How Did The French Revolution Affect The Rest Of Europe?
The French Revolution impacted other countries in various ways because it introduced liberal ideas of change. In Europe, the revolution led to a series of wars between various countries and the French because of the rise of the French military dictator Napoleon Bonaparte. The French people wanted democracy but the revolution ended with dictatorship because of social inequality. Napoleon did create liberal ideas with his Napoleonic code, but he ruled with conservative military authority.
The French revolution was inspired by the American revolution and the enlightenment Ideas discuss by the “philosophes” . France was struggling with inequality. the lower class people felt they were being treated unfairly and thought they deserved equal say in the government. On July 14, 1789, a group of peasants began the French revolution by storming a castle prison known as the Bastille. There goal was to get rid of the old system of monarchy and nobles and establish democracy. After 10 years of violence and wars, Napoleon Bonaparte, a French general, promised to end the chaos and restore the glory of France.
Napoleonic Code, French Code Napoléon , French civil code enacted on March 21, 1804, and still extant, with revisions. It was the main influence on the 19th-century civil codes of most countries of continental Europe and Latin America.
– Britannica.com
The French people with no doubt accepted him as a leader. Napoleon’s long lasting impact was establishing a legal system, the Napoleonic code. The system was applied to all the French people and stressed equality. This is why the French revolution is a movement towards liberalism in Europe. Napoleon started conquering other close by countries in Europe in a series of wars known as the Napoleonic wars. Napoleon conquered large parts of Europe, but eventually was defeated in Russia in the east and by the British in the west. One major mistake by Napoleon that led to his defeat was his desire to control all of Europe with increasing nationalism in conquered lands. The response by European leaders to Napoleon was to restore the conservative power of monarchy.
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In the video above is brief information about the congress of Vienna, European leaders held meetings to restore the traditional monarchies in Europe. this began the birth of modern nations in Europe by making sure no other country became more powerful than the other and by redrawing boundaries.
