French Revolution

Old Regime

Aristocratic political and social system in France from the late Middle Ages until the 1789 Revolution

1^st Estate

The top-ranked, privileged social class in pre-Revolutionary France

2^nd Estate

The nobility of pre-revolutionary France, comprising about 2% of the population.

3^rd Estate

Comprised about 96 - 98% of the French population before the 1789 revolution, representing all commoners from peasants to the bourgeoisie.

Nobles

Landholding elites that contain the title of receiving land that is passed down by bloodline

Bourgeoisie

Sat at the top of the Third Estate; however, was considered the middle class in French society

King Louis XVI (16)

The French king who, after being tried and found guilty of treason during the radical Jacobin phase of the Revolution, was put to death by the guillotine during the French Revolution.

Marie Antoinette

1755 - 1793 conducted various scandals that helped discredit the monarchy.

Tennis Court Oath

Event where national assembly swore to meet whenever necessary until a sound and just constitution”

National Assembly

A French congress established by representatives of the Third Estate in 1789 during the French Revolution to enact laws and reforms in the name of the French people.

National Guard

A bourgeois armed citizen militia created in July 1789 during the early stages of the French Revolution to maintain order and protect property.

Storming of Bastille

An important symbolic event taking place in the early days of the French Revolution in which ordinary citizens stormed and took control of the Bastille, a Paris prison used to contain political prisoners, in an attempt to obtain the gunpowder contained there. The date of the event, July 14, would eventually be enshrined as a French national holiday, similar to the 4th of July celebrated in the U.S.

Estates General

An assembly of representatives from all three of the estates, or social classes, in pre-revolutionary France.

TriColor

This symbol shows the red, white, and blue of the French  revolution

Conservative

 Ideology of traditional methods and values in political views

Moderate

Typically, an ideology in the middle of the sides of political views

Radical

 Ideology of extreme change in political views

Robespierre

French lawyer and statesman, who was once a delegate to the 3rd estates general. Part of the national assembly and national convention. Recognised as one of the most influential and controversial figures of the revolution. Architect of the reign of terror as the leader of the committee of public safety

Committee of Public Safety

To deal with threats to France, the national convention formed this convention for protection against enemies of the new government

Directory

 After the reign of terror, this French government took control of France as a 5-member committee

Reign of Terror

A period of time during the French Revolution when Maximilian Robespierre ruled France nearly as a dictator and thousands of political figures and ordinary citizens were executed, the guillotine being a common method of execution.

Guillotine

The method of execution to mass kill “threats to the revolution” during the reign of terror

Suffrage

Civil right to vote in public/political elections.

Napoleon Bonaparte

A French military and political leader who rose to prominence during the latter stages of the French Revolution and eventually crowned Emperor in 1804. His legal reform, the Napoleonic Code, has been a major influence on civil law worldwide. He is regarded as one of the greatest military commanders of all time for his role in the wars led against France by a series of coalitions, the so-called Napoleonic Wars. Before his final defeat in 1815, he had taken control of most of continental Europe, seeking to expand the French empire and spread the ideals of the French Revolution.

Coup D’Etat

Is a sudden, usually illegal and violent seizure of power

Nationalism

The belief that peoples' main loyalty should be to their nation and to the people with whom they share a common culture and history, rather than to a king or queen.

First Consul

Title Napoleon Bonaparte gave himself after taking control of the directory

Napoleonic Code

Body of French civil laws introduced in 1804; served as a model for many nations’ civil codes.

Louisiana Purchase

Stretched from the Mississippi river to the rocky mountains and from the gulf of Mexico to the Canadian border. It covered 828000 sq mi. sold to the US to get money to fix the economy.

Abdicate

To step down or resign

Elba

The island napoleon was first exiled to

Battle of Waterloo

Fought on June 18, 1815, near Waterloo in present day Belgium, was the decisive defeat of Napoleon Bonaparte, ending his "hundred days: return from exile and his reign as french empire

St. Helena

A remote, volcanic island in the South Atlantic that Napoleon was exiled to by the British

Exile

Enforced removal of a person out of a country, nation, or kingdom

King Louis XVIII (18)

Was the brother of executed Louis XVI

Congress of Vienna

European leaders met in an attempt to restore stability and order due to years of war in europe

Key Causes of the French Revolution?

1. The old regime social class system that created inequality in french society

2. Unfair taxation system

3. Major financial crisis in the economy due to heavy inflation and national debt

4. Poor leadership of absolute kings

5. The enlightenment

6. The success of the american revolution

Key Effects of the French Revolution?

1. the Napoleonic wars

2. the establishment of legal equality

3. the abolishment of absolute monarchy in France. 

Was Napoleon Bonaparte a traitor or hero to the French Revolution?

Napoleon Bonaparte can be seen as a traitor to the French revolution for many reasons because he opposed the main concepts including liberty, and equality. First  he took power in a coup d’etat in 1799 and ended the current Directory government, making himself the First Consul. 5 years later he crowned himself as the Emperor of France, bringing back the corrupted monarchy that was destroyed. Napoleon also limited political freedoms: he censored newspapers, silenced critical messages, and did not allow free elections, going against the revolutionary demand for liberty. Even though he kept some reforms like his code, his actions have shown that he is ambitious and values his own power. Many argue that he betrayed the French Revolution.