4. Absolute Monarchs
• Unlimited power
• Controlled all
aspects of society
• Divine Right of Kings
– Only answered to
god, not his/her
subject
5. Absolute vs. Enlightened Rulers
• An enlightened despot - considered reforms in
order to create more efficient societies, but
not at the expense of their own power.
• Absolutism and the Social Contract Theory
– Argued about the legitimate source of political
power centered on divine right
– Which enlightened thinker’s ideas/beliefs does this
theory conflict with?
6. Absolute Monarch = King James I
• King of both England and
Scotland!
• A Letter to Parliament
(1609)
– How does King James I
defend his right as king?
– What 3 things does he
warn parliament to avoid
in the future?
7. Dear King James I!
• Write a response to King James I’s letter to
parliament from the perspective of one of the
6 enlightened thinkers.
– Think of what he/she would think about this letter
and how they would react to it.
8. Absolute or Enlightened?
You be the judge!
Vote which 18th Century monarchs you think
were either absolute or enlightened rulers.
19. • How does the idea behind an absolute
monarch conflict with the ideas of the
enlightened thinkers?
• Choose one of the ideas of the philosophes to
examine this question.
