Causes

• Using prior knowledge, try to think of one to two SPECIFIC examples for each.– What do you think the Social (people) causes

of the revolution were?– What do you think the Economic reasons

were that caused the Revolution?– What Political problems caused the

Revolution?

Beginnings of Revolution

Objectives

• Describe the social divisions of France’s old order.

• List reason’s for France’s economic troubles in 1789.

• Explain why Louis XVI called the Estates-General and summarize what resulted.

• Understand why Parisians stormed the Bastille.

A Flawed System

• Even in Enlight. The Old Regime stood

• Three estates – 1st:Clergy( less

than1%)– 2nd: Nobles (2%)– 3rd: Rest (98%)

3rd Estate

• Third Estate breakdown:– 1st group was bourgeoisie who had money

but were not given rights. – 2nd group were poor city workers– 3rd group were the peasants– High taxes (up to 50%), low employment, no

land ownership = discontent.

Three Estates

Factors of Discontent

• Crushing taxes and poverty

• Enlightenment ideas• Agricultural problems

-Bad Harvests in 1780s = increase of food prices

• Debt from Louis XIV – How?• Seven Years War and American Revolution –

expensive wars• Deficit Spending {spending more money then

what you take in}• Jacques Necker – Louis XVI’s financial expert;

his own abilities and ideas lead to his downfall

-What did he call for?• Louis XVI responds to growing crisis by calling

the Estates General (had not been called for 175 years) why not?

Money Problems

Louis XVI• Weak leader, not in

touch w/ people• Marie Antoinette

disliked by people• May 5, 1789

meeting of Estates-General b/c of ineffectiveness.– OWN

WRONGDOING• How do you think

the Estates General would react?

Beginning of Revolution

• Louis called for each Estate to prepare a cahier {for grievances}

• How did voting work in the E.G?• 3rd Estates problem?

-only delegates with land could vote

-wanted votes to be counted “by head”• Abbe Sieyes

– Argument

Abbe Sieyes, “What is the Third Estate? Everything.

What has it been up to now in the political order? Nothing.

What does it demand? To become something herein.”

Tennis Court Oath

• June 17, 1789 – 3rd Estate breaks from E.G.• Declared they represented the people as a

National Assembly• Delegates to the N.A. met in Tennis Court after

original meeting hall was locked• Delegates swore to “never separate and to

meet wherever the circumstances might require until we have established a sound and just constitution” this is known as the Tennis Court Oath

Rebellion

• June 17, 1789 3rd Estate form National Assembly. 1st act of revolution.

• Tennis Court Oath

New Ideas

• 1). How are Sieyes’ ideas different from the norm?

• 2). In what way did Louis XVI deal with the situation with the 3rd Estate? How could he have handled it differently?

Bastille• Some members of 1st

and 2nd Estates join the National Assembly Swiss mercenaries hired out of fear panic

• July 14, 1789 Parisians storm Bastille in search of weapons.

• Led to peasant rebellions throughout country

• What does the Bastille symbolize?

Open Rebellion

• In the countryside peasants destroyed old records, stole grain What is this event called?

• In Paris – various factions come to power, chiefly amongst them was the Paris Commune

• Marquis de Lafayette – ran the National Guard (mostly middle class) – many moderates looked to him, where else do we know him from?

Great Fearp. 578

• Rumors, fear spread through countryside. • Feudal ties no longer keep peasants on land.

Noblemen give up rights. • Spread to nobleman. Led to August 4, 1789 in

the National Assembly. Fear driven speeches. • IMPORTANT IDEA!!

– RADICALS BEGIN TO HOLD MORE POWER OVER THE MASSES.

Ending Privilege

• August, 4 1789 – National Assembly voted to abolish traditional rights of the nobles, including exemption from taxes.

• First major step towards providing all male citizens equality “Feudalism is abolished”

Declaration of the Rights of Man and the Citizen

• August 27, 1789 Nat. Assembly adopted the Declaration which guaranteed:– Men born equal– Equal right to hold office – merit based– Liberty, property, security, resistance to

oppression. Who does this remind you of?– Freedom of speech, religion– “Liberty, Equality, Fraternity”

• Similar to which ideas we have studied?• How did Louis XVI react?

Olympe de Gouges

• Writer of “Declaration of the Rights of Women and the Female Citizen”

• Called for equality for both males and females• Not universally accepted, some women were

persecuted for their thoughts later on in the revolution.

Bread RiotOct. 5, 1789 riot over bread led to march on Versailles.

• Return of monarchy to Paris (Held hostage)

The Civil Constitution of the Clergy

• Issued 1790 by the National Assembly• Bishops, priests and other clergy are elected• Dissolved convents and monasteries why?• What did the government do to clergy who did

not support this?• Did this have universal support?

Constitution of 1791

• Set up limited monarchy• Established the Legislative Assembly-could make laws, collect taxes, declare war or peace

• Election of lawmakers by tax paying males over 25

The Monarch – Traitor to the Revolution

• Louis and co. attempted to escape France in June 1791

• Was found and escorted by armed soldiers back to Paris.

• Louis is viewed as a traitor to the revolutionary ideals how can we make that conclusion?

Emigres and other External Threats, p. 583

• Emigres, often told horror stories of out of control peasants, loss of noble rights etc…Who are emigres?

• Prussia and Austria and the Declaration of Pilnitz following the failed escape of the King and his family.

• what did this document say? How did revolutionary forces in France take it?

Divisions in France

• New constitution/government (Sept.1791). Gave power to a LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY. (Louis not included)

• New political factions b/c people wanted more changes. – Radicals- sans-culottes (left)– Moderates (middle)– Conservatives- Emigres (right)

What form of Government did the Sans-Culottes call for?

War

-April 1792 L.A. declares war on Austria. Prussia joins in. Why?

• Fighting was from 1792 and lasted on and off until 1815

• Initial heavy losses by French paved way for innovation later.

Beginning of the Radical Phase18.3

• August 10, 1792 – slaughter of kings guards, Louis and family escaped to L.A.

• September Massacres – attacked prisons, looking for enemies of the revolution, end up killing 1,200 people.

• Most participants were not radicals – just taken advantage of by radicals

1.The leader of the Jacobins

2.This replaced the National Convention to defend France against internal and external threats

3.The main tool of the Reign of Terror.

a.Marat b. Girondist c. Robespierre

d. Guillotine e. Convention f. None of the Above

4. Feeling of pride or devotion to one’s country.

5. The vote

National Convention• L.A. overtaken by radicals, called for

election of new body called the National Convention

• Suffrage extended to all males what is suffrage?

• Real power on streets (1792). Jacobin Club was most powerful/violent.

-Girondists– Marat– Danton

End of Louis

• National Convention abolishes monarchy. All males have right to vote.

• Louis tried for treason and convicted by Jacobins.

• Jan. 21, 1793 Louis beheaded by guillotine.

• Marie Antoinette was executed in October.

Committee of Public Safety

• Louis’ execution angered Europe’s leaders. Aus, Prus, Sp, Port, UK, Neth, all joined forces to undo Revolution

• Desperate times lead to C.O.P.S. led by 12 men (Jacobin leadership)

C.O.P.S.

• The Convention creates the Committee on Public Safety (12 member)

• C.O.P.S. issued levee en mass {total war effort/tax}• Committee of Safety ruled for almost a year (93-94).

Protect from foreign and DOMESTIC threats. Robespierre “the incorruptible” was leader. Problems with this?

• Robespierre thought the general will was source of all legitimate law. “Liberty cannot be secured…unless criminals lose their heads”

Republic?

COPS designated France as a Rep. Of Virtue based upon reason/thought.

• Slavery abolished, price controls attempted, gov’t. agents, etc. tried but failed bc of lack of support by whom?

• De-Christianization attempted, move toward reason, new calendar, etc. Unsuccessful why?

The Reign of Terror 1793-1794

• Violence rules the course• Girondists are executed. Why?

• Courts killed over 17,000 people by guillotine.• Anyone who spoke out was tried.

– Lyon with 1,800 dead– “Bloodletting only temporary” until “true” French

were left

Failure of the Revolution

• “That republic was, then, willed, planned, intrigued for, even, in the end, fought for, by men whose scale of values ranged into heights or depths at any rate into extremes-most uncomfortable, indeed, quite uninhabitable, for ordinary men. Yet these heroes, or demons, attained power only because moderate men failed to hold it.” Brinton, A Decade of Revolution 1789/1799

End of the Fear

• Total war effort– Over 1 million soldiers. All parts of society involved with the army.

“People’s Wars”• 1794 wars come to an end. Rep. Of Virtue and COPS is questioned.

The fear is gone and people start thinking rationally.• Robespierre beheaded.

The Directory 1795-1799

• New constitution/gov’t. setup– Bi-cameral leg elected by

“electors”. – 5 chosen as executive

(Directors)• Problems

– Corruption, money problems, war, etc.

– Opulence/overindulgence• Similar to?

• People unhappy, Napoleon stages a coup d’etat.

Impact of French Rev.

• Increase of Nationalism in France {strong feelings of pride and devotion toward one’s country}

• New forms in Government and reform• Spread of Enlightenment ideals