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How did the enlightenment impact french revolution
Impact of enlightenment on french revolution
How did the enlightenment impact french revolution
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In 1789, the people had had enough and a large group of the lower- and middle-class citizens formed a power struggle and declared itself a "National Assembly" that was representative of the people. Louis attempted to shut down the National Assembly, but on June 20 its members declared that they would not disband until they had written a new constitution for France that would have a new political system and a fair government. The revolution lasted from 1789 until 1799. The Revolution overthrew the monarchy, established a republic, and experienced violent periods of political chaos.
Do the ends justify the mean? If you were an American soldier ready to be deployed for a massive land invasion of Japan, the atomic bombs saved your life. World War II ended when the United States dropped the atomic bombs and saved thousands of American lives. The French Revolution faced a similar dilemma. The rallying cry for the revolution was equality, liberty, and fraternity, bringing the first democracy to France.
The American Revolution embodied the principles of the Enlightenment and freedom from tyranny which represented social change from other forms of government, therefore it was certainly revolutionary at the time. Document 1 supports the opinion that the American Revolution was revolutionary because it represents the people's desire for freedom from tyranny by pulling down the statue of the “tyrant” king . Document 2 also supports the opinion that the American Revolution was revolutionary because it promoted the most far thinking beliefs of the Enlightenment, including equality, a government ruled by the people (Democracy), and the rule of law. With the Declaration of Independence, an entirely new nation was erected and an adoption of democracy
French Revolution “The children are terribly ragged…the lack of bread is terrible... the price of bread has risen above people's ability to pay...feudal dues are crushing us.” (Document 1) Arthur Young gives a vivid image on what life was like for the third estate in France. The French Revolution occured around the same time as the American Revolution.
The French Revolution followed suit of the American Revolution because it ultimately began with Enlightenment ideals such as natural rights, liberties, and equality, but that is nearly the full extant by which the French followed the pattern of the American Revolution. In France, it was mostly as peasant uprising against those who help power, while in the colonies, it was most colonists rising against the British. Both cases had a group of politically weak individuals fighting for their rights against those already in power in the government, however, in France there were far more involved higher class people which lead to more physical warfare and ultimately the French Revolution being more bloody. Also, the French Monarchy was already
The French Revolution occurred due to the curtailing of the estates’ rights under King Louis XIV, who attempted to rule as an absolute autocrat and was later executed for this. The Enlightenment made it permissible for people to speak and question the rights of the time. After the Enlightenment, social rights, religious rights, and gender rights were expanded and advanced. Document one speaks of natural rights that extends to all of humanity with natural rights being any right that doesn’t hurt another, “You have the most sacred natural right to everything that is not disputed by the rest of the species.” By being a natural right, it couldn’t be denied to anyone, no matter gender, race, or time period.
The acts of the French Revolution were completely justified and essential for the prosperous future of France and Europe. The revolution resulted in many historical movements and the uproar that would bring freedom and liberty to France and Europe. Although some of the ideas and concepts could be seen as excessive, they were all necessary. Everything from the Bastille invasion to the establishment of the Committee of Public Safety, to even the Reign of Terror. The Bastille invasion was one of the main defining movements that would set the foundation for the French Revolution, it marked the moment commoners would enter and become pawns of the French Revolution.
The American Revolution actuated much change inside the recently autonomous country, especially political and social, and to a lesser degree, monetarily. Subsequent to splitting far from what seemed, by all accounts, to be a degenerate government in England, American pioneers shaped the ideas of their optimal society. In spite of the fact that to them it appeared that these thoughts would enable them to split far from the British style of government, as a general rule they returned to one that was considerably more incorporated, much like that of England's. The uneducated populace of America did not experience much change; however the thoughts behind the upset itself pushed numerous to look for financial thriving for them. Ladies and slaves
In France in the year 1789, the declaration of the rights of men and citizen was written and approved by the national assembly. It was an important document concerning the French revolution because it presented new ideals for society and individuals. However, in order to understand how this changes the French society, it will be vital to go back and look at how it was before the declaration was written. Before this there was a structure called the estate general that made important decisions, its general consisted of three branches that had one vote each on decisions.
“ Singing the song of angry men, it is the music of the people who will not be slaves again(...) there is a life about to start when tomorrow comes ” The French Revolution from 1789 - 1789 was a rebellious act of the people of France to the way the monarchy had been treating them. The words of “Do You Hear The People Sing” from the movie “ Les Misérables” about the French Revolution showed how the people of France were feeling because of the conditions they were put under and the way they were treated. Napoleon went into power after the French Revolution. The French Revolution was from 1789 to 1799.
The main difference between the American and French Revoultion was that one successfully converted to a democratic government and one did not. The French Revolution was not successful in forming a democratic government due to France’s history of a monarchy, economic issues and divison among its’ people. Unlike America, France had a long history of sole rulers and dictatorship which made the change to a democratic government much more difficult and ultimately impossible. America’s motto of “all men are created equal” (Doc A) was the complete opposite of France’s dividing estate class system. The third estate consisted of peasents, common people and the bourgeoisie, the second estate belonged to the Nobles, and the first was the home to the Clergy.
Many American’s are aware that the American Revolution started, because the British Government was taxing the colonies without giving them proper representation in parliament. However, what many American’s do not understand is that the colonial protestors had many more complaints about the British Government in the mid 1770s. Thomas Paine described the colonists view of the British best when he said, “The British were thieves, literally “highwaymen” who stole American rights and wealth as well.” The years following the Seven Years War brought drastic changes for the colonists as Great Britain started taking more control over the them and with each new tax they continued to fill with rage. The most convincing evidence the colonial protestors
However, even after the abolition of the monarchy, France still experienced violent bursts of political mayhem and eventually Napoleon established a dictatorship in 1799. Meanwhile, as the political conflict in France intensified, the National Assembly made extreme changes to French laws and on August 26th, 1789, the Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen was published, declaring all men free and equal. Overall, what was occurring in France in the time around the onset of the Haitian Revolution, in that the slaves took inspiration from the French uprisings and applied them to their own goals. These events helped set the stage for 1791, when the first slave revolt occurred and signaled the beginning of the Haitian Revolution.
During the 18th and 19th century, revolutions were happening on both sides of the Atlantic Ocean, facilitated by the ease with which ideas and information could travel by sea. These revolutions aimed to produce liberty and equality for all, a radical new idea that came about in the Enlightenment Era. The French Revolution began in 1789, when the French National Assembly wrote the Declaration of the Rights of Man. It continued in 1792 and 1793, when the constitution was written, and culminated in 1818, when France finally abolished slave trade. The French Revolution best lived up to the Enlightenment ideals of liberty and equality because of the rights and freedoms that were guaranteed to every citizen without discrimination through two important documents: the Constitution and the Rights of Man.
In 1783, only six years before the French Revolution broke out, the Americans successfully rebelled against the English king. This proved that a revolution could actually happen and that rebelling against Louis XVI could have positive effects. The success of the American Revolution inspired them (Document 5). During the Enlightenment, major philosophers like John Locke emerged and questioned the role or power of the government. Born after the English Civil War, John Locke discussed how people had natural rights like life, liberty, and property, which needed to be protected by the government.
