Causes of the French Revolution

Causes of the French Revolution

• Financial Crisis: France was deeply in debt from wars and extravagance of the royal court
• Social Inequality: Estates-General system divided society into three groups: clergy, nobility, and commoners, with commoners bearing the tax burden
• Enlightenment Ideas: Spread of liberal ideas like liberty, equality, and democracy inspired the masses
• Food Shortages: Crop failures and food shortages in 1788-89 increased discontent among the population

Major Events of the French Revolution

1. Estates-General (May 1789): Representatives of the three estates met to address financial crisis, leading to the formation of the National Assembly
2. Tennis Court Oath (June 1789): National Assembly members vowed to continue their work on a new constitution
3. Storming of the Bastille (July 1789): Symbolic event marking the beginning of the revolution
4. Great Fear (July-August 1789): Peasant uprisings and panic spread throughout the countryside
5. Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen (August 1789): Fundamental document defining individual liberties and sovereignty of the people
6. Reign of Terror (1793-1794): Period of violence and executions during which Maximilien Robespierre dominated the Committee of Public Safety
7. Coup d'état (July 1794): Robespierre's fall from power and eventual execution
8. Directory (1795-1799): Five-member executive council governing France until Napoleon's rise to power

Key Figures

• King Louis XVI: Monarch at the start of the revolution, eventually executed in 1793
• Queen Marie Antoinette: Symbol of the monarchy and perceived enemy of the revolution
• Maximilien Robespierre: Radical Jacobin leader who dominated the Committee of Public Safety
• Napoleon Bonaparte: Military general who seized power in 1799 and became Emperor of France

Legacy of the French Revolution

• End of Absolute Monarchy: Establishment of a constitutional monarchy and later, the First French Republic
• Spread of Liberal Ideas: Inspiration for similar movements and revolutions across Europe and the world
• Rise of Nationalism: Development of modern nationalism and the concept of a nation-state

Causes of the French Revolution

• France was deeply in debt from the expensive wars with Britain and the extravagance of the royal court, with a debt of 5 billion livres by 1789
• The Estates-General system divided society into three groups: the clergy (1%), the nobility (2%), and the commoners (97%), with the commoners bearing the majority of the tax burden
• The spread of Enlightenment ideas like liberty, equality, and democracy inspired the masses, influenced by thinkers such as Rousseau, Voltaire, and Montesquieu
• Crop failures and food shortages in 1788-1789, worsened by a severe winter, increased discontent among the population, particularly the peasants and urban workers

Major Events of the French Revolution

Early Years

• The Estates-General meeting on May 5, 1789, represented the first time the three estates had met since 1614, and marked the beginning of the revolution
• The Tennis Court Oath on June 20, 1789, saw National Assembly members vow to continue their work on a new constitution, despite the king's orders to disperse
• The Storming of the Bastille on July 14, 1789, marked a symbolic end to the absolute monarchy and the beginning of the revolution
• The Great Fear, a period of panic and peasant uprisings, spread throughout the countryside from July to August 1789

The National Assembly

• The Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen, adopted on August 26, 1789, defined individual liberties and the sovereignty of the people
• The National Assembly adopted the Constitution of 1791, establishing a constitutional monarchy

The Reign of Terror

• The Committee of Public Safety, led by Maximilien Robespierre, dominated the government from 1793 to 1794, imposing a policy of terror and violence
• The Reign of Terror saw the execution of King Louis XVI, Queen Marie Antoinette, and thousands of others, including aristocrats, commoners, and rivals
• Robespierre's fall from power and eventual execution on July 28, 1794, marked the end of the Reign of Terror

The Directory and Napoleon

• The Directory, a five-member executive council, governed France from 1795 to 1799
• Napoleon Bonaparte, a successful military general, seized power in the coup d'état of 18 Brumaire (November 9, 1799), marking the end of the Directory and the beginning of the Napoleonic Empire

Key Figures

• King Louis XVI, the monarch at the start of the revolution, was eventually executed by guillotine in 1793
• Queen Marie Antoinette, the Austrian-born queen, was a symbol of the monarchy and was executed by guillotine in 1793
• Maximilien Robespierre, a radical Jacobin leader, dominated the Committee of Public Safety during the Reign of Terror
• Napoleon Bonaparte, a military general, seized power in 1799 and became Emperor of France, ruling until 1815

Legacy of the French Revolution

• The French Revolution ended absolute monarchy, establishing a constitutional monarchy and later, the First French Republic
• The revolution spread liberal ideas, inspiring similar movements and revolutions across Europe and the world
• The revolution developed modern nationalism and the concept of a nation-state, with the idea of a nation as a community of citizens with equal rights and a shared identity