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Absolutism - Slides

Absolutism - Slides

Written by the Fiveable Content Team • Last updated August 2025
Verified for the 2026 exam
Verified for the 2026 examWritten by the Fiveable Content Team • Last updated August 2025

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Absolutism was a form of government in which all sovereign power rested in the hands of a single monarch, who claimed to rule by divine right and was therefore responsible only to God. Thus, their subjects could not question or resist against their rule, leading to oppression of the general population and abuse of power by many of the absolute monarchs. In this stream, we'll review all this and more as we discuss the impact of absolutism on Europe as a whole.