EXAM JAN 19 Flashcards
(33 cards)
What were the revolutionaries trying to achieve when they created the départements in 1790? (3)
- strengthen national unity - break up France’s historical regions in an attempt to erase cultural differences and build a more homogeneous nation
- almost all of them were named after physical geographical features (rivers, mountains, or coasts), rather than after historical or cultural territories which could have their own loyalties
- boundaries were set so that every settlement in the country was within a day’s ride of the capital of a department. This was a security measure, intended to keep the entire national territory under close control. This measure was directly inspired by the Great Terror, during which the government had lost control of many rural areas far from any centre of government
Why was Toussaint Louverture so keen to maintain good relations between Saint- Domingue and France? (3)
- he was idolised by the blacks and respected by the whites and he wanted to remain on good terms with both so that he could reunite them and restore the island’s prosperity - insisted he was french and a loyal bonapartist to avoid capture
- new democratic france would be the best future for Haiti - needed to maintain a relationship with a big power - relying on french access to trade and the french export markets - trading with french colonies and france - cant be independent - access to french trade routes - part of the world economy
- would not be part of the world economy if they became independent - and had to pay 150 million francs to rejoin - there was an international boycott of Hatian goods
Why were the Bourbons restored in 1814/1815? (2)
- In the War of the Sixth Coalition, a coalition of the Austrian Empire, the Kingdom of Prussia, the Russian Empire, the United Kingdom, the Kingdom of Portugal, Sweden, Spain and a number of German States finally defeated France and drove Napoleon into exile on Elba. After the disastrous French invasion of Russia of 1812, the continental powers joined Russia, the United Kingdom, Portugal and the rebels in Spain who were already at war with France.
- the return of the bourbons was due to military defeat and the inability of victors to identify a viable alternative although there was little enthusiasm for their return it did at least bring peace
Why is the accession of Charles X in 1824 often seen by historians as a turning point for the Bourbon monarchy?
- he was an ultra royalist and was crowned in reims with a traditional ceremony - he was crowned by an archbishop and the sermon severely criticised the charter - wanted to reassert the divine nature of his power - royalist views led to liberalist revolt in July 1830
he was very royalist which went against the constitutional monarchy - reims, divine right - Under the Charter of 1814, Louis XVIII ruled France as the head of a constitutional monarchy. Upon Louis XVIII’s death, his brother, the Count of Artois, ascended to the throne in 1824, as Charles X. Supported by the ultra-royalists, Charles X was an extremely unpopular reactionary monarch whose aspirations were far more grand than those of his deceased brother. He had no desire to rule as a constitutional monarch, taking various steps to strengthen his own authority as monarch and weaken that of the lower house.
- In 1830, Charles X of France, presumably instigated by one of his chief advisors Jules, Prince de Polignac, issued the Four Ordinances of St. Cloud. These ordinances abolished freedom of the press, reduced the electorate by 75%, and dissolved the lower house. This action provoked an immediate reaction from the citizenry, who revolted against the monarchy during the Three Glorious Days of 26–29 July 1830. Charles was forced to abdicate the throne and to flee Paris for the United Kingdom. As a result, Louis Philippe, of the Orléanist branch, rose to power, replacing the old Charter by the Charter of 1830, and his rule became known as the July Monarchy.
Why does the tricolour feature so prominently in many representations of the 1830 Revolution?
liberalist uprising - represent liberty and republic
liberty leading the people - most famous
it was used on the barricades of the revolution. - made illegal in 1817 - rebellion
Louis Phillipe reinstated it as the symbol of the french in 1830 and it has been the symbol eve since
sign or insurrection and rallying against charles X
Why did Louis-Napoléon stage a coup d’état in 1851?
the constitution meant that he could not bid for a second term
According to the Constitution of 1848, he had to step down at the end of his term, so Louis-Napoleon sought a constitutional amendment to allow him to succeed himself, arguing that four years were not enough to fully implement his political and economic program. He toured the country and gained support from many of the regional governments, and the support of many within the Assembly. The vote in July 1851 was 446 to 278 in favor of changing the law and allowing him to run again, but this was just short of the two-thirds majority needed to amend the constitution.
Louis-Napoleon believed that he was supported by the people, and he decided to retain power by other means. His half-brother Morny and a few close advisors began to quietly organize a coup d’état.
Why was the French parliament located at Versailles from 1871 to 1879?
The Franco-Prussian War was a humiliation for french society. The proclamation by Bismarck of a united Germany followed by the loss of Alsace-lorraine demonstrated an emphatic manner that france was no longer the most powerful country on the continent. Henceforth the lost provinces would be an open wound for france feeling ant-german hatred for decades to come.
An extreme conservative, Adolphe Thiers became head of government and Theirs negotiated the treaty of Frankfurt under which france surrendered alsace-lorraine - thus losing vital iron ore reserves and agricultural land and was forced toadcept and indemnity of 5,000 million FF.
In Paris there was outrage at the indignity of these terms and this was compounded still further by the unsurecessful attempt on 18 march to disarm the national guard, the citizen’s militia formed to defend Paris against the germans. Fearing an uprising, thiers now moved the government and army to Versailles, but if he hoped that this would intimidate the Parisian populace, their response was unequivocal. Rather than submit, they elected commune by universal male suffrage to run the city.
In 1879, the government returned to Paris to symbolise the political victory of republicans over monarchists that took place in 1879 when Jules Grévy, a republican lawyer, became president.
What did French republicans mean when they described colonialism as the mission civilisatrice?
The old French empire was founded on the belief that France had a “mission civilisatrice”, to civilize the natives. just as the United States believed in the propagation of the American “way of life” and the the British took up the “white man’s burden.” In the 19th Century France had long celebrated the ‘grande nation’ with its ‘gloire’ and its ‘elan’ and its ‘drapeau civilisateur’ and its ‘mission civilisatrice’
From about 1870, when France began to enlarge its holdings in Africa and Indochina, French publicists, and subsequently politicians, declared that their government alone among the Western states had a special mission to civilize the indigenous peoples now coming under its control – what the French called their mission civilisatrice.
Colonization was undertaken in the name of science. To civilize, in official French colonial ideology, was to bring the benefits of science, just as for other countries, it was to bring the benefits of religion or free trade.
The imperialist interpretation of “The White Man’s Burden” (1899) proposes that the “white race” is morally obligated to rule the “non-white” peoples of planet Earth, and to encourage their progress
the alleged duty of white colonizers to care for nonwhite indigenous subjects in their colonial possessions.
How and why did Jean Jaurès seek to ‘bring the working classes back’ to the Republic?
he wanted to empower the working classes in 1906 so that they felt they were part of the republic with a social agenda that was good for everybody rather than feeling that withdrawing the labour in a crippling general strike was their only option - this would leave the working class disarmed, bound and crushed for a long time. He thought that they needed to educate the working class so that they understood more effective methods of enabling change. This in turn was his view of how society could reengage with the working class and therefore bring the working class back to the republic.
How and why did Jean Jaurès seek to ‘bring the working classes back’ to the Republic?
he wanted to empower the working classes in 1906 so that they felt they were part of the republic with a social agenda that was good for everybody rather than feeling that withdrawing the labour in a crippling general strike was their only option - this would leave the working class disarmed, bound and crushed for a long time. He thought that they needed to educate the working class so that they understood more effective methods of enabling change. This in turn was his view of how society could reengage with the working class and therefore bring the working class back to the republic.
Why was Jaurès assassinated in 1914?
he was anti-militarist and had been working tirelessly to avoid war - In 1913, he opposed Émile Driant’s Three-Year Service Law, which implemented a draft period, and tried to promote understanding between France and Germany. As conflict became imminent, he tried to organise general strikes in France and Germany in order to force the governments to back down and negotiate. This proved difficult, however, as many Frenchmen sought revenge for their country’s defeat in the Franco-Prussian War and the return of the lost Alsace-Lorraine territory.
Raoul Villain was a 29-year-old student and he was a member of the Ligue des jeunes amis de l’Alsace-Lorraine, a nationalist student group.
After France’s defeat in the Franco-Prussian War, the French provinces of Alsace and Lorraine were annexed by Germany. This was a source of anger and resentment in France, causing many to feel that a new war with Germany was in order to recover both territories and French pride. Therefore, many like Villain were opposed to the pacifist policies of Jean Jaurès.
Why did Georges Clemenceau come to be known as père la victoire?
“Père de la victore” was coined by the popular press during and after the first world war, for example in the December 1918 issue of “Le Petit Journal”. He gained the title by being the architect of the unified allied army that so quickly gained victory after unification - he also signed the peace treaty with Germany declaring french victory. He was prime minister and minister of war.
Why was the canonisation (made into a saint) of Jeanne d’Arc in 1920 interpreted in France as an act of reconciliation ?
In the 16th century Jeanne became the symbol of the Catholic League in the religious battle against the Protestants.
Thus her canonisation in 1920 was seen as a reconciliation between the church and the state in France’s Third Republic.
As Joan of Arc had been a shared symbol of courage and belief between the French and British soldiers fighting together against Germany the popular press also cited the Canonisation as an act of reconciliation between the French and the English. In the 18 May 1920 Le Matin, former President of France Raymond Poincaré wrote that Joan’s canonization “fulfills the last part of her mission in bringing together forever in the sacredness of her memory” one-time mortal enemies England and France: “In her spirit, let us remain united for the good of Mankind”.
In 1920, Léon Gambetta’s heart was moved to the Panthéon. In what way could this be seen as a secular counterpoint to the canonisation of Jeanne?
to offset the fact that they did something spiritual
November 11, 1920, for the fiftieth anniversary of the proclamation of the Third Republic , his heart is transferred to the Pantheon 49 .
Because of his role in the “National Defense Government” in 1870, which attempted to resist the Prussians after the 2nd Empire’s defeat. Gambetta was notably the only member to resign when the rest of the cabinet sought to conclude an armistice with the Germans. As such, he was considered an example of “unyielding determination” in front of the enemy.
Why did it suit French republican educationalists in the nineteenth century to promote the idea of the Gauls as ‘first nation’?
At the end of the XIX th century, the primary school became compulsory under the III e Republic’s mission to transform children from different regions and languages identities still marked (Bretons, Basques, Occitan, etc.) citizens French. The teaching of history is then used to show the greatness and unity of France, to urge patriotism.
Make primary education free and equal - unite the people
Construction of the “national narrative” is based on the manuals of the positivist historian Ernest Lavisse, used between 1884 and 1950, taking place conquests stories, epics and personalities: Vercingetorix, Charlemagne, Joan Arc, Napoleon … From the cover, the Petit Lavisse urged the students: “You must love France, because Nature has made beautiful and because history has made great. “
the national narrative to be shared by all citizens, thereby forming the national community. “
Our ancestors the Gauls is a term used in the xix th and xx th centuries to evoke independent Gaul twenty centuries ago. Typical expression of “national novel”, it underpinned in particular the story of the history of France in the textbooks of the Third Republic . The Gallic ancestry, cultural or genetic, is a recurring theme yet taken up by politicians.
to unite everyone in france by claiming that they all had the same ancestors.
Jeanne d’Arc claimed that she heard the voices of the Archangel Michael and Saints Margaret and Catherine. What was the significance of these two female saints?
Saint Catherine was a virgin and a martyr, like Joan. Whn the pagan emporer began persecuting christians she went to him and challenged him, much like joan wen to charles VII to help him fight for his right to the throne. They were also both very young; in their late teens. Saint Margaret was also a virgin and a martyr and she was tortured for refusing to renounce chritianity - she was the daughter of a pagan priest. There is a statue of Saint Margaret in Joan’s local church in Domremy which may have inspired her. All three women fought for their causes, rebelling against injustice.
Why was it important for Charles VII to be crowned at Reims?
This is where all of the kings had been crowned which gave him legitimacy as king. This meant that the traditionalists would back him. Catholics would also back him because it is a sacred catholic church where king Clovis was originally baptised. It was an important step for charles’ psychological state and the dynasty’s standing. Reims is also where the saints told Joan of Arc to take the dauphin when he was crowned.
Explain Henri IV’s reputation as ‘le bon roi Henri’.
He ended the religious wars in france which would have continued to cause enormous bloodshed. Instead of waging costly wars against oposing nobles, Henri simply paid them off to protect his people. He adopted the policies and undertook projects to improve the lives of all subjects which made him a popular leader. He brought peace and prosperity to france and he understood the peasants - his care for the lower class was without parralell among the Kings of France. He was an acive ruler who worked to regularise state finance, promote agriculture and eliminate corruption and encourage education. The bas-relief on the statue of him on the pont-neuf depicts him providing food to the people of paris.
What factors drove Louis XIV to transform the hunting lodge at Versialles into a palace and to relocate the court there?
The Fronde (1648-52) made young Louis hate and fear Paris. Versailles could offer him protection from such civil unrest. It also forced the nobles to travel to Versailles and seek lodging in the palace - they could not build up regional power bases in this way. The palace could also display the country’s wealth - Louid ewas the embodiment of France since he was the king. The Hall of Mirror showed that France could make mirrors as fine as Italy.
In 1848, Second republic adopted universal male suffrage and some women demanded the vote for women as well. Why did George Sand not support votes for women at that time?
She believed that men and women should not exist in the same professional spheres - she believed that women were equally as intelligent but it was not their place to want masculine responsabilities such as voting. She thought that the public would view female suffrage as an act of promiscuity and that female liberation began at home so she wanted the laws of the household to be changed insetad to give women equality. She felt that she could do more with her writing than with voting which was a man’s power game.
Introduction to the commentary.
This is a painting titles “La Republique painted by Armand Cambon in 1848. It is currently on display at the Musèe Ingres in Moutaubon, France. This painting was painted because in 1848 the government launched in the press a “call to artists” in the form of a competition for the “composition of the symbolic figure of the french republic.
explain the 1848 revolution
In 1848, when the painting was created, there was a revolution taking place in France. Louis Phillipe had been in power since 1830 and throughout his reign he had favoured the bankers and the wealthy bourgeoisie. Naturally, land ownership was favoured and this caused the disenfranchisement of much of the middle and working class. By 1848, only about one percent of the population had the right to vote. In July 1847, the “campagne des banquets” began among middle class activists where they held political banquets instead of political meetings, since these were outlawed. These political banquets were also outlawed in February 1848. This caused a revolt which began on the 22nd February and lasted until the king abdicated on 24th February.
what do the symbols mean at the bottom of the painting?
The political banquets were also outlawed in February 1848. This caused a revolt which began on the 22nd February and lasted until the king abdicated on 24th February. These dates are shown at the bottom of the painting on the stone which the lion is lying on.
which symbols represent the revolution?
the tricolour, the sword, the helmet, the olive branch, the hands shaking and the hand of justice
