French Society before the Revolution
* King Louis XVI increased the debt of Paris by over 3 million livres.
* French society was divided into three estates.
* The middle class started questioning feudal privileges.
* Owing to the economic and political situation, King Louis decided to convene the Estate General.
Outbreak of the Revolution
* The financial condition in France was in a pitiable state.
* King Louis XVI increased the debt of Paris by over 3 million livres.
* On June 20, the members of the third estate declared themselves a National Assembly.
* On the 4th of August, 1789, the Assembly passed an order abolishing the feudal system of obligations and taxes.
France Becomes a Constitutional Monarchy
* In 1791, the National Assembly completed the draft of the constitution.
* The preamble to the constitution of 1791 consisted of the Declaration of the Rights of Man and Citizen.
* Images and symbols were used to help the illiterate sections of society to understand the ideas better.
France becomes a Republic
* High prices and shortage of food angered the Parisians.
* On September 21, 1792, a newly elected assembly was formed called the Convention, which abolished monarchy and acknowledged France as a Republic.
* Maximilian Robespierre headed the convention and felt that the best way to start the new republic was to execute the king.
* 1793 to 1794 was a period known as the Reign of Terror.
The Region of Terror
* After the formation of the French Republic the Reign of Terror began.
* Robespierre headed the convention and felt liberty could be achieved only through terror.
* Thousands of people were killed.
* In July of 1794, Robespierre was charged with treason and sentenced to death.
Did Women have a Revolution?
* Women have played a silent but key role in times of crisis.
* The Society of Revolutionary and Republican Women was formed in 1793 to voice opinions and grievances against the constitution of 1791.
* Eminent writer and political activist Olympe de Gouges opposed the constitution and later drafted the Declaration of Rights for Women and citizen.
* The women of France finally won the right to vote in 1946.
The Abolition of Slavery
* The triangular slave trade between Europe, Africa and America began in the 17th century.
* Slavery was finally abolished in 1848 by the French Second Republic.
Revolution and Everyday Life
* After the storming of the Bastille in 1789, censorship was abolished.
* Paintings and printed pictures were circulated for the benefit of the illiterate.
* Political clubs used the medium of print as a means to stabilise their position.
Napoleon Bonaparte
* Napoleon became the Emperor of France in 1804.
* He codified the French law under the name the Napoleonic Code of Law, which gave rights to protect private property and initiated the uniform system of weights and measures.
* The ideals of liberty, equality and fraternity formed the legacy of the French Revolution and spread from France across the rest of Europe and other parts of the world.