Les Mis Notes-Student Version

Name_________________
Background Information for the film “Les Misérables”
• Please take notes by filling in the blanks below as we discuss the background information of the film.
French Government
1. Louis XVI
a) 1780’s: In secret, some people met and formed a National Assembly and began to write a
_______________modeled after America’s Declaration of Independence. They didn’t want the king to have all
the power.
b) July 14, 1789: A public mob stormed the_______________. As a result the newly formed National Assembly
issued its Declaration of the Rights of Man and forced Louis XVI to share power.
c) 1792: The new government did not last long. Revolutionary leaders declared France a democratic republic.
They publicly _______________Louis XVI and his queen Marie Antoinette.
2. Napoléon Bonaparte
a) 1799: After many military victories abroad, General Napoléon Bonaparte declared
himself_______________, putting aside France's democratically elected government.
b) Napoléon declared that he represented the will of the people, and was popular. He drew up a legal code that
would become the foundation of modern French law. The Napoleonic Code only allowed wealthy
to____________, and the constitution still limited the king’s power.
c) 1812: Under Napoléon's command, France's military conquered much of western and central Europe.
Napoléon stretched too far when he decided to march his 600,000-man army deep into Eastern Europe to crush
what remained of Russia's power. His was defeated.
d) 1814-1815: Napoléon's French opponents forced him from power and out of France. They reinstated a
constitutional monarchy, with Louis XVIII (the brother of the executed Louis XVII) on the throne.
The Revolutions of 1830 and 1848

3. Louis XVIII
a) With Napoléon's defeat, Louis XVIII returned as king, just as the __________________was transforming France.
Families left the countryside to work in factories and live in cities. The middle class grew in size and influence.
1830 July Revolution: Setting of “Les Misérables”
4. Charles X
a) 1830: Louis' successor, Charles X, tried to regain total power by dismissing the parliament and
_______________that criticized his rule. The people of Paris took to the streets to protest and riot. The
1
July Revolution of 1830 forced Charles into exile and led to a stronger constitution to ensure France's
democracy.
5. King Louis Phillipe
a) The revolutionists placed the duke of Orléans on the throne as King Louis Philippe. For more than a
decade, France enjoyed_______________. Industrialization continued. Cities grew larger, especially in the
textile centers of the north and the mining areas of the east.
b) However, the government did little to improve the harsh conditions of the working class or to help
the_______________. There were crop failures and food shortages and people went hungry. The poor also
resented the fact that only the wealthy could vote or work for the government. Worker strikes and Paris riots
led to bloody clashes between government troops and the people.
February 1848 Revolution-Hugo’s inspiration
• The 1848 Revolution inspired Victor Hugo to write about the 1830 Revolution in order to make a point.
The social injustice in 1848 was a repeat of the problems of 1830. In “Les Mis” he vividly describes and
condemns the social injustice of 19th century France. The issues are represented through Hugo’s
characters.
Examples of Social Injustice in 19th century France
a) Literary suppression, no rights of the press (Maurius)
b) Crop failure, hunger (Valjean, Fantine)
c) No rights for the working class (Fantine)
d) Corrupt leaders, unfair justice system, the King and the rich have all the power (Javert)
6. Louis-Napoléon Bonapart (Napoléon III)
a) The Revolution put a final end to the French monarchy and established France's Second Republic. All French
men gained the right to____________. They elected Louis-Napoléon Bonaparte, a nephew of Napoleon I, as
France's first_______________.
b) France's new constitution allowed the president only one ___________year term. With no intention of giving up
power, Louis-Napoléon dissolved the National Assembly, arrested those who protested, and called for a national
vote to make him the new emperor. The voters gave Louis-Napoléon the power he wanted, and he declared
himself Emperor Napoléon III of the Second Empire. (Napoléon II, Bonaparte's son, never ruled.)
c) 1851: Hugo left France for a 15 year____________ on Guernsey and wrote “Les Mis” which was published
in 1862.
d) Napoléon III set as his goal the reemergence of France as Europe's most powerful nation. French explorers
and soldiers also expanded France's colonies in Africa and Asia.
e) But in the 1850s and 1860s, Napoléon III led France into a series of costly wars. The people of Paris revolted
while the Prussians held Napoléon prisoner, and they proclaimed France a free republic once again.
f) France's Third Republic gradually rebuilt the country's economy and military strength. But the French
public remained divided over whether they wanted a democratic republic or a return of_______________, be
they military-style emperors or kings.
"France." Lands and Peoples. 2006. Grolier Online. 1 Dec. 2006 <http://lp.grolier.com/cgi-bin/article?
assetid=4055000>.

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Name_________________

Background Information for the film “Les Misérables”

The Revolutions of 1830 and 1848

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