Chapter 19 Euro: The French Revolution

What was the National convention's first major step? The one thing that they agreed on

to abolish the monarchy and establish a republic.

What was the French Republic's army called?

"A nation in arms" It was the largest army ever seen in European history.

What kind of legislature did the Constitution of 1795 call for?

- A bicameral legislature - Lower house (Council of 500) to start the legislation - Upper house (Council of Elders) to accept or reject the proposed laws. *Were chosen by electors who were required to have property worth 100-200 days' labor. *Electors were chosen by active citizens who were all male taxpayers over 21 years old.

What was the goal of the new Constitution of 1795

- It called for a more conservative republicanism and a desire for stability - Did not sacrifice the ideals of 1789

What was the Reign of Terror?

- the Reign of Terror was the period of time in which France was under the rule of Maximilien Robespierre, during which executions by guillotine were extremely prevalent occurrences. -These executions were done to protect the Republic from its internal enemies -Some victims of this terror were Marie Antoinette, Oympe de Gouges, and many peasants where were mostly from Marseilles, Vendee, and Lyon (counter-revolutionary districts.) *People who didn't agree with the sans-culottes

What countries was France at war with in 1799

-A coalition of GB,Russia, and Austria. -Napoleon called for a truce because it was too much for the recovering nation and the world. -France gained new frontiers from the North Sea and Adriatic. -The peace was only temporary since Great Britain and France had no intent of coming to peace with each other.

What was the National Convention?

-A convention that was made for the purpose of drafting a new constitution. -It would also act as the sovereign ruling body of France. -The convention was dominated by lawyers, professionals, and property owners and included a handful of artisans (for the first time) -Almost all of the members had political experience as a result of the king and his activities.

Who were the Jacobins?

-A political club that started out as moderate but slowly began to believe in more radical ways of solving the nation's problems. -They were usually elite people from their towns, but tradespeople and artisans were also in the club.

Who was Abbe Sieyes?

-A representative of the Third Estate who felt as though the Third Estate should have some kind of political power instead of being ignored despite the fact that they are the largest societal group. -He wanted to overthrow the traditional institutions of the government . *Most delegates only wanted to make changes within the framework of the Constitution, not overthrow the king or the government.

What was the Bastille?

-A royal armory that was filled with arms and ammunition. -also a state prison -The Bastille was used by the common people to get gunfire for the weapons that they had taken from another armory. -The commoners were able to destroy the prison thanks to the unreliable royal troops of Louis. *the fall was a symbol of the triumph of the people over despotism.

What was the Declaration of the Rights of Man and the Citizen?

-Affirmed that citizens had "the natural rights to liberty, property, security, and resistance to oppression" -Affirmed the destruction of aristocratic privileges by proclaiming an end to exemptions from taxation, freedom and equal rights for all men, and access to public office based on talent. -Restricted monarchy and gave all citizens the right to take part in the legislative process. -Freedom of speech -Outlawing of arbitrary arrests

Who was Marquis de Lafayette?

-An aristocrat who had volunteered as a soldier for the Continental Army of the United States during the American Revolution. -Lafayette brought back many stories about the ideas of individual liberties and notions of republicanism and popular sovereignty -Was appointed as the commander of the National Guard by Louis XVI.

What was the Civil Constitution of the Clergy?

-Bishops and Priests of the Catholic Church were to be elected by the people and paid by the state. The clergy were obligated to pledge allegiance to the Civil Constitution. -The pope forbade the pledge so not many clergy or bishops took the oath. *Was an attempt to reorganize the Catholic Church to the French government. *The Catholic Church now became an enemy of the Revolution.

What impact did the American Revolution have on Europe?

-Books, newspapers, and magazines provided the newly developing reading public with numerous accounts of American events. -Proved to many Europeans that the liberal political ideas of the Enlightenment were real and not hypothetical claims (rights of man, popular sovereignty, the separation of powers, and freedom of religion, thought, and press were not utopian ideals.

How did the National Convention attempt to de-Christianize France?

-Changing street names that started with 'saint' -Changing Notre Dame to the Temple of Reason -Got rid of the Julian calendar and replaced it with a new, 12 month calendar that started on Spt 22,1792 when the Republic was established.

Who were the Estates-General?

-Consisted of reps from the 3 orders of French society -The 3rd Estate (commoners) had almost double the number of reps (600 vs 300) -The activists of the First Estate and the reform oriented people of the Third Estate created the Cahiers de Doleances (statements of grievances) -The issue of how voting should be commenced (whether it should be by order or by head--each delegate having one vote) caused problems between the First and Third Estate.

When was the Legislative Assembly created?

-Created after King Louis XVI attempted to flee France. -Most of the representatives were men with property who were oftentimes lawyers.

What did the new Constitution of 1791 created by the National Assembly say?

-Established a constitutional monarchy -Sovereign power was vested in the assembly -There were 745 reps chosen by an indirect system of election that kept the power in the hands of the more affluent members of society. -The active citizens would vote for electors that would vote for deputies.

How did Napoleon create new aristocracy?

-He granted the aristocratic status based on merit in the state service. -He created about 3,263 nobles with 60% of them being military officers or bourgeoisie.

In what ways was Napoleon tyrannical?

-He used conscription -Created a new aristocracy -He shut down many newspapers and required all manuscripts to be subjected to government scrutiny before they were all published. -Mail was opened by government police

How did Napoleon become an Emperor?

-He was named as the permanent First Consul (even though under Article 42 of the Constitution there were three consuls that were supposed to maintain the government) -He crowned himself as the Emperor of France.

Describe Napoleon's military career

-He went from captain to commander to brigadier general then to major general after he saved the National Convention from a Parisian mob -He trained some sucky soldiers into good ones and defeated the Austrians and dictated peace to them -He was given the command of training the army to invade England (He used these soldiers to try and invade Egypt though)

What marked the beginning of Napoleon's downfall?

-His loss in Russia. Russia had left the Continental System and Napoleon felt like he had to act or else other countries would leave the alliance without being afraid of punishment. -The Russians burned down their cities and continued to avoid fighting the French -The French had no food, shelter, or any provisions to keep them warm and died from this along with disease.

How did the National Assembly restructure France?

-It abolished all the old local and provincial divisions and divided France into 83 districts that were supervised by elected officials. - Few nobles were elected for this job -most of the departmental governments were in the hands of the bourgeoisie, especially the lawyers.

What was done to bring counter-revolutionary districts back into the National Convention?

-Military force was used. *Marseilles was taken by the army *Hungry people of Lyons surrendered *Rev armies beat the Vendee rebel armies

Describe the Catholic Church during this time.

-Most of the lands of the church were confiscated and assignats, a form of paper money, were given based on the insurance of the newly nationalized church property -Churches became secularized -A new Civil Constitution of the Clergy was placed.

What was the French Bureaucracy like under Napoleon?

-Napoleon kept the 83 divided districts of France made by the National Assembly. -He made new officials called prefects who were responsible for controlling all aspects of the local government. Their careers depended on the central government, however.

What was the Declaration of Pillnitz?

-On August 27,1791, Emperor Leopold II of Austria and King Frederick William II of Prussia issued the Declaration of Pillnitz, which invited other European monarchs to help put Louis XVI back into power for the perfect liberty.

What kind of enemies did the Directory have to deal with?

-Royalists who wanted a monarch and sometimes used violence -Jacobins who were hoping to revive themselves by the continuing economic problems.

How did Napoleon change taxes?

-Taxes were collected professional collectors employed by the state who dealt directly with each tax payer. -There were no tax exemptions. *Even though this was seen in the Declaration of the Rights of Man and Citizen, it was not until Napoleon's rule that it actually worked. -In 1802 Napoleon proclaimed a balanced budget.

What was the reaction to the new calendar?

-The French people were still highly Catholic even when secularism was growing. Many people did not support such a drastic change. -Many of the French officials weren't even following the laws. -It was not easy to become accustomed to the law

What is the importance of the French revolutionary army in the creation of modern nationalism?

-The entire nation was involved in the war -The creation of the "people's government" made the wars the "people's" wars.

How were peasants living in France before the Revolution?

-There was no serfdom but the French peasants still had obligations to their landlords who they hated.

What did the Committee of Public Safety do to mobilize for the impending invasion?

-They called on young men to assemble, married men to gather arms, women to nurture, children to gather lint, and old men to spread the hatred for kings and the need for unity of the Republic -The French government had increased the size of the army fro 650,000 to 1,169,000 soldiers. These soldiers were comprised of the people since it was the "people's government"

What was the largest segment of the Third Estate?

-They constituted 75 to 80 percent of the total population. -They owned 35 to 40 percent of the land, but their was not much to survive on.

How did the Republic justify the killing of the French citizens?

-They stated that those that were not aligned with the will of the French people, were outside of the sovereign. If someone was outside of the sovereign, then they were the enemy. Thus, a citizen who didn't believe in the will was an enemy that needed to be eliminated. -Reasoning of Rousseau's Social Contract and 'General Will' are seen here.

How were the rights of some people overlooked by the Civil Code?

-Trade unions and strikes were outlawed -Women had a much harder time filing for divorce from their husbands. -The property rights of women were gone and put under the control of their husbands. -Women were treated like minors in lawsuits and were not taken seriously when they gave testimonies

What was French society like?

-Very unequal -Based on privilege in social structures

Who was Maximilien Robespierre?

-Was a part of the Estates General early on -Became a Jacobin -Supported the National Convention -Became the head of the Committee of Public Safety -Acted as a tyrant as he began to instill his Reign of Terror -Was eventually killed

Committee of Public Safety

-Was created to deal with both the counter-revolutionary sentiment of some French people and the possible invasion of France by Austria, Spain, Portugal, Prussia, Britain, and The Dutch Republic. -12 members controlled it and gave the country leadership.

What was the Directory?

-Were the Executive authority - started by the National Convention - a committee of five who were chosen from the Council of Elders from a list created by the Council of 500 - the Directory had to rely on the military to survive - ended up being overthrown by Napoleon.

What caused the creation of the National Assembly?

-When the First Estate declared in favor of voting by order and NOT by head like the Third Estate wanted. -The Third Estate voted to make itself a "National Assembly" that would create a new constitution. -Some liberals from the First and Second estate joined.

Why did Louis XVI call on the Estates-General?

-When the French economy was suffering to the point of no return, Louis XVI called the Estates General (that hadn't been called in nearly a century) to help -By calling the Estates General the government showed that the consent of the nation was required to raise taxes.

What was the role of Women during the radical period?

-Women were oftentimes watching the sessions of the Rev clubs or attending the National Convention and making their demands heard. -As often seen with women, they were ignored. The Paris Commune is a good example of this: They outlawed women's clubs and forbade women to be present at their meetings because they believed that women should stay at home.

What are the details of the Calendar?

1. 12 month 2. Each month is made of three weeks 3. A week is equal to two days (That means there is no Sunday and would confuse Christians on what day to worship) 4. No Christian holidays, only Revolutionary holidays 5. last 5 days in the year would be left to celebrate Revolutionary festivals centered on Virtue, Intelligence, Labor, Opinion, and Rewards 5. Non-working holidays were reduced.

What was the true number of victims of the Reign of Terror?

55,000 people

What was the Cahiers de Doleances?

A list of grievances from the 3rd Estate

Who was Olympe de Gouges

A playwright and pamphleteer who advocated that political rights should also be allowed for women in the Declaration of the Rights of Man and the Citizen. She wrote this any many other statements advocating for the rights of women in the Declaration of the Rights of Woman and the Female Citizen. *the National Assembly ignored her demands.

What was the Great Fear?

A spreading fear that foreign troops, with the help of aristocrats, would invade. This encouraged the creation of more citizens' militias and permanent committees.

Why did the National Convention split into factions?

Because they had differing thoughts on determining the fate of the king. The most prominent groups were the Girondins and the Mountains who were both members of the Jacobin club

Why did the French go into war with the Austrians?

Because they wanted to. -Some people hoped a war with Austria would distract from the Revolution -Others believed that the Revolution would spread if there was a war.

What was the Continental System?

Countries of Napoleon's Great Empire (Enlarged France, Italy,Swiss Republic, All German states, Austria, Prussia, and Russia were ordered to prevent British goods from reaching their countries (essentially all of Europe). -It failed because the allied states resented the tight rules on them -Some of the countries began to resist, others cheated

What was France like in the fifty years before 1789?

France had experienced a period of economic growth due to the expansion of foreign trade and the increase in industrial production. *Peasants did not prosper from this at all.

What was the Battle of Trafalgar of 1805?

France teamed up with Spain to try and invade Great Britain. They failed because of the seapower of GB's navy. Napoleon's last ditch effort was the Continental System.

What was the taille?

France's chief tax, the first and second estates were exempt from it.

What country announced its freedom and became the first independent state in Latin America?

Haiti - January 1, 1804

Why did the deputies of the National Convention want to kill Robespierre?

He became obsessed with purifying the country of "enemies" and they were afraid he'd start killing them. Robespierre was guillotined on July 28,1794

Who was Toussaint L'Ouverture?

He led a revolution on the island of Hispaniola. This revolution was when more than a hundred thousand slaves revolted and took control of hispaniola. The western part of Hispaniola declared independence and became the first independent state in latin america.

How did Napoleon mend ties with the Catholic church?

He made negotiations with the Pope to reestablish the Catholic Church in France. It was called the Concordat

What did the Committee of Public Safety think of the Terror?

It was temporary and needed to get all the bad people out. Once that was done, they could return to a France where the Declaration of the Rights of Man and Citizen would be fully established.

What was the Thermidorean Reaction?

It was the term to describe the reaction of the people after Robespierre was executed. - The National convention lost much power - the Jacobins were shut down - and churches were allowed to reopen and people could go back to worshiping as they pleased. - In 1795, a new Constitution was written to embrace these more conservative ways. - Laissez-faire policies were brought back

Why was the intervention of the common people so crucial to the strength of the National Assembly?

King Louis XVI had threatened to dissolve the Estates-General because of the National Assembly. The common people saved the Third Estate from the attempts to stop the Revolution by participating in uprisings.

What was the flight to Varennes?

King Louis and his family attemped to escape. They disguised themselves, but ended up getting discovered, being placed on house arrest.

What city was used as an example of what happened when the National Convention was disrespected?

Lyons -Since it was the second city after France and was counter-revolutionary when the Republic was in danger, the National Convention not only used measures such as chopping off their heads, but shooting, using cannons, etc. -About 1,880 citizens were killed

Who were the Sans-Culottes?

Meaning "without breeches". They were the members of the Paris Commune. They did not wear the knee-length breeches that the nobles did. They wore long pants and were often depicted as poor workers, but many were artisans and merchants.

How did both sides gain from the Concordat?

Napoleon: - The state still had the right to nominate bishops - Pope acknowledged the successes of the Revolution - Pope agreed not to ask about the church lands that wee confiscated during the Rev. This meant that those who had gotten church lands were not going to be stripped of them. - Catholicism was not reestablished as the state religion but only recognized as the religion of the majority of the French people - Bishops and priests were payed by the state as well as the leaders of protestant churches Pope: - Gained the right remove bishops from office - Given permission to hold ceremonies and reopen the seminaries.

Who was Napoleon Bonaparte?

Napoléon Bonaparte was a French military and political leader who rose to prominence during the French Revolution. He was able to overthrow the Directory and make himself powerful in France.

What was another factor in the defeat of Napoleon apart from Britain's survival?

Nationalism. Nationalism involved all aspects that solidified a country's people. Napoleon inadvertently spread nationalism by making other nation's citizens come together in part due to their mutual hate for France and love for their own country. France also had the largest army in Europe, which showed other countries that nationalism could do the same for them.

Was the Terror biased to class?

No fam, they killed anyone they thought was suspisioso

Was the Declaration of Pillnitz acted upon by the European countries?

No-- They didn't trust each other enough to undertake the plan and the Legislative Assembly decided to declare war on Austria anyway, so it wouldn't have worked.

Did the National Convention itself rule all of France?

No.

Further explain the Temple of Reason

Notre Dame was changed to the Temple of Reason, which was symbolized by a female figure that represented Liberty, like what the French had gifted the Americans after their Revolutionary war.

The First Estate

Occupation: Clergy Amount: 130,000 people Treatment: Exempted from the taille, or the French chief tax. *Clergy were somewhat radically divided since the higher clergy shared the same interests as the nobility while the parish priest were often poor commoners.

The Third Estate

Occupation: Commoners of the society. Amount: Made up the majority of the French population. Treatment: Were divided by vast differences in occupation, level of education, and wealth.

The Second Estate

Occupation: Nobility Robe: payed to be there. Sword: Descendants of the title Amount: 350,000 people Treatment: They played an important role in that they owned about 25-30% of the land. They held the leading positions in the government, military, and the higher church offices. *Were exempt from taxes, especially the taille.

Who were the Bourgeoisie?

Occupation: Professional workers (Merchants, industrialists, and bankers as well as lawyers, doctors, and writers) Amount: 8% or 2.3 million people Treatment: They owned 20 to 25% of the land. Grievance: Often excluded from the social and political privileges that the nobles held exclusively. *Bourgeois and other aristocrats were elites who opposed the old order of the French government, which led them to take drastic action against the monarchical regime.

What was the August 4th Decree?

On August 4,1789, the National Assembly voted to abolish class rights as well as fiscal privileges of noble, clergy, towns, and provinces.

Battle of Waterloo

On June 18, 1815, Napoleon gathers an army and marches towards Waterloo. Great Britain outnumbered Napoleon 2 to 1. Napoleon starts a frontal attack and his calvary was destroyed. Then, the Prussian soldiers attack and defeat Napoleon's toughest soldiers, the Imperial Guard. It was Napoleon's greatest defeat

What is another part of the Third Estate?

Skilled artisans, shopkeepers, and other wage earners in the cities. This segment saw the increase in rents and decrease in purchasing power. *This segment played an especially important role in Paris.

What happened to the Girondins?

The Commune had invaded the National Convention and then arrested or killed the leading Girondins. This left the Mountain in control.

Why did the Terror no longer have a purpose in 1794?

The French military were successful against the foreign enemies

What was the Woman's March to Versailles?

The amount of bread in Paris was very scarce and the families were starving. Women, many of whom were mothers trying to provide food for their children, marched to Versailles, where Louis XVI lived and demanded for more grain supplies. Louis promised this would happen. *The women insisted that Louis move to Paris.

What was the Commune?

The controller of the Parisian local government in which many artisans and shopkeepers were leaders. The Commune wanted radical change and continuously pressured the National Convention.

Describe the French Parlements and their refusal to make reforms

The courts decided to block royal edicts by not registering them. They used this strength against the arbitrary laws of the monarchy. *They pushed their own interests, like blocking new taxes.

What led to the coup d'etat by Napoleon Bonaparte in 1799?

The increased dependence of the Directory on the military.

Who was Georges Danton?

The minister of justice who led the Paris Commune. They sought revenge on those who helped the king and resisted the popular will.

What was the Civil Code/ Napoleonic Code?

The most important of the 7 codes -Recognized the principles of: equality before the law, the right of individuals to choose their professions, religious toleration, and the abolition of serfdom and feudalism. - Property rights were protected

What was the anti-Christian purpose of the calendar?

The naming of the months were changed to those that addressed the appropriate season, temperature, or state of vegetation.

Who were the Girondins?

The people of the National Convention who did not want to kill the King.

How did the ideas of the Philosophes affect the revolution?

The philosophes did not advocate for revolution and it is hard to prove the actual influence the ideas had, however the rev leaders often quoted Enlightenment thinkers.

What is insubordination?

The refusal to carry out an order. Many people in the Third estate were insubordinate towards their landlords and/or the system that they worked in.

What did the Committee of Public Safety do to some leaders of the Paris commune?

They killed prominent leaders like Georges Danton

What happened with the French in the war?

They lost a lot of money. This caused lots of popular radical groups to arise and organize mobs against the king, the Legislative Assembly, and to call for a national convention chosen on the basis of universal male suffrage to decide the future form of government.

Who were the Mountain?

They represented the interests of Parisians. The Mountain won when in 1793, the National Convention decided to kill the king for treason. Once the king was killed, so was the old regime.

What is the significance of Vendee, Marseilles, and Lyons?

They were counter-revolutionary cities that did not listen to the orders of the National Convention. They wanted a decentralized republic so that they wouldn't be dominated by Paris.

What did the Terror do to the people of Nantes?

Victims were executed by sinking them in the Loire River

What was the first instance that showed that the French Revolution was becoming more radical?

When an organized mob attacked the royal palace and the Legislative Assembly in August 1792. They forced the Legislative Assembly to suspend the monarchy and call for a national convention that was chosen on the basis of universal male suffrage to decide on the new form of government.

What was the Tennis Court Oath?

When the National Assembly was locked out of their meeting area, they decided to meet in a tennis court where they took an oath promising that they would not stop meeting until they had made a new French constitution. *Showed the first steps in the French Revolution since the Third Estate had no legal right to act as the National Assembly.

What was the Paris Commune?

an assembly that was made up of the sans-culottes. The passing of power from the assembly to the Paris Commune showed that the French Revolution was approaching a more radical stage.