Shaping Nationalism The French Revolution • The French Revolution marked a turning point for European Nationalism • Marked the transition from Absolute Monarch to Republic The History Behind It • The revolution had been growing for some time, but the catalyst was the storming of the Bastille on July 14, 1789 • It was a prison and its capture by the mob was symbolic of the overtaking of tyranny • The news of the Bastilles capture spread across France and inspired people to take up arms against the king and aristocracy • It inspired the feeling that they were a nation and could govern themselves. • The idea of being the French Nation had entered the peoples’ collective consciousness • In pre-revolutionary France, society was divided into strict social order. • The Monarch, aristocracy and high-ranking clergy held most power Estates-General • The Estates General was an elected body of three groups 1. First Estate- clergy 2. Second Estate- aristocrats 3. Third Estate- common people • First and Second Estates tended to side together and outvote the Third. • June 1789, the Third Estate declared themselves the National Assembly and swore the Tennis Court Oath • France was influenced by the Renaissance ideas • Paris became the cultural capital of Europe • People were exposed to new ideas that questioned the nobility • Prior to the revolution, there was a growing middle class called the bourgeoisie. They were prosperous professionals and began to demand more say in decision making. Financial Factors • France had been at war and was basically broke • King called the Estates-General in order to raise taxes • The Third Estate opposed this because they carried the tax burden Geographic Factors • Winter of 1788-89 was cold and people were suffering • Flooding was followed by a drought • This led to food shortages and hunger • The women of Paris marched to Versailles to demand that the bread shortages be addressed • There was a rumor that Marie Antoinette exclaimed “Let Them Eat Cake” in response to the shortage Declaration of the Rights of Man • Summer 1789 the National Assembly created the Declaration of the Rights of Man. • This document abolished the traditional privileges of the upper class and sparked a bloody struggle that radically changed France. • France became a secular-non religious republic • Liberty • Egalitarianism • Fraternity • Widespread violence and bloodshed ensued • The nobility and those who supported the king were targeted • Many fled France • Both the King and Marie Antoinette were executed by guillotine…by 1793, the Reign of Terror had begun Foreign Reaction • Obviously the other Monarchy’s of Europe were shocked by what was occurring in France. • They were fearful of the ideas of revolution spreading • Other countries sent invasion forces into France in an attempt to restore the monarchy. • How might this have affected French Nationalism? .