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The French Revolution
& Napoleon
Section1: On the Eve of Revolution
Section 2: Creating a New France
Section 3: Radical Days
Section 4: The Age of Napoleon Begins
Section 5: The End of an Era
Section 1: On the Eve of Revolution
Summary:
Social unrest, government debt, and food
shortages contributed to the outbreak of
the French Revolution in 1789
Section 1: On the Eve of Revolution
Since the Middle Ages, everyone in
France had belonged to one of the three
social classes, called Estates
The 1st Estate – Clergy
The 2nd Estate – Nobles
The 3rd Estate – Peasants
100
80
60
1st Estate
2nd Estate
3rd Estate
40
20
0
Percentage of French
Population
Section 1: On the Eve of Revolution
The 1st & 2nd Estates were rich and
powerful
They had many special privileges
For example, they did not have to pay taxes
– They made up about 2% of the total population of
France
70
60
50
40
1st Estate
2nd Estate
3rd Estate
30
20
10
0
Land Ownership
Section 1: On the Eve of Revolution
Most (98%) of French people
belonged to the 3rd Estate
Although they were poor, their tax
burden was the heaviest
Section 1: On the Eve of Revolution
In 1789, France faced several crises
For many years the French government
had been spending more money than it
had earned
Bad harvests caused food prices to rise
Many peasants did not have enough to eat
– In towns and in the countryside, starving people
rioted
Section 1: On the Eve of Revolution
To deal with these problems, King
Louis XVI met with the leaders of the
3 Estates
Most common people wanted financial
relief, but the elected members of the
Third Estate wanted government reform
Section 1: On the Eve of Revolution
After weeks of meetings, its leaders
took a daring step
They created a new government called
the National Assembly
Some reform-minded nobles and clergy
joined them
Section1: On the Eve of Revolution
The National Assembly promised to
write a new constitution for France
However, dangerous rumors, increasing
food shortages, and an attack on the
Bastille (a Parisian political prison) kept
the problems from being solved
A violent revolution was starting
Section 2: Creating a New France
Summary:
The National Assembly instituted
political and social reforms in the early
stages of the revolution
Section 2: Creating a New France
In 1789, a terrible famine occurred in
France
Starving peasants attacked the homes of
nobles
Section 2: Creating a New France
Revolutionary groups took over Paris
and demanded an end to the
monarchy
Finally Nobles agreed to give up their
special privileges
Section 2: Creating a New France
The National Assembly began making
reforms
They agreed to abolish feudalism
In 1791, the assembly finished writing a
new constitution that used
Enlightenment ideas
Section 2: Creating a New France
Under this constitution, people had
natural rights and the government had
to protect those rights
The constitution created a limited
monarchy
The assembly also reformed French laws
and supported trade
Declaration
of the
Rights of
Man and
the Citizen
Section 2: Creating a New France
But when the assembly took control of
the French Catholic Church and sold
its lands to pay back the
government’s debt, the pope, clergy,
and many peasants rejected the
revolution
National
Assembly
Section 2: Creating a New France
Other groups, however, wanted even
more changes
Violent disagreements soon caused the
downfall of the assembly
Section 2: Creating a New France
News about the French Revolution
spread across Europe
While many Europeans supported the
revolution, rulers and nobles were afraid
that revolutionary ideas would spread to
their own countries
Section 2: Creating a New France
After the French king and his family
made an unsuccessful attempt to flee,
the king of Prussia promised he would
fight to save the French monarchy
Section 2: Creating a New France
In 1792, France declared war on
Austria, Prussia, Britain, and several
other European states
The fighting lasted for over 20 years
Section 3: Radical Days
Summary:
The French Revolution, driven by
leaders determined to preserve and
extend the revolution, entered a radical
phrase
Section 3: Radical Days
The war with other European powers
went badly for the French forces
People thought the king was helping the
enemy
Mobs attacked the kings guards and killed
nobles
Section 3: Radical Days
Radical revolutionaries, supported by
Paris crowds, took control of the
Assembly in 1792
These radicals ended the monarchy,
made France a republic, and wrote
another constitution
In 1793, they executed, or put to death, the
king and queen for treason
Section 3: Radical Days
By 1793, France was at war with most
of Europe
Within France peasants rioted for food,
and revolutionary groups fought against
each another
To restore order, the new government set up
the Committee of Public Safety, which had
absolute power
Section 3: Radical Days
Using a new invention, called the
Guillotine, the Committee, led by
Maximilien Robespierre, beheaded
thousands of people for treason, even
supporters of the revolution were
sometimes killed to set an example
Thousands more people were put in
prison
This period is called the Reign of Terror
Section 3: Radical Days
By 1799, life in France had changed
The Monarchy and the old class
system were gone
The government controlled the church
– The French people began to feel proud
of France
» This feeling of pride is called
Nationalism
Section 3: Radical Days
The new government continued to
make important reforms
It set up school for children and
organized a system to care for the poor
Slavery in the French colonies ended
Religious tolerance became the law
Section 4: The Age of Napoleon Begins
Summary:
Napoleon built a large empire by
annexing lands, making alliances, and
placing family members on the thrones
of Europe
Section 4: The Age of Napoleon Begins
When the French Revolution
started, Lt. Napoleon Bonaparte
began to earn rapid promotions
He led the French army in victories over
Britain and Austria
Section 4: The Age of Napoleon Begins
A general by 1799, Napoleon helped
to overthrow the French government
He organized a new government and put
himself in charge
Five years later he took the title Emperor
of the French
At each step of his rise of power, the French
voted their support
Section 4: The Age of Napoleon Begins
The policies that Napoleon set up
show why he was so popular
He strengthen the French government
and restored order
He improved the economy and
encouraged new industry
He built roads and canals and supported
public education
Section 4: The Age of Napoleon Begins
Some of Napoleon’s reforms
continued the spirit of the revolution
Peasants could legally keep the Church
lands they bought
Careers were opened to anyone with
ability
Section 4: The Age of Napoleon Begins
One of his most important reforms
was a new set of laws called the
Napoleonic Code
These laws included many
enlightenment ideas but undid some
reforms of the revolution
Section 4: The Age of Napoleon Begins
From 1804 to 1814, Napoleon
defeated the greatest nations of
Europe an built an empire
He conquered the Netherlands,
Belgium, and parts of Italy and
Germany
He ended the Holy Roman Empire and
divided Prussia
Section 4: The Age of Napoleon Begins
Napoleon replaced the monarchs of
defeated nations with his friends and
family
Only Britain remained outside
Napoleon’s empire
Section 4: The Age of Napoleon Begins
Section 5: The End of An Era
Summary:
After suffering defeat, Napoleon was
removed from power
European leaders restored peace and
redrew the map of Europe
Section 5: The End of An Era
Under Napoleon, French armies
spread the ideas of the French
Revolution across Europe
The French overthrew European
monarchs and set up their own
governments
They also reduced the power of the Church
and ended serfdom
Section 5: The End of An Era
Many Europeans welcomed the
ideas of the French Revolution
However, they did not welcome the
French rulers
Nationalism caused conquered people
to reject French control
From Italy to Spain to the Netherlands,
people rebelled against the French
Section 5: The End of An Era
The end of the empire began in 1812
when Napoleon invaded Russia
The invasion was a disaster
Many French soldiers died during the
long Russian winter
Section 5: The End of An Era
The following year, an alliance of
Russia, Britain, Austria, and
Prussia defeated Napoleon at the
town of Leipzig and forced him to live
on an island in the Mediterranean
Section 5: The End of An Era
After the defeat of Napoleon,
European leaders met at the
Congress of Vienna
They hoped to create peace after 25
years of war
One of their goals was to return Europe to
the way it was in 1792, before Napoleon
Section 5: The End of An Era
To accomplish this goal they gave
power back to the monarchs of
Europe
The leaders of Europe also took steps
to create a balance of power
To prevent France from going to war again,
they strengthened the countries around it
To protect the new order, European states
formed a peacekeeping organization
The peace lasted 100 years
Section 5: The End of An Era
The Congress of Vienna
Goal
To prevent France from
going to war again
Action
Strengthen countries
around France
To return Europe to the
Give power back to the
way it was in 1792, before monarchs of Europe
Napoleon
To protect the new system Create the Concert of
and maintain peace
Europe, an organization
to maintain peace in
Europe