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The French Revolution

Student Workbook
Student Handouts, Inc.
© 2011

Name: _________________________________________________________________________________________
Name: ________________________________________________________________________ Date: _________________________ Class: _____

The Old Regime were subject to Church, rather than civil, law.
The First Estate collected the tithe (Church
dues) while owning 20% of the land. The First
The Old Regime was the socio-political
Estate controlled censorship of the press and
system which existed in most of Europe
education. The Church kept all official
during the eighteenth century. Under the Old
records of births, deaths, and marriages.
Regime, countries were ruled by absolutism,
in which the monarch had absolute control
The Second Estate consisted of the nobility, a
over the government. People were divided
population of approximately 110,000. (The
into two classes—the privileged and the
term nobility refers to those holding regal
unprivileged. Unprivileged people paid all of
titles such as lords, dukes, barons, etc.) The
the taxes and were generally treated badly.
Second Estate was a privileged class. This
Privileged people, in exchange for their
group earned money through the collection
support of the monarchy and Old Regime,
of feudal dues, and owned 20% of the land.
paid no taxes and were generally treated
Additionally, this group monopolized military
well.
and state appointments.

Imagine that you live in a society where

The Third Estate was comprised of everyone
some people pay all of the taxes, and some
else—from peasants living in the countryside,
people are exempt from taxation. How
to city workers, to artisans, to wealthy
would you enjoy living in such a society?
merchants (the bourgeoisie) living in the
_____________________________________
cities—a population of circa 25,000,000. The
_____________________________________
Third Estate was an unprivileged class. The
_____________________________________
Third Estate paid all taxes—the tithe (Church
_____________________________________
tax), octrot (tax on goods brought into cities),
_____________________________________
corvée (forced road work), capitation (poll
tax), vingtiéme (income tax), gabelle (salt
tax), and taille (land tax), as well as d=feudal
Society under the Old Regime dues for use of the local manor’s winepress,
oven, etc.
In France prior to 1789, people were divided
into three estates. Which estate paid all of the taxes in France?
_____________________________________
The First Estate included high-ranking _____________________________________
members of the Catholic Church. The First _____________________________________
Estate was a privileged class. Its population _____________________________________
_____________________________________
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was around 130,000. Because of this group’s

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role in religion, members of the First Estate _____________________________________

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Name: ________________________________________________________________________ Date: _________________________ Class: _____

Use the above information to complete the following table graph.

Estate Population Privileges Exemptions Burdens

First

Second

Third
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Name: ________________________________________________________________________ Date: _________________________ Class: _____

Analyzing Political Cartoons

Examine this contemporary political cartoon. What does it say about conditions in France under
the Old Regime?

_______________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________
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________________________________________________________________________________
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 got to decide how to spend this tax revenue.
The Divine Right of Kings
The monarch controlled the military, and
made decisions regarding war and peace.
Under the Old Regime, the monarch ruled
under a concept known as divine right. The
Compare France in the early 1700s with this
basic premise of divine right was that God
country today. Who makes our laws? Who
put the world in motion, and placed certain
appoints our judges? Who controls our
people in positions of power. The power
military? Who is responsible for declaring
held by a monarch was therefore given by
war? _______________________________
God. Since questioning God was a sin,
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_____________________________________
questioning a monarch was a sin. Those who
_____________________________________
criticized the monarchy were considered to
_____________________________________
have committed blasphemy.
_____________________________________
_____________________________________
Do you believe that a supreme being places
people in positions of power? Explain your
answer, giving at least one example.
_____________________________________ Economic Conditions under
_____________________________________
the Old Regime
_____________________________________
_____________________________________
The 18th-century French economy was based
_____________________________________
primarily on agriculture. France’s peasant
farmers bore the burden of taxation. When
poor harvests came along, peasants had
The Job of the French trouble paying their regular taxes, and
certainly could not afford to have their taxes
Monarch
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raised.

The French monarch appointed the

The bourgeoisie often managed to gather
Intendants, commonly called the “petty
wealth. Sometimes, members of the
tyrants,” who governed France’s thirty
bourgeois class were even wealthier than
districts. The monarch appointed people to
members of the aristocracy (the nobles). But
collect taxes and carry out laws. The
because the bourgeoisie were what is
monarch controlled justice making all of the
sometimes derogatorily referred to as “new
country’s laws and by appointing judges. At
money” and did not hold titles, they were
any time, the monarch could imprison
lumped together with everyone else in the
anyone for any reason whatsoever by
Third Estate, and paid taxes. The wealthy
completing letters de cachet (blank arrest
bourgeoisie felt that it was unfair that they
warrants). The monarch levied all taxes and
paid taxes while nobles did not.
Name: ________________________________________________________________________ Date: _________________________ Class: _____

Imagine that you are a bourgeois merchant depleted most of its funds. Most of this
living in Paris circa 1780. Make an argument money was spent fighting wars, including
for (a) why you should be exempt from supporting the Thirteen Colonies during the
taxation like the nobles, or (b) why the American Revolution. The French
nobles should pay the same taxes that you government resorted to deficit spending—
pay. that is, spending more money than the
_____________________________________ government earned from tax revenues.
_____________________________________
_____________________________________ Define the term deficit spending in your own
_____________________________________ words.
_____________________________________ _____________________________________
_____________________________________
_____________________________________
_____________________________________
_____________________________________

The Philosophy of the French

Revolution: The European
Enlightenment
Versailles, the home of Louis XVI and Marie
Antoinette, located outside of Paris.
During the Renaissance, scientists discovered
laws that govern the natural world.
Intellectuals, known as philosophes in France,
France Is Bankrupt began asking if natural laws might also apply
to human beings—particularly to human
At the time of the French Revolution in 1789, institutions such as governments.
Louis XVI was married to Marie Antoinette,
an Austrian princess. The king and queen Philosophes were secular in their thinking.
lived at Versailles, an extravagant and They used reason and logic, rather than faith,
expensive palace outside of Paris. At religion, and superstition, to answer
Versailles, while most of the French people important questions. Reason and logic were
lived in poverty, the king and queen lived a used to determine how governments are
life of luxury. formed. Philosophes tried to figure out what
rational, logical principles work to tie people
During the years leading up to the French to their governments. Questioning the divine
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Revolution, the government of France right of kings was tantamount to these

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Name: ________________________________________________________________________ Date: _________________________ Class: _____

inquiries. Among the leading philosophes members of the bourgeoisie because of its
were thinkers such as Voltaire and restrictions on trade. Revolutionaries were
Montesquieu. influenced by the success of England’s
Glorious Revolution (1688-1689) and the
Why did Enlightenment thinkers question American Revolution (1775-1783).
the divine right of kings?
_____________________________________ Short-term causes of the French Revolution
_____________________________________ include a number of events which occurred
_____________________________________ during the time immediately before the
_____________________________________ revolution. The year 1789 featured the worst
_____________________________________ famine in memory. Hungry, impoverished
peasants were unable to pay their taxes. As
plans were made for a meeting of the
Estates-General, these peasants feared that
Long- and Short-Term Causes
nobles were seeking greater privileges.
Attacks on nobles occurred throughout
Things very seldom happen in a vacuum.
France throughout the year.
Historically, events or changes occur due to a
combination of short-term and long-term
Illustrate your understanding of the
causes.
difference between long- and short-term
causes. Select an event from recent history,
Long-term causes are also known as
or from your own life. Describe this event
underlying causes. Long-term causes can
and both its long- and short-term causes.
stem back many years.
_____________________________________
_____________________________________
Short-term causes are also known as
_____________________________________
immediate causes. Short-term causes occur
_____________________________________
close to the most when change or action
_____________________________________
takes place.

Long-term causes of the French Revolution

include everything previously discussed, such The Estates-General
as the bankruptcy of the French government
and the unfairness of life under the Old France’s Louis XVI was left with no choice but
Regime. The Assembly of Notables voted to call for a meeting of the Estates-General in
down taxation for the nobility in 1787, order to find a solution to the country’s
leaving the question of increasing tax financial crisis. The Estates-General was a
revenues unanswered. Additionally, the political body made up of representatives
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system of mercantilism angered many from the three estates, and this group had
Page

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Name: ________________________________________________________________________ Date: _________________________ Class: _____

not met since 1614. The king’s convening of The Estates-General could not reach an
the Estates-General set in motion a series of agreement on voting. Deadlock resulted.
events which ultimately led to abolition of
the monarchy and the establishment of a With which group do you agree—with the
completely new socio-political system for First Estate and Second Estate, which
France. supported voting by estate, or with the Third
Estate, which supported voting by
During the winter of 1788-1789, members of population? Explain your answer.
the three estates elected representatives for _____________________________________
the Estates-General. People wrote cahiers, _____________________________________
traditional lists of grievances. These cahiers _____________________________________
asked for nothing out of the ordinary—just _____________________________________
requests for moderate changes. _____________________________________

Define cahiers. ________________________

_____________________________________
_____________________________________
_____________________________________
_____________________________________
_____________________________________

May 5, 1789
The Tennis Court Oath by Jacques Louis David.
The Estates-General met on May 5, 1789.
Voting was conducted by estate, with each
estate casting a single vote. This meant that
the First Estate and the Second Estate could The Tennis Court Oath
operate as a bloc to stop the Third Estate
from having its way. The Third Estate reacted to the deadlock by
declaring itself to be the National Assembly.
Representatives from the Third Estate Louis XVI responded to this by locking the
demanded that voting be conducted based Third Estate out of the meeting. The Third
on population. Since the population of the Estate relocated to a nearby indoor tennis
Third Estate was so large, voting by court. In this tennis court, members of the
population would give the Third Estate a Third Estate vowed that they would stay
tremendous advantage. together and create a written constitution for
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France.

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Name: ________________________________________________________________________ Date: _________________________ Class: _____

On June 23, 1789, Louis XVI relented to the

Analyzing Political Cartoons
demands of the Third Estate. The king
ordered the three estates to meet together
as the National Assembly. The National
Assembly would vote, by population, on a
constitution for France.

Primary Source: The Tennis Court Oath

“The National Assembly, considering that it

has been summoned to establish the
A contemporary political cartoon, showing
constitution of the kingdom, to effect the
the Third Estate welcoming the nobles and
regeneration of the public order, and to
the clergy to the ranks of the National
maintain the true principles of monarchy; that
Assembly, June 30, 1789.
nothing can prevent it from continuing its
deliberations in whatever place it may be
Based on your knowledge of how the
forced to establish itself; and, finally, that
National Assembly was formed, do you
wheresoever its members are assembled,
believe that the above political cartoon is an
there is the National Assembly;
accurate portrayal of its first official meeting
on June 30, 1789? Explain your answer.
“Decrees that all members of this Assembly
_____________________________________
shall immediately take a solemn oath not to
_____________________________________
separate, and to reassemble wherever
_____________________________________
circumstances require, until the constitution
_____________________________________
of the kingdom is established and
_____________________________________
consolidated upon firm foundations; and that,
the said oath taken, all members and each
one of them individually shall ratify this
steadfast resolution by signature.”

Does the text of this document call for the

overthrow of the French monarch? Explain
your answer using quotes from the text.
_____________________________________
_____________________________________
_____________________________________
_____________________________________
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_____________________________________
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Marie Antoinette and her children.

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Halfway-Point Quiz

1. What was the Old Regime?

2. How does an absolute monarchy operate?

3. Describe the size, privileges, exemptions, and burdens of the three estates.

4. What is deficit spending?

5. Describe the type of thinking used by the philosophes.

Name: ________________________________________________________________________ Date: _________________________ Class: _____

6. What were the underlying (long-term) causes of the French Revolution?

7. What were the immediate (short-term) causes of the French Revolution?

8. Explain the debate over voting which occurred in the Estates-General.

9. What was the Tennis Court Oath?

10. At this point in the French Revolution, do you believe that it was possible for France to
establish a constitutional monarchy? Why or why not? 11
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 Bastille, a prison which served as a symbol of
Four Phases (Periods) of the
royal power used as an arsenal. Weapons
French Revolution seized from the Bastille were used by the
people of Paris to riot against the
The French Revolution lasted from 1789 until government.
1799. This ten-year period saw many
changes in France. The French Revolution is Today, July 14 is celebrated as Bastille Day,
divided into four phases, each named for the the official start of the French Revolution.
governmental body which ruled the country
at the time. Why did Parisians storm the Bastille?
_____________________________________
National Assembly (1789-1791) _____________________________________
Legislative Assembly (1791-1792) _____________________________________
Convention (1792-1795) _____________________________________
Directory (1795-1799) _____________________________________

Although people tend to think of revolutions

as violent eruptions that do not last very
long, the historical reality is that revolutions
can take several years before they are
complete. Why do you think that the French
Revolution lasted for a decade?
_____________________________________
_____________________________________
_____________________________________
_____________________________________
_____________________________________

Storming of the Bastille

Despite acquiescing to the demands of the
Third Estate, Louis XVI did not actually want a
written constitution. The king planned to use
his troops to control the National Assembly.
When news of the king’s plan to use military
force against the National Assembly reached
Paris on July 14, 1789, people stormed the
Name: ________________________________________________________________________ Date: _________________________ Class: _____

Despite the popular myth, Marie Antoinette

Uprising in Paris and Beyond
did not say, “Let them eat cake.” All the
same, neither Marie Antoinette nor Louis XVI
Following the storming of the Bastille,
understood the depth of dissatisfaction felt
Parisians organized their own government,
by the majority of the French people.
which they called the Commune. Very
quickly, small groups—factions—competed
The mob that attacked Versailles forced the
to control the city of Paris.
royal family to relocate to Paris along with
the National Assembly. The royal family
The Paris uprising soon spread throughout
would spend the next several years in the
France. Nobles everywhere were attacked.
Tuileries Palace as virtual prisoners.
Records of feudal dues and tax bills were
destroyed. Many nobles decided to leave the
country; those who fled abroad became
known as émigrés.

Nobles who fled France became known as

what? ______________________________
_____________________________________
_____________________________________
_____________________________________
_____________________________________ Tuileries Palace in Paris, France.
_____________________________________
Why were the French people distrustful of
the monarchy? _______________________
_____________________________________
Attack on Versailles _____________________________________
_____________________________________
The Parisian Commune feared that Louis XVI _____________________________________
would invite foreign troops into France to put _____________________________________
down the rebellion. Louis XVI’s wife, Marie
Antoinette, was the sister of the Austrian Why was the phrase “let them eat cake”
emperor. Even without Austria’s family ascribed to Marie Antoinette? What would
connection, Austria and other European such a phrase have meant, being said to
powers feared that, if successful, the starving peasants? ____________________
revolution in France might spread to their _____________________________________
own lands. _____________________________________
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_____________________________________
Demanding bread, a group of women _____________________________________
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attacked Versailles on October 5, 1789. _____________________________________

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Name: ________________________________________________________________________ Date: _________________________ Class: _____

Changes under the National

Assembly
The National Assembly enacted a great
number of changes, including:

 Abolishment of guilds and labor unions

 Abolition of special privileges
 Constitution of 1791
 Declaration of the Rights of Man
 Equality before the law for men
 Reforms in local government
 Taxes levied based on the ability to
pay

Imagine that you are a peasant living in

France in 1790. How might you react to the
Declaration of the Rights of Man.
abolition of special privileges for nobles and
the clergy? How might your reaction change
if you were a noble? ___________________ Declaration of the Rights of
_____________________________________
_____________________________________
Man and of the Citizen
_____________________________________
_____________________________________ The National Assembly crafted a
_____________________________________ groundbreaking document entitled “The
Rights of Man and of the Citizen” (August,
1789). It was suggested and written by the
Marquis de Lafayette. This document
granted, among other things:

 Freedom of religion
 Freedom of speech
 Freedom of the press
 Guaranteed property rights
 “Liberty, equality, fraternity!”

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Right of the people to create laws

Hall of the National Assembly in Paris.  Right to a fair trial
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Name: ________________________________________________________________________ Date: _________________________ Class: _____

How does this document compare to the became easier to obtain, but only in order to
Declaration of Independence and United weaken the Church’s control over marriage.
States Constitution? __________________
_____________________________________ Name two women who fought for the rights
_____________________________________ of women during the French Revolution.
_____________________________________ _____________________________________
_____________________________________ _____________________________________
_____________________________________ _____________________________________
_____________________________________
_____________________________________
Declaration of the Rights of
Woman The End of Special Privileges
Notably absent from the “Declaration of the
The National Assembly worked to destroy the
Rights of Man and of the Citizen” were
special privileges enjoyed by the First Estate
guarantees of equality for women, despite
and Second Estate.
the prominent role women had played in
starting the revolution. Journalist Olympe de
Church lands were seized, divided, and sold
Gouges argued in her “Declaration of the
to peasants. The Civil Constitution of the
Rights of Woman” that women were equal
Clergy required that Church officials be
citizens and should benefit from
elected by the people, with salaries paid by
governmental reforms, as well.
the government. Two-thirds of Church
officials fled the country rather than swear
Along with Olympe de Gouges, Madame
allegiance to this law.
Jeanne Roland served as a leader in the
women’s rights movement during the French
All feudal dues and tithes were eradicated.
Revolution. Madame Roland’s husband was a
The special privileges of the First and Second
government official, and through him, she
Estates were abolished, creating legal
was able to influence the fledgling
equality between all male French citizens.
government.

Describe the Civil Constitution of the Clergy.

Overall, women did gain some rights during
_____________________________________
the French Revolution. However, these rights
_____________________________________
were designed for purposes other than
_____________________________________
liberating women. For example, women
_____________________________________
could inherit property—but only because
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_____________________________________
doing so weakened feudalism by reducing
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wealth among the upper classes. Divorces

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Name: ________________________________________________________________________ Date: _________________________ Class: _____

Name both a democratic feature and an

Reforms in Local Government
undemocratic feature of the Constitution of
1791. _______________________________
France’s thirty provinces had been ruled by
_____________________________________
Intendants, “petty tyrants” appointed by the
_____________________________________
king. Under the National Assembly, these
_____________________________________
provinces were replaced with 83 new
_____________________________________
departments. Each department was ruled by
_____________________________________
an elected governor.

New courts, with judges elected by the

people, were established. Problems under the
Legislative Assembly
France was divided into how many new
departments? _______________________
The royal family was not pleased with being
_____________________________________
reduced to mere figureheads. Louis XVI and
_____________________________________
Marie Antoinette sought help from Austria.
_____________________________________
In June, 1791, the royal family was caught
_____________________________________
trying to escape to Austria.
_____________________________________

Nobles who fled the revolution lived abroad

as émigrés. These émigrés hoped that, with
Constitution of 1791 foreign help, the Old Regime could be
restored in France.
The Constitution of 1791 established a new
government for France, the Legislative The royal houses of Europe watched the
Assembly. This new government contained revolutionary events in France with great
both democratic and undemocratic features. trepidation and fear. If unchecked, the
revolution could spread to their lands.
Under the new constitution, France became a
limited monarchy (also known as a Church officials wanted Church lands,
constitutional monarchy). The king became privileges, and rights restored. The clergy
merely the head of state. All laws were to be was supported in this by some devout
created by the Legislative Assembly. Catholic peasants.
Feudalism was completely abolished.
Political parties supporting these divergent
Voting was limited to taxpayers. Offices in interests began to emerge in France. The
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the new government were reserved for those leading political parties were the Girondists
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who owned property. and Jacobins.

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Name: ________________________________________________________________________ Date: _________________________ Class: _____

The Convention (1792-1795)

On September 22, 1792, the Convention met
for the first time. The Convention established
the First French Republic.

From the start, the Convention faced

domestic opposition and strife. The
Girondists were moderates who represented
Halting the royal family at Varennes. the rich middle class of the provinces. The
Jacobins, led by Marat, Danton, and
Robespierre, represented workers.
Austrian and Prussian troops invaded France Partisanship between these parties ran high.
in an attempt to quash the revolution and
restore the Old Regime. In the uproar, the The Convention faced opposition from
Commune took control of Paris. The abroad. Austria, England, Holland, Prussia,
Commune was led by Danton, a member of Sardinia, and Spain formed a Coalition to
the Jacobin political party. invade France and restore the Old Regime.

Voters began elected representatives for a Name the three principal leaders of the
new convention. This new convention would Jacobin political party. ________________
write a republican constitution for France. A _____________________________________
republic is a government in which the people _____________________________________
elect representatives who will create laws _____________________________________
and rule on their behalf. Meanwhile, _____________________________________
thousands of nobles were executed under the _____________________________________
suspicion that they were conspirators in the
foreign invasion.
Abolishment of the
What were the leading political parties in
revolutionary France? _________________
Monarchy
_____________________________________
_____________________________________ The Convention abolished the monarchy.
_____________________________________ Still, abolishment of the monarchy was not
_____________________________________ enough. French revolutionaries knew that as
_____________________________________ long as the royal family lived, the monarchy
17

could be restored.
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Name: ________________________________________________________________________ Date: _________________________ Class: _____

The royal couple was put on trial for treason,

Jean-Paul Marat
and convictions were a foregone conclusion.
Louis XVI was guillotined on January 21, 1793.
The three most memorable Jacobins were
Marie Antoinette was guillotined on October
Georges Danton, Maximilien Robespierre,
16, 1793.
and Jean-Paul Marat.

The couple’s daughter, Marie-Thérèse, was

Because of a debilitating illness, Marat was
permitted to go to Vienna in 1795. (Marie-
eventually forced to work from home. He
Thérèse could never become queen of France
was assassinated in his bathtub while taking a
due to Salic law, which did not allow females
medicinal bath in July, 1793. His assassin was
to succeed to the throne.)
Charlotte Corday, a Girondist sympathizer.

The dauphin, Louis-Charles (also known as

Louis XVII), remained in France. As next in
line to the French throne, this young boy
represented the threat of restoration of the
monarchy. Executing a child would have
been considered distasteful, so he was
beaten and mistreated while in custody.
Born in 1785, he died in 1795.

Why was Marie-Thérèse allowed to leave

France, while Louis-Charles was left to die in
government custody? __________________
_____________________________________
_____________________________________
_____________________________________
_____________________________________
_____________________________________

Death of Marat by Jacques-Louis David.

Who assassinated Jean-Paul Marat?

_____________________________________
_____________________________________
_____________________________________
_____________________________________
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_____________________________________
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Guillotine in the square of the Hotel de Ville.

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Name: ________________________________________________________________________ Date: _________________________ Class: _____

The Committee of Public Safety was headed

Growing Coalition against the
by Danton (and later Robespierre). Those
French people accused of treason were tried by the
Committee’s Revolutionary Tribunal. This
The Convention drafted Frenchmen into the period became known as the Reign of Terror,
army to defeat the foreign Coalition. These and it lasted from September 5, 1793, until
troops were led by General Carnot. The July 27, 1794.
people supported military operations
because they did not want the country to During the Reign of Terror, approximately
return to the Old Regime. 15,000 people were put to death on the
guillotine. The guillotine came to be called
French patriotism ran high as the country the “national razor.” Those who died on the
fought off foreign invasion. Rouget de Lisle guillotine included innovative thinkers such
write the “Marseillaise,” which would as Olympe de Gouges and Madame Jeanne
become the French national anthem. This Roland.
song inspired troops as they were led into
battle.

After two long years of fighting, the Coalition

was defeated. When the dust settled, France
had gained, rather than lost, territory.

Who wrote the “Marseillaise”? __________

_____________________________________
_____________________________________
_____________________________________
_____________________________________
_____________________________________
The Committee of Public Safety.

The Reign of Terror (Sept. 5,

How many people met death on the
1793-July 27, 1794) guillotine during the Reign of Terror?
_____________________________________
Despite military successes, the Convention _____________________________________
continued to face problems domestically. _____________________________________
Georges Danton and his Jacobin party came _____________________________________
19

to dominate French politics. _____________________________________

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Name: ________________________________________________________________________ Date: _________________________ Class: _____

came to blame Robespierre for the Reign of

Terror.

The end of the Reign of Terror came on July

27, 1794, and is known as the Thermidorean
Reaction. The Convention sent Robespierre
and other members of the Committee of
Public Safety to the Guillotine. Maximilien
Robespierre was guillotined on July 28, 1794.

What two leaders of the Committee of

Public Safety were guillotined? __________
_____________________________________
_____________________________________
_____________________________________
_____________________________________
_____________________________________

The Directory (1795-1799)

With the foreign invaders vanquished and the
Reign of Terror at an end, the Convention
End of the Reign of Terror was finally able to inaugurate its new
constitution, formally known as Constitution
Members of the Girondist political party tried of the Year III of the Republic (1795). This
to end the Reign of Terror which had been constitution created a new government for
initiated by the Jacobin political party. France, known as the Directory.
However, this opposition to the Committee
of Public Safety caused many Girondists to be The Directory had both executive and
tried and executed for treason. Eventually, legislative branches. The executive branch
even Georges Danton wanted to end the was comprised of five directors appointed by
executions. This resulted in Danton himself the Legislature. The Legislature had a lower
being tried and executed for treason. house of 500 members who proposed laws,
and an upper house of 250 members who
Maximilien Robespierre became leader of the voted on these laws. Initially, two-thirds of
20

Committee of Public Safety. Robespierre the Legislature would be filled by members of

the Convention.
Page

continued the executions. The Convention

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Name: ________________________________________________________________________ Date: _________________________ Class: _____

In establishing the Directory, the Girondists (a It would be a military leader—Napoleon

middle-class party) had defeated the Jacobins Bonaparte, coming to power through a coup
(a working- and peasant-class party). The d’état—who would end the ten-year period
Girondists’ constitution stated that suffrage (1789-1799) known as the French Revolution.
(the right to vote), as well as the right to hold
office, were limited to property owners. How were the French able to increase their
feelings of patriotism during the
As the Convention gave way to the Directory, revolutionary period?
it left behind a number of parting reforms. _____________________________________
The metric system was adopted. A _____________________________________
comprehensive system of laws was drawn up. _____________________________________
The final blow to feudalism came through the _____________________________________
abolition of primogeniture, the system _____________________________________
whereby the oldest son had been permitted
to inherit all of his father’s estate.
Imprisonment for debt was ended. Slavery
was abolished in France’s colonies. A
nationwide system of public education was
established.

Describe the government of the Directory.

_____________________________________
_____________________________________
_____________________________________ Napoleon in Egypt, 1798.
_____________________________________
_____________________________________

The Directory suffered from corruption and

poor administration. The people of France
grew more impoverished and more frustrated
with their government.

Despite, or perhaps because of, these

struggles, the French developed a strong
feeling of nationalism. The people of France
Napoleon at the Battle of Wagram, 1809.
were proud of their country and devoted to
it. This national pride was fueled by military
21

successes.
Page

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End-of-Booklet Quiz

1. What Paris building was stormed on July 14, 1789?

2. What human rights were established in France by the Declaration of the Rights of Man?

3. How did Olympe de Gouges fight for women’s rights?

4. What were émigrés, and why did French revolutionaries view them as a threat?

5. Name and describe the two political parties that competed for power in revolutionary France.
Name: ________________________________________________________________________ Date: _________________________ Class: _____

6. What was the Committee of Public Safety?

7. Describe the Reign of Terror and explain how it eventually came to an end.

8. Were the “excesses” of the French Revolution justified? Why or why not?

9. Looking back at the first half of 1789, could the French Revolution have been avoided? If so,
how?

10. Describe the government established under the Directory. 23

Page

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Name: ________________________________________________________________________ Date: _________________________ Class: _____

French Revolution Crossword Puzzle

Across Down

2. Right to vote 1. Devotion to and pride in one’s country

8. Austrian-born wife of France’s King 3. Related to worldly, not religious,
Louis XVI matters
10. A government spending more money 4. Government in which people elect
than it takes in their officials
5. French term for the middle class
6. Infamous Paris structure attacked on
July 14, 1789
7. Small group within a larger group
9. Person who fled France because of the
24

French Revolution
Page

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