The outbreak of the French Revolution in
1789 marked the start. Enlightened despots
failed ro make the political, economic and
social changes that Enlightenment thinkers
had proposed.
A political revolution ended in the Ancien Régime in France.
In Spain, the events of the French Revolution inspired a new
political, economic and social order.
The revolutionaries transformed the everyday life of the population.
Art reflected the political, economic and social changes of the time.
It was symbolised by the famous slogan: 'Liberty,
equality and fraternity'. The slogan remained after the
revolution. It appeared on French coins in the 20th
Century.
The French Revolution
saw the abolition of
the absolute
monarchy and the end
of the estates system.
The influence of the Enlightenment
French intellectuals and
the bourgeoisie
supported Enlightenment
ideas and tried to put
them into practice.
The political crisis
The Estates General brought together representantives to
advise the king on important issues. The clergy and the nobility
had 300 representatives in the Estates General, and each group
had one vote. The middle class and the peasantry had 600
representatives and only one vote. King Louis XVI(1774-1792)
governed France as an absolute monarch and opposed
meetings on the Estates General.
The economic crisis
The French State was bankrupt
as a result of military conflicts.
The social crisis
All 3 states of the realm were discontented with the crown. The
nobility and the clergy refused to pay the taxes. The middle class
and peasantry were angered by the luxurious lifestyle of the royal
family and court.
Louis XVI decided to call together the Estates General in
1789 to increase taxes
National Assembly
Proposed a new voting
system in which each
representative would have
an individual vote
The Constituent Assembly
A new one was elected to write a
constitution. In 1791, they adopted
a constitution which established a
constitutional monarchy.
Legislative Assembly
A new one was
elected to
implemented the
necessary legal
changes
Girondins
Jacobins
The Convention
After the election, Louis XVI
was accused of treason and
then executed.
The Directory and the Consulate
The Directory was more
conservative gomervenmet
which was composed of 5
members. The Consulate was a
new form of government that
General Napoleon Bonaparte
established.