1.3 AICE European History Vocab

Counter-revolutionary Clubs

Factions that opposed the Revolution and sought to restore the pre-revolutionary order (e.g., Royalists, Feuillants).

Jacobins

Most radical political club, led by Robespierre, driving force of the Reign of Terror.

Feuillants

Conservative club that split from the Jacobins; supported a constitutional monarchy.

Girondins

Moderate republican faction, competed with the radical Montagnards, later purged/executed in the Terror.

Émigrés

Nobles/citizens who fled France during the Revolution, seeking foreign aid to restore the monarchy.

Royalists

Supporters of the Ancien Régime and the restoration of the Bourbon monarchy (e.g., led uprisings in the Vendée).

National Guard

Citizen militia formed in 1789 to protect revolutionary gains, initially led by Marquis de Lafayette.

Sans-culottes

Radical, militant working-class citizens of Paris; advocated for direct democracy and social equality.

Cordeliers Society

Radical political club (1790) promoting the rights of man and direct democracy.

Society of Knitters (Tricoteuses)

Women supposedly present, knitting, beside the guillotine during executions of the Terror.

Georges Danton

Charismatic leader who helped overthrow the monarchy, but was later executed by Robespierre for advocating to relax the Terror.

Maximilien Robespierre

Key Jacobin leader of the Committee of Public Safety; chief architect of the Reign of Terror and the 'Republic of Virtue'; eventually executed (July 1794).

Olympe de Gouges

Feminist and playwright who wrote the Declaration of the Rights of Woman; executed during the Terror.

Pauline Leon

Radical feminist who demanded right to bear arms for women.

Louis XVII

Young son of Louis XVI; royalist claimant to the throne after his father's death; died in prison in 1795.

Louis XVIII, Count of Provence

Brother of Louis XVI; became the royalist claimant after Louis XVII's death; restored to the throne in 1814.

Count De Artois

Brother of Louis XVI; early, uncompromising émigré; later became King Charles X.

Citizen Capet

The name revolutionaries used for Louis XVI during his imprisonment/trial to emphasize his loss of royal status.

Emperor Leopold II of Austria

Marie Antoinette's brother; issued the Declaration of Pillnitz warning the revolutionaries.

Toussaint L'Ouverture

Former slave who led the Haitian Revolution for independence from France.

Guillotine

Machine for beheading; adopted for 'humane' execution; symbol of the Reign of Terror.

Assignats

Paper currency based on the value of confiscated Church lands; excessive printing led to inflation.

Civil Constitution of the Clergy

1790 law that made the Catholic Church subordinate to the state and required clergy to swear a loyalty oath.

Committee of Public Safety

Powerful executive body (1793); led by Robespierre; main instrument of the Reign of Terror.

Law of Suspects

1793 decree allowing the arrest of anyone vaguely deemed a 'suspect' of counter-revolution, enabling mass arrests.

Republic of Virtue

Robespierre's ideal society based on civic virtue, arguing that terror was needed to achieve it.

Cult of the Supreme Being

Deistic civic religion created by Robespierre to replace Catholicism and instill revolutionary morality.

Paris Commune

The radical municipal government of Paris; influential after the Storming of the Tuileries.

Bien nationaux

'National properties'; confiscated lands of the Church/émigrés sold by the government.

Active citizens

Men who met property/tax qualifications in the 1791 Constitution and could vote.

Passive citizens

Citizens excluded from voting due to not meeting property qualifications.

Electors

Individuals chosen by active citizens to vote for deputies to the Legislative Assembly.

Deputies

Elected representatives serving in legislative bodies (e.g., National Convention).

Bad harvest of 1790 and 1791

Continued poor harvests that contributed to food shortages and high prices, fueling popular discontent.

June 1791 - Flight to Varennes

Louis XVI and his family attempted to flee Paris but were captured; destroyed public trust in the king.

July 1791 - Champs de Mar Massacre

National Guard fired on a crowd demanding the king's removal after the Flight to Varennes.

September 1791 - Assembly creates new constitution

Established a constitutional monarchy; first revolutionary constitution.

1791 - Declaration of Pillnitz

Austria and Prussia warned France not to harm the royal family, hinting at intervention; seen as a threat.

War with Austria in 1792

France declared war, beginning the Revolutionary Wars, which fueled domestic radicalism.

1792 - Storming of the Tuileries

Sans-culottes stormed the royal palace, leading to the suspension of the monarchy.

August 1792 - the Journée/September Massacres

Mass killings of nobles/clergy held in Parisian prisons due to fears of counter-revolution.

1792 - Battle of Valmy

Decisive French military victory over the Prussians; boosted revolutionary morale.

September 1792 - National Convention is elected

New assembly that abolished the monarchy and declared France a republic.

January 1793 - Execution of Louis XVI

King Louis XVI tried for treason and publicly executed by guillotine.

1793-1795 - Reign of Terror

Period of extreme political repression and mass executions of 'enemies' of the Revolution, led by the Committee of Public Safety.

White Terror 1794-1795

Counter-revolutionary violence after the Terror; royalists seeking revenge against former Jacobins.

Declaration of Verona 1795

Future Louis XVIII manifesto, declaring intent to restore the Ancien Régime and punish revolutionaries.

Quiberon Expedition 1795

Failed landing by British-backed émigré forces to aid royalist uprisings.

French Revolutionary Wars

Series of ongoing conflicts between France and European monarchies beginning in 1792.

Brunswick Manifesto

1792 ultimatum by Austria/Prussia threatening to destroy Paris if the royal family was harmed; fueled radical insurrection.