The French Revolution: From Absolutism to Republic

Study Notes

• In 1774, Europe was dominated by absolutism, a system of government where the king held absolute power by divine right, with nobles and clergy sharing the benefits of the system.

• In France, the young King Louis XVI ruled from Paris, and the traditional three estates of the nobility, clergy, and commoners, with an emerging bourgeoisie of artisans, merchants, lawyers, and doctors, made up the society.

• In 1782, Marie-Joseph Paul Yves Roch Gilbert du Motier, Marquis de Lafayette, a French military officer who had participated in the American Independence War, returned to France and found a country where the common people and the poor were oppressed, but also where the new bourgeoisie was influenced by the Enlightenment.

• The Enlightenment was a cultural movement that sought to end the privileges and superstitions of feudalism and monarchy, with thinkers like Montesquieu, Rousseau, and Immanuel Kant promoting democratic ideals.

• The bad harvest of 1787 and the economic crisis led to increased tension, and in 1788, the bourgeoisie became subversive, with Lafayette proposing the convocation of the Estates-General, an extraordinary assembly representing the three estates.

• The Estates-General convened in 1789, with Maximilien François Marie Isidore de Robespierre, a lawyer who defended the humblest, emerging as a prominent figure, and the Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen was adopted.

• The National Assembly declared itself the sole representative of the people, and the absolutism was cornered, with the Tennis Court Oath marking the beginning of self-determination.

• The people of Paris created the National Guard, a popular militia, to defend the National Assembly and maintain order, and on July 14, 1789, the Bastille was stormed, marking the beginning of the French Revolution.

• The violence spread throughout France, with castles and palaces being attacked, and the monarchy was increasingly cornered, with Lafayette becoming the mayor of Paris.

• In 1790, the idea of self-determination spread throughout France, and the king was transferred from Versailles to the Palace of the Tuileries in Paris, a less representative residence of the old monarchy.

• In 1791, the king's attempted escape was thwarted, and he was brought back to Paris, leading to a loss of legitimacy for the monarchy.

• Robespierre and other Jacobins began to advocate for the end of the monarchy and the establishment of a republic, leading to a split with Lafayette, who favored a moderate monarchy.

• In 1792, a new revolution began, with the people mobilizing to defend the nation and the revolution, and the First Republic was established, with a Convention replacing the National Assembly.

• In 1793, the Jacobins executed King Louis XVI and Queen Marie Antoinette, leading to Austria declaring war on France, and the international conflict escalated.

• Robespierre rose to power, giving a coup d'état against the Convention's leadership, and led a period of terror and executions, with 10,000 people dying on the guillotine during his rule.

• In 1794, Robespierre was overthrown and executed, and a new government emerged, with Napoleon rising to power and eventually leading France to expand the ideas of the French Revolution throughout the world.

Description

Learn about the events that led to the French Revolution, from the absolutist rule of King Louis XVI to the establishment of the First Republic. Discover the key figures and ideologies that shaped the revolution, including the Enlightenment and the rise of Napoleon.