1700luvulla

1700-luvulla (the eighteenth century) refers to the period from 1700 to 1799 CE. It was marked by rapid changes in politics, science, and culture across Europe, the American colonies, Africa, and Asia as global connections expanded.

Politically, many states strengthened centralized administrations and began to adopt constitutional frameworks. The century saw the rise of parliamentary government in Britain, reform movements in other parts of Europe, and revolutionary upheavals in the late century, notably the American Revolution (1775–1783) and the French Revolution (1789).

Economically, mercantilism persisted while trade networks widened. Britain began industrial innovations in machinery and energy use, sparking the early stages of the Industrial Revolution. European colonial expansion continued in the Americas and Africa, alongside the transatlantic slave trade and imperial settings that linked continents.

Intellectual and cultural life was dominated by philosophies of the Enlightenment—emphasizing reason, science, and secular critique. Prominent figures include Voltaire, Rousseau, Kant, and Linnaeus. In the arts, Rococo gave way to Neoclassicism, while scientific advances built on Newtonian foundations and early chemistry by Lavoisier.

Globally, the century reshaped empires, economies, and societies. It established patterns of state power, imperialism, and cultural exchange that influenced later centuries and laid groundwork for modern political ideas, technology-driven economies, and contemporary global networks.