Economic Change and the Expansion of the State (^) ‹ 95
These technical innovations greatly increased the pace and productivity of the textile
industry. The need to supervise these larger, faster machines also contributed to the devel-
opment of centralized textile mills, which replaced the scattered putting-out system by the
end of the eighteenth century.
Eastern Ambition
The prosperity and power of Great Britain and France caused their eastern European rivals
to try to strengthen and modernize their kingdoms.Prussia
In Prussia, Frederick William I built a strong centralized government in which the
military, under the command of the nobles, played a dominant role. In 1740, his
successor Frederick II (the Great) used that military to extend Prussia into lands con-
trolled by the Hapsburgs. Challenging the right of Maria Theresa to ascend the throne
of Austria (which was a right guaranteed her by a document known as the Pragmatic
Sanction), Frederick II marched troops into Silesia. In what came to be known as the
War of the Austrian Succession (1740–1748), Maria Theresa was able to rally Austrian
and Hungarian troops to fight Prussia and its allies, the French, Spanish, Saxons, and
Bavarians, resulting in a standoff.Russia
In Russia, the progress toward modernization and centralization made under Peter the
Great had largely been undone in the first half of the eighteenth century. However, under
the leadership of Catherine the Great, Russia defeated the Ottoman Turks in 1774, thereby
extending Russia’s borders as far as the Black Sea and the Balkan Peninsula. In 1775, Russia
joined with Prussia and Austria to conquer Poland and to divide its territories among the
three of them.War and Diplomacy
In eighteenth-century Europe, state-building was still primarily conducted through war
and diplomacy. The competition between Great Britain and France in the Triangular
Trade Networks meant that they would contend militarily for control of colonies in North
America and the Caribbean; in addition, the desire to weaken one another also led them to
become entangled in land wars in Europe.
The expansionist aims of Frederick II of Prussia led to a shift in diplomatic alliances
that is now referred to as the Diplomatic Revolution:
• Prussia, fearful of being isolated by its enemies, forged an alliance in 1756 with its former
enemy, Great Britain.
• Austria and France, previously antagonistic toward one another, were so alarmed by the
alliance of Prussia and Great Britain that they forged an alliance of their own.
Colonial and continental rivalries combined to bring all of the great European powers
into conflict during the Seven Years’ War (1756–1763). Land and sea battles were fought
in North America (where the conflict is sometimes referred to as the French and Indian14_Bartolini_Ch14_089-098.indd 95 27/04/18 1:54 PM