UNIT 2: POLITICAL REVOLUTIONS ACTIVITIES.
1. Read the text and answer the questions:
George Washington was born in Westmoreland County, Virginia, in 1732. During the American Wa
of Independence, he was the commander-in-chief of the colonial forces that fought the British. After
the war had ended, Washington presided over the Federal Convention in Philadelphia in 1787
when the Constitution of the United States was written.
In 1789, he was elected as the first president of the United States. During his time in office, he
supported the Bill of Rights, which guaranteed the basic rights of all citizens. He was president
until 1797 and died two years later in Mount Vermon, his home in Virginia.
1. What army did Washington lead during the war?.
2. Where was the American Constitution written?.
3. When did Washington become president?.
4. What year did Washington die?.
2. Complete the text using these words: colonist, commerce, constitution, Great Britain,
Independence, middle, representation, thirteen.
In the 18th century, the __________ colonies of north American won their independence from
______ . The __________ refused to pay higher taxes and they also wanted to have __________ in
the British parliament. Wealthy members of the American _________ class also wanted more
control of their land and ________. The war of _________ began in 1776 and the United States
finally became a nation in 1783. A new _________ was written four years later.
3. Complete the text using these words: Corsica, family, emperor, victories, leader, alliances,
century, coup d'état.
Napoleon Bonaparte, (15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821) later known as ____________Napoleon I,
was a French military and political ______ who is considered one of the most influential figures in
European history.
Born in ________ and trained as an artillery officer in mainland France, he rose to prominence
under the First French Republic. He distinguished himself as a military commander fighting in
Italy. In 1799, Bonaparte staged a_________ and installed himself as First Consul; five years later
he crowned himself Emperor of the French. In the first decade of the Nineteenth _______, he turned
the armies of the French Empire against every major European power and dominated continental
Europe, through a series of military victories. He maintained France's sphere of influence by the
formation of extensive ________ and the appointment of friends and _______ members to rule
other European countries as French client states. It appeared that through Napoleon's tactical
genius, nothing could stop the French as they won a series of military ________.
4. Complete the text using these words: older, died, Spain, island, reign, States.
Born Giuseppe Buonaparte, on the ________ of Corsica, on January 7, 1768, Joseph Bonaparte
was the _______ brother of Napoleon I, emperor of France. During his brother's _______, Joseph
was made king of Naples and Sicily (1806–08), and then king of ________ (1808–13). After
Napoleon's defeat, Joseph moved to the United _____, but spent his final years in Europe. He
_____ in Italy in 1844.
5. Read the text and answer the questions:
When Napoleon returned to Paris after the Russian campaign, Napoleon one day placed on
the table a large map of the United States and said to his older brother, "Joseph, it is very probable
that the time is not distant when you and I will be forced to seek an asylum in the United States.
Come, let us look out the best spot.". The place they selected was the territory between the
Delaware and Hudson Rivers in New Jersey. Within three years Napoleon was an exile at St. Helena
and Joseph was living on the banks of the Delaware at Bordentown, New Jersey.
Napoleon once remarked, "I love no one; not even my own brothers." Then he added,
"Joseph perhaps a little."
During the Hundred Days, which he helped to finance with much of his own wealth, Joseph
returned from Switzerland and joined the Emperor at Paris. After Waterloo he went to Rochefort
where Napoleon was, and did all he could to persuade Napoleon to attempt an escape to the United
States. He proposed that they exchange passports, thinking that in this way there would be less
likelihood of Napoleon being captured but Napoleon refused to escape in his brother's place, under
the name of Bouchard, embarked for the United States on board the American ship Commerce.
Several times the ship was halted by British ships. Even when the Commerce was approaching the
harbor of New York she was pursued by two British ships, but by a favourable winds, they managed
to escape.
Joseph landed at New York on the 28th of August, 1815.
1. Napoleon invaded Russia in 1812, Was it a successful campaign or not? Why? Explain.
2. Why do you think they thought in the USA to seek asylum?.
3. Where the island of Saint Helena is located?
4. Why do you think the text says that Napoleon "love no one"?
5. After Waterloo, What did Joseph propose to his brother Napoleon?.
6. Read the text and answer the questions:
Maximilien de Robespierre was on born May 6, 1758, in Arras, France. He was a radical
Jacobin leader and one of the principal figures in the French Revolution. Robespierre soon took on
a public role, calling for political change in the French monarchy. He gained a reputation for
defending the poorest of society and earned the nickname "the incorruptible" for his adherence to
strict moral values
.
At age 30, Robespierre was elected to the Estates General of the French legislature. He
became increasingly popular with the people for his attacks on the French monarchy and his
advocacy for democratic reforms. He also opposed the death penalty and slavery.
In April 1789, Robespierre was elected president of the powerful Jacobin political faction. A year
later, he participated in writing the Declaration of the Rights of Man and Citizen, the foundation of
the French constitution. In December 1792, he successfully argued for the execution of the king and
continued to
encourage the crowds to rise up against the aristocracy.
On July 27, 1793, Maximilien Robespierre was elected to the Committee of Public Safety,
formed to oversee the government. The Revolutionary government instituted the Reign of Terror in
September. In the next 11 months, 300,000 suspected enemies of the Revolution were arrested and
more than 17,000 were executed, most by guillotine. Robespierre was able to eliminate many of his
political
opponents
.
Robespierre called for more purges and executions. By the summer of 1794, many in the
Revolutionary government began to question his motives. Then, he was overthrown and guillotined.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
¿Dónde nació Robespierre y en qué año?.
¿De qué facción era líder Robespierre?.
¿Qué sobrenombre tenía Robespierre y por qué?.
¿Cuál es el ideario de Robespierre?.
¿De qué organismo fue su máximo líder?.
¿Por qué se conoce a su periodo de gobierno como “la época del Terror”?.
¿Cómo acabó su vida Robespierre?.
7. Read the text and answer the questions:
The Battle of Waterloo was the culmination of the famous Hundred Days, the period from the time
of Napoleon's escape from exile in Elba and his return to reclaim his throne of France. Now
defeated, Napoleon had a limited number of options. He contemplated fleeing to America, where his
brother Joseph had fled. He considered surrendering to the British, imagining himself to live out his
days as a respected guest of his former enemy.
He was confined to a ship off the coast of Portsmouth, and transported as a prisoner to the island
of St. Helena. There Napoleon spent the next five years of his life. He was 47 years old when he
went into exile.
Some experts argue that powerful men—French, English, or maybe a combination—feared the exemperor might escape exile again and retake France.Some historians suggest that Napoleon was
slowly poisoned with arsenic, perhaps in his wine or food. Studies of Napoleon's hair have revealed
high levels of arsenic. Anyways, Napoleon died as a result of stomach cancer.
Napoleon Bonaparte died on May 5, 1821. The following day an autopsy was conducted by the
emperor's doctor, Francesco Antommarchi in the company of 17 witnesses and a priest called
Vignali. Antommarchi removed Napoleon's heart (which will be given to the empress Marie-Louise,
though it was never delivered) and stomach and his penis.
1.What were the Hundred Days?
2. How many years was Napoleon confined in the island of St. Helena?
3. What parts of the body were removed during Napoleon's autopsy?.
4. What was Napoleon's cause of death?.