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UNIT 2
THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION
During the American War of Independence, 13 British colonies on the
Atlantic coast of North America fought for their independence from Great Britain. The
main causes of the conflict were:
- Ideological: The Enlightenment ideas of equality and liberty formed the basis
for the independence movement.
- Political: Great Britain refused to give the colonies representation in
Parliament. This was where laws were passed, including laws related to colonial taxes.
- Socio-economic: Prosperous middle-class colonist wanted control over their
own commercial activities.
The conflict started when the British government increased taxes. The American
colonist refused to pay them and then began to arm themselves. Great Britain responded
by ordering their armed forces into action, and the war broke out in 1775.
The colonist proclaimed the Declaration of Independence of the United States
of America on 4 July 1776. Great Britain finally recognised the independence of the
new nation in 1783. This was a significant triumph of the Enlightenment.
The United States Constitution was written in 1787. It established a federal
republic based on popular sovereignty and the separation of powers. It also
recognised the legal equality of all citizens, although in most states suffrage was
limited. This meant than only male citizens with a certain level of wealth and property
could vote in elections.
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THE FRENCH REVOLUTION
The causes of the French Revolution
The French Revolution was a period of violent political and social change,
which saw the abolition of the absolute monarchy and the end of the estates system of
the Ancien Régime.
- The influence of the Enlightenment: French intellectuals and the bourgeoisie
supported Enlightenment ideas and tried to put them into practice. For example, they
demanded that all French subjects be free and equal under the law.
- The political crisis: In France, the Estates General brought together
representatives of the three estates of the realm to advise the king on important issues,
such as tax increases.
Both the clergy (the First Estate) and the nobility (the Second Estate) had 300
representatives in the Estates General, and each group had one vote. In contrast, the
middle class and the peasantry (the Third Estate) had 600 representatives and only one
vote.
King Louis XVI (1774-1792) governed France as an absolute monarch and
opposed meeting of the Estates General. For that reason, the estates of the realm could
not present their demands or try to limit the king’s power.
- The economic crisis: The French state was bankrupt as a result of its
participation in military conflicts, such as the American War of Independence. The
royal family also spent large amounts of money in palaces, luxury goods and
extravagant parties.
To
improve the country’s finances, Louis XVI’s ministers
suggested that he increase taxes, even for the privileged upper classes.
- The social crisis: By the late 18th century, all three estates of the realm were
discontented with the crown, but for different reasons:
The nobility and the clergy wanted to protect their traditional economic
privileges. They refused to pay the taxes that the king’s ministers were demanding.
The middle class and the peasantry were also discontented:
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The upper middle class or bourgeoisie wanted to abolish the absolute
monarchy because it didn’t allow them to participate in the government.
The lower middle class, or petite bourgeoisie, was suffering from economic
difficulties caused by wars, higher taxes and increases competition from British
products.
The peasantry also suffered economic problems caused by wars, taxes and poor
harvests. Moreover, they also had to pay higher rent to the clergy and nobility.
In addition to these problems, the middle class and peasantry were angered by
the luxurious lifestyle of the royal family and court. They also objected to the privileges
enjoyed by the clergy and the nobility.
Major events of the French Revolution
In the face of increasing, political and economic problems, Louis XVI decided
to call together the Estates General in 1789 in order to increase taxes. This meeting
marked the beginning of the French Revolution.
- The National Assembly: At the meeting of the Estates General, the Third
Estate proposed a new voting system in which each representative would have an
individual vote. When the king refused, the members of the Third Estate declared
themselves the true representatives of the nation. Then they formed a National
Assembly and demanded a constitution.
-
The Constituent Assembly: The king finally agreed to the Third Estate’s
demands. A new Constituent Assembly was elected to write a constitution. At the same
time, protesters began to riot in the streets of Paris, and on 14 July 1789, they attacked
the Bastille (a famous political prison). After that, more riots broke out in the
countryside and in other cities around France.
In reaction to these violent protests, the Constituent Assembly implemented a
number of legal reforms. For example, they abolished feudal rights and approved the
Declaration of the Rights of Man and the Citizen. The declaration stated that all men
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are born free and equal in their rights, and that liberty consists of the freedom to do
anything which doesn’t harm other people.
Worried by the assembly’s reforms, Louis XVI tried to escape to Austria to ask
for support there. However, the revolutionaries discovered the king’s plans and
prevented his escape.
In 1791, the Constituent Assembly adopted a Constitution which established a
constitutional monarchy, popular sovereignty, the separation of powers and limited
male suffrage.
- The Legislative Assembly: After the constitution had been adopted, a new
Legislative Assembly was elected to implement the necessary legal changes. Two
political groups dominated this assembly:
a) The Girondins believed in the revolution, but represented the interests of the
bourgeoisie. Their political ideas gradually became more moderate. The Girondins
favoured liberal economic policies that helped the middle class, and wanted to maintain
limited suffrage.
b) The Jacobins also believed in the revolution, but their political ideas
gradually became more radical. The Jacobins wanted to abolish the monarchy and put
the king on trial, expand the suffrage, and control price rises to help the workers. As a
result they gained support from the Parisian labourers, known as the sans-culottes.
Louis XVI opposed the reforms in the Legislative Assembly and asked Austria
for support. In response, the assembly imprisoned the king, abolished the monarchy and
declared France a republic.
- The Convention: After the election of a new assembly known as the
Convention, Louis XVI was accused of treason and then executed. A number of
European countries formed a coalition and declared war on France to prevent the
Revolution from spreading.
Under the leadership of Robespierre, the Jacobins took control of the
government and imposed a dictatorship, known as the Terror. They tried to coordinate
the European war, while also dealing with the activities of counter-revolutionaries at
home.
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- The Directory and the Consulate: By 1795, France’s moderate middle class
had gained control of the country. In order to stop the violence and executions, they
established the Directory. The Directory was a more conservative government which
was composed of five members.
In 1799, France was still at war with other European powers, and at home
radical revolutionaries wanted to regain control. In response, General Napoleon
Bonaparte organised a military coup and established a new form of government called
the Consulate. This was a group of three leaders known as consuls, which included
Napoleon himself as head of state and First Consul.
From Revolution to Empire
Napoleon Bonaparte gradually increased his power and was named First Consul
for Life in 1802. He then declared himself Emperor of France in 1804. Napoleon’s
policy achievements as emperor included the following:
- Domestic policy: He established the Civil Code, a set of laws that applied
equally to all citizens. It introduced new legal concepts, such as civil marriage, divorce,
adoption and state education.
- International policy: Napoleon expanded his empire as a result of numerous
military victories over other European powers. In the lands that he conquered, Napoleon
imposed enlightened and revolutionary policies, including constitutions that abolished
absolute monarchy.
Napoleon defeated all the countries that were allied against France, except for
Great Britain. However, from 1812 onwards, his power began to decline because he had
to divide his forces between two very distant fronts: Spain and the Russian Empire.
Napoleon was finally defeated in 1815 at the Battle of Waterloo. The victorious
powers re-established the Ancien Régime, although this only lasted for a short period of
time.
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The consequences of the French Revolution and the Napoleonic Empire
The main consequence of the French Revolution and the Napoleonic Empire
was the crisis and ultimate disintegration of the Ancien Régime. The mpost important
changes during this time were:
a) Political changes
The French Revolution brought about the end of absolute monarchy
- New forms of government were established, such as constitutional monarchies
and republics.
- New constitutions were based on popular sovereignty and the separation of
powers.
- New constitutions established limited male suffrage and civil rights.
- Elections led to the emergence of political groups.
b) Economic changes
Legal changes ended the economic privileges that had characterised the Ancien
Régime:
- All citizens now had to pay tax and contribute to the state’s expenses. This
included the nobility and the clergy.
- New laws guaranteed private property rights.
- Free trade was also guaranteed, which benefited middle-class merchants.
c) Social changes
Once the clergy and the nobility had lost the privileges they had enjoyed under
the Ancien Régime, the estates system ceased to exist.
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THE RESTORATION IN EUROPE (1815-1820)
The Restoration was a return to the political system of the Ancien Régime after
Napoleon’s defeat in 1815.
The leaders of various European states met at the Congress of Vienna (18141815), where they agreed the following measures:
- The restoration of absolute monarchy: The European monarchs who had
been deposed boy Napoleon returned to power. However, some of these monarchs had
to accept constitutional limits to their power.
- Changes to Europe’s borders: Napoleon’s conquests had transformed the
map of Europe. After his defeat, another series of changes were made.
- Two alliances were formed to enforce the agreements of the Congres s of
Vienna, and also to support Europe’s restored monarchs in the event of a revolution.
These alliances were The Holy Alliance (Russia, Austria and Prussia) and The
Quadruple Alliance (the three members of the Holy Alliance plus Great Britain).
LIBERALISM, NATIONALISM AND DEMOCRACY
The revolutions of the 19th century were reactions to the restoration of the
Ancien Régime and the return of absolutism. These revolutions were inspired by two
political ideologies (liberalism and nationalism), as well as by the idea of democracy.
- Liberalism: Political liberalism had its origins in the Enlightenment ideas that
had influenced the American War of Independence and the French Revolution.
Liberalism emphasised individual freedoms, and generally represented the interests of
the bourgeoisie.
- Nationalism: Nationalism advocated the right of people who defined
themselves as nations to establish their own independent states. Many nationalist
movements originated in the struggle of certain countries and regions to free themselves
from domination by Napoleon and his empire.
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- Democracy: In the 19th century, democratic movements defended ordinary
people’s right to participate in politics. Democratic movements expressed the demand
of the middle and working classes, as well as opposition to the inequalities produced by
industrial capitalism.
The age of revolution
The political revolutions that took place during the first half of the 19 th century
brought the final end to absolute monarchy in Europe. Most of these revolutionary
movements were based on liberal and nationalist ideologies. However, the revolutions
of 1848 aimed to establish democracy as well.
In the 1820s, the following revolutions took place:
- In Portugal and Spain, there were liberal revolutions that aimed to establish
constitutional monarchies.
- Greece won its independence from the Ottoman Empire through a liberal and
nationalist revolution.
In 1830, new revolutions broke out:
- In France, a liberal revolution established a constitutional monarchy.
-
In
Belgium,
a
nationalist
revolution
gained
independence
from the
Netherlands, to which Belgium had been united by the Congress of Vienna.
In 1848, revolutions broke out in France, the Austrian Empire, the German
Confederation and Italy. These were more radical than the revolutions of the 1820s and
1830 (the middle class and proletariat were now demanding democratic reforms which
would give them access to political power). All the revolutions of 1848 failed, except in
France. In the French case, 1848 brought about the proclamation of the Second
Republic and the introductions of universal manhood suffrage.
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Italian and German unification
Until the mid-19th century, modern-day Italy and Germany were divided into
numerous independent states. However, in both cases nationalist movements emerged
during the first half of the 19th century. As a result of their efforts, these states were
unified to form two new nation-states.
a) Italian unification
The unification process was initiated by the Kingdom of Piedmont-Sardinia in
1859. After gaining support from France, King Victor Emmanuel II and his prime
minister, Cavour, fought successfully against Austria. As a result, the Austrians were
expelled from Lombardy, a northern region of Italy.
After that, the Piedmontese gradually conquered and annexed the rest of the
Italian Peninsula with the help of Garibaldi, including Venetia and the Kingdom of the
Two Sicilies. Unified Italy became a constitutional monarchy, with Victor Emmanuel II
as its king. The unification process ended in 1871. Roma was annexed in 1870 and
became the capital city of the new state in 1871.
b) German unification
Otto von Bismarck, the Prussian chancellor (prime minister), began the German
unification process with a conflict with Denmark over the Duchies of Schleswig and
Holstein. After defeating Denmark in 1864, Prussia further increased its control and
influence in northern Germany following the 1866 Austro-Prussian War.
Although France opposed this expansion of Prussian influence, it was defeated
in the 1870-1871 Franco-Prussian War. As a result of the war, France had to surrender
the region of Alsace-Lorraine to Germany. Bismarck then established the Second Reich,
or German Empire, with Wilhelm I as its Kaiser. This was the end of the process of
German unification.
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