The group that represented the Third Estate when the Kings of France called the Estates General was displeased with how power was being shared. Despite having twice the representatives, they did not have twice as many votes as the other estates. They therefore walked out and created their own rival organization that would take power and start the revolution, the National Assembly.

All of these theories emerged during the Enlightenment except for the Divine Right of Kings, which had its origins in the autocratic monarchies of the centuries that preceded the Enlightenment. The Divine Right of Kings stated that the right of the king to rule was divinely ordained by God and that to resist the king was therefore to resist the will of God.

Karl Marx explained this ideology in The Communist Manifesto. Communism, or Marxism, describes human history as a constant struggle between the rich and poor, and predicts the eventual uprising where the working class (the proletariat) rebels and seizes control.

Totalitarianism is a political system in which the government controls every facet of society and individuals liberties are nearly non-existent.

Fascism is the brand of totalitarianism that developed in European nations such as Germany, Italy, and Spain in the 1920's and '30's, which is also characterized by intense government propaganda to create loyalty to a charismatic leader.

Calvinism is not a political ideology, but a religion. It is a form of Protestantism that differs from other Christian sects in its belief in pre-determination, the idea that one's destination in the afterlife is already determined at birth.

Republicanism is an ideology in which the government is run by representatives elected by the citizens.

The Boxer Rebellion broke out in China in the last years of the nineteenth century and was eventually crushed by the combined efforts of local government administrators and the European powers in 1900. The rebellion broke out in China due to anger directed at the growing influence of European powers in Chinese affairs.

When a country becomes imperialistic (an imperial power, or ruler over large territory), they take control over another country or people's economy (money/trade), social (their culture/religion/language), and political (government/leaders/rulers/laws) areas or ways of life. Often, a country takes control in order to take advantage of natural resources in an attempt to make more money and become all-powerful.

The May 3rd Constitution reinstated the hereditary monarchy as Poland's system of government. The intention was to place one strong family that could not be bought or bullied as the head of Poland's failing government. That way they could end the decades of corruption and outside influences that had brought Poland to the brink of destruction; however, this new system only served to be Poland's downfall as its more powerful neighbor did not want to see Poland become powerful again, so rather than allow the new government to become established, they partitioned Poland and annexed its territory.

Louis XVI was the last King of France before the Revolution. He was arrested and executed in 1793. His son, also named Louis, lived until 1795 when he died of illness. However he was never crowned king and therefore is not included in the list of Kings of France.

The Thirty Years' War (1618-1648) was a continent-wide conflict that managed to ensnare every great European power of the time, initially with the Catholic Holy Roman Empire facing off against various Protestant states. A major turning point occurred in 1630, when Swedish armies led by King Gustavus Adolphus managed to turn the tide against the Imperial forces. After his death in the Battle of Lützen in 1632, the Protestant side faced serious setbacks against the Catholic armies of the Holy Roman Empire, and the end of the war with the Peace of Westphalia (1648) was largely based around settlements that were a setback from the heights of Sweden's power under Gustavus Adolphus.

The Sejm is the Polish Parliament. Historically members were elected by popular vote of landed nobility. Today it is elected by universal ballot.

The Thirty Years' War (1618-1648) was a continent-wide conflict that managed to ensnare every great European power of the time, initially with the Catholic Holy Roman Empire facing off against various Protestant states. A major turning point occurred in 1630, when Swedish armies led by King Gustavus Adolphus managed to turn the tide against the Imperial forces. After his death in the Battle of Lützen in 1632, the Protestant side faced serious setbacks against the Catholic armies of the Holy Roman Empire, and the end of the war with the Peace of Westphalia (1648) was largely based around settlements that were a setback from the heights of Sweden's power under Gustavus Adolphus.