FRENCH REVOLUTION Old Order Ancien Regime King and

FRENCH REVOLUTION

Old Order – Ancien Regime King and Queen at the top! King: Louis XVI Queen: Marie Antoinette

Old Order – Ancien Regime TITLE ROLES 1 ST: CLERGY (1%) NOBILITY (<2%) 3 RD: BOURGEOISIE (97%) SANS CULOTTES PEASANTS 2 ND: Rich, No Controlled taxes NO role much in of the government 10%wealth Few Workers taxes Minister to Common People Government Paid rent & fees, and military 1/10 of income jobs to church Large estates

France in Debt Borrowed HUGE amounts of money to spend on wars (including the American Revolution) King & Queen spent lavishly (more than borrowed) King tried to tax 2 nd estate refused, King backed down Nature � Hailstorm & drought ruined harvests � Winter 1788 worst in 80 years � No food!

First Events of the Revolution In 1789, no estate was 1 st & 2 nd Wealthy Bourgeoisie resented government 3 rd estate resented Meeting of the Estates-General: an of the three estates that the Louis to call � pressed

Representatives wrote “cahiers” to record grievances � Got all riled up Each estate gets and usually the 1 st and 2 nd estate would vote together Louis wanted to continue the Old Way but the 3 rd estate was inspired by the and refused 3 rd estate declared themselves a with the right to : National Assembly

Louis ordered troops to Paris and Versailles fearing an overthrow. National Assembly saw this, they feared violence July 14, 1789: a of Parisians went to the BASTILLE, killed the commander, piked his head “ ” became a symbol for the French Revolution After the fall of the Bastille, people were afraid the king would retaliate: “ ” For revenge, the peasants destroyed and burned nobles’

Creating New Rights National Assembly eliminated ALL FEUDAL DUES “Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen” � Liberty � Equality � Fraternity All men are born equal and remain equal under the law Louis calls troops to Versailles � Mob of 7, 000 angry women storm Versailles � Louis agrees to return to Paris National Assembly sells off church lands to pay off debts

New Government Citizens (taxpaying men) get new rights Keep monarchy, but weaken it King and Queen try to flee, caught Austria & Prussia threaten war if monarchs harmed � 50, 000 troops moved to border Legislative Assembly declares war � Lose � Blame king King and Queen taken to prison � Legislative Assembly National Convention � Radicals in charge � Abolish Monarchy REPUBLIC!

1792: Radicals in Control! The Mountain (most radical) Montagnard Plain Swing Girondin Moderates Swing voters Provinces Jacobins Girondin Lower Middle Class The Mountain s Constitution al Monarchy Resent: Paris’ Mob Influence

Government Leaders: : advocates violence, Sans Culottes : compromiser, opposed excesses : dedicated, led bloodiest time

Executing the King After the National Convention, the king was placed on The had hoped to avoid a trial, but they were the The were eager to try and execute the king in order to prevent a return of the monarchy Louis was quickly and scheduled to the next day Louis XVI was killed with the

After the King’s execution… National Convention began to tighten its Set up the to manage country's military defense Made a of all unmarried men 18 -45 was made to root out and eliminate anyone who posed a threat to the Revolution

The Revolution also transformed French Society: Roman Catholic Church abolished “Cult of Supreme Being” (Bibles replaced by Declaration of the Rights of Man) Metric System Calendar 10, 3 week months

Reign of Terror: series of accusations, trials & executions Caused by revolutionary leaders fearing a Once peasants got rid of feudal dues, they went back to their ways But when they heard about the a western village, resisted so strongly it led to a The counterrevolutionary force was called the The government took control back, and destroyed everything and everyone it could

Accusations and Trials Revolutionary Tribunal to get rid of dissenters Robespierre said they needed to use to defend the republic from its enemies The tribunal began with the because they once wanted a Soon anyone that or supported the old trial and death the revolution were in danger or

Napoleon A brilliant leader 1793: Forced British troops out of the port of Toulon 1795: Napoleon fought a mob of royalists trying to regain power Shot artillery into crowd, forcing them to flee As a reward put in charge of French Interior

Napoleon 1796: Napoleon was placed in command of troops invading Italy His victories here kept France’s borders secure but also won territory for France 1798: Napoleon took large fleet to Mediterranean Sea to disrupt trade between England & India

British Admiral Horatio Nelson Trapped French Ships Most of French fleet destroyed Napoleon spun it to make it look like hero Meanwhile, the Directory had grown weak Some wanted a monarchy since they feared growing European powers

Napoleon 1799: a group of armed supporters surrounded the Directory and forced the members to turn over power to Napoleon:

Napoleon Group of three consuls called CONSULATE Replaced the directory and voted Napoleon in charge of Consul Napoleon was Dictator � People were tired of constant warfare and chaos � People willing to give up

Napoleon moved quickly to strengthen his power Issued a Plebiscite: � Asked voters: Do you want to be � Voters said ! Pope Pius came to crown Napoleon � Napoleon ? took the crown and Wanted to expand his empire to the Americas � Civil war in Haiti erupted and Napoleon sent an expedition which � Napoleon sold to the US

Napoleonic Wars Extension of French Revolution Wars France became dominant power in Europe France grew rapidly Lasted more than a decade (to 1815) War with England � Britain formed a series of coalitions against France � Napoleon knew that he must defeat England � 1805: Admiral Nelson and his fleet defeated the French off the coast of Spain

Continental System Napoleon sought to disrupt trade between England the world France planned a blockade Prohibited French or allied ships to trade with England Drew Britain and France into other conflicts

Peninsular War Portugal was neutral, wouldn’t comply with continental system Napoleon sent in troops to Portugal, then Spain Napoleon quickly won and put his brother Joseph on the throne of Spain England sent troops to support Spanish revolt against France Napoleon brought troops in from Central Europe, won several battles Guerilla fighters eventually forced France out of Spain

Napoleon’s Downfall Napoleon stationed troops near the border of Russia Czar Alexander I feared the Continental System and began to gather troops To teach the Czar a lesson, Napoleon moved east into Russia

Summer By June, Napoleon & 600, 000 men marched across the border Many new recruits were from conquered territories, no loyalty Supplies spoiled in the summer heat The army suffered from disease, desertion and hunger, which thinned the ranks

Advance As Napoleon and the troops moved inward, Russians withdrew Peasants set fire to their fields August: France finally gets a battle: French won with high casualties Russian Army lost 90, 000, retreated

Moscow French reached Moscow by September, but the city was deserted The city was also on fire Napoleon had no choice but to turn back

Winter Harsh winter was the worst enemy Napoleon rushed back to Europe by sleigh Only 94, 000/600, 000 returned

Defeat The disaster gave Napoleon’s enemies new hope Napoleon raised another army but they were inexperienced October 1813, the allies met Napoleon at Leipzig, Germany, clear defeat for Napoleon March 1814, the allies entered Paris As terms of his surrender, Napoleon had to give up his throne, but kept his title