The French Revolution and the Age of Revolutions (1700–1900 CE)

Vocabulary flashcards covering key political ideologies, figures, documents, social structures, and events of the French Revolution and the Age of Revolutions (1700–1900 CE).

Liberalism

A 19th-century ideology that embraced Enlightenment ideas, supported written constitutions, and championed individual freedom, with John Stuart Mill as its most prominent advocate in his book On Liberty.

Conservatism

A 19th-century ideology and set of beliefs that emerged in reaction against the radicalism of the American and French Revolutions, with Edmund Burke as its most well-known supporter.

John Stuart Mill

The most well-known proponent of 19th-century Liberalism who articulated principles of individual freedom and constitutional governance in his work On Liberty.

On Liberty

The book written by John Stuart Mill that promoted 19th-century Liberalism, Enlightenment ideals, individual freedom, and constitutional government.

Edmund Burke

The leading 19th-century proponent of Conservatism who formulated ideas in opposition to the radicalism of the French and American Revolutions.

Glorious Revolution

The 1688 revolution in which a European country with a strong merchant class overthrew the absolute monarch James II and established the first limited monarchy in Western Europe.

James II

The absolute monarch overthrown in 1688 during the Glorious Revolution, leading to the establishment of Western Europe's first limited monarchy.

Limited monarchy

A system of government first established in Western Europe following the overthrow of King James II during the Glorious Revolution of 1688.

Declaration of the Rights of Man

A foundational French Revolution document centered on three key ideas that borrowed heavily from the American Declaration of Independence.

Declaration of Independence

The historical document from which the French Revolution's Declaration of the Rights of Man borrowed heavily.

Old Regime

The traditional social and political system in France divided into three estates, under which the Third Estate bore the heaviest tax burden and had the fewest rights.

Third Estate

The social order under the Old Regime that paid the most in taxes, possessed the fewest rights, and included a group accounting for 80% of the French population.

First Estate

One of the three traditional social classes under the Old Regime of France, alongside the Second Estate and the Third Estate.

Second Estate

One of the three social orders in pre-revolutionary France under the Old Regime, distinct from the First Estate and the Third Estate.

Reign of Terror

A period of intense violence, political purges, and radical repression carried out in France during the French Revolution.

Napoleon

The leader who rose to power in France amid the revolution and wars against five European powers, whose French Empire of 1815 was ultimately ended by a British military defeat.

French Empire of 1815

The imperial regime led by Napoleon that was brought to an end after being defeated in battle by the British.

Saint Domingue

The French Caribbean colony where the only successful slave revolt in history was led in 1801, inspired by the French Revolution.

Balance of power

A geopolitical framework created by conservative European leaders at a post-Napoleonic conference to act as a bulwark against future radical revolutions.

Scientific Revolution and Enlightenment

The intellectual and philosophical movements that directly influenced the outbreak of two major political revolutions during the Age of Revolutions.