French+Revolution.+By+Laureane+Etienne-Walsh


 * __The French Revolution.__ **

** Timeline: ** [[image:file://localhost/Users/laureane/Library/Caches/TemporaryItems/msoclip/0/clip_image003.png width="254" height="254" align="right" caption="Text Box: 1789: What becomes the government of France, the National Constituent Assembly, is formed on 9th of July. Assembly members took the ‘tennis court oath’; claim they would not weaken their effort until a renewed constitution was agreed upon. The 11-14 of July, three days of riots occur with the dismissal of finance minister. The Bastille prison is sacked by citizens in pursuit of arms. The rural attacks, referred to as the ‘great fear’, resulted in the August Decrees (freeing peasants from their oppressive land contracts) and the Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen (ensured a proper practice of judicial procedure and the autonomy of the French citizen."]]

[[image:file://localhost/Users/laureane/Library/Caches/TemporaryItems/msoclip/0/clip_image004.png width="164" height="146" align="right" caption="Text Box: 1790: 12th July, church is under state control by authority of the civil constitution of the clergy. July, professional political clubs (The Jacobins, Cordeliers) strengthen their influence."]]



[[image:file://localhost/Users/laureane/Library/Caches/TemporaryItems/msoclip/0/clip_image008.png width="236" height="272" align="right" caption="Text Box: 1793: Louis XVI is executed on the guillotine on 21st January. 7th March, civil war is unleashed in the Vendee. Revolutionary Tribunal initiated on 10th March. 6th April, CPS (Committee for Public Safety) is established. May/June, Girondins (moderates apart of the national convention in charge of controlling legislative assembly) are disposed of by Jacobin coup. 5th September signposted the beginnings of the ‘reign of Terror’. Paranoid of potential enemies to the radical revolution, Robespierre instigated a ten-month period of blood-shed (15,000 guillotined). "]] [[image:file://localhost/Users/laureane/Library/Caches/TemporaryItems/msoclip/0/clip_image009.png width="200" height="92" align="right" caption="Text Box: 1791: 21st June, Louis XVI escaped from Paris but is re-captured in Varennes. 3rd September, Establishment of the new Constitution."]][[image:file://localhost/Users/laureane/Library/Caches/TemporaryItems/msoclip/0/clip_image010.png width="182" height="236" align="right" caption="Text Box: 1792: 20th April, declaration of Pillnitz initiated by Austria and Prussia. The declaration pushed for Louis XVI’s return to the thrown. French radicals took this as a threat and declaraed war on Austria. 10th August, the royal family imprisoned and the Tuileries is stormed. 20th September, National Convention established. 21st September, France confirmed Republican. "]]







[[image:file://localhost/Users/laureane/Library/Caches/TemporaryItems/msoclip/0/clip_image014.png width="254" height="110" align="right" caption="Text Box: 1795: April, ‘white terror’ fought Jacobins and the bread riots in Paris waged. 5th October, final royalist revolt is defeated by Napoleon. 3rd November, five-man directory replaces the CPS."]] [[image:file://localhost/Users/laureane/Library/Caches/TemporaryItems/msoclip/0/clip_image015.png width="164" height="128" align="right" caption="Text Box: 1794: Anti-Jacobin attitude ushered in by the overthrow and execution of Robespierre and 21 of his supporters on 27th July."]]






 * Reflection Statement: **

The French Revolution was a radical period (1789-1795) experienced by France pushed by an ultimate desire for change. Fueled by desperation, anger and stubbornness, the revolution depicted peasantry revolt, new thinking and ideas based on equality and rights, segregation of class, dismantling of royal rule and a mass spillage of blood. No // one // specific event or person initiated the revolutionary period. However the following diagram illustrates the key causes responsible:

In reflection of years of oppression and misdirection, French citizens were ready for revolt. King Louis XVI inherited a nation in serious debt and by the late 1700’s he realized that this was an issue for France. Taxation was a significant issue, considering that two of the three estates were exempt from paying tax; Clergy and Nobility. The financial strain and relentless tax pressured peasants to riot and force revolutionary action. ‘The Great Fear’ was one of the first steps of action and the rural attacks resulted in temporary success (creation of the August Decree and Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen). However, a rift emerged within the newly established National Constituent Assembly (government of France). The division was mostly due to debate over King Louis’s positioning after his failed attempt to flee Paris. The Girondins (moderates of the Assembly) supported monarchy, whilst the Jacobins (radicals of the Assembly) favoured the King’s execution. Neighboring countries insisted that King Louis return to the thrown as they feared that French revolutionary ideas would spread to their nations. Austria and Prussia were anxious enough to issue the Declaration of Pullnitz and France ultimately declared war on them. The war went poorly for France and the Girondins were overthrown and Maximillien Robespierre led the Jacobins into control of the Assembly and thus France. Robespierre, paranoid over potential enemies, ruined Frances chance of peace and commenced a crusade of blood shed; // ‘the reign of terror’. // Army success removed most enemies, the economy stabilized and Robespierre no longer had a plausible excuse for his mass murdering of 15,000 people on the guillotine. Therefore, he was executed in 1974. Napoleon Bonaparte, a young French General, held significance to army success and returned to France when informed of Paris’s political upheaval. With his return came a fifteen-year military rule and the end of the French Revolution.

Bibliography: 1. Adam Hart-Davis. History, the definitive visual guide (2007). Great Britain: Dorling Kindersley Limited. 2. Harriet Swain. Big Questions in History (2005). Jonathan Cape: Great Britain 3. Norman Hampson. A Social History of the French Revolution (1963). Great Britain: Routledge and Kegan Paul. 4. SparkNotes Editors. (2005). SparkNote on The French Revolution (1789–1799). Retrieved November 11, 2010, from [] 5. Jack R. Censer and Lynn Hunt, 2001. Liberty, Equality, Fraternity; Exploring the French Revolution. America: Pennee Bender, Joshua Brown, Roy Rosenzweig. From []