But the year 15 itself is nothing special. Only when future generations look back will they notice the beginning of profound changes. Europeans living at that time did not have such consciousness. These changes are long-term and last for several centuries: the Renaissance began in 13 and ended around 16, with a period of 3 years; The religious reform began in 1517, but the war related to religion would be around 165; Sailing and exploration had been going on for hundreds of years before 15. After connecting with Asia, Europe was still an economically backward area. Only gold and silver obtained from America could be used to buy Asian spices, cotton cloth, porcelain and silk. It was not until the 19th century that Europe's economy began to have the ability to compete with Asia.
the impact of the military revolution on Europe has also evolved over hundreds of years. Gunpowder first appeared in Europe in 13, and it was not until around 15 that artillery began to exert its power on the battlefield. However, star fortresses soon appeared in Italy, which was enough to resist the offensive of artillery. Since then, the manufacturing technology of muskets and guns has been gradually improved, and the size of the army has been increasing. At the end of the 17th century, a large-scale infantry queue with muskets as the main equipment began to appear. Military innovation brought about the growth of kingship, resulting in several large-scale political entities, including France, Spain, England, Austria, Prussia and other powers. On the whole, Europe is still in a state of political division, but the conflicts among the great powers have become bigger in scale and more tragic in casualties. In particular, the religious reform caused the church to split, and the contradiction between princes and nobles was linked to the hostility between different sects, which made the territorial dispute of princes deteriorate into a collision of beliefs.
the fierce struggle between nobles and kingship
the process of centralization is not smooth sailing, and the establishment of bureaucratic system involves the selection, supervision and coordination of officials. Before industrialization, transportation and communication were not convenient, and the emperor's mountain height far limited the efficiency of state machine operation. Although the aristocratic forces could not confront the kingship head-on, no country in Europe could establish a bureaucracy led by civil servants before the 19th century. No matter whether it is taxation or conscription, the king depends on the support and cooperation of nobles from all over the world. In the face of the kingship above them, the nobles have natural resistance. Taxes flowed into the national treasury, and the young and strong laborers were expropriated by the state, which greatly affected the interests and power of the nobles. The establishment of centralization will further bring about a larger-scale war, which needs heavier taxes to support. Stimulated by natural and man-made disasters, these contradictions often lead to aristocratic rebellion and public riots. The most famous example is the Thirty Years' War in the first half of the 17th century, which was caused by the rebellion of Austrian aristocrats, and the corresponding religious and territorial disputes involved the European powers. By the time the princes and nobles who first participated in the war were dead, they could not stop. The end was also due to aristocratic rebellion. Spain and France, the two largest participating countries, were exhausted and burned internally by aristocratic rebellion. Only then did they have the will to reach a ceasefire between countries and free their hands to solve their internal crises.
17th-century woodcutter Jacques Callot created a series of prints "The Heavy Damage of War", the eleventh of which depicts the collective execution of soldiers who violated discipline during the Thirty Years' War.
Similar problems often appear in our history. As far back as the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period, Confucius had already sighed that "tyranny is fiercer than tigers". There is a special emphasis on "benevolent government" in Confucianism. Saving penalties, collecting taxes sparingly and being generous to the people are the basic political propositions, and peace in the world is regarded as a political ideal. Qin Shihuang and Emperor Yangdi's labor and wealth, hard labor and heavy taxes, arrogance and extravagance, harsh punishment and cool laws, exultation and conquering everywhere have always been the negative examples that literati used to warn the dynasties. Confucianism has a clear understanding of the inherent harm of the state machine, and also has a set of corresponding theoretical propositions to limit the excessive expansion of kingship.
The centralization of power in Europe took place between 15 and 18. In terms of political system, the civil service system has not been established, and it depends on the nobles in personnel. In terms of political theory, it was not until the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries that we thought out of the biblical framework. European princes regard the pursuit of glory on the battlefield as their natural responsibility, and there is no such idea as "peace in the world" at all. Most of the resistance to kingship comes from the nobles' insistence on their privileges as feudal lords: they have the right to bear arms (although knights are of little use in the battlefield); Their property should be respected; The king should consult with them and get their consent when collecting taxes; Within their territory, they were born with jurisdiction and were not violated by the king's sovereignty, and so on. The ideal in their hearts is still the feudal regime before centralization. Their dissatisfaction can cause a serious political crisis. The English Civil War in the 17th century and the French Revolution in the 18th century were both the result of nobles resisting taxes and leading rebellion.
aristocrats who changed from lords to landlords
After 15 years, the life of aristocrats has also changed a lot. At the beginning of the Middle Ages, castles were not only a symbol of aristocratic power, but also the residence of their families. With the loss of the military function of the castle, aristocratic families also moved out of the castle and moved into the specially built mansion in the manor. Some of the newly-built mansions still retain the appearance of a castle, and even named it as a castle, but their internal function is to consider the comfort of living, and they are no longer a fortress to resist foreign invasion. At the beginning of the Middle Ages, the goods produced in Europe were relatively poor, and the furnishings in aristocratic homes were simple, and the castles as fortifications were not places to put things. The best way for a nobleman to show his identity is the number of minions and servants around him. No matter whether he is a master or a mistress, wherever he goes, he is surrounded by a bunch of followers, even eating, sleeping, even relieving himself and taking a bath. By the early modern times, the economy and society were more developed, and the nobles' mansions were furnished with more furniture, and their clothes became more exquisite. When the nobles show their identity, they pay attention to the ostentation and extravagance in their homes, distance between the master and the servant, and strict distinction between the areas of the master and the servant in the mansion. Only then did the nobles begin to have the concept of "privacy".
Howard Castle in England is a typical manor building, which has the name of "Castle" and has no defense function at all. It is just a private residence of nobles. In the 198s, the famous British TV series "After the Storm Home" was filmed here.
During the Middle Ages, the daily life of nobles was "self-sufficient". This does not mean that they have to work by themselves, but that their food, clothing and use are the products of their own estates. After entering the early modern era, their lives began to have more to do with the market. Many items produced in the manor have to be taken to the market for sale. On weekdays, the food on the table, the items at home, and the clothes on the body are mostly purchased from the market, because the quality and variety of things produced by their own estates are not as good as those purchased. This is the same in China, like the rare antiques and delicacies used in the Jia family in A Dream of Red Mansions. European aristocrats turned from "self-sufficiency" to the market in terms of daily necessities, which happened in the 17th century. Later western scholars thought it was of great significance and called it "the beginning of consumption". Consumption requires money and leisure, which only the upper class could pursue at that time.
Firearms and artillery dominate the battlefields in Europe, and the nobles also have a role change in politics. Knights in helmets and armor have no place in the battlefield, but nobles are still officers in the king's army. Fighting on the battlefield is still their ambition, and officers are basically monopolized by nobles, which will not be reversed until after the First World War. Gunpowder brought centralization and the expansion of kingship, and nobles could no longer have their own private armies, but their political influence did not weaken. The civil service system in European countries was not mature until the industrialization in the 19th century. Before that, the implementation of national policies in various places had to rely on the help of nobles. The selection of officials mostly depends on family background, family influence and nepotism, and the important position has to be taken by the upper nobility, while the officials who copy and write affairs are selected from the educated middle and lower aristocrats. If a businessman has capital, he can also buy a piece of land and an official position. After several generations, he can wash away the reputation of the nouveau riche and become an aristocrat. As for the children of poor families who want to enter the officialdom through reading, it is basically impossible. In Europe, there is no such thing as being an excellent scholar and being an official.
after the private army was banned, the nobles still had a piece of land, which was the most secure and respected property before industrialization and the most important economic resource. In the Middle Ages, nobles, as feudal lords, not only owned land and collected land rent from farmers who cultivated it, but also collected taxes and forced labor from them, and had administrative and judicial power over them. Under this arrangement, the farmer is a serf who has no personal freedom in the noble manor. In many parts of Europe (especially Eastern Europe), these privileges of the nobility continued until the 19th century. In western Europe, which was politically modernized earlier, the king has taken the tax power into his own hands, directly levying labor from farmers, and encouraging people to take their disputes to the king's court for settlement. The formation of centralization will inevitably damage the lords' rights, but the nobles still enjoy economic privileges, taxes can be exempted, and labor can be replaced by taxes.
In the most economically developed areas (such as England), land can be bought and sold, and it is no longer tied to the ownership. In the past, nobles acquired land through marriage, king's reward and even private fighting. After breaking away from feudalism, they could expand their land by buying and selling. Natural and man-made disasters always produce farmers who can't pay their debts, and most of their land is bought or taken away by nobles. Land annexation like this has existed in our history, but it will arouse the worries of the government and scholars, fearing that landless and displaced farmers will become hidden dangers of social instability. The traditional politics in China is dominated by scholars who learn to be excellent and become officials, and their perspectives and ideas are not completely consistent with those of the landlord class. For the sake of the stability of the world, the court will even step in to curb mergers. The princes and nobles who dominate European politics are themselves the biggest beneficiaries of merger, and war is the norm in Europe. Everyone has no idea that the world is at peace, and land merger is regarded as a natural thing. Therefore, after breaking away from feudalism, the land was more concentrated in the hands of nobles.
The reason why medieval European aristocrats were rulers was that they fought full-time and were the protectors of everyone. By the early days of modern times, this theory was not very useful. Most nobles were no longer soldiers in battle, but just landlords who collected rent. Correspondingly, there is also a new set of arguments to support their political privileges. As landlords, they are independent: their income comes from land rent, and they don't need to do it themselves, rely on others or worry about their lives. At the same time, they also have leisure, and they can spend time managing people. They are different, they can make independent judgments and have the ability to make decisions. Coupled with their ancestry and medieval traditions, they are respected and aristocratic rule is justified. Therefore, there is also a saying in modern Europe that "those who work hard govern people", but its meaning is different from our tradition: in China, you have to read sage books and learn to care about the country and the people; In Europe, you have to have noble blood and land ownership. There are also scholars in Europe who read sage books, reading the Bible and classics (ancient Roman and ancient Greek books), but their political status is not as good as that of aristocrats, and most of them are priests who are divorced from the world, belonging to another power system in European traditional society, the Christian church.