French+Revolution+and+Napoleon

**1789-1815**  "It is legal because I wish it."-Louis XIV

**__ 10 Key Terms __**
 * ** Estates: ** Three orders that the French population was based upon. It was divided between 27 million people and had been in place since the Middle Ages.
 * ** Relics of feudalism: ** Aristocratic privileges that were obligations that had survived from an earlier age. These included payments of fees for the use of village facilities such as the flour mill, community oven, and winepress.
 * ** Bourgeoise: ** Meaning middle class, it was another part of the Third Estate. It included about 8 percent of the population of France, which would be about 2.3 million people.
 * ** Taille: ** Taxes during the French Revolution. Members of the First and Second Estate were exempt from paying this tax, but the people of the Third Estate had to pay it.
 * ** Sans-culottes: ** Members of the Paris commune that were ordinary patriots. They didn't wear fine clothes though like the ordinary knee-length breeches, instead they wore long trousers.
 * ** Factions: ** Dissenting groups that the convention split into over the fate of the king. The two most important factions were the Girondins and the Mountain.
 * **Electors:** Individuals qualified to vote in an election. They were the people who chose the 750 members of the two legislative bodies. They also had to be the owners or renters of property that was worth a certain amount.
 * **Coup d' e`tat:** Created in 1799, it was a sudden overthrow of the government that was led by the popular general Napoleon Bonaparte.
 * **Consulate:** Government established in France after the overthrow of the directory in 1799, with Napoleon being its first consul in control of the whole government.
 * **Nationalism:** A unique cultural identity of a people based on common language, religion, and national symbols. It was an important factor after the defeat of Napoleon.

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__**Timeline:**__ 1. 1789- French Revolution begins. 2. 1791- Olympe de Gouges writes declaration of rights for women. 3. 1792- National Convention establishes French Republic. 4. 1793- King Louis XVI is executed. 5. 1795- The Directory is formed. 6. 1799- Napoleon participates in coup d' etat that topples French government. 7. 1801- Napoleon reaches agreement with the pope. 8. 1802- Napoleon made consul for life. 9. 1804- Napoleon is crowned Emperor. 10. 1805- British defeat French and Spanish at Trafalgar.

__**5 Important People:**__
 * 1) **King Louis XVI:** Ruler during the French Revolution who was later executed for treason. He was the cause for the revolution and panic throughout France.
 * 2) **Maximilien Robespierre:** Leader of the special committee of 12, also known as the Committee of Public Safety. He took rule of this committee after Georges Danton.
 * 3) **Jean-Paul Marat:** Publisher of the radical newspaper called F//riend of the People//. He died by being stabbed to death by Charlotte Corday in his bathtub.
 * 4) **Napoleon Bonaparte:** He was the man that brought the revolution to an end in 1799, and also commanded the armies of France. Napoleon was very full of himself; an example would be like how he seized the crown from the Popes head and placed it on his own.
 * 5) **Georges Danton:** The newly appointed minister of justice at the time, and also the leader of the //sans-culottes// who sought revenge on those who aided the king.

__**5 Links:**__
 * __Napoleon Bonaparte__ This link has some great information on Napoleon Bonaparte. Some examples would be like how he came to be the supreme power in France and what his childhood was like.
 * Louis XVI Here is the biography of Louis XVI. This site has lots of information on his childhood and the struggles he had during his rule.
 * The Bastille This site is all about the Bastille in France. It has all you need to know about the early history of it, the storming of the Bastille, and its demolition.
 * The Reign of Terror Here is some great information of the Reign of Terror. Included in this site is information on the reasons for the Reign of Terror and some of the people who greatly influenced it.
 * The French Revolution This link gives you a summary of everything you need to know about the French Revolution. Examples would be like how it started and what led it to an end.

France was made up of three estates of people. The first two consisted of military, nobility, and clergy, and they had to pay no taxes. The majority of the population was left paying one-hundred percent of the taxes. During this time period Franc's economy was failing and went into financial crisis. There was much unemployment, met with unimaginable inflation rates and drastic food shortages. Some of this was out of human control, but much blame was put on the poor leadership of King Louis XVI. Louis recognized the countries need for financial reconstruction, so he called to order the Estates-General, or French Parliament. They met with representatives from each estate in Versailles on May 5, 1789. They had much trouble voting for the first and second estates would always band together and overpower the third estate. So the third estate called a National Assembly on June 17, 1789. As they met they found the doors locked to their meeting place, so they met on a nearby tennis court and swore not to leave until a new constitution had been written. From here many mobs stormed Paris and all of France starting rebellions making the Great Fear. On August 26, the National Assembly adopted the Declaration of the Rights of Man and the Citizen. They claimed that all humans had the natural and imperceptible rights of man to liberty, property, security, and resistance to oppression. Angry mobs of women soon came to Versailles and forced the king to come to Paris to support the National Assembly.

Soon a National Convention met in Paris to deal with the political unrest. Many new people, such as Jean-Paul Marat began to lead a total revolution against the French government. At the convention people split into factions, deciding the fate of the king. The two most important factions were the Girondins and the Mountain. They were both members of the Jacobin club, or the network of political groups across France. They then executed Louis XVI and his wife Marie Antoinette. Thus began the Reign of Terror. During this time 40,000 people were killed in the guillotine. They called for radical change. They changed the way they dressed, the calendar, and the way of speech all to symbolize their pride in revolution. With the death of Robespierre, one of the most radical french revolutionists, the reign of terror ended on July 28, 1794.

Napoleon Bonaparte dominated French and European history from 1799 to 1815. He was born in Corisca, which is an island in the Mediterranean Sea, a few months after France had annexed the island. He got a scholarship to study military in France and moved there at a very young age. He quickly rose through the ranks as a military genius and at the age of 24 he became a general in the French army. In 1799 he took part in the coup d' etat and overthrew the French government. He set himself up as a consul ruling over the entire government. His first move as ruler was to have peace with the church, and created stability by giving the people what they wanted, a religious ruler. He also created the Napoleonic Code, which was a code of laws ruling over all of France. Although, as fast as his empire had begun, it faded. After defeat at Waterloo, the British and Prussian armies exiled him to St. Helena, leaving only his memory to live on.