The French Revolution

The French Revolution

RAPID RECALL:
1.Which revolution occurred in the
1770s, inspiring the French?

2.What were the three estates?

3.What’s one reason King Louis XVI
was unpopular at the time of the
French Revolution?

4.Which two radical groups were
founded in England during the Civil
War?

5.What was the period of time
Cromwell ruled England known as?

6.Multiply 32 by 7

Identify: the short-term causes and trigger cause of the Revolution & Terror
Explore: similarities between the English Civil War & the French Revolution
Analyse: why the French revolutionaries became divided

GET THINKING:
Why do you think both the English and the
French executed their king? Is the execution
of a ruler a necessary part of a revolution?

American Revolution

Clergy, nobility, peasantry

His spending, rules
about taxation…etc

Diggers & Levellers

The Interregnum

224

Identify: the short-term causes and trigger cause of the French Revolution

‘We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are
created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with
certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty
and the pursuit of Happiness.--That to secure these rights,
Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just
powers from the consent of the governed, --That whenever
any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends,
it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to
institute new Government’
Continental Congress (Jul 4, 1776)

DISCUSS

1.

What does this picture tell us about the social
structure of France in the ancien regime?

2.

Why do you think the messages in the
American Declaration of Independence
influenced the French?

Identify: the short-term causes and trigger causes of the French Revolution & the Terror

Fluency:

1.

Explore how the French Revolution began. There are two stages to the French
Revolution. The second stage was when the violence of the Terror began.
The explosions are done for you

2.

For each event, draw an image (remember, some events may be blank)

3.

Colour code or label your timeline to identify the
Short-term causes of conflict (social, financial,
political, ideological, armed conflict).

Louis XVI

Extension
Louis XVI is entirely
to blame for the
French Revolution.
How far do you
agree? Explain your
judgement.

Lit match.
long-term
cause of
future
conflict

Ticking bomb.
Conflict
approaching in
the short-term

Explosion.
Conflict
occurs.

Relative
peace is
restored

Identify: the short-term causes and trigger causes of the French Revolution & the Terror

1700s- France was divided into three
estates

1770s- Louis XVI and his wife, Marie
Antoinette, spent excessively.

1770s- the American Revolution
(1776-1781)

1780s- The price of bread had increased

1788- Louis XVI calls the Estates General to
meet. Communities create cahiers de
doléances.

1789- (May) When the Estates General
assemble at Versailles in May 1789, there
are disagreements

1789- (June) The
Third Estate meet
and declare
themselves the
new government
of France

1789- (July) Louis orders troops to march on Paris.

1789- (July 14) On July 14, 1789, to gain weapons to
fight the incoming troops, they storm the Bastille

1789- (Aug 4) The National Assembly ends the
privileges of the clergy and nobility.

1789- (Aug 26) Declaration of the Rights of Man and
Citizen

1789 - (Oct 5) a group of 6,000 women in Paris
march on the palace of Versailles.

1790- (February) the National Assembly takes all
land away from the church

1791- (June) Louis, Marie Antoinette, and their
children attempted to leave the Tuileries Palace in
Paris, disguised as peasants.

1791- (June) the National Assembly produce their
new constitution

1791-2- The government prints too much money =
rioting

1792- (April) France declares war on Austria.

SOCIAL

POLITICAL

FINANCIAL

IDEOLOGICAL

EXECUTIONS/
ARMED CONFLICT

Identify: the short-term causes and trigger causes of the French Revolution & the Terror

1792- (September 21)
the French government
ends the monarchy and
declared a republic

1793- the National Assembly (now called the National Convention) splits into
two groups: the Jacobins & the Girondins

1793- the leader of the Jacobins, Maximilien Robespierre becomes the leader
of the Committee of Public Safety, a small group of 12 that replaces the
Convention and becomes a kind of dictatorship under Robespierre

1793-4- 40,000 people are executed. Some of the most horrific executions
involved prisoners being tied to stakes in open fields and fired on with
cannons.

1794- Robespierre is guillotined

1795- Prices began to rise again and people once again began to go hungry. In
April 1795 there were riots in the streets. A new government, the Directory,
takes control and tries to re-establish order

1798- conscription is introduced (men are forced to join the army to fight in
France’s wars in Europe). There are riots in the streets because the citizens of
France object to conscription.

SOCIAL

POLITICAL

FINANCIAL

IDEOLOGICAL

EXECUTIONS/
ARMED CONFLICT

CHECKPOINT

THINK FAST!

When a word/phrase pops up, you have 5 seconds to think and then you need to
tell me what you know about it.

3 Estates

Estates
General

cahiers de
doleances

King Louis XVI

Bastille

Jacobins

Oath of the

Tennis
Court

cost of bread

Explore: similarities between the English Civil War & the French Revolution

PATH A: Probing
1.

How did the people of Paris
react to the Revolution? Do
you think they supported it?
Why or why not?

2.

How were the causes of the
French Revolution similar to
the causes of the English Civil
War? Explain using examples

PATH A: Problem-Solving
3.

Explain the most important
short-term cause of the
French Revolution (society,
politics, finances, armed
conflict) Use PEA Help.

Extension: If you could choose to go
back in time to experience either the
English Civil War or the French
Revolution for a day, which would you
choose and which day would you want
to be present for? Explain why.

PEA + REPEAT HELP
The most important short-term cause
of the Revolution was…
For example...
This was an important cause of the
Revolution because…
Another example of __________ as a
cause of the Revolution was…
This was an important cause of the
Revolution because…

PATH B: Probing
1.

Explain the most
important short-term
cause of the French
Revolution (society,
politics, finances, armed
conflict) Use PEA Help.

2.

Why do you think the
Revolution became
divided in 1792? Explain.

PATH B: Problem-Solving
3.

Both the French
Revolution and English
Civil War were caused
entirely by bad kings. How
far do you agree? Explain
your reasoning.

Explore: similarities between the English Civil War & the French Revolution

Homework: Reviewing the English Civil War

●Complete the Seneca assignment on the French Revolution
(alternatively: if you have any problems with Seneca, you are to
complete two pages of single-spaced written notes in your book
on the topic of the French Revolution, using the textbook pages
on Google Classroom to help you).

OPTIONAL H/W: Create three flash cards for three important terms
you’ve learned in today’s lesson and in your reading.

Remember, your assessment is coming up the week of November
21st…keeping up with your flashcards will help spread your
revision out so it’s not happening at the last minute. Be
responsible!

Lesson Timings:

Starter questions

10 mins

Review and discuss the long-term causes

5 mins

Independent Practice (Fluency) + check

15 mins

Checkpoint

10 mins

Independent practice (Probing & Problem-Solving)

35 mins