10/8/2019 10 Major Effects of the French Revolution | Learnodo Newtonic

10 MAJOR EFFECTS OF THE FRENCH

REVOLUTION
By Anirudh - December 13, 2018

The French Revolution was a watershed event in world history that lasted from 1789 to 1799. Among
other things, it saw the French abolishing feudalism; beheading their monarch; changing their form
of government from a monarchy to a republic; forming a constitution based on the principle of
equality and freedom; and becoming the rst state to grant universal male su rage. The French
Revolution had a great and far-reaching impact that probably transformed the world more than any
other revolution. Its repercussions include lessening the importance of religion; rise of Modern
Nationalism; spread of Liberalism and igniting the Age of Revolutions. Most importantly the Revolution
altered the course of modern history, triggering the global decline of absolute monarchies and
replacing them with republics and liberal democracies. Know more about the impact of the French
Revolution through its 10 major e ects.

#1 END OF BOURBON RULE IN FRANCE

The House of Bourbon is a French Dynasty that had ruled France for over 400 years. Its reign was
disrupted by the French Revolution. Monarchy was abolished in France in 1792 and replaced with
the Republican form of Government. Although the Bourbon monarchy was restored after the
downfall of Napoleon Bonaparte in 1815, it lasted till only 1830 when it was nally overthrown in the
July Revolution. Also, during the Revolution, the royal guard of the Bourbon monarchy was replaced

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by the National Guard, the revolutionary army whose role was to protect the achievements of the French
revolution. By the end of 1793, the National Guard comprised of 700, 000 well trained soldiers that
protected people and their property.

Charles X – The last French monarch from the House of Bourbon

#2 CHANGE IN LAND OWNERSHIP IN FRANCE

Manorialism was an integral part of feudalism by which peasants were rendered dependent on their
land and on their lord. Tithes was one tenth of annual produce or earnings taken as a tax for the
support of the church. Both these taxes were abolished during the French Revolution. Two thirds of
France was employed in agriculture and abolition of these taxes brought much respite for the
peasants. Also, with the breakup of large estates controlled by the Church and the nobility during
the Revolution, rural France primarily became a land of small independent farms. It might be said
that the revolution bequeathed to the nation “a ruling class of landowners.”

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Meeting on August 4, 1789 during which Feudalism was abolished – Painting by Charles Monnet

#3 LOSS IN POWER OF THE FRENCH CATHOLIC CHURCH

Prior to the French Revolution, Catholicism had been the o cial religion in France and the French
Catholic Church was very powerful. It owned around 10% of the land. It also received tithes, which was
one-tenth of the annual earnings of the common people taken as tax to support of the clergy. From this
dominant position, the French Catholic Church was almost destroyed during the Revolution. Its
priests and nuns were turned out, its leaders executed or exiled, its property controlled by the
state and tithes was abolished. The Concordat of 1801, an agreement between Napoleon and the
Church, ended this period and established rules for a relationship between the Church and the
French State. Though the Concordat restored some of the traditional roles of the Church, it didn’t
restore its power, lands or monasteries. Also religious worship could never become as prominent in
France as before.

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Leaders of the Catholic Church taking the civil oath required by the Concordat of 1801

#4 THE BIRTH OF IDEOLOGIES

An ideology may be de ned as a doctrine about the best form of social and political organization. The
French Revolution gave birth to ideologies. In fact the term ideology was coined during the
Revolution. Prior to the French Revolution, people generally lived in the form of government that
had been in place for centuries and that form was monarchy in most places. However, after the
French Revolution, no government was accepted as legitimate without justi cation. The republicans
challenged those who favored the monarchy. Even within republicans, some advocated a
government directed by the elite while others preferred a more democratic structure. Several
ideological alternatives arose due to the French Revolution including nationalism, liberalism,
socialism and eventually communism.

#5 THE RISE OF MODERN NATIONALISM

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Nationalism is an ideology that emphasizes loyalty, devotion or allegiance to a nation and places these
obligations above other individual or group interests. The French Revolution initiated the movement
toward the modern nation-state and played a key role in the birth of nationalism across Europe. As
French armies under Napoleon Bonaparte captured territories, the ideology of Nationalism was
spread across Europe. The Revolution didn’t only impact French Nationalism but had a profound
and long lasting impact on European intellectuals. Due to this, struggle for national liberation became
one of the most important themes of 19th and 20th-century European and world politics.

Napoleon Bonaparte leading his troops at the Battle of Arcole during the French
Revolutionary Wars

#6 THE SPREAD OF LIBERALISM

Liberalism is a political and moral philosophy based on liberty and equality. During the French
Revolution, hereditary aristocracy was overthrown with the slogan “liberty, equality, fraternity” and
France became the rst state in history to grant universal male su rage. There were two key events
that marked the triumph of liberalism during the Revolution. The rst was the abolition of feudalism
in France on the night of 4th August 1789. This marked the collapse of feudal and old traditional rights
and privileges. The second was the passage of the Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen
in August 1789. The Declaration is regarded as a foundational document of both liberalism and human

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rights. Due to the success of the French Revolution, liberal governments were established in
nations across Europe, South America and North America through the 19th century. Thus the
Revolution is considered a de ning moment in Liberalism.

Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen – Painting

by Jean-Jacques-Francois Le Barbier

#7 LAYING THE GROUNDWORK FOR COMMUNISM

The French Revolution didn’t directly produce 19th century ideologies known as Socialism and
Communism. However, it did provide an intellectual and social environment in which these ideologies,
and their spokesmen, could ourish. The French communist philosophers of the late 18th century
not only criticized private property but also called for its abolition and the establishment of a society
based on the egalitarian and communal ownership of property. French political agitator and journalist
François-Noël Babeuf went to the extent of advocating violent revolutionary action in the name of
socialization of wealth. Also, Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels, among the most important communist

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thinkers, were educated in late 18th and early 19th century when there was widespread
revolutionary activity.

French socialist journalist Francois-Noel Babeuf

#8 DESTRUCTION OF OLIGARCHIES AND ECONOMIC GROWTH IN EUROPE

The French Revolution had a deep impact on neighboring countries. The French Revolutionary armies
during the 1790s, and later under Napoleon, invaded and controlled Belgium, the Netherlands, Italy,
Switzerland and parts of Germany. The French invasion of these territories removed the legal and
economic barriers that had protected the nobility, clergy, guilds and urban oligarchies. Instead the
principle of equality before law was established. The Revolution thus destroyed the power of oligarchies
and elites that opposed economic change. Evidence suggests that areas that were occupied by the
French and that underwent radical institutional reform experienced more rapid urbanization and
economic growth, especially after 1850. The arrival of new economic and industrial opportunities in
the second half of the 19th century then resulted in more economic growth of Europe.

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Map of France and its client states in 1812 at the height of the First French Empire

#9 INSPIRED THE HAITIAN REVOLUTION

At the time of the French Revolution, Haiti was a French colony called Saint Domingue. The French
Revolution inspired the slaves in Saint Domingue to revolt forcing French leaders to recognize the
full meaning of their revolution. The Haitian Revolution began on 22nd August 1791 as the slaves of
Saint Domingue began to kill their masters plunging the colony into civil war. It involved blacks,
mulattoes, French, Spanish and British participants. The Haitian Revolution ended in 1804 with the
independence of Haiti. It was the only slave uprising that led to the founding of a state which was both
free from slavery, and ruled by non-whites and former captives. The in uence of the Haitian
Revolution spanned across every location that continued to practice slavery. It is now widely
regarded as a de ning moment in the history of racism.

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Depiction of the Haitian Revolution

#10 USHERED IN THE AGE OF REVOLUTIONS

The early 19th century was dominated by the e ects of the French Revolution and the Napoleonic
Wars. In the decades following the peace of 1815, many European countries were beset by social
con icts as their populations sought to assert their rights against the often autocratic rulers of their
states. This ushered in what is known as the Age of Revolutions, a period in which a number of
signi cant revolutionary movements occurred in many parts of Europe and the Americas. These
included the Irish Rebellion of 1798; the Haitian Revolution; the First Italian War of Independence;
Sicilian revolution of 1848; the 1848 revolutions in Italy; and the independence movements of Spanish
and Portuguese colonies in Latin America.
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Anirudh
https://www.learnodo-newtonic.com

Anirudh is a novelist, writer, seo expert and educationist. His debut self help book "Happiness
Decoded" was released in early 2014. His maiden novella “Teicos” is a thoughtful depiction of
the development of society and is awaiting publication. With Learnodo he hopes to break the
barriers of the education system and reach out to a limitless audience in a simple and cost
effective way.

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