Worksheet by RJ Tarr at www.activehistory.co.

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Enlightenment Philosophy and the Spirit of the French Revolution

Introduction
• In 1789 the Storming of the Bastille Prison heralded the start of the French
Revolution.
• Within a few years King Louis XVI, Queen Marie Antoinette and thousands
of their supporters had gone to the guillotine.
• The men and women that replaced them in power were fired with new ideas
from Enlightenment Philosophers summarised, in a very basic sense, by
the slogan ‘Liberty, Equality, Fraternity’. These were encapsulated most
clearly in Thomas Paine’s “Declaration of the Rights of Man”, formally
adopted by the Revolutionaries as their statement of principles early on in the
Revolution.
• But 10 years later Napoleon seized power in a military coup, and 5 years
later was crowning himself Emperor.

In this exercise we will clarify what the spirit of the French Revolution actually was. It will then
be possible, if and when you study the French Revolution in more depth, to decide:

▪ How far the early revolutionaries delivered on their promises,

▪ Whether therefore Napoleon was justified in taking power away from them, and
▪ Whether he then showed more commitment himself to the spirit of the revolution.

The French Revolution was closely associated with the Declaration of the Rights of
Man, which was adopted by the National Assembly in 1789.
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Task 1: Enlightenment Philosophy

Read through the Declaration of the Rights of Man. Use this to develop the middle column
of this table with specific examples.

Definition of the Enlightenment

The Enlightenment was a 17th century intellectual movement which questioned the existing arrangements of
society using reason and logic rather than faith and superstition.
Quote from Declaration of Quote from a philosopher
Rights of Man
           
Politics
Popular Sovereignty and
Republicanism against the
Monarchy
Liberty
           
Religion Anticlericalism against
the Church – separation of Church
and State

Social            

Equality of opportunity and
outcome through social and
administrative reforms which
promote careers through talent, not
Equality birth
           
Economic
Equality of opportunity and
outcome through free trade and a
proportional tax system
Political            
End of political divisions /conflicts,
increased democracy, respect for
the rule of law rather than arbitrary
arrest/imprisonment/execution.
Fraternity
           
Military
End of wars of conquest abroad,
civil war and rebellion at home,
free trade between nations

Declaration of the National Assembly, August 26th 1789

Declaration of the Rights of Man

Task
The French Revolution was closely associated with the Declaration of the Rights of
Man, which was adopted by the National Assembly early in the Revolution.

Although its authorship is uncertain, it is generally accepted to mainly be the work of

Thomas Jefferson and the Marquis de Lafayette.

The representatives of the French people, organized as a National Assembly, believing that
the ignorance, neglect, or contempt of the rights of man are the sole cause of public
calamities and of the corruption of governments, have determined to set forth in a solemn
declaration the natural, unalienable, and sacred rights of man, in order that this declaration,
being constantly before all the members of the Social body, shall remind them continually of
their rights and duties; in order that the acts of the legislative power, as well as those of the
executive power, may be compared at any moment with the objects and purposes of all
political institutions and may thus be more respected, and, lastly, in order that the grievances
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of the citizens, based hereafter upon simple and incontestable principles, shall tend to the
maintenance of the constitution and redound to the happiness of all. Therefore the National
Assembly recognizes and proclaims, in the presence and under the auspices of the Supreme
Being, the following rights of man and of the citizen:

Articles:

1. Men are born and remain free and equal in rights. Social distinctions may be founded only
upon the general good.

2. The aim of all political association is the preservation of the natural and imprescriptible
rights of man. These rights are liberty, property, security, and resistance to oppression.

3. The principle of all sovereignty resides essentially in the nation. No body nor individual may
exercise any authority which does not proceed directly from the nation.

4. Liberty consists in the freedom to do everything which injures no one else; hence the
exercise of the natural rights of each man has no limits except those which assure to the
other members of the society the enjoyment of the same rights. These limits can only be
determined by law.

5. Law can only prohibit such actions as are hurtful to society. Nothing may be prevented
which is not forbidden by law, and no one may be forced to do anything not provided for by
law.

6. Law is the expression of the general will. Every citizen has a right to participate personally,
or through his representative, in its foundation. It must be the same for all, whether it protects
or punishes. All citizens, being equal in the eyes of the law, are equally eligible to all dignities
and to all public positions and occupations, according to their abilities, and without distinction
except that of their virtues and talents.

7. No person shall be accused, arrested, or imprisoned except in the cases and according to
the forms prescribed by law. Any one soliciting, transmitting, executing, or causing to be
executed, any arbitrary order, shall be punished. But any citizen summoned or arrested in
virtue of the law shall submit without delay, as resistance constitutes an offense.

8. The law shall provide for such punishments only as are strictly and obviously necessary,
and no one shall suffer punishment except it be legally inflicted in virtue of a law passed and
promulgated before the commission of the offense.

9. As all persons are held innocent until they shall have been declared guilty, if arrest shall be
deemed indispensable, all harshness not essential to the securing of the prisoner's person
shall be severely repressed by law.

10. No one shall be disquieted on account of his opinions, including his religious views,
provided their manifestation does not disturb the public order established by law.

11. The free communication of ideas and opinions is one of the most precious of the rights of
man. Every citizen may, accordingly, speak, write, and print with freedom, but shall be
responsible for such abuses of this freedom as shall be defined by law.

12. The security of the rights of man and of the citizen requires public military forces. These
forces are, therefore, established for the good of all and not for the personal advantage of
those to whom they shall be intrusted.

13. A common contribution is essential for the maintenance of the public forces and for the
cost of administration. This should be equitably distributed among all the citizens in proportion
to their means.

14. All the citizens have a right to decide, either personally or by their representatives, as to
the necessity of the public contribution; to grant this freely; to know to what uses it is put; and
to fix the proportion, the mode of assessment and of collection and the duration of the taxes.

15. Society has the right to require of every public agent an account of his administration.
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16. A society in which the observance of the law is not assured, nor the separation of powers
defined, has no constitution at all.

17. Since property is an inviolable and sacred right, no one shall be deprived thereof except
where public necessity, legally determined, shall clearly demand it, and then only on condition
that the owner shall have been previously and equitably indemnified.

Task 2
Copy a selection of the following quotes into the right-hand column of the table on the
previous page.
"If God did not exist, it would be necessary to invent him" – Voltaire
"The philosopher has never killed any priests, whereas the priest has killed a great many
philosophers." – Diderot
"The real tragedy of the poor is the poverty of their aspirations." - Adam Smith
"To become truly great, one has to stand with people, not above them." - Charles de
Montesquieu
“A hereditary ruler is as absurd an idea as a hereditary mathematician” – Paine
“Aristocrats degenerate the human species by intermarrying constantly with each other” -
Paine
“If the triangles made a god, they would give him three sides” - Montesquieu
“Man is born free and everywhere he is in chains” – Rousseau
“Man will never be free till the last King is strangled with the entrails of the last priest” –
Diderot.
“No kingdom has shed more blood than the kingdom of Christ" – Montesquieu
“No man has received from nature the right to command his fellow human beings” – Diderot
“Peace is a natural effect of trade” - Montesquieu
“The fruits belong to all. The land belongs to no one” – Rousseau
“The state of a king shuts him off from the world, yet the business of a king requires him to
know it thoroughly” - Paine
“There are only two cases in which war is just: first, in order to resist the aggression of an
enemy, and second, in order to help an ally who has been attacked” - Montesquieu
“There can be no true lawmaker, but the people” - Diderot

Task 3
Your teacher will allocate the philosophers named already to different people in the class.
Find what you think is the best additional quote from your allocated philosopher that can be
used to develop your table. Share your ideas as a class.

Specific Thinkers One Key Quote Central beliefs / writings Interesting biographical
information
Voltaire                  
Paine                  
Montesquieu                  
Rousseau                  
Diderot                  

Video Sources

There are two excellent video clips that you should use at this point regarding Tom Paine:

Mark Steel on Tom Paine Tom Paine debates with Edmund Burke (discussion
point: whose view do you agree with?)
http://www.activehistory.co.uk/v/628735991 http://www.activehistory.co.uk/v/638735991
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Task 3 (Extension / Homework)
Your teacher will allocate different revolutionaries to different people in the class (e.g.
Danton; Robespierre; Desmoulins; Mirabeau; Marat; St. Just). Find what you think is the best
additional quote from your allocated philosopher which can be used to develop your table
further. Share your ideas as a class.