Overview

The Scientific Revolution of the 16th and 17th centuries transformed how Europeans understood nature, knowledge, and humanity’s place in the cosmos. This intellectual shift emphasized observation, experimentation, and rational inquiry, challenging traditional authorities and laying the groundwork for modern science and the Enlightenment.

Key Themes and Developments

• Major Figures of the Scientific Revolution:
  • Copernicus: Heliocentric theory challenged geocentrism.
  • Kepler: Laws of planetary motion confirmed heliocentric model with elliptical orbits.
  • Galileo: Used telescope to observe moons of Jupiter; promoted evidence-based astronomy.
  • Newton: Unified physics with laws of motion and universal gravitation; wrote Principia Mathematica.
• Methods and Epistemology:
  • Bacon: Inductive reasoning and empirical observation (scientific method).
  • Descartes: Deductive reasoning and rational doubt; “I think, therefore I am.”
  • Mathematics became a universal language of science.
• New Knowledge of Man and Society:
  • Physiology and anatomy advanced through dissection and empirical observation (Vesalius, Harvey).
  • Scientific societies, journals, and salons helped spread ideas across borders and social classes.
  • Knowledge was increasingly secularized and institutionalized.
• Impact on Political and Religious Thought:
  • Weakened church authority over cosmology and natural philosophy.
  • Inspired Enlightenment thinkers to apply reason to law, government, and ethics.

Quick Tip

The Scientific Revolution wasn’t just about science—it was about how we know what we know. Master the key figures and methods, and understand how this movement opened the door to secular, systematic inquiry across all fields.