French Revolution Flashcards
Old Regime
social and political system of France in the 1770s where the people of France were divided into three estates
Estates
Social classes
Louis XVI
King of France in 1770-1780, who let France’s economy fall and did not take care of his people
Marie Antoinette
Queen of France, married to Louis XVI, spent tons of money on food and jewels and clothes and did not pay any attention to the problems in france. was strongly hated by the people of France , was also known as Madame Defecit because she spent so much money
Estates-General
an assembly of representatives from all Three estates
National Assembly
the official name for the delegates of Third estate after they made voting in Estate general more fair. The national assembly would pass laws and reforms in the name of the french people
Tennis Court Oath
after being locked out of their meeting room, third estate gathered in a “tennis” court and pledged they would not leave until there was a new constitution
Great Fear
Rebellions broke out through out france, peasants became outlaws and broke into nobles manors and destroyed legal papers that bound them to pay feudal dues
Legislative Assembly
a body of people with the power to create laws and to approve or reject declarations of war
Emigres
nobles who had fled France
Sans-culottes
Parisian workers who wanted the revolution to bring greater change to France “those without knee breeches”
Jacobins
political club members
Guillotine
a machine used to behead people sentenced to death
Maximilien Robespierre
A Jacobin leader who began to gain power in 1793. he and his followers set out to build a “republic of virtue” by wiping out all traces of France’s past. they changed the calendar, renamed the months, and got rid of sundays so that there would be no religious days. became the leader of the Committee of Public Safety
Reign of Terror
the period during 1793 when Robespierre governed France as dictator.
