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Calling of the Estates-General
-general assembly representing the French estates of the realm: the clergy (First Estate), the nobility (Second Estate), & the peasantry (Third Estate)
-King Louis XVI calls the meeting of the Estates-General at Versailles to help resolve France's financial problems
-first time the Estates-General is called since 1614
-shows the desperate condition of France -
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Formation of the National Assembly
-Third Estate members couldn't vote by representatives in the Estates-General meeting
-they break the dread lock by declaring themselves the representative body of France
-King locks them out of the meeting hall so they meet in his tennis court
-swear to keep meeting till they give France a constitution: Tennis Court Oath
-liberal minded Clergy and Nobility members joined them, support rose
-Louis was forced to recognize the new body and stated it was now the parliament of France -
Storming of the Bastille
-Bastille was regarded as a symbol of the oppression perpetrated against the French people in the ancien regime
-an angry group went to the Bastille in search of gunpowder, shots fired in confusion & a huge crowd stormed the prison
-governor of the prison, de Launey and other guards were killed by the crowd and their heads were hoisted on pikes, depicting the vengeance of the people of France
-represented the victory of the people, first use of violence to achieve revolutionary arms -
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Grande Peur and Feudalism abolished
-period in the early revolution w/ an absence of a strong central authority
-rumours about counter-revolutionaries increased & a wave of peasant riots swept across France
-individuals armed themselves to protect themselves & their property
-millions of livres of private & feudal property was stolen/destroyed
-hysteria put down by militias that imposed law & order
-Aug. 4: National Assembly abolished feudalism, sweeping away the seigneurial rights of the nobility & tithes gathered by the clergy -
Declaration of the Rights of Man and Citizen published
-set of basic principles approved by the National Assembly, upon which the revolution and the new government were to be based
-outlined the basic inalienable rights of man based on Enlightenment principles
-reoccurring theme of equality, liberty and freedom of opinion, speech, religion, etc.
-emphasis on everyone being equal before the law
-gave the Third Estate a voice and brought them a sense of equality -
March on Versailles
-an angry mob of working women, armed with pitchforks, pikes and muskets, marched from Paris to Versailles
-crowd chanted "Bread"
-portrayed the desperation of the starving population of France
-the crowd broke into the palace looking for the Queen
-Marie escaped by fleeing to the King’s secure apartments through a secret passageway
-demanded the King to sanction Declaration of the Rights of Man
-forced monarchy to return to Palace of Tuileries in Paris, ending the great monarchy of Versailles -
Civil Constitution of the Clergy published
-law passed that subordinated the Roman Catholic Church in France to the French government
-collection of tithes abolished & church lands confiscated
-# of bishops to be reduced from 135 to 83
-bishops & parish priests to be elected by enfranchised citizens
-made the clergy paid employees of the gov.
-required members of the clergy to swear an oath of loyalty to the nation
-fuelled more opposition than any other reform & made many devout Catholics turn against the Revolution -
Royal family flees to Varennes
-Louis XVI, Marie Antoinette and their immediate family tried to flee to Austria
-escape was organized w/ the help of a loyal friend, Count Axel von Fersen, & supported by Marie Antoinette
-royals were recognized and stopped at Varennes
-National Guardsmen escorted them back to Paris through jeering crowds
-showed that Louis XVI could no longer be trusted
-Louis XVI lost what remained of his popularity -
Massacre at the Champs de Mars
-following the King's attempt to flee, petitions demanding the dissolution of the monarchy and the creation of a republican state were drafted
-Parisians were called to gather and sign the petitions at the Champs de Mars
-Lafayette and the National Guard attempted to control the public order by marching on the crowd
-it was a victory for Lafayette at first, however, later the crowd returned with even greater numbers
-approx. 40 people killed & dozens wounded -
Declaration of Pillnitz
-statement issued by Leopold II of Austria, Marie Antoinette's brother, and Frederick William II of Prussia
-declared that the restoration of absolute monarchy in France was in the interest of all European sovereigns
-implied that Prussia and Austria would intervene militarily in France if any harm came to the king
-made the French Revolution a European question
-regarded as an avowal to undo the Revolution in France
-led to France declaring war on Austria and Prussia -
Constitution adopted
-first constitution written in France
-all legislative powers went to a single Legislative Assembly (elected by a system of indirect voting), which alone had the power to declare war and raise taxes
-monarch had only limited powers; had no control of the army, or any authority over local gov.
-huge accomplishment for National Assembly
-however, the revolution was turning in a more radical direction -
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Declaration of War on Austria and Prussia
-Legislative Assembly declared war on Austria as a result of the Declaration of Pillnitz
-revolutionaries wanted war because they thought it would unify the country
-had a genuine desire to spread the ideas of the Revolution all over Europe
-as an ally of Austria, Prussia also went to war with France
-first step towards about a decade of fighting European conflicts -
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War of the First Coalition
-members: France against Austria, Prussia, Britain, Spain, & Sardinia
-coalition collapsed w/ General Napoleon Bonaparte’s success in Italy; led to the Treaty of Campo Formio
-most important battle was probably the Battle of Lodi (May 10, 1796) -
Brunswick Manifesto
-issued by Charles William Ferdinand, Duke of Brunswick, & commander of the Allied Army of Austria & Prussia
-warned the French revolutionaries that harm to the royal French family would bring retribution
-expected to intimidate the revolutionaries and force them to give up the revolution
-however, it backfired and further fuelled the fire of the revolution, angered the French people
-provisional gov. called for more armed volunteers & they eventually drove the invading Allied Army from France -
National Convention created
-a crowd of several thousand people, most carrying weapons, stood outside the Tuileries at dawn; wanted to depose the king and abolish the monarchy
-king fled and took refuge in the Legislative Assembly
-the attackers invaded the Tuileries and slaughtered most of the soldiers there
-Legislative Assembly suspended the King & abolished the monarchy
-unverified feudal dues were cancelled
-Legislative Assembly voted for its own dissolution and convened elections for a new national convention -
Period: to
September Massacres
-dark side of the revolution
-rumours that the anti-revolutionary political prisoners were planning to break out & attack French armies from the rear
-mass killing of prisoners took place in Paris; killing over 1000 people
-made a profound impression abroad; publicized as proof of the horrors of revolution
-massacres became a political issue; moderate Girondins blamed their radical enemies, especially Jean-Paul Marat, Georges Danton, & Maximilien de Robespierre -
Battle of Valmy
-first major victory by the army of France during the Revolutionary Wars
-fought b/w the French Army & the combined forces of Prussian & Austrian troops
-stopped the advance of the allied armies, led by the Duke of Brunswick, on their way to Paris to suppress the Revolution & reestablish the absolute monarchy
-casualties were relatively light; Allied approx.164 & the French around 300 -
French Republic proclaimed (Girondin rule)
- National Convention voted to abolish the monarchy immediately and establish a republic -National Convention consisted of the Girondins, who support the bourgeoisie, the Montagnards, who favor a central regime, & the Marais who are positioned in between the two -first French Republic in history -day one of the Republican calendar -depicted the political instability in France after the abolition of the monarchy -contributed to the trial & execution of King Louis XVI
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Execution of Louis XVI
-evidence of Louis XVI’s counterrevolutionary intrigues with Austria and other foreign nations discovered in Nov. 1792
-put on trial for treason by the National Convention
-convicted and condemned to death by a narrow majority
-executed by guillotine in the Place de la Revolution in Paris
-the ultimate rejection of the old system of gov.
-the clearest act of defiance to the idea of "Divine Right of Kings"
-revolutionary gov. declared the right of people to make decisions for themselves -
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Vendée rises in revolt
-centre of the largest counter-revolutionary uprising of the Revolution
-residents took up arms against National Convention
-fuelled by rising land taxes, national gov,'s attacks on the church, execution of Louis XVI, expansion of the revolutionary war and introduction of conscription
-gov. triggered a war in the region
-war lasted 3 years and caused approx. 200,000 casualties
-illustrated that the revolutionaries were ready to do anything to achieve their goal; even kill their own countrymen -
Committee of Public Safety created
-formed by National Convention
-intended to function as a war council and de facto executive cabinet
-seats were to be rotated monthly to stop one individual or faction from accumulating too much power
-despite this, within six months the Committee was dominated by radicals
-began directing the Convention
-consisted of men like Maximilien Robespierre, Louis Saint-Just, and Georges Couthon, who became revolutionary leaders
-considered the body most responsible for the Reign of Terror -
Levée en Masse
-the Committee of Public Safety made a decree that mobilized the entire French population for war
-all unmarried men between the ages of 18 and 25 were conscripted
-added fuel to the residents of the Vendée region rising in revolt
-led to a significant expansion of the French military, later used in the French Revolutionary Wars -
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Reign of Terror (Jacobin Rule)
-began after the execution of Louis XVI
-Committee of Public Safety exercised virtual dictatorial control over the French gov.
-committee obtained the Law of 22 Prairial, year II, which suspended a suspect’s right to public trial & legal assistance; left the jury a choice only of acquittal or death
-at least 300,000 suspects arrested; 17,000 officially executed, mostly by guillotine, & perhaps 10,000 died in prison or without trial
-contributed to the fall of Robespierre -
Execution of Marie Antoinette
-imprisoned in the Tower of the Temple after the fall of the monarchy
-transferred to the jail of La Conciergerie in August 1793
-put on trial for treason in the beginning of October
-guillotined nine months after her husband Louis XVI -
Battle of Fleurus
-most significant battle in the First Coalition of French Revolutionary Wars;decisive battle in the 2 year long campaign in the Austrian Netherlands
-fought b/w the French First Republic’s Arm & the Austrian, Dutch, & German allied forces
-approx. 2,000 collective casualties & French took 3,000 prisoners
-Austria finally lost interest in defending the Austrian Netherlands
-invalidated the argument that continuation of the Reign of Terror was necessary b/c of military threat to France's existence -
Execution of Maximilien Robespierre (Thermidorian Reaction)
-as the leading member of the Committee of Public Safety from 1793, Robespierre encouraged the execution of over 17,000 enemies of the Revolution
-arrested by the National Convention
-guillotined alongside 21 of his followers, before a cheering mob in the Place de la Revolution in Paris
-marked the end of the Reign of Terror
-first step towards new gov. style trying to impose new revolutionary culture
-reassertion of the rights of the National Convention against the Committee of Public Safety -
France adopts Constitution of 1795 (Directory rule)
-ushered in a period of governmental restructuring
-placed executive power in a Directory of five members & legislative power in two chambers; the Council of Ancients & the Council of the Five Hundred
-the executive body of the new gov. would be a group of five officers called the Directory; having authority to appoint people to fill other positions in the gov.
-annual elections would be held to keep the new gov. in check -
National Convention dissolved
-the National Convention was dissolved after it approved the constitution for the regime that replaced it
-the new gov. was the bourgeois-dominated Directory
-dissolution of the Convention marked the beginning of a new governing body of France -
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Napoleon's First Italian Campaign
-1795: anti-French coalition was dissolving & only Austria & England remained at war with France
-Napoleon convinced Directory to let him attack Austria's position in Northern Italy
-1796: Directory made him commander of the Army of Italy
-first defeated Austria's allies in the region (Piedmont & Sardinia)
-various republics soon surrendered to French control
-helped end the French Revolutionary Wars in favour of France
-established Napoleon as one of Europe’s brightest military talents -
Battle of Lodi
-small but dramatic engagement in Napoleon Bonaparte’s first Italian campaign fought at Lodi, Lombardy
-fought b/w French forces under General Napoleon Bonaparte & an Austrian rear guard led by Karl Philipp Sebottendorf
-played an important part in convincing Napoleon of his potential for greatness
-earned the confidence & loyalty of his men -
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Siege of Mantua
-crucial episode in Napoleon's first Italian campaign
-excluded Austrians from northern Italy
-French blockaded the city
-enemy troops began to get weaker
-spreading diseases and food shortages forced the surrender of Mantua on Feb. 2 after a series of battles
-French conquest of northern Italy virtually completed -
Establishment of the Cisalpine Republic
-republic formed by General Napoleon Bonaparte in conquered territories centred in northern Italy
-later confirmed in the Franco-Austrian Treaty of Campo Formio
-had a constitution and government modelled on that of the Directory in France
-later reconstituted as the Italian Republic with Bonaparte as its dictatorial head, before being ceased altogether in 1805
-portrayed Napoleon & the French army's victory in the First Italian campaign -
Coup d'etat of 18 Fructidor
-Directory called upon Napoleon to send a general to command troops guarding the legislature at the Tuileries
-Gen. Pierre-François-Charles Augereau, commanding the troops, purged more than 130 royalists & counterrevolutionaries from the Corps Législatif; deported to Guiana, South America
-royalists once against prevented from achieving what they wanted
-republican constitution also fatally weakened
-confirmed the new power of the army, thus prepared for the military despotism of Napoleon -
Treaty of Campo Formio
-a peace settlement b/w France & Austria, signed at Campo Formio, a village in Venezia Giulia
-followed the defeat of Austria in Napoleon Bonaparte's first Italian campaign
-Austria gave up its Belgian provinces to France & also agreed that France could annex the territory it occupied on the left bank of the Rhine River
-France promised to use its influence to help Austria obtain Salzburg and part of Bavaria
-concluded the War of the First Coalition & marked the victory of France -
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Napoleon's Egyptian and Syrian Campaign
-attempt to exert influence over Egypt
-landed w/ 400 ships, 54,000 men
-fuelled by economics, political need to weaken Britain & personal needs of Napoleon
-attempted to modernize and westernize Egypt, had to flee to Syria in Feb. 1799 to preempt the Turks preparing to attack them
-encountered tough siege at British-controlled Acre & returned to Egypt
-war was breaking out in Europe & the Cisalpine Republic had crumbled
-Napoleon decided to return to France
-led to many scientific discoveries -
Battle of the Pyramids
-significant battle in Napoleon's Egyptian Campaign
-fought b/w French army under Napoleon Bonaparte & Mamluk forces commanded by Murad Bey & Ibrahim Bey
-involved approx. 25,000 French troops
-introduced his significant tactical innovation; the massive divisional square
-battle won Cairo and Lower Egypt for France
-signaled the final chapter of seven hundred years of Mamluk rule in Egypt -
Battle of the Nile
-major naval battle fought b/w the British Royal Navy & the Navy of the French Republic at Aboukir Bay on the Mediterranean coast
-British fleet was under the command of Rear Admiral Horatio Nelson & French fleet under Admiral Paul D'Brueys
-Bristish got inside & behind French line of battle
-British: 900 casualties; French 9x as many
-isolated French army in Egypt, ensuring its disintegration
-ensured that Malta would be retaken from the French
-secured British control of the Mediterranean -
Period: to
War of the Second Coalition
-members: France against Britain, Russia, Austria, Portugal & the Ottoman Empire
-Britain, Austria, and Russia, which were unhappy with French expansion, were main culprits
-Napoleon was in Egypt for part of this time
-rushed back in 1799 & took control of France as First Consul
-his campaign in Italy, mostly against the Austrians, was highlighted by the Battle of Marengo (June 14, 1800)
-ended with the Treaty of Amiens, 1802
-led to a brief period of peace from 1802-1803 -
Napoleon returns to France
-Napoleon Bonaparte returned to France from his Egyptian Campaign
-well aware of the instability of the Directory; gov. bankrupt, inflation, taxation & unemployment soaring, & even virtual civil war in some areas
-Napoleon was ready to bring it down & take charge himself
-signalled the end of the French Revolution and the beginning of Napoleon Bonaparte's dictatorship -
Coup d'etat of Brumaire
-coup d’état that overthrew the system of government under the Directory in France and substituted the Consulate
-strategy: convince the Directors to resign, convene the Councils, the Five Hundred and the Ancients, to name in their place a Triumvirate (w/ Siéyès, Ducos and Bonaparte as its three members) which would govern until the proclamation of a new constitution
-brought Gen. Napoleon Bonaparte to power as First Consul of France
-viewed as the effective end of the French Revolution -
Consulate established
-new constitution after 18 Brumaire created an executive consisting of three consuls
-First Consul, Napoleon Bonaparte, wielded all real power; Emmanuel-Joseph Sieyès & Pierre-Roger Ducos were figureheads
-Napoleon moved rapidly to institute order in France;
-put down rebellions in the French provinces
-created a secret police
-centralized gov. of the various French dep'ts under prefects
-issued general amnesty so that exiles could return home
-wanted the best men he could find, despite class -
Battle of Marengo
-fought b/w Napoleon's French & Gen. Michael Friedrich von Melas' Austrian troops
-Napoleon was mistaken about the Austrians' position; split up his troops
-French troops were widely separated when Austrians attacked, pushing back the French line
-Melas thought they had won & gave commanded to subordinate, enabling Napoleon to counter attack
-casualties: 11,500 Austrian, 6,000 French
-resulted in the French occupation of Lombardy
-secured Napoleon’s military & civilian authority in Paris -
Civil Code drafted
-Napoleon appointed a commission to prepare a draft of a uniform civil code for France
-seen as a legal necessity & means of consolidating the new regime
-meant to enable every citizen to know "the principles of his conduct"
-written with moderation & compromise in mind, borrowing what was useful from a variety of sources
-completed draft submitted to the legislature
-dealt with specific ascpects of law
-one of the first of it's kind in Europe & became an example for ones to come in the future -
Concordat agreement with the Pope
-an agreement b/w Napoleon and Pope Pius VII
-solidified the Roman Catholic Church as the majority Church of France & brought back most of its civil status
-first consul, Napoleon, was given the right to nominate bishops; the bishoprics and parishes were redistributed & the establishment of seminaries was allowed
-however, the Church did not become tied with the state -
Treaty of Amiens
-signed by Britain, France, Spain, & the Netherlands at Amiens
-France and its allies recovered most of their colonies; Britain kept Trinidad & Ceylon (taken from Spain & the Dutch)
-France to evacuate Naples & the Papal States
-Britain was to restore Egypt to the Ottoman Empire & Malta to the Knights of St. John within 3 months
-territories of the Ottoman Empire & Portugal to be respected; exception: France to keep Portuguese Guinea
-achieved peace in Europe for 14 months during Napoleonic Wars -
Napoleon proclaimed Emperor
-Napoleon was already a dictator in France
-had all the power as First Consul, as well as the right to choose his successor
-proclaimed himself as Emperor
-the Senate, all chosen by Napoleon, passed a law officially making him Emperor & his family made hereditary heirs
-had a vote: over 3 million for & less than 3,000 against
-vote manipulated to get results that Napoleon wanted; yes casted automatically all military members
-marked the beginning of a new gov. style in France (The Empire)
