How Did The Enlightenment Thinkers

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The Enlightenment had a profound effect on European monarchs during the 18th century. Radical Enlightenment challenged the principle of the European monarchies. The 18th century states, kings, queens, and their state servants developed a theory and practice of enlightened absolutism. Enlightenment thinkers considered themselves progressive. Many of the Enlightenment thinkers were eager to harness the political power of royal absolutism to their reforming agenda. As a result, many monarchies were overthrown. Enlightened dictators across Europe believed they should use their concentrated power to break the influence of feudal aristocracies and the Church. They regarded themselves as instruments for protecting the good of the masses against special interests. Furthermore, they believed they could achieve these goals only if they had direct access to their …show more content…

Thomas Hobbes’ Leviathan and John Locke’s Two Treatises of Government defied the divine right of kings which basically stated the right to rule came from God. However, both Enlightenment thinkers proclaimed the purpose of authority was to protect human equality and freedom. Voltaire advocated for freedom of speech which would allow the people to express their ideas about government. He also supported freedom of religion which would give the people the right to worship God however they chose. Mary Wollstonecraft advocated rights for women. Jean Jacques Rousseau stated the people should agree to the rules by which they were governed and having an absolute monarchy prevented people from having true freedom. Politically, wars during the 1700s were most often fought within countries over secession to the throne rather than between opposing countries. Wars such as the English Civil War, the Glorious Revolution, the American Revolutionary War, and the French Revolution were all a direct result of this democratic Enlightenment

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