Section I: The French Revolution Begins Notes 1. What time period does the French Revolution occur? What is the population of Paris during this time? 2. How would you define and unjust government? 3. Would you risk taking part in a revolution against your government despite the consequences failure might bring?
Answers to Lead-ins 1. 1770 s, France/26 Million People 2. One that favors one group of citizens over another, refuses basic human rights, harsh, repressive. 3. Maybe if it threatened your family s safety, or you hate to see suffering.
4 Reasons France is the Epicenter of the Enlightenment 1. Large Population 2. Prosperous Foreign Trade 3. Center of Enlightenment 4. Wonderful Culture (Cuisine, more opportunity)
But, success is deceiving 1. Bad harvest for a few years 2. High prices for goods and services 3. High Taxes! 4. Disturbing questions raised by Locke, Voltaire, Rousseau
The Old Regime 3 Estates/ p. 652 Who First Estate Second Estate Third Estate Power/Influence Views of Enlightenment Percentage of Population % of Income paid in taxes
The Old Regime 3 Estates Who First Estate Second Estate Third Estate Power/Influence Clergy of Roman Catholic Church Rich nobles Highest offices in government Included Bourgeoise, urban lower class, and peasant farmers Views of Enlightenment Percentage of Population % of Income paid in taxes Loathe the Enlightenment Disagreed about Enlightenment Ideas Embraced enlightenment ideas, but had no power to influence government Resented Wealthy Less than 1% 2% 97% 2 % 0 % 50%
3 Groups within the 3 rd Estate 1. Bourgeoisie- Bankers, Factory owners, merchants, professionals. Well educated, believed in Liberty and Equality. (Paid High Tax) Why would B resent nobles? 2. Urban Poor Trades people, laborers, servants. Tough life! 3. Peasants or farmers. 80% of 26M. ½ income to nobles, tithes, and taxes to king. Very eager for change
Caricature de la période 1789. Le titre est : "A faut espérer q'eu jeu là finira ben tôt" (il faut espérer que ce jeu-là finira bientôt.)
3 Economic Problems in 1780 s 1. High tax makes business profit tough 2. High tax causes inflation, cost of living goes up! 3. Bad weather = lower crop production (Grain) Why is this bad news?
Weak Leadership Louis XVI Marie Antoinette 1. Indecisive, wont take action 2. Waits until France practically has no money left. Decides to tax nobility 1. She s Austrian 2. Nickname Madame Defecit (Jewels, Gambling, Gifts) Spent 1.5M in gambling one year
5 Essential Questions From Yesterday s Notes 1. Why does the second estate, along with the third estate now hate the King? What do the nobles do? 2. What s the Estate s General? Why does the third estate get locked out of the meeting? 3. What does the third estate do? 4. What does the storming of the Bastille signal? 5. How does the Women s Bread March make Louis XVI a basically powerless leader?
Meeting of the Estates General Second Estate forces Louis to call a meeting of the Estates General (assembly of representatives from all 3 estates) to approve the tax May 1789 First meeting in 175 years. Why? So, vote for each estate. Who always loses?
New Spokesman Sympathetic clergyman, named Emmanuel Sieyes, urged the Third Estate delegates to form The National Assembly. Change/reform laws in the name of the French people. (Liberty, Equality, Fraternity) Vote to form the N.A. was a vote to end the absolute monarchy in France. (6/17/1789) 1 st deliberate act of revolution!
The Tennis Court Oath 3 days later, the new National Assembly found themselves locked out of their meeting room Found a nearby indoor tennis court and broke the doors in. Pledged to stay until they drafted a new constitution. Nobles and clergymen joined the new National Assembly
The Tennis Court Oath
The Response and Rumors! Louis response was to call in his mercenary Swiss Guard to surround Versailles. Rumors from Paris: 1. That the Swiss Guard would execute the NA 2. That the Swiss Guard would massacre French citizens Complete Anarchy. Mobs of people gathered weapons
Storming of the Bastille Prison Mobs of people descended on this prison to seize gunpowder. Overtook guards and warden and put their heads on pikes! (7/14/1789) Act is very symbolic. Why? Second Act!
Bastille
Women s Bread March October 1789, thousands of Parisian women rioted over the price of bread weapons towards Versailles. Louis and family left for Paris under guard of military. Q. Why didn t army take out women s bread riot?
Section II: TERROR
T = The National Assembly Reforms France with. The Declaration of Rights of Man and of Citizens Men are born free, remain free and equal with 4 major rights: 1.Liberty 2.Property 3.Equal Justice 4.Freedom of Speech
T = The National Assembly Reforms France with. The N.A. also takes over church lands and sells them to pay off France s debt. Catholics are upset! Why? In 1791, Louis XVI reluctantly approves new constitution /New legislative power is formed OLD Lawmaking Body NEW Lawmaking Body
E =Emerging Factions of Government and Non-Government Government of Legislative Assembly Left Radicals Centrist Moderates Right Conservatives -Want Major Change Few Changes Hardly any change Non-Government Emigres: (Nobles) who had fled France and restore the Old Regime Sans-Culottes: (Urban Working class) Wore regular trousers unlike the knee breeches that the nobles wore
The Political Spectrum TODAY: 1790s: Sans-Culottes Jacobins Emigres Final Thought Could you make a list of Liberals, Moderates, and Conservatives today? (1 min)
R= Radicals Take Control (The Jacobins) Jacobin Meeting House Leader is Jean Paul Marat/Editor of Newspaper Friend of the People Jean-Paul Marat Called for the death of those who supported the king Membership mostly middle class. Tried Louis for treason and was sentenced to death by the guillotine
R= Robespierre and the Reign of Terror Set out to build a republic of virtue Sundays GONE! Old fashioned, dangerous 1793-1794 was known as the Reign of Terror Ruled like a dictator Enemies of CPS guillotined Many were people who challenged his leadership Robespierre Leader of the Committee of Public Safety
Primary Source If the basis of popular government in time of peace is virtue, the basis of popular government in time of revolution is both virtue and terror; virtue without which terror is murderous, terror without which virtue is powerless. Terror is nothing else than swift, severe, indomitable justice; it flows, then, from virtue. -Robespierre, On the Morals and Political Principles of Domestic Policy How did he justify the use of terror?
R= Robespierre and the Reign of Terror (cont.) But who are the enemies of the CPS? 40,000 people were executed About 85 percent were peasants or members of the urban poor or middle class (3 rd estate)
Different Social Classes Executed 8% 7% 28% 25% 31%
O = Off with the Absolute Monarchs Head! Vote by L.A.: 387 to 334 to execute End of an era of absolute monarchs in France
Marie Antoinette on the Way to the Guillotine
Marie Antoinette Died in October, 1793
The Monster Guillotine The last guillotine execution in France was in 1939!
The Guillotine When executioner cranked the blade to the top, a mechanism released the blade and severed the victims head from the body Doctors believed that a victim s head retained its hearing and eyesight for 15 minutes after beheading Before each execution, bound victims traveled from the prison to execution in ½ hour processions through the streets of Paris
Guillotine Chopping a Carrot
The Arrest of Robespierre
The Revolution Consumes Its Own Children! Danton Awaits Execution, 1793 Robespierre Lies Wounded Before the Revolutionary Tribunal that will order him to be guillotined, 1794.
R = Rise of Napoleon Will become dictator in a coup d etat which is a takeover of the government of France by military force.
French Revolution Anticipation Chart Activity Directions: For each slide do the following: 1. Write the description in detail as to what is happening in the picture 2.Write the actual meaning or event taking place
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4 with one stroke severed his head from his body. The youngest of the guards, who seemed about eighteen, immediately seized the head, and showed it to the people as he walked around the scaffold. At first an awful silence prevailed, at length some cries of Long Live the Republic! were heard...the voices multiplied and in less than ten minutes this cry, a thousand times repeated, became the universal shout of the multitude, and every hat was in the air
5 to the right were the benches on which the accused were placed in several rows...to the left was the jury......the weighty knife was then dropped with a heavy fall; and, with incredible rapidity, two executioners tossed the body into the basket, while another threw the head after it......the next unfortunate soul was placed in position... October, 1793