![]() ![]() In addition to these social changes, the French population grew from 18 million in 1700 to 26 million in 1789, making it the most populous state in Europe Paris had over 600,000 inhabitants, of whom roughly one third were either unemployed or had no regular work. ![]() The emergence of this " public sphere" led to Paris replacing Versailles as the cultural and intellectual centre, leaving the Court isolated and less able to influence opinion. Improvements in education and literacy over the course of the 18th century meant larger audiences for newspapers and journals, with Masonic lodges, coffee houses and reading clubs providing areas where people could debate and discuss ideas. Under Louis XIV, the Court at Versailles was the centre of culture, fashion and political power. Transnational elites who shared ideas and styles were not new what changed was their extent and the numbers involved. Contacts between diverse groups in Edinburgh, Geneva, Boston, Amsterdam, Paris, London or Vienna were much greater than often appreciated. This took different forms, such as the English ' coffeehouse culture', and extended to areas colonised by Europeans, particularly British North America. Louis XVI, who came to the throne in 1774Īt the same time, discussion of these issues and political dissent had become part of wider European society, rather than confined to a small elite. Combined with a regressive tax system and resistance to reform by the ruling elite, it resulted in a crisis Louis XVI proved unable to manage. Rapid population growth and the inability to adequately finance government debt resulted in economic depression, unemployment and high food prices. The underlying causes of the French Revolution are generally seen as arising from the failure of the Ancien Régime to manage social and economic inequality. 8.2.3 Cockade, tricolore and liberty cap.7 Slavery - Imperialism - The Haitian Revolution.4.2 Political crisis and fall of the Girondins.3 Constitutional monarchy (July 1789 – September 1792).This is generally seen as marking the end of the Revolutionary period. Despite a series of military victories, many won by Napoleon Bonaparte, political divisions and economic stagnation resulted in the Directory being replaced by the Consulate in November 1799. As well as its external enemies, the Republic faced internal opposition from both Royalists and Jacobins and in order to deal with these threats, the French Directory took power in November 1795. This sparked the Reign of Terror, an attempt to eradicate alleged " counter-revolutionaries" by the time it ended in July 1794, over 16,600 had been executed in Paris and the provinces. The Paris-based Insurrection of 31 May – 2 June 1793 replaced the Girondins who dominated the National Assembly with the Committee of Public Safety, headed by Maximilien Robespierre. These factors resulted in the outbreak of the French Revolutionary Wars in April 1792 and proclamation of the French First Republic in September, followed by the Execution of Louis XVI in January 1793. Austria, Britain, Prussia and other external powers sought to restore the Ancien Régime by force, while many French politicians saw war as the best way to unite the nation and preserve the revolution by exporting it to other countries. ![]() The next three years were dominated by the struggle for political control, exacerbated by economic depression and civil disorder. Continuing unrest culminated in the Storming of the Bastille on 14 July, which led to a series of radical measures by the Assembly, including the abolition of feudalism, the imposition of state control over the Catholic Church in France, and extension of the right to vote. In May 1789, widespread social distress led to the convocation of the Estates General, which was converted into a National Assembly in June. Its causes are generally agreed to be a combination of social, political and economic factors, which the Ancien Régime proved unable to manage. The values and institutions it created dominate French politics to this day. Many of its ideas are considered fundamental principles of liberal democracy, while phrases like liberté, égalité, fraternité reappeared in other revolts, such as the 1917 Russian Revolution, and inspired campaigns for the abolition of slavery and universal suffrage. The French Revolution ( French: Révolution française ) was a period of radical political and societal change in France that began with the Estates General of 1789 and ended with the formation of the French Consulate in November 1799. ![]()
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