French Rev Midterm

Diamond Necklace Affair (1785)

(1785) scandal at the court of Louis XVI that discredited the French monarchy. The reputation of the queen was ruined by the (untrue) implication that she had participated in a crime to defraud the crown jewelers of the cost of a very expensive diamond necklace. A cardinal was convinced by a con woman/prostitute and her husband to help rob the necklace on behalf of the queen. He was arrested and put on trial. But lawyers defended him as a victim of unearned privilege and he was acquitted.

Eighteen Brumaire

(1799) A coup that brought General Napoleon Bonaparte to power as First Consul of France, and ended the French Revolution. The coup d'etat overthrew the Directory, replacing it with the French Consulate. Napoleon created a coup within a coup to gain power.

Napoleon III

(1808-1873) nephew of Napoleon I, president of the Second Republic of France (1850-1852), and then Emperor of the French (1852-1870). He used Napoleon's fame to win a landslide election as president of the new French Republic against General Cavignac, famous for his role in crushing June Days insurrection. His term was limited to 4 years, which he quickly set about to change. The conservative legislature did not view Louis Napoleon as a significant threat and set out to undermine the liberal press by forcing them to pay the state to start a paper and then shutting down newspapers that incited one set of civilians against another. Their actions effectively increased the cost of political participation for radical elite bourgeois publishers, who feared going to jail and instead left politics. The conservative government also purged key administrative posts, including schoolteachers and mayors, of liberals. They made the color red, which was associated with socialism and the Revolution, illegal. And disenfranchised voters. So when Napoleon III launched a coup in 1851 by arresting members of the National Assembly and announcing the end of the Republic, the National Assembly did not have the popular support to stop him. However, thanks to the formation of secret societies throughout France, there were uprisings across the country, which were brutally suppressed (25,000 people were arrested and put on trial). As Emperor, Napoleon III supported science, believed in opening careers to talent, supported economic expansion (financing railroad and industrial projects and facilitating the great takeoff), signed on to a free trade treaty with Britain (the Chevalier treaty), and promoted France's glory with a series of Great Expositions. He benefited from the development of improved agricultural practices and the building of rail networks, both of which decreased the prevalence of grain famines. With Baron Hausmann's help, he also reshaped Paris, creating the clean, beautiful city we know while at the same time dislocating thousands of people who had been crammed together in the center of the city. He engineered his own demise by adopting liberal policies like the relaxation of control over who could vote, the elimination of censorship, legalized strikes (which led to a slate of strikes around the country), and recognized the right to public meeting (ordinary people began meeting and discussing a Social Republic).

Four Sergeants of La Rochelle

(1822) soldiers who were guillotined in Paris in 1822 for plotting to overthrow the restored monarchy of Louis XVIII. Their deaths remained in the public consciousness and collective memory and inspired liberal resistance. They were demi-soldes (half-pension soldiers) who disliked the government in power.

Paris Commune

(1871) Insurrection of Paris against the French government from March 18 to May 28, 1871. It occured in the wake of France's defeat in the Franco-German War and the collapse of Louis Napoleon's Second Empire. Because elections had been rushed, France's rural regions voted for royalist/conservative candidates. Republicans in Paris feared that Thiers' government in Versailles would restore the monarchy and prepared to resist. Thiers tried to disarm Paris' National Guard, which had just finished bravely resisting the year-long Prussian siege of Paris, which had seen massive popular participation and political meetings which called for greater freedom, and now felt as if Thiers' conservative government wanted to undermine the cause for which they had fought. Resistance broke out in Paris in response to Thiers' action. Municipal elections a week later returned a revolutionary government, which formed the Commune. Other Communes around France were quickly suppressed. The Commune in Paris, however, organized a relatively effective defense, maintained order and public utilities in Paris, and implemented republican reforms. The Commune resisted for many months but faced a numerically daunting force, which was supplemented by soldiers whom the Prussians had recently released from POW camps. The Versaillais or government troops entered Paris in an undefended section and proceeded to capture much of Paris, killing prisoners as they went along. Versaillais propaganda, which had demonized Parisian Communards as anarchists and selfish, convinced many Versaillais soldiers to summarily execute anyone they suspected of being attached to the Commune during Bloody Week. About 200,000 insurrectionists were killed, compared to 750 government troops. In the aftermath of the Commune, the government undertook further repressive action: 38,000 Communards were arrested and more than 7,000 were deported. The summary executions carried out by the Versaillais troops against poor working class Parisians were the first examples of the kind of state-sanctioned violence that would characterize the 20th century.

Storming of the Bastille

(July 14, 1789) a mob of cabinetmakers and local artisans along with a group of some of the king's soldiers stormed and dismantled the Bastille, a royal fortress and prison that had come to symbolize despotism. While only 7 people were held in the Bastille at the time, it had once held Voltaire and other political dissidents and rumors suggested that other political prisoners were being held there at the time. Because many of the prisoners in the past were held without trial thanks to lettres de cachet, the Bastille came to be seen as a symbol of despotic rule. The commander of the Bastille, after surrendering, was beheaded by a butcher and his head paraded on a pike, foreshadowing the bloody violence to come. Especially worrisome for the king was the fact that some of his own soldiers, rather than fire on the crowd, joined the crowd in attacking the Bastille, lending cannons to the attackers.

Romanticism

19th century artistic movement that appealed to emotion rather than reason

Lyon and Class Conflict

In 1831 and 1832, there was a series of insurrections in Lyon. There was significant class tension between working class silk weavers and wealthy silk merchants. Along the Croix-Rousse, which was a passage under which silk passed to keep it dry, working class people marched into the center of the city and attacked the National Guard and army. They carried signs that read "Live Free or Die Fighting." They were slaughtered and the local rebellion was crushed, as Louis Philippe maintained the status quo for the bourgeois.

Louis XIV

(1683-1715) Known as the Sun King, he extended France's borders and secured the Spanish throne for his grandson. He led numerous wars against the Hapsburgs and other foes to extend dynastic lands. He forced the nobles to submit to his rule and that of his family, bringing them to Versailles to keep watch on them.

Joseph de Maistre

(1753-1821) French polemical author, moralist and diplomat who was uprooted by French revolution and so became a great exponent of the conservative tradition. He was virulently anti-philosophy and believed that France was still living in original sin. He advocated for the monarchy and a return to a social hierarchy during the Restoration. He was a proponent of theocracy and blamed Protestants and Jews for disrupting the unity of France. One of his most controversial positions was that guillotines should be placed outside manors to punish peasants, an extreme Ultra view.

Jacques Brissot

(1754-1793) a leader of the Girondins (often called Brissotins), a moderate bourgeois faction that opposed the radical-democratic Jacobins during the French Revolution. He was originally elected as a Jacobin but began to associate himself with the Girondins. Brissot and other Girondins suggested alternatives to the king's execution. He played a key role in France's declaration of war against the Austrians.

de Bonald

(1754-1840) political philosopher and statesman who was a leading apologist for Legitimism, a position contrary to the values of the French Revolution and favoring monarchical and ecclesiastical authority. He believed in Christian monarchies, arguing that the monarchy and the church were integral to French society. He argued that society returns to savagery when the monarchy or the church are attacked.

Louis XVIII

(1755-1824) king of France by title from 1795, but in fact from 1814-1824, except for the interruption of the 100 days. He fled France in 1791 to escape the Revolution. He wrote uncompromising revolutionary manifestos and declared himself king after Louis XVI's and Louis XVII's death. Between 1795 and 1814, he wandered throughout Europe, including Prussia, England, and Russia, promoting the royalist cause. When he came to power in 1814, he declared a constitutional monarchy, with a bicameral parliament, religious toleration, and constitutional rights for all citizens. He resisted the Ultras' efforts to roll back representation and return nationalized property to nobles and the church because he recognized that doing so would result in revolution. Most of his attempts to heal the wounds of revolution failed because of the Ultras. His heir, Charles X, took France in a more conservative direction.

Marquis de Lafayette

(1757-1834) a French major general who aided the colonies during the Revolutionary War. During the French Revolution, he was a leading advocate for constitutional monarchy. He composed a draft of the Declaration of Rights of Man and Citizen and presented it to the National Assembly and which was significantly revised and issued on August 27, 1789. He was elected as commander of the national guard of Paris in 1789 and escorted the royal family to live in the Tuileries following the Women's March on Versailles. Following the King's Flight to Varennes, a crowd of protesters gathered on the Champ de Mars (July 17, 1791) to demand the abdication of the king. Lafayette's guards opened fire on the crowd, killing or wounding about 50 demonstrators. He defected to the Austrians in 1792 because he would have been executed by the Jacobins. He led a moderate faction during the July Revolution of 1830 that replaced Charles X with Louis Philippe.

Benjamin Constant

(1767-1830) an influential Swiss novelist, political essayist, and member of the Chamber of Deputies who provided the program for the liberal opposition to Charles X, calling for the extension of the franchise. He called for separation of powers and a "government of laws, not men." He supported the July Monarchy of Louis Philippe, arguing that it was the "last ark of safety" against a revolution led by the poor.

Napoleon Bonaparte

(1769-1821) French general, first consul (1799-1804), and emperor of the French (1804-1814/15). He revolutionized military organization and training; sponsored the Napoleonic Code, the prototype of later civil-law codes; reorganized education; and established the long-lived Concordat with the papacy. Born in Corsica, he eventually abandoned his Corsican roots, rising through the French military ranks thanks to his talents as an artillery officer. He came to power on the 18 Brumaire, overthrowing the Directory. He used a plebiscite in 1802 to solidify his rule. His military genius led him to expand France's borders and permanently alter Europe. However, he was never able to defeat Britain, a naval power, despite efforts to implement a continental blockade and his invasion of Russia was disastrous. His wars of territorial expansion depleted France's reserves of men and were sustained by recruiting abroad as well as mass conscription at home. He managed to improve relations with the Catholic Church, forcing the pope to crown him emperor of France and reducing religious tension and entrenched opposition to the revolution. The Napoleonic Code followed enlightenment tradition by rationalizing laws. It maintained the concept of an active citizen--well off, contributes to society with taxes--but wanted to create equality before the law. However, the Code ignored women's rights. He accelerated the centralization of the French state in pursuit of his many wars. He believed in talent and the Revolution's ability to help the talented rise up the social ladder. He was eventually defeated after his disastrous invasion of Russia and then again after he returned in 1815 for his 100 days, after which he was exiled to Saint Helena.

Segur Law

(1781) a French law that required French officer candidates to produce proof of having at least four generations of nobility. The law increased tensions between nobles of the sword (nobles from old families) and nobles of the robe (new nobles). The law also demonstrates Louis XVI's preference for older generation nobles. Ended by Calonne.

Assembly of Notables

(1787) Suggested by Calonne to consider his proposed land tax and the abolishment of internal customs and the creation of elected provincial assemblies. The Assembly recommended the reforms be presented to the Estates-General.

Francois Guizot

(1787-1874) French political figure who, as leader of the conservative constitutional monarchists during the July Monarchy (1830-48), was the dominant minister in France. His father was executed by the National Convention in 1794. While liberals, republicans, and the newly formed socialists demanded wider or even universal suffrage, Guizot's conservatives supported the existing requirement that only persons who paid a tax of more than 200 francs (a considerable sum at the time) be allowed to cast ballots. A severe economic crisis in 1846-47 led to growing anti regime demonstrations, leading to his resignation in 1848 and to the collapse of the July monarchy.

The Great Fear

(1789) a period of panic and riot by peasants and others amid rumors of an "aristocratic conspiracy" by the king and the privileged to overthrow the Third Estate. In the provinces, the peasants rose against their lords, attacking chateaus and destroying feudal documents. To check the peasants, the National Assembly decreed the abolition of the feudal regime and introduced the Declaration of Rights of Man and Citizen. During this period, informal political power passed to the bourgeois political elite. It also hinted at the role conspiracy and mob violence would play in the revolution to come.

National Assembly

(1789-1791) the revolutionary assembly formed by representatives of the Third Estate. It later became known as the National Constituent Assembly. It was formed because the Third Estate was not given equal representation in the Estates-General; though they were given twice as many members, they were told that they were going to vote by Estate, which negated their numbers. After the members of the National Assembly were locked out of their meeting place, they took the Tennis Court Oath, which said that the deputies would continue to meet until a new constitution was made. The National Assembly drafted and instituted the "Declaration of the Rights of Man," which guaranteed equal and inalienable rights for all citizens of France. The National Assembly was very important in sparking the French Revolution by condoning the violence of the storming of the Bastille.

Assignats

(1790) new paper currency that could be used to purchase church property. Its value was rapidly reduced by inflation and swollen by food shortages, which drove up bread prices.

Elimination of Provinces

(1790) to undercut the influence of nobles and the church, revolutionaries established departments to manage French affairs. The law continued the centralization of France and rationalized French government. New departmental capitals were created, attracting lawyers, notaries, soldiers, and shopkeepers and redirecting power from provincial capitals and away from nobles and clergy.

Le Chapelier Law

(1791) insisting that workers must bargain in the economic marketplace as individuals, the law banned workers' associations and strikes. Reflecting the National Assembly's middle class status, the law made clear that the market should make these decisions, thus enhancing the power and prestige of the middle class while slowing the movement towards unionization.

Valmy

(1792) decisive battle that saved the revolution. The Prussian march on Paris to restore the French monarchy was halted and the French Revolution saved. The Prussians and the Austrians withdrew in the wake of the battle, allowing the French to continue their invasion of the Austrian Netherlands. The battle emboldened the National Assembly to formally end the monarchy. Victory occurred despite the disorganization of French military forces in the wake of noble officer desertions.

September Massacres

(1792) mass killing of prisoners that took place in Paris in September 1792. Jacobin-inspired militants executed 1,300 prisoners; of these, more than 220 were priests held for refusing to accept the Revolutionary church reorganization scheme. The massacres were an expression of the collective mentality in Paris in the days after the overthrow of the monarchy. The people believed that political prisoners were planning to rise up in their jails to join a counterrevolutionary plot.

The Maximum

(1793) Jacobin policy popular with the poor of Paris implemented during the Reign of Terror that set a maximum price on bread. Many poor people in Paris at the time thought that merchants were hoarding bread in order to drive up prices and so setting a maximum price on bread was popular with them. The Directory reversed the law in keeping with the Directory's liberal economic policies that benefitted the bourgeois.

Wars of the Vendée

(1793-96) counterrevolutionary insurrections in the west of France during the French Revolution. The first and most important occurred in the Vendee. In this fervently religious and economically backward region, the Revolution of 1789 was received with little enthusiasm and only a few minor disturbances. The first signs of real discontent appeared with the government's enactment of the Civil Constitution of the Clergy (July 1790) instituting strict controls over the Roman Catholic Church. A general uprising began with the institution of the conscription acts of February 1793. Reasons for support of the counterrevolution: allegiance to the Catholic Church (still played a major role in people's lives and was the single most important factor in determining someone's support for the revolution); distrust of Paris and new bourgeois elite. Brutality on both sides with numerous executions of peasants and civilians.

Directory

(1794-1799) the French Revolutionary government set up by the Constitution of the Year III. The Directory suffered from widespread corruption. Its policies aimed at protecting the positions of those who had supported the Revolution and at preventing the restoration of the Bourbons. Despite its unsavory reputation, it consolidated many of the gains of the revolution, including the creation of a system of elite centralized schools, and saw the recovery of the French economy. Unlike the policies of Robespierre, the Directory pursued pro-bourgeois policies, such as the elimination of the Maximum, the protection of property rights, and opposition to universal suffrage. It was overthrown by Napoleon in 1799. Under the Directory's leadership, a system of centralized schools was created and the French economy recovered from the Great Terror.

Concordat

(1801) an agreement between Napoleon and Pope Pius VII that defined the status of the Roman Catholic Church in France and ended the breach caused by the church reforms and confiscations enacted during the French Revolution. It solidified the Catholic Church as the majority church of France and brought back most of its civil status. First Consul (Napoleon) was given the right to nominate bishops; the bishoprics and parishes were redistributed; and the erection of seminaries was allowed. Important because it restored Catholic power following the revolution's anti-Catholic actions. It was denounced by the French government in 1905. The Church gave up all of its land that had been taken during the Revolution.

1812 Invasion of Russia

(1812) disastrous invasion of Russia in which he lost 400,000 men from the weather and Russian attacks. He reached Moscow only to find it had been burned down and then had to march his troops back through Russia in the middle of the winter, losing tens of thousands behind to die as they marched back toward France. This was the result of Napoleon's growing frustrations with the inefficiency of the Continental system and his growing interests in the Mediterranean region. Napoleon returned to France, his propaganda unable to disguise the extent of the calamity. By 1814, he had been exiled to Elba after his depleted armies were defeated at the Battle of the Nations in 1813.

Congress of Vienna

(1814-1815) assembly that reorganized Europe after the Napoleonic Wars. France lost its recent conquests. It organized to suppress future liberal revolts and was effective until the Revolutions of 1848 toppled the conservative regimes. It created a relatively peaceful Europe. France re-entered the Concert of Europe in the 1820s when French troops were used to put down a liberal revolution in Spain.

The White Terror

(1815) violence against Napoleon's supporters that in Nimes transformed into violence against Protestants carried out by Catholics in Nimes and other southern French cities. Nimes was 1/3 Protestant and there was significant tension between rich, educated Protestants and their proletarian Catholic workers. The violence was supported and egged on by Catholic nobles, many of whom were members of the Knights of the Faith. Some 300 victims were claimed, many in brutal fashion. For example, Jacques Dupont, an illiterate agricultural worker, was known for hacking his victims into three pieces and once even burnt a victim alive. He and others were given light sentences after the fact. Protestants sought retribution in the wake of the fall of the Bourbon monarchy in 1830, finding and killing some of the most notorious terrorists.

Restoration

(1815-1830) the period that began when Napoleon I abdicated and the Bourbon monarchs were restored to the throne. The First Restoration ended with Napoleon's 100 Days, after which the Second Restoration began. The period was marked by a constitutional monarchy of moderate rule (1816-20), followed by a return of the Ultras during the reign of Louis' brother, Charles X (1824-1830). Reactionary policies revived the opposition liberals and moderates and led to the revolution of 1830.

Assassination of the Duke de Berry

(1820) A French prince was murdered by the fanatic salt manufacturer Louvell who sought to end the Bourbon monarchy. His death was mourned by the French people. Ultras tried to take advantage of his death to put down liberals and gain power, increasing polarization into liberal and royalist factions. However, his death did not mark the end of the Bourbon line as his wife was pregnant with a boy, who became known as the "Miracle Baby" and whose birth was celebrated across France. His death restored the Ultras to power and eliminated the moderate regime. Results - Louis XVIII dismissed moderate government, reinstated strict censorship, and altered the electoral system to reduce the influence of wealthy bourgeois voters in towns.

Ninth of Thermidor - Thermidorian Reaction

(July 27, 1794) parliamentary revolt that resulted in the fall of Robespierre and the collapse of revolutionary fervor and the Reign of Terror in France. By July 1794, France had become weary of the executions and when Robespierre called for another round of executions, he was met with calls of "Death to the Tyrant." Without calling for the support of the sans-culottes, Robespierre and other members of the Committee of Public Safety waited and were arrested. Robespierre and others were executed the next day, followed by a "White Terror" against Jacobins across the country. The Reaction was followed by the disarming of the Committee, the emptying of the prisons, and the purging of Jacobin clubs.

King's Flight to Varennes

(June 1791) unsuccessful attempt by the king, Marie Antoinette, and their family to escape Paris. They were recognized by locals and stopped before reaching the border in Varennes. The flight attempt, as well as the king's letter expressing his opposition to the revolution and its ideals, transformed public opinion about the monarchy. People began openly debating the future of the monarchy and Louis' place in French hearts and minds fell precipitously as people felt abandoned by his actions.

Battle of Waterloo

(June 18, 1815) fought in Waterloo, Belgium. In 1815, Napoleon returned from exile and gained control of France once again, but the other countries that opposed him gathered their forces on the French border and prepared to attack; Napoleon chose to strike first. The Seventh Coalition, led by the Duke of Wellington, defeated the Imperial French Army, which was led by Napoleon. Wellington's forces resisted several attacks by the French until the Prussians came and broke the right flank of the French. The Battle marked the end of Napoleon's rule of France and the end of his 100-day return from exile. Louis XVIII was installed as King and Napoleon was exiled to Saint Helena, where he died.

Women's March on Versailles

(October 5, 1789) a group of 4,000-6,000 women marched to Versailles to demand that the King and Queen move from the palace at Versailles to the Tuileries in Paris and successfully escorted them back to Paris. Women were responsible for managing the household economy. Many were upset when they went to the markets and found nothing to buy and a crowd decided to march to Versailles to ask the king and queen to supply bread and help the common people. Like Marat and Danton, the women wanted the king and queen to come live among the people. They signed a petition asking for bread and forced entry into the palace, staying overnight before escorting the king and queen back the next morning. This event effectively weakened the power of the monarchy and contributed to the king's desire to flee, which culminated in his flight to Varennes.

Reign of Terror

(September 5, 1793 to July 27, 1794) With civil war spreading from the Vendée and hostile armies surrounding France on all sides, the government decided to make Terror the order of the day (September 5 decree) and to take harsh measures against those suspected of being enemies of the Revolution (nobles, priests, hoarders). In Paris a wave of executions followed, as thousands were sent to the guillotine. Local terrors were instituted across the countryside, including in one region where priests and nuns were drowned. The Terror had an economic side embodied in the Maximum, a price-control measure demanded by the lower classes of Paris, and a religious side that was embodied in the program of de-Christianization. 7,500 to 13,000 were executed during the Terror. 16% of the victims were in Paris while 21% were in the Loire, where the Vendée is located; notably, deaths were concentrated in the west of France, the heart of the counter-revolution. 84% of those who were killed were in the Third Estate. People were often tried and convicted in hastily convened tribunals and were unable to defend themselves.

Federalist Revolts

(summer 1793) uprisings that broke out in the port cities of France, such as Marseilles and Lyon. They were prompted by resentments in France's provincial cities about increasing centralization of power in Paris, and increasing radicalization of political authority by the Jacobins. For many, the final straw was when the Girondins were banned from the National Convention. The revolts were put down by revolutionary armies. In Lyon, for example, a force led by Couton, brutally suppressed the revolt, killing 1700-1900 people and destroying 27 homes. In Caen, repression was more modest because there had been no serious military conflict. The revolts were primarily the result of disagreements over sovereignty and who could exercise sovereignty after the king's execution.

Interpretations of the Terror

1) "Political philosophy written in blood"--the Catholic view that the Terror was directed towards political enemies, involved indiscriminate killings, especially of Catholics, and reflected the violent nature of the French Revolution. People who espouse this interpretation point to examples of excess like the drowning of nuns and priests in Nantes. 2) Circumstantial, response to counterrevolution: Merriman's view that because the deaths during the Terror occurred primarily in the west of France, which was at the heart of the counterrevolution, included only a small number of priests and nobles, and were 84% bourgeois, the Terror was an example of a national reflex and primarily directed toward the defense of the nation from foreign invasion and counterrevolution (despite examples of excess). Merriman disagrees with the interpretation that the Terror was primarily driven by bloodlust; rather, he argues, it was out of national necessity. 3) Terror from below: radical elements of the laboring poor in Paris spurred on the Terror with the September massacres and vicious rumors. This interpretation also points to the fact that the tribunals that decided people's fates relied on hearsay and did not provide people the opportunity to defend themselves.

Diffusion of Enlightenment ideas in France

3 ways Enlightenment ideas spread 1) Academies - organizations in a city or region that brought together local people who read books and liked to discuss them. The groups consisted primarily of bourgeois, some nobles, and some clergy. The groups sponsored contests and talks and diffused ideas to intellectual elites. 2) Masonic lodges - sociable organizations where people got together and discussed ideas. The lodges were anti-ecclessiastical (disliked the Catholic Church). They were firm believers in the separation of church and state. 3) Salons - hosted by wealthy women, such as Madame Joffron, discussions about Enlightenment thinkers and their ideas.

Girondins

A moderate republican faction active in the French Revolution from 1791 to 1793. The Girondin Party favored a policy of extending the French Revolution beyond France's borders. They were a moderate bourgeois faction. They were committed to representative democracy, supported the Civil Constitution of the Clergy, believed in aggressive foreign policy against supporters of emigrés--Austria--and supported a declaration of war. They were blamed for military setbacks. They believed in classical liberal economics and so were disliked by the poor who wanted a maximum price on bread to be instituted. They opposed the centralization of the revolution by the Jacobins in Paris. Revolts in support of the Girondins in the provinces were brutally crushed by revolutionary armies.

Republic of Letters

A phrase describing the phenomenon of increased correspondence in the form of letters exchanged between influential philosophers and other thinkers during the Age of Enlightenment. It internationalized Enlightenment ideas. More people could read by the 18th century, contributing to the emergence of the public sphere and changing the way people thought.

Fires of 1829 and 1830

A series of arsons in northern France. The fires spread through peasants' homes and farms. The fires had the effect of heating up political tensions between supporters of Charles X and his opponents as Bourbon supporters blamed liberals and liberals blamed royalists. In reality, evidence suggests that the fires were started by insurers to build business but at the time they served to increase distrust and deepen political tension.

Abolition of Feudalism

August 4, 1789 - the National Constituent Assembly formally ended the feudal system in response to peasant riots throughout the provinces. It was a major transformation of French society, which had for centuries been predicated on the feudal system.

Role of lawyers in bringing politics into the public sphere

Because lawyers could not be censored in the Old Regime, their writings were especially important in affecting popular opinion. They represented a few causes celebres, which presented the "nation" as a way of imagining sovereignty.

Robert Darnton on how books spread

Censorship made Roussea and Voltaire's books illegal though libelers believed they were especially screwed over by censorship laws. Published in Switzerland and the Netherlands, peddlers smuggled both High and Low Enlightenment books into France, risking arrest.

Rue Transnonian

Depicted by Daumier, normally a satirist, in 1834. Daumier drew the aftermath of an incident in April 1834 in which the National Guard indiscriminately killed people in a house. The incident became symbolic of the repression of the July monarchy and increased class tensions. The street was later torn down to help eliminate collective memory around the incident.

Religious Revival

During the Restoration, there was a religious revival. Religious congregations grew in numbers. People set about to rebuild churches and abbeys destroyed during the Revolution. Missions drew people from all over to listen to 3 days of prayers and penances. Huge crosses were planted at mission sites.

Threats to the Directory from the Right

Failed monarchist invasion of Quiberon Bay in Brittany.

Ancien Regime (Old Regime)

France before July 14, 1789 - the storming of the Bastille. A society of orders (the three estates). Feudal remnants - people had obligations to landowners and showed deference to economic and social superiors. Legal system based on feudal remnants with the seigneurial system. Extreme poverty - 90% of population were peasants. Cyclical famines disrupted rural and urban life and led to conspiracies. Expansion of French economy - at the same time as much of the country was impoverished, the French economy was expanding and developing small-scale production in the cities. However, still backward in that tariffs existed between provinces in France. Catholic - 95% of French population were nominally Catholic. Catholic Church played a critical role in people's lives, owning 1/4 of the land and collecting tithes from peasants. Nobles - represented unearned privilege. Not all nobles were alike. Some were not reactionary and others were not wealthy. 1/2 of the national budget went to entertaining nobles at Versailles.

Charles X

French king from 1824 to 1830. He was a supporter of the Ultras who tried to restore the Old Regime. His decision to move the coronation ceremonies back to Reims and his failure to cure people with scrofula demonstrated the weakness of the monarchy and his inability to reconcile the tradition of divine right with limited representative government. He issued an indemnity from the government to nobles who had lost their lands during the Revolution, angering liberals. He passed regressive and repressive laws. For example, he made it a capital offense to commit a sacrilege in church (steal from the church, pee on the outside of the church, etc.). While the law was never enforced, it was seen as laughably absurd and reinforced liberal opposition. His decision to appoint the Ultra Prince Polignac, one of only two members of the Chamber of Deputies who refused to swear allegiance to the Charter of 1814, as prime minister increased opposition to the monarchy and contributed to the revolution of 1830 that overthrew the Bourbon monarchy. His July Ordinances dissolved the newly elected Chamber of Deputies; disenfranchised almost three quarters of those currently eligible to vote, leaving virtually all political power in the hands of the wealthiest landowners; ordered new elections under the restricted franchise; and muzzled the press. The July Ordinances had the effect of instigating the July Revolution, which resulted in Charles X's abdication.

Influence of the Enlightenment on the Declaration of the Rights of Man and Citizen

French leaders wanted to rationalize French society and institutions and felt it was necessary to clearly list the enlightened rights of citizens. The document was the work of the educated middle class. It defends liberty as a natural and inalienable right only limited by the freedom of others. It established the precept of innocent until proven guilty and abolished censorship. It created equality before the law for men, not women. It made clear that offices could no longer be sold and established taxation based on ability to pay. It made property an inalienable right and gave active citizens (those who paid their taxes and so showed virtue) a privileged place in society with the right to vote.

Calonne

French statesman whose efforts to reform the structure of his nation's finance and administration precipitated the governmental crisis that led to the French Revolution in 1789. Before he assumed power, Necker published a falsified budget that hid the true extent of France's budget deficit. Calonne first tried to pass a series of reforms to raise funds, including cutting government spending, establishing a universal land tax, and creating free trade methods but was voted down by the Assembly of Notables. In a last-ditch effort to impose taxes on the church and on nobles, he revealed the true extent of the French national budget deficit (100,000,000 livres). The failure of his reforms ensured the calling of the Estates-General. He believed that spending cuts made the monarchy appear weak and could scare off potential lenders. He ensured timely payment, offered high interest rates to attract loans, and spent on urban renewal projects. However, his reputation was hurt by accusations of cronyism. He proposed a land tax, which was opposed by nobles, and abolishing internal customs between provinces. Recognizing that the parlements would reject his reforms, he instead sent them to a special Assembly of Notables--nobles, clergy, and magistrates--in 1787. When his plans for reform failed due to resistance from nobles and clergy and he revealed the massive size of the current debt, he was fired. He ended the segur law.

Carnot

French statesman, general, military engineer, and administrator in successive governments of the French Revolution. He was a leading member of both the Committee of Public Safety and the Directory, helping mobilize the Revolutionary armed forces and materiel. He was known as the Organizer of Victory.

Couthon

He directed military operations against the counterrevolutionary stronghold of Lyon. After Lyon's surrender, he had himself relieved so he would not have to carry out the Convention's order to destroy the city. He helped Robespierre and Saint-Just bring down factions led by the radical democrat Jacques Hébert and the moderate George Danton. He helped unleash the Reign of Terror by speeding up the work of the Revolutionary Tribunal. He was guillotined on 9 Thermidor.

The Enlightenment

High Enlightenment (ended 1778) - characterized by thinkers like Voltaire and Rousseau. Voltaire disliked organized religion and his ideas helped weaken the hold of religion on the European population. Thinkers taught a secular form of ethics and, contrary to Catholic theology, believed that people were essentially good. They developed a critical form of analysis and believed that people were equal in possibility. They believed that the monarchy was absolute but should not behave despotically.

Nationalization of Church Property

In response to France's fiscal challenges, French revolutionaries first seized the property of nobles who had fled France. Later they confiscated church land and sold it as national property. The sales were backed by assignats, a new paper currency. Wealthy peasants and bourgeois with money on hand bought these lands. During the Restoration, Ultras argued that the nationalized lands of both the aristocracy and the church should be returned to their original owners. Recognizing that returning lands to the church and the aristocracy would result in another revolution, Louis XVIII and Charles X resisted their calls, though Charles X did issue an indemnity to aristocrats who lost their land, which infuriated the liberal opposition.

Middle Classes

In the 19th century, they won access to political power, uncensored newspapers, and formed middle class associations. 17-19% of people would've considered themselves middle class and this percentage increased throughout the 19th century as there was an increase in the number of schoolteachers and clerks. They practically wore a bourgeois uniform--resisted color and wore black coats and black top hats--and were depicted as such in paintings and drawings. This era also saw the rise of the leisure class and the rise of a period of childhood where kids were not expected to begin working at a very young age. The were significant differences between the high bourgeoisie and petty bourgeoisie. The high bourgeoisie were extremely wealthy and had access to power, especially under Louis Philippe. Below them were lawyers, notaries, and professors and further below were smaller manufacturers, functionaries, small lawyers, and less notable notaries. Finally, the petty bourgeois consisted of master artisans, cafe owners, school teachers, departmental store clerks, and railroad workers). There were significant political and cultural differences between the petty and high bourgeois: the high bourgeois did not want the petty bourgeois to vote because it would reduce their own influence, prestige, and power within the July Monarchy and so resisted democracy. They feared falling down the social ladder and wanted to keep the lower classes down so as not to reduce their own influence.

The Social Question

Issues relating to workers and women in France during the Industrial Revolution; became more critical than constitutional issues after 1870. What should the state do for workers? This was a defining debate within France during the 19th century. The term "socialism" was coined amidst these debates about poverty and government intervention. The middle classes resisted giving more power to the poor. Louis Philippe--the bourgeois king--tried to resist change and keep the industrial classes from rising up but was eventually toppled during the Revolution of 1848 for aligning himself too closely with the upper classes.

Constitution of 1795

It dismantled the Paris Commune and reduced the powers of the Committee of Public Safety and then abolished them. It set up the Directory, which was constructed to make a return to dictatorship unlikely. It consisted of a bicameral legislature: the Council of Five Hundred and the Council of Ancients. The Directory consisted of five individuals but was fatally weak and had no funds to finance their projects or courts to enforce their wills. It enfranchised the bourgeois (2 million out of 7 million people of voting age were allowed to vote). It benefitted people with property.

Lamoignon

Keeper of the Seals of France from 1787 to 1788. In this position, he was responsible for issuing the Edict of Versailles in 1787, which granted civil status and freedom of worship to France's Protestants, and for the abolition of judicial torture.

Louis-Philippe

King of the French from 1830 to 1848 following Charles X's abdication in the wake of the July Revolution. His rule was based on the support of the upper bourgeoisie. He favored policies that benefitted big businesses. As Citizen King, he guaranteed freedom of the press and freedom of speech, expanded voting to 1/2 of males (166,000), lowered the minimal annual tax payment to vote, installed juries for political trials, and reduced the power of the church and the power of the nobles. However, government ministers remained responsible to the king and not to deputies, maintaining some power of the king. He used to wear wealthy bourgeois outfits to associate himself with his power base. To maintain his support, he emphasized the role that the monarchy played in maintaining order and stopping socialism. However, he was ridiculed by cartoonists for his plump appearance and bourgeois attire.

Forests and Liberty

Large-scale industrialization increased the price of forests. Roamers and peasants who lived within the forests were forced out. A new Forest Code passed during the Restoration and beneficial to bourgeois industrialists mandated that peasants leave the forests. Industrialists hired guards who dressed as women and fired on peasants to force the peasants out. These guards, while hiding their identity and engaging in carnivalesque exploitation, said they had justice on their side. Peasants wrote petitions after the July Revolution of 1830, using the language of freedom and liberty to make their case for continuing to live in the forests. They viewed freedom as their own freedom to live in forests. The rich, however, viewed freedom as the freedom to use the forest for economic gain. In keeping with Louis Philippe's alliance with the bourgeoisie, the king sent forest guards back to the forests, resulting in a mass exodus to other parts of France.

The Middle Class and Education

Many middle class people did not want their kids to be educated because they wanted them to work in the shop. Thus, many of these families resisted mandatory education laws. In the early 19th century, there were still almost no universities and it was still rare to send kids to university.

Characteristics of Absolute Rule

Nobles were junior partners in absolute rule, recognizing absolute monarchical rule in exchange for maintenance of privileges/concessions in exchange for cooperation and repression of peasant revolts. For example, nobles were forced to submit to Louis XIV. While inefficient in many respects, absolutist rule in France did feature increasing centralization of state authority and expanding state structures, including a bureaucracy. Centralization gave the king greater power to make war and increased his ability to extract resources from his people. However, the bureaucracy was rife with corruption.

Robespierre

Radical French revolutionary leader and Jacobin who oversaw the Reign of Terror. Born in Arras. He was an example of downward mobility: after his mother's death and father's abandonment, he became dependent on the charity of others. He served as a lawyer before the war in Arras, championing the poor and increasing his name recognition. He believed that the poor deserved equal rights as everyone else, that the people should be sovereign and was a fierce proponent of a maximum price on bread. He was elected to the Third Estate where he attacked the property qualification and argued that Jews should have equal rights. After the king's flight to Varennes, he called for the end of the monarchy. He believed a trial of the king was not necessary because the people of France had already decided that he was guilty. He believed in the general will of the French people. He orchestrated the Terror to root out France's enemies, putting 7,500 to 13,000 to their deaths. He believed that the Terror was necessary to save the revolution and subdue the enemies of liberty. On the 8th of Thermidor, he called for one further purge but he was shouted down as members of the Convention yelled "Death to the tyrant." On the 9th of Thermidor, he either blew his own jaw off or was shot point blank by soldiers. He was tried for 35 seconds and taken to the Place de la Concorde to be guillotined.

Jacobin Club

Society of the Friends of the Constitution, the most famous political group of the French Revolution, who became identified with extreme egalitarianism and violence and led the French government from 1793-4. They met in churches and convents beginning in June 1789. They slowly expanded into the provinces. Some clubs sprung up spontaneously, reflecting the politicization of ordinary people in the provinces, and later joined the Jacobin organization. Clubs corresponded with one another and subscribed to newspapers, spreading news of the revolution. By the spring of 1791, there were over 900 clubs across France. They carried the revolution through its most dangerous phase.

Lomenie de Brienne

Succeeded Calonne. Tried to push Calonne's program through the Parlement of Paris but Parlement said only the Estates General could consent to new taxes. He removed the last traces of judicial torture and gave Protestants the same rights as Catholics in 1787. Brienne and Louis XVI tried to replace the Parlements but they resisted. In 1788 Brienne and Louis XVI promised to call the Estates General.

Jacques Necker

Swiss banker and director general of finance (1771-81, 1788-89, 1789-90) under Louis XVI of France. During the American Revolution, he tapped into the international money market to help raise money. He ended serfdom on royal lands in 1779. He cut down sinecures to the royal household in order to reduce expenditures. He created provincial administration that would undercut existing provincial governments in 1778 but only two were created after significant resistance from nobles. He aimed for transparency but failed to account for expenditures to Americans. Nobles were shocked by his administrative rationalization and centralized budget, worrying that they could reduce their influence. He was fired and re-hired repeatedly after public outcry.

Financial Crisis

The French monarchy was broke in the years prior to the revolution. 1/2 of the budget went to the king's entertaining budget. Massive expenditures during the American Revolution indebted the French government, especially since tax collection was extremely inefficient.

July Monarchy

The Monarchy of France under Louis-Philippe that was supported by the liberal bourgeoisie. Eventually, economic hardship for the poor led to a revolution in 1848. The monarchy guaranteed freedom of the press and freedom of speech. He expanded voting to 1/2 of people (166,000), lowered minimal annual tax payments to qualify to vote.

Dechristianization

The lessening of the Catholic Church's authority and membership in France. The revolution accelerated the process in France. However, some regions were more affected than others. In regions like the Vendée, where many priests refused to swear allegiance to the new constitution, the Church maintained its hold over the people. the goal of the campaign was the destruction of Catholic religious practice and of the religion itself. In 18th century France, 95% of the people were Catholic. During the Revolution, Church lands were confiscated, iconography was destroyed, including church statues, church crosses were destroyed, new institutions, including the Cult of Reason, were established, and a law was passed in 1793 making hiding a Church leader punishable by death. Priests were forced to swear an oath to the country, but many did not. Tensions around dechristianization resulted in the counterrevolution in the Vendée. These tensions continued to plague France until Napoleon's Concordat with the Pope.

Delacroix's Liberty Leading the People

The painting featured a female image of the Republic in the center of Paris leading the Revolution. She is surrounded by bourgeois who gained from the revolution the freedom to make money and block unionization. Notably, the Revolution of 1830 brought back the tricolor. What's wrong: this is more myth than reality because the bourgeois were unlikely to take part in the actual fighting and the street urchin kid was unlikely to have taken part.

Society of Orders

Three estates: first clergy, second nobles (though there was a tension between old nobles (nobles of the sword) and new nobles (nobles of the robe who had purchased their titles)), and third everyone else Legal and social hierarchy by which the old regime was governed

Gracchus Babeuf

a French politician and journalist during the French Revolution who wanted to abolish private property and eliminate private enterprise. He supported Thermidor because he believed that Robespierre offered no hope for the redistribution of wealth. He was the first to articulate a vision of collective ownership of property in society. He wanted a small conspiracy of like-minded individuals dedicated to secrecy and organization to carry out a revolution. He was a populist concerned with reform and held a fanatical belief in social equality. He wrote the Tribune of the People, which was a newspaper with a large readership. His revolution against the Directory failed and he was executed.

Breton Club

a group of deputies from the region of Brittany, who recommended, then demanded, that the National Assembly abolish feudal dues on peasants. They convinced a wealthy noble to propose the abolition of tax privileges and abolish seigneurial payments.

Lettre de cachet

a letter signed by the king and counter-signed by secretary of state and used primarily to authorize someone's imprisonment. It was an important instrument of administration under the ancien regime and its powers were so abused that numerous complaints about it can be found in the list of grievances of the Estates-General in 1789. With a lettre de cachet, one could detain someone else without reason and without trial, though recent evidence suggests that this was not as common as believed at the time. It came to be seen as a symbol of despotic rule and played an important role in convincing people to storm the Bastille. State lettres de cachet were sent by the government in the interests of society, either to maintain public order or to assure the proper functioning of institutions. In the first case, a public authority (in Paris the lieutenant general of police) might obtain from the king the orders for someone's detention for a limited period of time, or a public prosecutor would demand a lettre de cachet for the arrest of an accused person before trial. In the second case, the king might use a lettre de cachet to summon political bodies (such as the Estates-General), to order them to discuss a particular matter or to exclude from their meetings some person or persons considered undesirable. Lettres de cachet were also used to arrest suspect foreigners or spies. They were also granted to private persons for action on another individual. Couched in very brief, direct terms, a lettre de cachet simply commanded the recipient to obey the orders therein without delay, giving no explanation.

Tennis Court Oath

a pledge signed by the members of the Third Estate who were locked out of a meeting of the Estates-General. So, fearing an imminent royal coup, they went to the king's tennis court and signed an oath, which said, "not to separate, and to reassemble wherever circumstances require, until the constitution of the kingdom is established." The oath asserted that political authority derived from the people and their representatives, not from the king. Their solidarity forced Louis XVI to order the nobility and the clergy to join the Third Estate in the National Assembly.

Augereau

a soldier, general, and Marshal of France. He first fought for the revolutionary armies and then under Napoleon he became a divisional commander in Italy. He was an example of the revolution's ability to raise the standing of talented military leaders.

Ouvrard

he earned a considerable fortune during the Revolution thanks to his investments in paper and publishing.

Sans-culottes

in the French Revolution, a label for more militant and radical supporters of the revolution, especially in the years from 1792-95. Sans-culottes means without knee breeches, which was associated with aristocratic dress. Being a sans-culottes was a form of political behavior--support for the revolution. While most sans-culottes were artisans or tradesmen or peasants, nobles, clergy, and women could also be sans-culottes. They supported a maximum price for grain, were against the institutional role of the Catholic Church, and supported people buying nationalized property. Members subscribed to a revolutionary culture: they wore red caps and tricolor cockades to demonstrate their membership; they used the informal tu rather than vous to define themselves as members of a progressive community; they began the tradition of kissing people on their cheeks to reaffirm collective solidarity in a new national community; and they referred to people as 'citoyens' or 'citoyennes' rather than 'monsieur' or 'madame.' They played a critical role in defending the revolution, winning a victory over invading professional armies at Valmy. The Sans-Culottes believed in popular democracy, social and economic equality, affordable food, rejection of the free-market economy, and vigilance against counter-revolutionaries.

July Revolution of 1830

insurrection that brought Louis-Philippe to the throne of France. The revolution was precipitated by Charles X's publication of restrictive ordinances contrary to the spirit of the Charter of 1814. The restrictive ordinances dissolved the Chamber, disenfranchised 3/4 of currently eligible voters, and left power in the hands of only the richest landowners. Protests and demonstrations were followed by three days of fighting (July 27-29), the abdication of Charles X (August 2), and the proclamation of Louis-Philippe as 'king of the French' (August 9). In the July Revolution the upper middle class, or bourgeoisie, secured a political and social ascendancy that was to characterize the period known as the July Monarchy (1830-48). The Revolution eliminated legal blocks of social mobility but money remained important for gaining any kind of social advancement and status.

Grub Street

low-brow books/libels that attacked the royal family, portraying the king as a cuckold, the church, academics, and nobles. They spread sensational ideas and rumors that were swallowed whole by some readers. Their writings undercut respect for the monarchy.

Montagnards

members of the radical faction within the Jacobin party who advocated the centalization of state power during the French Revolution and instituted the Reign of Terror

Saint-Just

military and political leader during the French Revolution. He spearheaded the movement to execute Louis XVI. He served on the Committee of Public Safety. He imposed strict discipline in the revolutionary armies, helping to stabilize the front. He organized the arrests and executions of many of Robespierre's political enemies. He was guillotined on 9 Thermidor. He has been called an "Angel of Death" and believed in executions of not only political enemies but also those not deemed enthusiastic enough about the revolutionary cause.

Committee of Public Safety

political body of the French Revolution that gained virtual dictatorial control over France during the Reign of Terror (1793-1794). Created during a crisis of the Revolution as people in the Vendee rose against the Revolution and as foreign armies pressed into France. Robespierre eventually gained control of the committee from the more moderate Danton. Under Robespierre's direction, the COPS took harsh measures against the alleged enemies of the Revolution, placed the economy on a wartime basis, and implemented mass conscription. It was eventually toppled during Thermidor but beforehand, it managed to fend off foreign enemies and crush dissent.

Plebiscite of 1802

should Napoleon be a consul for life, 99.8% of people approved

Ultras

the extreme right wing of the royalist movement in France during the Second Restoration (1815-1830). They represented the interests of the large landowners, the aristocracy, clericalists, and former emigres. They supported the return of nationalized lands to the church and the aristocracy and were opposed to any accommodation of the revolution, including limited representation. Charles X became the leader of the Ultra faction, appointing Prince Polignac, who was associated with the Ultra view of the revolution, as prime minister and so facilitating the revolution of 1830.

100 Days

the period between Emperor Napoleon I of France's return from exile on Elba to Paris on 20 March 1815 and the second restoration king Louis XVIII on 8 July 1815. This period saw the War of the Seventh Coalition, and includes the Waterloo campaign and the Neapolitan War. He came back while the Congress of Vienna was sitting. Napoleon was defeated at the Battle of Waterloo by British forces led by the Duke of Wellington and Prussian forces. The phrase was first used by the prefect of the Seine in his speech welcoming the king. His return resulted in the weakening of the Bourbon's hold on the monarchy and led them to pursue less reactionary policies.