Notes

Revolutions cause dramatic change. England's revolution marked the beginning of a long period of change. Educated men and women began discussing John Locke's ideas about the purpose of government. People in France, the British colonies in North America, and the Spanish colonies in South America grew more and more unhappy with their situations. Talk of revolution even spread to Russia. People became convinced that it was time for change. Did they dare revolt? How bloody would a revolution be? Could they create better governments?
In the late seventeenth century, the English people celebrated the Glorious Revolution. A hundred years later their country faced another kind of revolution. The once loyal colonists in North America were rebelling against British rule. The rebellion drew on the past and changed the future. The American Revolution was based on the ideas of the Enlightenment, and it helped inspire democratic revolutions around the world.