1. Stop and Ponder!
During the last 20 years in America some believe that the gap between the rich and the poor has widened. Do you believe that this is a true statement? Explain with examples.

2. The French Revolution 1789 Unit 3

3. France 1789

4. The 3 Estates
Late 18th Century, French Society divided into 3 Estates (classes)
1st Estate
Church (owned 10% of the land) paid no taxes
2nd Estate
Nobles (owned 20% of the Land) paid no taxes
3rd Estate
Everybody Else paid all taxes

5. The 3 Estates (con’t) 3rd Estate Everybody Else Mostly Peasants
1st Estate
Clergy
1% of French Society
2nd Estate
Wealthy Nobles
2% of French Society
3rd Estate
Everybody Else
Mostly Peasants
97% of French Society
Paid all taxes

6. Breakdown of the 3rd Estate
Bourgeoisie
(merchants and artisans):
They were well-educated
believed strongly in the ideas of Enlightenment philosophers
Wage laborers
(cooks, servants etc.):
paid low wages and often out of work
Peasants
(formed 80% of France’s population):
they paid half of their incomes in dues to
nobles, tithes to the church, and taxes to the king

7. Who’s Above All the Estates? King Louis XVI (16th)

8. King Louis XVI
1780’s French King was Louis XVI, great grandson of King Louis XIV “Sun King”
Lived in the Palace of Versailles

9. Palace of Versailles

10. Palace of Versailles

11. Forces of Change
in French Society
Enlightenment
Ideas
Economic
Problems
Weak
Leadership

12. Enlightenment Ideas New views about the nature of political
power and the role of government
people began to see government role to help the
people be
Happy and harmonious, not oppressive
people began to see themselves as the
source of governments’ power, not God
(reject Divine Right)

13. Enlightenment Ideas (con’t)
Economic Problems
France population was expanding rapidly in the late 1700’s
heavy taxes made it impossible for people to make any
profits
King Louis XVI kept taxing the people to pay
for his debts and elaborate lifestyle

14. Enlightenment Ideas (con’t)
Weak Leadership
King Louis XVI allowed problems to linger: He paid no attention to
his advisors
Louis put off dealing with France’s economic problems
until France became bankrupt

15. Queen Marie Antoinette

16. Queen Marie Antoinette (con’t)
Louis’ wife Marie Antoinette was hated by the French people:
because she was Austrian (France’s enemy at the time)
because she spent so much money on jewels and gifts

17. Estates General
Not until it was too late did Louis finally do something
May 5, 1789 King Louis XVI called for the Estates General
a meeting of representatives from all three estates to discuss tax reform and getting France out of debt
This was the first such meeting in France in over 175 years!

18. Stop and Ponder! Turn to page 192
1. How could such a situation develop in one of the most advanced countries in the world?
2. What could make people angry enough to behead others and carry their heads on poles?
3. How successful could a revolution of peasants be?

19. Estates General (con’t)

20. The National Assembly
On June 17, 1789 members of the third estate voted to establish the National Assembly
(like
Parliament)
Estates General meeting the first two estates sided with the King: tried to silence members of the third estate (the majority of French society)
This vote was the first step of revolution against King Louis XVI and the first two estates

21. Tennis Court Oath

22. Tennis Court Oath (con’t)

23. Tennis Court Oath (con’t)
June 20, 1789:
third estate representatives were locked out of their meeting room at the Estates General: they broke down the door to an in-door tennis court
They pledged to stay there until they drew up a new constitution for France This pledge is called the Tennis Court Oath

24. Stop and Ponder!
Is it ever justifiable to participate in armed revolution against your government? Why or why not? Provide examples.

25. Declaration of the Rights of Man
August 27, 1798 the National Assembly adopted the Declaration of the Rights of Man
Guaranteed equal justice, freedom of religion and speech
Influenced by English Bill of Rights
Next step in the French Revolution

26. Stop and Ponder! Page 195 Bottom
Responding to fine art. Answer the Comparing and contrasting question (bottom-center).

27. Declaration of the Rights of Man

28. The Great Fear 1789 Peasants in the countryside Peasants became angry
and decided to strike first
Revolution spreads
From Paris into
French countryside
Peasants in the countryside
heard that nobles hired
bandits to terrorize them
in the countryside
broke into nobles’
mansions, stole things,
burned records of their debts,
burned mansions

29. Bread Riots

30. Bread Riots 1789 They then marched on the palace of
Versailles and killed two guards
October ,000 women in Paris rioted over the price of bread
They demanded the King and Queen leave their palace of Versailles and return to Paris (13 miles)
This signaled the change of power from the King to the people

31. The Legislative Assembly
The National Assembly created a limited
Constitutional Monarchy
The National Assembly
handed its power over to the newly formed
Legislative Assembly.
September 1791 the National Assembly
completed a
new constitution
new constitution stripped the King of his
power: gave Legislative Assembly
power to create laws
The Legislative Assembly had the
Legislative Assembly had power
to approve/disapprove
of any wars the King declared on other nations

32. Legislative Assembly Divided into 3 groups Radicals: opposed the King,
wanted sweeping
changes
(Left Wing)
Moderates:
wanted some changes
in society,
not as many
as radicals
(Center)
Conservatives:
wanted limited
monarchy,
wanted few
changes in society
(Right Wing)

33. The Emigres
Nobles and clergymen who fled France during the peasant uprisings.
They hoped to undo the Revolution and restore the old regime

34. The Sans-Culottes wage laborers and small shop-keepers from Paris
They wanted a greater voice in government, lower food prices, and an end to food shortages
Did not get a voice in government but they found a way to exert their will in government: by influencing a political party that later seized control of France (the Jacobins)

35. The Jacobins Formed an alliance with the Sans-Culottes
Jacobins: extreme radical revolutionaries, wanted to end the monarchy and establish representative democracy (The people vote for elected officials to establish laws)
They eventually do take over the Legislative Assembly and the whole government

36. The Reign of Terror
The Guillotine Page 201

37. Maximilien Robespierre
Maniac leader of the Committee of Public Safety: responsible for tens of thousands of deaths

38. Stop and Ponder! 1. Who led the Committee of Public Safety?
2. Who were the Sans-Culottes?
3. What year did the Bread Riots occur?

39. Committee of Public Safety

40. The Reign of Terror July 1793-July 1794 Led By Maximilien Robespierre
A Group of 15 Jacobins take over the French Government:
The Committee of Public Safety
Led By Maximilien Robespierre
Publicly Executed anyone they deemed an enemy of the revolution (no trials)

41. Reign of Terror (con’t)
Impact
Over 40,000 people killed in one year
75%+ of those killed from 3rd Estate! (The Revolution was supposed to be for them!

42. Reign of Terror (con’t)
Death of King Louis XVI
January 21, 1793 Louis publicly executed by the Jacobins; Marie Antoinette executed 10/16/1793

43. Death of Robespierre
Eventually the public withdrew support of Robespierre: too many senseless killings
Other members of the Committee of Public Safety wanted to kill him before he killed them
July 28, 1794 Robespierre publicly executed in Paris
His death signals the end of the Reign of Terror

44. The Directory
After the Reign of Terror a new group of 5 Moderates take over the government: The Directory
The people wanted new less violent leadership
The Directory rules France from November 1795-November 1799
The Directory was ineffective and
corrupt: allowed for
________to eventually take over……

45. Napoleon Bonaparte