Thermindorians and Directory Flashcards
How can it be argued that the Directory brought political stability?
1795 Constitution was democratic. All tax paying males could vote, raised the age of those in the councils to avoid radical left wing views.
How can it be argued that there was a significant lack of political stability under the directory?
September 1797: Coup of Fructidor: led to vindictive legislation, the army was used to arrest 177 royalist deputies, 42 Newspapers closed.
May 1798: Coup of Floreal: Jacobin majority in elections, 127 seats purged.
June 1798: Coup of Prairial: Purging of the directors, Sieyes uses the force of the army.
Annual elections with 1/3 of deputies standing down each year meant that there was a lack of political unity.
Were the directory politically stable?
No. They had to adopt corrupt practises when faced with political challenges. There is certainly a lack of political stability shown through the frequency of coups, even after the directory has been established for almost two years before the coups begin.
How can the directory have been seen to have improved the economic stability in France?
1797: Ramel reorganises the taxation system, far fairer and more up to date, introduction of the window tax.
By 1797 the Directory was able to claim they had achieved a balance of payments surplus. Significantly decreased the debts of the nation. Mandats wrote off 2/3 of government debt.
The unification of measurements from 250,000 to one unit.
How can it be argued that the Directory failed to achieve economic stability in France?
1796: failure of the mandats, they were almost immediately counterfeited and became worth next to nothing.
The switch to metal currency led to a lack of coinage in circulation, causing deflation and hindering trade.
Did the Directory restore economic stability to France?
They had forward looking economic policies, setting the groundwork for Napoleons Bank of France in 1800. There certainly was economic stability, as well as increased economic prosperity during this time.
How can it be said that the directory brought social stability?
Managed to avoid resorting to any extreme methods of suppression.
The Sans-Culottes ceased to be a political force under the directory, suggests political power over the nation rather than the other way around (as it had been under previous period of the revolution- 1793)
How can it be argued that the Directory did not bring social stability?
1795-96: Hoche sent into the Vendee to quash the royalist revolts. There were pockets of rebellion in the west under the entire period of the Directory.
January 1797: Charles Brotier plot, use of the army.
May 1797: Babeuf plot: him and his conspirators were guillotined.
In September 1797, After the coup of Fructidor, Emigres were given two weeks to leave, former members of the second estate were declared foreigners. Refractory priests were prosecuted again.
Did the Directory bring about social stability?
Socially it should be acknowledged that they managed to maintain a balance between two radical sides of the royalists and jacobins.
However this would not have been possible without the army and their reliance on it to deal with riots and threats to their position. It reflects that they were not necessarily in a stable position, and had to react to challenges from society with suppression and violence.
What did the Thermidorians to to the CPS and the GCS on the 31st July?
-What two measures did the Thermidorians take immediately to suppress the radical Terror?
They filled vacant positions with more moderate politicians
- They repealed the law of 22 Prairial on 1st August. Many of its victims were released from jails and the main executioner was arrested.
- Revolutionary tribunal was reorganised and more people were exiled rather than guillotined.
What did the Thermidorian law on the 24th august declare?
Reorganisation of government, from the highly centralised one of the Terror:
- Revolutionary committees limited to one per department. This broke Sans Culottes power.
- Central government put into the hands of 16 committees, 25% of the members changed each month.
- responsibilities of the CPS significantly reduced.
- New reps on mission dispatched to ensure the removal of Jacobin power.
What other aspects of the Terror did the Thermidorians reverse?
- Paris commune
- Church
- Jacobins
- food controls
- August: powers of the Paris commune were reduced.
- September: church and state separated.
- November: Jacobin club closed down.
- December: Law of Maximum repealed. Public works restored to private ownership.
what was the white terror?
Posh boys went round beating up old jacobins.
Slaughter in Lyons in May 1795 where old Jacobins were hauled from their cells and executed.
How did Royalists threaten the stability of the Thermidorians?
Royalists were influenced by the comte de Provence, who styled himself as Louis XVIII. He claimed in a speech that he would revenge the regicides.
His brother, the Comte de Artois supported a Biritsh invasion of Brittany in the hope of benefitting from it but it was quashed.
How did Catholics threaten the stability of the Thermidorians?
- They wanted the restoration of the catholic church.
- The government reintroduced an oath of loyalty and maintained a ban on vestments, symbols and bell ringing.
