French Revolution, Napoleonic Era, and European Shifts
Causes of the French Revolution
Several factors contributed to the French Revolution:
- The Impact of the Enlightenment: Enlightenment ideas, widely shared throughout France, were adopted by the rising bourgeoisie. They questioned the existing system and demanded rights.
- American Revolution: The Declaration of Independence of the United States of America and its Constitution (1787) defended the inalienable rights of citizens, the separation of powers, principles of equality and freedom, and the right to elect a government. These ideas inspired French society to confront the Ancien Régime.
- Social Crisis: In the Ancien Régime, society was stratified into estates. The Third Estate (composed of the bourgeoisie, peasants, and artisans) aspired to profound social reforms:
- The peasants (80% of the population) opposed the heavy taxes and rents imposed on them by feudal lords.
- The bourgeoisie wanted to end the privileges enjoyed by the nobility and clergy. They also sought freedom of trade and participation in political life.
- Economic Crisis: Two major crises caused widespread discontent:
- Economic Crisis: Poor harvests starting in 1760 caused a rise in the price of food, especially bread, generating discontent and a spirit of rebellion among the people.
- Financial Crisis: Caused by the monarchy’s lack of funds.
The Consulate (Napoleonic Era)
The Consulate was a period of autocratic and authoritarian rule by Napoleon Bonaparte.
Objectives:
- End the political instability of the Revolution.
- Consolidate some of the revolutionary principles.
- Promote economic recovery through a government that represented the interests of the bourgeoisie.
Main characteristics:
- He signed an agreement with the Church (Concordat).
- A new Constitution was established in 1800, which did not include the Declaration of Rights or the separation of powers.
- He signed a civil code and a commercial code.
- Creation of the Bank of France.
- The public finance sector was reformed.
- Censorship was imposed to control public opinion.
- New banknotes were issued.
- He allowed people to return from exile if they accepted his government.
- The state was organized into departments run by prefects who implemented government policies.
- State schools were created to educate an elite of civil servants.
Congress of Vienna
The Congress of Vienna was a meeting organized by Austrian Chancellor Metternich after Napoleon’s defeat. Its primary purpose was to restore absolutism in Europe and suppress liberal ideas.
Signed by: Russia, Britain, Prussia, and Austria.
Outcomes: They established the ideological principles of the Restoration of absolutism, reshaped the European map, and denied national sovereignty.
Belgian Independence
Belgium was made part of the Kingdom of Holland by the Congress of Vienna (1815), forming the Kingdom of the Netherlands. The spread of liberal ideas fueled the Belgian Revolution, and Belgium became a liberal monarchy ruled by Leopold I. Following an armed conflict after Belgium’s declaration of independence, the Netherlands recognized Belgium’s independence in 1839.
German Unification
Germany was divided into 36 states and associated with the German Confederation.
Prussia created a customs union, uniting the majority of the Germanic states.
Germany’s first freely elected parliament met and offered the crown of Germany to the King of Prussia, who refused because the parliament was liberal (1848).
In 1861, the first movements toward a united Germany were made when Wilhelm I became King of Prussia and appointed Otto von Bismarck as Chancellor. Prussia declared war on Denmark in 1864, on Austria in 1866, and on France in 1870.
Prussia was victorious in all three wars, making the unification of Germany possible. In 1871, Wilhelm I was proclaimed Kaiser of the Second German Empire (Reich).
Consequence: The unification resulted in rivalry between Germany and France, as Germany annexed Alsace and Lorraine (two cities that France claimed). This rivalry became one of the causes of the First World War.