Notes+P28-38+amypx2013+9.4.2010

= Revolution in France (4) =



Chaos in Paris
 * Louis XVI lost control the Estates General
 * Riots broke out in Paris
 * Louis sent 20,000 royal troops into Paris to have them "keep order there"
 * Because of this, fear started to spread among the people
 * On 12 July, Louis replaced the popular finance minister, Necker, with a new one who was strongly against the third estate
 * This caused more fear among the people because they thought that Louis planned to crack down the National Assembly
 * They started to gather weapons to defend themselves

Into Bastille
 * On July 14 people heard that a massive amount of gunpowder was stored in the Bastille
 * They hated the Bastille because it was a prison for hundreds of years
 * People who received "sealed letters" were sent there
 * Peasants view the Bastille as a royal symbol and attempted to destroy it as they broke into it
 * By evening they gain control of the Bastille
 * This was a symbol of peasants' victory over the power of their rulers

Pictures of the Victory
 * Many people painted pictures for this crucial historical event
 * The picture shown below illustrates the climax of events- the arrest of the prison's governor, Marquis de Launay
 * Copies of these picture came in thousands


 * [[image:climax_of_events-arrest_of_prison_governor_1.png]]
 * However, the accuracy of these pictures are questionable
 * On July 14th, there were in fact only seven prisoners in Bastille
 * Below is a chart on a prisoner's life in Bastille
 * [[image:prisoner_meal_records_1.png]]
 * [[image:prisoner_spending_record_2.png]]

King Loses Control
 * Louis considered sending troops to recapture the Bastille
 * His war minster warned him that soldiers may refuse to do so
 * Therefore Louis gave up his control
 * He allowed people to set up their own military force-the National Guard
 * The leaders of the third estate formed a local government, the Paris Commune, the run the city
 * Following those footsteps, people from all over France ousted royal officials
 * They set up their own communes and National Guard units.

 The Great Fear
 * Violence caused chaos in France
 * Unemployment + hunger
 * People wandered around the country to beg for food
 * Farmers lived in fear of attacking gangs
 * Rumors said that nobles were trying to starve the peasants by hoarding food
 * Rumors also said that nobles hired gangs to attack peasant houses and terrorize them
 * Farmers responded to the rumors by refusing to pay feudal dues
 * They broke into nobles' houses and burned feudal due records
 * Panic spread and by July, the whole France was facing the "Great Fear"

Changes to the French Society
 * National Assembly took drastic changes to end the chaos
 * Nobles gave up feudal rights and dues
 * Hunting rights, tithes, the rights of the mill and the oven, and the corvee were abolished on the next day
 * "Declaration of the Rights of Man and Citizen"
 * stated that all men were free and equal in rights
 * people should have the right to speak and write freely
 * changed laws of arrest and imprisonment; it banned torture
 * power in France belonged to the entire people, not just the king

Women to Versailles
 * Louis XVI disliked the changes and refused to sign them; the changes could not become law
 * He sent more troops in October into Paris
 * Again people thought that he was going to break up the National Assembly
 * Crowds of market women gathered and protested against the king
 * They collected weapons and marched to Versailles
 * Supported by the National Guardsmen, they complained to the king the high prices of bread and the extra soldiers in Paris
 * They threatened to kill the Queen
 * They asked the king to leave Versailles and come to Paris so they could keep and eye on him
 * On October 6th, the Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette traveled to Paris
 * From then they lived in the Tuileries Palace in central Paris

 Reforms of the National Assembly (1789-1792)
 * The National Assembly took over an old old riding school as meeting place
 * Over the next two years they introduced many new laws, changing the way France was governed

 Changes of the Church
 * Most people though that the church had too much power, land, and money
 * Some people such as the Catholics never questioned the way the church was run therefore they did not welcome the changes
 * They protested as the Assembly took away land and money from the church
 * In July, 1790, the Civil Constitution of the Clergy stated that priests and bishops were to be elected by citizens like other public officials
 * It ordered all clergy to obey the French nation and the law
 * Half of the clergy said that the Assembly had no right to interfere with church affairs
 * Thus the clergy was divided between those supported the revolution and those who refused the revolution
 * The entire nation was divided by the question of the church and its power

Flight to Varennes
 * Louis XVI also refused to take the oath
 * He decided to escape France
 * His aim was to get help from French princes who already left France and had army
 * He also hoped to get assistance from Antoinette's brother Leopold, the emperor of Austria
 * They would be able to invade France, destroy the National Assembly, and get back the power they lost
 * Since the palace was heavily guarded, Louis XVI and his family had to make a secret escape
 * On June 21, 1791, they escaped eastwards toward Montmedy
 * However, they were recognized and captured in the town of Varennes and were sent back to Paris

Summary As the king started to lose control, France was filled with chaos because of riots and violence. People continued to protest against the king as they also introduced many reforms to the French Society. Some of these reforms included new tax systems, banishment of feudal rights and dues, reforms of the church, etc. The Assembly also built its own government and established its own army...

Questions 1. Did everyone actually welcomed those reforms (not only nobles and the clergy)?