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The Spirit of Laws was written by Montesquieu, a French judge. It was a treatise on political theory. One was that forms of government varied due to climate and circumstances, stating that despotism suited large empires in hot climates, while democracy only worked in small city-states. The other main idea developed in this book was that powers in the government must be separated. Montesquieu was anti-absolutism and believed in the separation and balance of powers.
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This book was published in 17 different volumes. The Encyclopedie compounded scientific, technical and historical knowledge into several comprehensive volumes. Almost all the French enlightenment philosophers contributed to the book, making it a collection of all their ideas. The book was widely read and bought across France. Around 25,000 volumes were sold across France before the Revolution.
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Adam Smith was a Scottish philosopher and economist who was considered the father of modern economics and his principle called the invisible hand. The invisible hand is a metaphor for the unseen forces that move the free market economy. He is best known for his book, the Wealth of Nations. Essentially, this book argued that a country's wealth lay in the productivity of its people, not its physical assets.
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During this period the national assembly reformed the Church and abolished feudal privileges, and the creation of a new constitution that limited the monarchy.
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On July 14th, 1789, an angry mob of Parisians stormed the Bastille, a prison for the influential. The governor had placed cannons inside the tower, and refused to remove them. This led to the crowd turning into a mob and assaulting the tower, forcing the governor to surrender. The mob, which was enraged by the death of 98 of the people among them, killed 6 soldiers. Several government officials, including the governor, were beheaded, and their heads were paraded around the city on pikes.
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This period was chaotic, much like the Reign of Terror, and had much violence. France became a Republic and the monarchy was abolished.
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This book advocated for women's right to education, jobs, and intellectual independence. Wollstonecraft was a leading feminist enlightenment thinker.
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There was an insurrection, a defining event of the French Revolution. Armed revolutionaries stormed the palace of Tuilleres, which was protected by Swiss guards. They captured the royal family and brought them to a medieval fortress in Paris. The formal end of the monarchy occurred 6 weeks later. Less than a year later, Louis and Marie were executed by guillotine.
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The Reign of Terror was a period following the Revolution and the creation of the French Republic that gained its name through its series of massacres and public executions. Around 40,000 people have been estimated to have died in the terror, with the final death occurring in 1794, the execution of Robespierre, who was seemingly becoming tyrannical.
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Louis was executed because he was found guilty of treason and of conspiring with foreign nations to take France back after the Revolution.
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Robespierre held a prominent role in there French revolution and led the Jacobins through the revolution and the Reign of Terror. He was ultimately executed for his actions during the reign of terror.
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This period included a 5 man executive committee known as the Directory. It was a time of immense corruption in the government and the people were still unhappy with its structure.
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In 1799, Napoleon executed a coup d’état, making himself the first consul. In 1804 he named himself emperor Napoleon I and was emperor up until his death in 1821.
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The Napoleonic code was a French Civil code that modernized France's legal system, emphasizing legal equality, property rights, and secularization.