French Revolution P2

Legislative Assembly

This was a new French parliament that replaced the National Assembly in October 1791.  It was dominated by younger bourgeoisie who favored more radical reforms.

Jacobins

The most important political group to appear in the early Revolution.  The Jacobins were the most radical and violent faction in the National Convention.  They ran the nation during the Reign of Terror.

Girondin

The Girondins were a moderate faction of the Jacobins who supported the Revolution but opposed extremism, such as the execution of the King.

Mountain

The Mountain were the most radical faction of the Jacobins.  The dominated France during the Reign of Terror.  They supported the execution of the King and declared war on Austria and Prussia.

Reign of Terror

This was the most extreme and violent phase of the Revolution.  Thousands of people were arrested and executed on the guillotine as enemies of the Revolution.  The Terror ended with the execution of Robespierre in July 1794.

National Convention

A new French parliament that was elected in the fall of 1792.  The Convention governed the nation during both the Terror and the Directory.

Committee of Public Safety

A group of 12 delegates, selected by the National Convention, given dictatorial power over France during the Reign of Terror.  Robespierre emerged as the leader of the Committee.

Thermidorean Reaction

A brief, violent period during the summer of 1794 when several thousand leaders of the Terror were arrested and executed.  Robespierre’s execution in July 1794 began the reaction.

Directory

A new government formed after the end of the Terror.  The Directory was made up of 5 delegates selected by the Convention.  It lasted from 1794 until Napoleon seized power in November 1799.

coup d’etat

A term for the overthrow of a legitimate government by military force.

archeology

The study of human history and prehistory through the excavation of artifacts.

Rosetta Stone

An archeological wonder, this is a massive stone tablet from the second century BCE, discovered by Napoleonic troops in Egypt in 1798.  It contained the same message written in three different languages (hieroglyphics, Demotic, and ancient Greek).

Consulate

The first government of Napoleon, it lasted from November 1799 until he proclaimed the Empire in May 1804.  Napoleon gradually emerged as the single ruler of the nation.

Concordat with the Church

An 1801 agreement between Napoleon and the Pope that ended the hostility between the Church and France.  The Church recognized Napoleon as the rightful ruler of France and Napoleon restored much of the Church’s rights (but not lands).

irreligious

Indifferent or hostile to religion, or holding no religious beliefs.

Code Napoleon (Napoleonic Code)

Authorized by Napoleon, a panal of judges wrote a national legal code for France in 1804 that replaced old regional feudal codes.  It created a rational system of modern laws that was adopted by nations all over the world.

plebiscite

A direct vote by common people on a significant issue, with a choice of 'yes' or 'no'.

First (Grand) Empire

The Empire began when Napoleon proclaimed himself Emperor in May 1804 and ended with his forced abdication in April 1814.  The Empire was briefly restored during the Hundred Days of 1815.

balance-of-power

The European diplomatic goal of preventing any single nation from dominating the continent.Britain was especially dedicated to it.

puppet-state

A nation that is officially independent, but is in fact controlled by a nation.

Grand Duchy of Warsaw

A Napoleonic puppet-state that lasted from 1807 – 1814.  It restored a measure of Polish independence that Poland had lost after the partitions of the 1790’s. 

Confederation of the Rhine

A Napoleonic puppet-state that created the first unified German state since the Treaty of Westphalia in 1648.  It lasted from 1806 – 1813.

Continental System

Term for Napoleon’s plan to ban all European trade with Britain in hopes of bringing that nation to economic ruin.  It banned the sale of goods to Britain and the import of british goods to the continent.

economic warfare

The strategy of using economic tactics, such as tariffs and embargos against rivals in hopes of causing financial collapse.  

Peninsular War (1807 – 1814)

A brutal conflict that began when Napoleon’s forces occupied Spain.  The Spanish, with British support, began a long, guerilla war that drained French strength during the conflict.

guerilla warfare

A defensive military tactic where an inferior force utilizes tactics the defy the conventional rules of warfare such as the wearing of uniforms and the taking of prisoners.

Invasion of Russia

The disastrous June 1812 military invasion of Russia by Napoleon’s Grand Armee. The Russians retreated all summer, drawing the French deep into Russia.  When the winter began the French began an epic retreat.

scorched earth

A military defensive tactic where a retreating army burns all resources that an advancing enemy could possibly use, including structures, towns, and fields of crops.

Congress of Vienna

One of the most important diplomatic events in European history, the Congress went from November 1814 to June 1815.  The goal of the diplomats was to restore European order after the defeat of Napoleon.

Prince Metternich

he served as the Austrian Foreign Minister and later the Chancellor (Prime Minister) during most of the first half of the 1800’s.  His conservative views dominated European international politics for decades after the Congress of Vienna.

restoration

The act of returning a monarch to their throne, a government to power, or the control of a previous regime.

legitimacy

Something that is legal, rightful, or appropriate.

Hundred Days

The period from March to July 1815 when Napoleon escaped from Elba and attempted to restore his control over France.  It ended with his defeat at Waterloo and his capture and exile to St. Helena.

Battle of Waterloo

Decisive June 1815 battle, the last in Napoleon’s career.  He was defeated by Prussian and British forces led by the Duke of Wellington.  Napoleon was later taken prisoner and sent to his final exile.