The Enlightenment in Europe — Practice Quiz

A World History cheat sheet for The Enlightenment in Europe — every key formula with its symbols defined — plus a medium-level practice quiz to test recall.

Formulas & key concepts

A system in which a ruler held total power, often justified by the claim of divine right, that authority came from God.

Absolute Monarchy

France's Sun King, the model absolute monarch, who centralized power and built the grand palace of Versailles.

Louis XIV

Where: 'I am the state'

The Russian czar who forcibly modernized and westernized his empire and founded the new capital of St. Petersburg.

Peter the Great

The conflict between king and Parliament that led to the execution of Charles I and, briefly, rule by Oliver Cromwell.

English Civil War

Where: 1640s

The peaceful 1688 change of monarchs that established a constitutional monarchy in England with real power for Parliament.

Glorious Revolution

Where: English Bill of Rights, 1689

A transformation in thought in which observation and experiment replaced old assumptions about nature.

Scientific Revolution

Where: Heliocentric theory of Copernicus

Galileo's telescopic discoveries supported a sun-centered universe, and Isaac Newton explained motion and gravity with universal laws.

Galileo and Newton

A logical process of forming a hypothesis and testing it through experiment and observation to reach conclusions.

Scientific Method

An intellectual movement that applied reason to society, government, and human rights.

The Enlightenment

Where: Also called the Age of Reason

Philosophers like Locke, Voltaire, Montesquieu, and Rousseau argued for natural rights, free speech, separation of powers, and the social contract.

Enlightenment Thinkers

Monarchs such as Catherine the Great who adopted some Enlightenment reforms while keeping their absolute power.

Enlightened Despots

Practice quiz

  1. What was the primary justification for the total power held by a ruler in an absolute monarchy?

    • The consent of the governed
    • The claim of divine right
    • Economic prosperity
    • Military strength

    Answer: The claim of divine right

  2. Which French monarch, known as the 'Sun King,' is considered the model of an absolute monarch and built the grand Palace of Versailles?

    • Louis XVI
    • Napoleon Bonaparte
    • Louis XIV
    • Philip II

    Answer: Louis XIV

  3. Which Russian czar was known for his efforts to forcibly modernize and westernize his empire, including founding the city of St. Petersburg?

    • Ivan the Terrible
    • Peter the Great
    • Catherine the Great
    • Nicholas II

    Answer: Peter the Great

  4. The conflict in the 1640s between the king and Parliament that led to the execution of Charles I and a period of rule by Oliver Cromwell is known as the:

    • War of the Roses
    • Glorious Revolution
    • English Civil War
    • Hundred Years' War

    Answer: English Civil War

  5. What peaceful event in 1688 established a constitutional monarchy in England, significantly increasing the power of Parliament and leading to the English Bill of Rights in 1689?

    • The Norman Conquest
    • The Glorious Revolution
    • The English Civil War
    • The Reformation

    Answer: The Glorious Revolution

  6. The intellectual transformation that emphasized observation and experiment over traditional assumptions about nature, leading to discoveries like the heliocentric theory, is known as the:

    • The Enlightenment
    • The Renaissance
    • The Scientific Revolution
    • The Industrial Revolution

    Answer: The Scientific Revolution

  7. Which two prominent figures of the Scientific Revolution are associated with telescopic discoveries supporting a sun-centered universe and the explanation of motion and gravity with universal laws, respectively?

    • Copernicus and Kepler
    • Descartes and Bacon
    • Galileo and Newton
    • Voltaire and Rousseau

    Answer: Galileo and Newton

  8. What systematic process involves forming a hypothesis and testing it through experiment and observation to reach conclusions?

    • Divine Right
    • Absolute Monarchy
    • Scientific Method
    • Social Contract

    Answer: Scientific Method

  9. What intellectual movement, also referred to as the Age of Reason, applied principles of reason to society, government, and human rights?

    • The Reformation
    • The Enlightenment
    • The Renaissance
    • The Romantic Movement

    Answer: The Enlightenment

  10. Monarchs who adopted some Enlightenment reforms while still maintaining their absolute power, such as Catherine the Great, were known as:

    • Constitutional Monarchs
    • Enlightened Despots
    • Absolute Rulers
    • Democratic Leaders

    Answer: Enlightened Despots

Select a subject

Select a subject from the left panel to begin exploring formulas.