BELLWORK

• PLEASE TAKE OUT YOUR VIEWING GUIDES FROM YESTERDAY. WE WILL FINISH UP THE DOCUMENTARY TODAY.

French Revolution

“Revolutions cannot be made with rosewater.”- Nicolas De Chamfort

“The tree of liberty must be refreshed from time to time with the blood of patriots and tyrants.”-Thomas Jefferson

French Revolution

• How would you define an unjust government?

• What, if anything, would lead you to take part in a violent revolution?

Main Idea

• Economic and social inequalities in the Old Regime helped cause the French Revolution

Why It Matters Now

• Throughout history, economic and social inequalities have at times led peoples to revolt against their government

• Can you think of any modern examples of this?

Causes

• 1774 – Louis XVI becomes king and inherits all of his grandfather’s problems•Serious debt due to foreign wars and reckless spending•What foreign war?

• Thinking back to the video, what were some of the characteristics of Louis XVI?

Causes

• Marie Antoinette aka Madame Deficit was also a big spender• Gambled the equivalent of $1 million/year• Lavish parties, fashions, hairdos• Had a life sized peasant village constructed –

life as a queen was stressful, so every now and then she went to her retreat and acted like a peasant

• Village was called Hameau de la Reine – The Queen’s Hamlet

Causes

• Palace at Versailles• Truly one of the most extravagant structures

in the world

Aerial View

Gardens Looking to Palace

Marie’s Bedroom

Hall of Mirrors

Causes

• French people were unhappy with the class system (Estates) in France

• Looking at this cartoon, what is being depicted?

Causes

• First Estate: 1% Clergy

• Second Estate: 2% Nobility

• Third Estate: 97% Peasants, Artisans and Bourgeoisie (middle class)•Paid all of the taxes

• Looking at the Estate System in pre-revolutionary France, why does this pose such a threat?

Reaction

• King Louis XVI knew it was his role to try to quell the concerns of the people

• He summoned the Estates General (meeting with all three estates)

• Eventually the Third Estate was locked out of the Estates General because they had too many disputes

Reaction

• The Third Estate renamed themselves the National Assembly and had their own meeting

• Met at a tennis court and took the Tennis Court Oath:•“We won’t stop meeting until France has a new constitution”

Beginning of the Revolution

• The National Assembly had fears that the king would try to squash their rebellion…

• So, what do you need to resist a king and his army?

Beginning of the Revolution

• Revolutionaries stormed the Bastille (prison and storehouse for weapons)

• This marks the beginning of the French Revolution

New Constitution

• The National Assembly wrote The Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen (French Constitution)

New Constitution

• Influenced by American Declaration of Independence

• “Liberty, Equality, Fraternity”

• Equality, freedom of speech, protect against unlawful arrest

• Limited royal powers, but kept the monarchy

New Constitution

• The king refused to accept the new constitution, but the people forced him to

• Stormed the palace in Versailles and forced the king to move to Paris and to accept the new constitution

New Constitution

• The king tried to escape to Austria, was caught, accused and tried with going against the liberty of the nation

• Found guilty and was executed

Revolution Continues

• The monarchy was no more, but the revolution was far from over

Revolution Continues

• Disputes within the government

• Two very different political parties emerged

Revolution Continues

• Jacobins: led by Robespierre; defenders of the revolution

• Girondists: believed the revolution had gone far enough; wanted to protect wealthy and middle class

Revolution Continues

• Created the Committee of Public Safety (12 men)

• Initially, the COPS was created to protect France from foreign attack, but it soon turned into a chaotic civil war: Royalists VS Revolutionaries

Reign of Terror

• Heads really start to roll…

• Jacobins take over and set out to crush all opposition, led by Robespierre and COPS

Reign of Terror

• Suspected traitors guillotined

• 40,000 executed in this period

Reign of Terror

• Leaders within the COPS feared Robespierre and were afraid they were on his “list”

• They executed him before he could get to them

Revolution Dwindles

• New constitution written

• Executive council of five men (The Directory)

• 2 house legislature

• Appeared weak and people didn’t like it

Enter Napoleon

• After any revolution, a country struggles getting back on its feet

• Because France was so vulnerable, they willingly allowed a powerful leader to step in: Napoleon

One of the greatest legacies was the Declaration of the Rights of

Man and of the Citizen• Written by the National Assembly

• Your job, read through the document• First, highlight/underline all of the rights outlined in the document.• Second, choose which one of those rights you think is the most important and explain why.• Finally, what other events, eras, or documents does this remind you of?

On your green document write this:

• Citizens can challenge an unjust government

• Influenced by Athens’ democracy

Napoleon Notes• Napoleon Takes Over• Great military general (compared to Alexander the Great)• Became dictator•Wrote Napoleonic Code• French law based on Enlightenment ideas (public schools, equality of all citizens, religious tolerance)

• Napoleon Builds an Empire• Leader of Europe• Established a sense of nationalism

Napoleon Green Doc

• Reading through the timeline of events, write a one sentence summary of the type of leader that Napoleon was that encompasses most of the events.

On your green document write this:

• Napoleon raised an army upon his return to France.

• Napoleon was not willing to accept defeat.

• Empire building equals political and religious friction.

Finally, we will read a couple accounts on decapitation…

• After you read the article, what do you believe? Be willing to share your evidence.