The impact of the Enlightenment in France Flashcards
key ideas of Enlightenment thought how the ideas of the Enlightenment spread, e.g., the opening of the public sphere, including academies, salons and freemasonry, and to whom. the reaction of the King and first estate to the ideas of the Enlightenment. the political impact of the AWI
What was the Enlightenment?
-An intellectual movement which developed in Europe and was characterised by an application of empiricism(empirical evidence) and rational thought (scientific)
Who were the Key Philosophes?
-Rousseau
-Voltaire
-Montesquieu
-Quesnay
-Diderot
-Olympe de Gouges
What were the a) Key enlightened ideas of Rousseau and b) his life facts ?
a)
-Most influential of the philosophes on french revolutionary figures:
inspired Robespierre and Marat
-Was heavily influenced by John Locke
-Believed everyone was free and had natural rights
- Social Contract: society and govt have reciprocal serving role and govt can punish society and people can revolt if contract is broken
- Believed in democracy and popular sovereignty
-Believed in General Will of the people
-Was a republican
b)
-Was Genevan
-Was exiled from Paris because of his works
What were the a) Key enlightened ideas of Montesquieu b) his life facts?
a)
-Separation of powers into constitutional government (executive legislative and judiciary)
-Argued that the estates system and feudalism should be abolished
- really opposed lit de justice
-Believed Kings power should be limited by the a powerful and responsible nobility and church
-Against mob rule and argued that ignorant masses not ready to participate in politics
b)
-An aristocrat from South-west France
What were the a) Key enlightened ideas of Diderot b) his life facts?
a)
-Wrote the Encyclopedia (read by Robespierre and Louis XVI)
-Rejected religon and saw church as a barrier to progress as they kept sovereignty ignorant
b)
-Atheist
-Feminist
What were the a) Key enlightened ideas of Quesnay b) his life facts?
a)
-proposed universal tax proportionate to wealth
-Rejected mercantalism and wanted free trade
-Wanted to abolish monopolies, guilds and tariffs
b)
- Inspired Finance principles of Turgot and Necker
What were the a) Key enlightened ideas of Voltaire and b) his life facts?
a)
-free speech
-Rule of Law
-Spoke out about hypocrisy and injustice
-Wanted to remove the estates system
-wanted a constitutional monarchy
b)
Was imprisoned in the Bastille for a year under the lettre de cachet
What did most philosophes regard religion as?
-Saw it as a barrier to progress as it controlled the ignorant masses( especially Diderot)
-Yet did not want to remove it entirely as they agreed its value on promoting social order and morality
-However, still thought monks and nuns should be reproducing rather than abstaining for God
-many were also deists
What were the avenues that enlightened ideas spread through
-Coffee houses where the bourgeois met
-academies
-Salons
-freemasonry lodges
-Palais Royal- home of duc d’Orleans ( Louis cousin)
-Media: Newspapers and pamphlets
What were the literacy rates in a) France and b) Paris?
a) France = 50%
b) Paris = 60%
Where was the academie which Robespierre was made the director of 1786?
-Arras
How many freemason lodges were there in 1744 in a) Paris and b) the Provinces?
-20 Paris
-20 in the provinces
How many Freemasons were there in France in 1785?
-80 masonic lodges
Who were some of the salonnieres who hosted the intellectual discussions?
-Madame Roland : best known salons and popular with Jacobin club
-Madame Necker (wife of finance minister Necker)
-Madame Geoffrin
Who mostly attended Salons and particular examples?
-Educated and wealthy elite : bourgeoisie and 2nd Estate
-Adam Smith (economist)
-Olympe de Gouges
-Benjamin Franklin, John Adams and Thomas Jefferson (americans who wrote the declaration of independence)
How many Newspapers and pamphlets were there in circulation?
-80
What was the reaction of the King as either a) “Enlightened King” or Repressive measures?
a)
-Proposed universal taxation (finance minister Turgot) and blocked by parlements
-Eden Treaty (1787) benefited protestants + Jews as it granted them civil rights to practice their religon (only 3% of pop.)
-Rebuilding houses (however used corvee royale so burden of the peasants and urban workers)
b)
-Books banned
-Voltaire imprisoned (1717) in Bastille
-Rousseau was exiled from France for 8 years (1762-1770)
-Publicly banned works of Rousseau.
Were the Repressive methods successful?
Yes:
-Ideas did not reach most of the 3rd estate due to the control of the church
No:
-Flourishing public sphere
-Duc D’Orleans was exempt from censorship and Palais Royal held enlightened meetings
-self-defeating: repression incites curiosity- works of voltaire were smuggled in
Did the Enlightenment play an important role?
YES:
-King implemented new reforms due to the enlightenment: King =threatened
-Forged sense of unity: liberty, equality and fraternity
-Revolutionary figures used ideas of philosophes- Robespierre
NO:
-Limited scope: did not reach ignorant masses of the 3rd estate (only 50% of France was literate)
-Perhaps superficial as philosophes were not the revolutionaries and did not influence everybody into action
-All salons were in Paris so there was not a widespread scope
-Idea of the enlightenment was retrospectively invented by the revolutionaries to justify their actions and these ideas had spread for decades without action so other factors
What years did a) the American War of Independence span and b) when did France join and help America?
a) AWI span from 1775-1783
b) France had begun helping France in 1776 secretly with financial aid but joined the fight in 1778
When was the Declaration of Independence published?
-1776
What was the significance of the Declaration of Independence in terms of the Enlightenment in France?
- Was a constitution and did not involve a King and therefore was a Republic
-It held enlightened ideas: no taxation without representation (John Locke), Separation of Powers (Montesquieu) , “all men are created equal - As France were involved in the war these ideas would spread to French people also
By 1777, how much aid (in livres) had been sent to America?
-5 million livres
Why is Lafayette’s involvement in the AWI significant?
-Would learn of enlightened ideas and would fight in a battle for republicanism which would inspire him later when fighting for the revolution in France
