Popular sovereignty: relocating sovereignty in the people
Traditionally monarchs claimed a "divine right" to rule
The Enlightenment challenged this right, made the monarch responsible to the people
John Locke's theory of contractual government: authority comes from the consent of the governed
Freedom and equality: important values of the Enlightenment
Demands for freedom of worship and freedom of expression
Demands for political and legal equality
(a) Condemned legal and social privileges of aristocrats
(b) Jean-Jacques Rousseau, The Social Contract
Equality not extended to women, peasants, laborers, slaves, or people of color
Ideals of Enlightenment were significant global influence
The American Revolution
Tension between Britain and the North American colonies
Legacy of Seven Years' War: British debt, North American tax burden
Mounting colonial protest over taxes, trade policies, Parliamentary rule
(a) Colonial boycott of British goods
(b) Attacks on British officials; Boston Tea Party, 1773
Political protest over representation in Parliament: Continental Congress, 1774
British troops and colonial militia skirmished at the village of Lexington, 1775
The Declaration of Independence, 4 July 1776
Thirteen united States of America severed ties with Britain
Declaration inspired by Enlightenment and Locke's theory of government
The American Revolution, 1775-1781
British advantages: strong government, navy, army, plus loyalists in colonies
American advantages: European allies, George Washington's leadership
Weary of a costly conflict, British forces surrendered in 1781
Building an independent state: Constitutional Convention, 1787
Constitution guaranteed freedom of press, of speech, and of religion
American republic based on principles of freedom, equality, popular sovereignty
Full legal and political rights were granted only to men of property
The French Revolution
Summoning the Estates General
Financial crisis: half of government revenue went to national debt
King Louis XVI forced to summon Estates General to raise new taxes
Many representatives wanted sweeping political and social reform
First and Second Estates (nobles, clergy) tried to limit Third Estate (commoners)
The National Assembly formed by representative of Third Estate, 17 June 1789
Demanded a written constitution and popular sovereignty
Angry mob seized the Bastille on 14 July, sparked insurrections in many cities
National Assembly wrote the "Declaration of the Rights of Man and the Citizen"
"Liberty, equality, and fraternity" was the slogan and values of the National Assembly
The Assembly abolished the feudal system, altered the role of church
France became a constitutional monarchy, 1791
The Convention replaced National Assembly under new constitution, 1791
Austrian and Prussian armies invaded France to restore ancien régime
Convention abolished the monarchy and proclaimed France a republic
King Louis XVI and Queen Marie Antoinette executed, 1793
Radical Jacobins dominated the Convention in 1793-94 in a "reign of terror"
Revolutionary changes: in religion, dress, calendar, women's rights
The Directory, 1795-1799
A conservative reaction against the excesses of the Convention
Executed the Jacobin leader Robespierre, July 1794
New constitution
The reign of Napoleon, 1799-1815
Napoleon Bonaparte (1769-1821)
Brilliant military leader; became a general in the royal army at age twenty-four
Supported the revolution; defended the Directory
His invasion of Egypt was defeated by British army
Overthrew the Directory and named himself consul for life
Napoleonic France brought stability after years of chaos
Made peace with the Roman Catholic church and pope
Extended freedom of religion to Protestants and Jews
Civil Code of 1804: political and legal equality for all adult men
Restricted individual freedom, especially speech and press
Napoleon's empire: 1804, proclaimed himself emperor
Dominated the European continent: Iberia, Italy, Netherlands
Defeated Austria and Prussia; fought British on high seas
Disastrous invasion of Russia in 1812 destroyed Grand Army
The fall of Napoleon
Forced by coalition of enemies to abdicate in 1814, exiled on Elba
Escaped, returned to France, raised army, but was defeated by British in 1815
The influence of revolution
The Haitian Revolution: the only successful slave revolt in history
Saint-Domingue, rich French colony on western Hispaniola
Society dominated by small white planter class
90 percent of population were slaves working under brutal conditions
Large communities of escaped slaves, or maroons
Free blacks fought in American war, brought back revolutionary ideas
Widespread discontent: white settlers sought self-governance, gens de couleur sought political rights, slaves wanted freedom
Slave revolt began in 1791
Factions of white settlers, gens de couleur, and slaves battled each other
French troops arrived in 1792; British and Spanish forces intervened in 1793
Toussaint Louverture (1744-1803)
Son of slaves, literate, skilled organizer, built a strong and disciplined army
Controlled most of Saint-Domingue by 1797, created a constitution in 1801
Arrested by French troops; died in jail, 1803
The Republic of Haiti
Yellow fever ravaged French troops; defeated and driven out by slave armies
Declared independence in 1803; established the Republic of Haiti in 1804
Wars of independence in Latin America
Latin American society rigidly hierarchical
Social classes: peninsulares, creoles, slaves, and indigenous peoples
Creoles sought to displace the peninsulares but retain their privileged position
Mexican independence
Napoleon's invasion of Spain in 1807 weakened royal control of colonies
1810: peasant revolt in Mexico led by Hidalgo, defeated by conservative creoles
1821: Mexico briefly a military dictatorship, then in 1822 a republic
South part of Mexico was split into several independent states in 1830s
Simon Bolivar (1783-1830) led independence movement in South America
Inspired by George Washington, took arms against Spanish rule in 1811
Creole forces overcame Spanish armies throughout South America, 1824
Bolivar's effort of creating the Gran Colombia failed in 1830s
Brazilian independence
Portuguese royal court fled to Rio de Janeiro, 1807
The king's son, Pedro, agreed to Brazilian independence, 1821
Became Emperor Pedro I in the independent Brazil (reigned 1822-1834)
Creole dominance in Latin America
Independence brought little social change in Latin America
Principal beneficiaries were creole elites
The emergence of ideologies: conservatism and liberalism
Conservatism: resistance to change
Importance of continuity, tradition
Edmund Burke viewed society as an organism that changed slowly over time
(a) American Revolution: a natural and logical outcome of history
(b) French Revolution: violent and irresponsible
Liberalism: welcomed change as an agent of progress
Championed freedom, equality, democracy, written constitutions
John Stuart Mill championed individual freedom and minority rights
Testing the limits of revolutionary ideals: slavery
Movements to end slave trade: began in 1700s, gained momentum during revolutions
In 1807 British Parliament outlawed slave trade
Other states followed suit, though illegal slave trade continued from some time
Movements to abolish slavery: more difficult because of property rights
In Haiti and much of South America, end of slavery came with independence
In Europe and North America, campaign against slave trade became campaign to abolish slavery
Abolition in Britain in 1833, France in 1848, the United States in 1865, Brazil in 1888
Abolition brought legal freedom for slaves but not political equality
Testing the limits of revolutionary ideals: women's rights
Enlightenment ideals and women
Enlightenment call for equality not generally extended to women
Women used logic of Locke to argue for women's rights
(a) Mary Astell attacked male dominance in the family
(b) Mary Wollstonecraft: women possessed same natural rights as men
Women crucial to revolutionary activities
French revolution granted women rights of education and property, not the vote
Olympe de Gouges's declaration of full citizenship for women too radical
Women made no significant gains in other revolutions
Women's rights movements gained ground in the nineteenth century in United States and Europe
The consolidation of national states in Europe
Nations and nationalism
Cultural nationalism: an expression of national identity
Emphasized common historical experience
Used folk culture and literature to illustrate national spirit (Volkgiest)
Political nationalism more intense in the nineteenth century
Demanded loyalty and solidarity from members of the national group
Minorities sought independence as a national community
Young Italy formed by Giuseppe Mazzini
Zionism: Jewish nationalism as a response to widespread European anti-Semitism
Movement founded by Theodor Herzl to create a Jewish state in Palestine
Jewish state of Israel finally created in 1948
The emergence of national communities
Congress of Vienna, 1814-15
Conservative leaders determined to restore old order after defeat of Napoleon
Succeeded in maintaining balance of power in Europe for a century
Failed in repressing nationalist and revolutionary ideas
Nationalist rebellions against old order throughout nineteenth century
Greek rebels overcame Ottoman rule in 1827
1830 and 1848, rebellions in France, Spain, Portugal, and German states
Conservative government usually restored afterward but ideals persisted
The unification of Italy and Germany
Cavour and Garibaldi united Italy by 1870
Mazzini's Young Italy inspired uprisings against foreign rule in Italy
Cavour led nationalists and expelled Austrian authorities in northern Italy, 1859
Garibaldi controlled southern Italy, returned it to King Vittore Emmanuele, 1860
Prussian prime minister Otto von Bismarck (1815-1898) created a united Germany
In Germany, nationalist rebellion was repressed in 1848
Bismarck provoked three wars that swelled German pride
1871, Prussian king proclaimed emperor of the Second Reich
