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Social effects of the french revolution
Social effects of the french revolution
Social effects of the french revolution
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The goal of the committee of Public Safety was to protect their people from their enemies.
Although protecting their people from enemies was their goal, they did not do it very effectively. Robespierre became the leader of the Committee of Public Safety, but he was more like a dictator. During his time of ruling the French it became known as the reign of terror. To “protect” the French Revolution against its enemies they guillotined about 40,000 people. Some that they killed weren’t even committing serious crimes, not serious enough to die anyways. One18 year old girl was killed for cutting down a tree that represented liberty. The ideals of the French revolution were life,liberty, and property, but Robespierre wasn’t honoring that like he
was supposed to. He tried to justify all the killings by saying it was keeping the French loyal to the Revolution. And the whole purpose of the revolution was to help the middle class, but instead he was killing most of them. The Committee of Public Safety passed a law saying anyone accused of hoarding bread was committing monopoly, and monopoly was considered a capital crime. During this time the French were having food shortages so hoarding bread was really bad, but you shouldn’t have to die for committing a crime like this. The Law of Suspects was made in September 1793. Any person accused of a crime was put to death. Although this would give them an idea of who is committing the crimes this does not verify who the suspects are. Basically an innocent person could be accused of a capital crime and be put to death. The reason behind passing this law was to protect their people from invaders and fear. However if you’re constantly being afraid that someone’s going to accuse you of a crime you didn’t commit that’s not protecting you from fear. In conclusion, the goal of the Committee of Public Safety was to protect the French, they didn’t follow through.
In 1789, the French people began to stand up to their current monarchical government in order to obtain rights and laws that they felt they deserved. The Reign of Terror followed after the Revolution and seemed to stand for the complete opposite of what the people had previously stood up for. The Reign of Terror began in 1793 and ended in 1794 due to the decapitation of Maximilien Robespierre. The Reign of Terror can be explained as a time period in France when many counter revolutionaries were killed because of their traditional beliefs. Counter revolutionaries believed in preserving the ways of the monarchy, but since the majority of people thought otherwise, these opposing beliefs led to death. The French government did not have good reason to conduct such drastic measures against those who challenged the Revolution.
Liberty, equality, and freedom are all essential parts to avoiding anarchy and maintaining tranquility even through the most treacherous of times. The Reign of Terror is well known as the eighteen month long French Revolution (1793-1794). In this period of time, a chief executive Maximilien Robespierre and a new French government executed gigantic numbers of people they thought to be enemies of the revolution; inside and outside of the country. The question is; were these acts of the new French government justified? Not only are the acts that occurred in the Reign of Terror not justified, they were barbaric and inhumane.
First, the Jacobin leader Robespierre’s tried to protect the revolution but this plan backfired. It backfired because immediately after the publication of this decree, all suspected persons within the territory
He wrote pamphlets insisting that the poor deserved to have a voice in government” ( DiConsiglio. 78 ) it is easy to see how strongly Robespierre felt about the inequality at the time to the point where he was creating pamphlets in order to spread his beliefs and to meet his goals and ambitions. He did this as a way to rally up the people of France and to educate them about the injustice that was taking place. To many people, Maximilien Robespierre was a hero because of he successfully gave faith and hope to his people that change and equality could happen. Maximilien Robespierre became obsessed with this passion to create equality within France and to abolish the segregation that he began to be worshiped by other and seen as a beacon of hope “ Robespierre won a reputation as a completely devoted revolutionary ” ( DiConsiglio. 45
Was the Terror of 1793/4 inherent from the revolutions outset or was it the product of exceptional circumstance?
Beginning in mid-1789, and lasting until late-1799, the French Revolution vastly changed the nation of France throughout its ten years. From the storming of the Bastille, the ousting of the royal family, the Reign of Terror, and all the way to the Napoleonic period, France changed vastly during this time. But, for the better part of the last 200 years, the effects that the French Revolution had on the nation, have been vigorously debated by historian and other experts. Aspects of debate have focused around how much change the revolution really caused, and the type of change, as well as whether the changes that it brought about should be looked at as positive or negative. Furthermore, many debate whether the Revolutions excesses and shortcomings can be justified by the gains that the revolution brought throughout the country. Over time, historians’ views on these questions have changed continually, leading many to question the different interpretations and theories behind the Revolutions effectiveness at shaping France and the rest of the world.
Although, the Reign of Terror was seen as a way to let the revolution live and was well supported it was not justified. Because the internal threats propagated radicalism, the external threats raged and became stronger, and the methods became chaotic the Reign of Terror extended its stay in France until the death of the powerful leader Robespierre. The Reign of Terror was an outreach to gain rights but during this period they were taken away until the fateful day of Robespierre’s death ending the Terror.
Unlike the leaders of America, the leaders of the French did not turn out to be as positive for the country. In fact, some of these leaders caused much more harm than good. These leaders taught the French people more about what type of government would be the best option for them. One of the most radical, and extreme leaders was Maximilien Robespierre. The duration of his dictatorship was known as "Reign of Terror." He demanded a republic and soon after his demands; the monarchy was overthrown. He also felt that a constitutional government would have to wait until all the enemies of the revolution have been eliminated. To accomplish this task, he murdered close to 40,000 people, most by guillotine, and some sentenced to life in jail. The Reign of Terror was one of the most controversial, and terrifying phases of the Revolution. Some French colonists thought it to be a path to democracy; others thought it was just a attempt for Robespierre to assume dictator. The other great leader was Napoleon Bonaparte. He believed that the only way to have control in France was to put a limit on democracy. Over a period of time Napoleon 's party overthrew Robespierre 's party. Soon enough, Napoleon was dictator of France. The French soldiers who fought in the American Revolution came back from the war with new ideas and reason for revolution. These ideas included the right to take up arms against tyranny, all men should
The French Revolution started in 1787 because the country was going through financial difficulties and there was unrest between the classes of citizens in the country. The differences between the lower class citizens and higher classes, being nobles and the monarchy were great. The citizens had heard of the revolution that went on in the colonies and they also wanted freedom and independence. The real start of the French Revolution was on July 14, 1789, with the storming of the Bastille. Between 1789 1793, a constitution was written, feudalism was abolished, war had broken out, and King Louis XVI was put to death. In late 1793 and early 1794, Maximilien Robespierre became the head of the Committee of Public Safety in France. This was the new governing body in France; it could be compared to the executive branch of a government. Robespierre was a great leader, he ins...
While many may be outraged by Robespierre’s actions, he believed they were justified because the killed enemies of the Revolution by terror with the Republic in mind. In his mind the mass executions were justified, since he had the right reason for doing so and was trying to protect the republic. In this second source, we can see that Robespierre and others, will use any means necessary to protect their beliefs and eliminate any threats to those beliefs. Robespierre put the fear into people that they would be killed if they opposed the Revolution in anyway. One last act of terrorism that I looked at occurred in New York City, on September 11, 2011.
The French Revolution was a major transformation of the society and political system of France, lasting from 1789 to 1799. During the course of the Revolution, France was changed from an absolute monarchy, to a republic of supposedly equal and free citizens. The effects of the French Revolution were widespread, both inside and outside of France, and impacted all of Europe. At times the outcome of revolt led to social change and at times it just led to unnecessary bloodshed. Was this revolution inevitable? Was there something different that the government or people could have done to prevent the horrible atrocities of The Reign of Terror under Robespierre and his men? There are clear social, economic and political changes that could have been made too prevent this revolution from occurring when it did. However, although the government could have postponed this revolution, it was also somewhat inevitable, because of the great differences in the society of the peasants and the nobles divided the entire society. The government was also just trying to make too many things right at the wrong time and this is why they could possibly have not avoided the French Revolution.
The goal of the Committee of the Public Safety was to protect the revolution from its enemies because they didn't want people to invade so they wouldn't be attacked. But, over time many things changed due to the Committee of Public Safety. For instance, they considered monopoly a series crime because the profiter inherited of selling items daily, and they wouldn't hoard it which means to keep for themselves. Also, The Committee of Public Safety passed the Decree Against Profiteers because the profiteers were ripping the people off by raising the price and the profiteers wanted to make everything to themselves.
“Revolutions never go backwards.”-Wendell Phillips. It is true that revolutions never go backwards; an example of this would be the French Revolution. Before 1789, France was ruled by a monarchy. Before the France revolution, the monarch was King Louis XVI. His family had ruled France for many years, however King Louis XVI, was an ill-suited leader who lost his country to the National Assembly. During the French revolution, France went through countless reforms by switching back and forth from republics to dictatorships. France eventually thrived under the rule of Napoleon, who was a dictator chosen by the people. Because of the sacking of King Louis XVI and the monarchy, France had become a better nation. Therefore, the citizens for France were justified in overthrowing King Louis XVI because King Louis XVI was not a competent leader, he treated the third estate poorly and King Louis XVI let Marie Antoinette have an impact in political affairs.
There are many things in history that could have been avoided under the right circumstances, but was the French Revolution one of them? The French Revolution lasted from 1789 all the way through 1799. It captured the decline of the monarchy and the rise of the republic by the people. It abolished strict class systems and gave the society of France hope. There was a lot of chaos occurring in France during the time of the revolution, yet it could have been avoided if the government spread the taxes equally between all three estates, if the estates generals voted by head rather than order, and if the French government granted equal rights such as granting jobs based on merit rather than status, to all three estates.
Maximilien Robespierre was a States-General during the French Revolution, and was one of the leaders the Jacobins and the Reign of Terror. He was born on May 6, 1758 in Arras, France. He was the oldest out of four children, and when he was six years old, his mother died (5). Robespierre’s father left him and his siblings soon after his wife’s death and they were left to live with their aunts and grandfather. Eventually, he studied law at the University of Paris, and was chosen to give a speech to Louis XVI at his coronation (1). He was best known for defending the poor, and giving long and tedious speeches at the local academies (2).