The ideas stated by the enlightenment philosophers changed the minds of the people of France, causing them to overthrow their government in the revolution of 1830
By Jake Nielsen
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Voltaire
The book states, "Voltaire never stopped fighting for tolerance,
reason, freedom of religious belief, and freedom of speech" (Black and Beck 553). Voltaire had the idea that the government should be separate from the church or other religious groups. At this time, the King of England was the head of the church and therefore there was no separation of power. -
Montesquieu
Montesquieu was a philosopher that studied the government and how it should be run. At his time, most governments were run as a monarchy with a king as the leader. Montesquieu, though, believed that the government should be broken up. The book claims, "Montesquieu called this division of power among different branches separation of powers" (Black and Beck 553). The divisions that the government would be split into is an executive, legislative and judicial branch. -
Rousseau
Rousseau believed that the government has to be held in line to make sure that they don't trespass on peoples' rights. The textbook says, "He explained his political philosophy in a book called The Social Contract" (Black and Beck 554). To keep people safe from the government, he suggested that there should be a contract between the people and the government. If the government violates that contract, the people have a right to start their own government. -
Unpopular Decision made by King Charles X
One of the laws that King Charles X passed messed with the equality of religion. School History states, "It was a direct affront to the equality of religious believes imposed by the Constitutional Charter" (SchoolHistory 2). This idea that the king can affect religion is one of the ideas of the enlightenment thought of by Voltaire. He said that the government and church should be separate because religion is such a huge influence on people. -
King Charles Crosses the Line
King Charles trespassed the rights of the french citizens when by publishing a document, "Dissolving the Chamber of Deputies, suspending freedom of the press, modifying the electoral laws so that three-fourths of the electorate lost their votes, and calling for new elections to the Chamber in September" (Britannica 1). This is a lot like Rousseau's idea that if the government violates the people's rights, they can rise up against the government and create a new one. -
The Overthrow of King Charles X
The article states, "The July Revolution of 1830 led to the overthrow of King Charles X, a Bourbon monarch, and led to the ascent of his cousin Louis Philippe who would later be overthrown himself in 1848" (School History 1). This idea of overthrowing the king to have a more democratic government is much like the ideas of Montesquieu who believed that a monarchy was not the best form of government, but rather a government that has checks and balances. -
The Charter of 1830
The people of France wrote to King Philippe, "Louis Philippe, King of the French, to all present and to come, greeting, we have ordered and do order that the Constitutional Charter of 1814, such as it has been amended by the two Chambers on August 7th and accepted by us on the 9th, shall be again published" (Fordham 1). This contract between the government and the people is exactly what Rousseau believed in. -
Works Cited
The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica. “Revolutions of 1830.” Encyclopædia Britannica, Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc., 20 July 2019, www.britannica.com/event/Revolutions-of-1830. Internet History Sourcebooks, sourcebooks.fordham.edu/mod/1830frenchconstitution.asp. “July Revolution.” School History, 24 Oct. 2019, schoolhistory.co.uk/notes/july-revolution/.
