The French Revolution and Napoleonic Era

Chapter 19 – The French Revolution

The Estates

• First Estate – clergy• Second Estate –

noble families• Third Estate –

everyone else– bourgeoisie– peasant farmers– **Overwhelming

majority

Population in France

0.50%

1.50%

98%

1stEstate2ndEstate3rdEstate

Louis XVI and the Estates General

• First Estate – clergy• Second Estate –

noble families• Third Estate –

everyone else– bourgeoisie– peasant farmers– **Overwhelming

majority

• Louis XVI – Bourbon dynasty– Weak, indecisive– incompetent

• Marie Antoinette– Vain, unintelligent– Austrian– “Let them eat

cake!”

Tennis Court Oath•Angered, 3rd Estate declares themselves a National Assembly on June 17, 1789•They meet on a nearby tennis court and vow to remain until a Constitution was established

(by Jacques Louis David)

• King's nervous

• asks 1st and 2nd estate to join them and write a constitution together

No Dice• Storming of the

Bastille• July 14, 1789• peasants sweep

through and attack nobility and feudal institutions

The Declaration of the Rights of Man

• August – National Assembly writes a document to recognize natural rights, include a lot of Rousseau

• widely copied and distributed across Europe

• National Assembly abolishes the fedual system and declares freedom of worship, breaking from the Cath Ch.

• King and his family taken to Paris so the 3rd Estate Revolutionaries can keep him out of the way

• National Assembly establishes the nation-state as the source of all sovereignty or political authority

• National Assembly ratified a new constitution

• Sets up constitutional monarchy– Issues? Those who wanted

to abolish the monarchy felt cheated, those who wanted to retain the feudal structure felt betrayed

– Not everyone is happy.

• Marie Antionette – sister of the Emperor of Austria

• Austria and Prussia invade France

• French revolutionaries hold them back

• French leaders meet, new constitution

• Convention – new ruling body – abolished monarchy, proclaimed France a republic

Dun, dun, dun….• Jacobins lead the Convention• Imprison royal family• Behead king for treason in 1793

Marie is killed in October

Reign of Terror

• Prussia and Austria regroup• Britain and Spain join in• Convention worried about

foreign threats• Throw out constitution, AGAIN,• Committee of Public Safety –

led by Maximilien Robespierre – an all-powerful enforcer of the revolution– Murders any with

antirevolutionary tendancies

Guillotine: between 18,000 and 40,000 people were executed during the Reign of Terror

Robespierre

• Controls anarchy• Beheads tens of

thousands of French citizens

• Creates strong national military

Symbols of France

• Tricolor – red, white, blue

• Le Marsellaise – national anthem

• Liberte, Egalite, Fraternite

• Viva la nation!– Long live the

nation!

• Guillotine for Robespierre

• New constitution, 1795

• Directory in charge (five man gvt)– builds up the military

Napoleon

• Napoleon Bonaparte overthrows the Directory in 1799– Legitimizes actions

with popular vote– Declares himself the

First Consul under the new constitution

– (…the FOURTH new constitution…)

Improving life

• Domestic Reforms– Agriculture, infrastructure,

and public education– Works things out with the

Cath. Ch.

• Napoleonic Codes – 1804 – recognized equality of French citizens– Big step for human rights

law– But not very good for

women or children

Emperor• Crowns himself emperor in 1804• Literally crowns himself, shows he owes his throne to

no one but himself

Building an Empire• Valued rapid movements

and effective use of large armies

• New plan for every battle

• Presence “worth 40,000 troops”

• The Grand Empire – – annexes areas of France, the

Netherlands, Belgium, parts of Italy and Germany

• Dissolves the HRE– Creates 38-member

Confederation of the Rhine

• Cuts Prussia in half; turns old Poland into the Duchy of Warsaw

• Controls Europe by placing relatives and friends on thrones of conquered nations

• Sold Louisiana land to the USA– 1. Money to fund his army– 2. So Britain couldn’t

access the Mississippi• Failed to acquire Britain

– Battle of Trafalgar• Led by Br. Admiral

Horatio Nelson• Napoleon turns his

sights to Russia

Effects of Nationalism

• France has new found sense of nationalism

• Nationalism – tremendous pride and devotion in and to your country

• But, nationalism in conquered countries inspires revolts against France, too

• Spain loses holdings in the Americas b/c colonies revolt against Spain’s weakened control

Russia

• In 1812 Napoleon invades Russia with 600,000 French soldiers

• Scorched Earth Policy• General Winter

– Gives up in October

– Only 100,000 survive

Coalition Against Napoleon

• Russia, Britain, Austria, Sweden and Prussia become allies to take out Napoleon

• 1813 – Battle of the Nations at Leipzig– Napoleon is

defeated

Exiled• Napoleon abdicated

• Victors exile him to Elba

• Recognize Louis XVIII as king of France (brother of Louis XVI) – Restoration not a smooth one– King accepts Napoleonic Code

and honors land settlements– But, people nervous and fear

oppression

He returns!

• Napoleon escapes island exile and returns!

• Soldiers flock to him

• Citizens cheer, king flees,

• March 1815, Napoleon reenters Paris

The Final Showdown• June 18, 1815 opposing armies meet head to head in Waterloo,

Belgium• Br Duke of Wellington; Pr. General Blucher

– Lead the attack and crush France

(Wellington at Waterloo)

This time it really is the end…

– Napoleon forced to abdicate again– Exiled on St. Helena…no more Napoleon

Fixing Europe• The Congress of Vienna –

1814 to 1815• The principal negotiators

were: • Austria -- Prince Klemons von

Metternich• Prussia --  King Frederick

William III• Russia -- Czar Alexander I• Great Britain -- Castlereagh• France -- Prince Talleyrand

Congress of Vienna• Work to restore order to Europe

– Recognize balance of power

• 5 nation-states

• Austria, Prussia, Russia, Great Britain, and France

– Gain power at expense of smaller states

• Austria took some Italian territories

• Russia took most of Poland

• Britain added territories in Asia and the W. Hemisphere

• Prussia took Rhine River land in W. Germany

• Create Kingdom of Netherlands by joining Belgium and Luxembourg together with Holland

Congress of Vienna cont.

• Return to Status Quo– Restored old monarchies of Europe

• Bourbons on throne in France and Spain• Holy Roman Empire

– Reduced from 300+ independent states to 39 separate German states

• Established a stable Europe which tried to prevent war• Very successful; peace in Europe for the next 100 years• Conservative; Tried to prevent domestic change in

Europe

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