Enlightenment and the French Revolution

the claim to the Crown, and he believed that individuals held the right to revolt against a

France stood as the center for the Enlightenment because it was in a constant dichotomy between “the desire to censor dissident ideas and the desire to appear open to modernity and progress” (Hunt, 4098). Parliament hindered the monarchy’s reform efforts by using their own words of Enlightenment influence against them. This was a paradox that showed how the Enlightenment affected all levels of French life, but was applied to achieve different results. While the American Revolution and the resulting new republic was regarded as a successful application of the Enlightenment, the unstable, failed attempts at change and reformation in France led to early signs of revolution as revolts “in the name of liberty” from 1787-1789.

The French Revolution was a period of far-reaching social and political change in France that lasted from 1789 to 1799. Before the revolution there was a period of time called the Enlightenment. The Enlightenment was a philosophical movement in which followers considered that human reason brought a move from theory to practice and criticism to reforming education, household administration, social reactions and politics. Voltaire, a French philosopher and contributor to the Age of Enlightenment, expressed these ideas utilizing his intelligence, wit and style to mark his name as one of France’s greatest writers. The Enlightenment influenced the French Revolution to a great extent by introducing new ideas that encouraged questioning of authority and religion, advancing people’s outlook on commodities, and forcing citizens to compare their need with the Republic’s needs. This further brought an uprising of people wanting more such as equality and civil rights. In the process to do so there were 250,000 casualties in the Reign of Terror followed the Thermidorian Reaction which implemented an oligarchy government called the Directory. Royalist riots prompted the Coup d’etat of Fructidor which brought Napoleon into Directory which he later overthrows and creates an Authoritarian Republic.

The Enlightenment was the root of many of the ideas of the American Revolution. It was a movement that focused mostly on freedom of speech, equality, freedom of press, and religious tolerance. The American Revolution was the time period where America tried to gain its independence from England. They got influenced very much from many philosophers. That will be discussed throughout the essay. The Enlightenment ideas were the main influences for American Colonies to become their own nation.

During the Napoleonic Era, from 1799 to 1815, France became a military power gaining and controlling land throughout Europe. While some historians believe Napoleon Bonaparte was a ruthless dictator, his military accomplishments far outweigh any atrocities he committed. He helped France gain stability after the French Revolution and he also abolished the Feudal contract. Napoleon was a brilliant strategist using military tactics to cause fear and to defeat whatever enemies stood in his way. Throughout his rule, Napoleon continually gained ground, and by the end of his reign, his empire encompassed all of Spain, Italy, and a small portion of land by Russia and Austria. (see map) He is one of

The Enlightenment period was an extremely impactful revolution which caused changes in societies around the world. It began in 1651, people across the country took a stand against their unfair rights. In order to have a peaceful society, everyone must be treated with equality which can only occur if there is a fair government system in place. If people have to fight and kill to have their natural rights granted, something has to be done about it. The enlightenment period encouraged the people to share their ideas when before they felt they had no say. When the people come together to fight for something they believe in many good and bad outcomes can take place. This time period led to many changes that have drastic effects on history. As people joined multiple documents were created showing the impact of this time period. A couple of these influential documents was the English Bill of Rights, U.S constitution, and the Haitian Constitution.

The Enlightenment is said to have begun in the 1680’s, the same decade that the “Glorious Revolution” occurred, which crowned daughter of James II Mary and her husband Prince William of Orange Monarchs of England. This turning point in English history can be considered part of the Enlightenment due to the switch from an Absolute Monarchy to a Constitutional Monarchy and the passing of the English Bill of Rights in 1689 after William’s ascension to the throne.

The execution of Louis XVI marked the beginning of an 18 month period in France known as the Reign Of Terror. The Reign Of Terror happened during the French Revolution from September 5, 1793 to July 27, 1794. The French were fighting enemies of the revolution, like normal civilians. During the terror, the government had control of almost everything, like the economy, religion, and rules or laws. This drove many people to revolt against the government, causing the Reign Of Terror. From the evidence and the documents provided, the Reign Of Terror was not justified because the acts from the government taking action against the fighters of the revolution like death, the churches being closed by the government, and the rights taken from the people of France during this time.

To what extent were Enlightenment ideas responsible for the outbreak of the French Revolution and the reforms of 1789?

The Enlightenment is intriguing period lasted from 1600 to1800.French historians traditionally place the period between 1715, the year that Louis XIV died, and 1789, the beginning of the French Revolution. The Enlightenment is known in French as the ‘’Siècle des Lumières’’ (Century of Enlightenment) was a philosophical and architectural movement which dominated the world of ideas in Europe in the18th century.

Napoleon Bonaparte will remain in the heart of many French nationals as one of the greatest military leaders that the nation has had when it comes to warfare history. In 1799, Napoleon launched a series of wars, which historian call, “Napoleonic wars” in a bid to extend the territory of France in Europe. Many historians argue that the Napoleonic wars were a continuation of the earlier war under the tag, French revolution in 1789. The French revolution in itself had so many influences in Europe, especially with the armies who felt the greatest impact of the revolution. The revolution brought with it many changes, especially in the production of modern mass weapons with the conscription in place. The new improvements in weaponry made Napoleon seek hegemony in the entire Europe sparking his quest to expand and increase the revolutionary and territorial borders of France. Napoleon, Corsican aristocrat, who was a minor, rose to the position of emperor in France because of the revolution and his idea was to sweep the entire Europe with the reforms brought about by the revolution (Dwyer 32). The idea was to liberate the continent so that all citizens had a chance to take the helm of leadership and do away with the issue of kinship rule. Napoleon was a symbol of change, and although at some point, he comes out as a dictator, he was progressive and created rationalization of governance and all the social

The Enlightenment was a time of mathematical, scientific, and philosophical advancement. The thoughts of philosophers like Voltaire, Montesquieu, and Locke inspired many, such as the Americans. Their ideas about freedom of religion, civil liberties, free trade, and social reforms became the basis that the Americans built their new country upon and impacted politics and culture.

Give Us Liberty, Equality, and Fraternity! Napoleon Bonaparte once said, “There are only two forces that unite men, fear and interest.” This quote can be seen all throughout the Enlightenment and French Revolution, as people came together through interest and fear. During the Enlightenment, people were hungry for change and thinkers of this era provided ideas and principles that the people latched onto. The ideas that the Philosophes provided were reflected once again during the French Revolution, where revolutionists went to various extremes to see that their rights would be met, and they would see change.

The Enlightenment in the seventeenth and eighteenth century changed the rules of censorship in Europe. As freedom of expression became the hallmark of the Enlightenment movement, censorship laws were removed, with Sweden becoming the first country to abolish censorship in 1766. However, the politics of the Soviet Union, Nazi Germany and the Apartheid in South Africa were characterized by extreme censorship. In the Soviet Union, the Glavlit, which was the central censorship office, worked to stop all newspapers and publications that could bring disorder to the communist ideology and government and cause dissent. By the 1920s, import of all foreign books and publications had been stopped and all local publications were strictly monitored. In

Enlightenment in Europe was a period in which ideas were legitimately from one country to another. It is also known as civilization time where traditional authority was put to the question while embracing the notion of humanity to improve human change. The French revolution was directly in motivation by Enlightenment ideals which marked a peak of its influence and a beginning of its fall. The Enlightenment 's imperative of the seventeenth-century forerunners incorporated the Englishmen Francis Bacon and Thomas Hobbes, the Frenchman Renee Descartes and the important characteristic logicians of the Scientific Revolution, including Galileo, Kepler, and Leibniz. The civilization called for changes in different parts of Europe and America than