CBSE Class 9 history chapter -1 The French Revolution notes

Unit 1: India and the Contemporary World - I

CHAPTER - 1 THE FRENCH REVOLUTION

THEME

1. The French Revolution:

¶ French Society During the Late Eighteenth Century.

¶ The Outbreak of the Revolution.

¶ France Abolishes Monarchy and .

¶ Becomes a Republic.

¶ Did Women have a Revolution?

¶ The Abolition of Slavery 

¶ The Revolution and Everyday Life.

LEARNING OBJECTIVES

¶ Familiarize with the names of people involved, the different types of ideas that inspired the revolution, the wider forces that shaped it.

¶ Know the use of written, oral and visual material to recover the history of revolutions.

¶ On 14th July 1789 the agitated crowd stormed the Fort of Bastille, a symbol of tyranny of old regime, and destroyed it.

I. This triggered the chain of revolt across the country.

II. Faced with power of revolting subjects, Louis XVI accorded recognition to the National assembly and agreed to give up his power.

III. On 4th August 1789 all the feudal system of obligation and taxes were abolished by a decree.

IV. Churches' properties were confiscated and clergy too had to give up all the privileges.

V. The National Assembly drafted the constitution in 1791 and distributed the power in-legislature, executive and judiciary along with one person one vote principle.

¶ However voting was restricted to Active citizen only

¶ Remaining men and women were classed as passive citizen who did not have any political right.

¶ Political clubs became a rallying point for the discussions on governmental policies in which Jacobin club emerged as the most favourite.

¶ The members of Jacobin club mainly belonged to the less prosperous sections of the society like- small shopkeepers, artisans, such as shoe maker, watch makers, painters, as well as servants and daily wage workers.

¶ Their leader was Maximilian Robespierre and they were called sans-culottes meaning without knee breeches.

¶ On 10th August 1792 Jacobins planned an insurrection and imprisoned the royal family.

¶ On 21st September 1792 it declared France a Republic.

¶ This paved the way for the rise of military dictatorship under Napoleon Bonaparte who ended directory in 1799 and became the 'First Council and later crowned himself as-The Emperor of France in 1804.

¶ Napoleon was defeated in the battle of Waterloo in 1815.

¶ The legacy of freedom, equality and fraternity that emerged out of French revolution remained the inspiring ideals of the following world.

¶ Slavery was finally abolished in 1848 from all the colonies of France.

¶ Women fought their own way to get right to vote in 1946 in France.