29 Flashcards
Jean
Jean Jacques Rousseau was a French-Swiss Enlightenment thinker who lived from 1712-1778. He was a significant advocate for political equality, and he frequently resented the advantages elites had over the working class, with whom he identified. In 1762, he published a book titled The Social Contract, which illustrated his beliefs of the sovereign. According to him, an ideal society would have people aid in the creation of laws and policies, and in the absence of the royalty, a general would rule the land. At this time, it was believed that educated men sought to enhance their social status by revealing their ideas on freedom and equality, although they didn’t want to share it with peasants, children, slaves, laborers, people of color, or women. In one of his texts, Rousseau even mentioned that women should be educated just so that they could become devoted wives and mothers. He was significant to history because he helped influence the French Revolution through his Enlightenment ideas and because his beliefs led to the development of nationalism and liberalism.
Seven years war
The Seven Years’ War was a conflict between France and Great Britain in North America, Europe, and India from 1756 to 1763. While also known as the French and Indian War, this conflict emerged once there was a contest for supremacy between the imperial nations. At the end of the war, Great Britain walked away with the victory and was now in control of all global trade. Besides this, all of Britain’s possessions prospered, including its colonies in the New World. After the 1760’s, the colonies started experiencing financial difficulties from the war, and as a result, Britain imposed a series of taxes (Sugar Act, Stamp Act, etc.) on the colonies. The colonists heavily resented these taxes and became aggravated by Britain’s tight rules. In response, the colonists protested “no taxation without representation” and organized the Boston Tea Party. The Seven Years’ War was significant to history because it made Britain one of the most powerful nations in the world, and because it led to the American Revolution and the signing of the Declaration of Independence.
American revolution
The American Revolution was a movement formed by the 13 colonies against the British monarchy. When Britain imposed a series of taxes on the colonies, the colonists heavily resented them. They didn’t want to pay fees on documents (Stamp Act 1765), molasses (Sugar Act 1764, imported goods (Townshend Act 1767), or house soldiers at any given moment (Quartering Act 1765). As a result, they protested these acts using the line, “no taxation without representation”. In 1773, the colonists organized the Boston Tea Party. This involved them dumping all of the tea into the harbor so that they didn’t have to pay the taxes on them. After this event, Great Britain sent in troops to stop these protests and a war broke out in Lexington, near Boston. In this war, the colonists won and the declaration of independence was signed. Although they wanted freedom from Britain, they maintained some of their policies to govern their own new nation. The American Revolution was significant to history because the United States was officially free from British rule and the new nation was formed. Not only this, but it inspired the French Revolution.
Declaration of Independence
The Declaration of Independence was the official document created by Thomas Jefferson to declare America’s independence from British rule. Signed on July 4, 1776, this document made its way over to the King of England and stated that the colonies wanted to be freed from their tight control. In it discussed the specific abuses from the British, including the Stamp Act and Townshend Act (plus more), their desires for a free and independent state, and the policies they planned on creating in their new nation. They dreamt of having the power to levy wars, conclude peace, contract alliances, establish commerce, and perform other rights independent states possessed. Because Britain was the supreme power at this time, they had the chance of easily defeating the colonists, thus preventing their independence. While this was true, other countries such as the Netherlands, France, and Spain all tried to hinder Britain’s success in their region. As a result of this, the colonies were supported by these nations and were able to defeat the British in Yorktown (Virginia) in October 1781. From that point on, the British stopped fighting the Americans and they accepted their independence. The Declaration of Independence was significant to history because it legally declared America free from Great Britain and because it granted them the rights as every other nation.
Estates general
In the 1780’s, France faced serious financial issues due to wars and the King’s spending habits. At this time King Louis XVI was primarily focused on renovating France rather than solving actual problems that the French people faced. Now that France needed money and didn’t have much, King Louis XVI needed a solution. At first he imposed taxes on the peasantry class, but when he realized that he already basically took everything they had, he imposed them on the nobles. They have always avoided taxes in the past, so to keep this trend going they protested them and requested the summoning of an Estates General, which was established in 1303. The Estates General was an assembly that represented the entire French population as a whole, although it was managed in several groups called estates. There were originally 3 estates; the first being made up of 100,000 Roman Catholic clergy’s; the second composed of 400,000 nobles, and the last made up of 24 million+ serfs, peasants, artisans, bankers, and commoners. Although the nobles were highly outnumbered, they held supremacy in society and still managed to get what they wanted, especially because voting wasn’t based on the number of individuals. In May 1789, the Estates General was summoned in hopes of the nobles having to pay these new levies. While they pushed for these efforts, they also strived for a new constitution. Most members only stayed in the Estates General until the constitution was refreshed and a new assembly was formed. This was significant to history because they held the French nobles back from having full authority, and because they determined some decisions that the King didn’t even have the right to carry out.
National Assembly
The National Assembly was formed after the representatives of the Estates General seceded on June 17, 1789. They organized a meeting 3 days later on a tennis court, where they all promised to stick together until a new French constitution was put into place. On July 14, a crowd stormed the Bastilles in hopes of finding their weapons to use against the military. During the search, the general killed many of them, but he soon surrendered when the attackers killed some of their defenders viciously. This illustrated the support the National Assembly received from the French population and this made them take on a system of social and political reform. In August of 1789, the National Assembly released the Declaration of the Rights of Man and the Citizen, which discussed the rights every citizen was entitled to. In addition, they abolished labor services and fees that peasants owed, and they changed the role of the Church. France now became a constitutional monarchy, in which all males had the right to vote for legislatures, and Enlightenment ideas were practiced. This was significant to history because they completely reformed France and established a new Constitution which made commoners have more say in decision making and limited the authority of nobles and royalty.
Declaration of rights of men
The Declaration of the Rights of Man and the Citizen was a document created by the National Assembly in August 1789. In it proclaimed freedom and equality for all French citizens, although it was primarily helpful for men. While it was being written, the representatives of the Assembly consulted with Thomas Jefferson, who primarily wrote the American Declaration of Independence, so the ideas in this document represented similar ideas as the other. Some of them stated that all men were born with equal rights, their basic rights are protected by the state, all people have the right to a fair trial, plus many more. Furthermore, this document declared that the sovereignty resided in the people, meaning that the power lied in the hands of the people (“men”). When this declaration gained prominence in society, Olympe de Gouges, who was a French female citizen, challenged the role women were expected to play towards men. She decided to publish the Declaration of the Rights of the Woman and the Female Citizen, which granted women the same rights as men and citizenship. Although this was a great idea and step for women’s equality, it was considered “treason” and as a result, she was sent to the guillotine. This document was significant to history because it granted “citizens” equal rights and was a major step towards democratic beliefs. Although this was true, it led to women fighting for their rights and the creation of the Declaration of the Rights of Woman and Female Citizens.
Maximilien robspierre
Maximilien Robespierre was a ruthless radical who lived from 1758 to 1794. He worked with the Jacobin party and was able to dominate the Convention, helping the revolution peak. Before this, he was a lawyer in training, but once the Revolution took place, he used his position on the Committee of Safety (executive authority) to promote revolutionary ideas and this earned him the title, “The Incorruptible”. The Jacobins and he all believed that France needed to be reconstructed so they started a campaign of terror. In this campaign, they planned on forcing Christianity out of France by demanding priests to marry women and closing churches. In addition, they granted more rights to women by allowing them to inherit property and divorce their husbands. Although they still had no political influence, this was a big step for women. Anyone that went against the revolution was viciously killed or imprisoned. As a result of his actions, 40,000 people were executed and 300,000 enemies were imprisoned. He was significant to history because he helped the French revolution gain more attention and because he accomplished some of the primary goals.
Napoleon
Napoleon Bonaparte was a young general who seized control of France in November 1799 when he staged a coup d’état. Before this happened, Napoleon was born into a minor noble family on an island controlled by France in 1769. Growing up, he attended military school and joined King Louis XIV’s army. Because of his skill, he became a general at age 24 and helped during the revolution. He helped expand France into northern Italy and launch many other expeditions. This came to an end however, when the British defeated the French in a conquest of the sea route to India. He then returned to France in 1799 and joined the Directory. When France was challenged by Austria, Britain, and Russia, Napoleon overthrew the Directory and named himself first consul. He established a new constitution and was crowned emperor in 1802. In his reign, France became stable, even after a period of war and chaos, and Christianity was restored. He even created a pact with the pope and initiated a new Civil Code. In it, aristocrats gained back lost land, a merit based system was put into place, and the patriarchal system was eliminated. Although these were all great things, he still limited rights of citizens and tried conquering neighboring lands. He sent soldiers to Russia without proper supplies and he refused to let them return. They were no match for the other armies and this caused 30,000+ injured soldiers to return to France. In 1814, he was forced to give up his throne and he was exiled from France. He returned the next year and rebuilt his army, but unfortunately the British tore it down. He was then exiled to a deserted island near South America and he died there of natural causes in 1821. He was significant to history because he made drastic changes in France, and because he stabilized it after a period of revolutionary chaos.
French Revolution
The French Revolution was a serious rebellion that started in France in July of 1789. Inspired from the American Revolution and Enlightenment thought, French revolutionists tried to reform society and the government, mainly because the nobles and royalty got whatever they wanted and the peasants were stuck giving everything away. Although they had somewhat different goals than them, they used similar tactics to win. When King Louis XVI summoned the Estates General in 1789, the third party demanded political and social reform and resented the taxes he planned on imposing on them. As a result of this, the representatives of the parties left the Estates General and created an Assembly where they made a pact to stick together until a new constitution was put in place. Supporters of the new assembly raided the Bastilles for weapons, and in the process they killed guards and prison defenders. Now that the Assembly was widely supported, they made a new declaration with ideas of equality and freedom for French citizens. This was soon used in society and peace was soon reached, although it raised conflicts for women who demanded the same rights as everyone else. The French Revolution was significant to history because it limited the authority of the King and granted citizens more rights than ever before. Furthermore, the king could no longer tax the lower class as he pleased, or spend money/make decisions without Parliaments consent.
Toussaint louverture
Toussaint Louverture was a strong, French leader who helped slaves overcome white settlers, gens de couleur, and foreign armies. Originally known as Francois-Dominque Toussaint, he called himself Louverture, which related to the French word “l’ouverture”, which translates to “the opening”. He called himself this because he referred to himself as the one who opened the gates for slave’s opportunities. Because he was born the son of a slave, he related to them and wanted to help them after the revolts begun. He was a free man since 1776 and worked on a plantation as a livestock overseer. Once the revolts started, he joined them and became their leader because of his education as a child. He organized them into a strong army; mainly because they were all in a war at some point, and he led them to Saint Dominique where they started their own government. In 1801 all slaves there received equality and citizenship, although they were still under French rule. A year later, Napoleon brought troops to Saint-Dominque to exert his dominance on them. Toussaint tried to negotiate a treaty, but that only resulted in him being thrown in jail and dying of maltreatment. For the rest of his citizens, they fought against Napoleon and drove his troops out of the colony. They named their colony Haiti and became an independent nation in January 1804. He was significant to history because he basically created Haiti by driving the troops there and helping them work together to fight against the French army.
Haitian revolution
The Haitian Revolution was a civil war that took place in Saint Dominque in May 1791. When the French Revolution broke out, white settlers wanted to govern themselves, but they didn’t want the lower classes to have the same rights as them. This caused a conflict we know as the Haitian Revolution. In August of that year, slaves started killing whites, burning their homes, and destroying their plantations. They did not understand why they couldn’t have the same rights as them. Most of these slaves have been drafted into war before, so they already possessed the skills and knowledge on how to defeat their opponents. In 1793, France stepped in and tried settling the dispute, and Britain and Spain arrived in hopes of benefitting from their failure. The dispute never completely ended though. Toussaint Louverture rallied up the slaves and formed a large army. Now all of them were equal in Saint-Dominque and they were all considered citizens. When Napoleon arrived, they chased out the French troops and established Haiti. This was significant to history because now all slaves were granted citizenship and no one could take it from them now in their own nation.
Simon bolivar
Simon Bolivar was creole elite who lived from 1783 to 1830. He was born in modern day Venezuela and was a passionate republican. Because of this, he was intrigued by Enlightenment ideas on the sovereignty and inspired by generals like George Washington. In 1811, Bolivar took up arms against Spanish rule and led a movement for independence. In its early stages, he was sent into exile twice, but as soon as he returned he set up a strong army and crushed the Spaniards in 1819. He soon campaigned in other Spanish lands and by 1825 he and his creole forces dominated Spanish rule in South America. His plan was to now set up a grand confederation like America, but the small independent nations conflicted when they were brought together to form Gran Colombia. When they broke apart, Bolivar found that South America was ungovernable. A couple years later, he was hit with tuberculosis and died in about 1830. He was significant because he defeated the Spanish in South America and because he attempted to set up a large confederation in its place.
Conservatism
Conservatism was an ideology that became popular after the American and French revolutions. People that were conservatives viewed society as an organism that changed for the better over each generation. One Conservative philosopher, Edmund Burke, stated that society was a compact between people and their ancestors, as well as their descendants that weren’t born yet. Burke agreed with most revolutionary ideas, and we can see how he looked at the American Revolution as a natural change that furthered the development of North American society. Although he “favored” this one, he viewed the French Revolution as an irresponsible assault on society. Conservatism was significant because it shifted the way people looked at events that changed their society.
Liberalism
Like Conservatism, Liberalism was an ideology that became popular after the revolutions. They thought that conservatism was just an effort to avoid equality in society and avoid ways to mend acts of injustice. Liberalists welcomed change and thought it would help society progress in the future. They valued Enlightenment thought on ideas concerning freedom and equality, and they believed they would increase the overall morality of society. Liberalist ideas were very democratic and they often supported that kind of infrastructure for their societies. Although this is true, during the 19th century, democracy was considered dangerous because it allowed a mass amount of people to manage politics. One liberal philosopher was John Stuart Mill; he frequently promoted freedom and made sure that the nobles paid just as much in taxes as the commoners. Liberalism was significant to history because just like Conservatism, it changed people’s’ outlooks on historical events, and this changed the way they acted after that point (ex. If a leader is a liberalist they will make policies that work with their beliefs for society after a big event).
