French Revolution (1789-1799)

Context

Treaty of Westphalia (1648)- ended Thrity Years’ War and Eighty Years’ War; established modern state system of sovereignty of states and non-interference in international affairs

Economic and Social Pressures- economis strain from constatn warfare; famine and poor harvests; enlightenment ideals

Changing Power Dynamics- rise of centralized monarchies; competition for dominance (Britain vs. France and Austria vs. Prussia); decline of Spain and Poland as major powers

France Political Sovereignty before Revolution

absolutism with centralized authority and claimed divine rights; King Louis XIV’s policies of taxation, control of nobility through court rituals at Versailles, and military campaigns (War of Spanish Succession)

Balance of Power before Revolution

Treaty of Utrecht (1713)- used to end War of Spanish Succession (1701-1714) where France tried to unit themselves and Spain under a single monarch; also redistribued territories and checked French expansion

Grand Alliance- Britain, Austria, and the Dutch Republic united against Louis XIV; Seven Years’ War (1756-1763) showcased shift with Britain and Prussia being major powers

Causes

Financial Crisis- debt from wars (American Revolution) and excessive spending by monarchy (building Versailles)

Social Inequality- Estates System created tensions

Enlightement Ideas- writing by Voltaire, Rousseau, and Montesquieu promoted ideas of liberty, equality, and popular sovereignty

Estates System

authorized taxation; First Estate (Clergy), Second Estate (nobiliy), Third Estate (all other adult men- usually wealthy members of commercial and professional middle class); ended up forming National Assembly; sent/gave Cahiers de Doleances (lists of grievances from representatives and local electrors to be presented to the king)

Moderate Phase (1789-1792)

first phase; Storming of the Bastille, Abolition of Feudal Privileges by National Assembly, Declaraction of the Rights of Man and Ctizen (August 1789); creation of a constitutional monarchy; Civil Constituion of the Clergy (1790)

Storming of the Bastille (July 14th, 1789)

symbolized the start of the popular participation in the French Revolution; Parisians marched to there to get weapons because of the fear of King Louis XIV arresting the newly constituted National Assembly; Parisians wanted political sovereignty and had to fight to get it

Declaration of the Rights of Man and the Citizen (August 1789)

proclaimed universal equality and individual freedoms FOR MEN

What did the constitutional monarchy do to King Louis XVI?

limited his powers

Civil Constitution of the Clergy (1790)

nationalized Church lands and subordinated the Church to the state, creating tensinos with devout Catholics

Radical Phase (1792-1794)

Abolition of the Monarchy (1792) established the French Republic; execution of Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette; French army repelled foreign invasions (victories at Valmy and Jemappes); Reign of Terror

Reign of Terror (1793-1794)

led by Maximilien Robespierre and the Committee of Public Safety; aimed to protect the Revolution’s ideals, including political sovereignty, by executing perceived enemies (tens of thousands such as Georges Danton and other moderate revolutionaries) through tribunals and guillotine

Thermidorian Reaction (1794-1795)

fall of Robespierre; established the Directory

Fall of Robespierre

July 1794- Robespierre was arrested and executed; marked the end of radical Jacobin dominance

The Directory

more conservative government replaced the radical leadership; faced challenges (ongoing wars and domestic unrest); relied increasingly on the military for stability

Impact on Europe

insprired revolutionary movements in neighboring countries (Belgium and Italy); triggered reactions from monarchies fearing the spread of revolutionalry ideals (specifically popularly sovereignty), leading to the formation of coalitions against France