3.6-3.8: DW Honors-The French Revolution, Radicalism, and Napoleon

Vocabulary practice flashcards covering key terms, figures, events, and concepts of the French Revolution and Napoleonic Era.

First Estate

The social class in pre-revolutionary France made up of the clergy, numbering about 130,000 (less than 1/2% of the population), owning about 10% of the land, and paying no taxes.

Second Estate

The social class in pre-revolutionary France made up of the nobility, numbering about 350,000 (less than 1.5% of the population), owning about 30% of the land, holding leading positions in government, military, and church, and paying no taxes.

Taille

An annual direct tax in France from which both the First and Second Estates were exempt.

Third Estate

The diverse social class making up over 98% of the French population, including peasants, merchants, doctors, lawyers, and businessmen, who carried the tax burden.

Louis XVI

King of France from 1774 to 1791 whose financial extravagance and aid to American revolutionaries caused a debt crisis, leading to the revolution and his execution in 1793.

Marie Antoinette

Queen of France and daughter of Maria Theresa, who was widely resented for her extravagant spending and lavish lifestyle.

Estates General

The representative assembly of all three estates that met on May 5, 1789, for the first time since 1614 to address France's financial crisis.

National Assembly

The revolutionary assembly proclaimed on June 17, 1789, by representatives of the Third Estate after demanding individual deputy voting rights to draft a constitution.

Tennis Court Oath

The pledge taken by the Third Estate on an indoor tennis court after being locked out of their meeting hall, vowing to meet until a new constitution was written.

The Bastille

A French prison stormed by a mob of about 900 peasants on July 14, 1789, to obtain arms and ammunition, resulting in its capture after four hours.

Great Fear

A panic that spread across France following peasant revolts, marked by anti-noble violence, destruction of legal records, and formation of citizen militias.

Declaration of the Rights of Man and the Citizen

A charter adopted by the National Assembly on August 4, 1789, that outlined natural rights for men, excluding women initially.

Legislative Assembly

The body created by the 1791 Constitution to enact laws under a limited monarchy, elected by tax-paying men over age 25.

The Commune

A radical political group organized by the Paris poor who seized power in the city after raiding the royal palace and Legislative Assembly.

Sans-Culottes

Radical revolutionaries in Paris whose name literally meant 'those without fancy pants.'

Georges Danton

Minister of justice who led the Sans-culottes in attacking the royal palace and imprisoning King Louis XVI.

Jean-Paul Marat

A radical Paris leader who published works advocating violence and rapid political transformation.

Jacobins

A highly radical political network within the National Convention that demanded the execution of King Louis XVI.

The Mountain

A radical faction within the National Convention that successfully persuaded the assembly to execute Louis XVI.

Guillotine

A machine used for beheadings, utilized for executions including Louis XVI on January 21, 1793, and thousands during the Reign of Terror.

Committee on Public Safety

A committee granted broad executive powers by the National Convention, led by Danton, Marat, and Robespierre, which orchestrated the Reign of Terror.

Maximilien Robespierre

Radical leader who governed France through the Committee on Public Safety until his execution on June 28, 1794.

Reign of Terror

A period of state-sanctioned violence during which over 40,000 people were executed by guillotine or killed by mobs to protect the republic.

Council of 500

The lower house created under the 1795 French Constitution responsible for drafting legislation.

Council of Elders

An upper house of 250 members established by the 1795 Constitution that voted to accept or reject laws drafted by the Council of 500.

The Directory

A five-member executive body chosen by the Council of Elders from a list drafted by the Council of 500, known for corruption during its five-year reign.

Coup d'état

A sudden overthrow of the government, executed in 1799 by General Napoleon Bonaparte to overthrow the Directory.

Consulate

The regime established by Napoleon in 1799 after his coup d'état, structured nominally as a republic but controlled authoritatively by Napoleon.

Civil Code (Napoleonic Code)

A uniform system of law created in 1804 that guaranteed legal equality, religious tolerance, and abolition of serfdom, while curtailing women's rights.

Anne-Louise-Germaine de Staël

A prominent writer who publicly criticized Napoleon's autocratic rule and strict censorship of books and press.

Dependent States

Nations ruled by Napoleon's relatives, including Spain, Holland, Italy, Naples, Switzerland, Warsaw, and the Confederation of the Rhine.

Continental System

An economic blockade designed by Napoleon to stop trade between continental Europe and Great Britain in order to weaken the British war economy.

Russian Campaign of 1812

Napoleon's failed invasion of Russia in which over 600,000 troops entered in June 1812, but severe winter weather and evasion tactics reduced them to 40,000 by December 1812.

Elba

An island off the northwest coast of Italy where Napoleon was exiled following the fall of Paris in March 1814.

Louis XVIII

Brother of Louis XVI who was placed on the French throne by Allied forces after Napoleon's first exile.

Battle of Waterloo

The engagement in Belgium on June 18, 1815, in which combined British and Prussian forces permanently defeated Napoleon Bonaparte.

St. Helena

A remote island in the Atlantic Ocean where Napoleon was exiled after his final defeat at Waterloo, remaining there until his death in 1821.

Robespierre

Major leader during Reign of Terror

Olympe de Gouges

Mentioned as a victim of the Terror

Napoleon Bonaparte

Military leader who seized power in 1799