The French Revolution

1. The French Revolution

2. The Ancien Regime An unequal distribution of wealth Three Estates First Estate � Clergy Second Estate � Nobility Third Estate � Peasantry First & Second Estates were exempt from the taille

3. First Estate Consisted of the clergy 130,000 people Owned 10% of the land

4. Second Estate Consisted of the nobility Owned 25%-30% of the land Nobility of the Robe � based on officeholding Commoners that attained noble rank Nobility of the Sword � descendents of medieval nobility Many nobles were poor Privileges allowed them to outrank the rest of society

5. Third Estate Consisted of the peasants Owned 35%-40% of the land Farmers, artisans, shopkeepers & workers Peasants were not serfs but still had obligations to the landlords Included payments for using the flour mill, community ovens & winepress Nobles maintained the right to hunt on peasants� land

6. Third Estate Early 18th century had economic prosperity but prices rose faster than wages (140% faster) Economic discontent spread as people struggled to survive Riots in Paris were in direct relation to changes in the price of bread � of a persons diet was bread 1/3 to � of a person�s income went towards this Bourgeoisie made up 8% of the population Owned 20%-25% of the land Merchants, industrialist & bankers Were like nobles but were excluded from social and political privileges Could enter the ranks of nobility by obtaining public office or entering the nobility of the robe

7. Causes of the Revolution Inability to deal with France�s social problems was a long-range cause of the French Revolution Crises like the bad harvests of 1787 and 1788, a manufacturing depression, food shortages, unemployment and the rising price of food all contributed as well Existing privileges and social & political institutions all came under increased criticism from the people

8. Immediate Cause of the Revolution The immediate cause of the French Revolution was due to government financial matters Expenditures increased because of war and royal extravagance Repaying debts from loans constituted half of the government�s spending King Louis XVI called the Estates-General for the first time since 1614, to help resolve the situation

9. Estates General Represented the three orders The First Estate had 300 delegates and one vote The Second Estate had 300 delegates and one vote The Third Estate had 600 delegates and one vote Each voted separately & had veto power over the other two

10. National Assembly Estates-General failed to decide if they would vote based on order or by head Abbe Sieyes, a representative, issued a pamphlet urging the Third Estate to reform the government and take power because they were 80%-90% of the population The Third Estate voted to become its own body of government, the National Assembly

11. Tennis Court Oath Three days later they were locked out of the meeting hall Moved to a nearby tennis court Took the Tennis Court Oath Swore they would meet until they created a constitution This was the first step in the French Revolution Louis XVI sided with the First Estate and threatened to dissolve the Estates-General However many enlightened clergymen and nobles decided to join the National Assembly giving it legitimacy

12. Commoners Intervene Because of this and rural & urban uprising the revolution continued Peasants would revolt based solely on the words politicians The most famous example of this is the storming of the Bastille on July 14, 1789

13. Storming the Bastille The king was unable to control the people So Parisian leaders created a Permanent Committee to keep order They organized the people and captured the Invalides & Bastilles to gain weapons Louis XVI gave Paris to the mobs, signaling the collapse of royal authority A citizens militia called the National Guard was created with Lafayette as commander Permanent Committees and National Guards were being created all over the country after revolutions broke out

14. In the Countryside Peasants revolted against the landlords, renounced their dues, tithes and burned charters listing their obligations

15. Destruction of the Ancien Regime National Assembly abolished all privileges Adopted the Declaration of the Rights of Man Based on the Declaration of Independence It gave people basic liberties, ended tax exemptions, equal rights for men, access to public office based on talent, freedom of speech & press and outlawed arbitrary arrests

16. Olympe de Gouges Declaration of the Rights of Women Women should have the same rights as men This was ignored

17. March to Versailles King remained in seclusion at Versailles and Refused to declare the passage of the end of feudalism Refused to declare the passage of the Declaration of the Rights of Man A crowd of Parisian women walked to Versailles to confront the king and the National Assembly Protest the fact that they were starving from a lack of bread The National Guard followed them to Versailles and forced the king to return to Paris and accept the National Assembly�s decrees

18. The Church Church land was confiscated and sold Ended the privileges of the church and helped raise money The church was secularized and the Civil Constitution of the Clergy was passed Abolished monasteries, made bishops & priests elected by the people, paid by the state and forced to take an oath allegiance

19. Civil Constitution 1791 � the National Assembly created a constitution Created a limited constitutional monarchy and a Legislative Assembly with sovereign power The Legislative Assembly, was elected by active citizens (men who paid taxes) and represented the wishes of the rich

20. Jacobins The Jacobins became a very influential group in French politics Were the lawyers and intellectuals of French society

21. Louis XVI Escapes 1791 � Louis XVI attempted to flee France but was captured when he was recognized Radicals wanted the king to be removed but The National Assembly pretended he was kidnapped because they didn�t want a republic as they still trusted the king

22. Opposition From Abroad European countries feared that revolution would spread to their countries Emperor Leopold II of Austria issued the Declaration of Pillnitz Urged monarchs to war with France to return the king to power Instead the Legislative Assembly declared war on Austria

23. Opposition From Abroad Leftists wanted a war It would strengthen the revolution and spread it to the rest of Europe Reactionaries hoped it would end the revolution France would be defeated and the Ancien Regime would be restored Initial French defeats upset many Parisians Parisians attacked the palace, taking the king captive and demanding an end to the monarchy

24. Start of the Radical Stage They demanded a National Convention Based on universal male suffrage starting the radical stage of the revolution Power moved from the Legislative Assembly to the Paris Commune Ran by sans-culottes or ordinary people Sans-culottes wanted revenge against supporters of the king and arrested and killed thousands of people believed to be traitors

25. The Radical Revolution The Paris Commune gave way to the National Convention which became the ruling body of France that would create a new constitution First they abolished the monarchy and created a republic The Convention, which was dominated by Jacobins split into two parties, the Girondins and the Mountain Girondins wanted to keep the king alive so they could blame him when future riots occurred The Mountain wanted to kill him to make the people of Paris happy and in 1793 they condemned Louis XVI

26. Execution of Louis XVI During this time the Paris Commune was the local government of France and favored radical change They broke into the National Convention, arrested and killed all the Girondins Then executed Louis XVI and his family

27. After Louis XVI France was unofficially at war with all of Europe Europe was on the verge of invading France, ending the revolution and reestablishing the Ancien Regime To prevent this the National Convention attempted to stop anarchy and counterrevolution at home Mobilized the country to win the war To do this they create an executive committee called the Committee of Public Safety

28. Committee of Public Safety Headed by Maximilien Robespierre Instituted universal mobilization & raised the largest army in European history By May 1795 the European powers were defeated

29. Reign of Terror The Committee of Public Safety created revolutionary courts to try enemies of the revolution Enemies included Marie Antoinette, Girondins, Olympe de Gouge, peasants and anyone who opposed the sans-culottes In 9 months they had killed 16,000 people officially, but 50,000 in actuality The Revolutionary Armies were used to bring the rest of France under the control of the National Convention and defeat rebel armies

30. �Republic of Virtue� Women played a role in the revolution by becoming spectators at the National Convention and making their demands known to its members Female participation in politics was not accepted and the Paris Commune outlawed women�s clubs because �a woman�s place was in the home�

31. Dechristianization The National Convention attempted to dechristianize France and even changed the calendar but these attempts eventually failed 19 Frimaire CCXIII = December 10, 2004 d. In 1794 the Committee of Public Safety turned against its radical supporters and executed the leaders of the Paris Commune to ensure order

32. End of the Reign of Terror However, the Reign of Terror was no longer necessary because the war had been won But Robespierre had become obsessed with ending corruption This caused the National Convention to turn against Robespierre and condemned him to death thus ending the radical stage of the revolution The National Convention and the Committee of Public Safety preserved the revolution from foreign enemies

33. Thermidorean Reaction The National Convention ended the power of the Committee of Public Safety, shut down the Jacobins and attempted to control Parisian mobs Freedom of worship was allowed, economic regulations gave way to laissez-faire ideal, a new constitution was created and moderate forces returned to power

34. Constitution of 1795 Created a two chamber legislative to prevent a recurrence of past events Council of 500 Council of Elders

35. Council of Elders Five council members would be selected to act as executives in the Directory As everything else does, this caused a riot in Paris but it was the last and it was ended by Napoleon Important � the Directory was depended on the military to protect its power, allowing a coup d�etat to occur in 1799 and Napoleon to gain power

36. Rise of Napoleon Born in Corsica 1769 Obtained a scholarship to study at a military school in France Commissioned as a lieutenant in 1785 Not liked by his fellow officers He was short Spoke with an Italian accent Had little money

37. Young Napoleon Napoleon educated himself on military matters and quickly moved through the ranks Saved the National Convention from a Parisian mob and became commander of the French army in Italy He then beat the Austrians

38. Winning Support Liked by his men because of his energy, charm, ability to solve complex issues and make quick decisions Won the support of people with his words & confidence After the coup executive power was placed in the hands of three consuls Napoleon was first consul and in entire control of government

39. Emperor Napoleon I 1802 � Napoleon was made consul for life Crowned himself Emperor and stabilized France under his regime as dictator

40. Domestic Policies 1801 � Napoleon made peace with the Catholic Church and issued the Concordat Stated that the Church was no longer an enemy of France if they recognized that the land they lost during the revolution was no longer theirs

41. Napoleonic Code Created seven civil codes including the Napoleonic Code Gave all citizens: Equality before the law Promotion based on ability Religious toleration Protection of property rights Outlawed trade unions and strikes

42. Taxes Napoleon made tax collection efficient Used professional collectors to directly deal with individual taxpayers No tax exemptions were granted and no special arrangements were allowed

43. New Aristocracy Some of the equality people gained during the revolution were lost due to the creation of a new aristocracy Based on property, the use of conscription and government censorship of newspapers, books and mail

44. Napoleon�s Grand Empire The Grand Empire consisted of three parts The French Empire � was the core of the empire and consisted of a France enlarged to the Rhine, and Italy The Dependent States � Spain, Holland, Italy, Switzerland the Grand Duchy of Warsaw & the Rhine Confederation The Allied States � defeated by Napoleon including Prussia, Austria and Russia Napoleon demanded the obedience and acceptance of French revolutionary principles Equality, religious tolerance & economic freedom

46. Napoleon�s First Loss Napoleon, attempted to defeat France�s age old rival by destroying Britain�s navy 1805 � the Battle of Trafalgar saw the British defeat the French-Spanish fleet The French lost

47. The Continental System Implement after the loss at Trafalgar Attempted to cut off British goods to the continent Supposed to weaken the British economy so they could not afford to wage war Failed because the Allied States smuggled British goods & Britain sold their goods to their markets in the Caribbean

48. Spread of Nationalism Napoleon was also defeated by his spread of nationalism across Europe Nationalism encouraged people identify with each other based on the language, religion and national symbols they had in common The French encouraged nationalism by becoming hated oppressors and by showing people how a nation in arms could defeat even the toughest opponents

49. Russian Invasion Napoleon�s downfall began in 1812 when he invaded Russia Russia was an Allied state but decided not to implement the Continental System, Napoleon had to invade As Russian forces retreated farther and farther into the interior of Russia, they burned villages and crops

50. The Great Retreat Napoleon�s 600,000 men began suffering from starvation Upon reaching Moscow and finding it burning, Napoleon started the �Great Retreat� leaving only 40,000 survivors of the French army This caused wars of liberation all over Europe and Napoleon was finally defeated in 1814

51. Exile and Escape Napoleon was exiled to the island of Elba and the monarchy was restored under Louis XVIII Napoleon escaped the island, landed in France, recruited the soldiers that were sent to capture him and walked on Paris

52. Waterloo Napoleon then raised an army to fight the allied forces in Belgium at Waterloo His defeat ensured he would not threaten Europe again He was exiled to the small island of St. Helena

53. Fini Next: Industrial Revolution