The French
Revolution and
Napoleon
1789-1815
Chapter 7
The French Revolution Begins

France


Looked like the most advanced country, really
not
Bad harvests, high prices, lots of ?’s from the
Enlightenment
The Old Order

3 large social classes, AKA Estates




Privileged Estates
Run for political office
No taxes
Roman Catholic Church (1st Estate)


Owned 10% of land
Helped the poor, paid 2% of income to taxes

2nd Estate




Rich nobles, 2% of population
Owned 20% of land
Paid almost NO taxes
1st and 2nd Estate disliked the
Enlightenment


Why?
Threatened their privileges

3rd Estate


97% of people
3 groups within the 3rd Estate

Bourgeoisie AKA Middle class




Factory owners, bankers, merchants…
Some as rich as the nobles
Paid high taxes, no privileges
Wanted better status/power

Workers of France also in 3rd



Tradespeople, apprentices, servants, laborers,
etc..
Low wages, hard time finding work
If price of bread rose, would attack a bakery

Peasants also in 3rd estate




80% + of population
½ of income paid in dues to nobles, Church and
King.
Also taxed on salt
Resented 1st and 2nd Estate
The Forces of Change

Enlightenment Ideas




New views of the government
Inspired by American Revolution
Started to demand Equality, Liberty and Democracy
“The Third Estate is the People and the People is the
foundation of the State; it is in fact the State itself;
the… people is everything., Everything should be
subordinated to it… It is in the people that all
national power resides and for the people that all
states exist”

Economic troubles






Bad economy, cost of living up
Heavy taxes made business lose $
Crop failures
King Louis XVI and his wife Marie Antoinette
spent too much $
Borrowed lots of $ to help Americans win,
doubled debt
Banks stopped lending $$

Weak Leader


Louis XVI indecisive
Austrian wife-unpopular and giving him bad
advice




Spent lots on clothes, jewels, gambling
Nicknamed “Madame Deficit”
Ran out of $, wanted to tax nobles
Called a meeting of the Estates General- reps
from all 3 Estates to approve taxes
Dawn of the Revolution

Clergy (church) and nobles dominated the
Estates General

Each Estate had one vote and the top 2 could
always override the 3rd
National Assembly

3rd Estate wanted to change government



Voted to call themselves the National Assembly
3 days later locked out of meeting room
Broke into indoor tennis court



Pledged to stay until new constitution
Tennis Court Oath
King stationed mercenary guards around
Versailles


Rumors that Louis would use force to end
the National Assembly
Storming of the Bastille (prison)




Searching for gunpowder
Took over the prison
Paraded the streets with dead guards heads on
pikes
Bastille Day (like French 4th of July)
Great Fear Sweeps France

Rebellion spread from city to countryside




Rumors that nobles hired outlaws to terrorize
peasants
Defended themselves with pitchforks
Broke into nobles homes and destroyed papers
making them pay dues to nobles
Women riot over rising price of bread


Broke into palace, killed guards
The King and his family left Versailles
Ch 7 Sec. 2 Revolution Brings Reform
and Terror


Peasants attacking nobles all over France
The Assembly Reforms France


National Assembly eliminated 1st and 2nd Estate
Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the
Citizen


Inspired by Declaration of Independence
Rights: liberty, property, security, resitance to
oppression, freedom of speech, equality before
law, freedom of religion

State-Controlled Church




Assembly took over church lands
Church officials elected and paid by gov.
Sale of church lands helped pay debt
Louis tries to escape



Feared he and his family were in danger
Many of his supporters left too
Caught near the border and returned
Divisions Develop


2 years of arguing over new constitution
Results


Limited monarchy
Legislative assembly-create laws, approve or
reject war

Factions split France




Same old problems persist
Food shortages
Government debt
Legislative assembly split into 3 groups


Radicals, moderates, conservative
This is where we get our Right, Left, middle


Emigres- nobles who fled wanted to restore
3 Estates
Sans-culottes- those w/o knee breeches


Wore regular trousers
Wanted greater changes
War and Execution




Other European countries nervous about
French Revolution
Austria and Prussia urged King Louis to
return to an absolute monarch
Legislative Assembly declared war!
Prussian commander threatened French if
the royal family was hurt

This angered Parisians



20,000 angry men/women invaded the Palace
where King and family were staying
Took them as prisoners after killing guards
September massacres


Rumors that prisoners loyal to the King would
break out and take Paris
Raided prisons and murdered 1,000 prisoners

Many nobles, priests and royalists
New Constitution

Pressured by radicals to throw out old
constitution





Deposed the king
Dissolved the assembly
New legislature- National Convention
No monarchy, now a republic
Males get right to vote, still no voting for women
Jacobins take control


Radical political organization (want lots of
change)
Louis XVI no longer king, common citizen
and a prisoner


Tried for treason, found guilty
Sentenced to death, beheaded by guillotine
War continues

War w/ Austria/Prussia continuing



Great Britain, Holland and Spain join against
France
French begin to lose battles
Drafted 300,000 citizens between 18 and 40 to
fight, total 800,000, w/ women included
The Terror Grips France

Maximilien Robespierre assumes control


Wanted to build a Republic of Virtue
New calendar w/ no sundays



Religion dangerous and old fashioned
Closed churches
Robespierre becomes leader of The
Committee of Public Safety

Reign of terror

Wanted to protect the Revolution from
enemies



Trial in morning, guillotine in afternoon
Killed people for being less radical than Max
Around 40,000 executed

Many peasants, urban poor or middle class who
the Revolution was for
End of the Terror

Many people scared of Robespierre




Arrested and executed w/ guillotine
Tired of terror, high prices
New plan of government
The Directory


Corrupt, got rich at expense of France
Napoleon Bonaparte to command the Army.
Ch 7 sec 3 Napoleon Forges an Empire

Napoleon Bonaparte




Went to military school
Joined army when revolution broke out
Many military victories
Failed in Egypt, but kept the stories out of
the French news



Coup d’etat-sudden seizure of power
Napoleon returned from Egypt, friends
urged him take over
Surrounded legislature w/ troops



Most legislators fled
Remaining dissolved the directory
Named Napoleon first Consul


After taking over, went to lead troops and
got Britain, Austria and France to sign
peace treaties
Europe at peace for first time in 10 yrs.
Napoleon Rules France

People voted for new constitution



Napoleon has all real power
Wanted to improve the economy
Keep revolutionary changes

Changes:



Efficient tax collection
End corruption/ government waste
Lycees- government run public schools


To have trained officials
Concordat- recognized church, but church has
no influence on national issues

Won him support of the church and the people

Napoleonic code-more fair laws




Order and authority over freedom
No freedom of speech and press
Restored slavery in colonies
Declares himself Emporer

Crowned by the Pope
Napoleon Creates an Empire



Had trouble with sugar plantation workers
in Haiti
Cut losses in the Americas
Sold Louisiana Territory to the US


Got the $
Punish the British, humble their pride
Conquering Europe


Built largest European Empire since Rome
Battle of Trafalgar


Destroyed the French Navy
Britain ruled the seas for 100 years
Section 4 Napoleon’s Empire
Collapses


Napoleon was worried about his empire
Josephine gave him no heir


Divorced her and formed an alliance with Austria
Had a son Napoleon II, named king of Rome
Napoleon’s Costly Mistakes

Continental System

Set up a blockade- closed all ports




Cutting off all trade/communication for Great
Britain w/ Europe
Wanted to destroy Great Britain
Smugglers still got through
Britain responded w/ its own blockade


Much stronger navy
Any neutral ship was sent to GB to be
searched/taxed
Peninsular War (delete)


Napoleon attempted to send invasion force
through Spain to Portugal
Spanish people angry




Worried that church would become weaker like in France
Guerrillas attacked the French
British helped Spain too
People around Europe angry at Napoleon, taking
pride in their own country against him
(Nationalism)

Many people turned against the French
Invasion of Russia

Alexander I of Russia



Napoleon’s ally
Refused to stop selling grain to England
Napoleon invaded Russia w/ 420,000

Russians used a scorched earth policy

Leaving nothing for French to eat

Napoleon chased Russians all the way to
Moscow





Russians burnt city down rather than let French
take it
Napoleon stayed in the city until mid Oct.
Decided to go back to France
Attacked by raiders, many more died of
exhaustion hunger and cold
Mid December 10,000 straggled out of Russia
Napoleon’s Downfall

Everyone sensed Napoleon’s weakness




Britain, Russia, Prussia and Sweden joined
forces against weakened France
Trained new army, but inexperienced
Defeated quickly in Germany
Allies paraded through France

Surrendered, exiled him to Elba (small island off
of Italy)
The Hundred Days

Louis XVI’s brother Louis XVIII assumed
the throne


Unpopular, wanted to undo revolution
Napoleon escaped Elba and was cheered
on a march to Paris


Became Emperor again
Enemies quickly reacted with armies

British prepared to Battle at Waterloo in
Belgium



Napoleon attacked
French troops overrun when Prussians arrived
Napoleon shipped to St. Helena, much farther
Congress of Vienna


Series of meetings to have stability and
security for all of Europe
Metternich was the leader, had 3 goals



Prevent future aggression from France,
surrounded w/ strong countries
Restore a balance of power, no 1 country
stronger than others
Restore royal families that Napoleon removed
Legacy of the Congress of Vienna




Size and power of France smaller
Nationalism (pride in one’s country) spread
Ideas about power and authority changed
forever
Democracy seen as best way for justice