Enlightenment Ideas Spread

1. Enlightenment rulers (despots) embrace the new ideas

1.1. Frederick the Great

1.1.1. Exerted extremely tight control as king of Prussia

1.1.2. Wanted to work for the common good of the state

1.1.3. Invited french intellects to Prussia

1.1.4. granted freedom of the press and lessened the use of torture to attract thinkers

1.1.5. Tolerated religous differences

1.2. Catherine the Great

1.2.1. empress of russia

1.2.2. read the works of philosophers and sent letters to them

1.2.3. granted rights to people

1.2.4. criticized serfdom

1.3. Joseph II

1.3.1. Helped the ruler of Austria by going around Europe and seeing what other cultures were luike

1.3.2. Gave everyone religious equality

1.3.3. Freedom of the press

1.3.4. Abolished serfdom

1.3.5. Sold monasteries that weren't educating or helping the sick then gave that money to those that were

2. Majority Lives Changing

2.1. Most europeans untouched by the middle or upper class of europe

2.2. They remained peasents living in small rural villages

2.3. Some resisted the changes of social justice and eaquality

2.4. by the 1800's most had changed over

3. New Ideas Challenge Society

3.1. In middle ages people accepted and did not question the class system

3.2. They had ideas that in a just society social justice and happiness should be enforced

3.3. To keep these ideas from spreading governments attempted to censor the writers

3.4. Ideas spread in salons which is a place where thinkers would have an informal meetings and discuss ideas

4. New ideas and the arts

4.1. Art switched from the baroque style which was very formal to the rocco style which was very charming elegant and encouraged imagination

4.2. People composed music that was very elegant now known as "classical" music

4.3. In the 1700's novels started to be written for the educated middle class to read