Transcript Lecture 1 - swofford.org

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Revolutions and National States in the Atlantic World
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Ancient and medieval notions of kingship: “mandate of
heaven,” “divine right of kings” were challenged.
Impact of Enlightenment ideas
Kings to be made responsible to subject populations
John Locke (1632-1704)
o Second Treatise of Civil Government (1609)
o Argues that rulers derive power from consent of ruled
o Individuals retain personal rights, give political rights to rulers
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Voltaire (pen name of François-Marie Arouet, 1694-1778)
o Criticized of Roman Catholic Church
o Championed religious tolerance
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Jean-Jacques Rousseau (1712-1778)
o Argues for equality of all individuals, regardless of class, before the
law
o The Social Contract (1762), argues that society is collectively the
sovereign
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 Thomas
Paine’s
Common Sense
appealed to
reason and
natural law in his
arguments for
breaking away
from Britain.
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Little indication of forthcoming revolution in mid-18th
century
13 colonies regarded themselves as British subjects
Long cultural and personal connections with England
Mutually profitable military and economic relationship
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Expensive, extensive
Overlapped with Seven Years’ War (1756-1763)
o Conflict in Europe, India
o British victory ensured global dominance, North American prosperity
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Bills come due from the Seven Years’ War
Tax burden falls to the colonies
o Sugar Act (1764)
o Stamp Act (1765)
o Quartering Act (1765) (Housing British Troops)
o Tea Act (1773)
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British products boycotted, officials attacked
Protests
o Boston Tea Party (1773), tea dumped into Boston harbor in protest
against Tea Act
o “no taxation without representation”
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Continental Congress formed (1774), coordinates colonists’
resistance to British policies
o July 4, 1776, adopts Declaration of Independence
o Influence of Locke: retention of individual rights, sovereignty based
on consent of the ruled
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 Thomas
Jefferson drafted The Declaration of
Independence after being inspired by Locke and the
other enlightenment thinkers.
 Jefferson wrote:
o Governments rule only with the consent of the
people and that they protect the natural rights of
their citizens.
o People have the right to overthrow unjust
governments that do not protect its people, which
justified an independent America.
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The Constitution of the United States set up a government by
social contract.
o “We the people of the United States…”
o Influenced by Montesquieu, the Constitution created a
republic in which power was divided between the federal
government and the states. Those powers were then
divided between 3 branches creating a system of checks
and balances.
o The Bill of Rights was to protect these individual rights.
 Other
nations would copy the ideas presented in
the United States Constitution, which created the
most liberal government at the time.
 Inspired other challenges of absolute power.
French Revolution
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Serious fiscal problems in France
o War debts, 1780s (American Revolution connection)
• 50% of tax revenues to war debts
o 25% of tax revenues to military
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Leads to revolution more radical than the American
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#1: Absolute Monarchy
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By A.F. Callet
(1741-1823)
#2: Social Inequality
The First Estate
1% of the Population
(Clergy)
The Second Estate
1.5% - 2% of the Population
(Titled Nobility)
The Third Estate
97- 98% of the Population
(Bourgeoisie & Working Lower Class)
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Three Estates
o 1st Estate: Roman Catholic Clergy
• 100,000
o 2nd Estate: Nobles
• 400,000
o 3rd Estate: Everyone else (Pays almost all taxes)
• 24,000,000 serfs, free peasants, urban residents
Estates General founded 1303, had not met since
1614
 One vote per estate
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 The
cost of maintaining Versailles and expensive
wars had the government spending more than it
earned. Led to a greater tax burden on the Third
Estate.
 Bad harvests in 1789 led to widespread starvation.
 Inflation.
Versailles
Chapel
One of the cottages built in Marie Antoinette's private village
The
Enlightenment thinkers,
especially those from France, led
many to question France’s
absolute monarchy and led to
demands for democracy.
England’s
Glorious Revolution
The successful fight for liberty and
equality in the American Revolution
Protest of nobility forces King Louis to call Estates
General for new taxes, May 1789
 3rd Estate demands greater social change
 June, 3rd Estate secedes
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o Renamed “National Assembly”
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July, mob attacks Bastille, bloody battle won by mob
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Third Estate
National
Assembly
National
Constitution
Assembly
• Written in 1789
•Uses American D.O.I. as model
•States that all men have natural rights
•Declares the job of the gov’t to protect
the natural rights of the people
•Guarantees all male citizens equality
•States freedom of religion
•Promises to tax based on how much is
affordable