Winschel Euro Unit 4b French Revolution

Leviathan

Written by Thomas Hobbes in 1651 in response to English Civil War

Thomas Hobbes

English; all humans are naturally selfish and wicked; ultimate government is absolute monarchy; strong ruler=better life (social contract)

Two Treatises of Government

Written by John Locke in 1680 in response to Glorious Revolution

John Locke

English; people can learn from experience and improve; all people are born free and equal; government should protect citizens' rights (life, liberty, property)

On the Spirit of Laws

Written by Baron de Montesquieu in 1748

Baron de Montesquieu

French; separation of powers; checks and balances; inspired American Constitution

Voltaire

French; 1700s; tolerance, reason, freedom of religion and speech; "Kill the Church"; inspired Bill of Rights (first amendment)

The Social Contract

Written by Jean Jacques Rousseau in 1700s

Jean Jacques Rousseau

French; social contract is agreement between free individuals to create society and government; government's power comes from people; everyone is equal; people corrupted by society; government should reflect general will

Enlightenment

Throwing off darkness of authority and seeing with reason; all men are free and have equal rights (life, liberty, property); do what you want as long as it doesn't interfere with others' rights; government protects rights

Diderot

French; edited Encyclopedia; wanted to see end of Church and king (intestines)

Estates-General

Called in 1789 by Louis XVI because France needed money and he wanted to start taxing nobility (wasteful spending at Versailles and debt from 7 Years' War and American Revolution)

First and second estates

clergy and nobles; didn't pay taxes

Third estate

bourgeoisie, workers, and peasants; 98% of population; paid lots of taxes and were starving

Tennis Court Oath

1789; National Assembly vowed to continue meeting until they had drawn up a new constitution that would limit leaders' power

National Assembly

Third estate created assembly after Estates-General met in 1789; proclaimed end of absolute monarchy; first deliberate act of revolution

Storming of the Bastille

July 14, 1789; mob stormed Bastille prison and killed prison commander and several guards

Declaration of the Rights of Man

Written by the National Assembly; declared all men could do anything as long as it did not harm others; life, liberty, and property

Causes of revolution

unfair taxes on third estate; starvation, rising bread prices; Enlightenment; freemasons; American Revolution; weak leadership; unfair representation in government

Louis XVI

King of France 1774-1792

Marie Antoinette

Unpopular queen; wife of Louis XVI

limited constitutional monarchy

stripped king of much of his authority; created Legislative Assembly that could create laws and approve/reject declarations of war

Freemasonry

Spread Enlightenment ideas and provided leadership

Jacobin Club

Led radical stage of Revolution; led by Jean-Paul Marat, Georges Danton, and Maximilian Robespierre; made up left/mountain

National Convention

Republic set up by radical revolutionaries with no king and universal male suffrage

Mountain

Left; Radicals and Jacobins; led by Marat, Danton, and Robespierre; took control; Committee of Public Safety (12 man dictatorship)

Plain

Center; switched to Left

Girond

Right; killed by Left

Reign of Terror

1793-94; by Committee of Public Safety and Robespierre; suspended Constitution and Declaration of the Rights of Man; thousands executed for disloyalty; dechristianization and administrative reform

Dechristianization

atttempt to remove Catholic faith from France; calendar changed to remove Sundays; roads with "Saint" were changed

Levee en Masse

Law that obligated all French men between certain ages to enlist in the army; forced contribution to war for all citizens

Robespierre

"The Incorruptible"; leader of Committee of Public Safety; execution ended Reign of Terror

Jean Paul Marat

published a radical journal called Friend of the People; killed by Charlotte Corday in 1793

The Directory

Established after the Reign of Terror/National Convention in 1795; a five man group as the executive branch of the country; incompetent and corrupt, only lasted for 4 years

Sans-culottes

Radical group of Parisian wage-earners who wore regular trousers

Coup d'etat

a sudden overthrow of the government

Civil Constitution of the Clergy

Put church under state control

Continental system

Trade blockade around Great Britain

Battle of Trafalgar

naval battle in which Napoleon's forces were defeated by a British fleet

Waterloo

Site of Napoleon's final defeat

Napoleonic code

A comprehensive and uniform system of laws established for France by Napoleon