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Essential Question:–What were the important causes &effects of the French Revolution? Warm-Up Question:–Get your assigned clicker andbe ready to answer questions

Reasons for the French RevolutionIn the 1700s, France wasthe cultural capital ofEurope, home to numerousEnlightenment thinkers, &had wealth from coloniesKing Louis XIV was themost powerful king inEurope; After his death in1715, Louis XV & Louis XVIcontinued to rule Franceas absolute monarchsBut, political & economicproblems led to the FrenchRevolution in 1789King Louis XVIXIV

One problem was France’s unequal social hierarchythat was made up of three classes (called estates)The clergy of theRoman Catholic Churchmade up the First EstateOwned 10% of landin France but paid littlein taxes to the gov’t

One problem was France’s unequal social hierarchythat was made up of three classes (called estates)The Second Estate wasmade up of rich noblesOwned 20% of Frenchland but were exemptfrom paying taxes

One problem was France’s unequal social hierarchythat was made up of three classes (called estates)The Third Estate made up97% of the population &included poor peasantsbut also the well-educatedmiddle class (bourgeoisie)This group paid 50% oftheir income in taxes

The members of theThird Estate resented thespecial treatment the First& Second Estates receivedMembers of the ThirdEstate gained inspirationfrom the Enlightenmentideas of John Locke,Voltaire, & RousseauAfter the success of theAmerican Revolution,the Third Estate begandemanding democracy,equality, & liberty in France

Social tensions were made worse by agrowing financial crisis in the 1770s & 1780sThe French governmentfaced massive debts dueto decades of lavishspending, expensive wars,& poor economic planningBy 1789, half the budgetinterest on(percentagetheof totalnational debt; 25% ofgovernment were unemployedpeoplerevenue)The excessive spending byKing Louis XVI & his wifeMarie Antoinette angeredFrench citizensGOVERNMENTwent towardsDEBTSMarie Antoinette,“Madame Deficit”

Role PlayClassBy 1789, FranceLouisXVIActivity:called an emergencyyourrole cardperspective,a planwasFromout ofmoneymeetingof thedevelopEstates-Generalthat couldsave France,decideto votefromby order& faceda seriouswheremembersall 3or by head,yourideasto thethekingfinancialcrisis & presentclassescouldadviseking

During the Estates-General, the First & Second Estatesvoted to increase taxes on the Third EstateThe First & Second Estates decided to vote by order(1 vote per estate) rather than by head (by person)These decisions angered the members of the ThirdEstate who believed their rights were being violated

The Third Estateformed a newNational Assemblyto make laws forthe French peopleIn 1789, the National Assemblyswore to a Tennis Court Oathpromising a new constitution &limitations on the king’s power

The National Assemblywrote their revolutionaryideals in the Declarationof the Rights of Man andof the Citizen which said:“Men are born free andequal in rights”Rights include “liberty,property, security, &resistance to oppression”It guaranteed freedom ofspeech, &freedom ofreligion, & equal justice

Meanwhile, the economic crisis continuedCitizens were withoutAngry protestors in Parisfood & faced starvationdemanded new reforms

When rumors circulated that the king was going tosend his army to Paris, citizens attacked the prisonBastille to seize weapons to defend themselvesThe storming of the Bastille in 1789 representedthe beginning of the French Revolution

In 1791, Louis XVIfinally agreed to a newconstitution that limitedhis power & created alimited monarchyBut, Louis XVI failed towork with the NationalAssembly & France’problems continuedFearing the spread ofFrance’s revolutionaryideas, Austria & Prussiaassembled armies torestore France’sabsolute monarchyQuick Class Discussion:What should theNational Assembly do tosolve France’s problems?

In 1792, radicals tookWar was declaredcontrol of France & madeagainst Austria & Prussiaimportant decisions:and 300,000 Frenchsoldiers were draftedinto a national army inorder to defend FranceThe slogan of the FrenchRevolution became:“Liberty, Equality, Fraternity”The French monarchywas overthrown &democratic republicwas created called theNational ConventionIn 1793, King Louis XVIwas arrested, convictedof treason, & executedby guillotine

The Guillotine

The radical leaders of the National Conventionfeared that “enemies of the revolution” wouldtry to overthrow the new republicIn 1793, radicalMaximilien Robespierreslowly gained control ofthe National ConventionFrom 1793 to 1794,Robespierre executed40,000 “traitors” duringan era known as theReign of TerrorThe Reign of Terror endedwhen French citizensturned on Robespierre& executed him

The revolution came to an end in 1795,but France was in chaosThe economic crisis hadnot been solved &people faced starvationEngland, Holland, Spainjoined Austria & Prussiain the war against FranceThe National Conventionwas replaced by France’sthird gov’t in six yearscalled the DirectoryThe Directory proved tobe ineffective & corrupt

Napoleon BonaparteIn 1799, a Frenchmilitary general namedNapoleon Bonaparte leda coup d'état & seizedpower in FranceAs emperor of France,Napoleon introducedneeded reforms,defeated foreign armies,& conquered a massiveFrench empire

Closure Activity Creating an Enlightenment Encyclopedia:–Working with a partner, create an entryinto Diderot’s Encyclopedia about onekey idea or person of the Enlightenment–Use the template provided to provide abrief summary of the person/idea &create a brief sketch–When finished, hang it up in the room tocreate a classroom encyclopedia–Be prepared to present on your topic

titlesummarysketchyour names

Encyclopedia Entries1. Colonial assemblies9. Estates-General2. Reasons for the AmericanRevolution10. National Assembly3. “No Taxation withoutRepresentation”11. Declaration of the Rights ofMan and of the Citizen12. National Convention4. Declaration of Independence13. Louis XVI5. American Revolution6. Constitution7. Thomas Jefferson8. Reasons for the FrenchRevolution14. Maximilien Robespierre15. Guillotine16. Reign of Terror17. Napoleon Bonaparte

Reasons for the French Revolution In the 1700s, France was the cultural capital of Europe, home to numerous Enlightenment thinkers, & had wealth from colonies King Louis XIV was the most powerful king in Europe; After his death in 1715, Louis XV & Louis XVI continued to rule France as absolute monarchs King Louis XIVKing Louis XVI