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Similarities Between Jefferson And Robespierre

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The French Revolution was a historical event in France that occurred from 1789 to 17959. It was a time when the people of France fought to overthrow the monarchy and achieve a republic. During this time, France went through massive social and political changes that were influenced by Enlightenment ideals. Thomas Jefferson was a founding father and the chief writer of the Declaration of Independence. He was elected the second vice president in 1791 and soon after the French revolution had ended, he became the third president of the United States. Maximilien Robespierre was the leader of the Committee of Public Safety in France, there was a time when he governed France as a dictator, where his rule became known as The Reign of Terror. …show more content…

Robespierre wanted France to ultimately achieve a republic, but he believed in order for that to happen the county would have to first resort to despotism. This was made evident through his words, “It has been said that terror is the principle of despotic government. Yes, let the despot govern by terror his brutalized subjects" (Robespierre). During the time of the revolution, when the Committee of Public Safety came into power, he assumed the role of the despot who would help France achieve a republic. Through his perspective the violence he was using as a despot was benefitting France and putting it in a position to achieve an ideal government. He was aware that the people of France associated some of his views with despotism and he saw this as a positive thing; the association of violence with despotism would lead the country back to a republic. Robespierre ultimately believed it was necessary to use despotism for the short term in France in order to later attain a republic for the long term. On the contrary, Jefferson didn't think the country needed to resort to despotism, in his eyes if the country did resort to despotism, it had failed. Jefferson saw how the Jacobins submitted to the Feuillants desires,because the Feuillants supported a limited constitutional monarchy they weren't in favor of executing the king, but more so trying to limit his power. The Jacobins agreed at first but soon realized that this was not the route to take if they wanted to get a republic. Jefferson saw that allowing the king to have even a little power would eventually lead the country back to despotism. This was made evident when he said, “The Jacobins..tried the experiment of retaining their hereditary Executive. The experiment failed completely, and would have brought on the reestablishment of despotism”(Jefferson). By associating despotism with failure, he was making his

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Summary- Harry Sandwith is a 16 year old English boy. He is sent to live in France with the Marquis de St. Caux who is the brother of a man his father knew. The marquis believes with Harry’s schooling history he can influence and become friends with his two sons. Harry thinks he will get bigger opportunities when he moves to France and joins the British army.

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Unit 2: Absolutism and Revolution Portfolio In this unit, you examined the American and French Revolutions. The American Revolution, sparked by conflict over British rule and influenced by Enlightenment ideas, broke colonial ties with a monarchy and yielded a new nation. The French Revolution, inspired by the American Revolution as well as the Enlightenment, freed French citizens from an absolute monarchy and secured equality before the law for all male citizens.

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The French Revolution in 1789 lasted 10 years, changing Europe and human history. The Enlightenment thinkers believed there were numerous rights that were God-given and the French people had acquired those rights. They wanted to overthrow the king and queen, but the revolution caused death. The Reign of Terror was not justified because the French government executed about 40,000 people within those innocent as well. The Reign of Terror was not justified because (Threats to France) The Reign of Terror was not justified because the methods used were too extreme.

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The French Revolution started in 1789 and was ended in the late 1790s. The Revolution was driven by the French people's desire to redesign their country's corrupt and unjust Government. This thinking was brought up by the new ideals that the Enlightenment had created. To achieve this new Government, the people of Paris formed a coup d'etat against King Louis the Sixteenth. During the coup King Louis was beheaded by the Guillotine, thus starting what is known as “The Reign of Terror”.

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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.

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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.

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Thomas Jefferson and Thomas Paine are both considered to be founding fathers of the United States of America despite the fact that they both came from different backgrounds. Thomas Paine was born in Norfolk England, the son of Quaker and left school early to become his father’s apprentice. Thomas Jefferson was born in Colonial America in the colony of Virginia to a wealthy planter father and a mother from a distinguished family. He was given an extraordinary education and attended college earning a degree in law. As a young man Thomas Paine traveled in England constantly, working and pursuing many different ventures before emigrating to America in 1774.

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The French Revolution had many different people leading it, but the main person that was in charge was Renespierre. Robespierre was on the Committee of Public Safety leader. The Committee of Public Safety was in charge of the French Revolution. They were also the group that was in charge of the people of France too. The Committee of Public Safety did not protect the revolution from its enemies because they were putting innocent people in custody, and they would justify the use of terror to make the people of France listen to them.

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John Locke believed in life, liberty, and property and Thomas Jefferson believed in life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. You can already see they had both had the same view point , they both believed in democracy, the people had the right to overthrow a government if they feel like if there are abusing their rights since they are supposed to protect the people’s rights, and they both believed all men were created equal. The differences they had were that John Locke believed people had the right to happiness, believed the separation of powers through legislative and executive branches, and believed in the privacy for people’s personal affairs. While Thomas Jefferson believed people had the right for happiness, he also referred the government

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Everyone has dreams and desires, but achieving those dreams and desires usually ends up hurting others and creating something unwanted. It is seen throughout our history like the French Revolution and displayed in many sources of literature such as “Frankenstein” by Mary Shelley. Frankenstein was published in 1818, sometime after the French Revolution ended which was in 1799 and both the war and the book have many instances that relate to each other. Although Shelley had published the book quite some time after the Revolution, there are ideas in the book “Frankenstein” that come from the French Revolution.

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Was the French Revolution preventable? This is a question that is fascinating to think about. What could have been done differently to prevent this revolution that cost countless people their lives? Why were others willing to give their lives, for what cause? Why was life so turbulent?

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Jefferson explains some of the King’s actions to make them submit to him. These are some of the reason why the Colonist have decided to break their bonds with Britain. Another example is: We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness. — That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed, — That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it.

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He says "The legitimate object of government, is to do for a community of people, whatever they need to have done, but can not do, at all, or can not, so well do, for themselves- in their separate, and individual capacities. " Throughout the quote, he is saying that the government isn 't meant to help its citizens maintain peace and establish justice. The reality is, is that the government plays a huge role in making our everyday lives better, which is why we are not at war everyday with another country or settling a feud between states. This furthermore supports Jefferson 's claim that a government is established to ensure peace and protect its citizens rights.

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The French revolution is considered to be the most significant and effective event in the history. It changed the lives of many peoples and changed the future. Since people of France were under the control of the King they wanted to get rid of French government to eliminate power of the king. There were numerous other factors that also lead the French to the revolution. There were also many social unfairness among the taxes between the estates.

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Throughout most of the text Jefferson starts to complain towards the king and how he feels about the king 's actions towards Jefferson, in the text Jefferson states about 23 total complaints about the king and his wrong doings. An example of one of his complaints towards the king states, “ He has combined with others to subject us to jurisdiction foreign to our

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