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Revolt/National Assembly Acts
The political crisis in 1789 caused the worst amount of starvation in France. This desperation was later called the "Great Fear." On August 4th, there was an all-night meeting and the nobles, in the National Assembly, gave up rheir privileges, such as exemption from taxes. National Assembly turned against the agreement on 8/4 and developed the Declaration of the Rights of Man & the Citizen, claiming equal rights for men. This caused uproar from women. -
Divided French Society
French society was divided into three different estates. The First Estate was the clergy, or the church people. The Second Estate was the nobility. The Third Estate was everyone else, including peasants and bourgeosie. The First and Second Estates were exempt from paying taxes and this caused the Third Estate to have a lesser income. Also, the clergy owned at least 10% of the land. Louis XVI hired Jacques Necker to help the gov't financially. -
Louis XVI Calls Estates-General
The Estates-General was a parlimentary meeting that discussed taxes and what estates should pay for it. At the end of 1788, France was close to bankruptcy. This resulted in Louis XVI to have all three estates prepare a list of greievences to present at the Estates-General.They went to Versailles to try and solve financial problems and insist on reform. Each estates got a vote to solve the financial problems. Finally, the National Assembly was established, which the king wanted to destroy. -
Parisians Storm the Bastille
Paris claimed the spotlights from the National Society meeting in Versailles. The Bastille is the medieval fortress, in Paris, used as a prison and a place to store gun powder. Many crowded the prison and the commander opened fire. This resulted in the killing of the commander and five guards. Many prisoners were released, but no weapons or gun powder were found. The Bastille symbolized abuse and this battle was a wakeup call for Louis XVI. The battle is now celebrated as an Independence Day. -
Revolt/National Assembly Acts (cont.)
Olympe de Gouges demanded equal rights for women in her Declaration of the Rights of Women and the Female Citizen. Later in 1791, state gained control over the churches. The Civil Constitution of the Clergy was developed and this stated that church officials, like bishops and priests, had the be elected. The pope condemned it and those, in the clergy, that did not agree were punished by the government, June 1791: Louis & his family disguised themselves to try and flee the country, but failed. -
Threats Come From Abroad
After Louis XVI and his family attempted to escape France, the king of Prussia and emperor of Austria established the Declaration of Pilnitz. It stated that they were going to get involved with the protection of the French monarchy. This, supposedly, was not legitimate, but still caused major upraoar and a new war to begin. -
Radicals Take Over (1791-1792)
Nobles, clergy, and other citizens, that left France, shared their experiences and the wrongs about the country. These include the attacks on religion and their lives, in general. This caused many to turn against the French government. The Legislative Assembly, which only lasted a year, was faced with many problems within the country and outside of it. Later, this caused people called san-culottes to demand a government ruled by elected representatives, not a monarchy. This caused war between... -
Radicals Take Over (cont.)
This caused war between France and Austria, Prussia, Britain, and many other states. This war was fought off and on from 1792 to 1815. -
The Monarchy is Abolished
On August 10, 1791, a mob of people invaded the palace and were set out to kill the king, but the king and his family fled to the Legislative Assembly, before the crowd of people had arrived. Later, people began to attackt eh prisons and approximately 1,200 prisoners were killed. The Assembly was taken over by radicals, called the National Convention, and the right to vote was changed so that all men could vote, not just land owners. Monarchies were abolished. The king & Marie Antoinette killed. -
Robespierre and the Reign of Terror
Food shortages and wars were becoming very common in France. This caused the Committee to force all citizens to pay taxes to support the war. As the Revolution continued, the French amry invaded the Netherlands and Italy. In France, Robespierre led the Committee of Public Safety and his dedication gained him the name of "the incorruptible." He supported religious toleration and was against slavery. He took part in the Reign of Terror (Sept. 1793 - July 1794). -
Spread of Nationalism
Because of the war and the revolution, French citizens began to recognize their national identity. Before, they felt as if they had to be loyal to the monarchy, but now they had an entire nation to be loyal to. A nation that is not ruled by a monarchies, but by an elected government. As a result, Nationalism, pride in one's nation or culture, spread throughout France. Festivals were held to celebrate the nation and a national anthem was developed. -
Robespierre and the Reign of Terror (cont.)
Robespierre gave speech thst stated his reasoning for the terror improving the outcome of the revolution. Those that were against the revolution were arrested. 300,000 were arrested and 17,000 were killed. A majority of those executed or arrested were wrongly accused or falsely identified. Those executed were killed by the most populsr killing machine of that time, the guillotine. Robespierre was arrested on 7/27/1794 and killed the next day. -
Third Stage of the Revolution
A third Constitution was established, a five-man Directory and a two-house legislature was constructed by the votes of male citizens that owned land. The Directory only had power from 1795 to 1799. France made amends witb Prussia and Spain, but conflict continued with Austria and Britain. Later, many threats were made towards the government, and so politicians called in Napoleon Bonaparte to help lead France.
