The French Revolution and its Aftermath
Subject 2: The Outbreak of the French Revolution
1.1 The Causes of the Revolution
In 1789, France was in a profound economic and social crisis. On one hand, since 1760, bad harvests had provoked rising food prices and popular discontent. The bourgeoisie, enriched by the economic growth of the eighteenth century, were dissatisfied politically. Additionally, the marginalization of the monarchy plunged it into a financial crisis. The solution would have been tax reform that would oblige the aristocracy to pay taxes, but the absolute monarch feared displeasing the privileged, its main support.
1.2 The Beginning of the Revolution
The French Revolution started in 1789 with a revolt of the privileged aristocracy. They refused to pay taxes and forced Louis XVI to convene the Estates-General, the only body that could approve fiscal reform. The Estates-General opened in Versailles in 1789, chaired by the King and comprised representatives of the clergy, the nobility, and the Third Estate. Each estate had the same number of deputies. The representatives of the Third Estate demanded dual representation, that of joint deliberation and vote by person. The question was important: at stake was the idea of national sovereignty and the role of the monarch. The nobility were against it, and the deputies of the Third Estate constituted themselves into a National Assembly and undertook to develop a constitution that would reflect the will of the majority of the French.
1.3 The End of the Old Regime
The people of Paris backed the representatives of the Third Estate, and for fear of the royal troops arresting the deputies, they stormed the Bastille fortress. The revolution spread to the countryside in the form of popular revolt and anti-seigneurial radicalization. Faced with this, the National Constituent Assembly decreed the abolition of feudal privileges and enacted the Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen.
5. Restoration, Liberalism, and Nationalism
5.1 The Europe of Restoration
After Napoleon’s defeat, the victorious states met at the Congress of Vienna at the proposal of the Austrian Chancellor Metternich. The monarchs were restored to their thrones, and the four great powers (Russia, the United Kingdom, Prussia, and Austria) reshaped the European map. France returned to its borders and the rule of the Napoleonic victors. The decisions of the Congress of Vienna were complemented by the Holy Alliance, a treaty of mutual assistance among European monarchs against any threat. Despite the return of the former regimes, the ideas generated by the French Revolution had influenced European countries. From 1815, liberalism and nationalism became the two main opposition forces to the Restoration.
5.2 Liberalism
Liberalism is based on the idea that the individual is the foundation of the political system and society. The individual is a free citizen, and the whole constitutes the nation, which holds sovereignty. Liberalism advocates a system of representation in which decisions emanate from an assembly. It also supports the need for a constitution that guarantees the division of powers and rights. The right to property is formulated as a fundamental freedom, and the economy is based on the market.
5.3 Nationalism
Nationalism is an ideology that upholds the right of peoples to self-determination and sovereignty. It spread throughout the nineteenth century in defense of a Europe of free nations against the absolutist Europe of the Holy Alliance. Nationalism showed its willingness to make the state coincide with the nation. This gave rise to independence movements.
6. Liberal and National Revolutions
6.1 The Revolutions of 1820
A series of uprisings led by liberal activists tried to end absolutism and seize power through armed insurrections. They were defeated by the intervention of the armies of the Holy Alliance. Only the insurrection in Greece against the Ottoman Empire triumphed. In 1822, the Greeks declared their independence, which became effective in 1829. The movements in the Spanish colonies in mainland America were also victorious.
6.2 The Revolutions of 1830
The second wave occurred in central and western Europe. On this occasion, they had popular support. It was a conservative liberalism. This movement, which started in France, ousted the absolute monarch Charles X of Bourbon and proclaimed a liberal monarchy with Louis Philippe of Orleans. The revolution also triumphed in Belgium.
6.3 The People’s Spring of 1848
This meant the appearance of democratic ideals. As on other occasions, the revolutions started in France. An uprising ended the monarchy of Louis Philippe of Orleans, and the Second Republic was proclaimed with universal male suffrage.
Subject 3: Population Growth and Agricultural Expansion
1.1 The Demographic Revolution
In the 18th century, the European population began a process of growth, the demographic revolution. The population of the continent went from 140 million inhabitants in 1750 to 187 million in 1800, to 266 million in 1850. This growth was much more rapid in Great Britain. The causes of this demographic change included increased food production, the progress of medicine and hygiene. This produced a decrease in mortality and a slight increase in the birth rate.
1.2 The Agricultural Revolution
The increase in population led to an increased demand for food and, as a result, rising agricultural prices, which encouraged landowners to improve production. This was achieved through two changes: the privatization of land and the application of new cultivation methods and techniques. The fundamental innovation was the suppression of fallow and its substitution by fodder plants (Norfolk system). There was also progressive mechanization of agricultural tasks.
2. The Industrial Revolution
2.1 Steam Machines and Factories
The first machines that were introduced were powered by human force and then by hydraulic energy. The energy source that revolutionized energy production and transport systems was steam. Mechanization and the introduction of new sources of energy generated the factory system, which consists of the concentration of workers and machines in large industrial buildings.
2.2 The Textile Industry
Great Britain was the first to mechanize the cotton industry. To produce larger quantities, the flying shuttle was invented, which increased the speed of the weaving process. Then the spinning jenny emerged, which increased the production of yarn. Finally, the power loom mechanized the entire textile process.
2.3 Coal and Iron: The Steel Industry
The invention of coke allowed for greater production of coal with greater calorific power. The Bessemer converter was invented to transform iron into steel.
3. The Revolution in Transportation
3.1 The Railroad and the Steamboat
The railroad was used in mines to transport minerals. The truly innovative phenomenon was Stephenson’s locomotive (1829), which operated using the steam engine. The steam engine was also applied to maritime transport, and steamboats were built, which replaced sailing ships.
3.2 Increased Trade
The Industrial Revolution gave way to a market economy in which most production was for sale in large markets. Improved transport allowed for increased internal trade. Foreign trade increased dramatically in the mid-19th century.
4. Industrial Capitalism
4.1 Liberalism and Capitalism
Liberalism promoted the idea that “personal interest and the pursuit of maximum benefit are the engines of the economy.” The various interests balance each other in the market, adjusting prices to supply and demand. The state should abstain from interfering in the functioning of the economy and allow the free unfolding of private interests. In early capitalism, the lack of economic planning led to cyclical crises.
4.2 Banking and Finance
Banks are important in capitalism because they provide money. The bank became an intermediary between savers who deposited their money and industrialists who needed capital to invest. Limited liability companies emerged, through which the capital required by a company is divided into shares that can be bought or sold on the stock market.
4.3 The Expansion of Industrial Capitalism
Industrialization spread to countries like France and Belgium. Between 1850 and 1870, Russia, Germany, the United States, and Japan also industrialized. In southern and eastern Europe, industrialized regions coexisted with essentially rural areas that remained outside industrialization until well into the 20th century.
Subject 4: The Crisis of the Old Regime (1808-1814)
1.1 The Crisis of the Bourbon Monarchy
The reaction of the monarchy of Charles IV against the French Revolution led him to declare war on France (1793-1795). The war was a failure, and from 1799, Manuel Godoy, the most influential minister, made a radical change in foreign policy, allying with Napoleon to confront Great Britain and authorizing the French army to cross Spain to attack Portugal (Treaty of Fontainebleau, 1807). The fear this provoked caused the Mutiny of Aranjuez in 1808, which forced the resignation of the minister and the abdication of the king in favor of his son, Ferdinand VII. Napoleon forced both to abdicate and appointed his brother, Joseph Bonaparte, as the new king of Spain.
1.2 The War of Independence (1808-1814)
This caused a popular revolt, and on May 2, 1808, the people of Madrid rose up against the French troops. Patriotic groups were created to organize resistance and direct the fight against the French. Guerrillas were organized to harass the French. The course of the war changed in 1812 when Napoleon had to move part of his army to Russia. The help of British troops was crucial to the end of the war. In 1813, the French began to leave Spanish territory. That year, the Treaty of Valençay was signed, by which Ferdinand VII recovered the crown and Napoleon withdrew his troops from Spain.
1.3 The Cortes of Cádiz
The Juntas that governed the country wanted legitimate representatives and to initiate a process of reforms. In 1810, the Central Junta convened a meeting of the Cortes in the city of Cádiz to draft a constitution. The constitution reflected the basic principles of political liberalism: national sovereignty, division of powers, rights of the citizen, and universal male suffrage. The state of war prevented everything legislated by the Cortes of Cádiz from being applied. The liberals, who promoted the constitution, clashed with the privileged, who only wanted the return to the situation before 1808.
3. The Independence of the American Colonies (1808-1826)
This process coincided with the years of the reign of Ferdinand VII and helped accelerate the loss of economic and political prestige.
3.1 The Reasons for Independence
Several factors contributed to this. On the one hand, the diffusion of Enlightenment ideas and the principles of freedom and equality. On the other hand, the success of the revolt of the British colonies that resulted in the independence of the United States. The discontent of the Creole bourgeoisie with the attitude of the Spanish, who benefited from the economic prosperity and monopolized political positions. The Creoles saw Spain as a brake on the American economy, which was already hampered by trade restrictions and heavy tax burdens.
3.2 The End of the American Empire
The outbreak of the War of Independence led to the formation of Juntas, but they soon became self-governing bodies that claimed to act on behalf of Spain. Thanks to the action of the Junta members, the Creoles replaced the Spanish authorities and refused to accept the authority of the Supreme Central Junta. The main centers of insurrection originated in Venezuela and the Viceroyalty of Río de la Plata. The insurrection spread, and with the restoration of absolutism in 1814, Spanish troops managed to restore colonial rule. But the insurrection became generalized again from 1816. General José de San Martín achieved the independence of Chile. Simón Bolívar founded Gran Colombia. Antonio José de Sucre emancipated Peru and Bolivia. The rebellion led by Iturbide achieved independence in 1821.
Problems in the New Republics
The new American republics fragmented into multiple republics.
4. The Liberal Revolution
4.1 The Carlist War
On the death of Ferdinand VII, his heir and daughter, Isabella, was only three years old. The most absolutist sectors supported the right of Ferdinand VII’s brother, Don Carlos, to the throne. To defend the rights of her daughter, Maria Cristina, her mother, who was the regent, sought support from the liberals. Thus began a civil war in the form of a dynastic conflict, which pitted absolutists (Carlists) against liberals (Isabelinos). The Carlists’ supporters were the defenders of the old regime: absolute monarchy, social prominence of the Catholic Church, preservation of a foral legal system, and traditional forms of land ownership. The Isabelinos had a conglomerate of interests. The bourgeoisie, the urban popular classes, and the peasantry of central and southern Spain also joined the Isabelino front. The war lasted seven years (1833-1840). The main centers of the Carlist insurrection arose in the Basque Country, Navarre, Catalonia, Aragon, and Valencia. The Convention of Vergara ended the war, but Carlism persisted throughout the 19th century.