history  of  this  period  is 
not  yet  accessible,  but  it  seems  evident  that  the  jealousies  of 
the  great  powers  prevented  the  adoption  of  any  effective 
check  on  the  actions  of  the  Turks,  until  their  passion  burned 
itself  out. 


§  409]    Later  Phases  of  the  Eastern  Qtiestion       385 

Early  in  1897  the  rather  uncalculating  anger  of  the  Greek 
people  forced  that  government  into  a  war  with  Turkey,  which 
proved  in  a  few  weeks  disastrous  to  Greece.  Her  prepara- 
tions were  insufficient,  and  her  troops  though  brave  were 
very  poorly  led.  But  for  the  intervention  of  the  great  powers 
she  would  have  been  obliged  to  agree  to  any  conditions  of 
peace  demanded,  and  as  it  was  the  war  proved  a  very  costly 
experiment. 

The  Eastern  question  seems  on  the  eve  of  leading  to  new 
and  decisive  events,  which  no  one  can  foreshadow.  But  it 
is  only  one  of  the  great  unsettled  problems  in  the  political 
situation  of  the  world  with  which  the  twentieth  century  will 
open,  and  which  seem  about  to  bring  us  very  soon  to  mo- 
mentous issues. 


War  between 
Greece  and 
Turkey. 


The  Eastern 
question  but 
one  of  the 
problems  of 
world 
politics. 


Topics 

The  three  lines  of  important  changes  in  the  nineteenth  century. 
The  purposes  of  the  Holy  Alliance,  ostensible  and  real.  The  character 
of  the  early  revolutionary  movement.  What  were  the  events  in  Europe 
which  led  to  the  Monroe  Doctrine?  What  led  to  the  "July  revolu- 
tion" in  France?  Its  consequences  in  Europe.  Character  of  the 
reign  of  Louis  Philippe.  The  causes  and  character  of  the  Revolution 
of  1848.  The  socialistic  experiment  and  its  outcome.  The  revolution 
in  Austria.  In  Italy.  The  new  policy  of  the  House  of  Savoy.  The 
movement  in  Germany.  Attitude  of  the  king  of  Prussia.  Russia's 
policy  towards  free  government.  How  was  the  second  Empire  estab- 
lished? The  union  of  the  cause  of  free  government  with  that  of 
nationality.  Treatment  of  the  national  idea  by  the  Congress  of  Vienna. 
The  Greek  war  of  independence.  The  independence  of  Belgium.  The 
failure  in  1848.  The  Zollverein.  The  Italian  policy  of  Cavour.  How 
did  he  win  France":-  The  formation  of  the  kingdom  of  Italy.  The 
new  policy  of  Prussia.  The  attitude  of  William  and  Bismarck  towards 
the  constitution.  Prussia's  first  step  —  the  quarrel  with  Denmark. 
Why  was  war  with  Austria  necessary?  How  was  it  brought  about? 
The  character  of  the  war.  The  new  German  confederation.  Changes 
produced  in  the  Austrian  Empire.  What  advantages  to  the  cause  of 
constitutional  government  in  Italy,  Austria,  and  Germany?  Why  was 
Napoleon  III.  willing  for  a  war  with  Germany?  Why  was  Prussia  also 
willing?  What  was  the  pretext  for  the  war?  How  was  France  dis- 
appointed? The  events  of  the  war.  What  change  of  government  in 


386  Europe  since  1815 

France?  In  Germany?  The  terms  of  peace.  The  Alsace-Lorraine 
question.  The  constitution  and  condition  of  the  third  Republic  in 
France.  In  what  circumstances  did  the  Eastern  question  first  arise? 
What  is  the  real  question,  and  why  is  it  difficult?  Mehemet  Ali,  his 
plans  and  their  outcome.  The  plans  of  Nicholas  I.  The  allies  in  the 
Crimean  War.  The  settlement  at  its  close.  The  war  of  1877.  The 
treaty  of  Berlin.  The  recent  history  of  Bulgaria.  The  situation  at  the 
close  of  the  nineteenth  century.  What  advantages  to  the  principles  of 
nationality  and  of  free  government  from  the  changes  in  Turkey  ? 

Topics  for  Assigned  Studies 

European  politics  and  the  Monroe  Doctrine.     Fyffe,  Europe,  Chap.  XIV. 

Miiller,  Recent  Times,  23-62.     Am.  Hist.  Leaf.,  No.  4.     Old  South, 

No.  56. 
The  Bulgarian  massacres.     Miiller,  Recent  Times,  505-517.    McCarthy, 

Our  Own  Times,  II.,  591-595.     Fyffe,  Europe,  in  Chap.  XXV. 


CHAPTER  VII 

ANGLO-SAXON  EXPANSION  AND  THE  GROWTH  OF 
WORLD   POLITICS 

410.  Europe  no  longer  the  Stage  of  History.  — Tradition-  The  globe 
ally  the  politics  of  the  continent  of  Europe,  the  international  ]a°ger  than 
relations  of  the  great  powers,  are  the  controlling  factors  in  Europe  in 
diplomacy.     Men  find  it  still  difficult  to  believe  that  this  is  l8oa 

no  longer  so,  but  in  reality  the  nineteenth  century  has 
wrought  a  great  change.  The  interest  of  most  nations  is  now 
turned  far  more  to  other  continents  than  to  Europe.  The 
whole  world  is  now  the  field  of  active  diplomacy,  and  with 
the  vast  improvements  in  means  of  intercommunication  and 
the  transmission  of  news,  the  globe  is  no  larger  than  the  con- 
tinent of  Europe  was  when  the  nineteenth  century  opened. 
Its  remotest  inhabited  parts  are  about  as  easily  reached  and 
controlled  as  the  remotest  portions  of  Europe  a  hundred 
years  ago. 

411.  The  Occupation  of  the  World.  —  Germany,  France,   All  the  great 
and  England  have  divided  Africa  between  them.     Russia  JJ?^5 
has  stretched  over  the  whole  of  central  and  northern  Asia,  interested. 
English   territory  has   been   greatly  extended   in   southern 

Asia.  At  the  eastern  end  of  that  continent,  Japan  has  sud- 
denly risen  to  be  a  power  of  the  first  rank,  and  there  is  now 
as  much  doubt  and  eager  jealousy  over  the  ultimate  disposi- 
tion to  be  made  of  China  as  there  ever  was  over  that  of 
Turkey.  Off  to  the  south  of  Asia  a  new  English  nation  has 
grown  up  in  Australasia,  soon  to  be  of  the  first  rank,  and 
already  greatly  interested  in  the  settlement  of  Oriental  ques- 
tions. 

387 


388 


Anglo-Saxon  Expansion 


[§412 


The  United 
States  a 
world  power. 


World 
politics  the 
work  of 
the  Anglo- 
Saxon. 


Transporta- 
tion. 


Australia 
then  unoccu- 
pied. 
Captain 
Cook. 
Story, 
British 
Empire,  II. 
216-222 ; 
Cassell's 
National 
Library, 
No.  40. 


In  America  the  whole  northern  continent  has  become 
Anglo-Saxon,  and  in  the  last  half  of  the  century  the  United 
States  has  seemed  to  be  developing  a  claim  to  a  controlling 
interest  in  the  South  American  states  which  alone  would 
bring  it  directly  into  the  field  of  world  diplomacy,  but  by  its 
annexation  of  Hawaii,  and  by  the  results  of  its  successful 
war  with  Spain,  the  United  States  has  definitely  taken  its 
place  as  one  of  the  great  powers  of  the  world,  and  will  find 
in  the  end  its  interests  immediately  involved  in  the  settle- 
ment of  some  of  the  Oriental  problems,  both  in  the  disposi- 
tion of  China  and  in  that  of  the  great  island  region  of  the 
south  seas. 

In  this  bringing  of  the  world  under  civilized  control,  and 
making  it  into  a  closely  connected  system  in  which  every 
power  must  play  its  part,  the  Anglo-Saxon  race  has  led. 
Its  expansion  began  indeed  long  before  the  present  century 
and  has  continued  without  a  check,  if  we  leave  the  American 
Revolution  out  of  account,  as  should  be  done  from  the 
present  point  of  view. 

412.  Australia  the  First  Step.  —  It  was  the  loss  of  the 
thirteen  colonies,  indeed,  that  led  immediately  to  the  first 
step  of  a  new  expansion.  At  the  end  of  the  eighteenth  cen- 
tury it  was  still  believed  that,  in  practice  as  well  as  in 
theory,  the  best  disposition  which  could  be  made  of  the 
criminal  class  was  to  send  them  into  the  colonies  to  begin  life 
over  again.  Up  to  this  time  England  had  used  the  Ameri- 
can colonies  for  this  purpose,  but  she  could  do  so  no  longer. 
It  was  necessary  to  find  a  new  place  of  transportation. 

For  about  thirty  years  both  England  and  France  had  had 
Australia  in  mind.  Captain  Cook  had  visited  the  east  shores 
of  the  island  soon  after  the  conclusion  of  the  Seven  Years' 
War,  and  had  taken  possession  of  the  country,  which  he 
named  New  South  Wales  for  England.  Neither  France  nor 
England  had  made  any  actual  settlement  there,  however, 
up  to  this  time,  and  it  would  very  likely  have  remained  still 
longer  unoccupied,  in  the  rush  of  events  which  followed  the 
French  Revolution,  if  it  had  not  been  for  this  need  on  the 


1 1 


390 


Anglo-Saxon  Expansion          [§§4*3?  4*4 


The  settle- 
ment of 
Botany  Bay. 
Story, 
British 
Empire,  II. 
223-229. 
Becke, 

A  First  Fleet 
Family 
(novel). 


Expansion  in 

Australia. 

Story, 

British 

Empire, 

Bk.  IV., 

Chap.  IV.; 

Payne, 

Colonies, 

165-176. 


The  place  of 

the  thirteen 

colonies 

filled. 

Tregarthen, 

Australasia 

(Nations)  ; 

Jenks, 

Australian 

Colonies 

(Cambridge 

Hist.  Series). 


Transporta- 
tion 
abandoned. 


part  of  England.     She  determined  to  found  a  new  penal 
colony  and  occupy  a  new  region  at  the  same  time. 

413.  Early  History  of  Australia.  —  Preparations  with  this 
object  in  view  were  almost  immediately  begun  on  the  con- 
clusion of  peace  in  1783,  and  the  first  expedition  was  sent 
out  in  1787.     This  consisted  of  about  a  thousand  persons, 
the  convicts  and  their  guards  included,  but  there  were  no 
real  colonists  among  them.     It  was  several  years  before  the 
settlement,  known  as  Botany  Bay,  became  anything  more 
than  a  kind  of  open-air  prison,  and  certainly  those  who  de- 
termined upon  the  first  occupation  of  Australia  had  no  vision 
of  the  unparalleled  development  of  the  country  in  a  hundred 
years. 

The  first  step  forward  was  the  introduction  of  grazing, 
especially  of  sheep  raising,  about  twenty  years  after  the 
first  occupation.  This  was  soon  followed  by  the  opening  up 
of  the  interior,  and  by  the  founding  of  new  settlements. 
Tasmania  was  occupied  in  1803.  Victoria  was  settled  in 
1834  and  became  a  part  of  New  South  Wales.  New  Zealand 
was  taken  possession  of  by  a  free  colony  from  England  just 
as  it  was  on  the  point  of  being  occupied  by  the  French  in 
1839.  South  Australia  was  also  founded  by  free  settlers  from 
England  in  1836,  and  West  Australia  in  1829. 

414.  A  New  English  Nation.  —  Before  this  last  date  the 
great  island  continent  had  come   to   take   the  place  once 
held  by  the  American  colonies  as  a  field  for  emigration,  and 
to  be  looked  upon  as  a  future  home  of  one  branch  of  the 
English  race.     About  the  time  of  the  founding  of  these  last 
colonies  a  new  method  of  disposing  of  the  public  lands  was 
adopted,  by  which  they  were  sold  at  good  prices  and  the 
proceeds  used  in  bringing  out  other  settlers.     This  proved 
for  a  time  very  successful,  and  nearly  all  the  colonies  ad- 
vanced rapidly  in   population   and  wealth.     By  1835    tney 
numbered  together  80,000. 

As  the  free  settlers  became  numerous  and  new  ones  be- 
gan to  come  in  large  numbers,  the  colonies  very  naturally 
began  to  object  to  being  used  any  longer  as  a  dumping 


§  415]       England  in  the  French  Revolution  391 


ground  for  English  criminals.  It  was  not  easy  to  persuade 
the  home  government  to  give  up  this  practice  so  useful  to 
the  mother  country,  and  language  of  considerable  violence 
was  used  in  some  of  the  colonies  before  they  accomplished 
their  purpose,  but  within  a  few  years  transportation  was  given 
up  to  all  the  colonies  except  to  West  Australia,  which  re- 
quested that  criminals  might  still  be  sent  on  account  of  the 
scarcity  of  laborers.  It  was  finally  abandoned  there  in  1860. 

415.  England  in  the  Wars  of  the  French  Revolution.  — 
Scarcely  had  the  occupation  of  Australia  begun  when 
England  was  led  into  the  wars  which  grew  out  of  the  French 
Revolution.  For  her  these  wars,  as  all  wars  had  now  been 
for  a  hundred  years,  were  chiefly  colonial  and  commercial 
wars.  There  was  some  real  ground  for  fearing  that 
the  new  enthusiasm  of  the  French  nation  might  lead  them 
to  try  to  reconstruct  their  naval  power  and  their  colonial 
empire.  This  became  especially  the  case  when  in  1795 
Holland  was  practically  absorbed  in  the  French  republic. 
This  would  give  them  at  once  a  considerable  reinforcement 
of  their  navy  and  a  most  valuable  foundation  of  empire  in 
the  East  Indies.  England  at  once  blockaded  the  Dutch 
fleet,  and  with  quick  blows  took  possession  of  most  of  the 
Dutch  and  French  colonies,  including  the  Cape  of  Good 
Hope  and  Ceylon. 

The  danger  became  still  more  acute  on  Bonaparte's  occu- 
pation of  Egypt.  Could  he  succeed  in  establishing  a  strong 
French  power  there,  England's  hold  upon  India  would  be  at 
once  shaken.  But  the  fatal  weakness  of  his  plans  was  that 
he  could  not  command  the  sea.  Nelson's  victory  in  the 
battle  of  the  Nile  shut  him  up  as  closely  as  if  he  were  on  an 
island,  and  it  was  by  good  fortune  only  that  he  got  back  to 
France  at  all.  The  war  in  India  in  which  he  had  hoped 
that  Tippoo  Sahib  with  French  aid  would  overthrow  the  Eng- 
lish was  not  successful,  though  it  was  no  easy  task  to  bring 
it  to  an  end.  It  served  rather  to  extend  the  British  domin- 
ion. Here  it  was  that  Wellington  as  a  young  officer  served 
his  apprenticeship  in  the  art  of  war.  In  a  series  of  wars 


The  danger 
to  the 

Empire  from 
France. 
Payne, 
Colonies, 
Chap.  X. 


Bonaparte 
in  Egypt. 


Expansion 
in  India. 
Story, 
British 
Empire,  II, 
242-253. 


392 


Anglo-Saxon  Expansion         [§§  4*6, 4*7 


England's 
conquests 
'surrendered. 


Napoleon 
saw  the 
importance 
of  colonial 
power. 


Napoleon 

determines 

to  occupy 

Louisiana 

and  the 

Northwest. 

Adams, 

History 

United 

States 

(Scribner), 

I.,  Chaps. 

XIV.-XVII. 


The 

Louisiana 
purchase, 
1803. 


before  the  fall  of  Napoleon  the  strong  Mahratta  tribes  of 
south  central  India  were  subdued  and  the  Empire  greatly 
enlarged  and  strengthened. 

In  the  peace  of  Amiens,  in  1802,  England  showed  that  she 
had  looked  upon  the  war  as  chiefly  a  defensive  one,  for  of 
all  her  extensive  conquests,  of  which  she  could  have  kept 
anything  that  she  pleased,  she  retained  only  Ceylon  from 
Holland,  and  the  West  India  island  of  Trinidad  from  Spain. 

416.  Napoleon's  Attempt  at  Colonial  Empire.  — Napoleon 
appears  to  have  realized  that  France  could  become  perma- 
nently the  leader  of  the  world  only  by  a  reconstruction  of 
her   colonial    empire.     He  realized  also    that    the  greatest 
obstacle  in  the  way  was  the  power  of  England.     England, 
on  her  side,  saw  the  great  danger  with  which  she  was  threat- 
ened by  the  genius  of  Napoleon.     As  a  natural  result  they 
were  irreconcilable  enemies.     When  the  war  opened  once 
more,  in  less  than  two  years  after  the  peace  of  Amiens,  it 
never  paused  again  between  them  though  all  other  nations 
made  peace. 

The  second  attempt  which  Napoleon  made  in  the  direc- 
tion of  colonial  dominion,  immediately  after  this  peace  of 
Amiens  was  concluded,  was  a  most  promising  one,  and  it 
threatened  the  American  half  of  the  Anglo-Saxon  race  with 
as  serious  a  danger  as  the  English.  His  recovery  of  Louisi- 
ana from  Spain,  and  his  attempt  to  obtain  in  San  Domingo 
a  base  of  operations  for  its  occupation  and  colonization, 
seemed  about  to  be  successful.  But  the  first  expedition  was 
fatally  weakened  by  the  yellow  fever,  and  the  immediate 
breaking  out  of  the  European  war  prevented  any  renewal 
of  the  attempt.  It  led,  however,  indirectly,  to  one  of  the 
greatest  extensions  of  Anglo-Saxon  territory  made  during 
the  century. 

417.  The  Expansion  of  the  United  States.  —  The  United 
States  was  more  immediately  interested  in  the  growth  of  a 
great  French  dominion  west  of  the  Mississippi  than  England 
even.     Before  the  practical  failure  of  the  attempt  was  known, 
the  plans  of  Bonaparte  had  aroused  some  excitement,  and 


§  4J8J          Expansion  of  the   United  States  393 

steps  to  protect  American  interests  had  been  determined 
upon.  Bonaparte  seems  to  have  known,  however,  that  to 
keep  this  territory  in  the  hands  of  France  after  the  war 
began  was  simply  to  make  a  present  of  it  to  England,  since 
there  was  no  French  naval  force  to  protect  it,  and  conse- 
quently the  American  envoys  to  Paris  found  him  willing  to 
sell  it  all  to  the  United  States  as  if  he  supposed  her  to  be 
as  great  an  enemy  of  England  as  himself.  The  bargain 
was  soon  made.  The  enormous  advantages  offered,  and 
the  inborn  Anglo-Saxon  trait  of  acquisitiveness  overruled  the 
constitutional  objection  of  no  power  expressly  granted  the 
general  government  to  make  annexations,  although  the  party 
of  strict  construction  was  in  power,  and  the  area  of  the 
United  States  was  doubled. 

Already  the  United  States  had  become  a  great  colonizing  The  coioni- 
nation.     Settlement  after  settlement  had  been  made  in  the   zatlonofthe 
region  beyond  the  Alleghanies.     In  the  northwest  ordinance 
of  1787,  for  the  government  of  territories  and  their  admis- 
sion into  the  Union  on  the  same   footing  as   the  original 
states,  a  most  wise  arrangement  had  been  adopted  for  the 
management  of  colonies  and  the  securing  of  their  allegiance 
to  the  home  country.     Already  by  the  time  of  the  Louisiana 
purchase,  four  new  states  had   come  into  the   Union   and 
others  rapidly  followed.     Not  long  afterwards  a  second  im-   Florida> 
portant   annexation  was   made  in  the  purchase  of  Florida   1819. 
from  Spain,  a  sale  to  which  Spain  was  practically  forced  by 
methods  of  a  somewhat  unneighborly  character. 

418.  The  English  Empire  in  the  Napoleonic  Period. —  In  England" 
the  war  which  began  in  1803  between  England  and  Napoleon, 
the  occurrences  of  the  earlier  war  were  repeated.     England 
took  possession  of  the  French  and  Dutch  colonies,  and  main- 
tained an  indisputable  command  of  all  oceans.  The  short  and   The  War 
indecisive  war  which  was  fought  during  this  period  between       l812" 
England  and  the  United  States,  growing  out  of  the  harshness 
with  which  England,  exercised  the  rights  which  she  claimed 
over  neutral  commerce  and  to  the  compulsory  service    of 
her   own   seamen   wherever   found,   though  it  showed  the 


394 


Anglo-Saxon  Expansion 


English 
annexations 
in  1815. 


American  navy  to  be  worthy  of  its  parentage,  served  only  to 
perpetuate  and  intensify  the  bitterness  of  feeling  between 
the  two  nations.  In  this  respect  the  United  States  was  serv- 
ing well  the  purposes  of  Napoleon. 

At  the  close  of  the  war,  England  retained  in  addition  to 
her  annexations  at  the  peace  of  Amiens,  the  Cape  of  Good 
Hope,  a  part  of  Dutch  Guiana,  and  a  few  small  French 


Story, 
British 
Empire,  II., 
304-317. 

The  impor- 
tance of  the 
Cape 
Colony. 
Lucas, 
Historical 


DURBAN,  NATAL 

islands-     For  the  territories  taken  from  Holland,  England 
made  a  large  payment  in  compensation. 

Of  all  the  gains  of  England  since  the  occupation  of  Aus- 
tralia, the  Cape  Colony  was  by  far  the  most  important. 
Holding  a  strategic  position  unequalled  by  any  other  land  in 
the  world,  commanding  the  passage  from  the  Atlantic  to  the 
Indian  Ocean,  a  vitally  necessary  connecting  link  in  a  world 
empire,  a  half-way  house  between  England  and  both  India 


§  419]  The  Expansion  of  Canada  395 

and  Australia  most  conveniently  situated  for  supplying  and  re-    Geography, 
fitting  ships,  and,  finally  but  by  no  means  the  least  important,   IV-;  ,T^a!' 

J  J  .  South  Africa 

an  opening  which  would  render  easy  the  occupation  of  the   (Nations), 
best  portions  of  the  continent  behind  it,  the  colony  was  of  far 
greater  value  than  its  area  indicated  or  its  stage  of  develop- 
ment at  the  time. 

419.  The  Expansion  of  Canada.  —  During  these  years  the   Slow  but 
population  of  Canada  had  steadily  increased,  though   not  steady 
with  the  phenomenal  rapidity  of  Australia  or  the  United  lourinot, 
States.     As  a  result  of  the  American  Revolution  there  was   Canada 
a  large  immigration  of  families  devoted  to  the  old  govern-   (Natlons)- 
ment,   known   at   the   time   as   United    Empire   Loyalists. 
Slowly,  also,  Canada  began  to  attract  immigrants  from  Great 
Britain,  and  these  were  usually  of  a  very  good  class.     By 
1815  there  was  a  European   population   in  British   North 
America  of  about  half  a  million. 

As  the  English  population  and  the  wealth  of  the  country  The  govern- 
increased  an  agitation  began  to  secure  more  complete  self-   ment  of 
government.     A  constitution  had  been  granted  Canada  in  Roberts' 
1791  by  the  ministry  of  the  younger  Pitt  which  was  based   History  of 
on  the  English  constitution  of  the  time.     In  imitation  of  the    Canada 

(Lamson), 

monarchical  and  aristocratic  elements  in  the  government  of  210-213. 
England,  which  were  then  in  supreme  control,  the  power 
in  Canada  was  placed  in  the  hands  of  the  governor  sent  by 
the  cabinet  in  London  and  in  an  appointive  upper  house. 
As  the  English  at  home  were  at  this  time  hardly  conscious 
of  the  principle  of  ministerial  responsibility  to  Parliament, 
as  they  came  to  be  fifty  years  later,  there  was  no  suggestion 
made  that  this  practice  should  be  allowed  in  Canada. 

The  debate  in  Parliament  upon  the  grant  shows  that  it  An  aristo- 

was  the  conscious  intention  of  everybody  to  create  an  aristo-  cratic 

,     ,  .       ,       ,  .„  government 

cratic  government  for  these  colonies,  and  this  the  bill  cer- 
tainly did.  There  was  clear  evidence  in  the  history  of  the 
earlier  English  colonies  in  America  to  show  that  such  a  gov- 
ernment would  result  in  serious  discontent  and  strife.  But 
those  who  framed  and  discussed  this  bill  do  not  seem  to  have 
thought  of  referring  to  colonial  experience  for  instruction. 


396 


Anglo-Saxon  Expansion        [§§42°>42i 


A  thirty 

years' 

conflict. 

Roberts, 

Canada, 

Chaps. 

XVIII.  and 

XIX. 


The  English 
government 
afraid  of  the 
conse- 
quences. 


The  Cana- 
dians win 
their  cause 
by  gradual 
steps. 
Roberts, 
Canada, 
Chap.  XX. 


420.  The  Struggle  for  Self-government,  — The  conflict  to 
secure  a  change  began  in  less  than  twenty  years  after  the 
framing  of  the  government,  and  it  continued  for  thirty  years 
before  it  was  successful.     The  ultimate  object  aimed  at  was 
the  control  of  the  government  by  the  lower  house  of  the  legis- 
lature, the  immediate  representatives  of  the   people.      In 
character  it  resembles  in  an  interesting  way  the  much  longer 
struggle  in  the  old  country  to  secure  the  same  result,  and 
also  that  in  both  earlier  and  later  English  colonies  where  the 
same  thing  had  to  be  done.     The  chief  weapon  employed 
until  near  the  close  of  the  conflict  was  the  old  constitutional 
expedient  of  withholding  the  supplies,  and  trying  to  coerce 
the  government  through  its  financial  needs. 

The  government  in  England,  whether  the  Tory  party  or 
the  Whig  was  in  office,  was  extremely  reluctant  to  make  the 
changes  desired.  The  first  effect  of  the  American  Revolu- 
tion upon  the  ruling  class  in  England  had  been  to  create  a 
fear  of  independence  in  the  case  of  their  other  colonies,  and 
to  lead  to  a  resolve  to  hold  them  in,  politically,  with  as  tight  a 
rein  as  possible.  As  the  agitation  in  Canada  increased,  this 
fear  was  repeatedly  expressed  by  the  leaders  of  both  parties. 
To  yield  to  their  demands  would,  it  was  thought,  only  lead 
to  other  demands  and  to  final  independence.  There  was  at 
that  time  very  little  understanding  in  England,  even  among 
the  officers  directly  connected  with  the  colonial  department,  of 
the  conditions  or  feelings  of  the  colonists,  and  in  view  of  this 
ignorance  their  fear  of  the  result  of  yielding  was  not  unnatural. 

421.  Canada  opens   the   Way  for   Colonial   Self-govern- 
ment.—  In  1837  came  the  appeal  of  a  part  of  the  Cana- 
dians to  arms.     The  rebellion  was  soon  put  down,  but  it 
made  an  impression  in  England.     In  the  next  year  Lord 
Durham  was  sent  out  to  make  a  careful  examination  of  the 
situation.     His  report  was  published  early  in  1839,  and  is 
a  most  remarkable   document.      It   had    a   large   share   in 
bringing  about  the  great  revolution  in  English  public  opinion 
regarding  the  colonies  which  takes  place  in  the  next  twenty 
years.      By  1840  the  home  government  had  become  con- 


§  422]      A   Great  Change  in  English  Methods       397 

vinced  that  the  effect  of  granting  concessions  could  not  be 
worse  than  that  of  withholding  them,  and  concessions  ac- 
cordingly began.  These  led  in  a  few  years  to  full  ministe- 
rial responsibility  and  to  all  the  colonists  had  desired,  and 
England  quickly  discovered  that  instead  of  independence 
there  resulted  a  deeper  and  truer  loyalty. 

422.   A  Great  Change  in  English  Methods  of  Colonial  Gov-  Complete 
ernment.  — This  was  the  beginning  of  a  great  revolution  in  j^ence'in 
English  colonial  government  which  is  one  of  the  most  re-  the  great 
markable  facts  of  the  history  of  the  nineteenth  century.     The   colonies, 
revolution  was  not  wrought  at  once.     Ten  years  later  the  introduction, 
Australian   colonies  found  some  of  the  old   difficulties   in  118-137. 
the  way  of  their  securing  full  self-government,  but  they  were 
far  more  easily  overcome.     Ten  years  later  still  the  change 
was   complete.     Since  then  England  has  cordially  granted 
complete  local  independence  to  every  colony  when  it  reaches 
a  stage  of  development  in  which  it  can  wisely  exercise  it. 
The   Australian   colonies   and  New  Zealand,  Cape  Colony 
and  the  Dominion  of  Canada,  are,  for  almost  all  purposes, 
as  independent  as  the  United  States.     Their  subjection  to 
the  home  government  in  foreign  affairs,  the  chief  item  in 
which  they  are  not  independent,  has  been  of  great  advan- 
tage to  them  both  in  actual  protection  and  in  saving  the 
cost  of  preparations  for  national  defence. 

The  causes  of  this  important  revolution  are  more  than   The  causes 
one.     It  has  been  erroneously  attributed  to  the  influence   °^thls 

change. 

of  the  American  Revolution,  but  a  study  of  the  Canadian  Adams, 
struggle  shows  clearly  that  the  effect  of  the  independence  of  Kept.  Am. 
the  thirteen  colonies  was  rather  the   opposite.     The   chief  Jg"6'  j ssn" 
cause  was  no  doubt  the  discovery  that  the  grant  of  local  self-   373-389. 
government  did  not  result  in  independence,  but  rather  in 
strengthening  the  real  bonds  of  connection.     This  cause  was 
greatly  aided  by  the  adoption  of  free  trade  in  commerce,  by 
the  rapid  growth  of  democratic  sentiment,  by  a  more  general 
popular  interest  in  colonial  affairs  and  understanding  of  them, 
and  finally  after  the  change  had  begun  by  a  more  correct 
reasoning  about  the  American  Revolution. 


398 


Anglo-Saxon  Expansion         [§§423*424 


Texas  and 
the  Mexican 
War. 


One-third  the 
United  States 
annexed, 
1848. 


The  dis- 
coveries of 
gold, 

1848-1851. 
Story, 
British 
Empire, 
Bk.  IV., 
Chap.  VII. 


423.  A  Second  Great  Annexation  by  the  United  States.  — 

At  just  about  the  time  when  this  change  began  in  England's 
method  of  governing  her  colonies,  when  the  Canadian  peo- 
ple secured  control  of  their  government,  the  United  States 
made  a  second  great  annexation  of  territory.  The  Mexican 
state  of  Texas  had  received  a  considerable  immigration  from 
the  neighboring  states  of  the  Union.  In  1835  it  declared 
its  independence  of  Mexico  and  was  soon  after  admitted 
into  the  Union.  Then  arose  the  question  of  the  correct 
boundary  line  between  Texas  and  Mexico,  and  this  disagree- 
ment was  pushed  on  rapidly  to  open  war,  as  we  now  know, 
with  deliberate  intention  on  the  part  of  the  American  leaders 
in  the  hope  of  conquest. 

The  war  was  soon  decided.  Mexico  had  no  power  of 
resistance  either  in  army  or  resources.  In  the  end  she  ceded 
to  the  United  States  her  northern  territories,  down  to  the 
mouth  of  the  Rio  Grande  and  to  the  head  of  the  Gulf  of 
California,  an  area,  if  Texas  be  included,  equal  to  one-third 
the  present  United  States.  The  result  was  no  doubt  of  the 
greatest  value  to  the  territories  in  question  and  to  civiliza- 
tion in  general,  but  it  should  be  remembered  that  the  process 
did  not  differ  materially  from  that  which  we  are  disposed  to 
criticise  when  employed  by  other  strong  peoples  in  absorb- 
ing the  lands  of  their  weaker  neighbors. 

424.  Gold  in  California  and  Australia.  —  Hardly  was  the 
Mexican  War  concluded,  and  this  great  territory  transferred 
from  the  Latin  to  the  Anglo-Saxon  race,  when  there  came 
the  rich  discoveries  of  gold  in  California  in  1848.     These 
were  followed  three  years  later  still  by  similar  discoveries  in 
Australia.     The  result  in  both  countries  was  the  same,  —  an 
era  of  enormously  rapid  increase  of  population  and  of  wealth, 

—  for  although  many  of  the  miners  returned  to  their  old  homes 
taking  their  gold  with  them,  a  large  proportion  remained  in 
the  country  and  aided  in  its  development  in  other  directions 
with  the  products  of  their  mining. 

The  population  of  Victoria,  in  which  the  best  mines  were 
situated,  more  than  doubled  in  two  years,  and  was  multiplied 


§  425]        A   Theory  of  Imperial  Dissolution 


399 


by  four  in  four  years.     In  California  the  same  increase  took  Unparalleled 
place,  and,  though  this  rate  could  not  be  maintained,  the  next   increase  of 
thirty  years  saw  a  development  of  population  and  wealth  in  the 
western  regions  of  the  Union  and  in  Australasia  unparalleled 
in  history.     In  1861  Australasia  had  a  population  of  thirteen 


SUITER'S  MILL 

Where  gold  was  first  discovered  in  California 

hundred  thousand.  In  1891  this  had  grown  to  almost  four 
millions.  Since  1891  both  these  countries  have  suffered  from 
financial  depression  and  growth  has  been  more  slow.  As 
the  century  closes  signs  are  evident  of  returning  prosperity. 

425.  A  Theory  of  Imperial  Dissolution.  —  About  the  year  The  argu- 

1870  a  new  era  opened  in  the  history  of  the  British  Empire.   ment  fo[ 

dissolution 
At  that  time  a  movement  towards  imperial  federation  begar 


4QO 


Anglo-Saxon  Expansion 


[§426 


leads  to  the 
idea  of 
federation. 


The 

Manchester 

school. 

Cobden, 

Speeches,  I., 

486. 


Goldwin 

Smith, 

The  Empire 

(Lond.). 


The  Liberals 
rather  dis- 
posed to 
hasten  the 
dissolution, 
1869. 


which  has  not  as  yet  led  to  the  exact  result  intended,  but  has 
led  to  others  of  hardly  less  importance.  It  began  as  a  re- 
action against  theories  of  a  contrary  sort.  The  generation  of 
English  statesmen,  who  then  had  charge  of  public  affairs,  had 
been  brought  up  in  the  idea  that  all  the  colonies  were  des- 
tined to  eventual  independence,  and  could  only  be  retained 
by  England  up  to  a  certain  stage  of  development.  The 
growth  of  this  idea  had  been  much  encouraged  by  the  teach- 
ings of  the  Manchester  school  of  political  economists,  under 
the  lead  of  Richard  Cobden. 

The  fundamental  principle  of  this  school  was  complete 
freedom  from  government  interference  in  every  direction. 
As  applied  to  the  colonies  this  meant  liberty  to  sever  their 
connection  with  England  whenever  they  should  think  their 
interests  demanded  the  separation,  with  no  resistance  or  ob- 
jection on  the  part  of  the  home  government.  Cobden  had 
taught,  indeed,  that  the  care  of  the  colonies  was  far  too  ex- 
pensive a  burden  to  be  borne,  and  that  whatever  advantage 
was  derived  from  them  would  not  be  lost  when  England's 
active  assistance  was  withdrawn  from  them.  This  teaching 
was  greatly  reenforced  about  1860,  and  extended  to  an  argu- 
ment for  the  breaking  of  all  political  connection  by  a  series 
of  most  vigorous  and  effective  letters  to  a  London  daily 
paper  from  Professor  Goldwin  Smith  of  Oxford,  immedi- 
ately collected  into  a  book. 

426.  Gladstone's  Ministry  ready  to  let  the  Colonies  go. 
-These  ideas  had  an  especial  influence  upon  the  leaders  of 
the  Liberal  party  who  were  in  power  under  Mr.  Gladstone 
from  1868  on.  Their  practical  effect  was  to  make  the  gov- 
ernment entirely  indifferent  to  a  breaking  off  of  the  political 
connection  between  the  mother  country  and  the  colonies,  if 
not  willing  to  bring  it  about.  This  feeling  was  plainly  enough 
indicated  by  the  ministry  to  New  Zealand,  South  Africa,  and 
Canada.  On  the  other  hand,  the  colonies  were  not  in  the 
least  disposed  to  seek  independence  or  to  be  forced  into  it, 
and  some  of  them  threatened  to  seek  the  protection  of  the 
United  States,  should  England  refuse  hers. 


§  427  j       The  Imperial  Federation  Movement          4O1 

The  feeling  of  the  colonies  was,  however,  speedily  reflected  The  colonies 
by  the  feeling  in  England,  and  the  mass  of  the  people  soon  *"|jo*e 
made  it  evident  that  the  current  theories  no  more  repre-   determined 
sented  their  opinion  than  they  did  colonial  opinion.     There  to  maintain 
was  no  desire  on  the  part  of  the  nation  to  force  the  colonies  * 
into  an  unwilling  independence;  the  desire  was  rather  to 
draw  the  bonds  of  union  closer  if  this  could  be  done  in  any 
wise  way.     The  government  reversed  its  action  as  soon  as  See  leader, 
the  nature  of  public  opinion  became  evident,  and  the  crisis,   ^^^ 
which  had  been  sharp  for  a  few  weeks,  was  over.  May  21, 1870. 

427.  The   Imperial   Federation  Movement.  —  Out  of  the   First  definite 
feeling  excited  at  this  time  grew  the  Imperial  Federation  proposal. 
Movement.     The  first  definite  proposal  of  such  an  organi-  p0 
zation  for    the   Empire  was   made    early  in    1870,  just   as  Review,  Jan. 
the  ministry  was  changing  its  policy.     The  progress  of  the   and  APr- 
movement  was  at  first  slow.     It  was  five  years  before  the 
idea  was  taken  up  by  any  statesman  of  prominence.     About 
1880  it  began  to  make  converts  more  rapidly,  owing  to  a 
variety  of  disasters  which    seemed   to   be   threatening   the 
English  dominion  in  different  parts  of  the  world. 

In  1884  the  Imperial  Federation  League  was  organized  The 
in  England,  having  among  its  officers  and  members  many   *mPerial 
of  the  leaders  of  both  political  parties,  and  for  its  purpose   League, 
the  promotion  of  such  a  union  of  the  mother  country  and 
her  colonies.     After  attracting  wide  attention  to  the  subject, 
and   publishing  a  considerable  literature    in   its  favor,    the 
League  was  disbanded  in  1893  in  favor  of  other  methods  of 
advancing  the  cause. 

In  the  colonies  the  movement  never  has  found  even  so   Results  of  the 
much  support  as  at  home,  and  the  practical  objections  to   movement- 
any  actual  imperial  federation  seem  at  present  insuperable. 
But  there  has  undoubtedly  resulted  a  much  greater  general 
interest  in  the  imperial  connection,  and  a  far  better  under- 
standing at  home  of  the  colonial  feeling  and  in  the  colonies 
of  the  home  feeling.     The  bond  of  connection  is  known  to 
be  much  stronger  than  was  once  believed,  and  no  one  now 
looks  forward  to  a  time  of  certain  colonial  independence. 


402 


Anglo-Saxon  Expansion         [§§  428, 429 


The  occupa- 
tion of  Asia 
and  Africa. 


Gradual 
expansion 
in  India. 
Frazer, 
British  India 
(Nations). 

The  Sepoy 
mutiny,  1857. 
Steel, 

On  the  Face 
of  the 
Waters  ; 
Chesney, 
The 

Dilemma 
(novels). 


The 

"scientific 

frontier." 


On  the  whole 
in  the  native 
interest. 
Frazer, 
British  India, 
Chap.  XVI, 


428.  Expansion  of  English  Dominion  in  India.  —  While 
these  events  were  taking  place  in  the  purely  Anglo-Saxon 
world,  the  two  largest  of  continents,  which  until  the  nine- 
teenth century  had  lain  nearly  always  outside  the  current  of 
history,  had  been  opened  up  to  European  enterprise,  and 
almost  entirely  seized  upon  by  the  different  European  states 
in  their  rivalry  for  colonial  empire. 

The  occupation  of  Asia  was  the  first  to  begin.  At  the 
opening  of  the  century  England  already  had  the  possession 
of  India  well  begun,  and  Russia  had  Siberia  in  the  north. 
After  the  conquests  made  during  the  Napoleonic  wars,  small 
additions  continued  to  be  made  to  British  territory  in  India, 
the  most  important  being  that  of  the  Punjaub  just  before  the 
middle  of  the  century.  In  1857  came  the  great  Sepoy 
mutiny  in  north  central  India,  due  partly  to  dislike  of  the 
British  rule,  of  whose  good  effects  the  natives  were  as  yet 
hardly  conscious,  and  which  was  indeed  often  unnecessarily 
harsh,  partly  to  superstitious  dislike  of  the  greasy  cartridges 
served  to  the  troops  and  partly  to  ambitious  intrigues  of 
rulers  not  reconciled  to  the  loss  of  irresponsible  power. 
The  early  stages  of  the  mutiny,  before  the  English  could 
organize  defence  or  attack,  are  filled  with  horrors  ;  but  it  was 
overcome  in  a  few  months  after  the  first  surprise  had  passed. 

In  more  recent  times  the  fear  occasioned  by  the  steady 
advance  of  the  Russians  in  central  Asia,  has  led  to  a  gradual 
extension  of  the  English  occupation  to  the  north  and  west, 
in  the  search  for  a  "  scientific  frontier,"  that  is  one  which 
will  admit  of  easy  defence  against  attack.  To  protect  the 
exposed  western  flank,  the  large  territory  of  Baluchistan  has 
been  occupied,  so  that  now  England  controls  all  central 
Asia  south  of  Persia,  Afghanistan,  and  China. 

429.  The  Character  of  the  English  Government  of  India.  — 
The  British  rule  in  India,  though  marked  by  cases  of  ex- 
treme selfishness  and  of  harsh  and  overbearing  conduct  on 
the  part  of  individuals,  especially  in  its  earlier  periods,  is  on 
the  whole  and  in  its  general  results  the   most   remarkable 
case  in  modern  history,  if  not  in  the  whole  history  of  the 


§§  430,  43  0  The  Results  in  Asia  4°3 

world,  of  the  wise  and  considerate  administration  of  a  sub- 
ject country  in  the  best  interests  of  the  native  population. 
The  most  intelligent  of  the  natives  are  coming  to  recognize 
this  more  and  more,  and  there  is  now  forming  in  India  a 
feeling  of  patriotism  and  loyalty  to  the  Empire  which  prom- 
ises the  most  happy  results,  if  the  swift  progress  of  events 
allows  it  time  to  strengthen  itself  as  it  should. 

430.  Russian  Expansion  in  Asia.  —  From  very  early  times  Early  plans 
the  Russians  have  possessed  dominion  over  the  north  of  Asia.  asainst 
Siberia  formed  a  part  of  the  empire  of  Peter  the  Great,  and 

his  plans  of  conquest  included  Asia.  The  Russian  advance 
has  been  steady  for  two  centuries,  though  much  more  rapid 
in  recent  times.  Even  before  the  time  of  Napoleon  the 
Russians  began  to  consider  the  possibility  of  striking  Eng- 
land a  hard  blow  through  India,  in  case  of  a  war  between 
the  two  countries,  and  twice  during  the  Napoleonic  wars  the 
project  was  seriously  discussed,  and  once  an  army  was  actu- 
ally started  to  begin  the  invasion. 

Although  the  Russian  occupation  of  central  Asia-  seems  on   The  methods 
the  surface  to  have  been  often  the  result  of  accident,  and  of  oi  Russian 
the  irresponsible  action  of  military  officers,  there  is  perfectly  curzone' 
evident  behind  all  the  systematic  purpose  of  the  government.   Russia  in 
The  action  of  the  officer  in  the  field  may  be  disavowed,  but    c(^al  Asia 
the  annexation  which  he  makes  is  always  preserved.     Very  mans). 
possibly  the  desire  of  conquest  has  had  less  to  do  with  this 
than  two  other  reasons,  —  the  natural  tendency  of  every  great 
empire  to  expand,  and  the  military  purpose  of  getting  within 
striking  distance  of  India.     With  the  authorities  in  the  field 
and  in  the  government  directly  concerned  with  the  adminis- 
tration of  Asia,  this  last  has  probably  been  the  most  influen- 
tial motive. 

431.  The  Results  in  Asia.  —  All  central  and  northern  Asia  The  Russian 
is  now  Russian.     China,  Afghanistan,  and  Persia  are  the  only  and  English 
independent  territories  remaining  between  the  two  European 
empires.     Since  the  recent  annexation  of  the  Pamir  district 

by  Russia,  there  is  at  that  point  only  a  very  narrow  strip  of 
neutral  land,  which  belongs  to  Afghanistan,  between  the 


404 


Anglo-Saxon  Expansion          [§§432>433 


The  problem 
now  more 
complicated. 


The  work 

of  twenty 

years. 

Keltie, 

The  Partition 

of  Africa 

(Lond.). 

Explorations. 


The  Congo 
Free  State. 
Keltie, 
Partition, 
Chap.  XIV. 

France. 


rival  frontiers.  The  struggle  of  these  great  powers  in  Asia 
threatens  the  continued  existence  of  Persia  and  Afghanistan, 
and  even  of  China,  as  the  most  recent  events  show. 

The  entry  of  other  European  nations  into  the  rivalry  in 
the  further  Orient,  like  France  and  Germany,  and  the  sudden 
rise  of  Japan  to  a  position  of  the  first  rank,  with  especial  in- 
terest in  the  solution  which  is  to  be  found  for  this  far  Eastern 
question,  are  only  likely  to  push  events  with  greater  rapidity, 
and  to  lead  to  less  satisfactory  and  less  permanent  results 
than  would  be  produced  by  a  more  moderate  procedure. 

432.  The  Occupation  of  Africa.  —  In  the  occupation  of  Africa 
the  rivals  of  the  English  have  been  the  Germans  and  the  French, 
and  the  greater  part  of  the  process  has  taken  less  than  twenty 
years.    Neither  the  conquest  of  the  Cape  Colony  at  the  begin- 
ning of  the  century,  nor  that  of  Algiers  by  the  French  about 
thirty  years  later,  was  followed  by  any  noteworthy  expansion. 
In  the  third  quarter  of  the  century  general  interest  in  the 
"  dark  continent  "  was  aroused  by  numerous  expeditions  for 
scientific  explorations,  for  which  the  name  of  Livingstone 
especially  stands  ;    but  these  led  to  no  further  results  until 
Stanley's  famous  journey  across  the  continent  from  east  to 
west,  which  laid  open  the  course  of  the  Congo  River  as  a 
great  highway  into  the  interior.     This  awakened  the  eager 
desire  of  several  European  states  to  get  possession  of  the 
commercial  advantages  which  the  control  of  this  river  would 
insure,  and  finally,  as  a  kind  of  compromise,  to  the  organiza- 
tion of  the    Congo  Free  State,  open  to  the  commerce  of 
the  world,  but  under   the   sovereignty  of  the  king  of  the 
Belgians. 

433.  The  General  Scramble.  — This  was  in  the  year  1884, 
but   in   the    meantime    the   general    scramble    had   begun. 
France  made  the  first  move  in  the  expedition  of  De  Brazza 
in  1880  and  1881,  by  which  a  large  territory  on  the  north 
bank  of  the  Congo  was  taken  possession  of  so  effectively 
that  it  was  recognized  as  French  when  the  Congo  Free  State 
was  organized.     Germany  followed  immediately  the  exam- 
ple thus  set.     In  1883  some  Germans  who  were  nominally 


§434]         The  English  Occupation  of  .Egypt  405 

private  adventurers  seized  a  portion  of  the  coast  in  south-   Germany, 
western  Africa,  and  this  was  in  a  few  months  developed  into   Keltie. 
a  German  protectorate  over  an  extensive  territory  in  that  chapYxiL 
region.     This  part  of  Africa  had  always  been  regarded  by 
the  English  colonists  of  the  Cape  as  within  their  proper  con- 
trol, but  the  home  government  had  steadily  refused  the  re- 
quests of  the  colony  to  annex  it  formally,  and  now  proved 
unwilling  to  sustain  the  colonists  against  the  claims  of  Ger- 
many. 

These  cases  illustrate  the  methods  followed  by  all  the  na-   Africa  now 
dons  of  Europe  from  this  time  on.     Germany  settled  in  the  nearly  a11 

,        .  occupied. 

same  way  upon  several  points  of  the  coast,  on  both  the  east 
and  west  sides  of  the  continent.  France  formed  and  has 
steadily  followed  the  plan  of  connecting  her  various  colonies 
by  means  of  annexations  in  the  interior.  England  pushed 
rapidly  north  from  the  Cape  Colony  until  she  now  has  pos- 
session of  all  the  best  portions  of  the  interior,  and  she  also 
considerably  enlarged  both  her  west  and  east  African  terri- 
tories. Italy  saw  with  jealousy  but  was  not  able  to  prevent 
the  French  occupation  of  Tunis,  and  has  tried  with  but  little 
success  to  found  a  colonial  dominion  of  her  own  in  eastern 
Africa  in  the  neighborhood  of  Abyssinia.  Portugal  and 
Spain,  whose  African  possessions  date  from  a  much  earlier 
period,  have  been  left  behind  by  the  rush  of  these  events 
and  have  now  no  opportunity  for  expansion. 

434.  The  English  Occupation  of  Egypt.  —  In  Egypt  the  A  joint 
extravagance  of  the  khedive,  Ismail  Pasha,  especially  after  administra- 
the  opening  of  the  Suez  Canal  in  1869,  threw  the  finances  of  England  and 
the  country  into  disorder,  and  gave  an  opportunity  for  the   France, 
joint  interference  of  France  and  England  in  1879  in  the  inter-   McCarthy, 
est  of  the  holders  of  the  debt.     There  was  much  opposition  from  r§§0 
in  the  country,  however,  to  this  arrangement,  and  in  1882  an    (Harper), 
insurrection  broke  out  under  Arabi    Pasha.     The   French  Chap' VL 
government  sent  orders  to  their  fleet  not  to  interfere,  but  the 
English  bombarded  Alexandria  and  put  down  the  insurrection. 
Since  that  time  England  has  had  virtual  possession  of  the  England 
country,  though  her  position  is  not  formally  recognized  by  alone. 


406 


Anglo-Saxon  Expansion 


A  Moham- 
medan 
revival. 


the  European  powers0  Her  rule  has  been  of  the  greatest 
benefit  to  the  population  and  is  rapidly  developing  the  re- 
sources of  the  State. 

435.  The  Insurrection  of  the  Mahdi.  —  At  about  the  same 
time  with  the  insurrection  of  Arabi  Pasha,  the  equatorial  or 
upper  Nile  provinces  of  Egypt  were  swept  by  a  flood  of 


McCarthy, 
Our  Times 
from  1880, 
134  ff. 


KHARTUM 


fanatical  Mohammedanism,  a  revival  of  primitive  religious 
enthusiasm  led  by  the  Mahdi,  or  the  prophet.  General 
Gordon  attempted  to  check  its  advance  at  Khartum,  but  was 
killed  in  1885,  and  the  Egyptian  Soudan  became  indepen- 
dent. The  early  attempts  of  the  English  to  recover  posses- 
sion of  the  provinces  were  unsuccessful,  and  only  in  1897 
did  their  real  reoccupation  begin,  completed  in  the  following 
year  by  the  capture  of  Khartum. 

The  reconquest  of  the  Soudan  was  no  doubt  stimulated 


§436J  The  Anglo-Saxon  Race  407 

somewhat  by  the  movements  of  the  French  towards  the   Rivalry  for 
upper  Nile  from  the  western  Soudan,  which  appeared  to  thfuPPer 
be  directed  to  the  establishment  of  a  connection  between 
the  French  possessions  in  West  and  those  in  East  Africa. 
These  movements  threatened  the  connection  on  their  side 
which  the  English  had  long  been  planning  to  bring  about 
through  the  centre  of  Africa  between  the  Cape  Colony  and 
Egypt. 

In  area  the  French  possess  by  far  the  largest  share  of  England  has 
Africa,  but  neither  their  possessions  nor  those  of  the  Ger-  thebestof 
mans  equal  those  of  the  English  in  resources  or  in  adapta- 
bility to  European  colonization. 

436.   The  Anglo-Saxon  Race  in  the  World.  —  The  position  The  greatest 
which  the  Anglo-Saxon  race  now  occupies  in  the  world,  if  its  world  emPire 
two  halves  be  taken  together,  is  one  which  no  other  race  has   General 
ever  held  before  or  holds  at  present.     Of  the  five  continents,  sketch, 
it  possesses  the  whole  of  one,  North  America,  all  the  por-   ^u^s:    .. 

Introduction, 

tions  best  suited  to  European  residents  of  another,  Africa,    101-107; 
and  exceedingly  rich  and  populous  portions  of  a  third,  Asia,   Adams, 
and  in  addition  the  whole  of  a  great  islan'd  continent,  Aus-  ^^My 
tralia,  which  is  as  thoroughly  Anglo-Saxon  as  England  itself.   Apr.  1897. 
It  holds  one-fifth  the  area,  one-fourth  the  population,  and 
one-third  the  wealth  of  the  whole  globe.     It  is  externally 
in  every  sense  of  the  word  a  world  empire,  and  internally  it 
represents   the   highest  point  yet  reached  by  mankind  in 
political  and  civil  liberty  and  economic  freedom. 

This  proud  position  which  our  race  occupies  has  excited   The  future  of 
the  jealousy  of  more  than  one  of  the  others,  and  within  re-   *he  rac<~  . 

.  1*1-1  c  demands  its 

cent  years  signs  have  been  multiplying  that  some  or  them  at   union  in 
least  are  only  awaiting  a  favorable  opportunity  to  attempt  the   policy, 
dismemberment  of  the  Anglo-Saxon  Empire.     With  the  race    ^^lish 
united  in  a  common  policy  of  defence,  it  would  seem  cer-   People,  iv., 
tain  that  no  combination  of  other  nations  likely  ever  to  be  266-271. 
formed  against  it  could  succeed  in  destroying,  or  even  in 
dividing,  its  empire.     That  the  Anglo-Saxon  race  has  a  heri- 
tage from  the  past  in  its  system  of  free  government  worth 
defending  wherever  it  exists,  and  a  civilization  worth  pre- 


408  Anglo-Saxon  Expansion 

serving  for  the  future,  are  conclusions  to  which  the  study  of 
our  history  can  hardly  fail  to  lead  us. 


Topics 

What  led  to  the  occupation  of  Australia?  How  was  it  changed  into 
a  colony  proper?  Its  early  growth.  How  was  the  French  Revolution 
dangerous  to  the  English  empire?  What  were  Bonaparte's  ideas  of 
colonial  empire?  How  illustrated  in  Egypt?  In  America?  What 
was  the  final  result  in  both  cases?  England's  colonial  gains  from  the 
Napoleonic  wars.  The  importance  of  the  Cape  Colony.  Pitt's  Cana- 
dian government.  Canada's  struggle  for  self-government.  Of  what 
value  to  the  other  colonies.  England's  present  method  of  governing 
great  colonies.  The  second  great  annexation  by  the  United  States. 
Results  of  the  gold  discoveries.  Theory  about  the  Empire  held  in 
England  between  1850  and  1870.  How  did  this  lead  to  the  imperial 
federation  idea?  English  expansion  in  India.  Character  of  the  Ind- 
ian government.  Russian  advance  in  central  Asia.  What  awakened 
the  first  interest  of  Europe  in  Africa?  The  Congo  Free  State.  The 
beginning  of  the  scramble.  The  present  occupation  of  Africa.  Eng- 
land in  Egypt.  The  question  of  the  upper  Nile. 

Topics  for  Assigned  Studies 

The  Sepoy  mutiny.  Frazer,  British  India,  Chap.  XIV.  McCarthy. 
Our  Own  Times,  II.,  Chaps.  XXXII.-XXXV.  Malleson,  The 
Indian  Mutiny,  (Scribner.) 

Present  government  of  English  colonies.  Payne,  Colonies  and  Depen- 
dencies. (English  Citizen  Series.  Macmillan.)  Canada.  Text 
of  Act  of  Parliament,  1867.  Roberts,  Canada,  443-476. 


Important  Dates  for  Review 


EUROPEAN  POLITICS 


1787.  Australia  occupied. 
1789.  Estates  general  meet  in  France. 

1803.  Louisiana  purchase. 
1804.  Napoleon  I.,  emperor. 


1815.  Holy  Alliance. 


1819.  Florida  purchase. 
1821.  The  Greek  insurrection. 

1823.  The  Monroe  Doctrine. 
1830.  The  July  revolution  in  Paris. 


ANGLO-SAXON  EXPANSION 


1815.  Cape  Colony  annexed. 


Important  Dates  for  Review 


409 


EUROPEAN  POLITICS 


1848.  Revolutions    throughout    Eu- 
rope. 

1851.  Napoleon  III.,  emperor. 
1854.  Crimean  War. 

g/r      (  Kingdom  of  Italy  formed. 

(  William  I.,  king  of  Prussia. 
1864.  War  with  Denmark. 
1866.  War    between     Prussia    and 

Austria. 

1870.  Franco-Prussian  War. 
1877.  War  between  Russia  and  Tur- 
key. 


ANGLO-SAXON  EXPANSION 

1840.  Change  of  government  in  Can- 
ada. 

1848.  Annexations  of  Mexican  terri- 
tories. 

1848  to  1851.  Discoveries  of  gold. 


1857.  Sepoy  mutiny. 


1867.  Alaska  purchase. 

1870.  Imperial  Federation  Movement 
begun. 

1879.  Egypt  occupied  by  France  and 
England. 

1880-1883.  Scramble  for  Africa  be- 
gins. 


CHAPTER   VIII 

THE  GROWTH    OF    THE    ENGLISH    AND    AMERICAN    CON- 
STITUTIONS i 

Books  for  Reference  and  Further  Reading 

Medley,    Manual  of  English    Constitutional  History.     (Macmillan; 

$3-25-) 

Taswell-Langmead,  English  Constitutional  History.  Ashworth's  edi- 
tion. (Houghton;  $6.00.) 

Montague,  Elements  of  English  Constitutional  History.  (Longmans; 
$1.25.)  A  very  interesting  and  successful  elementary  book. 

Hannis  Taylor,  Origin  and  Growth  of  the  English  Constitution.  2  vols. 
(Houghton;  $9.00.)  With  especial  reference  to  the  American 
constitution.  A  very  suggestive  introduction  opens  Vol.  I. 

Hallam,  Constitutional  History  of  England.  (Many  editions,  usually 
in  3  vols.)  Old,  but  still  valuable. 

Boyle,  Selections  from  Clarendon.     (Clarendon;   $2.00.) 

On  the  present  English  constitution  see : 
Fonblanque,  How  IV e  are  Governed.     (Warne;    75  cents.) 
Volumes  in  English  Citizen  Series.      (Macmillan;   $1.00  each.) 
Macy,   The  English  Constitution.     (Macmillan;   $2.00.) 
Bagehot,  The  English  Constitution.     (Appleton  ;   $2.00.) 

And  compare  on  the  American : 

Bryce,  The  American   Commonwealth.     2  vols.      (Macmillan;  $4.00; 

or  abridged,  $1.75.) 
Wilson,  Congressional  Government.     (Houghton;   $1.25.) 

1  In  connection  with  this  chapter  there  should  be  a  review  of  the  facts  of 
English  political  history.  The  study  of  constitutional  history,  though  of  the 
greatest  importance,  is  always  more  difficult  than  that  of  narrative  history. 
The  separate  treatment  of  this  subject,  which  the  facts  readily  allow,  will 
permit  the  teacher  to  omit  it  entirely  with  less  advanced  classes,  if  desired, 
and  in  the  case  of  the  more  advanced  to  give  it  more  careful  attention  than 
would  be  possible  if  combined  with  the  political  history. 

410 


§§  437, 4383   Absolutism  of  the  Norman  Kings          411 


437.  The   Importance   of    the  History   of    our  Institu- 
tions.—  Throughout  all  its  vast    empire    the   Anglo-Saxon 
race  has  carried   liberty  and  free  self-government.     Other 
nations  have  found  by  experience,  also,  that  the  Anglo-Saxon 
institutions  are  the  best  adapted  to  secure  freedom  and  the 
most  likely  to  be  permanent  of  any  that  are  now  known,  and 
therefore  all  civilized  nations  that  try  to  have  a  free  govern- 
ment at  all  have  adopted  some  form  of  ours ;  if  they  are 
monarchies  taking  the  English  form  with  such  modifications 
as  their  circumstances  seem  to  require  ;  and  if  they  are  re- 
publics, either  following  this  model  still,  as  in  the  case  of 
France,  or  following  more  closely  the  special  forms  of  the 
United  States.     It  seems  almost  certain,  so  far  as  any  pre- 
diction is  possible,  that  the  final  free  institutions  of  the  world 
are  to  be  built  on  the  foundation  which  the  English  people 
has  laid  down.     This  fact,  in  addition  to  the  circumstance 
that  they  are  our  own,  makes  the  history  of  the  way  in  which 
these  institutions  were  formed  of  very  great  interest  and  im- 
portance. 

438.  The  Absolutism  of  the  First  Norman  Kings.  — The 
English   constitution   begins   with   an   absolute    monarchy. 
After  William  the  Norman  had  conquered  England  in  1066, 
he  ruled  as  a  very  strong  king.     Every  important  question 
of  government  which  came  up  he  was  able  to  decide  by  his 
own  will  alone,  and  there  was  no  machinery  known  at  the 
time  by  which  the  will  of  the  people  or  even  of  their  leaders, 
the  great  barons,  could  be  made  to  decide  a  question  in  op- 
position to  the  king's  will.     William  II.  ruled  in  the  same 
way,  but  he  was  an  even  more  arbitrary  man  than  his  father, 
and  he  did  a  great  many  things  which  the  barons  and  the 
Church  believed  were  contrary  to  the  principles  of  the  feudal 
law. 

The  feudal  system,  as  it  existed  in  the  duchy  of  Normandy, 
was  brought  into  England  as  a  result  of  the  conquest  of  Wil- 
liam. In  the  theory  of  the  time  the  fundamental  idea  of  the 
feudal  relation  was  that  it  was  a  contract  of  mutual  service 
and  obligation  between  the  lord  and  his  vassal.  This  being 


They  are 
becoming  the 
institutions 
of  the  world. 


William  L 


William  II. 


William  II. 
pushes  his 
feudal  rights 
to  the  point 
of  tyranny. 
Stubbs, 
Cons.  Hist^ 
I.,  Sec.  106. 


412  The  Anglo-Saxon  Constitutions     [§§439>440 


The  Charter 
of  Henry  I., 

IIOO. 

Taswell- 
Langmead, 
Cons.  Hist., 
65-67; 

Text,  Stubbs, 
99 ;  Penn.  I., 
No.  6. 


The 

promises 
of  Stephen. 
Stubbs,  119; 
Penn.  I., 
No.  6. 


What  if  the 
king  does 
not  keep  his 
promises? 


the  case,  the  lord  had  no  more  right  to  demand  additional 
services  from  his  vassal,  which  the  contract  did  not  call  for, 
than  one  of  us  would  have  to  change  for  his  own  advantage 
the  terms  of  a  written  bargain,  which  he  had  made,  without 
the  consent  of  the  other  party.  William  II.,  however,  in  his 
anxiety  to  obtain  money,  seems  to  have  pressed  some  of  his 
feudal  rights  to  an  extreme  point,  like  wardship  and  marriage, 
and  to  have  applied  them  to  the  lands  held  by  the  bishops 
and  abbots  in  a  way  that  the  Church  did  not  think  was  right. 
While  he  reigned,  however,  he  was  so  powerful  that  nothing 
could  be  done  about  it. 

439.  Our  First  Constitutional  Document. — On  William's 
death  his  brother  Henry  hastened  to  secure  the  crown  to  the 
exclusion  of  their  elder  brother  Robert,  and  as  he  needed 
the  support  of  every  one  whom  he  could  secure,  the  barons 
and  bishops  made  him  sign  and  seal  a  written  agreement, 
specifying  many  of  the  things  which  William  had  done  and 
solemnly  promising  that  he  would  not  do  them.      This  is 
the  Charter  of  Henry  I.,  and  is  the  first  document  in  Eng- 
lish constitutional  history.     It  is  in  principle  and  character, 
as  stating  the  rights  which  have  been  violated  and  insisting 
that  they  must  be  respected,  very  similar  to  the  Declaration 
of  Independence  of  1776,  and  we  may  rightly  call  it  the 
earliest  ancestor  from  which  that  document  descends. 

440.  Progress  under  a  Bad  King.  —  Henry  I.  was  a  strong 
and  a  fairly  good  king,  and  no  attempt  was  made  to  force 
him  to  a  strict  keeping  of  his  promises.     When  Stephen 
tried  to  make  himself  king  in  the  place  of  his  cousin  Matilda, 
he  had  to  purchase  support,  as  Henry  I.  had  done,  and  to 
make  written  promises  again ;  indeed,  he  made  several  sets 
of  promises  to  different  parties,  —  to  the  Church,  to  London, 
to  some  of  the  great  barons,  and  to  the  whole  kingdom. 

Now  Stephen  proved  to  be  a  very  bad  king,  and  the  peo- 
ple who  were  interested  had  to  decide  what  they  would  do 
with  a  king  who  did  not  keep  his  promises.  They  probably 
did  not  think  about  it  and  all  its  consequences  very  clearly  or 
consciously,  but  this  is  certainly  what  they  did.  They  tried 


§§  44J>  442]    Beginning  of  Judicial  Institutions        413 

to  depose  him  and  put  Matilda  in  his  place.  But  Stephen 
always  had  a  party  on  his  side,  and  Matilda  showed  herself 
just  as  bad  a  ruler,  so  that  the  attempt  did  not  come  to  any 
satisfactory  conclusion.  It  is  interesting  as  the  first  trace  we 
have  of  the  idea  that  the  people  may  try  to  force  the  king 
by  civil  war  to  keep  his  promises. 

441 .  Absolute  Kings  again.  —  After  Stephen  came  Henry  Henry  II., 
II.,  the  great  Angevin  king.     At  the  beginning  of  his  reign   Richard  I., 
he  issued  a  charter  in  which  he  promised  to  regard  the  good 

laws  of  his  grandfather  and  discontinue  all  evil  customs  ;  but 
he  and  his  sons  were  the  most  absolute  of  English  kings,  and 
we  may  almost  say  of  them  that  their  will  was  law,  certainly  it 
was  for  everything  not  already  settled  by  custom,  and  for  all 
questions  of  government  policy.  Their  hand  and  will  kept 
the  government  machine  going,  and  in  a  very  true  sense  in 
their  time  the  king  was  the  State. 

442.  The  Beginning  of  our  Judicial  Institutions.  —  Al-  Law  courts 
though  there  was  not  much  progress  in  the  reign  of  Henry  II.  and  the  Jury 
towards  constitutional  liberty,  there  was  begun  a  very  im-  ^stubbs** 
portant  development  of  one  set  of  public  institutions,  which   i35  ff.,  and 
help  to  secure  our  freedom,  —  the  law  courts.    In  order  to  be  especially, 
sure  to  get  all  the  money  which  was  due  him,  and  to  compel   p5enn.i., 
the  sheriffs  to  perform  all  their  administrative  duties  faith-   No.  6; 
fully,  Henry  determined  to  send  down  into  the  counties,   *  enderson» 
where  they  could  get  at  all  the  evidence  easily,  members  of 

the  king's  court,  or  curia  regis,  the  body  to  which  the  sher- 
iffs were  responsible  and  to  which  they  made  their  reports. 

These  members  of  the  king's  court  were  supposed  to  rep-  The  chief 

resent  the  king  himself,  and  were  charged  to  look  carefully  work  of  the 

after  all  his  dues  and  rights,  and  to  inquire  how  the  sheriff  Juices! 

had  conducted  his  office  in  each  county.     In  order  to  get  See  account 

the  evidence  which  they  needed,  they  had  the  right  to  sum-  of  Charle- 

mon  men  from  each  locality  and  put  them  on  their  oath  to  ^^p.  169 
tell  them  all  they  knew  about  these  facts.     This  was  the  ori- 
gin of  our  jury. 

These  new  officers,  called  itinerant  justices,  were  also  al-  They  also 

lowed  to  hear  and  decide  cases  at  law  in  the  different  coun-  tned  cases< 


414 


The  Anglo-Saxon  Constitutions     [§§443>444 


The  jury. 
Stubbs, 
Cons.  Hist., 
I.,  Sec.  164. 


The  question 
of  taxation  at 
the  founda- 
tion of  the 
English 
constitution. 
Stubbs,  146, 
159,  283,  and 
Cons.  Hist., 
I.,  Sec.  161. 


John  is 
forced  to 
grant  a  full 
and  specific 
charter. 
Text  and 


ties  which  might  otherwise  have  come  before  the  king's 
court  at  Westminster.  In  trying  these  cases,  to  decide 
questions  of  fact  which  might  arise,  they  were  allowed  to 
make  use  of  the  jury,  which  was  considered  to  be  an  institu- 
tion belonging  especially  to  the  king,  and  primarily  to  be 
used  only  in  his  business.  This  judicial  side  of  their  busi- 
ness grew  much  more  rapidly  than  the  other,  and  by  degrees, 
as  new  methods  of  looking  after  the  financial  interests  of  the 
government  were  introduced,  it  came  to  occupy  almost  their 
whole  attention.  This  was  the  beginning  of  our  circuit 
court  system,  which  we  think  of  usually  as  nothing  but  judi- 
cial ;  but  when  one  of  our  judges  instructs  the  grand  jury  to 
look  into  the  way  in  which  the  sheriff  has  kept  the  jail  since 
the  last  meeting  of  the  court,  he  is  doing  just  what  his  office 
was  originally  invented  to  accomplish. 

443.  King  John's  Arbitrary  Taxation.  —  Henry  II.  did 
not  seriously  interfere  with  those  rights  of  the  people  which 
were  secured  by  the  law,  but  Richard  I.  did  many  very  arbi- 
trary things,  and  John  was  a  thoroughly  bad  king.     He  was 
indeed  bad  in  more  ways  than  one,  but  the  particular  line 
of  badness  which  had  the  greatest  influence  on  the  growth 
of  the  constitution  was  with  reference  to  taxation.     John  is 
not  to  be  blamed  for  trying  to  increase  the  income  of  the 
State.     The    necessities  of  the  government,  owing  to   the 
rapidly  increasing  business  which  it  had  to  attend  to,  had 
grown  so  much  greater  than  they  formerly  had  been  that 
the  old  feudal  revenues  were  entirely  inadequate.     But  in 
trying  to  establish  a  regular  system  of  taxes,  by  simply  order- 
ing feudal  dues  to  be  paid  at  his  own  arbitrary  will,  without 
regard  to  the  circumstances  which  gave  him  a  right  to  take 
them   by  law,  John   had  certainly  violated    the   principles 
of  the  feudal  contract. 

444.  The  Magna  Charta.  —  When  the  opposition  to  John 
became  so  strong  that  he  was  forced  to  yield,  in  1215,  the 
barons,  with  the  advice  of  Stephen  Langton,  archbishop  of 
Canterbury,   drew  up    a   new  charter,    the   Magna    Charta, 
which  was  based  on  the  Charter  of  Henry  I.  but  which  was 


§§  445>  446]    The  Right  of  Insurrection  Applied         415 

much  more  full  and  specific.     This  charter  covered,  besides  comment, 

its  provisions  in  regard  to  taxes,  many  other  points  of  feudal  Taswell- 

law.     Some  were  points  which  had  arisen  in  the  working  of  consTffisi., 

the  new  itinerant  courts;  some  regarded  questions  of  ad-  Chap,  iv.; 

ministration  ;    others   related    to    the    royal   forests  ;     and  Text>  Stubbs< 

others  still  to  matters  in  which  the  interests  of  the  Church  oid  South, 

were  involved.  No.  5  ; 

In  latter  English  history  it  came  to  be  believed  that  the  JJo"^1'1 

Magna  Charta  secured  the  right  of  Parliament  to  vote  all  the  Lieber,  Civil 

taxes,  and  the  right  of  every  freeman  to  a  jury  trial,  and  to  Liberty; 

the  writ  of  habeas  corpus.     As  a  matter  of  historical  fact,  x  - 

these  things  were  not  in  the  Magna  Charta  as  its   framers  The  Magna 

understood  it,  but  there  were  clauses  which  naturally  seemed  Charta  takes 

to  imply  them,  and,  when  they  had  once  been  established  as  on  later  an 

,  -  i         /-  TI  i  ,  even  wider 

the  great  safeguards  of  liberty,  the  authority  of  the  Magna  meaning. 

Charta  helped  to  give  them  a  sacred  character.  Adams, 


445-    The  Right  of  Civil  War.  —  Without  much  question 
the  most  important  clauses  of  the  Magna   Charta,  in  their  The  M^  na 
influence  on  the  actual  work  of  making  the  English  constitu-   Charta  to  be 
tion,  are  these  at  the  end  which  state  the  means  of  com-   enforced  by 
pelling  the  king  to  keep  his  promises.     These  state  that  if  ]™rg°n  the 
he  fails  in  any  of  his  obligations  "  the  community  of  the 
whole  kingdom  may  distress  and  distrain  [him]   in  all  the 
ways  in  which  they  shall  be  able  "  till  the  grievance  is  re- 
dressed. 

This  was  the  logical  conclusion  of  the  practice    begun  Civil  war  a 
with  Henry  I.  of  extorting  from  the  king  definite  and  specific   constitu- 
promises  to  be  faithful  to  the  law  ;  but  this  conclusion,  of  expedient. 
which  no  one  had  been  conscious    in   Henry's  time,  and 
which  was  first  thought  of  in  the  case  of  Stephen,  was  now 
much  more  clearly  and  consciously  drawn  than  it  had  been 
before.    From   this  time  on  it  became,  we  may  say,  legal 
and  constitutional  to  raise  civil  war  against  the  king,  if  he 
violated  the  legal  rights  of  the  people. 

446.   The  Right  of  Insurrection  Applied.  —  On  this  prin-  John 
ciple  the  nation  acted  as  long  as  it  was  necessary.     When   deP°sed0 
John  attempted  to  throw  off  the  engagements  made  in  the 


416 


The  Anglo-Saxon  Constitutions  [§  447 


Henry  III. 
Hutton, 
Misrule  of 
Henry  ill. 
(Contempo- 
raries) . 

Stubbs,  378. 


The  Baron's 
War. 
Hutton, 
Simon  de 
Montfort 
(Contempo- 
raries) ; 
Matthew 
Paris  (Bohn), 
1 1 1.,  344-356; 
Matthew  of 
Westminster 
(Bohn),  II., 
412-441 ; 
Stubbs,  409. 

The  right  to 
restrain  a 
bad  king. 


The  growth 
of  a  national 
party. 

Richardson, 
National 
Movement  in 
Reign  of 
Henry  III. 
(Macmillan). 


Charter,  and  got  the  pope  to  release  him  from  them,  the 
barons  declared  him  deposed  and  proclaimed  Prince  Louis 
of  France  king  in  his  place.  A  change  of  dynasty  might 
have  taken  place  at  this  time  if  John's  death  in  the  midst  of 
the  conflict  had  not  saved  the  throne  to  his  son. 

When  that  son,  Henry  III.,  came  of  age,  he  proved  to  be  a 
weak  and  extravagant  king,  who  was  continually  disregarding 
the  rights  of  his  subjects.  At  one  time  the  barons  threatened 
to  choose  another  king  in  his  place  if  he  did  not  dismiss  one 
of  his  favorite  ministers.  Later  they  compelled  him  to  give 
up  practically  the  whole  government  of  England  into  the 
hands  of  a  commission  which  they  had  chosen,  and  to  which 
the  officers  of  the  State  were  made  responsible.  This  was 
the  arrangement  called  the  Provisions  of  Oxford. 

Later  still  they  made  open  war  on  the  king.  At  first  they 
were  successful  and  obtained  a  confirmation  of  the  charters 
from  Henry,  in  which  he  distinctly  recognized  their  right  to 
rise  in  insurrection  against  him  if  he  violated  the  agreement. 
Afterwards  they  were  defeated  by  Prince  Edward,  and  Simon 
de  Montfort,  their  leader,  was  killed ;  but  the  most  of  the 
principles  for  which  they  had  been  contending  were  adopted, 
through  the  wisdom  of  Prince  Edward,  and  made  into  laws. 

447.  The  Idea  of  a  Limited  Monarchy.  —  Besides  carrying 
on  this  principle  of  rightful  resistance  to  the  king,  the  reign 
of  Henry  III.  was  one  of  the  greatest  periods  of  constitu- 
tional growth  in  English  history.  It  was  a  time  during  which 
the  idea  of  a  limited  monarchy,  of  controlling  the  king,  put- 
ting him  under  restraints,  and  guiding  him  by  the  national 
will  took  very  rapid  shape.  This  was  partly  due  to  the 
personal  character  of  the  king,  which  was  so  weak  that  it  did 
not  command  the  respect  of  any  one,  so  that  nearly  every 
one  was  ready  and  willing  to  oppose  him.  In  part  it  was 
due  to  the  fact  that  there  was  throughout  his  reign  a  con- 
stant conflict  between  the  native  English  and  parties  of 
foreign  favorites  of  the  king's,  who  were  using  their  position 
to  gain  everything  which  they  could  for  themselves,  so  that 
there  was  always  a  good  reason  for  opposition.  We  cannot 


§§  448,449]  Representatives  in  the  Great  Council 

say  that  a  limited  monarchy  yet  existed  or  any  definite 
machinery  for  expressing  the  national  will,  but  the  beginnings 
of  both  date  from  this  reign. 

448.  The  Origin  of  Representative  Institutions.  —  The  The  begin- 
greatest  advance  of  all  during  the  reign  was  in  the  taking  of 
the  first  steps  towards  the  formation  of  Parliament  and  the 
introduction  of  the  representative  system.  The  first  full  and 
regular  Parliament,  in  the  legal  sense,  the  so-called  model 
Parliament,  was  called  together  by  Edward  I.  in  1295,  but  it 
was  during  the  reign  of  his  father  that  the  preliminary  steps 
were  taken  which  made  the  assembling  of  the  full  Parliament 
seem  to  every  one  a  perfectly  natural  thing. 

These  steps  consisted,  first,  in  employing  representatives  of  The  steps 


the  counties  in  national  business  ;  second,  in  summoning  them   ^l^    led  to 

e  Parliament. 

to  meet  with  the  Great  Council,  which  was  composed  of  the  Medley, 

barons  and  prelates  and  served  as  the  king's  council  and  Manual, 

court,  to  act  for  their  counties  and  make  known  to  the  coun-  .p^'^Jj1. 

cil  the  local  opinion  ;  and,  finally,  in  adding  to  these  repre-  Langmead, 

sentatives  of  the  counties  other  representatives  from  certain  Cons-  Hist-> 

of  the  more  important  towns.  Social   ' 

449-   Representatives  of  the   Counties  brought  into  the  England,  i. 

Great  Council.  —  The  representatives  of  the  counties  were  396-403- 

known  as  knights  of  the  shire.     That  is,  they  were  members  The  knights 

of  the  lower  ranks  of  the  land-holding  aristocracy,  who  had   oftheshire- 

Stubbs,  259. 

no  noble  titles  but  were  persons  of  great  influence  in  their 
localities.  They  had  first  begun  to  be  employed  in  public 
business  in  connection  with  the  itinerant  justice  courts  in 
which  they  chose  and,  so  far  as  their  numbers  went,  formed 
the  juries. 

Their  use  in  this  way  undoubtedly  suggested  their  employ-  The  knights 
ment  in  business  more  directly  concerning  the  government  employed  in 
when  the  need  for  it  arose.     In    1220   two   knights   were  busmess 
chosen  in  the  county  courts  to  assess  and  collect  a  land  tax.   Stubbs,  357. 
In  1225  four  knights  were  elected  from  each    hundred  to 
assess  and  collect  a  tax  on  personal  property  granted  the 
king  by  the  Great  Council.     In  1226  four  knights  were  sum- 
moned to  go  to  the  king  from  each  of  eight  counties  to  re- 


The  Anglo-Saxon  Constitutions     [§§  450, 451 


In  the  Great 

Council. 

Stubbs, 

375-  and 
Cons.  Hist., 
II.,  Sec.  214. 


Simon  de 

Montfort's 

Parliament. 

Taswell- 

Langmead, 

Cons.  Hist., 

197-200. 


The  "model 
Parliament," 

1295- 
Taswell- 
Langmead, 
Cons.  Hist., 
201-208. 
Writs  of 
summons. 
Stubbs,  400, 
479,  and  482 ; 
Penn.  I., 
No.  6. 

Parliamen- 
tary control 
of  taxation. 


port  on  the  conduct  of  the  sheriffs.      Other  cases  of  the 
same  sort  follow. 

In  1254  occurs  the  first  case  of  the  knights  meeting  with 
the  Great  Council,  summoned  thither  by  the  king  from  each 
county  to  aid  in  granting  him  a  new  tax.  They  were  sum- 
moned again  in  1261,  in  1264,  and  in  1265.  From  this  time 
on  their  membership  may  be  said  to  be  a  regular  feature  of 
the  Great  Council,  which  was  now  beginning  to  be  called 
Parliament. 

450.  The  First   Case   of   Town   Representation.  —  The 
representation  of  the  towns  was  introduced  more  suddenly, 
and  in  a  revolutionary  way,  by  Simon  de  Montfort  in  the 
Parliament  which  he  called  to  meet  in  January,  1265,  while 
the  king  was  a  prisoner  in  his  hands,  but  it  does  not  seem 
to  have  been  thought  at  the  time  a  very  strange  step.     In 
fact,  the  towns  had  been  regularly  represented  for  a  long 
time  in  the  county  courts,  and  as  they  seemed  to  be  a  some- 
what different  class  from  that  directly  represented  by  the 
knights  of  the  shire,  the  idea  was  sure  to  occur  to  some  one 
before  long  that  they  should  be  represented  in  the  Parlia- 
ment also.      This  step,  which  Simon  de  Montfort  took  to 
strengthen  himself,  was  not  followed,  in  anything  which  we 
can  call  a  full  Parliament  in  the  later  sense,  for  thirty  years. 

In  the  interval,  the  practice  shows  a  very  great  variety  and 
uncertainty  both  in  the  composition  and  in  the  method  of 
operation  of  the  Parliament,  which  means  of  course  that  the 
institution  was  still  in  the  process  of  formation,  and  that 
neither  its  make  up  nor  its  functions  were  yet  fixed.  We 
can,  indeed,  scarcely  detect  any  drift  towards  regularity,  but 
when  all  the  elements  were  once  more  brought  together  in 
a  regular  assembly  summoned  by  the  king,  in  1295,  this  be- 
came immediately  the  standard  form. 

451.  Further  Progress  in  the  Thirteenth  Century.  —  Be- 
sides determining  the  composition  of  Parliament,  the  reign 
of  Edward  I.  decided  the  first  great  point  in  the  conflict  be- 
tween Parliament  and  the  king,  and  laid  the  foundation  for 
the  final  victory  of  Parliament.     This  was  the  establishment 


§  4523    Parliaments  Right  to  control  Taxation     419 

of  the  right  of  Parliament  to  vote  the  taxes.  In  principle 
this  was  the  same  as  the  provision  of  the  Magna  Charta  with 
regard  to  extraordinary  feudal  taxes,  but  during  the  century 
there  had  been  very  great  progress  in  two  directions  which 
decidedly  changed  the  application  of  the  principle. 

In  the  first  place,  since  the  granting  of  the  Magna  Charta,  The 
a  system  of  taxes,  more  regular  in  character  and  more  like  development 
modern  taxes  than  the  feudal  levies,  had  been  growing  up.   taxation. 
Taxation  meant  something  different  in  1295  from  anything 
it  had  meant  in  1215.     Extraordinary  taxes,  voted  by  the 
Parliament,  were  at  the  close  of  the  century  a  much  heavier 
and  more  frequent  burden  on  the  nation  than  at  the  begin- 
ning, and  they  were  much  more  the  dependence  of  the 
government,  in  fact  without  them  government  was  no  longer 
possible. 

In  the  second  place  the  body  giving  consent  to  taxation,   Change  in 
called  in  the  Magna  Charta  the   Common  Council  of  the  the  charactel 

,  .       ,  ii.i  .,    .      ,    of  the  Great 

kingdom,  and  which  we  have  called  the  Great  Council,  had   council. 

now  decidedly  changed  in  character.  It  was  no  longer,  as 
it  had  been  then,  an  assembly  of  the  king's  vassals  only,  the 
barons  and  prelates  of  the  realm,  but  it  was  an  assembly 
containing  representatives  of  all  the  chief  classes  of  the 
nation  becoming  conscious  of  standing  in  the  place  of  the 
community  and  watchful  of  its  interests. 

452.   The  King  recognizes  the  Right  of  Parliament  to  The  "con- 
control  Taxation.  —  Consequently,    when   in   1297,   after  a   fij;matlon 
struggle   with    regard   to    arbitrary    taxation,    Edward   was   charters." 
forced  to  issue  a  new  agreement  to  conform  to  the  charters,   Taswell- 
it  contained  a  much   more  full  and  specific  promise    than   ^f  "^^' 
ever  before  not  to  take  any  taxes  "but  by  the  common   210-217; 
assent  of  the  realm."     It  was  intended  to  make  this  declara-   text  in 
tion  so  full  as  to  cover  all  kinds  of  taxes.     And,  indeed, 
though  later  kings  at  different  times  were  able  to   invent   No.  6. 
means  of  dodging,  the  prohibition  and  violating  the  spirit 
of  the  law  if  not  its  form,  they  were  never  able  to  deny  the 
principle  nor  to  recover  the  ground  which  had  been  lost  in 
the  thirteenth  century. 


420 


The  Anglo-Saxon  Constitutions     [§§  453>  454 


The  king 
forced  by  his 
need  of 
money  to 
make 
reforms. 
Stubbs, 
Cons.  Hist., 
II.,  Sec.  289. 


The  Hun- 
dred Years' 
War  under 
Edward   III. 
gives  an 
opportunity. 
Medley, 
Manual, 
Sec.  33; 
Montague, 
Elements •, 

73-89; 
Taswell- 
Langmead, 
Cons.  Hist., 
226-244. 

The  right  to 
make  specific 
appropria- 
tions. 
Stubbs, 
Cons.  Hist.% 
II.,  Sees. 
287-288. 


453.  Parliament  immediately  takes  a  New  Step.  —  Upon 
the   foundation   thus   laid   down   Parliament   steadily   pro- 
ceeded through  the  whole  fourteenth  century  to  increase  its 
power  in  the  State,  and  to  acquire  a  more  complete  control 
over  the  king.     The  first  step  in  this  advance  was  taken 
early  in  the  reign  of  Edward  II.,  when  Parliament  asserted 
a  right  to  use  the  financial  necessities  of  the  government  to 
compel  the  king  to  agree  to  reforms  which  they  demanded. 
This  was  done  by  granting  the  tax  asked  for  on  the  condition 
that  the  reforms  were  made.     In  the  next  reign  Parliament 
met  the  tendency  of  the  king  to  promise  the  reform,  and  when 
he  had  got  the  money  to  fail  to  carry  it  out,  by  insisting  that 
the  changes  be  accomplished  before  their  grant  was  made. 

454.  Another  Most   Important  Right   Gained.  —  Hardly 
had  Parliament  made  sure  of  this  new  weapon  against  the 
king,  when  they  proceeded  to  put  into  use  another  and  still 
more  effective  one.     The  demands  of  the  king  for  money 
were  frequent  beyond  all  precedent  during   the  long  war 
with  France  in  the  fourteenth  century,  and  this  made  the 
Parliament  more  than  usually  interested  in  the  public  ex~ 
penses.     Almost  at  the  beginning  of  the  war  they  began  to 
make  inquiry  into  the  methods  of  collection  and  to  examine 
the   accounts   of  the   collectors.      By   the    middle  of  the 
century  they  began   to  grant  taxes  to   be  applied   to  the 
purposes  of  the  war  only. 

These  were  but  preliminaries  to  holding  the  government 
to  a  strict  accountability  for  the  expenditure  of  its  income. 
In  the  reign  of  Richard  II.  this  advance  was  made,  and  the 
treasurers  were  required  to  make  in  writing  a  full  statement 
of  the  income  and  expenses  of  the  State.  From  this  was 
developed  the  parliamentary  right  of  strict  appropriations  of 
money  for  government  use,  so  strongly  insisted  upon  as  a 
means  of  controlling  the  executive  in  all  the  Anglo-Saxon 
constitutions  that,  though  the  treasury  may  be  full  to  over- 
flowing, and  the  needs  of  the  government  never  so  pressing, 
not  a  penny  can  be  used  without  a  specific  vote  of  the 
representatives  of  the  people. 


§455]     A   Third  Great  Gain  of  Parliament's      421 

Of  course  when  this  practice  should  be  put  into  complete   This  would 

operation  it  would  mean  a  very  effective  control  by  Parlia-   mean  a 

...  . .          r    ,  '.         .    .       control  of  the 

ment  over  the  whole  policy  of  the  government.     The  right  whole 
to  withhold  the  money  for  the  necessary  expenses  would  government 
make  it  possible  for  Parliament  to  prevent  any  action  on  P°licv- 
the  part  of  the  State  of  which  it  did  not  approve.     In  the 
end  the  English  government  did  come  to  be  subject  to  the 
control  of  the  legislature,  even  to  as  great  an  extent  as  this. 
But  the  right  of  appropriating  the  supplies  was  not  the  only 
means  which  led  to  this  result. 

455.  A  Third  Great  Gain  of  Parliament's.  —  At  exactly  The  right  of 
the  same  time  that  Parliament  was  securing  this  right,  it  was 
creating  another  equally  effective.  This  was  the  right  of 
impeaching  the  king's  ministers.  In  1367  was  the  first  case 
of  impeachment,  and  in  1386  the  second  and  still  more 
important  case  which  fully  established  the  right.  In  these 
cases  the  House  of  Commons  formally  accused  the  ministers 
before  the  House  of  Lords  of  misconduct  in  office.  The 
Lords  put  them  upon  trial,  found  them  guilty,  and  passed 
sentence  of  punishment  upon  them. 

The  right  of  impeachment,  when  it  was  put  into  its  final  The  ministei 
form,    meant   far   more  than  the   power  of  Parliament  to   resP°nsible 

.  ,  in  place  of 

punish  an  unpopular  minister.  It  meant  that  the  king  the  king, 
would  find  it  impossible  to  get  any  minister  who  would  be 
willing  to  carry  out  a  policy  known  to  be  opposed  by  the 
Parliament  or  by  the  public  sentiment  of  the  nation.  It 
meant,  in  other  words,  a  shifting  of  the  responsibility,  and  so 
in  the  end  of  the  control  of  the  government's  policy  from  the 
king  personally,  or  acting  of  his  absolute  will,  as  Henry  II. 
had  done,  to  the  minister. 

The  great  advantage  of  this  change  was  in  the  fact  that  A  substitute 
while  a  king  could  never  be  held  to  any  real  accountability  for  . 

.  ,  .   .  .  .    .  J     revolution, 

without  civil  war  and  revolution,  ministers  could  easily  be 

held  strictly  answerable  for  all  the  acts  of  the  government 
without  revolution,  unless  the  king  insisted,  as  Charles  I. 
finally  did,  on  assuming  the  responsibility  himself. 

To  carry  out  fully  this  application  of  impeachment,  Parlia- 


422  The  Anglo-Saxon  Constitutions    [§§  456, 457 


The  full 
development 
of  the  right 
comes  later. 


Statutes  vs. 
ordinances. 
Stubbs, 
Cons.  Hist., 
II.,  Sec.  292; 
Medley, 
Manual, 
Sec.  34. 


The  power  of 
Parliament 
meant  the 
power  of  the 
House  of 
Commons. 


ment  in  the  end  refused  to  allow  the  minister  to  plead  the 
orders  of  the  king  in  his  defence,  since  that  would  make  the 
king  responsible,  or  to  stop  the  trial  before  its  conclusion 
by  getting  the  king  to  grant  him  a  pardon.  These  points 
were  not  secured,  and  the  full  meaning  of  impeachment 
was  not  understood,  however,  at  first.  They  were  a  part 
of  the  more  perfect  statement  and  understanding  of  the 
English  constitution  which  resulted  from  the  struggles  of 
the  seventeenth  century  with  the  Stuart  kings. 

456.  The  Exclusive  Right  to  Legislate.  —  In  the  four- 
teenth century  Parliament  took  still  another  step   towards 
the  enlargement  of  its  power  at  the  expense  of  the  king. 
This  was  in  opening  the  struggle  between  laws,  or  statutes, 
regularly  passed  by  both  Houses  of  Parliament  and  assented 
to  by  the  king,  and  ordinances  made  by  the  king  and  his 
council,  either  the  king's  permanent  council   or  the  great 
council,  now  practically  the  same  as  the  House  of  Lords. 
This  last  had  been  the  method  of  legislation  of  feudal  times, 
in  so  far  as  there  was  any  at  all,  and  it  survived  alongside 
the  new  method  of  legislation  in  Parliament  for  some  time, 
and  traces  of  it  remained  in  the  constitution  much  longer. 
The  rivalry  between  ordinances  and  statutes  was  like  that 
between  the  old    feudal  and    the  new  parliamentary  taxes 
which  runs  through  the  thirteenth  century,  and,  like  that, 
it  was  in  the  end  settled  entirely  in  favor  of  Parliament. 

457.  The   Rise  of   the  House  of   Commons.  —  We   have 
been  speaking  all  along  of  the  increase  of  the  power  of 
Parliament,  but  it  must  be  noticed    that  Parliament  really 
means   the  House  of  Commons  added   to   the  old   Great 
Council,  or  to  the  barons  and  prelates  of  the  realm.     Conse- 
quently the  increase  of  the  power  of  Parliament  really  means 
the  rise  in  influence  and  to  control  over  public  business  of 
the  House  of  Commons.     Before  the  middle  of  the  four- 
teenth century  the  Commons  had  withdrawn  from  the  Lords 
and  organized  themselves  as  a  distinct  body,  thus  complet- 
ing the  form  of  Parliament ;    and  all   the  advances  made 
in  this  century  are  really  for  the  benefit  of  the  lower  House. 


§§  458>  459]    First  Attack  on  the  Constitution  423 

458.  Summary  of  Results.  —  If  we  put   these   all   to-  England 
gether,  we  can  see  that  by  the  close  of  the  fourteenth  cen-  *}™!£*  a 
tury  we  have  a  right  to  speak  of  the  English  monarchy  as  monarchy. 
already  a  limited  or  constitutional  monarchy  sustained,  if 

king  and  Parliament  came  to  a  square  issue,  by  the  right 
of  deposing  the  king.  The  monarchy  had  lost,  either  com- 
pletely or  to  all  practical  intents,  two  rights  essential  to 
an  absolutism  :  the  right  of  providing  a  revenue,  and  the 
right  of  making  laws  without  the  consent  of  the  nation; 
and  another  right  of  the  same  kind  had  so  far  slipped  out 
of  its  hands  that  it  was  henceforward  exercised  by  kings  in 
exceptional  circumstances  only,  that  of  determining  the 
policy  of  the  government  without  consulting  the  nation. 
Just  the  opposite  process  was  going  on  in  this  century  in  The  contrast 
France,  and  by  the  close  of  the  next  the  king  of  that  coun-  in  France- 
try  had  made  himself  the  most  absolute  monarch  of  the 
Christian  world  by  getting  possession  of  all  these  three 
rights  so  that  he  could  exercise  them  without  any  check. 

459.  The  First  Dangerous  Attack  on  the  Constitution.   Thetyr- 
—  This  young  constitution  was   brought   to   a  sharp   test,  ann^ of 
which   reveals  its  character  and   its  strength,  in  the  reign   Taswell- 
of  Richard  II.     Just  what  kind  of  a  man  Richard  II.  was,   Langmead, 
and  just  what  he  intended  to  do,  we  cannot  say  with  any    Cons-Hi3i" 
certainty.     But   this  makes  very  little   difference  with   the 

result.  Whatever  his  purpose  may  have  been,  if  he  had 
been  allowed  to  go  on  and  to  complete  the  process  he  had 
begun,  he  would  have  restored  the  monarchy  of  the  Ange- 
vin kings,  where  the  sovereign's  will  decided  everything. 
He  was  getting  an  independent  revenue,  and,  by  a  round- 
about method,  the  right  to  make  such  laws  as  he  pleased, 
and  he  was  assuming  the  power  to  suspend  statuter  passed 
by  Parliament  and  to  inflict  heavy  penalties  by  a  royal 
order. 

That  the  personal  cause  of  Henry  of  Lancaster  was  bound  The  first 
up  with  that  of  the  nation  does  not  make  the  revolution  of  ccrostitu- 
1399  any  tne  IGSS  one  m  defence  of  the  constitution,  or  any  r 
the  less  a  perfect  precedent  to  apply  to  a  king  like  James  II.  1399. 


424 


The  Anglo-Saxon  Constitutions     [§§  460, 461 


Stubbs, 
Cons.  Hist., 
Sees. 
268—269. 


The  right  of 
deposition 
clearly 
established. 


Parliament 
passes  over 
the  heirs  by 
blood. 


A  new  kind 
of  title  to  the 
throne 
created — the 
parliamen- 
tary title. 
Taswell- 
Langmead, 
173-176. 


Parliament  was  perfectly  conscious  of  its  rights  in  the  case. 
Much  earlier  in  Richard's  reign,  when  he  showed  a  dispo- 
sition to  resist  the  right  of  the  legislature  to  control  his  min- 
isters, Parliament  called  his  attention  in  a  formal  address 
to  their  right  to  depose  the  king  and  to  the  exercise  of  this 
right  in  the  case  of  Edward  II. 

460.  The  Deposition  of  Edward  II.  1327. — The  case  of 
Edward  II.  was  not  so  clear  a  case  by  any  means  of  consti- 
tutional deposition  as  that  of  Richard  II.     The  personal  ele- 
ment entered  into  it  much  more  as  a  controlling  influence 
than  in  the  later  case.     But  in  form  Edward  was  deposed 
distinctly  on  the  ground  that  he  was  a  thoroughly  bad  king. 
But  even  without  this  precedent  there  could  be  no  question 
but  that  the  principle  had  been  clearly  established,  in  the 
still  earlier  cases  of  John  and  Henry  III.,  that  the  people 
had  the  right  to  make  war  upon  the  king  to  force  him  to 
better  government,  and  this  logically  involved  the  right  of 
deposition  or  it  could  not  be  really  effective.     There  was 
abundant  sanction  in  the  past,  explicit  and  implied,  for  the 
deposing  of  Richard  II.,  and  it  was  clearly  necessary  to  save 
the  constitution. 

461 .  The  Right  of  Parliament  to  control  the  Succession. 
—  In  the  revolution  of  1399,  however,  the  Parliament  be- 
sides establishing  the  clearest  precedent  yet  made  for  the 
exercise  of  this  right  of  deposition  went  a  step  further  and 
put  into  operation  another  right,  logically  involved  in  the 
first,  but  never  before  acted  upon  and  not  even  then  fully 
understood  in  all  that  it  was  to  lead  to.     This  they  did  by 
passing  over  the  nearest  heirs  to  the  throne  and  placing  upon 
it  a  man  who  could  never  have  reached  it  by  the  ordinary 
rule  of  succession. 

No  doubt  they  did  this  with  no  thought  of  enlarging  their 
own  power.  Henry  was  the  only  one  who  was  competent 
to  be  king  at  the  time.  But  it  is  equally  true  that  by  this 
act  they  did  establish  the  principle  that  the  nation  acting 
through  Parliament  has  the  right  in  exceptional  cases  to  set 
aside  the  regular  line  and  to  give  a  legitimate  title  to  the 


§  462]         Progress  of  the  Fifteenth  Century  425 

throne  to  a  new  line  whose  only  right,  strictly  speaking,  is 
derived  from  the  choice  of  the  nation. 

This  right  was  confirmed  during  the  reign  of  Henry  IV.  by  The  question 

acts  of  Parliament  fixing  the  line  of  succession  in  the  family  ^etween  Jhe 

J     houses  of 
of  the  king,  and  Parliament  very  soon  became  clearly  con-   York  and 

scious  of  the  gain  which  it  had  made.     When  in  1460,  vie-   Lancaster, 
torious  in  the  field,  Richard  duke  of  York  advanced  in  the  ^n^mst 
House  of  Lords  his  better  hereditary  title  to  the  throne  than   m.,Sec.677. 
that  of  the  house  of  Lancaster,  and  demanded  recognition  of 
it,  one  point  of  the  reply  to  him  was  that  the  title  of  the 
house  of  Lancaster  by  statute  was  better  than  any  other  kind 
of  title.     When  Richard  accepted  the  compromise  which 
Parliament   proposed,    he  practically  recognized  this  fact. 
The  right  of  the  Parliament  to  do  all  that  it  did  when  it  de- 
posed James  II.  and  set  aside  the  rightful  line  of  the  Stuarts 
in  favor  of  the  house  of  Hanover,  was  fully  established  by 
the  precedents  of  1399. 

462.   The  Progress  of  the  Fifteenth  Century.  —  The  fif-  Constitu- 
teenth  century  is  one  of  far  less  activity  in  constitution  mak-  tional  s°v- 
ing  than  either  the  twelfth  or  the  thirteenth.     The  position  becomes 
of  Henry  IV.  made  him  dependent  upon  Parliament,  and  habitual, 
he  reigned  in  many  respects  almost  like  a  modern  constitu- 
tional monarch,  and  this  had  an  effect  to  secure  all  that  had 
been  already  gained  and  fix  it  in  the  familiar  habits  of  the 
nation.     In  many  minor  details  Parliament  enlarged  or  de- 
fined its  rights  during  the  period. 

The  House  of  Commons  secured  the  right  to  originate  all  Manyminov 
bills  relating  to  money ;  the  principle  was  established  that  the  rlshts 
wording  of  acts  of  Parliament  once  passed  should  not  after- 
wards be  changed  ;  the  dangerous  power  was  assumed  of  pun- 
ishing great  opponents,  not  by  impeachment,  but  by  bill  of 
attainder,  an  act  of  Parliament  declaring  a  person  guilty  and 
fixing  his  punishment  without  trial :  a  most  dangerous  power 
of  which  the  Congress  of  the  United  States  has  been  wisely  Cons,  of 
deprived,  and  which  will  never  again  be  exercised  in  England  F-  s-  L 
so  long  as  the  cabinet  system  of  government  lasts.     The  right      ' 3* 
to  determine  upon  regencies  was  repeatedly  exercised  and 


426 


The  Anglo-Saxon  Constitutions          [§  463 


Freedom  of 
debate. 

Medley, 

Manual, 

Sec.  37; 

Taswell- 

Langmead, 

Cons.  Hist., 

268-272. 


An  evidence 

of  the 

progress 

already 

made. 

See  passage 

from 

Fortesque, 

Taswell- 

Langmead, 

Cons.  Hist., 

301-303. 

A  time  of 
danger  to  the 
constitu- 
tion. 


Tendency  of 
the  Yorkist 
kings  to  in- 
dependence. 


insisted  upon  ;  the  freedom  of  speech  of  members,  the  right 
not  to  be  called  in  question  elsewhere  for  things  said  in  debate, 
and  their  freedom  from  arrest  during  the  sessions  of  Parlia- 
ment were  established  in  principle,  though  not  always  after- 
wards perfectly  respected ;  and  finally  the  decision  of  dis- 
puted election  cases  and  the  fixing  of  the  qualifications  for 
exercising  the  right  of  suffrage,  and  for  membership  in  the 
House  of  Commons  were  assumed  by  Parliament. 

None  of  these  points  is  of  particular  importance  in  itself, 
but  taken  all  together  they  form  a  considerable  body  of 
privilege,  and  coming  all  within  a  short  period  of  less  than 
fifty  years  they  show  us  what  extensive  powers  Parliament 
must  already  have  gained  to  occupy  itself  during  a  time  par- 
ticularly favorable  to  its  pretensions  with  such  relatively  un- 
important matters  only. 

463.  The  Yorkist  Period.  —  The  last  half  of  the  fifteenth 
century  was  filled  with  the  Wars  of  the  Roses,  a  time  unfa- 
vorable to  large  constitutional  growth.  Indeed,  the  period 
when  the  Yorkist  kings  were  in  power  was  a  time  of  no 
small  danger  to  Parliament  and  the  constitution.  The  fact 
that  their  case  required  them  to  insist  on  the  superior  right 
of  a  hereditary  title  to  the  throne  brought  them  into  collision 
with  one  of  the  powers  which  Parliament  had  acquired  which 
was  most  essential  to  the  life  of  the  constitution,  the  power 
of  determining  who  should  be  king. 

The  Yorkist  kings  also  show  a  decided  tendency  to  seek  for 
an  independent  revenue,  and,  so  far  as  circumstances  would 
allow,  to  rule  without  Parliament.  Yet  on  the  whole  the  con- 
stitution lost  nothing.  Richard  III.  was  compelled  to  some 
dependence  on  Parliament  for  his  title,  and  the  power  of  the 
House  of  Commons  was  revealed  at  times  by  the  anxiety  of 
the  government  to  get  it  packed  with  its  own  supporters. 
Still  more  decisive  was  the  fact  that  the  period  was  too  short 
and  too  tumultuous  to  allow  an  absolutism  to  become  fixed 
in  the  government. 

The  battle  of  Bosworth  Field  and  the  accession  of  Henry 
VII.  were  incidents  in  the  Wars  of  the  Roses,  and  yet  the 


§§  464,  4&5J      Circumstances  of  Tudor  Age  427 

overthrow  of  Richard  III.  was  a  revolution  which  protected   The  over- 
the  constitution  as  truly  as  did  that  of  1399,  though  from  a   *J^  ^f  IIL 
less  immediate  danger.     Edward  IV.  and  Richard  III.  were   indirectiy  a 
abler  sovereigns  than  any  that  have  followed  them  in  English   constitu- 
history  with  the  exception,  perhaps,  of  Elizabeth  and  Wil- 
liam  III.  ;  but  a  constitutional  monarchy  has  no  place  for  able 
sovereigns.     They  are  always  a  dangerous  menace  or  a  nui- 
sance, and  the  Yorkist  kings  were  plainly  tending  to  a  policy 
dangerous  to  the  constitution. 

464.  The  Tudor  Period.  —  The  Tudor  period  is  commonly  The  charac- 
called  that  of  the  absolute  monarchy  in  English  history.   J*;rofthe 
And  it  certainly  is  so  in  a  sense.     The  sovereigns  showed   absolutism. 
tendencies  decidedly  like  those  of  the  Yorkist  kings.     The   Montague, 

constitution  was  severely  strained  and  in  some  points  even        .       ' 
*  92—104. 

broken.  Many  times  the  monarch  imposed  his  will  on  a 
nation,  reluctant,  to  say  the  least.  But  the  absolute  power 
of  the  Tudors  was  as  far  asunder  as  possible  from  that  abso- 
lutism, with  no  institutions  to  check  or  limit  it,  which  was 
exercised  during  the  same  time  by  the  king  of  France.  Cer- 
tain peculiar  circumstances  of  the  historical  situation,  partly 
affecting  the  sovereigns  and  partly  affecting  the  nation,  pre- 
served the  underlying  principles  of  the  constitution  uninjured, 
and  kept  the  monarch  and  the  Parliament  from  ever  coming 
into  direct  collision  with  one  another. 

465.  The  Peculiar  Circumstances  of  the  Tudor  Age.  —  The  question 
There  were  three  of  these  circumstances  most  important  to  of  the  . 
notice.     First  was  the  question  of  title  to  the  throne,  affect- 


ing  all  but  Henry  VIII.  and  Edward  VI.,  and  compelling  a   Langmead, 

recognition  of  the  supreme  authority  of  Parliament  on  this 

most  fundamental  matter.      Indeed,  the  two  kings  named 

are  not  real  exceptions,  because  the  reign  of  Edward  was 

practically  all  a  minority  under  a  regency  deriving  its  author- 

ity from  Parliament,  and  Henry  VIII.  was  compelled  by  his 

own  situation  to  recognize  the  supreme  authority  of  Parlia- 

ment in  this  particular,  and  did  so  when  he  allowed  it  to 

confer  on  him  the  right  to  fix  the  order  of  succession  among 

his  heirs. 


428 


The  Anglo-Saxon  Constitutions 


[§466 


The  growth 
of  a  close 
community 
of  nations. 


The  rise  of 

religious 

strife. 


Enough  to 
make  a 
practical 
absolutism. 
Taswell- 
Langmead, 
Cons.  Hist., 
Chap.  X. 


Prothero, 
118-126. 


The  turn  of 
the  current. 


The  second  was  the  rapid  development  of  international 
politics,  which  created  a  great  community  of  the  European 
states,  and  bound  them  in  a  close  and  intricate  struggle  for 
leadership,  so  that  questions  of  foreign  policy  now  began  to 
influence  the  conduct  of  domestic  affairs  in  a  way  they  had 
never  done  before.  This  was  intimately  connected  at  first 
with  the  question  of  the  succession,  and  in  the  last  part  of 
the  period  with  the  third  of  these  circumstances. 

This  third  was  the  general  condition  produced  by  the 
great  revolution  which  swept  over  all  Europe  in  the  reforma- 
tion of  Luther,  creating  new  and  more  intense  issues,  and 
dividing  almost  every  nation  into  two  bitterly  hostile  parties. 
For  England  this  quickly  became  a  question  of  national  in- 
dependence, and  made  the  country  willing  to  support  the 
cautious  and  carefully  balanced  policy  of  Elizabeth,  even  at 
the  cost  of  overlooking  some  disregard  of  the  constitution, 
of  which,  however,  they  were  perfectly  conscious. 

466.  Details  of  Tudor  Action.  —  The  special  details  of 
the  unconstitutional  action  of  the  Tudors  are  not  so  many 
in  number  as  they  are  grave  in  principle.  Forced  loans  and 
other  illegal  means  of  avoiding  a  financial  dependence  on 
the  legislature,  and  at  times  long  intervals  between  Parlia- 
ments ;  arbitrary  methods  of  trial  by  a  sort  of  royal  preroga- 
tive in  the  court  of  the  Star  Chamber,  and  equally  arbitrary 
arrests  and  imprisonments  both  of  which  tended  to  destroy 
the  safeguards  of  individual  liberty  existing  in  the  ordinary 
courts  ;  interference  with  the  freedom  of  debate,  going  so 
far  even  as  the  imprisonment  of  members  of  the  House  of 
Commons  in  the  Tower  ;  and  the  insisting  that  royal  proc- 
lamations should  have  the  force  of  statute  law,  a  claim 
which  for  a  few  years  and  in  special  cases  received  the  sanc- 
tion of  Parliament.  Taken  together  these  -principles  and 
practices  would  constitute  a  very  strong  arbitrary  govern- 
ment. 

The  dangers  which  had  induced  the  nation  to  submit  be- 
gan to  lessen  in  the  last  years  of  Elizabeth,  and  many  signs 
began  to  appear  which  made  it  evident  that  Parliament  would 


§§  467;  468]     Constitutional  Change  in  the  Church    429 

not  much  longer  endure  the  practical  control  of  everything 
by  the  sovereign's  will.     But  one  not  insignificant  result  of 
the  trend  of  things  during  this  period  was  a  theoretical  ac- 
ceptance and  defence  by  some  of  the  doctrine  of  a  divine   ••  Divine 
right  in  kings  of  which  they  cannot  be  deprived,  the  source  ri§ht-" 
of  a  supreme  power  in  government.      This  doctrine  in  a 
more  developed  form  was  to  play  a  great  part  in  the  consti- 
tutional history  of  the  next  century. 

467.  Institutional   Character   of  the  Tudor  Rule.  —  In   No  real 
general  we  may  say  of  the  Tudors  that  theirs  was  an  abso-  absolutist 

.    J.     *  institution. 

lutism  exercised  not  so  much  through  institutions  proper  to   Haiiam, 
a  despotic  monarchy,  as  by  imposing  their  will  on  the  nation   Cons.  Hist., 
through  the  existing  institutions  of  the  State.     The  nation   **f'  ^  pf 
submitted  because  in  a  grave  crisis  of  its  existence  the  sov- 
ereign's policy  seemed  wise  and  had  the  support  of  public 
opinion,  while  to  resist  too  far  the  sovereign's  method  would 
only  increase  the  most  serious  danger  of  the  time,  the  con- 
stantly threatened  civil  war. 

The  royal  exercise  of  power  was  not  unlike  that  of  an  Modern 
American  "  boss,"  who  decides  all  questions  of  policy  by  his 
irresponsible  will,  but  without  any  visible  change  of  the  con- 
stitution. Perhaps  a  still  better  parallel  would  be  the  present 
government  of  Germany,  because  there  the  supremacy  of  the  Germany, 
sovereign's  will  is  accompanied  with  some  departure  from 
the  constitution,  and  because  intelligent  Germans  justify  the 
nation's  submission  on  similar  grounds  of  expediency.  For 
England  the  method  of  the  Tudor  absolutism  meant  that  all 
constitutional  rights  were  still  in  existence,  ready  to  be  put 
into  force  when  the  nation  should  judge  that  the  time  had 
come. 

468.  The  Constitutional  Change  in  the  Position  of   the  The  Church 
Church.  —  In  one  particular  there  had  been  a  great  consti-  made  subJe« 
tutional  change  during  the  age  of  the  Tudors.     Whatever  men"* 
one  may  think  of  the  method  by  which  the  Church  of  Eng-  See  Gee  and 
land  had  been  made  independent  of  the  pope,  constitution-   Hardy«  477- 
ally  the  result  had  been  to  put  the  Church  completely  under 

the  control  of  the  nation.     What  the  fourteenth  century  had 


430 


The  Anglo-Saxon  Constitutions     [§§  469, 47° 


The  opening 
of  a  new  era. 


The  attitude 
of  the  kings. 


Personal 
character- 
istics. 


The  question 
of  title. 
Hallam, 
Cons.  Hist., 
I.,  first  pages 
of  Chap.  VI.; 
Prothero, 


done  in  subjecting  the  monarchy  to  Parliament,  the  sixteenth 
did  on  the  ecclesiastical  side  of  public  affairs  in  subjecting 
the  Church  to  Parliament.  The  supremacy  of  the  king  as 
the  head  of  the  Church  was  in  many  respects  real  during  the 
Tudor  period,  but  when  Parliament  had  once  recovered  its 
place  this  function  of  the  sovereign  like  every  other  was 
under  national  control. 

469.  Character  of  the  Stuart  Period.  —  With  the  acces- 
sion of  James  I.,  the  first  of  the  Stuart  kings,  there  opened 
a  new  age  in  the  history  of  the  English  constitution.     The 
period  of  the  suspension  of  parliamentary  control  had  come 
to  an  end.     The  time  of  national  danger,  when  it  was  neces- 
sary that  the  strength  of  the  State  should  be  directed  by  a 
single  will,  and  when  civil  strife  was  more  dangerous  than 
temporary  submission    to   arbitrary   government,   was   now 
past.     Parliament  was  ready  to  resume  its  direction  of  the 
nation's  policy,  and  to  begin  once  more  the  steady  building 
up  of  the  constitution. 

These  intentions  of  Parliament  came  by  degrees,  however, 
into  direct  collision  with  the  intentions  of  the  kings.  The 
Stuart  kings  were  by  no  means  disposed  to  surrender  the 
influence  over  public  affairs  which  the  Tudor  kings  had 
exercised. 

470.  Reasons  for  the  Attitude  of  the  Kings.  —  The  atti- 
tude of  the  kings  was  partly  due  to  the  personal  character- 
istics of  the  Stuart  family.     Nearly  all  its  members  were  men 
of  small  intellectual  gifts,  of  little  political  insight,  short- 
sighted and  of  poor  judgment,  but  with  the  highest  ideas 
of  their  own  rights,  and  with  that  determined  obstinacy  of 
purpose  which  often   accompanies   these   other   character- 
istics. 

The  attitude  of  James  I.  to  the  constitution  was  also 
partly  due  to  the  fact  that  by  the  parliamentary  arrangement 
of  the  succession,  made  in  the  reign  of  Henry  VIII.,  his  title 
to  the  throne  ha'd  been  postponed  to  that  of  the  descend- 
ants of  Henry's  younger  sister,  Mary.  It  is  evident  that  on 
the  death  of  Elizabeth,  the  will  of  the  nation  was  entirely 


§§47I>472]     Slow  Advance  towards  War  43 r 

in  favor  of  the  accession  of  the  king  of  Scotland.  There 
was,  in  fact,  no  real  opposition  to  it.  But  the  existence  of 
this  legal  defect  in  his  title  seems  to  have  disposed  James 
to  emphasize  the  indefeasible  right  of  hereditary  succession 
and  to  have  prepared  the  way  for  a  union,  which  was  indeed 
an  entirely  natural  one  between  the  Stuart  kings  and  the 
growing  party  of  those  who  held  to  the  doctrine  of  divine 
right. 

471.  A  Third  Reason  of  Strife,  the  Religious  Parties.  —   The 
One  further  reason  of  the  fact  that  the  constitutional  history 

of  England  in  the  seventeenth  century  passes  through  a 
great  civil  war,  is  to  be  found  in  the  gradual  separation  of 
the  nation  into  two  great  parties  on  religious  questions. 
One  of  these,  while  desiring  to  free  the  national  Church 
from  the  government  of  the  pope,  and  to  change  the  most 
distinctive  of  the  Roman  Catholic  doctrines,  like  that  of 
trans-substantiation,  was  disposed  to  retain  just  as  much  as 
possible  of  the  old  church  both  in  organization  and  in  forms, 
and  was  unwilling  to  take  formal  sides  on  minor  points  of 
doctrine  with  any  of  the  sects  which  were  arising  in  the 
Protestant  world. 

On  the  other  hand  a  large  and  increasing  body  in  the  The  Puritan 
nation  was  determined  to  carry  the  reformation  further,  both  party- 
in  doctrines  and  in  forms,  and  in  the  matter  of  organization 
wished  to  give  the  national  Church  a  constitution  which 
would  make  it  republican  in  government,  or  even  demo- 
cratic. The  fact  that  this  body  was  strongly  inclined  to 
the  spirit  and  teachings  of  Calvinism,  which  was  a  fighting 
faith,  made  it  ready  to  take  up  arms  and  enter  upon  a  civil 
war  in  defence  of  what  it  believed  to  be  the  right.  Each 
of  these  two  parties  found  itself  to  a  considerable  extent  in  a 
natural  alliance  :  the  one  with  the  idea  of  the  divine  right 
of  kings  to  govern,  and  the  other  with  that  of  parliamentary 
supremacy. 

472.  Slow  Advance  towards  War.  —  During  the  reign  of   Nearly  a  half 
James  I.  there  was  a  growing  opposition  between  the  king 

and  the  Parliament,  a  growing  determination  on  the  part  of   ment. 


432 


The  Anglo-Saxon  Constitutions     [§§473?  474 


James  I., 
Taswell- 
Langmead, 
Cons.  Hist., 
405-444 ; 
Montague, 
Elements, 
115-118. 

The  Petition 
of  Right, 
1628. 
Text  and 
comment. 
Taswell- 
Langmead; 
Cons.  Hist., 
444-461 ; 
text, 

Gardiner,  i ; 
Old  South, 
23;   Lieber, 
Civil  Liberty; 
Stubbs,  515. 


The  difficulty 
of  a  revenue. 
Montague, 
Elements, 
120  ff. ; 
Gardiner, 
5,  16,  17. 

Ship-money. 
Taswell- 
Langmead, 
Cons.  Hist., 
467-476 ; 
Gardiner, 

37-54 : 
Old  South, 
60. 


The  Scottish 
war. 


each  to  insist  on  what  it  believed  to  be  constitutionally  right ; 
but  there  was  no  open  breach  between  them  and  no  irrec- 
oncilable conflict.  In  the  reign  of  Charles  I.  matters  by 
degrees  progressed  to  a  square  issue  between  king  and 
Parliament. 

473.  The  Second  Great  Constitutional  Document.  —  Very 
soon  after  the  accession  of  Charles,  Parliament  drew  up  the 
second  in  the  series  of  great  constitutional  documents  which 
declare  and  confirm  our  liberties,  the  Magna  Charta  being 
counted  the  first.     This  is  called  the  Petition  of  Right,  and 
it  was  made  a  statute  law  with  the  consent  of  the  king  in 
1628.     It  is  exactly  similar  in  spirit  and  character  with  the 
line  of  great  documents  already  referred  to,  for  its  purpose 
is  to  state  the  rights  of  all  citizens  which  have  been  infringed 
by  the  action  of  the  king,  and  to  secure  them  from  such 
infringement  in  the  future.     But  though  he  had  consented 
to  this  statute,  Charles  had  no  intention  of  abandoning  what 
he  regarded  as  his  rightful  prerogatives,  and  before  many 
months  this  Parliament  was  dissolved  by  the  king  in  anger 
at  its  insistance  upon  its  own  will. 

474.  The   Period   of   Rule  without   Parliament.  —  The 
king  now  resolved  to  rule  without  a  Parliament  and  was  able 
to  do  so  for  eleven  years.     The  greatest  difficulty  of  such 
a  method  of  government  was  to  provide  a  sufficient  revenue, 
for  all  the  usual  sources  of  income  were  now  dependent  on 
the  consent  of  Parliament.     The  ingenuity  of  one  of  the 
king's   ministers  revived    an   old    form  of  taxation,   called 
"  ship-money,"  by  which  the  king  had  apparently  the  right 
to  require  the  different  cities  and  counties  to  furnish  ships  for 
the  defence  of  the  kingdom,  and  this  was  used  to  obtain 
money  ostensibly   for  the   strengthening  of  the   navy,   but 
really  for  the  ordinary  expenses  of  the  State.     The  refusal 
of  Hampden  to  pay  this  tax  led  to  a  trial  of  the  case  in  the 
courts,  and  though  the  judges  decided  in  favor  of  the  king, 
the  nation  was  aroused  to  a  consciousness  of  the  danger. 

Just  at  this  moment  the  king  had  involved  himself  in  a 
war  with  the  Scottish  people  by  attempting  to  force  them  to 


§§  475 >  476]     Further  Concessions  of  the  King        433 

use  a  liturgy  in  church  services  to  which  they  were  bitterly 

opposed.      They    drew    up   in    consequence   the    famous  The 

"  Covenant,"  and  took  arms  in  its  defence.     The  expense   "  Covenant." 

r    ,  .  tl  ..  Text  in 

of  this  war  could  not  be  met  without  more  regular  sources  Gardiner,  54; 

of  income,  and   Charles  was  forced  to  call  a  Parliament,  Old  South, 

which  met  in  April,.  1640,  but  remained  in  session  only  25> 
three   weeks.     No  agreement  could  be  reached  about  the 
ship-money,  and  the  king  again  dissolved  the  Parliament  in 
anger. 

475.  Charles  forced  to  a  Temporary  Submission.  —  For  a  The  meeting 
few  months  Charles  managed  to  sustain  himself  by  even  °f  the  Lon£ 
more  arbitrary  methods  than  before,  but  the  failure  of  his  NOV^^O. 
campaign  against  the  Scots  turned  the  feeling  of  the  army  Tasweii- 
against   him,  and  he  was  forced  to  yield.     In  November  ^"f1^^1 
Parliament  met  again,  a  Parliament  which  was  to  continue  602,  and 

in  existence  until  after  the  death  of  the  king,  and  which  is  reference 

known  as  the  Long  Parliament.     At  the  beginning  of  this  clarendon 
Parliament   the  popular   or   constitutional   party  was   very 
strong,  and  its  spirit  was  one  of  most  determined  opposition 
to  the  arbitrary  government  of  the  king. 

Its   first  act  was   to  impeach  the  earl  of  Strafford,  the  Parliament 

king's  minister,  of  treason.    The  feeling  was  especially  bitter  £old,s  the 

against  him  because  he  had  been  earlier  one  of  the  leaders  minister 

of  the  popular  party,  but  had  now   gone  completely  over  responsible. 

to  the  king.     When  it  was  found  that  under  the  statute  of  ?.?yle>  . 

Clarendon, 

treason  he  could  not  be  proved  guilty  of  that  crime,  Parlia-  63-78 ; 
ment  accomplished  its  purpose  by  passing  a  bill  of  attainder,   Gardiner,  85; 
that  is,  a  special  law  declaring  him  guilty,  and  sentencing  ^ld      lth> 
him  to  death  by  act  of  Parliament.     Strafford  hoped  to  the 
last  that  the  king  would  save  him,  but  Charles  was  not  yet 
ready  to  accept  the  full  personal  responsibility  of  his  con- 
duct  by  coming  to  an  open  breach  with  Parliament,  and 
preferred  to  sacrifice  his  minister. 

476.  Further  Concessions  of  the  King.  —  Parliament  then  enough  to 
proceeded  to  strike  at  the   measures   of  the   king.     Ship-   restore  the 
money  and  the  Star  Chamber  tribunal  were  declared  illegal,   GTrdlrTer,0^ 
and  an  act  was  passed  to  enable  Parliament  to  meet  without  88-122. 


434 


The  Anglo-Saxon  Constitutions  [§  477 


The  king  not 
trusted. 


The  party  of 
moderate 
royalists 
growing. 


The  Grand 
Remon- 
strance. 
Boyle, 
Clarendon^ 
82-85 1 
text, 

Gardiner, 
127;  Old 
South,  24. 

The  case  of 
the  five 
members. 
Taswell- 
Langmead, 

496-503 ; 

Boyle, 

Clarendon, 

88-94. 


the  sanction  of  the  king,  if  he  should  allow  three  years  to 
pass  without  calling  it  together.  To  these  and  other  de- 
mands Charles  seemed  readily  to  give  way,  and  if  his  con- 
cessions had  been  honest  and  the  Parliament  could  have 
had  confidence  that  his  future  conduct  would  have  been  in 
accord  with  them,  the  English  constitution  would  have  been 
preserved  without  any  violent  or  unconstitutional  measures. 

It  was  perfectly  evident,  however,  that  the  king  regarded 
these  concessions  as  only  temporary,  and  that,  as  soon  as 
circumstances  enabled  him  to  do  so,  he  would  declare  them 
void  because  they  had  been  extorted  from  him  by  force. 
This  made  the  most  earnest  defenders  of  the  constitution 
very  suspicious  and  watchful,  and  disposed  to  more  extreme 
measures. 

On  the  other  hand  many,  who  up  to  this  time  had  been 
acting  with  the  opposition  to  the  king,  began  now  to  think 
that  enough  had  been  demanded  of  him,  and  that  further 
concessions  would  reduce  the  royal  power  to  a  shadow.  As 
a  result,  the  constitutional  party  in  Parliament  began  to  de- 
crease in  numbers  and  the  moderate  supporters  of  the  king 
to  grow  more  numerous. 

477.  The  King  determines  to  resist.  —  In  these  circum- 
stances, at  the  opening  of  the  second  session  of  the  Long 
Parliament,  the  popular  party  proposed  the  adoption  by  the 
Commons  of  the  Grand  Remonstrance,  a  formal  declaration 
of  their  position,  and  to  appeal  to  the  support  of  the  nation. 
This  they  were  able  to  carry  by  only  a  small  majority.  Now 
Charles  determined  to  abandon  the  policy  of  concession 
and  to  adopt  that  of  resistance. 

His  first  step  was  to  lay  before  the  House  of  Lords  an  im- 
peachment of  treason  of  five  members  of  the  Commons, 
including  Hampden  and  Pym,  the  leaders  of  the  constitu- 
tional party.  This  was  an  illegal  step  on  the  part  of  the 
king,  since  he  had  no  right  to  make  use  of  an  impeachment 
trial,  but  only  of  a  jury  trial  in  the  ordinary  courts.  A  still 
greater  violation  of  right  was  his  invasion  in  person  of  the 
House  of  Commons  to  try  to  arrest  the  five  members.  The 


§  478]  Character  of  the  Commonwealth  435 

attempt  was  a  failure,  and  the  incident  served  only  to  em- 
bitter both  sides  and  to  aid  in  convincing  them  both  that  an 
appeal  to  force  would  ultimately  be  necessary. 

The  open  issue  came  on  a  struggle  between  the  king  and  The  war 
the  parliamentary  party  for  the  control  of  the  militia  in  the 
counties  on  which  much  would  depend  if  civil  strife  should 
begin.  The  Parliament  was  successful  in  this  because  the 
popular  sympathy  was  on  its  side,  but  Charles  would  not  give 
his  consent  to  their  arrangements,  and  on  the  22d  of  August 
raised  his  standard  at  Nottingham  and  began  the  civil  war. 

478.   The  Constitutional  Character  of  the  Commonwealth.    Not  in  the 
—  We  are  not  concerned  here  with  the  details  of  the  "  Great   ^EngHsh 
Rebellion."     The  governments  of  the  Commonwealth  and   develop- 
of  the  Protectorate  are  hardly  in  line  with  the  special,  or   ment- 
perhaps  it  would   be  more  accurate  to  say  with   the  con- 
temporary, development  of  the  English  constitution.     But 
they  are  in  harmony  with  the  deeper  spirit  of  that  develop- 
ment which  was  already  at  that  time  showing  itself,  as  it 
has  since  continued  to  do,  in  the  wider  Anglo-Saxon  world 
beyond  the  seas,  and  which  has  come  into  control  in  Eng- 
land also,  in  reality  if  not  in  form,  in  the  last  part  of  the 
nineteenth  century. 

Before  the  organization  of  the  commonwealth,  the  Puri-   The  English 
tan  party  had  founded  in  New  England  a  series  of  republics  rePubllcs  m 

r  America, 

with  a  strong  ultimate  tendency  towards  democracy,  and  the 

other  colonies  in  America,  as  all  later  English  colonies  have 
been,  were  virtual  republics,  with  the  same  democratic  ten- 
dency more  or  less  perfectly  realized  according  to  circum- 
stances. 

The  constitutional  documents  of  the  commonwealth  pe-   A  slight 
riod  have  an  especial  interest  for  us  because  of  a  certain   foreshadow- 
resemblance  in  some  of  the  innovations  which  they  made,   American 
which  were   to   pass  out   of  use  immediately  in  England,   institutions. 

with  expedients  which  the  framers  of  the  Constitution  of    ~ee,. 

Gardiner, 

the  United   States  afterwards  adopted.     The  written  con-   270  and  314, 
stitution  itself  is  one  of  these  which  has  never  been  adopted  Old  South, 
in  England.     But  the  monarchical  drift  was  too  strong  in 


436  The  Anglo-Saxon  Constitutions      [§§ 


The  com- 
monwealth 
becomes  a 
monarchy. 


Charles  II. 
Boyle, 
Clarendon, 
286-290. 


James  II. 


His  arbitrary 
acts. 
Taswell- 
Langmead, 
Cons.  Hist,, 

530-538 ; 

Montague, 

Elements, 

144-146. 


William  of 
Orange 
invited  to 
England. 


England  in  the  seventeenth  century.  Few  of  the  Puritans 
themselves  were  out-and-out  republicans.  Very  likely  also 
the  situation  really  demanded  a  king,  and  the  common- 
wealth passed  into  what  was  really  a  strong  monarchy  under 
the  Protectorate. 

479-  The  Later  Stuarts. — The  Restoration  in  1660 
brought  the  Stuarts  back  in  the  person  of  Charles  II.  He 
had  learned  some  wisdom  from  the  past,  and  was  careful 
not  to  allow  himself  to  come  to  an  open  breach  with  the 
Parliament,  though  in  the  last  years  of  his  reign  he  showed 
a  decided  tendency  to  arbitrary  methods,  and  seemed  to 
be  preparing  the  way  for  an  absolutism. 

His  brother,  James  II. ,  had  the  Stuart  characteristics  in 
their  worst  form.  He  was  extremely  short-sighted,  obsti- 
nate, and  determined  to  rule  by  his  own  will ;  and  his 
attack  on  the  constitution  was  nearly  as  thorough-going 
as  that  of  Richard  II.,  though  it  never  had  any  chance  of 
success.  He  ordered  the  illegal  collection  of  taxes ;  gath 
ered  a  standing  army  of  unusual  size  with  which  he  hoped 
to  overawe  opposition;  forced  the  judges  to  support  his 
policy;  and  with  their  aid  exercised  the  right  which  he 
claimed  of  suspending  the  operation  of  laws.  So  rapid  was 
the  development  of  the  king's  purposes,  and  so  great  the 
fear  of  the  Roman  Catholic  religion,  which  he  openly  pro- 
fessed, that  all  parties  were  united  in  a  determination  to 
protect  the  constitution. 

480.  The  Revolution  of  1688. — The  crisis  was  brought 
on  by  the  birth  of  the  Prince  of  Wales.  Till  that  event, 
the  Princess  Mary,  wife  of  William  of  Orange,  had  been 
the  heir  of  the  throne,  and  the  nation  had  had  reason  to 
expect  a  change  on  the  death  of  James.  Now  this  hope 
was  destroyed,  and  revolution  seemed  the  only  recourse. 
An  invitation  was  at  once  sent  to  William  by  leaders  of 
both  parties,  and  on  the  5th  of  November,  1688,  he  landed 
in  England  with  a  small  force.  James'  power  immediately 
crumbled  in  his  hands.  His  supporters  abandoned  him, 
and  in  six  weeks  he  was  a  fugitive  in  France. 


§  482]    Constitutional  Questions  in  the  Colonies     437 


With  the  expulsion  of  James  II.  the  last  attempt  failed 
which  any  English  sovereign  has  made  to  throw  off  the 
bonds  which  the  gradual  growth  of  the  constitution  had 
placed  on  the  exercise  of  an  arbitrary  authority.  Some 
later  kings  have  attempted  to  influence  the  policy  of  the 
State  according  to  their  own  ideas,  but  never  to  the  extent 
of  an  open  breach  with  the  constitution. 

481.  The  Results  of  the  Revolution.  —  The  convention 
Parliament,  which  assembled  soon  after  the  flight  of  James, 
drew  up   a  formal  statement  of  the  arbitrary  acts  of  the 
king  and   declared   them  illegal,  and  it  was  on  the  con- 
dition  of  accepting  this  declaration  that  William  and  Mary 

.  r  ,' 

obtained  the  throne.  This  declaration  was  soon  afterwards 
embodied  in  a  regular  statute,  called  the  Bill  of  Rights, 
and  takes  its  place  among  the  great  constitutional  docu- 
ments  of  our  history.  Some  of  its  clauses  are  closely  copied 
in  the  Constitution  of  the  United  States. 

So  far  as  the  larger  principles  of  the  constitution  are 
concerned,  the  revolution  of  1688  did  no  more  than  to 
restore  what  already  existed  under  the  Lancastrian  kings 
in  the  fifteenth  century,  but  these  principles  were  now 
defined  in  the  clearest  way  and  rendered  safe  from  any 
future  attack.  The  attempt  of  the  Stuart  kings  to  free 
themselves  from  restraint  had  led  to  a  more  definite  un- 
derstanding of  the  constitution,  and  this  was  a  gain  of  the 
greatest  importance. 

In  minor  points  some  positive  advance  had  been  made  : 
in  establishing  the  independence  of  the  judges,  so  that 
in  the  future  they  could  not  be  used  as  the  tools  of  the 
executive  ;  in  placing  the  army  more  completely  under 
the  control  of  the  legislature  ;  and  in  protecting  the  citi- 
zen more  perfectly  from  arbitrary  arrest  and  unfair  trial. 

482.  Constitutional  Questions  in  the  Colonies.  —  In  the 
meantime  the  English  colonies  in  America  had  so  increased 
in  population  and  strength  that  they  had  become  themselves 
interested  in  constitutional  questions,  and  that  the  govern- 
ment at  home  had  begun  to  look  upon  their  virtual  indepen- 


No  revolu- 
tion  again 

En°g1anZ  " 
Medley, 

^"™al' 
ancj  46. 

The  Bill  of 
Rights. 


stubbs, 
5??;  L 

Civil  Liberty; 


Langmead, 
Cons-Hlst-> 


A  clearer 
unde'"sl;and- 

mg  oi  the 

constitution. 


In  some 


Growing  in 
|nterest  and 


438  The  Anglo-Saxon  Constitutions     [§§  483*  484 


The  govern- 
ment of 
Andros. 


Struggle  to 
subject  the 
executive  to 
the  legislat- 
ure. 


Perfection  of 
details. 


Act  of 

Settlement. 
Montague, 
Elements, 
IS3-I56; 
text,  Stubbs, 
528; 

Taswell- 
Langmead, 
Cons.  Hist., 
SSI- 
Growth  of 
cabinet 
system. 
Montague, 
Elements, 
163-173. 

Difference  in 
executive 


dence  with  some  suspicion.  The  last  two  Stuarts  included 
a  consolidation  and  increase  of  the  royal  authority  in 
America  among  their  plans,  and  towards  the  close  of  the 
reign  of  Charles  I.  the  charter  of  Massachusetts  was  annulled. 

Soon  after  Sir  Edmund  Andros  was  made  governor  of  all 
the  northern  colonies  and  established  a  "  tyranny  "  in  America 
similar  to  that  of  James  II.  in  England,  but  on  the  news  of 
the  revolution  in  the  mother  country  he  was  at  once  de- 
prived of  power  and  thrown  into  prison. 

In  most  of  the  colonies  the  history  of  the  eighteenth  cen- 
tury is  the  story  of  a  struggle  between  the  appointed  royal 
governors  and  the  elected  legislatures,  in  which  the  legislat- 
ures were  winning  more  and  more  power  by  taking  advan- 
tage of  the  financial  necessities  of  the  executives,  a  process 
which  is  closely  like  in  detail,  and  entirely  so  in  principle, 
to  that  by  which  the  Parliament  in  England  had  established 
its  power  over  the  king. 

483.  Progress  in  the  Eighteenth  Century  in  England.— 
The  constitutional  history  of  the  eighteenth  century  in  Eng- 
land continues  that  of  the   revolution.     Some  of  the  great 
principles  were  more  clearly  defined,  some  minor  advances 
made,  and  some  better  government  machinery  devised.     The 
Act  of  Settlement,  by  which  the  throne  was  secured  to  the 
house  of  Hanover,  proclaimed  in  the  clearest  way  the  right 
of  Parliament  to  declare  who  should  be  king,  and  to  give  a 
title  to  the  crown  better  than  all  others.     The  civil  liberty 
of  the  citizen  received  further  protection  —  in  the  perfection 
of  the  jury  trial,  for  instance,  and  the  prohibition  of  general 
warrants  —  and  the  development  of  the  modern  cabinet  sys- 
tem provided  more  simple  machinery  for  the  control  of  the 
policy  of  the  government  by  Parliament,  though  the  perfec- 
tion of  this  new  device  came  only  in  the  nineteenth  century. 

484.  The  Constitution  of  the  United  States.  —  We  have 
already  seen  how  one  result  of  the  struggle  between  England 
and  France  for  colonial  empire  was  the  independence  of  the 
thirteen  colonies.     When  the  Americans  came  to  frame  their 
Constitution,  the  fact  that  they  wished  to  create  a  republic 


s4&5]  Tendency  towards  Democracy  439 

instead  of  a  monarchy  led  to  some  changes  of  form  from  the   and  upper 
English  constitution.     The  most  important  of  these  changes  house> 
from  the  constitution  as  it  then  existed  in  England  was  the 
fact  that  both  the  executive  and  the  upper  house  of  the  na- 
tional legislature  were  made  elective,  and  both  these  institu- 
tions were  given  such  a  place  in  the  government  that  in  the 
hundred  years  since  their  founding    both  have  gained  in 
power  rather  than  lost  it,  as  in  England. 

The  difference  in  form  which  seems  to  us  now  the  most   Difference  in 
striking  is  that  in  the  relation  of  the  cabinet  to  the  lower   cabmet- 
house,  but  it  must  be  remembered  that  at  the  close  of  the 
eighteenth  century  statesmen  even  in  England  did  not  real- 
ize that  relation  clearly.     It  is  the  experience  of  the  nine- 
teenth century  which  has  brought  the  forms  under  which  the 
House  of  Commons  now  controls  the  cabinet  to  their  full 
perfection. 

In  the  English  system  the  prime  minister  is  the  real  ex-  The  English 
ecutive,  and  not  the  sovereign.     He  forms  his  cabinet  of  cabinet 
the  other  leaders  of  his  party,  and  they  hold  office  so  long  Medley, 
as  the  measures  which  they  propose  command  the  support  Manual, 
of  a  majority  of  the  House  of  Commons.     When  one  of 
their  measures  is  defeated,  either  the  cabinet  resigns  and  the   Langmead, 
leader  of  the  opposite  party  forms  a  new  one,  or  the  Parlia-    Cons-  Hist., 
ment  is  dissolved  and  the  voters  of  the  nation  are  asked  to   Mm^ague 
decide  between  the  two  lines  of  policy  advocated  by  the  Elements, 
opposing  parties.     The  election  determines  at  once  whether  2I5~222' 
the  old  cabinet  shall  go  on  or  a  new  one  be  formed  from 
the  other  party. 

485.   Tendency  towards   Democracy. — Though   differing  Democracy 
in  this  way  in  form,  still  in  principle  and  in  almost  all  minor  adopted  first 
details,  the  Constitution  of  the  United  States  is  thoroughly 
English.     Other  differences  than  those  of  form  are.  chiefly 
more  rapid  advances  along  the  road  which  the  race  had 
long  been  following,  and  in  which  England  herself  was  to 
advance  more  slowly.     This  is  especially  true  of  the  most 
important  of  these  differences  —  the  more  democratic  cast 
of  our  government.     The  colonies  had  always  been  demo- 


440 


The  Anglo-Saxon  Constitutions     [§§  4^6, 487 


More 
gradually 
adopted  in 
England. 


Widely 
adopted 
throughout 
the  world. 


cratic  in  spirit,  and  though  democracy  was  not  perfectly 
realized  in  practice  at  the  time  the  Constitution  was  adopted, 
still  the  drift  in  that  direction  was  so  strong  and  so  thor- 
oughly in  harmony  with  all  the  tendencies  of  the  race  that 
this  realization  was  not  long  delayed  in  America. 

In  England  the  first  steps  towards  a  more  democratic 
government  would  undoubtedly  have  been  taken  before  the 
close  of  the  eighteenth  century  had  it  not  been  for  the 
French  Revolution,  which  naturally,  but  somewhat  needlessly, 
alarmed  the  property  classes.  As  it  was,  the  first  step  was 
postponed  a  generation,  and  was  finally  taken  in  the  first 
Reform  Bill  which  was  adopted  in  1832.  Since  then,  by  a 
series  of  such  bills  at  intervals,  the  qualifications  required  of 
the  voter  have  been  gradually  reduced  until  now  there  is 
hardly  a  man  in  England  who  cannot  become  a  voter  if  he 
cares  to  be  one. 

486.  Anglo-Saxon  Institutions  in  Other  States.  —  In  the 
past  hundred  years  the  Anglo-Saxon  constitutions  have  been 
widely  adopted  throughout  the  world,  almost  every  civilized 
nation  of  the  present  time   having   imitated  more  or  less 
closely  some  of  our  institutions.     As  most  of  these  states 
retain  monarchical  forms,  and  desire  a  constitution  which 
will  be  at  once  monarchical  in  name  and  republican  in  fact, 
the  English  constitution  has  been  rather  more   extensively 
imitated   than   the    American.     Even  the  French  republic 
follows  the  English  model,  and  it  must  be  admitted  that  the 
English  cabinet  system  secures  to  a  democracy,  more  per- 
fectly than  the  American,  a  control  over  the  government 
policy.     It  is,  however,  open  to  question  whether  this  will 
be  considered  in  the  long  run  an  advantage,  and  whether 
the  American   cabinet   system,  combined  with  a  stronger 
executive,  does   not  furnish  a  check  to  hasty  action  very 
necessary  in  a  thoroughly  democratic  state  —  a  need  which 
England  is  more  likely  to  feel  in  the  twentieth  century  than 
she  has  in  the  nineteenth. 

487.  The   Common  Work   of   England    and  America.  — 
Besides  furnishing   an  example  for  the  imitation  of  other 


§487]     Common  Work  of  England  and  America    44! 


states,  each  of  the  two  great  Anglo-Saxon  nations  has  had  Different 
its  own  special  mission.  That  of  the  United  States  has  been  f 
to  establish  these  principles  of  liberty  throughout  an  empire  work. 
nearly  twice  the  extent  of  the  Roman,  and  to  absorb  into 
the  race  and  train  in  self-governing  freedom  millions  of 
aliens  who  have  come  to  them  from  other  nations.  Eng- 
land's has  been  to  establish  the  same  liberty  throughout  vast 
regions  of  the  world,  on  every  continent  and  in  great  island 
states,  and  to  undertake  the  gigantic  task,  greater  even  than 
America's,  of  training  up  to  freedom  millions  upon  millions 
of  alien  and  uneducated  races.  These  are,  in  truth,  but 
different  phases  of  the  same  task,  and  together  in  this  com- 
mon mission,  in  harmony  for  the  political  freedom  and  best 
good  of  all  the  world,  our  race  ought  to  be  able,  both  by 
its  example  and  by  its  power  to  protect  the  right,  to  prevent 
any  further  extension  of  tyranny  and  by  degrees  even  to 
banish  despotism  from  the  world. 


Topics 

Why  is  the  study  of  Anglo-Saxon  institutions  especially  important? 
The  government  of  the  first  Norman  kings.  What  led  to  the  charter 
of  Henry  I.?  The  character  of  this  charter.  How  was  the  principle 
involved  in  the  charter  extended  under  Stephen?  The  government  of 
the  first  Angevin  kings.  Describe  the  judicial  system  organized  by 
Henry  II.  What  do  we  derive  from  it?  Why  was  King  John  involved 
in  special  difficulties  about  taxation?  How  did  this  lead  to  the  Magna 
Charta?  The  contents  and  meaning  of  the  Magna  Charta.  Its  special 
importance  in  the  growth  of  the  constitution.  How  was  the  right  of 


442  The  Anglo-Saxon  Constitutions 

insurrection  used  under  John  and  under  Henry  III.?  The  beginning 
of  the  idea  of  a  limited  monarchy.  The  steps  which  led  to  the  forma- 
tion of  Parliament.  What  were  knights  of  the  shire?  What  led  to 
their  use  as  county  representatives?  The  first  town  representation. 
The  "  model  Parliament."  Just  what  was  the  institutional  change  which 
created  Parliament  ?  How  did  Parliament  secure  finally  the  right  to 
control  taxation  ?  State  the  four  great  rights  established  by  Parliament 
in  the  fourteenth  century,  and  how  each  was  gained.  In  how  far  was 
England  then  a  limited  monarchy  ?  What  was  involved  in  the  revolu- 
tion of  1399  ?  How  was  the  right  of  deposition  established,  and  of 
what  earlier  right  was  it  the  logical  outcome  ?  How  was  this  right 
carried  still  further  in  1399  ?  Later  development  of  this  right.  The 
progress  of  the  Lancastrian  period.  The  constitution  in  the  Yorkist 
period.  The  institutional  character  of  Tudor  absolutism.  What  cir- 
cumstances of  the  time  made  a  strong  government  necessary  ?  Specific 
instances  of  Tudor  arbitrary  rule.  Change  in  the  constitutional  position 
of  the  Church.  In  what  respects  was  the  situation  changed  at  the  ac- 
cession of  the  Stuarts?  Reasons  for  the  attitude  of  the  kings.  Parties 
in  England.  Character  of  the  Petition  of  Right.  The  steps  which  led 
to  civil  war.  What  constitutional  rights  were  involved  ?  Construct 
Charles  I.'s  argument  for  his  case.  The  relation  of  the  commonwealth 
to  the  growth  of  the  constitution.  The  policy  of  the  later  Stuarts. 
Compare  the  revolution  of  1688  with  that  of  1399.  The  Bill  of  Rights. 
What  did  the  revolution  of  1688  accomplish  ?  How  were  the  colonies 
involved  in  the  Stuart  troubles  ?  What  were  their  own  constitutional 
problems  ?  The  eighteenth  century  in  England.  Why  was  not  the 
American  Constitution  exactly  like  the  English  ?  What  are  the  chief 
differences  ?  Explain  the  English  cabinet  system.  The  difference  in 
the  two  states  in  the  progress  towards  democracy.  Anglo-Saxon  insti- 
tutions in  other  states.  The  special  missions  and  the  common  work  of 
England  and  America. 


Topics  for  Assigned  Studies 

The  judicial  system  of  Henry  II.     Medley,  Manual,  Sees.  51  and  52. 

Taswell-Langmead,   Cons.  Hist,,  129-143.     Montague,  Elements, 

31-33,  47-50 ;   Social  England,  I.,  285-298  ;    Penn.  I.,  No.   6, 

2ded. 
Compare  the  Declaration  of  Independence  and  the  Constitution  of  the 

United  States,  especially  Amendments  I.-VIII.,  with  the  Bill  of 

Rights. 
The  reform  bills.     Montague,  Elements,  206-212.     Medley,  Manual, 

Sec.   32.     Taswell-Langmead,    Cons.  Hist.,  606-610.     Speech  of 

Macaulay  on  first  reform  bill,  in  Adams,  British  Orations,  III.,  62, 

and  in  Political  Orations  (Camelot  Series),  295. 


Important  Dates  for  Review  443 

Important  Dates  for  Review 

lioo  .  .  .  Charter  of  Henry  I. 

1215  .  .  .  Magna  Charta. 

1295  .  .  .  The  Model  Parliament. 

1399  .  .  .  First  constitutional  revolution. 

1485  .  .  .  Accession  of  the  Tudors. 

1628  .  .  .  The  Petition  of  Right. 

1649  .  .  .  Charles  I.  executed. 

1688  .  .  .  James  II.  dethroned. 

1689  •  •  •  Bil1  of  Rights. 
1700  .  .  .  Act  of  Settlement. 
1714  .  .  .  Accession  of  George  I. 

1776  .  .  .  Declaration  of  Independence. 

1788  .  .  .  Constitution  of  United  States  adopted. 

1832  .  .  .  First  Reform  Bill. 


CHAPTER   IX 

SCIENTIFIC  AND   ECONOMIC  ADVANCE   SINCE  THE 
RENAISSANCE  1 


In  the  first 
part  of  the 
sixteenth 
century. 


Books  for  Reference  and  Further  Reading 

Meyer,  History  of  Chemistry.     (Macmillan  ;   $4.50.) 

Sachs,  Historv  of  Botany*     (Clarendon  ;   $2.50.) 

Clerk  e,    History   of    Astronomy    during    the     Nineteenth     Century. 

(Macmillan;   $4.00.) 

Lubbock,  Fifty  Years  of  Science.     (Macmillan.) 
Cunningham,  Growth  of  English  Industry  and  Commerce  in  Modern 

Times.     (Macmillan;   $4.50.) 

Traill,  Social  England.     Vols.  III.  to  VI.     (Putnam;  $3.50  per  vol.) 
The  First  Century  of  the  Republic.     (Harper.) 
Rambaud,     Histoire   de   la    Civilisation    Contemporaine  en    France. 

(Paris:  Colin.;   5  francs.) 
Escott,    Social    Transformations  of  the    Victorian    Age.     (Scribner; 

$2.00.) 

Wallace,  The  Wonderful  Century-     (Dodd,  Mead  &  Co.  ;   $2.50.) 
Rogers,  Six  Centuries  of  Work  and  Wages •.     (Putnam  ;  $3.00.) 

488.  The  Close  of  the  Renaissance.  — As  we  have  already 
seen,  the  first  great  intellectual  age  of  modern  times,  and 
the  first  age  of  great  economic  changes  was  the  fifteenth 
century,  the  age  of  the  revival  of  learning  with  the  invention 
of  printing,  and  of  the  oceanic  discoveries,  east  and  west, 
with  their  commercial  and  economic  consequences.  We 
have  also  seen  how  this  age  came  to  a  rather  «?udden  close, 
involved  in  the  equally  great  revolutionary  age  which 

1  It  is  probable  that  this  chapter,  like  the  preceding,  will  be  found  to 
have  its  greatest  value  for  advanced  classes. 

Much  of  the  history,  which  is  covered  in  outline  by  this  chapter,  has  still 
to  be  written,  and  as  a  consequence  both  the  bibliography  of  the  chapter 
and  the  specific  references  are  incomplete. 

444 


§§  489, 49°3     A   Great  Age  of  Scientific  Work        44$ 


followed  the  teaching  of  Luther,  in  the  European  wars  and 
the  civil  wars  which  rilled  the  whole  remaining  part  of  the 
sixteenth  century.  The  result  was  that  science,  which  had 
made  so  good  a  beginning  in  the  work  of  Copernicus,  took 
no  further  step  in  advance  in  the  century,  and  even  classi- 
cal learning,  which  might  rightfully  claim  the  highest  achieve- 
ments of  the  fifteenth  century,  passed  into  a  new  age  of 
scholasticism,  dominated  by  the  rules  of  a  barren  style,  and 
with  a  new  dictator  in  Cicero,  as  absolute  as  Aristotle  had 
been  in  the  earlier  scholasticism. 

489.  The  Great  Age  of  English  Literature.  —  With  the 
closing  years  of  the  sixteenth  century  there  begin  to  be 
signs  of  a  new  age  of  intellectual  activity.     This  is  partic- 
ularly true  of  England  in  the  field  of  literature,  as  if  the 
stimulus  of  the  great  struggle  for  life  and  death  with  Spain 
had  been   immediately  felt.     This  was  a  conflict,  indeed, 
well  calculated  to  quicken  mind,  fought  as  so  much  of  it 
was  in  the  waters  of  the  new  world,  in  the  midst  of  strange 
and  thrilling  scenes,  and  with  all  the  enthusiasm  awakened 
by  desperate  odds  and  the  most  invincible  courage. 

The  finest  products  of  the  age  of  Elizabeth  were  in  the 
form  of  dramas.  This  would  naturally  be  the  case.  An 
age  of  great  achievement  is  an  age  which  delights  in  story- 
telling, and  the  romances  and  novels  of  a  time  when  books 
were  expensive  and  little  general  reading  was  done,  were 
most  easily  published  upon  the  stage.  The  greatest  of  the 
dramatists  was  Shakespeare,  but  the  fact  that  in  the  mind  of 
to-day  he  seems  to  stand  almost  alone  for  the  whole  age, 
should  not  make  us  overlook  the  very  rich  product  of  the 
minor  dramatists,  especially  of  Ben  Jonson,  Marlowe,  and 
Beaumont  and  Fletcher. 

490.  A  Great  Age  of  Scientific  Work.  —  The  great  work 
of  .the  seventeenth  century,  however,  greater  even  than  its 
literature,  was  to  be  its  science.    A  connecting  link  between 
the  two  forms  of  intellectual  activity  in  England  was  Francis 
Bacon,  whose   Essays   were   a   permanent   contribution  to 
literature  and  his  Advancement  of  Learning  to  both.     He 


A  new 
scholasti- 
cism. 

The  Eliza- 
bethan age, 


Dramatic 
literature. 


Lord  Bacon. 

Wright's 

Bacon's 

Advancement 

of  Learning 

(Clarendon), 


446 


Advance  since  the  Renaissance 


C§49» 


Kepler  and 
Galileo. 


Sir  Isaac 
Newton. 


Great 
progress 
during  this 
age. 


attacked  with  vigor  the  scholasticism  of  his  day,  and  pro- 
claimed in  language  eloquent  and  convincing  the  necessity 
of  observation  and  experiment  and  of  the  inductive  method. 
If  Bacon's  services  in  the  actual  and  practical  development 
of  modern  science  would  not  now  be  estimated  so  highly  as 
formerly,  he  at  least  influenced  individual  students  and  in 
the  right  direction. 

Already,  independently  of  any  influence  of  Bacon's,  the 
science  of  the  seventeenth  century,  probably  the  greatest 
age  of  modern  science  considered  in  its  relative  accomplish- 
ment, had  begun  in  the  work  of  Kepler  and  Galileo.  On 
the  basis  of  the  Copernican  theory  of  the  solar  system, 
Kepler  explained  more  accurately  the  orbits  of  the  planets 
and  stated  the  three  fundamental  laws  of  their  motions.  At 
the  same  time  Galileo  in  Italy  placed  the  truth  of  the 
Copernican  explanation  of  the  solar  universe  beyond  all 
doubt  by  discovering  the  moons  of  Jupiter  and  the  fact  that 
Venus  shows  the  same  phases  as  our  moon. 

491.  The  Law  of  Gravitation. — These  great  discoveries 
formed  the  foundation  for  much  detailed  work  of  value  in 
the  years  that  followed.  Before  the  century  closed,  its 
marvellous  progress  towards  a  right  understanding  of  the 
universe  was  completed  by  the  discovery  of  the  law  of 
gravitation  by  Sir  Isaac  Newton.  This  discovery,  agreeing 
with  the  laws  of  Kepler  and  with  the  known  facts  of  obser- 
vation, and  tending  to  take  the  place  of  the  somewhat 
speculative  theories  of  Descartes  in  regard  to  the  physical 
constitution  of  the  universe,  which  nevertheless  had  been  of 
service  in  the  progress  of  science,  completed  the  mathe- 
matical and  practical  demonstration  of  the  new  astronomy, 
and  placed  the  science  on  the  most  solid  foundation. 

Comparing  what  was  known  in  this  field  in  the  year  1600, 
with  what  was  known  at  the  death  of  Newton,  we  are  forced 
to  say  that  even  the  nineteenth  century  has  not  broadened 
the  field  of  human  knowledge  more  than  did  the  earlier  age, 
nor  in  any  more  important  respects  has  it  given  us  new  or 
more  accurate  conceptions  of  the  physical  universe. 


BENJAMIN  FKANKUN 


§§  492~494]    The  Idea  of  the  Reign  of  Law 


447 


492.  The  International  Character  of  Science.  —  In  a  very 
interesting  way  this  earlier  progress  of  astronomy  illustrates 
one  feature  of  all  modern  scientific  study  —  its  international 
character.  The  first  step,  the  statement  of  the  heliocen- 
tric theory,  was  taken  by  Copernicus  in  Poland.  This 
theory  was  definitely  proved  by  Galileo  in  Italy,  but  his 
work  was  rendered  possible  only  by  the  hint,  at  least,  of  the 
telescope  which  came  to  him  from  Holland.  The  demon- 
stration was  completed  by  Kepler  in  Germany,  but  his  work 
was  based  upon  data  furnished  by  the  observations  of 
Tycho  Brahe,  the  Dane.  The  final  step  was  taken  by 
Newton  in  England  in  the  establishment  of  the  law  of  gravi- 
tation, but  in  order  to  complete  his  proof  he  was  obliged  to 
wait  for  the  correct  measurement  of  a  degree  of  latitude  by 
the  Frenchman  Picard.  Almost  every  people  of  Europe 
had  its  share  in  this  great  building. 

493-  Advance  in  Other  Sciences.  —  No  other  science  of 
the  seventeenth  century  was  so  far  advanced  as  astronomy, 
but  in  several  preliminary  work  of  great  importance  was 
done,  and  in  some  advances  were  made  almost  as  revolu- 
tionary in  character  as  those  in  astronomy.  Galileo's  dis- 
coveries in  physics  rank  second  only  to  those  already 
mentioned.  In  mathematics  the  introduction  of  logarithms 
by  Napier,  and  in  medicine  the  discovery  of  the  circulation 
of  the  blood  by  Harvey,  both  coming  in  the  early  years  of 
the  century,  imparted  a  new  impetus  to  the  progress  of 
these  sciences. 

494.  The  Idea  of  the  Reign  of  Law.  —  Taken  altogether, 
so  great  was  the  progress  of  science  in  this  age  that  some- 
time before  its  close  we  notice  one  result  of  it  on  men's 
general  ways  of  thinking  which  had  important  consequences 
far  outside  the  field  of  science  proper.  This  was  in  the 
conception  of  law  and  its  operation  in  the  universe,  which, 
in  the  way  in  which  we  hold  it  to-day,  now  comes  into  gen- 
eral thinking  for  the  first  time.  It  was,  of  course,  in  the 
field  of  science  a  most  fruitful  idea,  but  more  interesting 
results  for  us  lay  in  other  directions. 


All  countries 
share  in  it 


Physics, 
mathematics, 
and  medi- 
cine. 


A  result  of 
the  progress 
of  science. 


448 


Advance  since  the  Renaissance     [§§  495?  49^ 


The 

philosophy 
of  Locke. 


Attack  on 
the  idea  of 
a  divine 
revelation. 


Influence  on 

Christian 

thought. 


Influence  on 
the  age  of 
revolution. 


Voltaire  and 
Montes- 
quieu. 


Upon  this  idea,  as  its  fundamental  conception,  was  based 
a  school  of  empirical  or  sensational  philosophical  teaching, 
whose  most  famous  leader  was  Locke.  He  developed  the 
new  philosophy  in  most  interesting  ways  in  psychology,  edu- 
cation, and  the  science  of  government,  with  results,  in  this 
last  direction  at  least,  which  were  long  and  widely  felt  in 
France  and  America. 

495.  The  English  Deists. — A  still  further  manifestation 
of  this  belief  in  the  reign  of  law  was  the  party  of  the  Eng- 
lish Deists,  who  failed  to  reconcile  in  their  own  minds  this 
new  idea  with  the  older  one  of  miracles,  and  a  supernatural 
government  of  the  world,  especially  as  related  to  a  divine 
revelation.     Their  exceedingly  vigorous  attack  upon  these 
notions  forced  the  leaders  of  Christian  thought  to  a  review 
of   their   position,    and   to    much    clearer   conception   and 
sharper  definition  than  ever  before  of  their  religious  ideas, 
especially  those  concerning  the  method  and  plan  of  reve- 
lation ;  and  though  these  have  been  in  turn  superseded  in 
many  most  essential  points  by  the  still  clearer  thinking  of 
the  nineteenth  century,  they  nevertheless  represent  a  great 
advance  in  our  understanding  of  the  dealings  of  Providence 
with  mankind. 

But  the  influence  of  this  school  of  thinkers  upon  the 
religious  ideas  of  the  world  does  not  exhaust  its  historical 
importance.  Through  them  the  scientific  movement  of  the 
seventeenth  century  and  the  intellectual  changes  which 
resulted  had  their  influence  on  the  great  revolutionary 
movement  which  was  to  be  characteristic  of  the  eighteenth 
century. 

496.  Leaders  of  French  Thought  in  England.  —  Early  in 
that  century  there  came  to  England  refugees  from  the  per- 
secution which  too  bold  thinking  entailed  in  France.     The 
most  famous  of  these  were  Voltaire  and  Montesquieu.     In 
England    they  came  in  contact  with    three    different   lines 
of  influence,  which  affected  in  a  marked  degree  their  later 
efforts    for   reform :     English    civil    liberty,    which,    though 
not  as  complete  as  in  the  nineteenth    century,  was  far  in 


§  497]  French  Leadership  449 

advance  of  anything  in  France ;   the   political   philosophy 
of  Locke ;  and  the  ideas  of  the  Deists,  especially  the  idea   influenced 
of  bringing  old  beliefs  to  a  searching,  critical  examination.   ^  English 
Their  English  training  and  observation  clarified  and  fixed   Morley, 
their   ideas,    and   gave    definite  aim   and    purpose   to   the    Voltaire 
strong  demand  for  reform  to  which  they  had  already  given   (Macmil~ 
voice  —  a  demand  which  had  not  unnaturally  made  itself 
felt   under   the  absolutism  of  the   French   kings   and   the 
abuses  of  all  sorts  which  accompanied  it.     They  returned 
to  France  and  carried  on  the  attack  with  new  ammunition 
and   redoubled   energy,  imparting  to  the  nation  the  con- 
ceptions of  government  and   of  freedom,  intellectual   and 
political,  which  they  had  gained. 

The  influence  of  these  ideas  in   preparing   the  way  for  Through 
the  French   Revolution  we   have  already  seen.     But  their  France  they 
influence  was  not   confined   to   France.     Through   France   Europe* 
they  spread   to  all  Europe,  and,  though   checked  in  their 
immediate  operation  by  the  fears  which  the  Revolution  ex- 
cited in  the  European  governments,  they  have,  reenforced 
by  other  influences,  brought   forth   abundant   fruit   in  the 
nineteenth  century. 

497.  French  Intellectual  and  Social  Leadership.  —  France   imitated  by 

exercised  in   the   eighteenth   century   a   kind    of  despotic  allthe 

,  .     .          r  TT  ,        continent 

sway   over   the    minds    of  men.     Her   great  power  under 

Louis  XIV.,  and  long  and  fairly  successful  struggle  against 
almost  all  Europe ;  the  brilliance  of  that  age  in  literature : 
the  great  age  of  the  French  drama,  of  Corneille,  Moliere, 
and  Racine  ;  the  refinement  of  the  French  language,  as  com- 
pared with  most  other  European  tongues;  and  the  grace 
and  elegance  of  French  fashionable  life,  —  all  these  had 
combined  to  give  to  France  an  intellectual  and  social  in- 
fluence over  the  entire  continent  which  made  her  a  leader 
and  teacher  through  the  whole  eighteenth  century,  so 
powerful  an  influence  indeed  that  some  traces  of  it  remain 
even  at  the  present  time  under  wholly  changed  conditions. 
French  became  a  kind  of  universal  language,  and  to  imi- 
tate Versailles  and  the  French  court  a  sort  of  religion. 


450 


Advance  since  the  Renaissance  [§§  498>  499 


Reform  by 

paternal 
governments. 
Stephens, 
Periods,  4-5. 


An  age  of 

preparation. 

Taine, 

Ancient 

Regime, 

170-174. 


498.  The   Benevolent  Despots.  —  The  works  of  the  re- 
formers, which  were  rather  the  fashion  in  France,  notwith- 
standing their  attacks  on  Church  and  State,  were  eagerly 
sought  for  everywhere  and  carefully  studied  by  statesmen 
and   sovereigns.     One   interesting  result  was  the  attempts 
which  were  made  by  the  so-called  benevolent  despots,  espe- 
cially by  Joseph  II.  of  Austria,  but  even  by  Frederick  the 
Great  and  Catherine  II.  of  Russia,  and  by  statesmen  like 
Pombal  in  Portugal,  to  introduce  reforms  by  paternal  meth- 
ods.    These  attempts  all  came  to  failure,  as  it  was  perhaps 
inevitable  that  they  should,  based  as  they  were  on  pure 
theory  and  carried  out  under  the  direction  of  absolute  gov- 
ernments ;  but  they  serve  to  show  us  clearly  how  strong  the 
belief  in  the  necessity  of  reform  had  come  to  be,   even 
among  the  highest  classes,  and  this  was  one  of  the  most 
important  conditions  of  the  success  of  the  Revolution.     For 
this  belief  on  the  part  of  those  most  interested  to  preserve 
the  old  abuses  undermined  their  power  of  resistance  when 
the  people  began  the  attack. 

499.  Character  of   Eighteenth  Century  Science.  —  In  re- 
gard to  its  larger  intellectual  features  we  may  say  of  the 
eighteenth  century  that  it  was,   on  the  whole,  an  age  of 
destruction  rather  than  of  construction,  and  yet  the  work 
which  it  did  in  the  advancement  of  science  was  of  the  utmost 
importance.     It  may  be  called  a  great  age  of  observation 
and  experiment,  of  the  collection  and  classification  of  facts, 
rather  than  of  the  discovery  of  new  laws  or  of  great  advances 
in  the  understanding  of  the  universe  as  the  seventeenth 
century  had  been.     It  was  a  time  of  bringing  the  old  theories 
to  the  test  of  scientific  criticism,  of  becoming  conscious  of 
their  defects,  and  of  preparing  for  new  and  better  explana- 
tions by  the  careful  marshalling  of  related  facts.     There 
were  some  by  no  means  slight  advances  made,  but  the  great 
work  of  the  eighteenth  century  in  science  was  to  make  the 
necessary  preparation  for  the  progress  of  the  following  age. 
The  wonderful  scientific  discoveries  of  the  nineteenth  century 
were  possible  because  the  eighteenth  had  cleared  the  way 
and  provided  the  means. 


§§500,501]  A  New  Science  451 

500.  Positive  advances   in   Science.  —  Two    particularly  Physics  and 
important  advances  of  the  eighteenth  century  must  not  be  astronomy, 
overlooked.     One  was   the   discovery  of  oxygen   and   the 
understanding  of  the  true  nature  of  combustion  which  fol- 
lowed, overthrowing  the  old  theory  of  phlogiston  which  had 

been  the  ruling  explanation  for  nearly  a  hundred  years.     The 
other  was  the  work  of  Laplace  in  astronomy,  published  just 
at  the  end  of  the  century,  which  put  the  knowledge  of  the 
time  into  still  more  scientific  form,  and  made  a  most  valuable 
suggestion  for  the  future  in  the  statement  of  the  nebular 
hypothesis.     In  the  natural  sciences  much  better  methods 
of  classification  were  introduced  than  ever  before,  in  botany  Botany  and 
by  the  work  of  Linnaeus,  and  in  zoology  by  that  of  Buffon  zoology, 
and  later  of  Cuvier.     The  study  of  these  sciences  advanced   Darwin, 
so  far,  indeed,  as  to  afford  some  foregleams  of  the  great   2^?*^ 
discovery  of  the  nineteenth  century,  —  the  theory  of  evolu-    preface  to 
tion,  —  of  especial  interest  in  the  case  of  the  elder  Darwin,  Am.  edition 
grandfather  of  the  author  of  the  "  Origin  of  Species."     In 
medicine  the  introduction  of  inoculation  for  the  small-pox 
must  not  be  forgotten,  the  first  step  towards  the  wonderful 
immunity  from  certain  especially  dangerous  diseases  which 
we  are  now   on  the  eve  of  acquiring,  nor  in  physics  the 
beginning  of  the  scientific  study  of  electricity  in  the  work  of 
Volta,  Galvini,  and  Franklin. 

501.  A  New  Science.  —  One  new  science,  which  in  our  Political 
own  time  has  reached  most  important  conclusions,  dates  its  economy' 
beginning  from  the  eighteenth  century,  —  the  science  of  po- 
litical  economy.     Colbert  at  the  close  of  the  seventeenth 
century  had  held  certain  theories,  chiefly  concerning  govern- 
ment supervision  of  industry  and  commerce ;  but  thinking 

in  regard  to  the  production  and  distribution  of  wealth  had 
never  taken  any  organized  form  until  the  rise  of  the  school 
of  the  Physiocrats  in  France.  Quesnay  may  be  called  the 
founder  of  the  science.  The  new  ideas  were  enlarged  by 
Gournay  and  later  still  by  Turgot,  but  the  work  which  gave 
the  new  science  its  definite  form  was  Adam  Smith's  "  Wealth 
of  Nations,"  published  in  Scotland  in  1776. 


452 


Advance  since  the  Renaissance     [§§502>5°3 


A  succession 
of  inventions. 
Cunning- 
ham, 

Industry  and 
Commerce, 
Modern, 
447-475 1 
First  Century 
of  Republic, 
Chap.  II. 


502.  The  Age  of  Machinery  Begins.  —  In  one  direction 
the  eighteenth  century  brought  about  as  revolutionary 
changes  as  any  produced  by  the  nineteenth,  in  the  intro- 
duction of  the  great  age  of  machinery  in  manufacturing. 
Between  1760  and  1800  a  series  of  most  remarkable  inven- 
tions and  improvements  followed  one  another  with  unheard 
of  rapidity.  The  steam-engine  was  so  greatly  improved 
that  it  could  be  put  to  practical  use  for  the  first  time,  and 
we  are  in  the  habit  of  saying  that  it  was  then,  invented.  A 


THE  COTTON-GIN 

succession  of  inventions  of  machinery  for  spinning  and 
weaving,  by  Hargreaves,  Arkwright,  Compton,  and  Cart- 
wright,  revolutionized  the  making  of  cloth.  At  the  same 
time  improvements  in  the  mining  of  coal  began  to  furnish 
a  sufficient  supply  of  fuel  for  these  new  demands,  and  by 
leading  to  new  processes  in  the  manufacture  of  iron  and 
steel  met  in  another  direction  an  equally  strong  demand  of 
the  age  of  machinery.  Finally  the  invention  of  the  cotton- 
gin,  by  Whitney  in  America,  enabled  the  producers  of  the 
raw  material  to  keep  pace  with  the  manufacturers,  and  to 
share  in  the  benefits  of  the  new  era. 

503.  The  Effect  upon  Manufacturing.  —  It  was  a  new  era 


§  5°4]  The  Effect  upon  Labor  453 

indeed,  and  its  results  touched  almost  every  side  of  life.     In  The  factory 

manufacturing  there  was  a  complete  transformation.     Up  to  system  mad« 

,.'..',.  „          ,  ,    necessary, 

this   time   everything   had   been   upon  a  small   scale   and 

entirely  unorganized.  In  the  making  of  cloth  of  all  kinds, 
for  example,  the  most  important  industry  before  the  nine- 
teenth century,  nearly  everything  was  done  by  individual 
effort  and  in  the  houses  of  the  workmen.  Now  not  merely 
was  there  an  opportunity  for  the  employment  of  capital  on 
a  larger  scale,  but  there  was  a  necessity  for  it  if  the  new 
machinery  was  to  be  properly  housed  and  operated.  This 
was  the  beginning  of  the  factory  system.  It  meant  the 
collection  and  careful  organization  of  all  parts  of  the  process 
in  one  concern,  and  the  employment  of  larger  and  larger 
amounts  of  capital  until  the  enormous  enterprises  of  the 
present  day  were  reached. 

504.  The  Effect  upon  Labor.  —  The  transformation  of  the  The  work- 
laboring  class  was  just  as  great.    The  factory  system  brought  ™^rsells 
the  workmen  together,  and  put  them  by  hundreds  into  the  instead  of  the 
employ  of  a  single  concern  to  which  they  looked,  not  merely  products  of 
for  payment,  but  for  the  direction  and  supervision  of  their 
labor.    The  workman  was  no  longer,  as  he  had  been,  his  own 
employer,  working  when  and  how  he  pleased,  and  disposing 
of  the  product  of  his  labor  to  the  workman  of  the  next  stage 
for  whose  labor  it  was  the  raw  material,  and  in  the  mean 
time  living  in  a  little  village  or  even  on  a  small  farm  which 
he  also  tilled.     Now  what  he  sold  was  not  the  product  of 
his  work,  but  his  work  itself  under  fixed  rules  and  conditions, 
and  he  must  live  with  all  the  other  employees  of  the  con- 
cern in  the  immediate  neighborhood  of  the  factory. 

The  making  of  this  transformation  by  the  laboring  class   The  first 
was  a  very  painful  process,  and  the  first  results  seemed  to  Jj?^| 
be  disastrous.     Old-fashioned  labor  could  not  easily  adapt  tageous  to 
itself  to  the  change,  and  thousands  found  themselves   de-   labor, 
prived  of  their  means  of  sustenance.     Lack  of  experience 
led  to  many  evil  consequences  from  the  crowding  together 
of  the  workmen  in  the  new  towns,  and  the  same  reason  put 
them  at  first  rather  at  the  mercy  of  their  employers.     The 


454 


Advance  since  the  Renaissance 


[§505 


Craik, 
John  Hali- 
fax, Gentle- 
man (novel). 

But  later, 
beneficial 


The  field  of 
labor  greatly 
expanded. 
Cunning- 
ham, 

Industry  and 
Commerce, 
Modern, 
607-651. 


Great  in- 
crease of 
general 
intelligence 
and  comfort. 

Rogers, 
Six  Centu- 
ries, p.  497. 


result  was  both  a  great  increase  of  poverty  and  suffering 
among  the  laborers,  and  the  growth  of  a  bitter  feeling  of 
hostility  towards  the  capitalist  who  seemed  to  be  reaping  the 
only  benefits  from  these  changes  and  towards  the  new  ma- 
chines which  had  brought  them  about.  Frequent  machine- 
breaking  riots  gave  expression  to  both  these  feelings.  Ex- 
perience by  degrees  brought  about  a  better  condition  of 
things,  and  the  operation  of  natural  laws  and  of  the  con- 
tinued cheapening  of  manufacturing  processes  has  tended 
to  reduce  the  proportionate  returns  of  the  capitalist  and  to 
increase  the  real  wages  of  the  workman. 

505.  The  Final  Effect.  —  In  other  ways  also  the  workman 
has  greatly  benefited  from  the  results  of  this  revolution. 
The  introduction  of  machinery  speedily  gave  rise  to  new 
industries.  Some  of  these  soon  passed  in  importance  the 
great  cloth-making  industry  of  the  eighteenth  century,  and 
in  the  nineteenth  century  the  field  of  labor  expanded  enor- 
mously. The  necessary  cost  of  living  has  been  greatly 
reduced,  and  comforts  and  luxuries  undreamed  of  in  the 
eighteenth  century  have  been  brought  within  easy  reach  of 
the  laborer's  family,  while  progress  in  sanitary  science  has 
rendered  their  lives  more  secure. 

As  a  result,  directly  or  indirectly,  of  these  things,  there  has 
been  a  great  advance  of  intelligence,  and  a  clearer  and  better 
understanding  of  their  true  interests  by  the  laboring  class. 
Great  trade  organizations  have  been  formed  to  look  after 
these  interests  and,  where  they  have  been  wisely  directed,  as 
they  have  increasingly  been  among  Anglo-Saxon  workmen 
with  the  growth  of  experience,  many  advantages  have  resulted. 
Relatively  speaking,  the  artisan  class  has  gained  more  from 
the  new  age  than  the  capitalist  class.  The  rich  man  has 
been  always  able  to  buy  what  comforts  and  luxuries  he 
pleased,  and  the  millionaire  of  to-day  can  neither  purchase 
nor  enjoy  many  more  of  these  than  his  predecessor  of  the 
end  of  the  eighteenth  century ;  but  the  wildest  prophet  of 
that  time  would  never  have  ventured  to  foresee  the  present 
improved  condition  of  the  intelligent  laborer. 


§§  5°6>  5073     The  Accumulation  of  Wealth  455 

506.  Political  Results.  —  Politically  the  effect  of  these  Advance  of 
changes  has  been  as  marked  as  economically,  especially  in  the  middle 
England.     At  first  the  middle  class  rose  to  a  new  social  and  Montague, 
political  importance.     The  centre  of  power  began  to  shift  Elements, 
from  the  country,  and  the  land- owning  class,  where  it  had  I9I~193* 
always  been,  to  the  new  towns  and  the  new  wealthy  manu- 
facturers and  merchants.     Conscious  of  their  power,  they 

began  to  insist  upon  the  reform  of  the  system  of  parlia- 
mentary representation ;  and  the  result  was  the  first  reform 
bill  of  1832,  which  gave  representation  for  the  first  time 
to  the  great  manufacturing  towns.  The  process  did  not  Then  a 

stop  at  this  point,  but  by  successive  stages  the  State  became  dernocratic 

,  ...  ,        tendency, 

more  and  more  democratic,  until  it  was  practically  under 

the  control  of  the  mass  of  the  people.  The  United  States 
began  with  a  more  democratic  theory,  but  at  first  this  was 
not  perfectly  realized  in  practice,  and  the  tendency  has 
been  in  the  same  direction  as  in  England,  though  less 
noticeable  and  more  quickly  and  more  completely  accom- 
plished. This  tendency  has  been  perhaps  still  more  marked 
in  the  Australian  colonies,  where  many  measures  ol  an 
extreme  democratic,  almost  of  a  socialistic,  stamp  have 
been  adopted,  apparently  to  the  satisfaction  of  the  public, 
though  we  should  look  upon  their  operation  with  dread. 

507.  The  Accumulation  of  Wealth.  —  Upon  the  accumu-  Vastly  in- 

lation  of  wealth,  both  by  individuals  and  by  the  community   creased  Pr°- 
.  ,       duction  of 

in  general,  the  economic  revolution  of  the  end  of  the  eigh-  weaith. 
teenth  century  had  naturally  a  profound  influence.  The  Escott, 
introduction  of  machinery  was  like  the  opening  of  number-  s°cml , 

i  r  r         i      •       i    r  Transform* 

less  mines  of  gold.  At  first  the  great  profits  derived  from  tions,  13-38. 
the  new  methods  of  work  were  chiefly  absorbed  by  the 
capitalist  class.  But  they  had  their  burdens  to  bear  in 
return,  for  it  was  this  rapid  production  of  wealth  that  en- 
abled England  to  endure  the  long  strain  of  the  Napoleonic 
wars  without  ruin.  Later  the  products  of  industry  have 
been  more  fairly  divided,  and  the  statistics  of  the  income 
tax  and  of  savings  banks  seem  to  indicate  that  the  middle 
and  working  classes  have  gained  relatively  more  than  the 


456 


Advance  since  the  Renaissance 


[§508 


Wealth  in 
the  Anglo- 
Saxon 
world. 


Of  great 

variety. 
First  Century 
of  the 
Republic, 
Chap.  XL 


Political 
applications 
of  science. 


Transporta- 
tion. 


Applications 
of  electricity. 


rich,  notwithstanding  the  building  up  of  enormous  individual 
fortunes. 

Wealth  in  the  Anglo-Saxon  world  has  increased  more 
rapidly  than  population  even,  and  now  comprises  one-third 
of  that  of  the  whole  globe.  It  has  been  said  that  the 
amount  saved  and  added  to  capital  in  England  between 
1860  and  1870  was  enough  to  purchase  the  whole  kingdom 
as  it  existed  in  1815,  and  the  census  of  1880  showed  the 
United  States  to  be  the  richest  nation  of  the  world.  In 
the  expansion  of  the  race,  these  facts  have  been  of  great 
importance.  While  England  has  formed  and  administered 
the  largest  empire  of  history,  and  has  had  innumerable 
frontier  wars  to  pay  for,  and  a  great  fleet  to  maintain,  her 
national  debt  has  been  reduced  since  1815  by  a  thousand 
million  dollars,  and  is  now,  in  proportion  to  the  wealth  of 
the  nation  as  compared  with  that  of  the  earlier  date,  almost 
insignificant. 

508.  Nineteenth-century  Science. — The  scientific  work 
of  the  nineteenth  century  has  covered  such  a  wide  variety 
of  subjects,  and  made  such  a  multitude  of  discoveries,  that 
any  brief  statement  of  its  results  is  impossible.  Only  the 
general  characteristics  and  the  most  important  advances  of 
the  age  can  be  pointed  out. 

Two  marked  traits  characterize  throughout  the  science  of 
the  century.  One  of  these  is  the  rapid  application  of  dis- 
coveries in  pure  science  to  practical  purposes  in  improved 
economic  appliances  or  in  increasing  the  conveniences  and 
comforts  of  men.  This  began  in  the  opening  of  the  great 
age  of  machinery  and  has  continued  ever  since. 

The  nineteenth  century  was  only  well  under  way  when 
the  application  of  the  steam-engine  to  transportation,  in  the 
railway  and  in  the  steamboat,  revolutionized  commerce, 
and  enabled  it  to  keep  pace  in  the  distribution  of  goods 
with  the  enormous  output  resulting  from  the  new  processes 
of  manufacture.  Since  that  time  the  most  interesting  and 
even  startling  of  these  applications  of  science  have  been  in 
the  field  of  electricity,  the  telegraph,  the  telephone,  electric 


§  5°9l  Advances  in  Pure  Science  457 

lighting,  and  electric  motive  power.  These  are  almost 
equalled  in  interest  by  lucifer  matches  and  photography, 
both  now  so  familiar  that  the  first  impression  made  by  their 
introduction  is  forgotten ;  and  in  the  field  of  surgery  and  other  prac- 
medicine  by  anaesthetics,  antiseptic  surgery,  and  the  new  tical  results 
methods  of  meeting  and  overcoming  diseases  which  are  due 
to  germs.  But  these  together  are  only  a  very  few  from  the 
long  list  of  such  applications  of  science,  and  one  may  per- 
haps gain  some  idea  of  their  influence  upon  our  lives  by 
imagining  ourselves  deprived  of  all  such  applications  and 
inventions  of  the  last  hundred  years. 

509.   Advances  in  Pure  Science.  —  Another  chief  charac-  The  dis- 
teristic  of  the  science  of  the  nineteenth  century  is  its  won-   coveiT  °f 

.  .       natural  laws, 

derful  progress  in  the  discovery  of  the  laws  of  nature  in 

every  department  of  nature's  activity.  The  careful  study  of 
the  facts  during  the  previous  century  had  prepared  the  way 
for  great  advances  in  the  understanding  of  the  forces  behind 
the  facts,  and  these  the  next  age  made. 

In  this  case,  also,  our  list  must  be  a  very  brief  one  and   The  most 
of  the  most  important  advances  only :  the  conservation  of  lmP°rtant 

..  discoveries. 

energy,  the  theories  of  the  molecular  structure  of  matter, 
of  organic  evolution,  of  the  cell  structure  of  living  organisms 
with  the  resulting  science  of  embryology,  and  the  germ 
theory  of  diseases.  It  is  difficult  to  find  anything  in  the 
history  of  the  past  with  which  to  compare  these,  in  their 
influence  upon  our  understanding  of  nature,  unless  it  be 
Newton's  theory  of  gravitation  alone,  but  discoveries  only 
less  in  importance  to  these  have  affected  every  branch  of 
knowledge. 

If  it  is  possible  that  the  seventeenth  century  made  a  The  greatest 
greater  relative  progress  in  science,  that  is  a  greater  progress  ^erl°Jsthe 
considering   the   point  at  which  it  began,  it  is  hardly  too  scientific 
much  to  say  of  the  nineteenth  that  its  absolute  progress  is  history, 
as  great  as  that  of  all  preceding  time.     We  may  now  almost  ^"^^ 
venture  to  look  forward  to  a  time,  not  very  distant  in  the    Century, 
future,  when  all  natural  forces  will  have  been  brought  into  ChaP- xv- 
the  service  of  man,  and  when  nearly  all  the  suffering,  danger, 


458  Advance  since  the  Renaissance 

and  disease  due  to  our  ignorance  of  nature's  ways  or  to  our 
inability  to  foresee  or  control  her  operations  will  have 
disappeared. 


Topics 

In  what  way  did  the  age  of  the  revival  of  learning  close?  The  first 
great  age  of  English  literature.  The  work  of  Lord  Bacon.  Progress 
in  astronomy  in  the  seventeenth  century.  The  law  of  gravitation. 
The  international  character  of  modern  science.  The  scientific  work  of 
the  seventeenth  century  as  a  whole.  The  idea  of  natural  law.  The 
ideas  of  the  Deists.  English  influence  upon  French  writers.  How  did 
these  ideas  become  European?  Attempted  reforms  by  governments. 
The  character  of  eighteenth  century  science.  Advances  in  various 
sciences.  The  beginning  of  political  economy.  Inventions  of  ma- 
chinery at  the  close  of  the  eighteenth  century.  The  effects  of  the  use 
of  machinery  upon  labor,  manufacturing,  political  reform,  and  the  pro- 
duction of  wealth.  Two  chief  characteristics  of  nineteenth-century 
science.  Examples  of  the  practical  applications  of  science.  Examples 
of  important  discoveries  of  natural  laws. 

Topics  for  Assigned  Studies 

The  invention  of  the  cotton-gin.  American  Historical  Review,  Vol. 
III.,  pp.  90-127. 

The  general  character  of  the  nineteenth  century.  Wallace,  The  Won- 
derful Century,  Chap.  XV. 

Topics  for  Studies  in  Review 

How  had  the  German-Roman  Empire  become  so  weak  in  1648  ? 

Put  together  the  facts  which  mark  the  decline  of  Spain. 

The  steps  in  the  rise  of  England. 

The  reasons  why  France  failed  to  secure  a  colonial  empire. 

The  steps  in  the  advance  of  Russia. 

The  share  of  the  American  colonists  in  the  struggle  with   France  for 

colonial  empire. 

Steps  in  the  advance  of  Prussia. 
Make  an  outline  of  the  history  of  the  "  Eastern  Question "  from  the 

beginning  of  the  reign  of  Catherine  II. 
The  relation  of  the  wars  of  Frederick  the  Great  to  the  colonial  struggle 

between  France  and  England. 


ABBREVIATIONS 


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each.) 

Bohn.     Bohn's  Libraries.     (The  Macmillan  Co.) 
Clarendon.     The  Clarendon  Press,  Oxford.     (Henry  Frowde.) 
Contemporaries.      English  History  by  Contemporary  Writers    Series. 

(Putnam.) 
Correard.     Choix  de  Textes  pour  servir  a  PEtude  des  Institutions  de  la 

France.     (Paris ;   Delalain.) 

Epochs.    The  Epochs  of  History  Series.     (Longmans  or  Scribner.) 
Epochs  Ch.  Hist.    The  Epochs  of  Church  History  Series.    (Longmans.) 
Fling,  Studies.     Studies  in  European  History.     Professor  Fred  Morrow 

Fling.     I.  Greek  and  Roman  Civilization  ;   II.   Mediaeval  History. 

(J.  H.  Miller,  Lincoln,  Neb.;   Single  Studies,  5  cents.     The  bound 

volume,  55  cents.) 
Gardiner.     Constitutional    Documents    of    the     Puritan     Revolution. 

(Clarendon  ;  $2.25.) 
Gee  and  Hardy.     Documents  illustrative  of  English  Church  History, 

(Macmillan  ;  $2.60.) 
Henderson.     Historical   Documents   of  the     Middle    Ages.     (Bohn ; 

#1.50-) 

Heroes.     Heroes  of  the  Nations  Series.     (Putnam.) 
Indiana.     Extracts  from  the  Sources.     Professors  Samuel  B.  Harding 

and  U.  G.  Weatherby.     University  of  Indiana.     (Bloomington  ; 

5  cents  each.) 

Mathews.     Select  Mediaeval  Documents.     (Boston  ;  Silver.) 
Nations.     Story  of  the  Nations  Series.     (Putnam.) 
Old  South.     Old  South  Leaflets.     (Directors  of  the  Old  South  Work. 

Boston  ;   5  cents  each.) 
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History.     (Department  of    History,  University  of   Pennsylvania. 

10  to  25  cents  each  ;   bound  volumes  $1.50.) 
Periods.     Periods  of  European  History  Series.     (Macmillan.) 
Prothero.     Statutes  and  Constitutional  Documents,  1559-1625.     (Clar- 
endon ;  $2.60.) 

Putzger.     Historischer  Schul-atlas.     (Leipzig ;  Velhagen ;  2  marks.) 

459 


460  Abbreviations 

Schilling.  Quellenbuch  zur  Geschichte  der  Neuzeit.  (Berlin  ;  Gaert- 
ner.) 

S.  P.  C.  K.     Society  for  Promoting  Christian  Knowledge.     (Young.) 

Stubbs.  Select  charters  illustrative  of  English  Constitutional  History. 
(Clarendon;  $3.10.) 

Zeller.  L'Histoire  de  France  racontee  par  les  Contemporains.  lyvols. 
published  as  16.  (Paris  :  Hachette  ;  I  franc  each.)  Translated 
into  French.  I.  Gaul  and  the  Invasions  ;  II.  The  Merovingians; 
III.  Charlemagne  and  his  Successors ;  IV.  Advent  of  the  Cape- 
tians,  Philip  Augustus ;  V.  St.  Louis,  Philip  the  Fair  ;  VI.  Philip 
VI.,  John  the  Good  ;  VII.  Charles  V.,  Du  Guesclin  ;  VIII.  Charles 
VI.;  IX.  Charles  VII.,  Louis  XI.  ;  X.  Charles  VIII.;  XI.  Louis 
XII. ;  XII.  and  XIII.  Francis  I.;  XIV.  Henry  II.;  XV.  Francis  II., 
Charles  IX.;  XVI.  Henry  III.,  The  League  ;  XVII.  Henry  IV. 


LIST   OF    BOOKS 


REFERRED  TO  MORE  THAN  ONCE,  EXCEPT  THOSE 
COVERED  BY  THE  LIST  OF  ABBREVIATIONS,  WITH 
THE  PAGE  ON  WHICH  THE  NAME  OF  THE  PUB- 
LISHER IS  GIVEN 


Adams,  C.  K.,  Democracy  and  Mon- 
archy in  France,  352. 

Adams,  G.  B.,  Civilization  during 
the  Middle  Ages,  73 ;  The  Growth 
of  the  French  Nation,  124. 

Airy,  Louis  XI V.,  270. 

Allen,  Christian  Institutions,  20. 

Alzog,  Church  History,  I. 

Archer  and  Kingsford,  Kingdom  of 
Jerusalem,  109. 

Ashley,  English  Economic  History, 
123. 

Baird,  Henry  of  Navarre,  244;  Rise 
of  the  Huguenots,  242. 

Boyle,  Clarendon,  260. 

Bradley,  The  Goths,  57. 

Bryce,  The  Holy  Roman  Empire,  73. 

Bury,  Later  Roman  Empire,  i. 

Capes,  The  Age  of  the  Antonines,  13 ; 
The  Early  Empire,  6. 

Carr,  The  Church  and  the  Roman 
Empire,  22. 

Church,  Henry  V.,  132;  Stories  of 
the  East,  i. 

Cox,  The  Crusades,  109. 

Creighton,  Elizabeth,  234. 

Cunningham,  Growth  of  English  In- 
dustry and  Commerce  in  Modern 
Times,  444. 

Dodge,  Hannibal,  72. 

Duffy,  Tuscan  Republics,  108. 

Emerton,  Mediaeval  Europe,  73. 

Fisher,  The  Beginnings  of  Christian- 
ity, 20;  History  of  the  Christian 
Church,  i ;  The  Reformation,  157. 


Fiske,  Discovery  of  America,  182. 
Frazer,  British  India,  402. 
Freeman,  Historical  Essays,  37. 
Froude,  History  of  England,  157. 
Fyffe,   History   of  Modern    Europe, 

352- 

Gairdner,  Henry  VII.,  193;  Lan- 
caster and  York,  142. 

Gardiner,  The  First  Two  Stuarts,  258  ; 
The  Thirty  Years'  War,  246. 

Gibbon,  Decline  and  Fall  of  the  Ro- 
man Empire,  i. 

Gindely,  The  Thirty  Years  War, 
246. 

Green,  Conquest  of  England,  84; 
History  of  the  English  People,  73 ; 
Making  of  England,  51. 

Green,  Mrs.,  Henry  II.,  126. 

Hadley,  Introduction  to  Roman  Law, 

51- 

Hallam,  Constitutional  History  of 
England,  410. 

Hassall,  Louis  XIV.,  267. 

Hatch,  Organization  of  the  Early 
Christian  Churches,  20. 

Hausser,  The  Period  of  the  Reforma- 
tion, 157. 

Henderson,  History  of  Germany,  73. 

Hodgkin,  Charles  the  Great,  52; 
Dynasty  of  Theodosius,  32;  Italy 
and  her  Invaders,  i ;  Theodoric 
the  Goth,  45. 

Hutton,  Philip  Augustus,  127. 

Johnson,  'Ihe  Normans  in  Europe, 
80. 


46l 


462 


List  of  Books 


Keary,  Vikings  in  Western  Christen- 
dom, 80. 

Keltie,  The  Partition  of  Africa,  404. 

Kitchin,  History  of  France,  73. 

Kostlin,  Life  of  Luther,  157. 

Lecky,   History  of  England  in  the 
Eighteenth  Century,  306. 

Leger,  Austro-Hungary,  148. 

Lewis,  History  of  Germany,  148. 

Lieber,  Civil  Liberty,  352. 

Longman,  Frederick  the  Great,  293. 

Lowell,  Eve  of  the  French   Revolu- 
tion, 328. 

Lucas,  Historical  Geography   of  the 
British  Colonies,  Introduction,  306. 

Mahan,  Influence  of  Sea  Power  upon 
History,  306. 

Masson,  Medicsval  France,  133. 

Maurice,  Bohemia,  148. 

McCarthy,    Our    Times  from   1880, 
405- 

Medley,  Manual  of  English  Consti- 
tutional History,  410. 

Merivale,  Romans   under    the    Em- 
pire, i. 

Mombert,  Charles  the  Great,  64. 

Montague,  Elements  of  English  Con- 
stitutional History,  410. 

Morris,  Age  of  Anne,  277  ;  Napoleon, 
SSL 

Motley,  The  Dutch  Republic,  332. 

Miiller    Political   History  of  Recent 
Times,  352. 

Oman,   Art  of  War  in  the  Middle 
Ages   109;   Byzantine  Empire,  18. 

Park  man,  Half  Century  of  Conflict; 
Montcalm  and  Wolfe,  306. 

Pastor,  History  of  the  Popes,  157. 

Payne,  History  of  European  Colonies, 
306. 

Pears,    The   Fall  of  Constantinople, 
109. 


Perkins,   France  under  Louis  XV., 

306;     France  under  the  Regency, 

285. 

Poole,  Wycli/e,  130. 
Prescott,  'Philip  II.,  235. 
Rambaud,  History  of  Russia,  287. 
Ramsay,  Lancaster  and  York,  136. 
Ranke,  History  of  the  Popes,  207. 
Roberts,  History  of  Canada,  395. 
Rogers,  Six   Centuries  of  Work  and 

Wages,  145. 
Schaft",     History    of    the     Christian 

Church,  i. 
Seebohm,  The  Protestant  Revolution, 

316. 
Sergeant,  The  Franks,  37;    Wycli/e, 

145- 

Sloane,  Napoleon,  351. 

Stephens,  French  Revolution,  351 ; 
Portugal,  182;  Speeches  of  the 
French  Revolution,  351. 

Story,  Building  of  the  British  Em- 
pire, 306. 

Stubbs,  Constitutional  History  of  Eng- 
land, 236 ;  The  Plantagenets  137. 

Symonds,  The  Renaissance  in  Italy, 

157- 

Taine,  Ancient  Regime,  329. 

Taswell-Langmead,  English  Consti- 
tutional History,  410. 

Tout,  Edrvard  /.,  140. 

Traill,  Social  England,  73. 

Tuttle,  History  of  Prussia,  292. 

Uhlhorn,  Conflict  of  Christianity  with 
Heathenism,  20. 

Wallace,  The  Wonderful  Century, 
444. 

Warburton,  Edward  III.,  130. 

Ward,  The  Counter  Reformation, 
220. 

Willert,  Henry  of  Navarre,  243. 

Zimmern,  Hansa,  117. 


INDEX 


Abbassides,  the  dynasty  of,  58,  60. 

Abyssinia,  405. 

Acadia,  316. 

Acre,  siege  of,  114. 

Actium,  battle  of,  5. 

Act  of  Settlement,  the,  438. 

Act  of  Supremacy,  the,  218. 

Act  of  Union,  284. 

Alfred  the  Great,  82. 

^Ethelred,  83. 

Ae'tius,  34. 

Afghanistan,  403,  404. 

Africa,  404,  405  ;  conquests  of,  3,  45, 

57.     See  Cape  Colony,  Egypt,  etc. 
Agincourt,  battle  of,  132. 
Agricola,  13. 
Agrippina,  10. 
Aix-la-Chapelle,  treaty  of,  271 ;  peace 

of,  295,  318. 
Alais,  edict  of,  249. 
Alaric,  2,  22-34. 
Albigenses,  75,  107,  128. 
Albuquerque,  307. 
Alcuin,  69. 

Alemanni,  the,  16,  31,  38,  40,  93. 
Alexander  I.,  Czar  of  Russia,  356, 

361;  II.,  380,  381. 
Alexandria,   in  Egypt,   founding  of, 

23  ;  bombardment  of,  405. 
Algiers,  404. 
AH,  the  Caliph,  58. 
Alliance,  the  Triple,  271,  313. 
Alsace-Lorraine,  375. 
Alva,  duke  of,  236. 
America,  discovery  of,  177;  English 

colonies  in,  311-315;    Revolution 

in,  322;    Anglo-Saxon   expansion 

in,  388. 

Amiens,  peace  of,  344,  392. 
Andros,  Sir  Edmund,  438. 


Angevin  empire,  126. 

Anglo-Saxons,  3,  48-50,  388,  407,, 

Anjou,  county  of,  88. 

Anne  of  Beaujeu,  196. 

Anne  of  England,  280,  284. 

Antioch,  23,  112. 

Antonines,  Rome  under  the,  13. 

Antony  of  Navarre,  242. 

Aquinas,  Thomas,  163. 

Aquitaine,  duchy  of,  88. 

Arabia,  55-57 ;  science  of,  58. 

Arabi  Pasha,  405. 

Arabs,  56,  57 ;  in  Spain,  4,  57. 

Arcadius,  32. 

Archangel,  290. 

Arians,  38. 

Ariosto,  182. 

Ariovistus,  29. 

Arius,  38. 

Armada,  the  Invincible  240. 

Arminius,  or  Hermann,  9 ;  the  theo- 
logian, 238. 

Arnulf,  93. 

Arnulf  of  Metz,  53. 

Arthur  of  Brittany,  126. 

Artois,  count  of,  356. 

Asia,  402-404. 

Assignats,  French,  337. 

Asti,  siege  of,  33. 

Attila,  34,  40. 

Augsburg,  Confession  of,  214 ;  peace 
of,  225,  230,  245  ;  league  of,  277. 

Augustus  Caesar,  6-10. 

Augustus  II.,  king  of  Poland,  290; 
III.,  300. 

Aurelian,  emperor  of  Rome,  16. 

Aurelius,  Marcus,  7,  13,  14,  22. 

Austerlitz,  battle  of,  346. 

Australasia,  399. 

Australia,  388-390,  397. 


463 


464 


Index 


Austrasia,  52,  53,  399, 
Austria,  148,  253,  265,294-299,370; 
in  the  Seven  Weeks'  War,  370-372. 
Austrian  Succession,  War  of  the,  295. 
Avignon,  158,  183,  273. 
Azof,  290,  291. 

Bacon,  Francis,  445. 

Bagdad,  58,  no. 

Balboa,  177. 

Baldwin  of  Flanders,  115. 

Balkan  states,  382. 

Balliol,  140. 

Baltic  provinces,  150,  301. 

Baluchistan,  402. 

Barcelona,  66 ;  treaty  of,  211. 

Basle,  council  of,  188. 

Bastille,  taking  of  the,  334. 

Bavaria,  Joseph  of,  277. 

Bavarians,  the,  64,  93,  245. 

Bayard,  Chevalier,  210. 

Becket,  Thomas,  138. 

Belgium,  78,  364. 

Belisarius,  45. 

Berlin,  treaty  of,  382. 

Bill  of  Rights,  276. 

Bismarck,  Otto  von,  367,  370. 

Black  Death,  the,  131,  142. 

Black  Prince,  131. 

Bohemia,    148,    158,    186,    187,    246, 

298,  359.  371- 

Bonaparte,  Napoleon,  341-349,  391. 
Borgia,  Caesar,  195. 
Bosphorus,  16,  17. 
Bosworth  Field,  battle  of,  144,  426. 
Bothwell,  Earl  of,  238. 
Bourbon,  house  of,  242,  243. 
Bourges,  Pragmatic  Sanction  of,  188, 

201. 

Bouvines,  battle  of,  140. 
Boyne,  battle  of  the,  277. 
Braddock,  General,  318. 
Brandenburg,  elector  of,  292. 
Breda,  compromise  of,  237. 
Breslau,  peace  of,  295. 
Bretigny,  treaty  of,  131. 
Britain,  13,  48. 
British  empire,  expansion  0^387-403  ; 

in  Africa,  404 ;  in  Canada,  395 ;  in 

Incli.i,  402. 
Bruce,  Robert,  140,  141. 


Brunswick,  house  of,  106.    See  Han- 
over. 

Buffon,  451. 
I  Bulgaria,  382,384;  massacres  in,  381. 

Burgundians,  33,  39,  42. 

Burgundy,    duchy    of,    78,   88,    134; 
duke  of,  132. 

Burschenschaft,  354. 

Cabot,  310. 

Caesar,  Augustus,  emperor  of  Rome, 

6-10. 
Caius,  10. 

Calais,  133,  234,  276. 
Caligula,  emperor  of  Rome,  10. 
Caliphate,  the,  58,  60,  no. 
Calvin,  John,  159,  219. 
Calvinism,  219,  229,  233,  238,  241. 
Cambray,   league   of,    198 ;     Ladies' 

Peace  of,  211. 

Campo  Formio,  treaty  of,  342. 
Canada,  315,  318,  319,  320,  395,  397. 
Canossa,  103. 
Canterbury,  138. 
Cape  Colony,  309,  350,  391,  394,  397, 

404,  405,  407. 
Capetian  kings  of  France,  74,  88,  96, 

124,  125,  127,  136. 
Carbonari,  354. 
Carlowitz,  peace  of,  290. 
Carnot,  341. 
Carolingian  house,  52,  60-74,  81,  93, 

96. 

Carthage,  34. 
Castile  and  Aragon,  152. 
Catherine  of  Aragon,  193. 
Catherine  II.  (the  Great),  of  Russia, 

299-304,  378. 

Catholic  League,  the,  245. 
Cavaliers,  260. 
Cavour,  Count,  365. 
Celts,  48,  50. 
Ceylon,  391. 
Chalons-sur-Marne,  34. 
Chambord,  Comte  de,  356. 
Charlemagne,  3,64,71,74;  the  em- 
pire of,  68,  76. 

Charles  Albert,  king  of  Sardinia,  360. 
Charles   V.,    emperor   of   Germany, 

159,  198-200,  229-233 ;  VI.,  294. 
Charles  the  Bold,  133,  193. 


Index 


465 


Charles  the  Fat,  79,  93-95. 

Charles  the  Simple,  95. 

Charles  I.,  king  of  England,  258,  260, 
432-435;  II.,  261,  266,  275,  436. 

Charles  V.,  king  of  France,  131 ;  VI., 
131;  VII.,  132;  VIII.,  134,  195- 
197. 

Charles  XII.,  king  of  Sweden,  290. 

Charles  of  Bourbon,  Constable  of 
France,  208,  210. 

Charles  Martel,  53,  57,  62. 

Chaucer,  142,  204. 

China,  402-404. 

Christianity,  causes  of  early  persecu- 
tion of,  21,  22;  rapid  spread  of, 
21-25;  under  Constantine,  2,  24; 
Church  government,  22;  under 
Julian,  26;  under  Jovian,  29; 
Arian  vs.  Catholic,  38  ;  reforms  of 
Cluny,  100 ;  the  crusades  and  their 
results,  109-123  ;  Hussites,  149, 186; 
religious  revolution  attempted,  183- 
188 ;  reformation  of  Luther,  203- 
222;  in  England,  233,  240,  257;  in 
France,  241 ;  Edict  of  Nantes,  244. 

Civilis,  13. 

Claudius,  10,  13. 

Clermont,  council  of,  no. 

Clive,  Robert,  Lord,  319. 

Clotilda,  38. 

Clovis,  3,  4,  37-40. 

Cluny,  reforms  of,  100. 

Cnut,  74,  83. 

Cobden,  Richard,  400. 

Colbert,  268-270,  274,  315. 

Co  let,  170. 

Coligny,  Admiral  de,  243. 

Colonial  wars,  315,  325. 

Colonies,  Northmen,  81 ;  German, 
150;  modern,  307;  English,  311, 
3i5-3i8, 394-397, 399-402 ;  French, 
269,  270,  274,  315,  392. 

Columbus,  176. 

Commodus,  emperor  of  Rome,  13. 

Commons,  House  of,  259, 260 ;  origin 
and  growth  of,  417,  422,  425.  See 
Parliament; 

Commonwealth,  English,  the,  260, 
261,  435- 

Conde,  Prince  of,  253,  272. 

Congo  Free  State,  the,  404. 


Conrad,  of  Franconia,  93;  II.,  em- 
peror of  the  Holy  Roman  Empire, 
95;  III.,  114. 

Constance,  peace  of,  106 ;  council  of, 
149. 

Constantine  the  Great,  2,  17,  20,  22- 
25,  26. 

Constantinople,  17,  57,  115,  153. 

Constituent  Assembly,  in  France,  336, 
338  ;  in  Germany,  361. 

Constitutions  of  England  and  the 
United  States,  410-441 ;  Charter  of 
Henry  I.,  412;  beginning  of  the 
judiciary,  413 ;  the  Magna  Charta, 
414-416,  419;  the  Provisions  of 
Oxford,  416;  the  origin  of  repre- 
sentative institutions,  417 ;  Parlia- 
ment, 418-430;  House  of  Com- 
mons, 259,  260,  421-425  ;  taxation 
by,  419-425;  the  Yorkist  period, 
426;  the  Tudor  period,  427;  the 
Stuart  period,  430;  Petition  of 
Right,  432 ;  Grand  Remonstrance, 
434;  Bill  of  Rights,  437;  colonial 
questions,  437 ;  Reform  Bills,  440. 

Consuls,  of  France,  343. 

Convention,  the,  of  the   Commune, 

339-341- 

Copernicus,  158,  179,  445,  447. 
Corneille,  449. 
Cortez,  397. 

Council,  the  Great,  417. 
Coup  d'etat,  the,  362. 
"  Covenant,"  the,  433. 
Cr6cy,  battle  of,  131. 
Crespy,  treaty  of,  229. 
Crimea,  302. 

Crimean  War,  227,  379-381. 
Cromwell,  Oliver,  260-261,  313. 
Crusades,  age  of,  109,  112,  117;  first, 

no;  second  and  third,  114;  later, 

ii5- 

Cuba,  177. 
Cuvier,  451. 
Czar,  the  name,  6. 

Dagobert,  42,  52,  61. 
Damascus,  38,  114. 
Danes,  80 ;  in  England,  81. 
Dante,  166. 
Dan  ton,  336. 


466 


Index 


Danube,  states  of  the,  382,  384. 

Darwin,  451. 

Decius,  16,  31. 

Declaration   of  Independence,   323, 

412. 

Deists,  French,  327 ;  English,  448. 
Denmark,  368. 
Descartes,  446. 

Desiderius,  king  of  Lombards,  65. 
Diaz,  175. 
Diocletian,   Roman  emperor,  2,  16, 

17,  23,  26. 

Disraeli,  Lord  Beaconsfield,  382. 
Divine  Right  of  Kings,  doctrine  of 

the,  257. 

Domitian,  Roman  emperor,  n,  13. 
Dresden,  peace  of,  295. 
Dunbar,  battle  of,  361. 
Dupleix,  317,  319. 

Dutch  Republic.     See  Netherlands. 
Dutch  war  in  reign  of  Charles  II.,  313. 

Eadmund  Ironside,  83,  96. 
Eadward  the  Confessor,  83,  96,  97. 
Enstern  Empire,  3,  31,  44,  46. 
Eastern  Question,  the,  227,  302,  377, 

384. 

East  India  Company,  269,  309,  312. 
Ecgberht  of  Wessex,  81. 
Eck,  Dr.,  206. 
Edessa,  114. 

Edict  of  Restitution,  247,  249. 
Edward  L,  king  of  England,  129, 140, 

417;    II.,   141,  420,  424;   III.,  130, 

142;  IV.,  144;  VI.,  218,  427. 
Egypt,  57.  58,  152,  153.  166-172,  343, 

378,  391,  405. 
Eisenach,  208. 
Elagabalus,  16. 
Elba,  347-349- 
Eleanor  of  Aquitaine,  126. 
Elector,  the  Great,  of  Brandenburg, 

251,  292,  293,  312 ;  of  Bavaria,  295  ; 

of  the    Palatinate,    245,  258,  284; 

of  Saxony,  229,  252-295. 
Elizabeth  of  York,  193. 
Elizabeth  of  England,  218,  225,  234, 

237-251,  427;  literature  of  the  age 

of,  445- 

Elizabeth  of  Russia,  297,  299. 
Emigres,  338,  356. 


Empire  and  papacy,  102-107. 

England,  Saxons  in,  48 ;  under  fiL\- 
fred,  82;  invasions  of,  74,  81,  82; 
Norman  conquest  of,  96 ;  at  war 
with  France,  131,  142,  283,315,345, 
349,391;  Norman  kings  of,  137,  411; 
Angevin  kings  of,  126,  137-142, 412, 
413  ;  in  Wars  of  the  Roses,  142-144, 
192,426;  the  Reformation  in,  185, 
217,  218,  233,  234,  238-241 ;  Tudor 
rule  in,  218,  233,  239,  427—430;  Stu- 
art kings  of,  255-259,  275,  284,  430- 
436  ;  Revolution  in,  260,  436 ;  Com- 
monwealth of,  260 ;  rise  of,  281, 309 ; 
colonies  of,  311-325,  388,  394,  397, 
400-402;  constitutional  history  of, 
410-440 ;  Magna  Chai  ta,  414 ;  Par- 
liament of,  417-426. 

Epirus,  32. 

Erasmus,  158,  170. 

Estate,  the  Third,  332. 

Estates,  general,  129,  131,  133,  196, 
331.  336.  See  National  Assembly. 

Ethandun,  82. 

Eudes,  king  of  France,  95. 

Eugene  of  Savoy,  280. 

Europe,  reorganization  of,  349,  350; 
since  1815,  352-385. 

Ferdinand  of  Aragon,  151,  191;  em- 
peror of  Germany,  230. 

Feudalism,  the  rise  of,  85;  the  sys- 
tem of,  86,  87,  411 ;  in  France,  88  ; 
the  serf  class  under,  89-91 ;  classes 
of,  89  ;  permanent  influence  of,  120, 
411;  causes  of  decay,  121;  results 
of,  121. 

Flanders,  88,  309. 

Flavian  dynasty  in  Rome,  II. 

Florence,  the  city,  151,  195. 

Florida,  purchase  of,  393. 

Fontenay,  battle  of,  77. 

Fontenoy,  battle  of,  295. 

Fort  Duquesne,  318. 

Fouquet,  268. 

France,  under  the  feudal  system,  88; 
beginning  in,  95 ;  Capetian  kings 
of,  74,  88,  96,  124-127,  136;  the 
Valois  in,  130,  243;  in  the  Thirty 
Years'  War,  244-253  ;  under  Louis 
XIV.,  267-274,  277-281,  313-315; 


Index 


467 


intellectual  character  of,  327-329; 
financial  condition  of,  330,  336 ; 
revolutions  in,  332-339,  356-358, 
364;  the  Republic  in,  338-345,  358, 
376 ;  the  Empire,  345,  362 ;  Bour- 
bon restoration,  347,  349 ;  the  war 
with  Prussia,  372-375 ;  in  the  Cri- 
mean War,  379 ;  colonies  of,  269, 
315,  392. 

Franche-Comte,  265,  271-273. 

Francis  I.,  king  of  France,  208;  II., 
238,  242. 

Francis  of  Guise,  242,  373. 

Francis  Joseph,  emperor  of  Austria, 

359- 

Francis  of  Lorraine,  emperor  of  Aus- 
tria, 295. 

Franco-Prussian  War,  227,  372-375. 

Franklin,  451. 

Franks,  the,  3,  37-43,  57,  62. 

Frederick  William,  the  Great  Elector 
(of  Brandenburg),  251,  286,  292, 
293,  312. 

Frederick  the  Wise  of  Saxony,  200. 

Frederick  II.  (the  Great),  293-295, 
298-301. 

Frederick  I.,  emperor  of  the  Ger- 
mans, 104,  114;  II.,  104,  107-115. 

Frederick,  of  the  Palatinate,  245,  258, 
284. 

Frederick  William  I.,  king  of  Prus- 
sia, 293  ;  II.,  303  ;  IV.,  361. 

Frederickshall,  siege  of,  291. 

French  and  Indian  War,  297. 

French  Revolution,  the,  227,  332-339. 

Fronde,  wars  of  the,  267. 

Galba,  emperor  of  Rome,  n. 

Galileo,  446,  447. 

Garibaldi,  367. 

Gaul,  3,  6. 

Geneva,  219. 

German  nation,  beginnings  of,  3,  9, 
35.  92.  93  5  the  Holy  Roman  Em- 
pire of  the,  94;  in  conflict  with  the 
papacy,  99-107,  147;  in  the  cru- 
sades, 114-116;  the  Great  Inter- 
regnum, 147;  the  Reformation  of 
Luther,  203-215  ;  the  religious 
wars,  229-257;  the  Thirty  Years' 
War,  244-246,  251-255 ;  end  of  the 


Empire,  254 ;  rise  of  the  Hohenzol- 
lern  in,  291-294;  the  Seven  Years' 
War,  298,  370-372;  the  Zollverein, 
365,  368 ;  the  New  Confederation, 
371 ;  the  New  Empire,  375. 

George  I.,  king  of  England,  284; 
III.,  320-322. 

Ghibellines,  106. 

Gibraltar,  281. 

Girondists,  the,  339,  340. 

Gladstone,  400. 

Gold,  discovery  of,  398. 

Gordon,  General,  406. 

Goths,  31,  32. 

Granada,  191,  192. 

Grand  Alliance,  the,  279. 

Great  Seal  of  England,  265. 

Greco-Turkish  War,  385. 

Greece,  independence  of,  363. 

Greek  Empire.   See  Eastern  Empire. 

Greeks,  revival  of  the  learning  of, 
158,  161-163. 

Gregory.     See  under  Popes. 

Gregory  of  Tours,  38. 

Grimoald,  52,  61. 

Guelfs,  106. 

Guise,  the  family  of,  242. 

Gustavus  Adolphus,  247,  251. 

Gutenberg,  168. 

Hadrian,  emperor  of  Rome,  13-15. 

Hampden,  259,  260,  432. 

Hanover,  106 ;  the  house  of,  284,  425, 
438. 

Hanseatic  League,  123. 

Hapsburg,  house  of,  148,  190,  192, 
228,  234,  249,  265,  282. 

Harold  I.,  king  of  England,  97. 

Hastings,  battle  of,  97. 

Hawaii,  388. 

Hegira,  56. 

Helena,  St.,  349. 

Henry  I.,  emperor  of  Germany,  93; 
H.,  95,  99;  III.,  95,  101,  102;  IV., 
102;  V.,  103;  VI.,  102,  104,  106. 

Henry  I.,  king  of  England,  137; 
Charter  of,  412, 415 ;  1 1.,  of  Anjou, 
126,  137,  421;  III.,  128,  140,  416; 
IV.,  423-425;  V.,  131,  142;  VI., 
132,  143;  VII.,  144,  426;  VIII., 

192,  198,  200,  208,  217,  257,  427,  430. 


468 


Index 


Henry  II.,  king  of  France,  229,  230, 
242;  III.,  243;  IV.,  of  Navarre, 

243.  244- 

Henry  the  Lion,  106. 

Henry  the  Navigator,  175. 

Heptarchy,  the,  49. 

Herculaneum,  n. 

Hermann,  9. 

Hohenstaufen,  the  house  of,  74,  104- 
106,  151. 

Hohenzollern,  the  house  of,  150,  226, 
292,  361,  373. 

Holbein,  182. 

Holland,  78,  309 ;  at  war  with  France, 
266,  271,  313,  357,  391. 

Holstein,  368. 

Holy  Alliance,  the,  354-356. 

Holy  League,  198. 

Holy  Roman  Empire,  the,  69 ;  eco- 
nomic conditions  of,  76;  its  contest 
with  the  papacy,  99-107;  renewed 
by  Otto  the  Great,  74,  94 ;  effects 
of  the  renewal  of,  94;  diminished 
by  the  treaty  of  Westphalia,  226 ; 
end  of,  254. 

Honorius,  emperor  of  Rome,  32. 

Horace,  7. 

Hubertsburg,  peace  of,  299. 

Hudson  Bay  territory,  282. 

Huguenots,  242-244,  248,  274. 

Hundred  Days,  the,  349. 

Hundred  Years'  War,  the,  75,  130- 
133,  142,  190. 

Hungarians,  the,  74,  80,  93,  363. 

Hungary,  359,  361,  372. 

Huns,  the,  2,  29,  31-35,  44. 

Huss,  John,  149,  158,  186. 

Hussites,  149,  186. 

Illyricum,  32. 

Imperial  Federation  League,  401. 
Independents,  English,  260,  311. 
India,  173,  316, 317,  319,  343,  391, 402. 

403- 

Indulgences,  203. 
Interregnum,  the  Great,  147. 
Ireland,  137,  261,  277. 
Isabella  of  Bourbon,  373. 
Isabella  of  Castile,  151,  152. 
Ismail  Pasha,  405. 
Italian  city-states,  105,  106,  151,  194. 


Italian  Renaissance,  165. 

Italy,  reorganization  of,  349,  363; 
cities  of,  105,  106,  151,  194;  Re- 
naissance in,  165;  the  invasions 
of,  196-200,  210,  211 ;  revolutions 
in,  200,  355,  359;  growth  of  the 
spirit  of  nationality  in,  365  ;  united, 
366,  367;  in  the  Seven  Weeks' 
War,  370-371. 

Ivan  the  Great,  288. 

Jacobins,  336,  338,  339,  340,  342. 

James  I.,  king  of  England,  258;  II., 
276,  277,  280,  284,  436,  437,  438; 
III.,  279. 

James  II.,  king  of  Scotland,  284. 

Janissaries,  252. 

Japan,  404. 

Jena,  battle  of,  346. 

Jerome  of  Prague,  187. 

Jerusalem,  taken  by  Titus,  n ;  by 
the  Turks,  no,  113;  by  the  cru- 
saders, 114;  Latin  kingdom  of, 
114;  taken  by  Saladin,  114. 

Jesuits,  the  order  of,  221. 

Jews,  insurrection  of,  12;  expulsion 
from  Spain  of  the,  192. 

Joan  of  Arc,  132. 

John,  king  of  England,  74,  126,  139; 
grant  of  Magna  Charta  by,  139,  140, 
414-416. 

John,  king  of  France,  131. 

Josephine,  346. 

Joseph  of  Bavaria,  277. 

Jovian,  29. 

[ulian  the  Apostate,  26,  29,  31. 

fustinian,  3,  15,  44-46,  119. 

Jutes,  the,  48,  49. 

Kaaba,  the,  55. 
Kepler,  446,  447. 
Khadijah,  55. 
Khartum,  406. 
Knox,  John,  238. 
Koniggratz,  battle  of,  371. 
Koreishites,  55,  56. 
Kosciusko,  303. 
Kossuth,  339. 

Lacedaemon.     See  Sparta. 
Lafayette,  334,  336,  356. 


Index 


469 


Lancaster,   house  of,   142,  144,  186, 

423-425. 

Langton,  Stephen,  414. 
Laplace,  451. 
La  Rochelle,  249. 
Latin  Empire,  115. 
Laud,  William,  259. 
Law,  John,  330. 
Law,  Roman,  14-16,  106,  119. 
Laybach,  Congress  of,  355. 
Leczinski,  Stanislaus,  290. 
Legislative  Assembly,  340. 
Legnano,  battle  of,  106. 
Leipzig,  battle  of,  347. 
Leon,  152. 

Leonardo  da  Vinci,  181. 
Leopold  II.,  king  of  Austria,  303. 
Leopold,  Prince,  373. 
Lewis  I.,  Carolingian  king,  77,  79. 
Linnaeus,  451. 
Lisbon,  175,  177. 
Literature  of  the  Renaissance,  179, 

181,  182. 
Livia,  10. 
Livy,  7. 

Locke,  John,  449. 
Loire,  the,  57,  127. 
Lollards,  the,  186. 
Lombard  League,  the,  105. 
Lombards,  the,  3,  4,  46,  61,  62,65. 
Lorraine,  no,  375. 
Lothair,  emperor,  77,  78. 
Louisburg,  318. 
Louisiana  purchase,  the,  393. 
Louis,  prince  of  Conde,  253,  272. 
Louis  V.,  king  of  France,  96;   VI., 

124,   125;   VII.,  114;    VIII.,   128; 

IX.,  115,  128;   XL,  133,  190,  191; 

XII.,  197-200;  XIII.,  244,  247,  249  ; 

XIV.,  266-283,  313 ;  XV.,  283,  313 ; 

XVI.,  331,  336,   339,  340;    XVII., 

348;  XVIII.,  347,  349,356. 
Louis  Napoleon,  359,  361-376. 
Louis  Philippe,  336,  358. 
Low  Countries.     See  Netherlands. 
Loyola,  Ignatius,  222. 
Lucan,  10. 

Ludovico  the  Moor,  195-197. 
Luther,    Martin,    158,   171,  203-215; 

posts   his   theses,  204;    burns   the 

papal  bull,  207;  edict  against,  of 


the  Diet  of  Worms,  207,  208  ;  op- 
posed to  fanaticism,  212,  and  to 
civil  war,  214. 

Liitzen,  battle  of,  251. 

Luxemburg,  the  family  of,  148. 

Machiavelli,  182,  194. 

Machinery,  the  age  of,  452 ;  its  effect 

on  manufacturing  and  labor,  453. 
Madrid,  treaty  of,  210. 
Magdeburg,  siege  of,  229,  251. 
Magellan,  177. 
Magna  Charta,  the,  140, 414-416, 419, 

432. 

Mahmoud  II.,  sultan  of  Turkey,  378. 
Maintenon,  Mme.,  274. 
Maria   Louisa,   empress   of  France, 

346. 
Maria  Theresa  of  Austria,  294-299, 

301. 

Marie  Antoinette,  330. 
Marignano,  battle  of,  200. 
Marlborough,  duke  of,  280. 
Mary  def  Medici,  244. 
Mary  of  Burgundy,  193. 
Mary,  queen    of    England,   wife   of 

William  III.,  276,  436. 
Mary  Stuart,   queen   of  Scots,   234, 

238-240,  242,  255,  256. 
Mary  Tudor,  queen  of  England,  218, 

233- 

Matilda,  137,  412,  413. 
Maurice  of  Saxony,  229. 
Maximilian  I.,  emperor  of  Germany, 

134.  193- 

Mazarin,  199,  249,  267,  270,  274,  277. 
Mazeppa,  291. 
Mazzini,  360. 
Mecca,  55,  56. 
Medici,  family  of,  151,  195,  196,  216; 

Catherine  de',  175,  242;    Lorenzo 

de',  180;  Mary  de',  244. 
Medina,  56. 
Mehemet  Ali,  378. 
Mercia,  49,  81. 
Metternich,  354,  359,  389. 
Metz,  230;  fortress  of,  374. 
Mexico,  conquered  by  Cortez,  307. 
Michael  Angelo,  181. 
Milan,  31,  33,  105,  151,  195,  200,  342. 
Minorca,  281,  324. 


470 


Index 


Mirabeau,  332-336. 
Missi  dominici,  69,  76. 
Mohammed,  55,  56. 
Mohammedanism,  doctrines  of,  55; 

spread  of,  56 ;  decline  of,  60. 
Moliere,  449. 
Money,  effects  of  an  increased  use  of, 

120. 

Monroe  Doctrine,  the,  355. 
Montaigne,  182. 
Montesquieu,  328,  448. 
Montfort,  Simon  de,  128,  416,  418. 
Moors  of  Granada,  192. 
More,  Sir  Thomas,  170,  171. 
Moscow,  burning  of,  347. 
"  Mountain,"  the,  339. 
Mozambique,  175. 
Miihlberg,  229. 

Nantes,  the  edict  of,  244,  249;  revoca- 
tion of,  274. 
Naples,  195,  197,  281. 
Napoleon  III.,  362,  372. 
Naseby,  260. 
National  Assembly,  French,  332,  336, 

339-  34°- 

National  Guard,  334-336,  356. 
Navarre,  151,  191. 
Navigation  Act,  313. 
Necker,  331,  333,  334. 
Nelson,  343,  344,  391. 
Nero,   emperor    of    Rome,    10,    n, 

21. 

Nerva,  emperor  of  Rome,  13. 
Netherlands,  186,  193  ;  under  Charles 

V.,    235;    revolt   of   the,  228,  236; 

Union   of   Utrecht,  237;    ceded  to 

Austria,  237  :  to  France,  255. 
Netherlands,  the  New,  309. 
Neustria,  53. 
Newfoundland,  316. 
Newton,  Sir  Isaac,  446,  447. 
Nicaea,  24. 
Nicholas  I.,  czar  of  Russia,  361,364, 

379.  380. 

Nile,  battle  of  the,  343,  391. 
Nimeguen,  treaty  of,  273. 
Nineteenth  century,  352. 
Norfolk,  49. 
Normandy,  81,  95,  411. 
Normans,  69,  96;  in  Italy,  104;  con- 


quest of  England  by,  96;   in  the 

crusades,  no. 
Northmen,  74,  80,  81. 
Northumberland,  49. 
Norwegians,  80. 
Nottingham,  261. 
Nova  Scotia,  316. 
Nuremberg,  peace  of,  215. 

Octavius,  emperor  of  Rome,  5,  9, 

Odovakar,  3,  35. 

Ommiads,  the,  58. 

Orange,  William  of,  276-280,  436, 437. 

Orleans,  the  siege  of,  132. 

Osmanlis,  the,  152. 

Osman  Pasha,  381. 

Ostrogoths,  3,  31,  40-44. 

Otho,  emperor  of  Rome,  n. 

Otto  I.,  the  Great,  emperor  of  Ger- 
many, 74,  93  ;  II.,  94;  III.,  94;  IV., 
106,  107,  140. 

Ottokar  II.,  king  of  Bohemia,  148. 

Ottoman  Empire,  the.  See  under 
Turks. 

Ovid,  7. 

Oxford  University,  170. 

Palatinate,  245,  254,  277. 

Palmyra,  fall  of,  16. 

Papacy,  the  "  temporal  power  "  of,  3, 
62;  its  growth,  4,  61 ;  in  conflict 
with  the  Empire,  68,  102-107,  X47J 
at  the  height  of  the  power  of,  106, 
107;  theory  of  papal  supremacy, 
99 ;  reforms  of  Cluny,  100 ;  removal 
of  the  papal  chair  to  Avignon,  158, 
183-185  ;  the  great  schism,  184;  the 
papal  states,  195;  deprived  of 
power  in  England,  217,  in  Italy, 
360. 

Papal  states,  the,  195. 

Paris,  peace  of  (1763),  297;  peace 
of  (1856),  381. 

Parliament,  English,  395;  the  first, 
417;  growth  of  power  of,  418-423, 
425-429;  rise  of  House  of  Com- 
mons in,  422,  439;  rights  of,  258, 
415,  419-422,  424  ;  attacks  on,  258, 
259,  423,  432-435 ;  Charles  I.  and 
the,  258,  432-435;  the  Long,  259, 
433  ;  the  "  Rump,"  259,  261 ;  the 


Index 


471 


convention,  437;  union  of  Scotch 

with  the,  284. 
Parthians,  12. 
Pavia,  210. 
Peasants'  War,  201. 
Persia,  conquest  of,  by  Saracens,  57 ; 

modern,  402-404. 
Persian  Empire  revived,  44. 
Persian  wars  with  Rome,  16. 
Peter  the  Great,  288-291 ;  III.,  298. 
Peter  the  Hermit,  no. 
Petition  of  Right,  258. 
Petrarch,  166,  167,  182. 
Philip  Augustus,  king  of  France,  75, 

114. 
Philip  II.,  king  of  France,  124,  126- 

128,  140;  IV.  (the  Fair),  129,  130, 

140,  183;  VI.,  of  Valois,  130. 
Philip  II.,  king  of  Spain,  218,  225, 

231-238,  240;  IV.,  270;  V.,  of  An- 
,  jou,  279,  280. 
Philip  of  Hesse,  229,  230. 
Physiocrats,  the,  in  France,  451. 
Picard,  447. 
Pippin  of  Landen,  52. 
Pippin  of  Heristal,  53. 
Pippin  the  Short,  4,  57,  62. 
Pisa,  council  of,  158, 185. 
Pitt,  William,  320. 
Pizarro,  307. 
Plassy,  victory  of,  319. 
Plevna,  surrender  of,  381. 
Poitiers,  57,  131. 
Poland,  292 ;  partitions  of,  300,  303 ; 

revolutions  in,  357. 
Pomerania,  292. 
Pompeii,  n. 
Popes.     See  Papacy.     Leo   I.,  34; 

Gregory  I.,  61;    Stephen  II.,  62; 

Leo  IX.,  102;    Gregory  VII.,  74, 

102,183;    Urban  II.,  no;    Adrian 

IV.,  139;  Innocent  III.,  107,  115, 

183;  Boniface VIII.,  129, 130,  183; 

Gregory  XI.,  184;  Urban  VI. ,184; 

Gregory  XII.,  187;  Alexander  V., 

185;  Martin  V.,  187;  Nicholas  V., 

181 ;    Alexander   VI.,    195,    221 ; 

Junius    II.,    197;     Leo    X.,   206; 

Clement  VII.,  211 ;    Pius  IX.,  360. 
Portugal,  173,  174,  253,  307. 
Pragmatic  Sanction,  188,  201,  294. 


Prague,  peace  of,  371. 
Pretender,  the  Old,  284. 
Pretorian  guard,  6,  10,  1 1. 
Printing,  invention  of,  168,  169. 
Protestants,  the  name,  159,  212. 
Protestant  Union,  the,  245. 
Provisions  of  Oxford,  416. 
Prussia,  duchy  of,  292;    rise  of  the 

kingdom  of,  291-294,  299,  367-372. 
Pultowa,  battle  of,  291. 
Punjaub,  the,  402. 
Puritans,  241,  257. 
Pym,  434. 

Pyramids,  battle  of  the,  343. 
Pyrenees,  33,  57;    peace  of  the,  of 

1659.  255,  270. 

Quadruple  Alliance,  the,  283. 
Quebec,  226,  319. 
Quesnay,  451. 

Rabelais,  182. 

Racine,  449. 

Radagaisus,  33. 

Ramillies,  280. 

Raphael,  181. 

Ravenna,  3,  48,  61. 

Reformation,  the,  under  Luther,  158, 

160,   203-215;    in    England,    217- 

219;     in    France,    220,    242;    the 

counter-,  220. 
Reform  Bill  of  1832,  440. 
Reign  of  Terror,  227,  340. 
Religious    wars,    the    age    of,    228 ; 

the  Schmalkaldic  War,  229 ;    the 

Thirty  Years'  War,  244. 
Renaissance,    the,    158,     160,     173; 

south  of  the  Alps,  165,  169;  north 

of  the  Alps,  170;  end  of,  179,  444. 
Restitution,  edict  of,  247. 
Restoration  of  the  Stuarts,  266,  275, 

436- 

Revival  of  learning,  161-167;  in  Italy, 
165 ;  in  England,  170. 

Revolution,  American,  226,  321-324, 
438,  439;  its  influence,  324;  in 
England,  260;  of  1688,  276;  in 
France,  of  1789-1799,  335  ;  results 
°f»  35°'  357 1  i°  France,  of  1830, 
350,  364;  in  Germany,  364,  365; 
in  France,  of  1848,  338 ;  in  Hun- 


4/2 


Index 


gary,  of  1848,  361 ;  in  Italy,  of  1820, 
355;  of  1830,  357;  of  1848,  359, 
361 ;  in  Poland,  of  1830-1832,  357. 

Rheims,  132. 

Rhine,  2,  3,  33 ;  the  League  of  the, 

154. 

Rhodes,  in. 

Richard  I.,  king  of  England,  126,  139, 
144;  as  a  crusader,  144;  II.,  142, 
420,423,424;  III.,  144,426. 

Richelieu,  Cardinal,  226,  247-253. 

Rights,  Bill  of,  276. 

Robert  the  Strong,  95. 

Robespierre,  336. 

Rollo,  81,  95. 

Roman  law,  14-16,  106,  119. 

Romanoff,  house  of,  288. 

Romans,  religion,  21-25. 

Rome,  changes  in  the  constitution  of, 
2, 16-18  ;  the  Empire,  5-32 ;  causes 
of  the  fall  of  the  Empire,  27 ;  at- 
tacks by  the  Goths,  31 ;  division  of 
the  Empire,  32;  end  of  the  West- 
ern Empire  of,  35 ;  the  Eastern 
Empire  of,  3,  31,  44-48 ;  the  capi- 
tal of  the  kingdom  of  Italy,  376. 

Romulus  Augustulus,  35. 

Roses,  Wars  of  the,  144,  192. 

Roumania,  381. 

Roussillon,  253. 

Rousseau,  328. 

Rudolph  of  Hapsburg,  148. 

Runnymede,  140. 

Ruric,  287. 

Russia,  introduction  of  Christianity 
into,  288  ;  Tartar  conquest  of,  288  ; 
under  Peter  the  Great,  288-290; 
under  Elizabeth,  298,  299;  under 
Catherine  the  Great,  299-304;  the 
partition  of  Poland,  300-304;  in- 
vaded by  Napoleon,  347;  expan- 
sion of,  in  Asia,  403  ;  Napoleon, 
347;  in  the  Holy  Alliance,  354;  at 
war  with  the  Turks  in  1770-1774, 
302;  in  1828,  364;  in  1877-1878, 
381-384 ;  in  the  Crimean  War,  379- 
381 ;  emancipation  of  serfs  in,  381. 

Ryswick,  peace  of,  277. 

Sadowa,  battle  of,  371. 
St.  Augustine,  50,  169,  203. 


St.  Bartholomew,  243. 

St.  Germain,  peace  of,  242. 

St.  Paul,  ii,  21. 

St.  Peter,  n,  21. 

St.  Petersburg,  291. 

Salic  law,  130. 

San  Stefano,  treaty  of,  381. 

San  Yuste,  231. 

Saracens,  57;  their  service  to  sci- 
ence, etc.,  58,  59. 

Sardinia,  at  war  with  France,  340- 
342,  350 ;  revolution  in,  355 ;  war 
with  Austria,  360 ;  in  the  Crimean 
War,  380. 

Sassanid  dynasty,  29. 

Savonarola,  29,  195,  196. 

Savoy,  278 ;  house  of,  78,  360. 

Saxons,  the,  invade  Britain,  48;  con- 
quered by  Charlemagne,  65;  con- 
version of,  49,  66. 

Saxony,  254,  298,  299. 

Scandinavians.     See  Northmen. 

Scandinavian  states,  159. 

Schleswig-Holstein,  368. 

Schmalkaldic  War,  229,  230. 

Schmalkald,  league  of,  215. 

Scholasticism,  163-165. 

Science  in  the  nineteenth  century, 
456,  457- 

Scotland  at  war  with  England,  140, 
259-261. 

Sebastopol,  siege  of,  380. 

Sedan,  battle  of,  374. 

Sejanus,  10. 

Seneca,  7,  10. 

Separatists,  the,  241. 

Sepoy  mutiny,  402. 

Serfs,  emancipation  of  Russian,  381. 

Settlement,  Act  of,  284. 

Seven  Weeks'  War,  370,  371. 

Seven  Years'  War,  226,  298. 

Sforza,  family  of,  198. 

Shakespeare,  445. 

Sicily,  the  two  kingdoms  of,  151,  355, 
360. 

Sigismund,  149,  150,  187,  292. 

Silesia,  295,  298. 

Smith,  Adam,  457. 

Sobieski,  273. 

Society  of  Jesus,  221. 

Soudanese  revolt,  406,  407. 


Index 


473 


Spain,  conquest  of,  by  the  Vandals, 
33 ;  the  Visigoths,  34 ;  the  Sara- 
cens, 57;  by  Charlemagne,  152; 
by  Ferdinand,  191 ;  union  of  Cas- 
tile and  Aragon,  152,  191;  discov- 
eries and  colonies  of,  177,  323,  324 ; 
conquest  of  Granada,  191 ;  under 
Ferdinand  and  Isabella,  191,  192; 
expulsion  of  Jews  and  Moors,  192 ; 
at  war  with  France,  195-198,  200, 
208-211,  229;  empire  of,  under 
Charles  V.  and  Philip  II.,  198-200, 
210-212;  in  the  age  of  religious 
wars,  228-237,  238,  240,  246-255, 
308  ;  rapid  decline  of,  233,  265 ;  the 
Armada,  240;  in  the  Triple  Al- 
liance, 271 ;  the  War  of  the  Suc- 
cession, 226,  277,  279-281 ;  annexed 
by  France,  278,  283 ;  loss  of  Ameri- 
can colonies,  355,  393. 

Spanish  Succession,  the  War  of,  226, 
277-283. 

Speyer,  Diet  of,  211. 

Spurs,  battle  of  the,  198. 

Star  Chamber,  259,  428,  433. 

Stephen,  king  of  England,  137,  412, 

4i3- 

Straffbrd,  earl  of,  433. 

Strasburg,  273 ;  the  Oath  of,  277. 

Strelitz,  the,  289. 

Stuarts,  house  of,  257,  283,  422,  430- 
438;  Charles  I.,  258,  260,  432-435  ; 
Charles  II.,  261,  266,  275,  430; 
Henry  (Lord  Darnley),  238;  James 
I.,  257,  258,  430,  431 ;  James  II., 
276,  279,  436;  James  III.,  279, 
284 ;  Mary,  234,  238-242,  255,  256. 

Suevi,  33,  34. 

Suez  Canal,  the,  405. 

Suffolk,  49. 

Sulieman  the  Magnificent,  214. 

Supremacy,  Act  of,  218. 

Sussex,  49. 

Sweden,  247;  in  the  Thirty  Years' 
War,  251-254;  power  of,  under 
Charles  XII.,  290;  decline  of, 
286-288  ;  at  war  with  Russia,  290 ; 
fall  of  Charles  XII.,  291. 

Switzerland,  78,  150. 

Syagrius,  38. 

Syria,  16,  57. 


Tacitus,  13. 

Tartar  Avars,  66,  93. 

Tell,  William,  151. 

Templar,  a  Knight,  115. 

Testry,  battle  of,  53. 

Tetzel,  204. 

Teutoberger  Forest,  battle  of,  9. 

Teutonic  Knights,  order  of,  150. 

Teutonic  races,  170. 

Theodoric,  king  of  the  Visigoths,  40, 

41. 

Theodosius  the  Great,  2,  3,  32,  44. 
Thiers,  M.,  376. 

Third  Estate,  the,  118,  132,  177. 
Thirty  Years'  War,  the,  225,  229,  244- 

253- 

Thuringians,  42. 

Tiberius,  emperor  of  Rome,  n. 

Tiers  Etat.     See  Third  Estate. 

Tilly,  246,  247,  251. 

Tilsit,  peace  of,  346. 

Tippoo  Sahib,  343,  391. 

Titian,  181. 

Titus,  emperor  of  Rome,  n,  12. 

Tory  party  in  English  politics,  322. 
396. 

Tours,  battle  of,  57. 

Tower  of  London,  141. 

Trajan,  emperor  of  Rome,  13. 

Trent,  council  of,  221. 

Triple  Alliance,  the,  271,  313. 

Tudor,  house  of,  144,  192;  table  of 
kings,  263. 

Tunis,  115,  405. 

Turenne,  253,  272. 

Turgot,  331,  451. 

Turks,  the  Seljuk,  60,  no;  capture 
of  Edessa  by,  114;  Osmanlis,  152; 
capture  Constantinople,  153 ;  the 
siege  of  Vienna  by  the,  214;  con- 
quered by  Peter  the  Great,  290; 
at  war  with  Russia,  302;  the  East- 
ern Question,  353,  377,  384 ;  insur- 
rection of  the  Greeks,  364-378 ;  the 
Crimean  War,  379-382 ;  war  be- 
tween Greeks  and,  385. 

Tycho  Brahe,  447. 

Ulfilas,  39. 

Ulm,  battle  of.  346. 

Ulrich  von  Hutten,  182. 


474 


Index 


United  States,  the,  322-324 ;  War  of 
I8l2,  393;  the  Monroe  Doctrine, 
355;  expansion  of,  392-393,  398; 
Revolution,  influence  of,  324,  396- 
398  ;  Mexican  War,  398 ;  the  Con- 
stitution of,  435,  437-440. 

Universities,  in  the  Middle  Ages,  164. 

Utraquists,  188. 

Utrecht,  Union  of,  237;  treaty  of, 
281. 

Valens,  emperor  of  Rome,  2,  32. 
Valerian,  emperor  of  Rome,  16. 
Valmy,  339. 
Valois,  house  of,  France  under  the, 

13°,  243- 
Vandals,  3,  34. 
Varus,  9. 

Vasco  da  Gama,  165. 
Vassy,  massacre  of,  342. 
Venetia,  366-371. 
Venetians,  197. 

Venice,  in  the  fourth  crusade,   115; 
among  the  city-states  of  Italy,  151, 
195 ;  the  centre  of  the  boat  trade, 
169;     revolution    in,    359-361;     a 
part  of  the  kingdom  of  Italy,  371. 
Verdun,  treaty  of,  17,  253. 
Verona,  Congress  of,  355. 
Versailles,  375. 

Vespasian,  emperor  of  Rome,  n,  12. 
Vesuvius,  ii. 
Victor  Emmanuel,  king  of  Sardinia, 

365-367- 

Vienna,  Congress  of,  227,  348,  363  ; 
reorganization  of  Europe  by  the^ 


349.  3So;    siege  of,  by  Sulieman, 

214. 
Visigoths,  2,  31,  40,  41,  45 ;    establish 

kingdom  in  Gaul  and  Spain,  32-34. 
Voltaire,  328, 448. 

Wagram,  battle  of,  346. 

Wales,  conquest,  140. 

Wallenstein,  146,  152. 

Walter  the  Penniless,  no. 

Wartburg,  207,  212. 

Waterloo,  349,  354. 

Wat  Tyler,  186. 

Wellington,  duke  of,  349,  391. 

Wessex,  81. 

Western  Empire  (Roman),  3. 

Westphalia,  treaty  of,  226,  237,  253. 

Whig  party  in  English  politics,  322, 

396. 

William  I.  (the  Conqueror),  king  of 
England,  97,  411;     II.,  137,  411; 
III.,  of  Orange,  276,  279,  284,  427. 
William    I.,    emperor   of    Germany, 

367- 

William  I.  (the  Silent),  236. 
Witt,  John  de,  266,  272. 
Wittenburg,  202. 
Wolfe,  319. 

Worcester,  battle  of,  361. 
Worms,  the  Concordat  of,  74,   103 

the  Diet  of,  159,  207,  211. 
Wiirtemburg,  355. 
Wycliffe,  149,  158,  185,  212. 

York,  house  of,  144. 
Zurich,  treaty  of,  366. 


Students' 
History  of  the  United  States, 

By  EDWARD  CHANNING, 

Professor  of  History  in  Harvard  University. 
WITH  SUGGESTIONS  TO  TEACHERS 

By  ANNA  BOYNTON  THOMPSON, 

Thayer  Academy,    South   Braintree,   Mass. 

8vo.    Half  Leather.    Price,  $1.40  net. 


This  work  is  intended  for  use  in  classes  in  high  schools  and  academies  where,  the 
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Professor  A.  A.  Freeman,  Reviewing  this  work  in  The  American  His- 
torical Review,  says : 

"  Decidedly  the  best  one-volume  American  history  yet  published.  ...  In  the 
preface  the  author  has  explained  that  his  purpose  in  the  publication  of  this  work  is  to 
provide  a  text-book  suited  to  the  needs  of  the  senior  class  in  high  schools  and  acade- 
mies. He  believes  that  '  the  serious  study  of  American  History  more  fitly  follows 
than  precedes  other  countries  and  belongs  to  the  maturer  years  of  school  life.'  The 
author  assumes  a  considerable  knowledge  of  American  history  on  the  part  of  pupils 
from  the  use  of  more  elementary  text-books  in  the  lower  grades.  He  accordingly 
omits  all  the  stock  stories  and  anecdotes  which  form  so  large  a  part  of  our  elementary 
text-books.  ...  It  is  full  of  suggestions  for  both  teachers  and  pupils.  Miss 
Anna  Boynton  Thompson,  of  Thayer  Academy,  has  written  a  chapter  entitled  '  Sug- 
gestions to  Teachers,'  in  which  she  has  described  her  own  method  of  teaching.  These 
suggestions  will  be  very  helpful  to  the  teacher  if  he  accepts  them  as  '  suggestions ' 
and  not  as  rules.  .  .  .  They  should  prove  of  peculiar  value  in  preparing  pupils 
for  the  new  requirements  for  entrance  tc  college.  Especially  valuable  are  the  mar- 
ginal references  on  every  page  to  standard  works  which  contain  a  fuller  account  of 
each  topic.  Each  chapter  is  headed  by  a  list  of  books,  special  accounts,  sources  and 
bibliography,  maps  and  illustrative  material.  In  the  last  are  found  the  names  of  titles 
of  books  of  American  literature.  Everything  is  done  to  stimulate  and  aid  a  more 
thorough  investigation  by  the  student.  The  introduction  is  a  study  of  the  land  and 
its  resources  and  shows  the  influence  of  geographical  conditions  in  the  development 
of  the  country.  .  .  .  The  author  displays  a  judicial  and  impartial  spirit  in  rela- 
tion to  all  controverted  questions.  This  is  especially  noticeable  in  the  consideration 
of  such  topics  as  the  administration  of  Andros  in  Massachusetts,  the  persecution  of 
the  Quakers  at  Boston,  the  effect  of  the  English  navigation  laws,  the  character  and 
and  treatment  of  the  Loyalists,  and  the  execution  of  Andre\  .  .  .  There  is  a  grati- 
fying absence  of  cheap  illustrations.  The  volume  contains  many  excellent  portraits. 
The  period  since  1789  is  treated  by  topics.  The  old  arbitrary  division  by  administra- 
tions is  properly  abandoned  and  is  replaced  by  the  following  divisions:  Federalist 
Supremacy,  1789-1800;  Jefiersonian  Republicans,  1801-1812;  War  and  Peace. 
1812-1829;  The  National  Democracy,  1829-1844;  Slavery  in  the  Territories,  1844- 
1859;  Secession,  1860-1861;  The  Civil  War,  1861-1865;  National  Development 
1865-1897." 


COMMENTS. 

J.  M.  Greenwood,  Supt.  of  Schools,  Kansas  City,  Mo.:  "  I  have  just  finished 
reading  Channing's  Students'  History,  and  I  closed  it  with  the  conviction  that  it  is  the 
best  single-volume  history  of  the  country  that  has  yet  been  printed." 

Frederic  A.  Vogt,  Principal  Central  High  School,  Buffalo,  N.Y. :  "  It  is  a  relief 

to  see  a  history  in  which  the  military  achievements  give  some  space  to  the  victories 
of  peace  and  the  growth  of  constitutional  liberty.  Mere  incidents  have  been  weeded 
out,  and  the  essential  whole  has  been  preserved  in  a  continuous  story.  There  is  a 
breadth  of  view  and  loftiness  of  exposition  which  is  scientific  and  much  more  profit- 
able than  a  mere  string  of  dates  and  events.  The  schemes  for  study,  the  outlines  for 
reading,  and  the  suggestions  to  teachers,  ought  to  make  the  book  very  helpful." 

Prof.  Kendric  Charles  Babcqck,  University  of  California:  "  I  have  no  hesitation 
in  saying  that  I  am  convinced  it  is  the  best  single-volume  students'  history  of  the 
United  States  yet  published.  The  maps  are  more  perfect  and  satisfactory  than  in 
any  other  school  or  students'  history  known  to  me.  It  is  scholarly,  interesting,  and 
typographically  excellent." 

Prof.  W.  C.  Wilcox,  University  Of  Iowa:  "  It  is  the  most  complete  history  of  the 
United  States  in  one  volume  for  high-school  use.  I  shall  recommend  it  to  the  high 
schools  in  this  State.  It  ought  to  be  in  all  the  preparatory  schools  either  as  a  text- 
book or  as  a  work  of  reference.  It  will  serve  equally  well  as  either.  The  book- 
references,  the  topical  studies,  and  the  completeness  of  the  treatment  especially 
commend  it  to  me." 

Prof.  F.  H.  Hodder,  University  Of  Kansas:  "  Professor  Channing's  book  is  in 
every  way  admirable.  I  do  not  believe  that  any  other  work  gives,  in  a  single  volume, 
so  excellent  a  summary  of  the  whole  period  tf  American  history.  It  is  a  splendid 
text  for  high  schools,  university  extension  classes,  and  genera)  readers." 

Prof.  Jesse  Macy,  Iowa  College:  "  It  seems  to  me  altogether  the  bes*  planned 
and  the  best  executed  work  on  the  subject  yet  prepared  for  the  use  of  high  schools  " 

Prof.  Marshall  S.  Brown,  New  York  University:  "  Professor  Channing's  name 
was  a  guarantee  that  this  book  would  be  what  is  needed  in  our  higher  grade  o? 
secondary  schools.  The  book  as  completed  is  admirably  adapted  to  the  purpose  for 
which  it  was  written." 

Charles  H.  Keyes,  Principal  of  High  School,  Holyoke  Mass.:  "  We  have  a 

last  a  text  suited  for  high-school  use  and  one  that  will  help  put  the  subject  into  thx 
important  place  it  ought  to  occupy  in  the  curriculum  of  the  secondary  school.  It  is 
manifestly  the  work  of  one  who  is  both  an  historian  and  a  teacher,  and  it  ought  to 
meet  with  unprecedented  success." 

Reuben  Post  Halleck,  Principal  of  Male  High  School,  Louisville,  Ky. :  "  The 
statements  are  clear,  definite,  and  interesting.  The  list  of  books  for  consultation  is 
very  wisely  selected.'' 

Prof.  Edwin  A.  Grosvenor,  Amherst  College,  Mass.:  "  One  can  hardly  praise 
it  too  highly.  It  reads  like  a  romance  and  pictures  like  a  panorama,  while  at  the  same 
time  accurate  and  impartial." 

Prof.  Benjamin  Gill,  State  L'dllege,  Pa. :  "  The  book  goes  far  ahead  of  any  of 
its  predecessors.  It  deals  with  the  subject  more  generously  than  such  hand-books 
have  been  used  to  do.  Its  method  is  entirely  new,  its  illustrations,  maps,  and  charts, 
are  abundant  and  unlike  anything  that  has  preceded  them;  beaten  tracks  have  not 
been  followed;  the  author  has  followed  a  self-made  pattern;  the  authorities  cited  are 
most  excellent;  they  are  mostly  American,  and  though  quite  recent  are  authoritative, 
such  names  as  Fisk,  Winsor,  Hart,  etc.  I  have  been  impressed  with  this  fact  in 
particular — that  from  whatever  side  the  student  or  instructor  may  approach  this 
book  he  will  find  intelligent  guidance  and  stimulus." 

E.  W.  Wright,  A.M.  (Harvard),  Examiner  of  Teachers  for  Essex  County,  Vt.: 

"  Twenty-five  years  in  secondary  school-work  leads  me  unhesitatingly  to  declare  it 
the.  school  history  of  our  country.  In  broad,  philosophical  treatment,  in  the  just 
subordination  of  military  details  to  the  real  progress  of  our  people  in  the  arts  of  peace, 
in  its  true  perspective,  and  in  its  fearless  '  calling  a  spade  a  spade,'  it  ha.,  no  rival 
within  sight.  In  following  out  political  opinions  from  birth  to  maturity  and  in  care- 
fully tracing  causes  to  their  effects  it  surpasses  even  more  elaborate  works." 


THE   MACMILLAN   COMPANY. 

NEW  YORK.  BOSTON.  CHICAGO.  SAN  FRANCISCO. 

2 


American  History 

TOLD  BY  CONTEMPORARIES. 

BY 

ALBERT  BUSHNELL  flART. 

Harvard  University. 

Complete  in  Four  Volumes,  Small  Quarto. 
Each  Volume  sold  Separately,  Price  $2.00. 


VOL.      I.  Era  of  Colonization,   1493-1689. 

VOL.    II.  Building  of  the  Nation,  1689-1783, 

VOL.  III.  National  Expansion,  1783-1844. 

VOL.  IV.  Welding  of  the  Nation,  1845-1897. 


Professor  T.  H.  WOOD  of  Worcester  Academy,  Worcester,  Mass.,  says  01 
Volume  I. :  — 

"  The  plan  and  the  contents  are  alike  admirable.     The  set  wilt 
be  a  necessity  for  libraries  and  for  teachers  of  American  History." 


THE  MACMILLAN  COMPANY. 

HEW  YORK.  BOSTON.  CHICAGO.  SAN  FRANCISCO 


The  Growth  of  the  French 
Nation. 


BY 


GEORGE  BURTON  ADAMS, 

Professor  of  History  in    Yale  University. 

Cloth.     i2mo.     Price,  $1.25. 


Dominant 

influences  carefully 
traced. 


Clear  and 
to  the  point. 


Promise  of  title 
fulfilled. 


Strict  fairness 

and  clear, 

independent 

judgment. 


COMMENTS. 

"The  present  work  is  a  proof  of  how  much  that  is  new  and 
striking  may  be  said  upon  a  trite  subject.  Many  books  have  been 
written  upon  French  history,  but  it  would  be  difficult  to  specify  any 
in  which  the  dominant  forces  at  work  in  that  history  have  been  so 
carefully  traced." —  Oxford  Magazine. 

"  Mr.  Adams  has  dealt  in  a  fascinating  way  with  the  chief  feat- 
ures of  the  Middle  Age,  and  his  book  is  rendered  the  more  attrac- 
tive by  some  excellent  illustrations.  He  traces  the  history  of  France 
from  the  Conquests  by  the  Romans  and  Franks  down  to  the  presi- 
dency ot  M.  Felix  Faure,  and  has  always  something  to  say  that  is 
clear  and  to  the  point ,  Mr.  Adams  seems  to  us  to  have  seized  the 
salient  features  of  the  growth  of  the  French  nation,  and  to  have 
fulfilled  the  promise  of  his  title."  —  Educational  Review. 

'"The  History  of  Institutions,'  writes  Bishop  Stubbs,  'cannot 
be  mastered,  can  scarcely  be  approached,  without  an  effort :'  and 
in  Mr.  Adams's  work  we  are  glad  to  recognize  many  of  the  rare 
qualities  needed.  He  shows  strict  fairness  with  clear  and  indepen- 
dent judgment,  and  he  tells  his  story  pleasantly.  .  .  .  The  portraits 
and  other  illustrations,  all  apposite  and  interesting,  lend  grace  and 
charm  to  the  book."  —  London  Academy. 


THE  MACMILLAN   COMPANY. 


NEW  YORK. 


BOSTON. 


CHICAGO 


SAN  FRANCISCO 


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1907 

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