Die Geschichte unserer Zivilisation: 1600 - 1789 Barock bis zur Französischen Revolution

1600 - 1789 1600 A.D. Baroque Era until French Revolution
Castle and town are separate centres of power.
Severe military and political conflicts arise between the two.
In particular, religious conflicts between reformers
and counter-reformers are in the focus of this rivalry.
At this time, the Thirty Year's War (1618 - 1648) takes its toll.
But also later on, numerous armed battles are fought out,
regardless of the dire consequences for the civil population
and the many lost lives.
The castle no longer holds a fortification
which is effective against modern canons.
The proud estate of the noble lord
rather serves to represent his princely powers,
and for the pleasure of the court society.
There's a pavilion for erotic encounters,
and the leftover cave from the silver mine, which is no longer profitable,
is a slightly eerie place of courtly excursions.
After the conquest of the colonies discovered
by Christopher Columbus, amongst others, trading goods
from all over the world pour into Europe.
At the inner bailey the introduction of the pineapple and the fork is being celebrated,
however, only the lord has a fork.
Food is turning into a representative and extravagant luxury.
Peasants possess one wooden spoon per person only,
and they share one earthen bowl.
In the course of former battle times,
there are strong fortifications in town, still.
The Wars of Faith also have an impact on inner city life.
Several clergymen of different denominations
are disputing in front of the church.
They stand for the discussions on the righteous faith (Catholic or Protestant).
There's a high traffic between the town and the countryside.
Travelling merchants are coming to the market in order to sell their products.
In front of the townhall, there's a riot against the high prices of bread.
Great technical achievements, like the hot air balloon among others, are being presented.
The dream of men flying is enticing many people.
More wars are taking place, because the Ottoman Empire'
increasing attempts to expand its territory
via the Balkans over all of Europe.
At the same time, there are many contacts to the cultural
and military developments of the Ottomans.
A Turkish tent and precious arms stand symbolic for this mind-set.
With the Town Hall and symbolisms of sovereignty,
formerly reserved exclusively to the gentry,
the proud town society
tries to represent its identity and its powers.
The press becomes a subject to scrutiny for censorship.
The town's upper-class, the Patricians, feels threatened by the loss of their powers
as a consequence of increasing education in the common population.
The boats on the river grow larger.
The river has become an important means
for transport and networking between different territories.
Overland roads have become dangerous due to the wars.
Highwaymen and mercenary soldiers
threaten the safety of travellers and commercial goods.
Troops are embarking.
The lord's lavish lifestyle has caused him considerable financial straights.
As a warlord, he has large armed forces in his duty.
Now, he is selling them to parties at war in overseas,
in example in the American War of Independence.
For lending his troops, he receives large sums of money.
Many men will never return…
A French diligence on the bridge stands
as a symbol for the successive rise in the exchange of trading
merchandize, media, and ideas.
The ideas of the Enlightenment and the French Revolution
(Liberty, Equality, and Fraternity) spread among the population.
At this point, already, agriculture and the so-called proto-industrial development
are in a strong competition for land and resources.
Production methods become more efficient,
and there are higher cultured crop yields.
Nowadays, fields are being ploughed by trek ox, not by peasants, anymore.
A noble company is watching the introduction of the potato,
which gets cultured as a means to counteract starvation in the country.
Praised a precious item, the very first potatoes
are being delivered to the lord's castle with a coach.
Otto von Guericke's Magdeburg hemispheres
represent the technical development.
The ground-breaking discovery of the vacuum
facilitates the development of turbines and steam engines.
Entrepreneurs are likewise gentry and middle-class.
Manufactories arise, as shown here with the coach shop,
where coaches are being built from one hand.
It also shows the development of mobility.
Peasants are still tributaries by heritage,
but don't live in serfdom, any longer.
The soils belong to the Lord of the Manor.
Farmers and peasants have to perform certain feudal duties.
Because of these labour duties,
a peasant still can't leave the lord's property.
Otherwise, he would lose his means of income, completely.
A peasant's wedding displays the joy on this holiday.
A parish priest is teaching peasant children,
so that they will be able to read the Holy Scripture.
At the same time, teachers and priests
are recording popular speech and common folk-tales.
Culture does not belong to the high-class elite in the cities, any longer.
In desperation, the peasants are rioting
against the tavern owned by the lord.
Here, they most often do not only drink away their short wages,
they also have to buy seeds from lord's shop, at this location.
The all-embracing dependency on the lord starts to meet with controversy.
The people in the rural areas are suffering under the cruelties
exerted on them by different mercenary armies,
which are assaulting them,
as seen with the fisherman and his wife.
Sometimes, rogue soldiers are trying to extort tributes
from the inhabitants of occupied territories, shown here with a brigade
of mercenary pike soldiers at the town gate, who are trying to force themselves in.