AICE EURO 1.3 and 1.4 vocab

council of five hundred

Handled the daily business of Athens. Chosen by lot rather than election.

coup d'etat

A sudden overthrow of the government by a small group

The directory

Group of five men who served as liaisons between Robespierre and the Assembly. Overthrown by Napoleon.

council of ancients

One of the two house legislatures formed after new constitution with Directory in government. Discussed and voted on legislation proposed by second house.

Barras

a leading member of the Directory who helped keep order during the French Revolution and later supported Napoleon's rise to power. He was influential but often seen as corrupt and mainly interested in maintaining his own authority.

La Revelliere-Lepeaux

Strong Republican, opponent of monarchy, hated Roman Catholic Church and was determined to prevent the Church from re-establishing any role in French society.

Reubell

leading Feuillant; elected to National Assembly and Convention; Director 1795 onwards; supported CCoC, Louis' death, and emancipation of slaves in the French colonies - within the directory he was largely concerned with foreign policy

Le Tourneur

Director with engineering and military expertise

Carnot

Developed theoretical engines that looked at efficiency and supported the third law of thermodynamics

Republic of Equals

Government that supported justice and equality for all

Gracchus Babeuf

a French politician and journalist during revolution who wanted to abolish private property and eliminate private enterprise.

Napoleon Bonaparte

Overthrew the French revolutionary government (The Directory) in 1799 and became emperor of France in 1804. Failed to defeat Great Britain and abdicated in 1814. Returned to power briefly in 1815 but was defeated and died in exile.

Joseph Fouche

left in charge of the police state by Napoleon, organized a spy system to root out subversive people and potential opponents to Napoleon's regime

Lucien Bonaparte

Napoleon's brother, rescued Napoleon during coup attempt by saying if he was gonna ruin government he would kill him (Abbe Sieyes there too). He was president of the Council of Five Hundred, the lower house of the French Parliament.

Maurice de Talleyrand

Delegate to the Congress of Vienna and the genius representative of a defeated France

August 1795- Convention creates the Constitution of 1795

Creation of the Directory in 1795

The five-man executive government formally began ruling France.

Problems that the Directory faced from 1795 to 1799

The Directory struggled with weak leadership, constant financial crises, food shortages, corruption, and threats from both royalists who wanted the monarchy back and radicals who wanted another revolution. It was unstable and unpopular, which made it easy for Napoleon to overthrow it in 1799.

1796- Babeuf Plot

Failed communist-style uprising to overthrow the Directory.

1797- Coup of Fructidor

Directors used the army to purge royalist members from the legislature.

1799- Coup of 30 Prairial

Another coup against the Directory, occurring in June 1799, aimed at preventing the return of royalists to power.

November 1799- Coup of 18 Brumaire

Napoleon's coup that overthrew the Directory and ended the French Revolution.

Amnesty

a pardon for breaking any laws in the past

Plebiscite

Like an election, a popular vote. Puts a question to voters about a specific issue and is almost always organized around a yes/no decision.

First consul

The most important of the three consuls established by the French Constitution of 1800; the title, given to Napoleon Bonaparte, was taken from ancient Rome.

Council of the State

Napoleon's creation of a powerful body with principal ministers for political balance

prefect

a powerful, appointed official used by Napoleon Bonaparte to centralize control of France.

enlightened despot

Absolute ruler who used his or her power to bring about political and social change

freedom of the press

the right of journalists to publish the truth without restriction or penalty

reconciliation

restoring friendly relations and fostering mutual understanding between nations after periods of conflict

Moniteur

official government newspaper of France.

1799- Napoleon becomes 1st Consul

Napoleon formalizes his dictatorship after the Coup of 18 Brumaire.

1800- Battles of Marengo and Hohenlinden

Decisive victories over Austria that secured Napoleon's power and ended the Second Coalition war.

1800- Bank of France

Central bank created by Napoleon to stabilize the French economy and currency.

1802- The Concordat

Agreement with the Pope that re-established the Catholic Church in France under state control.

1801-1807- Creation of the Code Napoleon

A major set of laws Napoleon created to make France's legal system uniform, clear, and fair. It organized laws about property, family, and individual rights, replacing the old, confusing system of different local laws. It became one of Napoleon's most important achievements and influenced legal systems worldwide.

1801-reforms to education (lycees and university system)

state-controlled, centralized system designed to produce loyal, skilled administrators and military officers for the government through a meritocratic approach.