1. Have you ever witnessed a riot?  If so, briefly describe whathappened. If not, what are the images that come to your head when you think of riots?

2. Is there anything that would cause you to join a riot?  Explain.

Do Now

The French Revolution (1789-1799)

Before we get started, let’s go over a couple of

definitions:

• Political Revolution

• Revolution = Radical Change

= An overthrow of a political system resulting in a dramatic

change in government.

Long Term Causes of

The French Revolution

Let’s first look at the

1. King’s Louis XVI’s Abuse of Power

• He could arrest anyone on any charge

• He spent large amounts of money on himself

• He held secret trials (he was judge and jury allin one)

2. Inequality Among Social Classes

They got the most important government jobs, paid no taxes, and lived in luxury.

Privileged Class - 3% of the population• First Estate: Members of the Clergy• Second Estate: Nobles

Inequality Among Social Classes Cont’d:

• Unprivileged Class (The bourgeoisie) - 97% population• Third Estate: Doctors, lawyers, merchants, farmers • Paid most taxes, most were poor, no say in the government

3. Unfair Tax System

• Costly wars increased taxes• Taxes were applied to the Third Estate • The First and Second Estate were exempt from taxes• Towns started taxing each others goods which hurt trade

4. Enlightenment Ideas

• American Revolution inspired French Revolution

• Stirred interest in reforming the monarchy and ending privileges of the clergy and nobles

Locke Montesquieu Rousseau

Remember these guys?Give yourself a pat on the back if you did.

5. Struggle For Power:

• Nobles refused to pay taxes unless King summoned Estates General, with all 3 classes represented

Now let’s look at the more Immediate Causes of the French

Revolution

1. The nobles wanted to use the Estates General to

control the king.

2. However, the Third Estate, or bourgeoisie, opposed them

because of unfair voting methods.

97%16003rd

2%12002nd

1%12001st

Percentage of the population

Votes in the Estates General

Representatives in the Estates

General

Estate

or Social Class

Do you see a problem with the way that the voting works in the Estates General? Explain.

What do you think that the Third Estate can or should do to rectify this situation?

What do you think???

The First and Second Estates supported by heavy taxes imposed on the Third Estate.

4. What conclusion about France’s three estates can be drawn from the situation depicted in this cartoon?

Marie Antoinette A Woman of the Revolution

5. What details of the women’s clothing and expressions most clearly show the concerns in their lives?

Do Now

Tennis Court Oath

6. The Third Estate moved into the palace's indoor tennis court to meet and demanded a constitution for France. They swore not to leave until their demands were met. This oath was called the Tennis Court Oath.

For each situation, determine if it describes a political, social or economic condition in France at the time of the revolution.

Nobles had the right to hunt game. However, peasants were forbidden even to hunt the rabbits that destroyed their crops.

A rise in the population created an increase in the demand for goods and services.

The people charging for these goods and services jacked up the prices (inflation).

Only nobility were eligible for top government, military, court and church jobs.

Do NextLet’s review the conditions that existed in France at this time.

“The Third Estate Awakens”

What do you think is going to happen now that the Third Estate has awoken?

The Revolution Begins.….

(1789-1792)

Bastille Day 7. The bourgeoisie stormed and captured the Bastille, a Paris

prison and a symbol of the Old Regime. Considered a victory for the masses, this displayed the power of the bourgeoisie and marked the start of the revolution.

National Assembly Created June 17, 1789

8. The Third Estate declared themselves theNational Assembly.

Accomplishments of the National Assembly

1. Issued “Declaration of the Rights of Man”

This stated that all Frenchmen had basic rights of speech, religion, and press. It deniedthe Divine Right Theory andsaid that government rested on the consent of the people.

BeforeAfter

2. Reformed the legal system: Elected judges, trial by jury,

ended brutal punishment.

3. Wrote a constitution (1791): Reformed the government by establishing a limited monarchy.

4. Abolished the special treatment of nobles and clergy.

If you were part of the Third Estate and had to come up with a slogan for the French Revolution, what would it be?

The king is a fink and the nobles and

clergy stink!

Place Your Slogan Here

“Liberty, Equality, Fraternity”

Actual Slogan:

The Capture Of Louis

XVI

You’re in my world now king!

Down with the Old Regime!

I think that I’m in a heap of …trouble.

THE REPUBLIC (1792-1794)

republic : A political system in which a country is ruled by law, has representative government, and is democratic in nature.

What is a republic you say? I am glad you asked.

Why would the French Revolution be seen as a threat to Austria, Prussia and other European countries?

Hint: Look at the types of governments that were in Europe

1. Prussia and Austria declared war on France to aid the royal family and restore the monarchy.

2. A radical group (Jacobins) took over the Assembly and declared France a republic.

3. The radicals were led by Maximilien Robespierre and set up the Committee on Public Safety.

4. King Louis XVI was put on trial by treason, found guilty, beheaded in 1793.

REIGN OF TERROR

5. Reign of Terror (1793-1794)

The Republic began to execute anyone considered an “enemy” of the revolution. Nobles or anyone who spoke out was beheaded with the GUILLOTINE.

Earlier Forms of Punishment Criminals in the 17th and 18th – century France sometimes faced one or more of the following fatal penalties:

BurningStrangulationBeing broken on a wheelHangingDismembermentBeheadingBeing drawn and quartered by a horse

In 1790, Dr. Joseph Ignace Guillotine proposed an execution machine that would be efficient, humane, and democratic.

Some doctors believed that a victim’s head retained its hearing and eyesight for up to 15 minutes after the blade’s deadly blow.

France continued to use the guillotine until the late 1970s.

REIGN OF TERROR CONTINUED

6. Finally, moderate leaders were able to take back power once threat of war ended. Robespierre and other radical leaders were executed.

END OF REVOLUTION (1795-1799)

The Reign of Terror ended when the French government was taken over by a popular general

who became the most powerful leader in European history since Charlemagne.

Who do we think that is?…………………..

Napoleon Bonaparte

Results of the French Revolution

1. Political power in France shifted from kings and nobility to the bourgeoisie (middle class).

2. Increased nationalist feelings in France and elsewhere.

3. Ideals of revolution like “Liberty,Equality, Fraternity” spread to other parts of Europe and the world….