The Enlightenment was an intellectual movement that reached its peak in the mid-1700s when many philosophers began reevaluating their past ways of thinking. One of the most powerful countries at the time was France. Even though the rest of the world praised their robust trading system and culture, they still faced significant problems within the government such as high taxes towards only certain groups of the population. These effects led to the revolution where thousands of poorer French citizens fought for radical change in the feudal system. Modern Enlightenment ideas in Europe had a huge influence on the French Revolution, especially leading up to it. The Third Estate was successful in gaining power over higher classes made up of clergy …show more content…
It was a period of violence that opposed the ideas that most Enlightenment philosophers believed in. New views from the Enlightenment began spreading rapidly in France amongst the Third Estate. They became more educated, finally questioning the rule of absolute monarchs after years of injustice. One of the main causes that fueled the rebellion was the weak leadership of King Louis XVI. France was already in a financial debt crisis and he attempted to solve this by recklessly forcing increased tax rates on the Third Estate. Meanwhile, he and his wife Marie Antoinette continued spending money on themselves. A famous scholar named Montesquieu said, “To be great, one has to stand with people, not above them” (Doc 5). This quote expresses that, a remarkable ruler, must consider the input of others which closely resembles a democracy. It aligns with the ideas of the Enlightenment …show more content…
Robespierre, who was the leader of the Jacobins, seemed to slowly steer away from forming a democratic government. He was responsible for 17,000 deaths in the Reign of Terror. 12,000 of those killings were executed using the Guillotine device. The political cartoon shows the Jacobins celebrating the death of the French citizens with alcohol. It has a burning globe in the center of the picture as well (Doc 3). They look oddly cheerful and probably were not aware of the effects that it left on the world. Robespierre built fear within the country, executing the victims publicly and making it clear that it could happen to anyone that spoke out against him. Enlightenment ideas stated that authority over people is tyrannical unless it is absolutely necessary (Doc 5). In this case, Robespierre did not have a specific reason behind such harsh punishments. It was taken too far to the point where signs of absolutism are seen again. He then tries to justify his actions exclaiming that although rights were important, there needs to be boundaries to prevent people from doing whatever they want (Doc 1). Robespierre had the right intentions but it could have been better thought out. The Enlightenment emphasizes how the government’s job should be to protect the rights of the people in the country. Instead, the Reign of Terror resulted in the devastating loss of
The French Revolution was a drastic time for the people of France. In 1789, the majority of people were living in poverty and dealing with terrible conditions. People were split into three estates: the first, second, and third, the first being the wealthiest. Political, economic, and social situations were what contributed to people’s desire for change. The three main, or biggest causes of the French Revolution, were taxes, inequality, and lack of reform.
During the French Revolution, a period that is recognized as one of the most socially and politically transformative in the French Empire, changes in styles of governance from monarchy to a republican together with changes in social understanding and acceptance for all took place. One of the lead figures and revolutionists was Maximilien Robespierre who is especially credited with being the leader of the Reign of Terror which was a smaller event but part of the revolution. As the French Revolution went on, Robespierre, together with similarly minded individuals Danton and their followers engaged in the ruthless executions of people who were deemed to be enemies of the revolution and to keep away any foreign interference towards the revolution (Tackett, 2000). As an individual, Robespierre was both a lawyer and a politician who rose through the ranks of
Robespierre wanted more purges and executions and later many revolutionary government began to question his motives and coalition of moderates and revolutionaries formed to oppose Robespierre and his followers. On July 27, 1794 him and his allies were arrested and then the next day he was executed . After heads of Robespierre and other radicals
Later in time, Maximilian Robspere came to power and started the reign of terror. Under his leadership and his Committee of Public Safety, tens of thousands deemed enemies of the revolution lost their lives on the guillotine. Shortly after, Robespierre himself was arrested and guillotined, accused of leading France into tyranny and dictatorship. The French Revolution was inspired by the right to change a non beneficial leader and resist
This Reign of terror was the result of the French people's paranoia that the enemies of the revolution were going to gain power. The paranoia caused the revolutionaries to sentence anyone who did anything against the resolution to the guillotine, however most
Since most of the Third Estate was starving while only three percent of the upper class enjoyed an overabundance of food, the French civilians decided to revolt against the monarchy. However, instead of using their act of disobedience to promote positive change, the leaders of the revolution instead invoked fear in the hearts of everyone in France to increase their own power. For example, Maximilien Robespierre was one of the great leaders of the revolution until he decided to abolish Catholicism and crown himself the leader of his own new religion. This period of time was known as the Reign of Terror because Robespierre sent 600,000 civilians to the guillotine and civilians forgot what they were fighting for out of fear for their lives. Because the French were done with all the death and greed that surrounded them, the French Revolution was widely unsuccessful and France regressed back to a monarchy.
During this time there was a law of “1 estate 1 vote” which made the Third Estate votes meant nothing as the 1st and 2nd worked together to get many laws passed without regard for about 97% of their population, this is something that also helped aid the Revolution. In 1789, Jacques Antoine Creuzé-Latouche, a French lawyer, wrote about their account of the king’s reform proposals presented to the Estates General, stating that some new laws/rights of these arrangements which favored the clergy and the nobility and were greeted by them with cries of “Long live the king!” while there was unbroken silence and no response from the deputies of the Third Estate (Document 4). This shows the imbalance of power, the 1st and 2nd Estates were able to overrule the majority of the population easily as long as they agreed. Most of the laws made and passed affected the Third Estate more than anyone and they had no choice in the matter.
If people used the old forms of address, “Madame”and “Monsieur,” instead of “citizen,” they were killed. If they did not seem enthusiastic enough about the revolution, they were executed . As if they hadn't done enough, the revolutionaries formed yet another group, the Committee of Public Safety, to rule France. The twelve men, including Robespierre, did everything in their power to prevent anyone from stopping the revolution, including the destruction of religion.
Over the course of the next year, Robespierre had a minimum of 300,000 people arrested and 17,000 people executed by guillotine (F2). In the summer of 1794, the public questioned the motives behind the excessive executions(F3). Robespierre was executed on July 28, 1794 for his murderous crimes against France(F4). His execution signaled the end of the Reign of Terror(A2). Some results of the Reign of Terror include Jacobinism and “the return of bourgeois values, corruption and further military failure.
The public did not understand the sacrifices Robespierre has to take to eliminate the reign of the king and queen. The public could only understand and concentrate on the fact that their loved ones were being condemned and the number of people executed everyday. They will soon understand to look at the big picture and realize everything done is for the better of the
The French Revolution was one of the most significant wars that changed France’s history. The Revolution started in 1789 and ended in 1799 and was mainly initiated by the conditions affecting the Third Estate. Louis XVI was predominately the king during this time period but little did he know that an uprising among the peasants was happening. The French Revolution was caused by the Enlightenment ideas because of the American Revolution, the knowledge of rights, and the questioning of France’s government. The American Revolution was basically the “fire” that ignited the change the Third Estate wanted to see in their country.
On 1794, people who led the Revolution received death sentences. Their crime was because they were considered less radical than Robespierre. In July 1794, members of the National Convention turned against Robespierre. They demanded him to be executed. The Reign of Terror came to an end when he went to the guillotine.
The French Revolution all began after people in France decided it was time to fight for their rights and freedom and escape the tyranny that took place and give the people more power. At the time King Louis XVI was the French king and had power from 1774 to 1792 and was later executed in 1793. In France, the people were divided into three separate social estates, clergy, nobility, and the commoner as the lowest and the highest above all of course would be the king. The Enlightenment was a movement by intellectuals who promoted reason and science, and they began to question the system in place at the time in France and they began to spread revolutionary ideas that got people thinking about change. The “French Revolution was influenced by Enlightenment ideals” and when the ideas began to spread people were newly educated about something they never thought about, and after
Under both these brutal rulings, many (thousands in France, millions in Russia) had died. Robespierre primarily directed his power as a means of terrorizing the opponents of the radical movement 's attempts toward instilling dictatorial control. Forty-thousand people were put to death. It ended with the death of its leader Maximilien Robespierre
Maximillian Robespierre came to dominate the Committee and established himself as the leader of the so-called Reign of Terror. Robespierre wanted to rid France of all enemies of the Revolution and to protect the “virtue” of the nation. From September 1793 to July 1794, an estimated 16,000 people were guillotined. Many radicals were executed along with moderates. Most leaders of the French Revolution were now either dead or had fled the republic.