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Enlightenment Thinkers
During the enlightenment, emphasis was placed on reason, equality, and the purpose of government. Several people were especially important to this time because they brought new and eye-opening ideas to Europe. Through this period in time, many institutions changed to having either a constitutional monarchy or a democracy and drafted constitutions in order to protect the rights of their citizens.
(https://courses.lumenlearning.com/boundless-worldhistory/chapter/enlightenment-thinkers/) -
Publication of Leviathan
Written by Thomas Hobbes, an influential thinker of the Enlightenment, this book focuses on the idea of a social contract where the people agree to give their government absolute power in order to protect the people from themselves. He reasoned this was necessary because people if left alone would tear apart society. The title "Leviathan" comes from the Biblical sea monster of the same name, as Hobbes saw the government as one large individual made up of all the people.
(http://bit.ly/3qhe214) -
Publication of Two Treatises of Government
Written by Enlightenment philosophe John Locke, this two-part series discusses the purpose of government. According to Locke, this is to make laws that protect people's rights, and that are applicable to each person equally, unaffected by social status. IN return, the people must obey these laws, which would ideally keep an organized society. He also brings up the idea that people are born with natural rights to life, liberty, and property, that must be protected.
(https://bit.ly/3rNK7Oo) -
Estates General Meets
The estates general was the decision-making council of 18th century France, made up of three bodies that each got one vote; the first estate, consisting of the clergy, the second estate, made up of nobles, and the third estate, which was for the common people and included 98% of the population. This time they were meeting to approve the king's proposal to tax the nobles, but since the first and second estates always voted together, the common people had no power in this.
(http://bit.ly/3q7rYe2) -
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The French Revolution
The French Revolution was a period of time where the people of France sought to reform their government from the way it was at the time. It spanned over ten years and was an era of determination for some and fear for others.
(https://www.history.com/topics/france/french-revolution) -
Tennis Court Oath Taken
Fed up with the high taxes and low representation they were getting, a group of common people met in an abandoned tennis court and vowed not to leave until they had developed a fair constitution. This would become known as the Declaration of the rights of man and citizen
(http://bit.ly/2Z8Z5lK) -
Storming of the Bastille
After the Tennis Court Oath was taken, King Louis XVI became worried for his safety and hired a group of soldiers known as the Swiss guard. Worried that they were there to attack them, the citizens of Paris stormed the Bastille, an abandoned prison, and took anything that they thought might be useful for defending themselves from the abundant supply of weapons inside. The anniversary of this day is celebrated as French Independence day.
(https://bit.ly/3aY4LEX) -
Beginning of the Great Fear
After storming the Bastille, the members of the third estate took it upon themselves to revolt against their government and the people that supported it. Using these weapons, they attacked nobles all over the country. It is for this reason that this period was known as the Great Fear because the nobles feared that their lives or the lives of their loved ones could be taken any day.
(https://alphahistory.com/frenchrevolution/great-fear/) -
Publication of the Declaration of the Rights of Man and Citizen
On this date, the constitution that was developed by the third estate in an abandoned tennis court two months earlier was published under the name "The Declaration of the Rights of Man and Citizen". Sadly, the King and nobles did not accept this, and the peasants continued to starve while the higher classes lived lavish lives.
(http://avalon.law.yale.edu/18th_century/rightsof.asp) -
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Hatian Revolution
The Haitian Revolution was a movement by the slaves of the French colony of St. Domingue. They wanted their freedom from the hard, unpaid work that profited the French, and revolted against their government, tired of being taken advantage of. They were ultimately successful but were left as a very poor country due to the fact that they were forced to pay off dues to the French after their independence.
(https://www.blackpast.org/global-african-history/haitian-revolution-1791-1804/) -
Slaves Revolt on Northern St. Domingue's Plantations
Saint Domingue, now known as Haiti, was a French farming colony in the Caribbean that used slave labor as a way to gain profits. They worked long hours and were treated badly by their owners, with 5-10% dying yearly. After hearing about the Declaration of the Rights of the Man and Citizen they wanted to be acknowledged too and started a revolt, burning down homes and sugar plantations. In turn, the whites killed thousands of blacks in fear of what would come.
(http://bit.ly/2Z7wmhu) -
Publication of Vindication of the Rights of Women
Written by feminist philosophe Mary Wollstonecraft in 1792, this book promoted women's rights, specifically education and the ability to be part of the social contract. Wollstonecraft said that men's and women's brains were equal and that they should therefore receive the same education. She also argued that women should have the same rights as men, and be given a chance to speak their opinions, giving a unique perspective on certain matters.
(https://bit.ly/3aaq8Ue) -
French Republic proclaimed
On this date, the First French Republic was officially formed. Since France had previously technically been a constitutional monarchy, but this had still resulted in King Louis XVI abusing his power, they were looking to come up with a better way to run things. The French made this switch to give the people more say in their government, and hopefully to keep people higher up in the system from abusing their power.
(http://bit.ly/3b02k4L) -
King Louis XVI executed by guillotine
While trying to flee the country disguised as a peasant, the King was recognized and captured. He was put on trial and it was determined that he and the royal family were not fit to govern even a constitutional monarchy, as he had been abusing the power he was given. He was branded as a traitor and imprisoned. By January, he had been executed by guillotine.
(https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/king-louis-xvi-executed) -
Reign of Terror Begins
During the French Revolution, one of the most influential people was a man by the name of Robespierre, whose radical ideas inspired the people to rally against the nobles at all cost. One of the things that he encouraged was the killing of any "Enemies of the Revolution", as he referred to them. They would harm nobles and higher-class people, often without any real proof of wrong-doing, inspiring the name "The Reign of Terror".
(https://www.britannica.com/event/Reign-of-Terror) -
Slavery is outlawed in the French colonies, including St. Domingue
After slavery was banned, which was done to attempt to equally protect the rights of all people living in French territories, the people of St. Domingue had an even greater desire to be free. They thought that if they had their own rights they should have to be ruled by a country where the government did not align with the ideals of the people living there. However, this became difficult as the French government changed hands, with each group viewing slavery differently.
(http://bit.ly/3b2Y8Be) -
Execution of Robespierre
Over time, people started to realize how detrimental Robespierre's radical ideas were to the way that society functioned, as they were leading to the normalization of large numbers of executions of anyone with different beliefs than oneself. Robespierre was put to death by guillotine on July 28, after which there was a steady decrease in the total number of executions in France.
( https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/robespierre-overthrown-in-france) -
The Directory takes control of France
After Robespierre's execution, there was a need for a new leader of France. A group of five men known as the Directory filled this position, creating a new constitution, setting up elite schools, helping to recover the economy, and making peace with nations where they needed to.
(https://www.ducksters.com/history/french_revolution/directory.php) -
War of Knives Begins for Control of St. Domingue
The War of Knives was the name for the civil war in St. Domingue, fought between Toussaint L'Ouverture, who had sided with poorer former slaves, and Andre Rigaud, who had an army of more wealthy, educated former slaves. With help from the English, L'Ouverture was able to defeat Rigaud, who was exiled afterward.
(https://thelouvertureproject.org/index.php?title=War_of_Knives) -
Napoléon stages a coup d’etat
On this date, French military general Napolean Bonaparte signed a document giving him all rights to the government, seizing it from the previous leaders, the Directory. This document was known as a coup d'etat. Despite the fact that Napolean ran a dictatorship, this was better for the country at that time, as the Directory's inability to control the country in times of economic crisis had led to bankruptcy and unemployment that Bonaparte was able to improve.
(http://bit.ly/3d9nGiQ) -
New Constitution put up for vote; Revolution is declared over.
With the power that France had gained after Napolean Bonaparte led the country to victory, the French were in a position of economic and political success. They drafted a new constitution which was later put up to vote. After this was passed, France was no longer a monarchy and the revolution was declared over.
(https://alphahistory.com/frenchrevolution/constitution-of-1791/) -
L’Ouverture proclaims a new constitution in St. Domingue and is declared Governor for Life
After winning the War of Knives, L'Ouverture created a new constitution, one that banned slavery, giving equal rights to all the people. However, he also outlawed Voodoo, which was the religion of many of the natives. This angered the people, making them ready to rebel against their government once more.
(https://www.britannica.com/biography/Toussaint-Louverture/Command-of-Hispaniola) -
L’Ouverture put in prison by the French with the help of Jean-Jacques Dessalines
Jean-Jacques Dessalines, who was one of the top generals in L'Ouverture's army, created a plan to capture his superior. He planned to have L'Ouverture come to a "meeting" that he had planned, where they would seize and imprison him. He was aided by the French army in this attempt, and together they succeeded.
(https://www.britannica.com/biography/Toussaint-Louverture/Command-of-Hispaniola) -
Dessalines proclaims Haiti’s independence
After L'Ouverture's capture, all groups joined forces against Napolean Bonaparte, the leader of France. Dessalines burnt anything that the French may have used against them; this was called the Scorched Earth Policy. Bonaparte ended up surrendering to the Haitians before any more trouble occurred. In this new nation, Dessalines abolished slavery and gave rights to all, but the debt that they were in with the French leaves them as one of the poorest countries to this day.
(http://bit.ly/3acubQ3) -
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The Revolutions of Latin and South America
In the early 19th century, many European colonies in South and Central America were at the point where they could deal with the unfair class system no longer. The people born in the country were given fewer rights, and they didn't see how this made sense. Led by people such as Simon Bolivar, Jose de San Martin, and Augustin de Iturbide, these colonies fought to gain their independence.
(http://bit.ly/3jEN9Sd) -
Mexico declares independence from Spain
For a decade, Mexican Creoles pushed for independence and were thus executed, as they also were against slavery, which was an unpopular belief at the time. However, when the Spanish king was forced to outlaw slavery, Mexican Creole Augustin de Iturbide, who was originally opposed to the revolution, overthrew the foreign leaders, afraid of liberal ideas coming to Mexico. He tried to become ruler there but was kicked out, and the Republic of Mexico was declared in 1824.
(http://bit.ly/3adKRGJ) -
Simon Bolivar arrives at Merida, Venezuela
On this date, educated Creole Simon Bolivar entered the city of Santiago de los Caballeros de Mérida, in his native country of Venezuela, freeing the people from Spanish rule. This was the first of his victories over European rulers in South America, but he would go on to free the people of Ecuador, Peru, and Bolivia, as well, earning him the name "El Libertador" or "The Liberator"
(http://bit.ly/3rNADmy) -
Peru declares independence
Jose de San Martin was one of the leaders in freeing Peru from the Spaniards. He did this by coming at the foreigners from surrounding countries that had, too, been liberated, but when he found himself face-to-face with them he realized he did not have much power in Peru and called to Simon Bolivar for help. He did not want to work with San Martin, who then dropped the cause, which Bolivar took control of, defeating the Spaniards and freeing the Peruvians.
(http://bit.ly/2ZbZKTw) -
Gran Columbia formed
Led by Bolivar, Gran Columbia sought to unite the current day nations of Columbia, Venezuela, Ecuador, Panama, and parts of Peru and Brazil. However, this was not particularly successful, with the creoles, slaves, and peninsularies' disagreements on many different levels.
(https://www.pbs.org/wnet/civilization-west-and-rest/killer-apps/property/map-american-expansion-u-s-a-and-gran-colombia)
