Enlightened Absolutism as well as the American Revolution

         "What was 'enlightened absolutism'?"


Enlightened absolutism is the idea of absolutist rulers incorporating enlightenment ideas and principles into practice. In enlightenment principles there is emphasis on the person to use rationality (or at least their idea of it). A few particular commonalities in enlightened absolutism are the desire for education, and freedom of speech and of the press. We can find examples of enlightened absolutist rulers in people such as Frederick the Great, Catherine II of Russia, and Charles III of Spain.

Enlightened absolutism was indeed an interesting development and has become a fascinating study material for students and historians alike.



"What was the constitutional dispute between the colonists and the British government that let to the American Revolution?..."


The constitutional dispute between the American colonists and the British government was one of two very different opinions. You see, the British didn't really have a particular written constitution. Their constitution was that of tradition. The British idea of tradition was whatever the British Parliament decided to pass or institute. The colonists' viewpoint, however, saw tradition as a tad more complex than that. The American colonists' opinion was that tradition was limited. That tradition held the government back in some ways. What I mean by this is that the British government, for a great deal of time, had more or less left the colonists alone to do as they pleased, as far as internal affairs was concerned. And now all of a sudden the British government was coming in and breaking the constitution's "laws" (tradition) by imposing revenue taxes and other seemingly unconstitutional practices on the colonists. We can see this being done through situations such as the Townshend Acts, which were acts carried out by the British government to raise wages for the governors and judges in the colonies, so that they would remain loyal to the British government. Similarly, there were the Coercive Acts which were used greatly for the purpose of getting after Massachusetts, after the Boston Tea Party. These acts were however viewed by the colonists as a violation of their rights. Ultimately, the Coercive Acts simply continued to fan the flames of angry colonists.

The contitutional dispute between the British government and the 13 colonies was definitely a fascinating beginning to the founding of America as an independent nation.

I hope that you have enjoyed my essay! Thanks for reading!