French Revolution the Classical Era

French Revolution

The Classical Era (1750-1800)

The Classical Era, lasting from 1750-1800, recaptured the aesthetic ideals of ancient Greece and Rome.

It is defined by the emergence of the enlightened ideas of philosophers that favored reason, clarity, and breaking down class barriers.

On the rise were composers such as Bach, Haydn, and Mozart, each of whose music can help define this time.

Vienna was the musical center of Europe, yet it was far from the only place creating a buzz. Around the world at this time, life changing discoveries and inventions were occurring as well as events that would shape history.

In the early part of this era, inventions were changing the way people lived their lives. In 1751, Benjamin Franklin discovered the electrical properties of lightning while flying a kite.

Two years later, Samuel Johnson completed the English dictionary, a great scholarly achievement that remains one of the most famous dictionaries to date.

The major medical practice of vaccinations began when Edward Jenner invented the Small Pox vaccination in 1758. Six years later, the Spinning Jenny was created which would revolutionize the textile industry and usher in the Industrial Revolution.

Military tensions were high during this period as well. The Seven Years War (1756-1763), a global conflict that entrenched the European countries of Britain, Spain, France, Prussia, and Austria, positioned Britain as the ruling colonial power of the time.

Their control over their American colonies would be short-lived, however, as the U.S. Declaration of Independence was signed on July 4, 1776. Two years later, France declared war on Great Britain, aiding the American colonists in their revolutionary fight.

Several important works were publicized, including Kant's Critique of Pure Reason (1781), Mary Wollstonecraft's Vindication of the Right of Women (1792), and Rousseau's Social Contract (1762).

Another famous work was published which reflected on the new constitutions of America and France, both of whom were undergoing revolutions during this time period. Thomas Paine completed the Right's of Man in 1791, a response to the criticism surrounding the French Revolution. Prior to the publication of the Right's of Man, Paine published Common Sense (1776) and the Crisis (1776-83), followed by the Age of Reason (1794-96).

The French Revolution (1789-1799)

Paine fled to France after writing his anti-monarchial text the Right's of Man, where he then joined the National Convention.

At this point in France, the revolution had been taking place since 1789. Brought about by several compounding social, political, and economic factors, the French Revolution was a response to King Louis XVI and French nobility. High taxes had led to unpopular views of French rule, now viewed as an old regime of authority.

Enlightenment philosophers were popular leading up to the revolution, and they encouraged a move toward equality and freedom. Their words inspired many in France, including the "bourgeoisie that, though enjoying increasing prosperity, was denied social status and share in government commensurate with its wealth" along with peasants that "were still regarded as a general beast of burden, despised and over-taxed."

While the financial strain in France was only one grievance of the revolution, it was a substantial one. France's involvement in the American Revolution and the Seven Years War had left the country "crippled."

The King called the Estates-General to deal with the tax issue, but this failed. The commoners demanded a say, and along with the clergy, formed the National Assembly. Eventually, "provisional municipalities were established and national guards instituted."

The anniversary of the French Revolution coincides with the storming of the Bastille, which represented old regime authority. it's fall "assured political power to the middle classes" and thus on July 14, 1789, revolution was sparked.

Soon thereafter, peasants revolted against the feudal system in what is known as the Great Fear. The National Assembly then abolished the feudal system and adopted the Declaration of the Rights of Man and the Citizen.

French women took a stand in October of 1789, by marching on Versailles and forcing the royal family back to Paris. While such socially stimulating events were taking place, political workings were also making great headway. In 1791, the Constitution was accepted and the Assembly proclaimed, " the end of the Revolution has arrived."

The new constitution left France as a constitutional monarchy, and when war broke out with Austria and prices in the country spiked considerably, the monarchy was abolished and the Jacobins established the National Convention.

Not long after, Louis XVI was sentenced to execution and France declared war on Britain and the Dutch Republic. Riots and food shortages followed, and the Committee of Public Safety was created which ruled by terror.

By June of 1793, a new constitution was passed and Robespierre was put as head of the Committee of Public Safety. Robespierre was a "political and social thinker" that was "prone to substitute Jacobian rhetorical formulae for logical steps."

Terror ensues with the deaths of Girondin leaders, Marie Antoinette, as well as those in favor of monarchy. Robespierre took the idea of revolution further than most French envisioned, claiming France needed a "revolutionary government as a necessary but temporary form of war against the enemies of liberty."

In need of political and social stability, and to end the Reign of Terror, Robespierre was executed. Subsequently, a new constitution was drafted and accepted, although voting rights were restricted to only those with property and the ability to pay indirect taxes.

A new body, the Directory, is created to govern France. On the military front, Napoleon Bonaparte took command of the French Army in Italy, followed by a series of military steps that will lead to his rise and the end of revolution in France. By 1799, Napoleon will return from military operations abroad to stage a coup d'etat, placing himself as First Consul of France. A new constitution declares an end to the Revolution, and so begins the reign of Napoleon.

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