AP European History — 1450–1789 flashcards
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Units 1–4 of AP European History — the Renaissance and exploration, the Reformations and wars of religion, absolutism and constitutionalism, and the Scientific Revolution and Enlightenment — asked as cause, comparison and continuity questions.
Learn deck · part of AP European History · written against: College Board AP European History Course and Exam Description (nine units, c. 1450–present). Updated 2026-10-10.
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Why did the Renaissance begin in the Italian city-states?Italy's cities were rich from Mediterranean trade and banking (the Medici of Florence), urban and secular in outlook, surrounded by Roman ruins and manuscripts, and full of rival patrons competing for prestige through art and learning.Renaissance and Exploration › Renaissance
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How did Renaissance humanism differ from medieval scholasticism?Humanists studied classical Greek and Latin texts (grammar, rhetoric, history, poetry, moral philosophy) to prepare people for active civic life; scholastics used formal logic mainly to reconcile Christian theology with Aristotle.Renaissance and Exploration › Renaissance
Example: Petrarch is often called the father of humanism. -
How did Lorenzo Valla show the power of humanist textual criticism?Using philology, the study of how language changes over time, he proved in 1440 that the Donation of Constantine, a document the papacy used to claim political authority, was a later forgery.Renaissance and Exploration › Renaissance
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What was the putting-out system, and why did merchants use it?Merchants supplied raw materials such as wool to rural households, which spun and wove them at home for piece rates. It let merchants tap cheap rural labor and, in places such as England and Flanders, avoid urban guild rules.Absolutism and Constitutionalism › Commerce and Balance of Power
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What prompted Luther to write his Ninety-Five Theses in 1517?Johann Tetzel's sale of indulgences to raise money for rebuilding St. Peter's Basilica in Rome, which Luther saw as selling forgiveness.Age of Reformation › Protestant Reformation
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Which core teachings separated Luther from the Catholic Church?Salvation by faith alone, scripture alone as religious authority and the priesthood of all believers; he kept only two sacraments, baptism and communion, and rejected the pope's authority.Age of Reformation › Protestant Reformation
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Why did many German princes protect Luther and adopt Lutheranism?It let them assert independence from the Catholic Emperor Charles V, seize church lands and revenue and control the clergy in their territories.Age of Reformation › Protestant Reformation
Example: Frederick the Wise of Saxony hid Luther after the Diet of Worms (1521). -
What caused the English Civil War (1642–1649)?Charles I's clashes with Parliament over taxation without consent (such as ship money), his 11 years of rule without Parliament and his high-church religious policies, which Puritans saw as Catholic, ended in war and his execution in 1649.Absolutism and Constitutionalism › England
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How did Hobbes and Locke disagree about the purpose of government?Hobbes (Leviathan, 1651) thought life without government was violent chaos, so people should submit to an all-powerful sovereign; Locke argued that government exists by consent to protect natural rights, and may be overthrown if it violates them.Scientific and Philosophical Developments › Enlightenment
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Why was Copernicus's heliocentric model so radical, and what did it still get wrong?Published in 1543, it put the sun at the center, challenging the Earth-centered Aristotelian and Ptolemaic cosmos endorsed by the Church. It kept circular orbits, so it was no more accurate until Kepler's elliptical orbits.Scientific and Philosophical Developments › Scientific Revolution
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About these cards
Review status: Second-reader reviewed, with corrections applied.
Checked against:
- Topic outline follows the College Board AP European History Course and Exam Description (effective Fall 2026), Units 1–4; no text copied.
- OpenStax World History, Volume 1 and OpenStax World History, Volume 2, consulted as references; no text copied.
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