Editing Age of Enlightenment (section)

==The Appeal of the Age of Enlightenment==
The Age of Enlightenment is the prelude to the modern world. Its basic ideas and features were taking shape and growing but were not quite there yet and are still largely overshadowed by the Ancient Regime (the old order of things with kings, nobles and the Church) and they were still constrained by many limitations which had been the case since the Bronze Age. Scientists (sometimes organized into bodies such as the Royal Society) were uncovering the world's secrets and making important discoveries in the areas of biology, astronomy and physics while kings set their sights on building empires on which the sun would never set and you had grand financial chicanery such as the South Seas Company, but people still relied on guys with ox carts to bring in their daily grain and take away their crap, law enforcement was handled by gangs of thugs hired out by rich people to keep the riffraff away from their properties, and in many places when people built buildings they still used literal rule of thumb. In spite of that there was a notion of historical transformation about. By the 18th century, an increasing number of people had become cognizant that they had in many ways surpassed their ancestors in numerous fields both practical and theoretical, and some of them foresaw that greater achievements were yet to come.

The Enlightenment was also the high point for the idea of absolute monarchy, realms where power had been consolidated in thrones to be distributed among nobles which had become less subordinate rulers and more components in the apparatus of government. With this came the idea of the enlightened [[monarch]], an educated and cultured man or woman who'd be up to date on natural philosophy with the strength and power to rationalize his/her kingdom, do away with superstition and bring in a new age of elegant humane efficiency.

This is also the height of the Age of Sail: tall ships of the line bristling with cannons, fast frigates and pirate ships raiding merchantmen on the high seas with all the action and swashbuckling therein. It's also a time of global reach, where a poor farmer's son might travel to burgeoning colonies, the ports of rival nations and to distant foreign parts with strange ancient civilizations if he winds up on a ship. The battles of the day with their line infantry, cuirassiers with a brace of pistols and sabers and field artillery are distinctive. The epoch was known for its massive battles and the advancement of artillery as a component of infantry engagements.

The inspiration derived by Napoleon deserves a separate mention. His entire history, from humble beginnings to the expedition in Egypt to the coup d'etat to becoming the Emperor that trashed everyone and everything in his path to his final exile, despair and disgrace has served as a great, great inspiration for people ever since.