Modern World (1500 AD-1945 AD)

Modern World (1500 AD-1945 AD)

Renaissance

Introduction

• The 16th century is commonly designated as the ‘Age of Renaissance’, also called the ‘Revival of learning’.

• It is said to have started with the capture of Constantinople (now Istanbul) by the Turks in 1453 and the dispersal of the scholars throughout Europe, who sought asylum in Italy.

Origin and Spread

• Italy practically became the home of the Renaissance, and fundamental to the Renaissance were the revival of classical learning, art, and architecture, and the concept of the dignity of man, which characterized Humanism.

• It resulted in the emancipation of the mind of man from the shackles of effete dogmatism and the creation of a fresh intellectual atmosphere and ideals of life.

Symbol of the Renaissance

• The person who has been considered the ‘symbol of the Renaissance’ was Leonardo da Vinci of Italy.

Great Personalities of the Renaissance

• Writers of the Italian Renaissance: Dante, Petrarch, Boccaccio & Machiavelli

• Painters of the Italian Renaissance:

  • Leonardo da Vinci (Famous Paintings: The Last Supper & Monalisa)

  • Michelangelo (The Last Judgement & The Fall of Man)

  • Raphael (Madonna)

• Astronomers of the Italian Renaissance: Bruno & Galileo

Renaissance in Other Countries

The Movement spread to other countries of Europe also, especially to France & Germany; and at last it reached the shores of England, where it manifested itself in:

• The poems of Chaucer & Spenser

• The plays of Shakespeare

• The essays of Francis Bacon

• The utopianism of Thomas More

• Particularly in the courts of such rulers as Elizabeth I of England

Role of the Printing Press

• The Renaissance movement was enormously helped by the invention of the printing press (in 1454 by Gutenberg of Germany; Gutenberg Bible 1456 – the first printed book), with the help of which old and classical books were multiplied, leading to a great increase in knowledge and in the spirit of enquiry and experiment.

Great Literature of the Renaissance

Reformation

Introduction

• The Reformation was another movement that the 16th century witnessed.

• It was started by Martin Luther in Wittenberg, Germany, in 1517 by publicly protesting against the sale of letters of Indulgence.

Indulgence

• The letters that remitted punishments of the sinners who bought them and which began to be considered as passports to heaven.

Cause

• It was a revolt against the control of conscience by the priests.

Reformation in England

• Thanks to the inborn spirit of revolt against the Catholic Church, Henry VIII of England could take the bold step of breaking away from the Pope, i.e., the authority of the Pope on the issue of his first divorce in 1534.

• Henry VIII declared himself the head of the church when the Pope would not permit him to divorce his wife, Catherine.

Effect

• With the breaking away from the Roman Catholic Church by such leaders as Luther of Germany and Calvin of Switzerland, Western Europe was split between Catholic & Protestant countries, a situation which developed enmities of the fiercest nature.

Counter-Reformation

• The movement, which began within the Catholic church to combat the effects of the Protestant Reformation, was known as the Counter-Reformation Movement.

Geographical Discoveries

Major Discoveries

Overview

• A great development that marked the beginning of the modern age in Europe was a series of geographical discoveries.

• Helped by some remarkable inventions, viz. the Compass and Astrolabe, daring sailors sailed to distant lands.

• They were financed by rulers and merchants.

• The main motivation behind these adventures was the lure of profits that trade with the East would bring.

Marco Polo’s Journey

• During 1288–93, Marco Polo (1256–1326), a Venetian, travelled from Venice to China.

• From his travelogue, the Europeans learned about the all-around prosperity of the East.

Role of Portugal and Spain

• The first great steps in the exploration of the Earth were taken by the sailors under the patronage of the Portuguese and Spanish rulers.

• Prince Henry (1394–1460), the Navigator of Portugal, encouraged sailors by making maps based on trips to the African coast.

Key Milestones

• In 1487, Bartholomew Diaz reached the point which the Portuguese named Cape of Good Hope (the southernmost point of Africa).

• Vasco da Gama followed this route and sailed around the Cape and reached Calicut in India in 1498.

• Italian sailor Columbus’s trip was financed by Spain, from which he sailed in 1492.

• When he had reached land, he thought he had reached India; so he called the islands the ‘Indies’, but it was America.

• The land discovered by Columbus was soon to be called the ‘Americas’ after the name of a later Italian explorer, Amerigo Vespucci.

Colonialism & Imperialism

• Colonialism: A Colony means a country or territory settled by migrants from another country. Thus, the policy of having colonies and keeping them dependent is called Colonialism.

• Imperialism: The policy of extending a state’s rule over other territories, and of incorporating such colonized territories into an empire, is called Imperialism.

Magellan

• Magellan, a Portuguese sailor, went beyond the lands that had stopped Columbus. He sailed around the tip of South America, which is named after him—the Straits of Magellan.

• He called the new ocean that he entered the Pacific because it seemed quieter than the Atlantic.

• Magellan reached what is now called the Philippine Islands, where he died.

• Magellan was the first to sail around the world.

Other Nations Join In

• Other countries – England, France & Holland – also sent out their ships to join the race for exploration.

• Francis Drake of England sailed around the world in 1577.

• These voyages laid the foundations for the almost complete geographical knowledge of the world.

Glorious Revolution (1688, England)

Background

• James II was a Roman Catholic.

• His tactless attempt to secure freedom of worship for the Catholics united the Whigs and the Tories of the Anglican Church against him.

• People tolerated the rule of James II because they thought that he would be succeeded by his daughter Mary, who was a protestant.

• But a son was born to James II.

• The knowledge that James’ policies might be continued by a son to be brought up as a Catholic turned against his many Tories, hitherto loyal to him.

Revolution

• So a few leading men – Whigs as well as Tories – dispatched an invitation to William of Orange, ruler of Holland, to succeed to the English throne and save England from Catholic tyranny.

• William accepted the invitation and came to England for his purpose.

• James II, throwing the great seal into the Thames, fled to France.

This event is known in England as the Glorious or Bloodless Revolution.

Effects

1. The despotic rule of the Stuarts ended; the supremacy of Parliament was established.

2. The system of requiring estimates and accounts for supplies and, of specific appropriation, which is the nucleus of the modern budgetary system, now became fixed.

3. The Bill of Rights (1689):

   • It settled the problem of succession;

   • It also laid the provision that no Roman Catholic can wear the Crown.

   • As William III and his wife Mary II (daughter of James II and a Protestant by faith), the joint monarchs accepted the Bill of Rights.

Magna Carta (1215)

• It was the Charter of Liberties that King John II of England was forced to sign in 1215 at Runnymede.

• It meant to put a check upon the arbitrary powers of the king.

• The most important principle that it laid down was that an Englishman should be governed by definite laws and not by the whims or the will of a despotic ruler.

• Magna Carta was said to be the ‘Foundation-stone of rights and liberties of the English people’.

Habeas Corpus Act (1679)

• This act during the reign of Charles II of England provided that no one was to be imprisoned without a writ or warrant stating the charge against him.

• It also gave facilities to a prisoner for obtaining either a speedy trial or release on bail.

• The Act safeguarded the personal liberties of the people against arbitrary imprisonment by the King’s orders.

Industrial Revolution

Introduction

• The process of change that transformed Britain first and then other countries from agricultural to industrial economies.

• The Industrial Revolution began about 1750, when the agricultural revolution was well underway.

Key Inventions

Inventions were made in the textile industry by:

• James Hargreaves (Spinning Jenny, 1764)

• Richard Arkwright (Water Frame, 1769)

• Samuel Crompton (Mule, 1779)

• Emmund Cartwright (Power Loom, 1785)

These machines made cloth production faster, and the yarn produced was of better quality.

Factories and Steam Power

These new machines required factories to house them:

• Initially, near rivers for water power

• Later, near coalfields, after the invention of the steam engine by James Watt in 1769

Impact on England

• England, an agricultural country, was now turned into a manufacturing country.

• Production increased manifold.

• Things were available at cheaper rates.

• Improved methods of communication followed.

• The economic progress and industrialization of England influenced the social and cultural life of the people.

• It had far-reaching effects on the political history of England.

Spread

By 1850, the Industrial Revolution had spread to:

• Belgium

• France

• Germany

• Switzerland

• USA

By 1900, it had extended to:

• Sweden

• Italy

• Russia

• Japan

• Argentina

Presently, it is penetrating:

• China

• India

• Africa

Capitalism

• Capitalism: An Economic system in which a country’s trade and industry are organised and controlled by the owner of capital, the chief elements being competition, profit, supply, and demand.

Final Thoughts

The Renaissance, Reformation, Geographical Discoveries, Glorious Revolution, and Industrial Revolution were major turning points that reshaped Europe and laid the foundation of the modern world. The Renaissance revived classical learning and humanism, while the Reformation challenged religious authority and encouraged individual thought.

Geographical discoveries expanded global connections and trade, and the Glorious Revolution strengthened constitutional government and civil liberties. The Industrial Revolution transformed economies and societies through innovation and industry.

Together, these movements advanced knowledge, freedom, and progress, marking the beginning of a more connected and modern global era.