Understanding the Old Regime: Society, Politics, and Economy
The Old Regime: Society, Politics, and Economy
The Old Regime was a form of social, political, and economic organization prevalent in most European countries between the 16th and 18th centuries. It is characterized by:
- An economy and society based on agriculture.
- A society divided into estates.
- A political organization based on absolute monarchy.
- Artistic expression in the Baroque style.
Key Aspects of the Old Regime
Territorial Lordship: All land was in the hands of a lord. It consisted of the demesne.
Demesne: These were the most productive lands reserved for the lord’s direct farming.
Guilds: Groups of artisans in the same profession controlled handicraft production, quantity, technique, and sales price.
Manufactures: These were subsidized workshops, driven by the state, where luxury items were produced.
Mercantilism: A set of economic theories and practices that prevailed in modern Europe. Its objective was to seek national wealth by:
- Valuing precious metals (silver).
- Encouraging currency circulation.
- Accumulating gold and silver through exports.
- Protecting domestic industries and keeping wages low.
Estates: Society was divided into closed social groups based on birth status. There were three estates:
- Clergy: Focused on prayer.
- Nobility: Provided protection to the community.
- Commons: Produced material goods and consisted of peasants, bourgeois, and working classes.
Civic inequality divided society into:
- Privileged: Enjoyed rights and did not pay taxes.
- Underprivileged: Bore all tax burdens.
Arbitrary Rule: State policy was not bound by law, leaving subjects unprotected from despotism.
Parliaments: Institutions born in the Middle Ages that brought together representatives of the three estates.
Bill of Rights: Parliament required King William of Orange to swear to the declaration of rights, limiting the monarch’s powers and subjecting some decisions to parliament.
The Enlightenment and its Impact
The Enlightenment: An intellectual movement that developed in Europe in the 18th century, inspiring the U.S. independence and the French Revolution.
- Isaac Newton: Introduced the scientific method based on observation.
- John Locke: Critiqued absolute power and advocated for the separation of powers.
Enlightened thinkers were often Deists, believing that God was in nature and rejecting the superiority of any one religion. Enlightenment ideas spread through salons, shows, brochures, leaflets, and the first encyclopedias, aiming to collect all knowledge of the time. This led to the creation of liberalism.
Economic Theories
Physiocracy: Advocated for natural governance and reacted against mercantilism. They saw nature as the source of all wealth, with agriculture holding the highest value. Society was divided into:
- Farmers: The only group creating wealth.
- Artisans and Traders: Transforming natural products.
- Landowners.
Economic Liberalism: Founded by Adam Smith, who argued in The Wealth of Nations that the basis of liberalism lay in labor. Industrial and agricultural products were obtained through human effort, and the state should not intervene in the economy, which should be governed by supply and demand.
Enlightened Absolutism: The idea of “everything for the people, but without the people.” Examples include Charles III in Spain. Common features included centralizing absolutism, streamlining administration, and promoting education.
Other Key Terms
Manorial Economy: Land was the property of privileged groups.
Colonial Trade: Trade between territories separated by sea.
Allodial Land (ALADI): A parcel of land on which the farmer does not pay any tax to the lord.
Fallow: Land left unplanted for a period of time.
Natural Law: A set of rules based on custom and tradition.