financial situation debt from wars debt from king’s extravagance interest payments ½ tax revenue...
TRANSCRIPT
The Events of The French Revolution
Financial Situation
Debt from Wars
Debt from King’s extravagance
Interest payments ½ tax revenue
Tax structure problems
Change necessary soon
Estates General called
Last called in 1614
Legislative body in an Absolute Monarchy
Meeting at Versailles’ palace
Each Estate gets one vote
May 5th, 1789
Double the Third
Third Estate won’t cooperate; knows result
Meets in Tennis Court
King offers two votes to Third Estate
Third rejects King’s offer
King closes the Estates General to the 3rd Estate
June 17th, 1789
National Assembly
June 20th, 1789
Three Estates meet
Form National Assembly
All Three Estates represented
Question format of Assembly
Tennis Court Oath
National Assembly vows to make change
Vow taken in Tennis Court
Will not disband until Constitution is created
BastilleKing’s Prison in downtown Paris
Symbol of King’s power and control
Crowds of 3rd Estate members attack
Free prisoners and gain weapons
Great FearRumors of violence against peasants
Untrue Rumors
Violence caused against Manor houses
Declaration of Rights of Man and of the Citizen
Created Natural Rights for the Citizens of France
Ideas from the Enlightenment thinkers
Guaranteed Certain Rights/ Natural Rights
Equal Rights didn’t apply for the women
Late August, 1789
Women March on VersaillesIn October 1789
Angry mob of women march to king’s palace in Versailles
Demanded bread
Demanded the King come to Paris to show support for NA
King announced that he was going to Paris
Angry mob follows him to Paris
Civil Constitution of the Clergy
In 1790
Turns Clergy into Elected, Paid Officials of the State
Tension/Gap between Church and Revolution
Creates Two Churches: one loyal to State/One to Rome
Pope Condemns Legislation
Clergy doesn’t accept Legislation
Constitution of 1791Created Unicameral Legislature (one house/elected officials)
Not Popular with French Citizens
Elected not direct democracy
France remains divided
Disagreements in the Legislature send the Country into turmoil
King Flees In 1792 King attempts to leave the Country
Going to his wife’s homeland, Austria
Caught at the border
Returned to Paris under arrest
Declare war on AustriaThought Austria was going to restore Louis XVI
Time: 1792Declared war on Austria AND Prussia AND
Silesia (all absolute monarchies)France: constitutional monarchy
Marie Antoinette from Austria! Her brother was emperor of Austria
Section Three
Battle at ValmySeptember 1792
The win lifted spirits of French RevolutionariesFrance v Austria & Prussia
Valmy located 100mi from ParisFrance won using Guerilla Warfare (non-
professional fighting)
National Convention and the New Calendar
1792-1795Made up of Middle Class People (Bourgeoisie)
France’s First Democratic Constitution Adopted new calendar
Sept 22, 1792 is Day One of Month One of Year One
Months named after Natural Things (Like Trees & Rivers!)
French borders extended to Natural Borders (Like Trees & Rivers…)
Trial and Execution of the KingConvicted for having conspired against
the liberty of the nationJanuary 1793
King was Beheaded by Lady GuillotineLetters of correspondents between King
& foreign dignitaries were used to discredit the royal family
Began Bloodthirst and Bloody Revolution
Committee of Public Safety
Summer of 1793
Formed by the National Convention
Adopted conscription (draft) for all men between 18-45
Formed to Direct the War Effort
Led by Maximilien Robespierre, leader of the Jacobins (extreme radicals who support the Sans Culottes-workers)
Called the world’s first “People’s War” a war of, by and for the people of France.
Reign of TerrorLasted from July 1793 to July 1794
Jacobins set out to crush all opposition to the Revolution in all of France
40,000 were executed/ 85% of the 40,000 were commoners-15% were nobles and clergy
Most were killed using the Guillotine
Jacobins made reforms
Robespierre was executed and the Jacobins lost power
Constitution of 1795Universal Male Suffrage ended (All men can vote-no tax
necessary, no property).
Now only men with property can vote
Government under the control of the wealthy middle class
Ruled with a Bicameral Legislature
The DirectoryCouncil of Five Directors (Executives)
Bicameral Legislature
1795
Faced many enemies/ Used the Army
Corrupt Leadership causes problems
French People of all classes look to the Army to reestablish order
Section Four: Napoleon’s Empire
Overthrow of the DirectoryOccurs in 1799
Napoleon replaced elected officials with those who he chose himself
Napoleon trying to set up dictatorship
Directory was not effective: didn’t represent the citizens views, did little to resolve the growing gap between the
rich and poor of France
Government was on the brink of bankruptcy
ConsulateThree Consuls; a form from Ancient Rome, the executive
branch.
Unicameral Legislature
Napoleon names himself Consul for life and First Consul.
This is established thru a vote by the people; a plebiscite
Established a strong government which was going to take care of them not allow Terror in the streets or ineffective
leadership
Crowns Himself EmperorDefeated Austria and Italy
Placed Education under control of the National government
1804
Persuaded Russia to withdraw from the War
French and British sign Treaty of Amiens
Took the crown from the Pope and put it on his own head- not allowing any one or organization to crown him
Napoleonic CodeBased on enlightenment ideas such as equality of all citizens
before the law, religious toleration and advancement based on merit
Limited freedom of speech and press by the censorship of books, plays and pamphlets.
Women lost many rights they gained during the revolution
Male heads of household were given extensive rights over women and children
1802
Concordat of 1801Acknowledges that Catholicism is the religion of most of
the people but tolerates others
An agreement between Napoleon and the Pope Pius VII
Agreed to accept the lost of church lands and pay salaries of clergy
Retained the right to name all bishops who were asked to swear allegiance to the state.
Battle of TrafalgarOctober 1805
British Naval Admiral Nelson ended the idea of the French invading Britain through the English Channel
Off the southern coast of Spain
Did not resolve the conflict between France and Britain
Continental SystemNapoleon ordered all European Nations he had conquered to
stop trading with Great Britain
Required Russia and Prussia to go along with the Blockade
Believed the system would allow France to defeat Britain by economic means.
Forbid British imports into European ports
Led to the war of 1812
British retaliated by making all ships stop in Britain
Attack on RussiaAlexander I Czar/tsar of Russia withdraws from Continental
System
Russians retreat to Central Russia and burn everything as they went: Scorched earth policy. This made sure that the
French Army could not feed itself as it chased the Russians.
May 1812, Napoleon sets out for Moscow with 600,000 and return to France with 200,000
100 DaysLouis XVIII is named King in March 1814
Napoleon is exiled (kicked out/suspended) to Elba, off the coast of Italy
He is rescued on March 1st, 1815 by loyal soldiers
After Napoleon return to France, gained back the power of the people and is re-named Emperor
Battle of Nations @ Waterloo, Belgium
Napoleon raises an army
In June 1815, the French troops are defeated by a combined force of British, Dutch, Prussians and Austrians
European Monarchs feared that the would regain strength and defeated him once and for all
St. Helena
After losing at Waterloo, Napoleon was exiled there in 1815
St. Helena is located in the South AtlanticHe died there under house arrest in 1821
Section Five: Peace in Europe
Congress of ViennaClemens Von Metternich
Prince Klemens Von Metternich
Believed that to establish European stability, that Europe should be restored to the way it was before the French
Revolution
To Achieve his goal he maintained that settlements should be guided by three principals.
The Congress meets in Vienna, Austria in late 1814 to early 1815.
RestorationReparationBalance of Power
Restoration: To restore power to the Monarchies of Europe
Reparation: compensation for war damage inflicted by Napoleon on the Countries of Europe
Balance of Power: No country should be able to dominate the Continent of Europe
These principals guide the Congress of Vienna
Buffer StatesNeutral territorries around France
They are designed to safeguard other dynasties from France’s grasp
They include Netherlands, Switzerland, 39 independent German states (German Confederation)
Reactionaries vs. LiberalismReactionaries: People who opposed change and who want
to return society to the way it was before the French Revolution
Liberalism: A Political philosophy influencing the People of the 1800’s accepted the ideas of the Enlightenment and
democratic reforms of the French Revolution
AlliancesAlliances are the promise of one country to help another in
the alliance
Alliances were called Quadruple Alliance: Great Britain, Austria, Prussia and Russia
Concluded the alliance in 1815
France was admitted three years later
Alliances were in place to prevent democratic revolution
Metternich SystemThe Meetings of the Alliances were called the Concert of Europe and helped European countries avoid conflicts like
the Napoleonic Wars
Metternich achieved his political goals in opposing Liberalism and Nationalism as well as defending the
Absolute Monarchies of Europe
NationalismThe idea of the people controlling their countries and not the
Kings was not eliminated by the Metternich System
In Germany, students rose up against the government
In Spain, the Absolute Monarch was forced to accept a constitution
In Greece the people won their independence from Turkey in 1829
The ideas of the French Revolution lived on!