The establishment of the French Republic.pptx

Part 1 - From the Revolution to the end of the 1st Empire

1. The establishment of the Fren ch Rep ublic 1790s - 1900s

2. But… what IS a “REPUBLIC”? Definition: A republic is a form of government in which the people elect or choose their leaders (the President and other representatives who make laws). The leaders of a republic are responsible to the people who elected them. If the people do not like the way their leaders govern, they can vote them out of office. This means that the people are the source of power. This is why Republics are different from countries led by a king or another all-powerful ruler.

3. The French Revolution M any protests led to the French Revolution. In 1789 a crowd marched to the royal palace in Versailles and brought the royal family back to Paris to face the people's demands.

4. Louis XVI Because it was an Absolute Monarchy system, Louis XVI and all the nobles who supported him had great wealth and great privileges . Meanwhile the majority of the common people had to pay many taxes and lived in great poverty.

5. “ Tennis Court Oath” (June 1789) and “Bastille Day” (July 14, 1789) Angry with this situation, the people formed a National Assembly and decided to write a Constitution where the rights and duties of all social classes were collected in a more just and egalitarian manner. This is called the “ Tennis Court Oath ”. V iolent protests began. On July 14, 1789 in Paris, a large mass of people went to Bastille, the prison where all those who had opposed the king were imprisoned, to free them. The attack is considered the beginning of the French Revolution .

6. The National Assembly decided that France should be governed according to three great values: Liberty, Equality and Fraternity. The new governors wrote a very important document, the Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen .

7. The First Republic proclaimed On 21 June 1791 , the King was arrested at Varennes while trying to flee the country with his family. His flight was seen as treason by the people. The First Republic was proclaimed by the Constituent Assembly .

8. The Reign of Terror (1793-1794) Maximilien Robespierre was a leader during the Reign of Terror. He was blamed for many of the killings that took place during that period of the French Revolution. In 1794 Robespierre was arrested and executed.

9. Louis XVI was guillotined on 21 January 1793 .

10. The Republic in Danger The Republic was established, but it had to face: 1) armies of the coalition (=alliance) forces on its borders 2) insurrection (=revolt) inside the country

11. Napoleon: from 1st Consul to Emperor Napoleon Bonaparte, a talented but ambitious soldier, seized power in a coup on 18 Brumaire ( = 9 November 1799 ). He became consul. He was crowned emperor on 2 December 1804 .

12. From Emp eror to Exiled Napoleon started important reforms in France (departments, Bank of France, education…). He also started the “Napoleonic Wars” - battles to expand the French Empire - that ended with a defeat (Waterloo, 1815) and Napoleon's exile on the island of Saint Helena.