2. Major Causes of Revolutions:
First, the rejection of absolute power of the monarchy and church
Second, emphasis on freedom of religion, speech, press
Third, growing interest in the laws that governed nature and society

3. The French Revolution
1700s – France was the center of the Enlightenment
Voltaire wrote about freedom of speech and freedom of religion
Montesquieu wrote about the separation of powers in government
Rousseau wrote that government should be run by the wishes of the people

4. Absolute Monarchy in France
Louis XIV
“Sun King”
Louis XV
Louis XVI
Ruled France for 72 years
Great Grandson of Louis XIV
Grandson of Louis XV
Left France with heavy debt
Doubled the debt of France while King

5. French Social Classes The 1st Estate The 2nd Estate The 3rd Estate
Who:
Government power:
Feelings about the enlightenment:
% of population
Made up of Catholic clergy.
Power was with the church. Influential
Hated it
Less than 1% of population.
Made up of rich nobles.
Held high government offices.
Disagreed with Enlightenment ideas
Less than 2% of population.
Basically everybody else: workers, peasants, etc.
Had no power to influence government.
Embraced Enlightenment ideas.
97% of population.

6. French Social Classes
Can you identify the first, second, and third estates in the cartoon shown here? Which estate do you think the author of this cartoon belonged to?

7. The Lives of the 3rd Estate
Peasants were forced to pay nearly half of their income to nobles, the church, and the king.
Bad weather led to crop failures. Wheat was in short supply.
The price of bread doubled and led to famine

8. Causes of the French Revolution
Read the “The Forces of Change” pages 652 – 653 Work with a partner close to you to come up with a list of potential causes of the French Revolution. Give an example from the reading for each cause on your list.

9. June 17, 1789
Members of the third estate were tired of having no say in government. They formed a National Assembly that would pass laws and reforms in the name of the French people. This was the beginning of representative government in France.
Tension created by the third estate caused Louis XVI to surround his palace with the army.
A mob of angry citizens searching for gunpowder and arms attacked the Bastille, a French prison. They massacred several people inside and paraded around the streets of Paris with heads on spikes.
The National Assembly adopts the Declaration of the Rights of Man, guaranteeing all French citizens equal justice, freedom of speech, and freedom of religion. Their slogan became “Liberty, Equality, Fraternity.”
July 14, 1789
August, 1789

10. October, 1789
A wave of violence known as the Great Fear spread throughout France. Peasants attacked nobles and burned their homes to the ground. The palace of the king and queen was attacked.
Louis and his family tried to escape France, but were caught and returned to Paris under guard.
France created a new Constitution with a Legislative Assembly. This assembly represented the people and had the power to create laws.
A new governing body called the National Convention abolished the monarchy and declared France a republic. The Committee of Public Safety takes power of the convention. An era known as the Reign of Terror begins. Nearly 20,000 people suspected of supporting the king are executed.
June, 1791
September, 1791
September, 1792

11. The Guillotine

12. Reign of Terror Directory replaces the National Convention 1792
Robespierre
1795
Directory replaces the National Convention
1799
Napoleon takes over the government

13. Napoleon Bonaparte

14. Napoleon Bonaparte
Seized control of an unstable French government in 1799, marking the end of the French Revolution

15. Background Entered military school at age 9
Entered French army at age 16
Promoted because of military skill & political connections
Other European powers viewed conflict in France as an opportunity to conquer it.
Napoleon participated in defending France from these attacks.

16. The Napoleonic Era
1799, coup d’etat (overthrew the French Directory)
Took dictator powers; made himself emperor in 1804
Reforms:
Restructured government & dismissed corrupt officials
National bank to stabilize economy
Set up government-run public schools
Code Napoleon (law system)
Abolished feudalism
Religious freedom
Equal treatment for all under the law
Set up limits to freedom of speech & press

17. Napoleonic Wars

18. Napoleon’s Exile
Defeated while retreating from Russia in 1814 – captured and exiled to Elba
Escaped & returned to France in 1815 to make one last bid for power Hundred Days
Defeated & exiled to St. Helena; died in 1821
Second Exile
First Exile

19. Napoleon’s Downfall
Battle of Waterloo, 1815
Napoleon’s army is defeated by Anglo-Prussian forces
Invaded Russia, caught in winter, 500,000 troops froze or starved
Made his brother King of Spain – This caused a Spanish rebellion

20. Congress of Vienna 1814-1815 5 big powers
Russia
Prussia
Austria
Great Britain
France
Try to contain France by strengthening surrounding countries