Enlightenment
What does "consent of the governed" mean?
Government power comes from the agreement and approval of the people.
Which of the following was a major grievance in the American colonies before the Revolution?
Colonists were taxed by Parliament without having representatives in government to voice their interests.
How did the French Revolution affect enslaved people in Haiti?
The ideals of liberty and equality inspired enslaved people to rebel; Toussaint L'Ouverture led the successful Haitian Revolution, establishing the first independent Black nation.
Who was Father Hidalgo and what was his role in Latin American independence?
A Mexican priest who led the first major uprising against Spanish rule in Mexico, initiating the Mexican independence movement with the Grito de Dolores.
Which of the following were the main colonial powers by 1700?
France, Great Britain, and Spain
What is the Enlightenment? How did Enlightenment ideas lead to revolutions?
An intellectual movement emphasizing reason, science, and natural rights; it led to revolutions by inspiring people to question absolute authority and demand rights based on logic rather than tradition.
What were major grievances in France before the French Revolution?
Heavy taxation on commoners, food shortages, inequality between social classes, and the financial crisis of the government.
What rights are guaranteed in the Declaration of the Rights of Man and the Citizen?
Liberty, property, security, and freedom from oppression, as well as the right to participate in government.
Who was Simón Bolívar and what did he accomplish?
A military leader who led independence movements across South America, liberating multiple nations from Spanish rule and expressing his political goals in the Jamaica Letter.
What was mercantilism and how did it shape the relationship between European countries and their colonies?
An economic system where colonies existed primarily to provide raw materials and markets for the mother country, making colonies dependent and subordinate.
How did European kings and queens use divine right to justify their rule?
They claimed God directly chose them to rule, making their authority unchallengeable.
What was the Estates General?
A representative assembly in France where the three estates (clergy, nobility, and commoners) met to address the kingdom's financial crisis.
What was the Napoleonic Code and what changes did it make?
A unified system of laws created under Napoleon that standardized legal codes across France and introduced concepts of legal equality and individual rights.
Who was José de San Martín and what did he accomplish?
A military leader who led independence movements across South America, liberating Argentina, Chile, and Peru from Spanish rule.
How did the Castas system in Spanish America create inequality?
It was a racial classification system that ranked people by ancestry, with Spanish-born people at the top and those of mixed or indigenous descent below, determining access to rights and opportunities.
What is a primary source?
An original document or artifact created during the time period being studied.
What caused the Reign of Terror and how did it end?
Fear that enemies of the revolution threatened the republic led to mass executions; it ended when Robespierre was executed and moderate leaders took control.
What groups of people were excluded from the rights promised in the American, French, and Latin American revolutions?
Women, enslaved people, indigenous peoples, and those without property were largely excluded despite revolutionary promises of universal rights.
Compare the strategies of Hidalgo, Bolívar, and San Martín. What strategy did each use?
Hidalgo mobilized native people and poor peasants
Bolívar led military campaigns across multiple countries and wrote political documents
San Martín led military campaigns and crossed the Andes Mountains
What grievances did creoles have against peninsulares in Latin America?
Creoles, despite being of Spanish descent, were excluded from high government positions and treated as inferior to Spanish-born peninsulares.
Name the three Enlightenment thinkers we studied and one idea each contributed.
John Locke - natural rights: life, liberty, property
Jean-Jacques Rousseau - social contract between people and government
Montesquieu - separation of powers to prevent tyranny
What were the consequences of the Seven Years' War for European colonies in North America?
Great Britain gained control of French territories, but the cost of the war led Britain to increase taxes on colonies, causing colonial resentment.
Which revolution created the MOST equality for previously excluded groups, and why?
The Haitian Revolution—enslaved people fought for and won their freedom, establishing the first independent Black nation. This extended rights to the most oppressed group.
Which Latin American leader had the most lasting impact on independence, and why?
Simón Bolívar—he liberated multiple nations (Venezuela, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia), wrote influential political documents like the Jamaica Letter, and inspired other independence movements across the region
Compare the complaints across three regions: American colonists vs. British Parliament, French Third Estate vs. monarchy, and Latin American creoles vs. peninsulares. What complaint was most similar across all three?
All three regions had taxation/economic grievances and lack of political representation.
Colonists/Third Estate/creoles were taxed heavily but had no voice in government decisions.