French Revolution (jan 1, 1789 – jan 1, 1799)

Description:

Spurned by a despondent ruling class and inspired by success in America, the desperate French working class revolted using enlightenment ideals to attempt to instate a new and democratic government. They rejected religion and aristocracy, instead becoming a 'religion' of reason and having the central motto of "liberty, equality, fraternity".

While hopeful in theory, the mob-driven situation quickly devolved into power vacuum barbarism, best exemplified in the horrific Reign of Terror. The French government did not stabilize for decades.

This revolution also had a profound effect on the rest of Europe, pushing Enlightenment ideals to the extreme and helping to usher in the Romantic period with its fervent nationalism. It also helped to charge the Napoleonic wars, which shuffled ownership of certain European territories and had some disasterous ecconomic effects.

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