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This time span lasted from, January 1, 1650 till January 1, 1792. Through this period, many new ideas were developed and later shared by people such as John Locke, Mary Wollstonecraft, and Voltaire. Their ideas and thought processes may have inspired different aspects of the revolutions or even jump-started them by changing the structure of government systems and influencing more advancements.
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After the death of his grandfather, on May 10, 1774, at the age of 20, King Louis XVI, inherited the throne. Although he was well educated, through the beginning of his reign, he lacked self confidence and was indecisive, leading him to be guided by Jacques Turgot, his minister. To start, he planned to attack and improve France's financial state, but he quickly failed as he fell into enormous debt. http://www.researchhistory.org/2011/05/10/1774-louis-xvi-became-king-of-france-may-10/
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On May 5, 1789, in Versailles, Louis XVI called a meeting of the Estates-General to develop solutions for France's financial issues. In this meeting, it was decided that each estate would get one vote despite the fact that the Third Estate was composed of many more citizens. They also had to pay 98% of taxes. When the meeting was over, this estate formed the National Assembly, starting the French Revolution. http://en.chateauversailles.fr/discover/history/key-dates/summoning-estates-general-1789
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This time span examines the different events and aspects of the French Revolution. This was a time of social upheaval that changed the dynamic between rulers and those who they governed. It also reevaluated the ideas behind political power and the government system. In order to achieve this, absolute monarchies were abolished and the government was overthrown. New ideas regarding life, liberty, and property were also created and enforced during this time.
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On June 20, 1789, the Third Estate took the Tennis Court Oath. This was a result of the First and Second Estate locking them out of the Versailles. They were angry after realizing they would always be outvoted by the two orders with the current laws. Without a place to discuss the inequalities, they gathered at a tennis court. It was here that they took an oath to not disperse until there was a written constitution for France. http://en.chateauversailles.fr/discover/estate/royal-tennis-court
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On July 14, 1789, people of the Third Estate invaded an old prison, the Bastille. They were looking for gunpowder, and any other supplies that would be useful in protecting themselves from the Swiss Guard. This was a group of soldiers King Louis XVI had hired for his own personal safety. Through the next few months, peasants in France killed many people from the Second Estate. This resulted in the Great Fear, a general uproar.
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The Great Fear, started on July 22, 1789 and was a result of the storming of the Bastille. Peasants across France continuously murdered members of the Second Estate, jump-starting the Great Fear. Many people in the Third Estate feared that the king would overthrow them. This caused a great uproar among the peasants who were constantly rioting and acting violent, leading to the creation of the Declaration of the Rights of Man and Citizen. https://worldhistoryproject.org/1789/7/20/the-great-fear
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On August 26, 1789, the Declaration of the Rights of Man and Citizen was published. This was modeled after the Declaration of Independence in the United States. It included the idea that a government's purpose is to protect citizens rights, a thought of many Enlightenment thinkers. This granted people with natural rights and influenced many later events in different Revolutions. https://www.bl.uk/collection-items/the-declaration-of-the-rights-of-man-and-of-the-citizen
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This time span focuses on the different events and features of the Haitian Revolution. This was a time where the French Regime was forcibly removed from power in Haiti by former slaves. The independence of a country governed by former slaves was also declared. Main leaders during this time were L'Ouverture and Jean-Jaques Dessalines.
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Ex-slaves were intrigued by the equality in the Declaration of Rights of Man and Citizen but unsure on how to deal with it. On August 21, 1789, slaves on the northern plantations of St. Domingue took matters into their own hands when Dutty Boukman organized a slave rebellion. Whites killed hundreds of slaves in attempt to prevent the rebellion from spreading, starting the Haitian Revolution as England and Spain wanted to seize the island's wealth. https://library.brown.edu/haitihistory/5.html.
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On January 1, 1792, the Vindication of the Rights of Women was published by Mary Wollstonecraft, an Enlightenment thinker. In this piece, she challenged ideas that women exist to solely please men and instead, proposed ideas that men and women should have equal opportunities. She noticed that this change in society's structure would allow the people and government to flourish. These ideas heavily influenced later events as they became approved. https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/wollstonecraft/
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On September 21, 1792, in France, the king's strength and power was reduced as the absolute monarchy was abolished and replaced with a constitutional monarchy. This meant that King Louis XVI had a reduction in power, leading him to turn to the Prussian and Austrian monarchies. The power would now be divided between elected leaders and the people. France was the first established republic which later caused other nations to follow this route. https://library.brown.edu/cds/paris/chronology1.html
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On January 21, 1793, King Louis XVI was executed by guillotine after radical leaders discovered he could not be trusted to run a constitutional monarchy. This happened when he attempted to escape with his royal family but was recognized and sent back to Paris. Robespierre took advantage of this by eliminating the National Assembly and tearing up the constitution. This led to the formation of the Committee of Public Safety. https://origins.osu.edu/milestones/january-2018-execution-louis-xvi
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Maximillien Robespierre gained control over France following the elimination of the National Assembly. He quickly began to abuse power by executing people as “enemies of the Revolution'' with little to no evidence. This became known as the Reign of Terror which started on September 5, 1793. He amplified the fear factor of his ruling by rejecting churches. This halted any progression people previously made towards the goals of the Revolution. https://sheg.stanford.edu/history-lessons/reign-terror
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On February 4, 1794, slavery was officially outlawed in the French colonies, including St. Domingue. This meant that France was the first European country to abolish slavery completely in all of it’s colonies. Dessalines also proclaimed St. Domingue to be the first independent nation of former slaves. All of this took place after Dessalines won the Revolution against Napoleon when he had underestimated how many soldiers he needed. http://www.uky.edu/~popkin/Haitian%20Revolution%20Lecture.htm
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Following the Reign of Terror, Robespierre was executed on July 28, 1793. After he had approved the execution of many other citizens, he was deemed unsuccessful. People grew tired of this constant bloodshed and violence. In order to stop this, they arrested and later executed Robespierre, meaning another group or leader would now need to take control. This led to the development of the Directory, which later held power.
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On October 26, 1795, the Directory took control over France. This was a five man group that reimposed control over France. In order to reach this order, they installed elite schools and aided France's economic state. While in power, this group also made peace with Spain and Prussia while also preserving the war they were amidst with Austria and England. This ruling led to the rise of Napoleon and the preservation of France. https://www.kingsnews.org/articles/the-french-directory-1795-1799
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On June 16, 1799, the year-long War of Knives began. This was a fight between L’Ouverture and Rigaud for control over St. Domingue. On one side, L’Ouverture was battling with poor, former slaves. However, on the other side, wealthy, well-educated former slaves and free blacks were helping Rigaud. Despite this, with assistance from the English, L’Ouverture defeated Rigaud and gained control, forcing him to flee into exile. https://thelouvertureproject.org/index.php?title=War_of_Knives
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On November 10, 1799, Napoléon staged a coup d’etat as he was attempting to overthrow the government at the time, the Directory. This action plan was deemed successful as his power was later confirmed. This replaced the Directory with the French Consulate. He made himself the first consul, meaning he was France's head political figure and hoped to stabilize the government system. https://www.napoleon.org/en/history-of-the-two-empires/articles/18-brumaire-the-context-and-course-of-a-coup-detat/
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Following Napoléon's coup d’etat, the Directory that had previously been established in the French Constitution was exterminated. Due to this, it was crucial that after this exchange of power, changes were made to the constitution. This constitution established a new government system, the Consulate. It was also tailored to giving all of the power to Napoléon Bonaparte by making him the “first consul.” https://www.napoleon-series.org/research/government/legislation/c_constitution8.html
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After L’Ouverture and former slaves won the War of Knives, he had secured his power. He used this strength and leadership to create a new constitution. In this, he abolished slavery and granted all citizens with equal rights. He also outlawed voodoo, the religion practiced by most people on the island of St. Domingue. With all of this success, he became Governor for Life. This angered people who had rebelled against him, leading to a Revolution. https://library.brown.edu/haitihistory/8.html
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Napoléon Bonaparte sent his troops back to St. Domingue in an attempt to win the island back. Unaware that France planned to reinforce slavery, half of L’Ouvertures army joined them. His top generals captured him on August 25, 1802. Despite this, Dessalines used the scorched earth policy, forcing Napoléon to pull his troops from the Revolution. This event changed the course and direction of the Haitian Revolution. http://exhibits.usu.edu/exhibits/show/haitianrevolution/leaders
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After Dessalines won the Revolution by using the scorched earth policy, Dessalines proclaimed Haiti’s independence. This took place on January 1, 1804 when slavery was abolished and everyone was granted with natural rights. Whites were also not permitted to own land and no European or U.S. nations would trade with this area. This island later became the second independent nation in the Americas. https://library.brown.edu/haitihistory/11.html
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This time span focuses on the different causes and events of the Revolutions of Latin and South America. After Napoléon disrupted power, different colonies began to create their own government systems. This lead to the Spanish and Portuguese attempting to reinforce control, leading to the independence of many colonies.
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On September 16, 1810, Mexico declared independence from Spain. This push first began in 1810 by Father Miguel Hidalgo, a creole priest. Later, on this date, poor mestizos and Native Americans rallied to the priest's call. Although this first gained the support of many creoles, this was neglected when a request to end slavery was included. Nevertheless, after Hidalgo's death, Jose Morelo carried on with this idea. https://www.newworldencyclopedia.org/entry/Mexican_War_of_Independence
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Although Venezuela declared independence from Spain in 1811, it lost this sovereignty again in 1812. Simon Bolivar created a plan to gain the independence of his home country back. On May 24, 1813, he arrived in Merida, Venezuela. With the power of recently gaining the title of “the Liberator,” he declared “War to the Death” against the Spaniards, slowly making progress towards regaining independence for South America. https://faculty.chass.ncsu.edu/slatta/hi216/documents/bolivar/sbwar1813.htm.
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The Battle of Chacabuco began on February 12, 1817 and was fought during the Chilean War of Independence. South American Patriots battled Spanish royalists near Santiago, Chile. San Martin led his army across the Andes Mountains in an attempt to liberate Chile from the Spanish colonial rule it was held under. This also began the expulsion of Spaniards from Chile which was finished in a later battle. https://research.kent.ac.uk/warandnation/1817-san-martin-crosses-the-andes-from-mendoza-to-chile/
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Peru struggled to gain sovereignty between 1810 and early 1821. However, on July 28, 1821, Peru officially declared independence. This revolution was led by Simon Bolivar, “the Liberator,” and San Martin. After he drove Spanish out of Caracas, Venezuela, Simon moved on to the south where he freed Ecuador, Peru, and Bolivia. Peru gaining independence led to Simon Bolivar strengthening his title when he joined forces with San Martin to do this. https://www.workers.org/2018/07/38316/
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On September 7, 1821, Gran Colombia was officially formed. This included the nations of Columbia, Panama, Venezuela, Ecuador, and parts of Peru and Brazil. Each of these places individually declared their independence from the Spaniards prior to this formation led by Simon Bolivar. His main purpose was to help these states recover from their loss against Spain in the war. This creation led to South America taking it’s final steps in the Revolution. http://countrystudies.us/colombia/13.htm
