THE FRENCH

REVOLUTION
1789-1799
THE FRENCH REVOLUTION
 Revolution: profound change, generally violent, in the political and socioeconomic structures
of a national community as the result of a popular uprising.
 Bourgeois revolutions: movements that, in the West, developed between the end of the 18th
century and the first half of the 19th century in order to establish a new political, social and
economic order favorable to the bourgeoisie, in detriment of the nobility and the clergy. They
assumed a certain formal equality before the law, although, as far as the economic situation is
concerned, it implied the domination of the capitalist bourgeoisie over the popular classes.
 The role of the popular classes. Sometimes, the bourgeoisie tended to agree with sectors of
the nobility and the old regime, so many times, as happened in the French Revolution,
advances in equal rights were consolidated thanks to the participation of the popular classes.
 Phases:
 Causes

1. Ideological
2. Economic
3. Social
4. Political

 Social classes

1. Nobility and clergy, who, with the King.

2. Wealthy bourgeoisie and liberal nobility.
3. Popular classes (petite bourgeoisie, peasantry, artisans).
 Political groups that supported changes
 Girondins, who represented the wealthy bourgeoisie, supported the constitutional monarchy
and limited suffrage. The were against the absolute monarchy, but represented a minority of
the population.
 Jacobins, who represented the petite bourgeoisie, supported the republic, universal manhood
suffrage and some economic equality. (montagnards).
 Dantonists, who were more moderate than jacobins (montagnards).
 Hébertists, followers of Hébert, had the saints-coulottes as their social base and were located
to the left of the Jacobins. Supporters of economic equality and direct democracy pressed for
the approval of measures such as the Law of suspects and the law of the maximum general
(montagnards).
 Enragés. Followers of Jacques Roux, they stood to the political left of the Montagnards. They
claimed civic, political and social equality, and promoted the taxation of food, the requisition
of grain and the taxation of the rich.