The Rise And Fall Of Louis Bonaparte And Maximillien Robespierre And Napoleon Bonaparte

The initial impulse of the French revolution was destructive. For those who lived through all, or even part, of these vast upheavals, the shock was overwhelming. Maximilien Robespierre was a proud disciple of the enlightenment and declared that no political writer had foreseen this revolution. Robespierre (1758-1794) was one of the leaders of the Committee of Public Safety, the effective governing body of France during the most radical phase of the revolution. The leaders of this revolution attempted, perhaps more than any other revolutionary leaders before or since, to totally transform human society in every way. (Supreme Being) Although Robespierre began with patriotic intent he still was the face of the Reign of Terror and was viewed as being a radical person.

Robespierre claims that, “ the French are the first people of the world who have established real democracy [...]is the true reason why all the tyrants in league against the Republic will be vanquished (Robespierre,1794, Speech). Robespierre as a the leader of France, he gave this speech to all of the French people for showing his political philosophy. He claims that he will give all men equality and complete rights of citizenship, but he did not actually achieve his goal during his reign. Robespierre thinks that democracy can be the best form of government; however, he did not achieve any of these points. It makes French people mad at him, even his supporters and jacobins. Robespierre had been abolished a lots of nobles based on his speech, “We must smother the internal and external enemies of the Republic or perish, in this situation, the first maxim of your policy ought to be to lead the people by reason and the people's enemies by terror” (1794, Speech). During the Reign of Terror, because of terror of people, they have many different ideas about the form of government and society. Robespierre was not only executing the nobles, but also those people who wanted to against him. Therefore, during his reign, he abolished a lots of government officers and powerful nobles. At the same time, Robespierre made his supporters and jacobins’ member to feel terror in their life. He was forced to abdicate the position of the emperor. Robespierre created a very weak government which provided a power vacuum that Napoleon used to come to power. When Robespierre came to power, he promised a domercy government and everyone can have same quality rights; however, he had failed to fulfill people’s demand and made people disappointed on him. It provided a good chance

Just about any country that one can name has some history of civil unrest, class issues, rioting in the streets, and outright warfare. These patterns of behavior are common denominators for most civilization in the world. The names, faces, and places may change, but the motivations are generally the same, because of the need for change and the willingness to do whatever is necessary to achieve it. In contrast to the United States, which was in the process of freeing itself from British colonial rule, France was working to free itself from royal absolutism. This period is historically known as the French Revolution. Many scholars do not agree on the chronology of the French Revolution; some scholars suggest that the Revolution took place between 1789 to 1799 while others feel that it did not end until Napoleon lost power in 1815. To better understand the history of the French Revolution it is necessary to discuss the causes, major events, significant figures, and the outcomes associated with these political developments. Without this uprising, that changed the face of the entire country and influenced local political life in many countries in Europe, in all likelihood the France we know today would never have existed.

So that leaves question as to how it was that Robespierre transformed from a man who believed in a government for the people to nearly becoming a tyrant himself. To understand this, one must understand the circumstances which arose in France during the late eighteenth century that forced him to take action. The driving problem throughout, however; was essentially the monarchy. The regime of Louis XVI could hardly be considered that of a tyrant, but nevertheless his inability to properly govern his country led to frustration and anger among the people of France. Robespierre shared this sentiment in his speech, stating that “a nation is truly corrupted when, having by degrees lost its character and its liberty, it passes from democracy to aristocracy or to monarchy; that is the decrepitude and death of the body politic....” This also hints at Robespierre’s earlier ideologies concerned with Rousseau as he does make reference to the need for a nation to have a democratic system. Louis XVI was a failing king, and even long before the National Convention had come into power much of France vowed to see the monarchy abolished. By 1791 it had become increasingly clear that Louis was no longer fit to govern – a moment marked by his attempted flight to Varennes. This cost the king his credibility and he effectively ‘died’

Both Maximilien Robespierre and Napoleon Bonaparte used the revolution as a wave they rode to the power. Without the revolution, neither of them would have gotten to the position that they did. It is true that they both had to work themselves up to get there. They went to schools to educate themselves and the revolution liked the people who were educated. People like lawyers and doctors were voted to the National Assembly to represent the common people of France. A lot of the well-educated people had a much bigger chance to grow as leaders and get to the power. The ones who took their positions seriously and used the revolution to help them get to the power were mainly Maximilien Robespierre and Napoleon Bonaparte.

In France in 1789, A revolution began. The people of France were fighting for their inalienable rights such as freedom from serfdom , equality between the classes. Within this chaos in France, Napoleon, a new thinker, came about and changed France in many ways. Napoleon's policies can be seen as preserving the legacy of the French Revolution by giving equality to the lower classes and creating a governmental system that helped to put the people in charge of their sovereignty, however it can be seen as hurting the legacy by protecting the ideas of absolutism.

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 French Revolution was a period of social and political turmoil in France from 1789 to 1799 that greatly affected modern and French history. It marked the decline of powerful monarchies and the rise of democracy, individual rights and nationalism. This revolution came with many consequences because of the strive for power and wealth, but also had many influential leaders attempting to initiate change in the French government and the economy. In 1789 the people of France dismissed King Louis XVI of his title, took apart his monarchy and executed him, his wife Marie Antoinette and thousands of nobles. The French set up a new system of government with specific revolutionary ideals, including liberty, equality and fraternity. This was a

The spark that set off the Reign of Terror can be attributed to the king’s attempted escape from France in 1791 (Document 6). It is impossible for people of the modern world to comprehend exactly what caused this mayhem simply because no one lived during that period. Regardless, the event left the nation in a state of shock and uncertainty. The National Convention was forced to make the difficult decision to place all of its power into an entirely new political branch, knowing that something different was needed to save France. Before he was chosen to run the Committee of Public Safety, Robespierre was revered for his courage and sheer determination. He ridiculed the notion that a monarchy could last and instead pushed for democratic reforms (Document 2). Robespierre spoke to the people of France with an air of confidence that quickly won them over. His morals were fundamentally based on the ideals of early enlightenment thinker Jean Jacques Rousseau. Both men asserted that man is good by nature but poisoned by society. Robespierre also believed that all men deserve to be treated as equals in the eyes of the law (Document 3). The central cause of the French Revolution was the nation’s lack of a strong military in the face of civil war and foreign invasion. Rebuilding the military was arguably the most significant advancement that occurred during the Reign of Terror. Robespierre created a law called the Law of Universal Conscription in an effort to propel the French military to a reasonable state. This law mandated all men between the ages of 18 and 40 to join the army. Additionally, women were called into service to make uniforms. Robespierre further ensured that his troops were well-fed and prepared to spring into combat at any moment by reserving the best bread for soldiers only. After decades of internal and external conflict,

The French Revolution was a result of influence and inspiration gained from the American Revolution. This event occurred in 1789 and continued until the late 1790’s due to bloodshed and disagreement. During this time period the people with nothing began to have a voice and the people with power were rapidly executed leading to democracy, which meant every man was free with equal rights. The French’s method was named the Reign of Terror because of the French’s unique scare tactics. This event was not justified due to the oppression of the guillotine, the Tribunal system, and Declaration of the Rights of man.

Napoleon made these promises seeming like the perfect democratic reformer, but many promises he did not intend to keep and ended up keeping France in the absolute ruling they started in. Some were not pleased with Napoleon’s actions regarding his promises. Moreau, a political prisoner wrote a letter once to Napoleon from the prison expressing his thoughts on the matter. “You swore to establish a government, not depending upon the life of one individual, not tyrannical but firm, stable and liberal... how have you respected these fulfilled these promises” (Document #13). Instead of establishing this democratic reforming government, Napoleon kept France in an absolute ruling. Napoleon made many promises to the people that tied into the idea of the revolution. Little did the people of France know that Napoleon would go against the Revolution in many ways. According to Document 14, in December of 1812, Napoleon shared a few words about the revolution. “Since I have worn a crown I have shown clearly enough that I mean to close the door on revolution” (Document 14). When Napoleon says “close the door” he means he wants to stop the revolutions in Europe. He wants everyone to be under absolute rule, and may the monarchies live on. He also shares in Document 4 that other kings should be thankful for him because he is stopping all of these present and future revolutions. Napoleon is yet again breaking all promises of being a revolutionary leader, and instead keeping France where it has been since before the French Revolution. Napoleon Bonaparte made many promises to France, but unfortunately he did not intend on keeping most of

The French Revolution was based on an assortment of Enlightenment ideals. French philosophers, including Voltaire and Rousseau led the revolution leading up to the revolution, so to speak, coming up with progressive ideals as to government, social structure, and the nature of people. Indeed, the ideals which the revolution was fought in the name of progressed throughout France and, eventually, Europe. Though the revolution took wrong turns along the way, the ideals which it was based on never wavered. Even during the heart of his Reign of Terror, Robespierre spoke of a state where each citizen wants to do good by his country. This shows Robespierre with an unwavering commitment to the state, an ideal which came out of the Enlightenment. Though he may have carried out his beliefs in a gruesome and perhaps wrong way, his ideals were the same as the Enlightenment philosophers: make the state better for all to live in.

With all the glory and the splendour that some countries may have experienced, never has history seen how only only one man, Napoleon, brought up his country France from its most tormented status, to the very pinnacle of its height in just a few years time. He was a military hero who won splendid land-based battles, which allowed him to dominate most of the European continent. He was a man with ambition, great self-control and calculation, a great strategist, a genius; whatever it was, he was simply the best. But, even though how great this person was, something about how he governed France still floats among people 's minds. Did he abuse his power? Did Napoleon defeat the purpose of the ideals of the French Revolution? After all of his success in his military campaigns, did he gratify the people 's needs regarding their ideals on the French Revolution? This is one of the many controversies that we have to deal with when studying Napoleon and the French Revolution. In this essay, I will discuss my opinion on whether or not was he a destroyer of the ideals of the French Revolution.

At the head of the beginning the French Revolution was the current king, Louis XVI, to whom had little idea of how to solve problems that were increasing very much so in the years before the Revolution. Some of the major problems that Louis XVI could not seem to face included the vast food shortages, so much debt from helping to support the American Revolution (due to the French’s need to lessen England, who at the time was above them from a political standpoint) and that there were certain religious intolerances, not to mention the tensions that were growing between the three estates.

The French Revolution (1789-1814) was a period that affected the outcome of world history tremendously. This is considered a major turning point in European history which has led to dramatic changes in France and other regions of the world. Various social and political issues led to the start of the revolution. Politically, France suffered under the rule of Louis XVI, who ruled by absolute monarchy. Many people had their natural rights renounced and weren’t able to have a political voice. Socially, France had divided its population within 3 estates (classes). French citizens took it upon themselves to remodel their country 's’ political structure. The French Revolution had encountered both positive and negative effects. However, many Europeans viewed the Revolution as much more than just a bloody massacre. The French Revolution was used to demonstrate new ideology that would emphasize the principles of liberty and equality throughout Europe.