3.2.1 - Early Challenges Flashcards
What was France like before the revolution? Think about the administration.
Before the revolution, France was a confusing array of administrative divisions. These divisions often had overlapping or conflicting borders, employed different tariffs and duties, had different customs regulations, and used different systems of weights and measures.
What were the administrative reforms?
Old provinces would be scrapped and replaced with 83 new administrative divisions, their borders and powers decided rationally. The task of administrative reform was begun by a committee of the National Constituent Assembly. Most of the committee’s recommendations were passed on March 4th, 1790.
What was the problem with France’s measuring system and what were the changes?
In the ancient regime, there were different standards of measurement in every province which made it very difficult to trade. In March 1790, the National Constituent Assembly resolved to adopt a uniform system of weights and measures.
What was the nationalisation of Church land?
In response to the reductions in tax revenue, the National Assembly agreed that all property of the Church is nationalized (put into the control of the govt. and sold).
What was the Civil Constitution of the Clergy?
The Civil Constitution of the Clergy represented the state’s attempt to reform the abuses of the old Gallican Church. Each department would form one diocese: the number of bishops reduced from 150 to 83
- No absenteeism, a bishop could not be absent in his diocese for more than 15 days consecutively in one year.
- The role of the Pope as head of the Church was replaced with the State.
- Citizens were forbidden to acknowledge the spiritual authority of ‘foreign Church representatives’ I.e. the Pope.
- All church offices were democratized with the appointment of bishops and priests made by-election.
What is the Clerical Oath?
The Assembly passes a decree ordering all priests to swear an oath of loyalty to the nation, the Assembly, and the Civil Constitution of the Clergy. Anyone refusing would be deprived of a salary, French citizenship, and his office as a priest.
What was the overall significance of the Church reforms?
- Bishops and priests refused to accept the new Civil Constitution.
- Pope condemned the new constitution.
- Many religious French peasants rejected the changes.
- Government punished clergy who refused to support the Civil Constitution.
- The Civil Constitution of the Clergy provoked much debate and criticism.
- Many leading revolutionary figures disagreed with this legislation but could do nothing to stop it passing e.g. Abbe Sieyes.
- A crisis emerged between the church and the state: while the deputies saw themselves as reforming an old institution that had become corrupted, it challenged some of the most basic beliefs of the Catholic Church e.g. descent of clerical authority from Christ to the Pope.
Who was Luis XVI?
He was the monarch of France and a notoriously weak leader, which contribute to both his downfall and the revolution. Luis XVI was charged with aiding the counter-revolutionaries and was sentenced to death after a failed attempt to flee France.
Who was Lafayette?
Lafayette was a French aristocrat and a military officer. He was elected to the National Assembly and eventually, he and Thomas Jefferson wrote the rights of man.
Who was Maximilien Robespierre?
A radical Jacobin leader and a key figure in the revolution. Robespierreencouraged the execution, mostly by guillotine, of more than 17,000 enemies of the Revolution. In 1794 he was overthrown and executed in theThermidorian Reaction.
Who was Marat?
A radical Jacobin member and a key influence in the September massacre. Most known for his writing on the third estate and his beliefs that reforms were needed to fix the state they were in. Marat was also one of the people pushing for the radicalism of the Jacobins. He was eventually murdered in 1793.
Who was Danton?
A revolutionary leader and great orator, often accredited with establishing the French republic. his speeches were also considered responsible for the popular agitation that culminated in the massacre of the Champ de Mars. As his views became more moderate over time, and he became opposed to the excessive violence of the Terror, he becomes Robespirre’s enemy. Danton and several of his associates were arrested on March 29th and charged with corruption and attempting to restore the monarchy, they were sentenced to death.
