The French Revolution Unfolds

Political Crisis Leads To Revolt The Great Fear Grain prices soared (some spent 80% income on bread) Inflamed by famine and rumors Ex: Attacks on villages, govt. troops seizing crops etc. Peasant fury unleashed on nobles Set fire to manor records, stole grain etc. Paris Commune comes to power Paris becomes the center of the Rev. Factions (dissenting groups) compete to gain power Paris Commune mobilizes neighborhoods Replaces royalist govt. of Paris

The National Assembly Acts Special Privileges end Nobles vote to end their own privileges Delegates abolish feudalism Declaration of the Rights of Man & Citizen Modeled on the Amer. Declaration of Independence All men “born and remain free and equal in rights”

The National Assembly Acts cont. Declaration of the Rights of Man cont. Enjoy natural rights to ”liberty, property, security, and resistance to oppression” All male citizens were equal before the law Equal rights for women not granted Taxation based on the ability to pay Slogan: “Liberty, Equality & Fraternity”

Women march on Versailles 6,000 women march 13 miles in the rain to Versailles Anger at Marie Antoinette's extravagant lifestyle Parties held at the place while commoners starved Demanded they would not leave until the king returned to Paris

The National Assembly presses onward The church is placed under state control Civil Constitution ends papal authority and dissolves convents and monasteries Angry reaction by bishops, priests, pope, and French peasants The Constitution of 1791 establishes a new government Replaces absolute monarchy with limited monarchy Reflects Enlightenment goals

The National Assembly presses onward cont. Louis’s escape fails Royal family attempts disguised escape across the border Louis dressed as a servant, Antoinette a governess Louis is recognized by his image on a piece of currency Louis's escape attempt makes him a traitor to the revolution

Radicals Take Over Rulers fear spread of revolution. European rulers increase border patrols to stop “French plague” Fears fueled by stories from émigrés Nobles, clergy & others who fled France

Radicals Take Over cont. Threats come from abroad King of Prussia and emperor of Austria issue the Declaration of Pilnitz Austria & Prussia threaten to intervene to protect the French monarchy Revolutionaries in France prepare for war

Radicals Take Over cont. Radicals fight for power and declare war. Newly elected Legislative Assembly (survives less than a year) Sans-culottes and Jacobins demand a republic Sans-culottes-working class men & women who pushed the revolution into more radical action Jacobins-Middle class lawyers or intellectuals. Used pamphlets to promote their republican cause

Radicals Take Over cont. National Assembly declares war on tyranny Radicals gain upper hand in Legislative Assembly Legislative Assembly declares war on Austria and Prussia