AP EUROPEAN HISTORY
UNIT 3 STUDY GUIDE
Absolutism and Constitutionalism, c. 1648 to c. 1815
Everything you need to know for your Unit 3 test —
Louis XIV, Peter the Great, the English Civil War, and mercantilism, aligned to the official College Board framework.
What's Inside
• 1. Unit Overview & The Big Picture
• 2. Key Concepts (Official College Board Framework)
• 3. Deep Dive: Absolutism — Louis XIV & Peter the Great
• 4. Deep Dive: Constitutionalism — England & the Dutch Republic
• 5. Mercantilism & the Transatlantic Economy
• 6. The Military Revolution & Balance of Power
• 7. Absolutism vs. Constitutionalism Comparison Table
• 8. Full Vocabulary List — Absolutism & Constitutionalism Terms
• 9. Common Exam Traps & How to Avoid Them
• 10. Practice Questions
1. Unit Overview & The Big Picture
Unit 3, “Absolutism and Constitutionalism,” covers roughly 10–15% of the multiple-choice exam. Following the
devastation of the Thirty Years' War and the Peace of Westphalia (1648), European states pursued two competing
models for consolidating sovereign power: absolutism and constitutionalism.
Absolutism concentrates sovereignty in the monarch alone (France, Russia, Prussia). Constitutionalism limits
the ruler through law and representative bodies (England, the Dutch Republic). This is THE central
comparison of Unit 3 — nearly every topic connects back to it.
This unit also introduces the economic backbone of the era: mercantilism and the growing transatlantic economy,
which funded the wars and court spectacles (like Versailles) that absolutist rulers used to project power.
The 3 Things Your Teacher Wants You to Walk Away Knowing:
• Louis XIV of France is the quintessential absolute monarch: he centralized power, weakened the nobility's
political role (while preserving their social privileges), and used Versailles as both a palace and a tool of political
control.
• England took the opposite path: the English Civil War and the Glorious Revolution (1688) permanently
established that Parliament, not the monarch alone, held ultimate sovereign power — a constitutional model.
• Mercantilism (an economic theory tying national power to accumulated wealth and colonial trade) funded and
justified this era's wars, courts, and colonial competition across all state types, whether absolutist or
constitutional.
, 2. Key Concepts (Official College Board Framework)
The College Board organizes Unit 3 into eight required topics (3.1–3.8).
Topic 3.1 — Contextualizing Absolutism and Constitutionalism
• After the Peace of Westphalia (1648), European states sought to consolidate sovereignty, adopting a variety of
methods to acquire the human, fiscal, and military resources needed to pursue their interests.
Topic 3.2 — The English Civil War
• Conflict between King Charles I and Parliament over the limits of royal authority led to civil war, Charles I's
execution (1649), and a temporary republic under Oliver Cromwell.
Topic 3.3 — Constitutionalism
• The Glorious Revolution (1688) permanently established constitutional monarchy in England, with the English
Bill of Rights (1689) limiting royal power and affirming Parliament's authority.
Topic 3.4 — Absolutism
• Absolutist rulers like Louis XIV (France) and Peter the Great (Russia) concentrated nearly total state power in the
monarchy, often justified by divine right theory.
Topic 3.5 — Comparing Absolutism and Constitutionalism
• The exam expects direct comparison of how these two models distributed political power and their respective
consequences for the nobility, economy, and state stability.
Topic 3.6 — Economic Developments and Mercantilism
• Mercantilist policy tied national wealth/power to accumulating precious metals and maintaining a favorable
balance of trade, driving competition for colonies and trade routes.
Topic 3.7 — The Dutch Republic
• The Dutch Republic developed a unique, highly decentralized constitutional/republican system and experienced
a “Golden Age” of trade, art, and finance.
Topic 3.8 — The Military Revolution and Balance of Power
• Larger, more expensive professional armies and new military technology/tactics increased the cost of warfare,
while the concept of “balance of power” became central to European diplomacy, replacing religion as the main
axis of international conflict.
3. Deep Dive: Absolutism — Louis XIV & Peter the Great
Absolutism is justified by DIVINE RIGHT — the idea that monarchs are God's representatives on Earth, answerable
only to God, not to any earthly institution.
Louis XIV of France (“The Sun King,” r. 1643–1715)
• Moved the royal court to the Palace of Versailles, using its lavish rituals to keep the nobility distracted,
dependent, and under close royal watch — diluting their political power while preserving their social rank.
• Worked with finance minister Jean-Baptiste Colbert to pursue mercantilist policy, building France's reputation as
a manufacturer of luxury goods and funding Louis's expensive wars and building projects.
• Revoked the Edict of Nantes (1598) with the Edict of Fontainebleau, proclaiming “one king, one law, one faith”
and driving many economically valuable Huguenots to flee France, depriving it of skilled labor.
• Engaged in near-constant wars of expansion (including the War of the Spanish Succession, ended by the Peace
of Utrecht), straining French finances for decades.
UNIT 3 STUDY GUIDE
Absolutism and Constitutionalism, c. 1648 to c. 1815
Everything you need to know for your Unit 3 test —
Louis XIV, Peter the Great, the English Civil War, and mercantilism, aligned to the official College Board framework.
What's Inside
• 1. Unit Overview & The Big Picture
• 2. Key Concepts (Official College Board Framework)
• 3. Deep Dive: Absolutism — Louis XIV & Peter the Great
• 4. Deep Dive: Constitutionalism — England & the Dutch Republic
• 5. Mercantilism & the Transatlantic Economy
• 6. The Military Revolution & Balance of Power
• 7. Absolutism vs. Constitutionalism Comparison Table
• 8. Full Vocabulary List — Absolutism & Constitutionalism Terms
• 9. Common Exam Traps & How to Avoid Them
• 10. Practice Questions
1. Unit Overview & The Big Picture
Unit 3, “Absolutism and Constitutionalism,” covers roughly 10–15% of the multiple-choice exam. Following the
devastation of the Thirty Years' War and the Peace of Westphalia (1648), European states pursued two competing
models for consolidating sovereign power: absolutism and constitutionalism.
Absolutism concentrates sovereignty in the monarch alone (France, Russia, Prussia). Constitutionalism limits
the ruler through law and representative bodies (England, the Dutch Republic). This is THE central
comparison of Unit 3 — nearly every topic connects back to it.
This unit also introduces the economic backbone of the era: mercantilism and the growing transatlantic economy,
which funded the wars and court spectacles (like Versailles) that absolutist rulers used to project power.
The 3 Things Your Teacher Wants You to Walk Away Knowing:
• Louis XIV of France is the quintessential absolute monarch: he centralized power, weakened the nobility's
political role (while preserving their social privileges), and used Versailles as both a palace and a tool of political
control.
• England took the opposite path: the English Civil War and the Glorious Revolution (1688) permanently
established that Parliament, not the monarch alone, held ultimate sovereign power — a constitutional model.
• Mercantilism (an economic theory tying national power to accumulated wealth and colonial trade) funded and
justified this era's wars, courts, and colonial competition across all state types, whether absolutist or
constitutional.
, 2. Key Concepts (Official College Board Framework)
The College Board organizes Unit 3 into eight required topics (3.1–3.8).
Topic 3.1 — Contextualizing Absolutism and Constitutionalism
• After the Peace of Westphalia (1648), European states sought to consolidate sovereignty, adopting a variety of
methods to acquire the human, fiscal, and military resources needed to pursue their interests.
Topic 3.2 — The English Civil War
• Conflict between King Charles I and Parliament over the limits of royal authority led to civil war, Charles I's
execution (1649), and a temporary republic under Oliver Cromwell.
Topic 3.3 — Constitutionalism
• The Glorious Revolution (1688) permanently established constitutional monarchy in England, with the English
Bill of Rights (1689) limiting royal power and affirming Parliament's authority.
Topic 3.4 — Absolutism
• Absolutist rulers like Louis XIV (France) and Peter the Great (Russia) concentrated nearly total state power in the
monarchy, often justified by divine right theory.
Topic 3.5 — Comparing Absolutism and Constitutionalism
• The exam expects direct comparison of how these two models distributed political power and their respective
consequences for the nobility, economy, and state stability.
Topic 3.6 — Economic Developments and Mercantilism
• Mercantilist policy tied national wealth/power to accumulating precious metals and maintaining a favorable
balance of trade, driving competition for colonies and trade routes.
Topic 3.7 — The Dutch Republic
• The Dutch Republic developed a unique, highly decentralized constitutional/republican system and experienced
a “Golden Age” of trade, art, and finance.
Topic 3.8 — The Military Revolution and Balance of Power
• Larger, more expensive professional armies and new military technology/tactics increased the cost of warfare,
while the concept of “balance of power” became central to European diplomacy, replacing religion as the main
axis of international conflict.
3. Deep Dive: Absolutism — Louis XIV & Peter the Great
Absolutism is justified by DIVINE RIGHT — the idea that monarchs are God's representatives on Earth, answerable
only to God, not to any earthly institution.
Louis XIV of France (“The Sun King,” r. 1643–1715)
• Moved the royal court to the Palace of Versailles, using its lavish rituals to keep the nobility distracted,
dependent, and under close royal watch — diluting their political power while preserving their social rank.
• Worked with finance minister Jean-Baptiste Colbert to pursue mercantilist policy, building France's reputation as
a manufacturer of luxury goods and funding Louis's expensive wars and building projects.
• Revoked the Edict of Nantes (1598) with the Edict of Fontainebleau, proclaiming “one king, one law, one faith”
and driving many economically valuable Huguenots to flee France, depriving it of skilled labor.
• Engaged in near-constant wars of expansion (including the War of the Spanish Succession, ended by the Peace
of Utrecht), straining French finances for decades.
