World History (Enlightenment)

Enlightenment

A period where reason was applied in guiding people's thoughts about philosophy, society and politics.

secular

non-religious

Voltaire

French philosopher who mocked government and religion. He believed humans could improve their own existence without God. Believed in freedom of thought and speech.

salon

a social gathering held to discuss ideas

Mary Wollstonecraft

British writer who argued that women should have the same rights as men.

John Locke

English philosopher who believed that government was a contract between the ruler and the people. He declared that all people have natural rights.

natural rights

rights that all people are born with such as the rights to life, liberty, and property.

Charles-Louis Montesquieu

French nobleman who believed that the government should be divided into separate branches to protect people's freedom.

Jean-Jacques Rousseau

French thinker that believed in popular sovereignty. He also believed citizens were in a "social contract" with the government and thus submit to laws to protect their own interests.

popular sovereignty

the idea that the government should express the will of the people

Benjamin Franklin

American scientist and philosopher who argued that the British had no right to tax the colonies because colonists had no representation in English Parliament.

Thomas Jefferson

American farmer, scientists and scholar who believed in independence for the American colonies along with the separation of church and state.

English Bill of Rights

A document that listed the rights for Parliament and the English people that was approved in 1689. The document builds on the Magna Carta.

Declaration of Independence

A document declaring the American colonies independent from British rule and listed the liberties of the people.

Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen

French document that guaranteed some freedoms for citizens and distributed the payment of taxes fairly. The document also granted freedom of speech, of the press, and of religion.

social contract

an unwritten agreement between people and their government that describes the rights and duties of each

Adam Smith

economist who wrote "The Wealth of Nations." He encouraged free trade and attacked mercantilism.

Magna Carta

written in 1215 to limit the powers of the English king