The Age of the liberal Revolutions

4th ESOMAIRA GIL CAMARÓN

IntroductionIn the 1700s, France was considered the most advanced country of Europe. It had a large population and a prosperous foreign trade. It was the centre of the Enlightenment, and France’s culture was widely praised and imitated by the rest of the world. However, the appearance of success was deceiving. There was great unrest in France, caused by bad harvests, high prices, high taxes and disturbing questions raised by the Enlightenment ideas.

Causes of the French RevolutionMany people believed in the ideas of the

Enlightenment: all men are equal and deserved the same rights. They believed also in the division of powers and popular sovereignty (opposed to the Absolute Monarchy)

American Revolution: the firs Republic based on Enlightenment (a fairer society was possible)

France had massive debts: Louis XVI needed to raised taxes, which was very unpopular

Bourgeoisie had become richer in the 18th century, so they wanted political power

1788-1789 there was a famine: the cost of bread rose and there were bread riots

A revolution breaks out

1789: Louis XVI needed to reform the tax system in order to repay France’s debts he summoned the Estate General (the first time in 175 years). This demonstrated that the absolute monarchy was in crisis: Louis couldn’t solve France’s problems by himself

THE ESTATES GENERAL (20 May 1789): An assembly that represented the three estates. Each estate had one vote: the first and the second estate could vote together to keep their privileges. The delegates of the third estate wanted more power because they represented the 95% of the populations

THE TENNIS COURT OATH (20 June 1789)The three estates were unable to agree on anything, so the third estate created a new National Assembly to write a new constitution for France. Some soldiers stopped the assembly from meeting in its normal room, so the delegates went to a nearby tennis court instead. There they promised to continue meeting until they had agreed a new constitution Tennis Court Oath

THE STORMING OF THE BASTILLE (14 July 1789) Food prices were still raising frequent riots Louis brought more soldiers to Paris to control the

situation people more angry because they were afraid that he would use the army to stop the National Assembly from writing a new constitution

On 14 July 1789 a crowd of people attacked the Bastille, a prison that symbolised the abuses of the absolute monarchy. They freed the prisoners and killed the prison governor. The storming of the Bastille showed that the people were becoming more powerful than the king. The Revolution had begun.

THE END OF FEUDALISMPeasants in the countryside were starving due to the poor

harvest: they formed a militia and burned down some manor houses.

In order to calm the situation, the National Assembly abolished the feudal privileges of the nobles and the clergy.

The development of the French Revolution

THE CONTITUTIONAL MONARCHYThe women’s march on VersaillesPower was shared between the king and the

National Assembly, which wanted to created a constitutional monarchy, but this didn’t improve the people’s day-to-day lives

October 1789: Parisian women walked twenty km to Versailles to complain to the king about the price of bread he couldn’t understand their difficulties

There was a confrontation between the crowd and Louis’ guards, and a few guards were killed. The royal family had to accompany the crowd to Paris and they were forced to remain in the Tuileries Palace

THE FLIGHT TO VARENNESJune 1791, Louis tried to escape from Paris, so he could form an army to take back power. He expected help from loyal French soldiers and his brother-in-law (archduke of Austria) the royal family escaped at night in disguise, but someone recognised Louis and they were stopped at a town called Varennes.Louis showed that he didn’t support the revolution and didn’t want a constitutional monarchy many people wanted a republic they accused the king of treason

JACOBINS AND GIRONDINSDuring the revolution, many people joined political clubs. The Jacobin Club gave its name to a radical political group called the Jacobins. The most radical jacobins were called Montagnards, because they sat in the highest benches in the National Assembly, which was called the Mountain. The main rivals of the Jacobins were the Girondins, who were more moderate

SANS-COULOTTESDuring the 18th century, nobles wore short trousers made of silk called culottes. Ordinary people in Paris couldn’t afford culottes, so they were known as sans-culottes (without culottes)

End of the monarchy and the Reign of Terror

FROM MONARCHY TO REPUBLICInitially, the French Revolution was led by the bourgeoisie. They wanted a new constitution to end to the privileges of the nobles and the Church, but in 1792 the revolution became much more radical.France was at war with the European monarchies that were afraid that the revolution would spread to their countries Austria invaded France angry Parisians demanded that Louis abdicatedSans-culottes suspected that there were a secret plan to restore the monarchy and blamed the National Assembly led by the Girondins the Jacobins (with the help of the sans-culottes) took control of the situation:

Jacobins gave weapons to ordinary people, so that they could defend the revolution and the country

People who were suspected of opposing the revolution or of opposing the revolution or supporting the king were arrested or murdered in the September massacres. Many aristocrats/priests were killed

Universal suffrage was introduced for men (not for women)

22 September 1792 the monarchy was abolished and France became a democratic republic. Louis was found guilty of treason and was guillotined on 21 January 1793

THE DEATH OF MARAT AND THE REIGN OF TERROR (1793-1794)

Jacobins wanted to eliminate their rivals the Girondins, so they accused them of conspiring against the French Republic and of murdering the Jacobin leader Jean-Paul Marat October 1793 the leading Girondins were put on trial for treason and were found guilty, they were executed this started the REIGN OF TERRORThe leader of the Jacobins, Maximilien Robespierre said that the revolutionary government should show no mercy to its enemies: “despotism of liberty against tirany”On the next year, around 40,000 people were executed without a proper trial. Some were suspected of opposing the revolution, had criticised its leaders…George Danton (a close ally of Robespierre) was executed for being moderateJuly 1794: the most of the leaders of the Revolution thought that Robespierre became a tyrant and he was arrested ans guillotined, which ended with the Reign of Terror

The death of MaratJacques-Louis David

THE DIRECTORY (1794-1799)A new government was formed: there was a parliament, but five Directors had most of the power. This period is therefore known as the Directory: only men with property could vote, so France became a bourgeois republic (census suffrage)The Directors brought some stability to France, and the French army defeated the European monarchies invading the countryNevertheless, the government was very unpopular due to corruption and food shortages unstable

1799: Napoleon Bonaparte organised a coup that ended the Directory

Napoleon rules EuropeTHE CONSULATE AND THE FIRST EMPIRE

Napoleon’s coup d’etat was supported by a large part of the bourgeoisie due to the popularity of the generalHe made himself First Consul Consulate, but it was really a military dictatorship

Constitution 1800: it did not include the separation of power or a declaration of rights. Liberties were very limited and public opinion was censured

Napoleon gradually took more and more power, and in 1804 he won a referendum to make him Emperor of the French, which created the First French Empire he has almost absolute power. He was crowned emperor by the Pope

A BRILLIANT GENERALNapoleon trained as an army officer, and during the French Revolution he supported the Jacobins. He became general when he was 24 because he was such a good leader.After he defeated a royalist rebellion in Paris (1795), he was put in charge of the French army in Italy, which was fighting against Austria. He was an inspirational and successful leader, which made him very popular with his soldiers and with the people in FranceAfter he became First Consul and later Emperor, his armies continued to defeat France’s enemies all over Europe. He planned his battles extremely carefully and his tactics were usually brilliant. However, he was also good at taking quick decisions during battles, and changing his tactics if necessary

NAPOLEON’S REFORMS IN FRANCEECONOMIC REFORMS

He established the Bank of France, which helped to end very high inflation

Roads, bridges and canals were repaired to make trade easier, and loans were given to industry

He provided cheap bread and made the tax system fairer, which increased the income of peasants

LEGAL REFORMSThe Napoleonic Code made the law the same in all

France: all men had the same rights. The Code increased men’s control over their wives and brought back slavery in French colonies

RELIGIOUS REFORMS1801 Napoleon signed a Concordat (agreement) with

the Catholic Church, which gave it a special status (the Church had no political power)

NAPOLEON’S CONQUESTSThere was almost constant war between France and the European monarchies for 20 years1795-1812: Napoleon led the French army to victory after victory and the French Empire gradually extended

Battle of Austerlitz: Napoleon destroyed the Austrian and Russian armies France the dominant power on the European continent

Trafalgar: the British navy, commanded by Nelson, defeated the French and Spanish navies Britain the dominant power at sea

1809: France controlled almost all of western Europe, including Spain and most of the areas that are Italy and Germany today. Some countries were forced to form alliances with Napoleon

NAPOLEON’S FIRST EXILE1812: Napoleon invaded Russia with around half a million men. The Russian army retreated without fighting, and burned the countryside behind it the would be no food for the French. The Russians also evacuated Moscow. Without food for his army, Napoleon had to return homeWinter was approaching and temperatures fell: the French army suffered terribly: from the cold, the starvation and because of the Russian army constantly attacked them, so very few soldiers returned to France alive1813: Napoleon’s army was defeated in the Battle of Leipzig (against Russia) so he was forced to exile on the island of Elba and the Bourbon monarchy was restored in France

NAPOLEON’S FINAL DEFEAT AND LEGACY1815: Napoleon escaped from exile and made himself emperor once again Britain and Prussia defeated the French army at the Battle of Waterloo: the end of the Napoleonic Wars that had caused huge destruction and loss of life all over Europe: around five million people were either killed in battle or died from disease and starvation as a result of the wars

Napoleon was exiled to Saint Helena, where he died in 1821

NAPOLEON’S POLITICAL LEGACYHe established universal laws and introduced

new constitutions based on Enlightenment in the countries that France conquered equal rights to all men

He ended the privileges of the nobles and the Church, which increased the power of the bourgeoisie

He spread the idea that people are citizens, not subjects popular sovereignty

His invasions increased nationalism in the conquered countries

Between absolutism and liberalism (1815-1848)

THE RESTORATION OF THE ABSOLUTISM – THE CONGRESS OF VIENNA

Between 1814-1815, the powers that defeated Napoleon (Russia, Prussia, Austria and Britain) met at the Congress of Vienna to agree on the future of Europe. The priority was to prevent revolutions against hereditary monarchs and avoid future wars. The main principles of the treaty that they signed were:

Legitimacy: monarchs overthrown by Napoleon were considered the legitimate rulers of their countries and were restored to power

Balance of power: no single country should be so powerful to dominate Europe

Compensation: the countries that had fought against Napoleon were rewarded with land taken from smaller states

Holy Alliance Treaty stipulated that the absolute monarch would unite against any threat of liberal revolution

LIBERALISMJohn Locke: the father of Liberalism

Popular sovereignty, separation of powers and equality before the law

Free enterprise based on Adam Smith’s ideas, and free trade

Freedom of religion, freedom of speech and freedom of press

NATIONALISMFeeling of belonging to a nation: national identity based on:

Shared language and customs Shared characteristics Geographic reasons

Unify nations that were divided into many small states Gain independence for nations that were ruled by another state

or empire

THE REVOLUTIONARY WAVE OF 18301814: the Bourbon monarchy was restored in France, but with a new constitution and an elected parliament1830: king Charles X dissolved the parliament, censored the press, limited the right to vote and called a new election liberals were angry because they thought that the king was trying to restore de Absolute MonarchyPeople attacked the king’s army and put up thousands of barricades to defend themselves. Charles X abdicated. The leaders of the revolution created a constitutional monarchy with Louis Philippe as king.

THE SPRING OF NATIONS (1848)Louis Philippe was a liberal, but during his reign the gap between the rich and poor grew1848: France suffering from falling wages, rapid inflation and high unemployment. Violent protestors marched on the royal palace and the king was forced to escape to Britain French Second RepublicNEW CONCEPT OF DEMOCRACY: the emergence of democratic ideals and the importance of workers as a political force. They defended the principle of popular sovereignty and the extension of collective rights, recognising the right of assembly and associationThe revolution in France inspired people of all over Europe to rebel against their monarchs The spring of Nations. In the end, almost all of the rebellions were defeated by conservative governments

What new states were created in Europe in the 19th century?

GROWING NATIONALISM IN ITALY AND GERMANY In both, Napoleon introduced uniform laws,

reduced the number of states, centralised the administration different regions in each country became more similar to one another

French invasions gave the people a common enemy: they had to cooperate

Trade and travel increasedRomantic artists and writers glorified the culture

and history of their nations people became to feel proud of their cultural heritage and of their nationality

GERMAN UNIFICATIONAfter the Congress of Vienna, Prussia and Austria became the most powerful states in the German Confederation

Prussia, led by Wilhelm I and Chancellor Otto von Bismarck, wanted a stronger and more united Germany, based on German nationalism

Austria had a multinational empire that was mainly outside Germany, so it saw a united Germany as a threat. It preferred Germany to be weak and divided

1866: Prussia defeated Austria in the Seven Day’s War1870: it provoked France into declaring war on it, increasing feelings of German nationalism. France was defeated Prussia established the German Empire, with Wilhelm I of Prussia as its first emperor

THE ITALIAN RISORGIMENTO (UNIFICATION)In Italy there were two forces that supported the risorgimento (unification):

The king of Sardinia, Victor Emmanuel II, and his prime minister Cavour wanted to expel the Austrians from Italy and expand Sardinian territory it was the most liberal kingdom in Italy

Liberal nationalists (Mazzini or Garibaldi) encouraged people to rebel against the conservative regional rulers and nobles to create a democratic republic. Their rebellion was unsuccessful, so they decided to help Sardinia in order to unite Italy

Together, they expelled the Austrians an in 1861 Victor Emmanuel was named king of Italy