The French Revolution and the Napoleonic Empire

The French Revolution and the Napoleonic Empire

1. The beggining of the Modern Age

   • The outbreak of the French Revolution in 1789 marked the start. Enlightened despots failed ro make the political, economic and social changes that Enlightenment thinkers had proposed.
     • A political revolution ended in the Ancien Régime in France.
       • In Spain, the events of the French Revolution inspired a new political, economic and social order.
         • The revolutionaries transformed the everyday life of the population.
           • Art reflected the political, economic and social changes of the time.
             • It was symbolised by the famous slogan: 'Liberty, equality and fraternity'. The slogan remained after the revolution. It appeared on French coins in the 20th Century.

2. The French Revolution saw the abolition of the absolute monarchy and the end of the estates system.

   • The influence of the Enlightenment
     • French intellectuals and the bourgeoisie supported Enlightenment ideas and tried to put them into practice.
   • The political crisis
     • The Estates General brought together representantives to advise the king on important issues. The clergy and the nobility had 300 representatives in the Estates General, and each group had one vote. The middle class and the peasantry had 600 representatives and only one vote. King Louis XVI(1774-1792) governed France as an absolute monarch and opposed meetings on the Estates General.
   • The economic crisis
     • The French State was bankrupt as a result of military conflicts.
   • The social crisis
     • All 3 states of the realm were discontented with the crown. The nobility and the clergy refused to pay the taxes. The middle class and peasantry were angered by the luxurious lifestyle of the royal family and court.

3. Louis XVI decided to call together the Estates General in 1789 to increase taxes

   • National Assembly
     • Proposed a new voting system in which each representative would have an individual vote
   • The Constituent Assembly
     • A new one was elected to write a constitution. In 1791, they adopted a constitution which established a constitutional monarchy.
   • Legislative Assembly
     • A new one was elected to implemented the necessary legal changes
       • Girondins
       • Jacobins
   • The Convention
     • After the election, Louis XVI was accused of treason and then executed.
   • The Directory and the Consulate
     • The Directory was more conservative gomervenmet which was composed of 5 members. The Consulate was a new form of government that General Napoleon Bonaparte established.