Western Civilization II
Chapter
16
“Society
and Economy Under the Old Regime in the 18th Century”
Major Features of Life in the Old Regime
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Socially, pre-Revolutionary Europe was based upon 4
premises.
• Legal
privilege benefited the aristocracy.
• Church
benefited also from system.
• Formation of
labor guilds.
• Peasants
paid high taxes and feudal dues.
Maintenance of Tradition
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Most aspects of social life during the 1700s in Europe
supported the ideas of traditional lifestyles.
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Nobles and peasants desired the return of the feudal
manorial system and its stability.
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An agrarian lifestyle was preferred to that found in
the growing cities.
Hierarchy & Privilege
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During the 18th century a strict sense of class
distinction was supported
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The nature of social relationships helped to promote
class distinction.
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Individual rights were subservient to the rights
granted to one’s social class.
The Aristocracy
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During the 1700s most aristocrats enjoyed a great level
of wealth.
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They were also the dominant social, political, and
economic force within a society.
Varieties of Aristocratic Privileges
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British nobility
• few nobility
in comparison to rest of Europe.
• Made up of 400
families
• oldest male
sat in the House of Lords
• also
controlled many seat in the House of Commons.
• Invested in trade,
commerce, and industry
• Controlled the
social and political make-up of the English shires.
Varieties of Aristocratic Privileges
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French Nobility
• Approximately
400,000 nobles
• “of the sword”:
derived from military service
• “of the robe”:
acquired through government bureaucracy
• Worked
together to maintain the status quo
• French
nobles received greater status if they were the favorites of the court at
Versailles. (hobereaux-provincial nobles)
French Nobility Benefits
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Exempt from land taxes
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income tax rarely enforced
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not liable to work on public projects (corvees)
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could collect feudal dues
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held hunting and fishing privileges
Eastern European Nobility
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Military traditions of these nobles important.
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Poland
• Szlachta
exempt from all taxes
• controlled
the life and death of serfs
• most were
relatively poor
• political
power controlled by handful of wealthy nobles
Austrian-Hungarian Nobles
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Exempt from most taxes
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Prince Esterhazy of Hungary
• probably the
wealthiest noble in Europe
• controlled
over 10 million acres of land
Prussia
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Prussian nobles called “Junkers”
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dominated the military and Prussian bureaucracy
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also controlled the local courts
Russia
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Peter the Great linked
state service with social status
• Table of
Ranks
• idea of state
service resisted by Russian nobles
• Charter of
Nobility
• enacted by
Catherine the Great
• service
became voluntary
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Russian nobles
controlled the courts
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were exempt from taxes
Autocratic Resurgence
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When Catherine the Great issued the Charter of the
Nobility, it helped to define the expanding power of the nobility throughout
most of Europe.
• Made their
status more exclusive
• used feudal
rights to check the power of the monarchs
• improved
their financial status
The Land and Its Tillers
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Three-fourths of the people in the 18th century lived
in the country.
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Besides the nobles and nonaristocratic landowners, most
of the people were poor.
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Lived in a variety of economic and social states.
Peasants and Serfs
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Peasants
•
free peasants
•
owned their own small
plots of land
•
paid feudal dues
(banalites)
•
owed a corvee
(labor
on public projects)
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Serfs
•
bound to the land
(slavery)
•
not used for military
service
•
considered property
•
if they could escape for
1 year they were free
Peasant Rebellions
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Pugachev Rebellion (Russia)
• serfs had
been promised land and freedom
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Other revolts occurred throughout eastern Europe
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Few revolts occurred in western Europe
• England did see some rural riots over legal issues
Family Structure
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In preindustrial Europe the household was the basic
unit of production and consumption.
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Since most people lived in rural areas and were
self-sufficient, the “family economy” developed throughout much of Europe
Households of Western and Eastern Europe
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Western Europe
•
nuclear family
•
5-6 members plus
servants
•
high mortality and late
marriage (mid 20s) deterred the extended family
•
neolocalism
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Eastern Europe
•
early marriage
•
extended families of 10
to 20 people
•
patrilocal
•
many were serfs and
large families were needed to maintain a proper labor supply
The Agricultural Revolution
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New Crops
• clover and
turnips
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New Methods
• use of
manure as fertilizer
• crop
rotation
• instead of leaving
a field fallow, a crop that renewed the soil and provided animal fodder was
used (Charles “Turnip” Townsend)
Other Innovations
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Jethro Tull invented the seed drill.
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Robert Bakewell, pioneered methods in animal husbandry.
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Agricultural publications
• Annals of
Agriculture (England)
• edited by Arthur
Young
Enclosure Movement
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Put more soil into crop production
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replaced the old “triennial system”
• unpopular
with small farmers
• common lands
were seized by large landowners or nobles by use of legal means.
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Since the movement increased production, labor did not
diminish
Population Expansion
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Europe’s population in 1700 was approximately 100 to
120 million.
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By 1800, it was about 190 million.
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Growth was seen throughout Europe.
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Increased food supplies allowed for the growth.
• Potatoes
fueled this growth
• 1 acre of potatoes
/ feed a family for a year
The Industrial Revolution
Agricultural
Developments
Revolution in Agriculture
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Dutch- Dikes to stop flooding and used fertilizer from
animals.
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British- Mixed soils to improve yields.
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Robert Bakewell- Selective Breeding led to stronger horses for use in
the fields.
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Fences were used to keep livestock in pastures and wild
animals off cropland
(Enclosure Movement)
Jethro Tul And His Seed Drill
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Planted seeds in straight lines, rather than
scattered, which allowed for the use of his other invention, the
horse-drawn hoe.
Revolution in the Textile Industry
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Jay Kay’s flying shuttle was faster than
spinners.
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James Hargreaves Spinning Jenny spun many
threads at the same time.
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Richard Arkwright’s waterframe used water power
to speed up spinning.
Samuel
Crompton’s Spinning Mule combined features of the Spinning Jenny and the Water
Frame.
Produced stronger, finer thread; created demand for factories, because supply
of thread exceeded the weavers ability to use.
Revolution in Power
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James Watt redesigned the steam engine to use
coal as a a power source instead of water.
At first the steam engines were used to pump water and forge iron, and
later powered cotton mills.