Alexander II is often called "Alexander the Liberator" because in 1861, he ended the centuries long economic system of serfdom by emancipating the serfs. Serfdom was effectively slavery by another name. A serf was the property of his or her landowner and could not move without the landowner's permission. Serfs were expected to work the land and provide for their master's prosperity.

The Russian serfs were emancipated in 1861 by Tsar Alexander II. The institution of serfdom was very similar to the institution of slavery and underpinned the whole feudal system of economic and social life throughout much of Europe from the fall of the Roman empire until the Industrial Revolution. It is worth noting that the emancipation of the serfs in Russia and the slaves in the United States happened at very much the same time. Clearly there was a global movement away from forced labor.

In France, under the Old Regime (before the French Revolution), France was partially governed by the Estates-General. This was a form of political representation where various classes of people, or “estates,” were represented as a group. The First Estate was composed of clergymen; the Second Estate was made up of noblemen; and the Third Estate was comprised of the common man (everyone else).

Catherine the Great of Russia, Frederick the Great of Prussia, and Maria Theresa of Austria are three well-known examples of "enlightened despots." During the Enlightenment era, many absolute rulers came to embrace the practices and ideals of the Enlightenment thinkers. These rulers did little to encourage democracy or constitutionalism in their countries and still ruled in an autocratic style, but they were more likely to favor freedom of speech, along with freedom of religion and expression.

Throughout the Enlightenment period, it was common for young aristocratic men, particularly from Britain or Northern Europe, to undergo a "Grand Tour." This involved a months-long trip around the major sites of Enlightenment Europe. It was particularly focused on Italy and France. The purpose was to gain a greater understanding of art history and the history of western civilization. The only one of these statements that is not true is that it only became practical with the advent of the railroad—the railroad merely made it easier; people had been doing it since the early-seventeenth century. 

The War of Austrian Succession was fought in the 1740s over the issue of whether Maria Theresa was fit to inherit the Hapsburg throne of Austria from her father. Those contending that she was unfit were doing so on the premise that, as a woman, she was ineligible for the throne. The war ended with Maria Theresa victorious and sitting on the throne of Austria, which she would continue to do for the next several decades.

Under Catholic tradition, it is forbidden to lend money with the expectation that the loanee will then pay back the money plus interest. This is called usury. When Catholicism was the dominant expression of Christianity in Europe, any type of business venture (as we understand them now) was largely impossible, or relied on one incredibly wealthy patron making himself slightly more wealthy. The rise of Protestantism and the decline of Catholicism allowed many of the Northern European countries in particular to start funding colonizing missions, explorations, and long-distance trading ventures through lending money. This radically altered the direction of European history and inspired the commercial and banking revolutions of the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries.

During the Enlightenment period, political philosophy generally fell under two headings: conservatism and liberalism. Liberals favored rapid, progressive change, often brought about through revolution or bloodshed, and they desired an immediate end to autocracy and absolute monarchy. Conservatives, on the other hand, favored slower, more gradual change to society and feared chaos and disorder more than they feared autocracy.