Examples Of Enlightened Despotism

The Enlightenment was one of the greatest movements of human history. It brought on an era of intelligence, rationalism, and human rights. It gave birth to many ideologies, mainly proposed by the philosophes of the time, which had a tremendous impact on society today. Enlightened despotism was perhaps one of the most prevalent ideologies to arise during this era. It was primarily formulated by Voltaire, who explained that optimum societal progress would be achieved through the presence of an enlightened monarchy. Although the existence of Enlightened despotism is still debated by modern historians, there are numerous reasons as to why Enlightened despots were truly enlightened. They implemented several fundamental reforms such as civil liberties,

First of all, Catherine the Great exhibited the enlightened notion of individualism by enforcing a new law code called the “Instruction” which granted all individual’s equal rights and freedom. She executed various reforms throughout Russia which alternated the entirety of her country for the better. In addition, the nature in which she was influenced by Voltaire and the other philosophes indicated that she was truly enlightened. In conjunction with Catherine the Great, was Frederick the Great of Prussia. He implemented numerous improvements across Prussia, both domestically and industrially. Though, his most exceptional reformations were those which he materialized within Prussia. Frederick the Great’s most prevalent of improvements included the integration of arts and culture which exemplified the enlightened notion of cultural amalgamation. This established Prussia into a cultural hub within Europe and gave it international recognition. Lastly, and perhaps the most important of all the reformations that took place within Europe, was the freedom of religion. Although many enlightened monarchs promoted religious liberation, Joseph II of Austria bolstered this zealously. He generated the Edict of Toleration which explicitly stated that all subjects are granted to express and practice their religion freely. He demonstrated the enlightened characteristic of individual freedom. Through the rulings of Catherine the Great, Frederick the Great, and Joseph II, the enlightened notions proposed by the philosophes of the time truly came to form within Europe, granting them to be rightfully acknowledged as truly Enlightened