The age of the liberal revolutions

The Age of the liberal
Revolutions
4th
ESO
MAIRA GIL CAMARÓN

Introduction
In the 1700s, France was considered the most advanced
country of Europe. It had a large population and a
prosperous foreign trade. It was the centre of the
Enlightenment, and France’s culture was widely praised and
imitated by the rest of the world. However, the appearance
of success was deceiving. There was great unrest in France,
caused by bad harvests, high prices, high taxes and
disturbing questions raised by the Enlightenment ideas.

Causes of the French Revolution
Many people believed in the ideas of the Enlightenment: all
men are equal and deserved the same rights. They believed
also in the division of powers and popular sovereignty
(opposed to the Absolute Monarchy)
American Revolution: the firs Republic based on
Enlightenment (a fairer society was possible)
France had massive debts: Louis XVI needed to raised
taxes, which was very unpopular
Bourgeoisie had become richer in the 18th
century, so they
wanted political power
1788-1789 there was a famine: the cost of bread rose
and there were bread riots

A revolution breaks out
1789: Louis XVI needed to reform the tax system in order to
repay France’s debts  he summoned the Estate
General (the first time in 175 years). This demonstrated that
the absolute monarchy was in crisis: Louis couldn’t solve
France’s problems by himself
THE ESTATES GENERAL (20 May 1789): An assembly
that represented the three estates. Each estate had one
vote: the first and the second estate could vote together to
keep their privileges. The delegates of the third estate wanted
more power because they represented the 95% of the
populations

THE TENNIS COURT OATH (20 June 1789)
The three estates were unable to agree on anything, so the third
estate created a new National Assembly to write a new
constitution for France.
Some soldiers stopped the assembly from meeting in its normal
room, so the delegates went to a nearby tennis court
instead. There they promised to continue meeting until they
had agreed a new constitution  Tennis Court Oath

THE STORMING OF THE BASTILLE (14 July 1789)
 Food prices were still raising  frequent riots
 Louis brought more soldiers to Paris to control the situation 
people more angry because they were afraid that he would use
the army to stop the National Assembly from writing a new
constitution
On 14 July 1789 a crowd of people attacked the Bastille, a
prison that symbolised the abuses of the absolute monarchy.
They freed the prisoners and killed the prison
governor. The storming of the Bastille showed that the people
were becoming more powerful than the king. The Revolution
had begun.
THE END OF FEUDALISM
Peasants in the countryside were starving due to the poor harvest:
they formed a militia and burned down some manor
houses.
In order to calm the situation, the National Assembly abolished
the feudal privileges of the nobles and the clergy.

The development of the French
Revolution
THE CONTITUTIONAL MONARCHY
The women’s march on Versailles
Power was shared between the king and the National
Assembly, which wanted to created a constitutional
monarchy, but this didn’t improve the people’s day-to-
day lives
October 1789: Parisian women walked twenty km to Versailles
to complain to the king about the price of bread  he
couldn’t understand their difficulties
There was a confrontation between the crowd and Louis’
guards, and a few guards were killed. The royal family
had to accompany the crowd to Paris and they
were forced to remain in the Tuileries Palace

THE FLIGHT TO VARENNES
June 1791, Louis tried to escape from Paris, so he could
form an army to take back power. He expected help from
loyal French soldiers and his brother-in-law (archduke of
Austria)  the royal family escaped at night in disguise, but
someone recognised Louis and they were stopped at a town
called Varennes.
Louis showed that he didn’t support the revolution
and didn’t want a constitutional monarchy  many
people wanted a republic  they accused the king of
treason

JACOBINS AND GIRONDINS
During the revolution, many people joined political clubs. The
Jacobin Club gave its name to a radical political group
called the Jacobins. The most radical jacobins were called
Montagnards, because they sat in the highest benches in the
National Assembly, which was called the Mountain. The main
rivals of the Jacobins were the Girondins, who were more
moderate
SANS-COULOTTES
During the 18th
century, nobles wore short trousers made of
silk called culottes. Ordinary people in Paris couldn’t
afford culottes, so they were known as sans-culottes
(without culottes)

End of the monarchy and the Reign of
Terror
FROM MONARCHY TO REPUBLIC
Initially, the French Revolution was led by the bourgeoisie.
They wanted a new constitution to end to the privileges of the
nobles and the Church, but in 1792 the revolution became
much more radical.
France was at war with the European monarchies that were
afraid that the revolution would spread to their countries 
Austria invaded France  angry Parisians demanded that
Louis abdicated
Sans-culottes suspected that there were a secret plan to
restore the monarchy and blamed the National Assembly led
by the Girondins  the Jacobins (with the help of the sans-
culottes) took control of the situation:

Jacobins gave weapons to
ordinary people, so that they could
defend the revolution and the country
People who were suspected of
opposing the revolution or of opposing
the revolution or supporting the king
were arrested or murdered in the
September massacres. Many
aristocrats/priests were killed
Universal suffrage was
introduced for men (not for
women)
22 September 1792 the monarchy
was abolished and France became a
democratic republic. Louis was
found guilty of treason and was
guillotined on 21 January 1793

THE DEATH OF MARAT AND THE REIGN OF
TERROR (1793-1794)
Jacobins wanted to eliminate their rivals the Girondins, so
they accused them of conspiring against the French Republic and of
murdering the Jacobin leader Jean-Paul Marat  October 1793
the leading Girondins were put on trial for treason and were found
guilty, they were executed  this started the REIGN OF TERROR
The leader of the Jacobins, Maximilien Robespierre said that the
revolutionary government should show no mercy to its enemies:
“despotism of liberty against tirany”
On the next year, around 40,000 people were executed
without a proper trial. Some were suspected of opposing the
revolution, had criticised its leaders…
George Danton (a close ally of Robespierre) was executed for
being moderate
July 1794: the most of the leaders of the Revolution thought that
Robespierre became a tyrant and he was arrested ans guillotined,
which ended with the Reign of Terror

The death of Marat
Jacques-Louis David

THE DIRECTORY (1794-1799)
A new government was formed: there was a parliament, but
five Directors had most of the power. This period is therefore
known as the Directory: only men with property could vote, so
France became a bourgeois republic (census suffrage)
The Directors brought some stability to France, and the
French army defeated the European monarchies invading the
country
Nevertheless, the government was very unpopular due
to corruption and food shortages  unstable
1799: Napoleon Bonaparte organised a coup that ended
the Directory

Napoleon rules Europe
THE CONSULATE AND THE FIRST EMPIRE
Napoleon’s coup d’etat was supported by a large part of the
bourgeoisie due to the popularity of the general
He made himself First Consul  Consulate, but it was really
a military dictatorship
Constitution 1800: it did not include the separation of power
or a declaration of rights. Liberties were very limited and public
opinion was censured
Napoleon gradually took more and more power, and in 1804
he won a referendum to make him Emperor of the French,
which created the First French Empire  he has almost
absolute power. He was crowned emperor by the Pope

 A BRILLIANT GENERAL
Napoleon trained as an army officer, and during the
French Revolution he supported the Jacobins. He
became general when he was 24 because he was
such a good leader.
After he defeated a royalist rebellion in Paris (1795),
he was put in charge of the French army in Italy,
which was fighting against Austria. He was an
inspirational and successful leader, which made him
very popular with his soldiers and with the people in
France
After he became First Consul and later Emperor, his
armies continued to defeat France’s enemies all over
Europe. He planned his battles extremely carefully
and his tactics were usually brilliant. However, he
was also good at taking quick decisions during
battles, and changing his tactics if necessary

NAPOLEON’S REFORMS IN FRANCE
ECONOMIC REFORMS
He established the Bank of France, which helped to end very
high inflation
Roads, bridges and canals were repaired to make trade easier,
and loans were given to industry
He provided cheap bread and made the tax system fairer,
which increased the income of peasants
LEGAL REFORMS
The Napoleonic Code made the law the same in all France: all
men had the same rights. The Code increased men’s control
over their wives and brought back slavery in French colonies
RELIGIOUS REFORMS
1801 Napoleon signed a Concordat (agreement) with the
Catholic Church, which gave it a special status (the Church had
no political power)

NAPOLEON’S CONQUESTS
There was almost constant war between France and the
European monarchies for 20 years
1795-1812: Napoleon led the French army to victory after
victory and the French Empire gradually extended
Battle of Austerlitz: Napoleon destroyed the Austrian and
Russian armies  France the dominant power on the European
continent
Trafalgar: the British navy, commanded by Nelson, defeated
the French and Spanish navies  Britain the dominant power
at sea
1809: France controlled almost all of western Europe,
including Spain and most of the areas that are Italy and
Germany today. Some countries were forced to form alliances
with Napoleon

NAPOLEON’S FIRST EXILE
1812: Napoleon invaded Russia with around half a million
men. The Russian army retreated without fighting, and burned
the countryside behind it  the would be no food for the
French. The Russians also evacuated Moscow. Without food
for his army, Napoleon had to return home
Winter was approaching and temperatures fell: the
French army suffered terribly: from the cold, the
starvation and because of the Russian army
constantly attacked them, so very few soldiers returned to
France alive
1813: Napoleon’s army was defeated in the Battle of
Leipzig (against Russia) so he was forced to exile on the
island of Elba and the Bourbon monarchy was restored in
France

NAPOLEON’S FINAL DEFEAT AND LEGACY
1815: Napoleon escaped from exile and made himself emperor
once again  Britain and Prussia defeated the French army at
the Battle of Waterloo: the end of the Napoleonic Wars
that had caused huge destruction and loss of life all over
Europe: around five million people were either killed in battle
or died from disease and starvation as a result of the wars
Napoleon was exiled to Saint Helena, where he died
in 1821

NAPOLEON’S POLITICAL LEGACY
He established universal laws and introduced new
constitutions based on Enlightenment in the countries
that France conquered  equal rights to all men
He ended the privileges of the nobles and the
Church, which increased the power of the
bourgeoisie
He spread the idea that people are citizens, not
subjects  popular sovereignty
His invasions increased nationalism in the conquered
countries

Between absolutism and liberalism
(1815-1848)
THE RESTORATION OF THE ABSOLUTISM – THE
CONGRESS OF VIENNA
Between 1814-1815, the powers that defeated Napoleon (Russia, Prussia,
Austria and Britain) met at the Congress of Vienna to agree on the future
of Europe. The priority was to prevent revolutions against
hereditary monarchs and avoid future wars. The main principles
of the treaty that they signed were:
Legitimacy: monarchs overthrown by Napoleon were considered
the legitimate rulers of their countries and were restored to power
Balance of power: no single country should be so powerful to
dominate Europe
Compensation: the countries that had fought against Napoleon
were rewarded with land taken from smaller states
Holy Alliance Treaty stipulated that the absolute monarch would
unite against any threat of liberal revolution

LIBERALISM
John Locke: the father of Liberalism
Popular sovereignty, separation of powers and equality
before the law
Free enterprise based on Adam Smith’s ideas, and free trade
Freedom of religion, freedom of speech and freedom of press
NATIONALISM
Feeling of belonging to a nation: national identity based on:
Shared language and customs
Shared characteristics
Geographic reasons
 Unify nations that were divided into many small states
 Gain independence for nations that were ruled by another state or
empire

THE REVOLUTIONARY WAVE OF 1830
1814: the Bourbon monarchy was restored in France, but with
a new constitution and an elected parliament
1830: king Charles X dissolved the parliament, censored the
press, limited the right to vote and called a new election 
liberals were angry because they thought that the king was
trying to restore de Absolute Monarchy
People attacked the king’s army and put up thousands of
barricades to defend themselves. Charles X abdicated. The
leaders of the revolution created a constitutional
monarchy with Louis Philippe as king.

THE SPRING OF NATIONS (1848)
Louis Philippe was a liberal, but during his reign the gap
between the rich and poor grew
1848: France suffering from falling wages, rapid inflation and
high unemployment. Violent protestors marched on the royal
palace and the king was forced to escape to Britain  French
Second Republic
NEW CONCEPT OF DEMOCRACY: the emergence of
democratic ideals and the importance of workers as a political force.
They defended the principle of popular sovereignty and the
extension of collective rights, recognising the right of assembly and
association
The revolution in France inspired people of all over
Europe to rebel against their monarchs  The spring
of Nations. In the end, almost all of the rebellions were
defeated by conservative governments

What new states were created in
Europe in the 19th
century?
GROWING NATIONALISM IN ITALY AND
GERMANY
In both, Napoleon introduced uniform laws, reduced
the number of states, centralised the
administration  different regions in each country
became more similar to one another
French invasions gave the people a common enemy: they
had to cooperate
Trade and travel increased
Romantic artists and writers glorified the culture and history
of their nations  people became to feel proud of their
cultural heritage and of their nationality

GERMAN UNIFICATION
After the Congress of Vienna, Prussia and Austria became
the most powerful states in the German Confederation
Prussia, led by Wilhelm I and Chancellor Otto von
Bismarck, wanted a stronger and more united
Germany, based on German nationalism
Austria had a multinational empire that was mainly outside
Germany, so it saw a united Germany as a threat. It preferred
Germany to be weak and divided
1866: Prussia defeated Austria in the Seven Day’s War
1870: it provoked France into declaring war on it, increasing
feelings of German nationalism. France was defeated 
Prussia established the German Empire, with Wilhelm I of
Prussia as its first emperor

THE ITALIAN RISORGIMENTO (UNIFICATION)
In Italy there were two forces that supported the
risorgimento (unification):
The king of Sardinia, Victor Emmanuel II, and his prime
minister Cavour wanted to expel the Austrians from Italy and
expand Sardinian territory  it was the most liberal
kingdom in Italy
Liberal nationalists (Mazzini or Garibaldi) encouraged
people to rebel against the conservative regional rulers and
nobles to create a democratic republic. Their rebellion was
unsuccessful, so they decided to help Sardinia in order to unite
Italy
Together, they expelled the Austrians an in 1861 Victor
Emmanuel was named king of Italy

The age of the liberal revolutions

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The age of the liberal revolutions