The American and French Revolution were created by means of having a democratic government. Both of the revolutions had similar goals and achieved their goals in both outcomes and process. Throughout the revolutions, the colonists and the people of France wanted to get rid of the monarchy. The monarchs were holding power that was unfair to all. The colonies and the people of France were successful in getting rid of the monarch and reinstating a new governmental system that were mostly democratic. The people of France gained new rights and freedom after the revolution, and the colonists had a balance in power after the revolution. Though not both revolutions achieved their initial goals.
A democracy was wanted by the colonists and the commoners of France. The definition of democracy is a country that rules by a government that is elected by the people of the country. The basic establishment of the nation would consists of equal rights under the law for all, despite gender, race, religion, political participation..etc. The government must also allow the people to have freedom of press, religion, speech, and others. The people may also elect representatives so recommendations and other information may be reported to the leader in a more efficient manner. The power of the government would also be limited in a democracy. Limitation of their power may be established by branching out their power to other groups or individuals to separate power. The government would also rule under the law and be ruled by the people and not for oneself. A judicial court system would also be enabled to evaluate the consequences of violating any of the law. This is the definition of democracy and what a democratic country should consist of.
The French Revolution started due to economic failures, social inequalities within the estates, political problems of the king, new enlightenment ideas. People in the lower social class system, the Third Estate, were angered at the rise in taxes. Besides the raise in taxes, the Third Estates also asked for equal rights since the First and Second Estates had no need to pay for the taxes. There were also famine and crop failures, which lead to a majority of the Third Estate to descend into hunger and poverty. The First and Second Estate however, lived above the law and had no need to care about the bankrupt country. When the people tried to assemble the National Assembly, they asked for equal votes for all representatives instead of votes by estates. This was one of the first steps in asking for better rights against the rich clergy and nobles. The people of France asked for better rights, freedom, equality, fair taxes, and the eradication of the social system, Old Order.
Due to these inequalities of people and the absolute monarch of King Louis XVI, the people wanted a democratic government. After the French Revolution, Napoleon took over as the emperor of France. However, Napoleon asked for a plebiscite whether the people wanted him as their leader before throning himself as an emperor. A plebiscite is a public question or vote that is addressed to the public. The plebiscite’s result was a 92% approval rate of Napoleon as their king. In the process of choosing a leader, it was considered democratic. For it allowed all the people in France to vote with no exceptions. The outcome of the process of choosing a leader was a mixture of both democratic and undemocratic. Napoleon ruled France as a dictator with most of the power being held by him. He got rid of the National Assembly and reinstated slavery once he was emperor. Although it may seem that there were no democratic choices during his rule, there were several actually. For example, Napoleon created a list of civil codes for the people, called the Napoleonic Code. The code allowed freedom of religion, forbade privileges based on birth, and official jobs should be given to the most qualified. Napoleon later on allowed freedom of press and shared some of his power with other officials. He allowed the right of voting on budgets by counting votes as sections, and created equal taxes for all. A great deal of rights and equalities were achieved during Napoleon’s rule. The undemocratic view of his rule was the reinstated slavery, and the unbalanced power being held between him and his officials. The power Napoleon ruled wasn’t evenly divided, since only he was allowed to appoint his officials, despite not judging by birth, but work. Overall the process of achieving a government was democratic, but the outcome of the process, although gained many rights and equalities, wasn’t exactly democratic.
Resulting from the Seven Years War (French and Indian War), the government was in debt. They taxes highly on the colonies in order to pay back the debt. This caused tensions between the colonists and the British government. King George imposed the Stamp Acts, taxes for documents, contracts, newspapers. The colonists were angered by the lack of representatives for the colonies. Since they had no representative to speak out for them, when King George appointed new taxes, it enraged several merchants and colonists even more. The colonists boycotted from Britain by not using any of the documents being taxed. However, Britain then sent British Troops and passed the Intolerable Acts. The Intolerable Acts placed limits on the colonists, such as not allowing self governments and closing off the Boston Port until the colonies paid for the tea. Thomas Paine then wrote a pamphlet, Common Sense, inspiring ideas about fighting off Britain to gain their independence. The colonists were inspired to gain independence and not be ruled by a monarch.
After the American Revolution, the colonists gained independence from Britain and were able to rule by democracy. The colonists wrote the Declaration of Independence during the revolution and established that “all men are created equal.” The Bill of Rights was also established, which stated the freedom of speech, religion, press, petition, and assembly. The Bill of Rights also stated that no one was above the law and that the law is equal to all. People were allowed to have representatives for each area. The power of the government was also limited due to the balanced out power to different branches. The three branches were the Executive Branch, the Legislative Branch, and the Judicial Branch. This allows the government to not hold a major power in the country and limits each official’s power. In the process of selecting a government, the leader was chosen through elections. Although it may seem like it was democratic in both the process and the outcome of the revolution, there were still undemocratic acts being made. For example, women weren’t allowed to vote or to be politically involved. Besides women, people in lower social classes and African Americans were not able to vote too. African Americans weren’t even considered human. The only people who were allowed to vote were white men in high social classes, which doesn’t hold a high percentage in population. The wealthy men were mostly in power. Slavery still existed after the Bill of Rights were created. America wasn’t democratic in the process of achieving a democratic government due to the unequal voting rights. The outcome of the election held some democratic elements, such as the equal distribution of power and having a fair judicial system. However, the Bill of Rights did not give rights to all people and only allowed few, which was undemocratic.
Both the American and French Revolution changed the original governmental system. New rights and equalities were given to the people. The French Revolution was successful in the process of achieving a government democratically, but the outcome of the revolution was a mix of democratic and undemocratic components. It was more democratic on giving the people freedom, but undemocratic in distributing power within the government. The American Revolution was successful in achieving a democratic government with limited power and allowing freedom of speech, religion, and press. However, the American Revolution was undemocratic during the process in achieving the democratic revolution. They were democratic at different aspects. Without these two revolutions, we would have never achieved to what we see as America and France today.
Bibliography
“Avalon Project - Declaration of the Rights of Man - 1789." Avalon Project - Declaration of the Rights of Man - 1789. N.p., n.d. Web. 25 Nov. 2014.
“British Reforms and Colonial Resistance, 1767-1772 - American Memory Timeline- Classroom Presentation | Teacher Resources - Library of Congress." British Reforms and Colonial Resistance, 1767-1772 - American Memory Timeline- Classroom Presentation | Teacher Resources - Library of Congress. N.p., n.d. Web. 25 Nov. 2014.
“Causes and Effects of the American Revolution." MrNussbaumcom A FREE Learning World for Kids Teachers and Parents Causes and Effects of the American Revolution Comments. N.p., n.d. Web. 25 Nov. 2014.
“French Revolution." Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia. N.p., n.d. Web. 26 Nov. 2014.
“Internet History Sourcebooks." Internet History Sourcebooks. N.p., n.d. Web. 23 Nov. 2014.
“Napoleonic Code." Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, 12 Jan. 2014. Web. 07 Dec. 2014.
“Overview of the American Revolution." Digital History. N.p., n.d. Web. 25 Nov. 2014.
“Revolutionary War: Birth of the Nation." Causes of the Revolutionary War. N.p., n.d. Web. 24 Nov. 2014.
"Second French Empire." Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, 12 June 2014. Web. 07 Dec. 2014.
“William Pitt's Speech on the Stamp Act January 14 1766." N.p., n.d. Web. 26 Nov. 2014.
A democracy was wanted by the colonists and the commoners of France. The definition of democracy is a country that rules by a government that is elected by the people of the country. The basic establishment of the nation would consists of equal rights under the law for all, despite gender, race, religion, political participation..etc. The government must also allow the people to have freedom of press, religion, speech, and others. The people may also elect representatives so recommendations and other information may be reported to the leader in a more efficient manner. The power of the government would also be limited in a democracy. Limitation of their power may be established by branching out their power to other groups or individuals to separate power. The government would also rule under the law and be ruled by the people and not for oneself. A judicial court system would also be enabled to evaluate the consequences of violating any of the law. This is the definition of democracy and what a democratic country should consist of.
The French Revolution started due to economic failures, social inequalities within the estates, political problems of the king, new enlightenment ideas. People in the lower social class system, the Third Estate, were angered at the rise in taxes. Besides the raise in taxes, the Third Estates also asked for equal rights since the First and Second Estates had no need to pay for the taxes. There were also famine and crop failures, which lead to a majority of the Third Estate to descend into hunger and poverty. The First and Second Estate however, lived above the law and had no need to care about the bankrupt country. When the people tried to assemble the National Assembly, they asked for equal votes for all representatives instead of votes by estates. This was one of the first steps in asking for better rights against the rich clergy and nobles. The people of France asked for better rights, freedom, equality, fair taxes, and the eradication of the social system, Old Order.
Due to these inequalities of people and the absolute monarch of King Louis XVI, the people wanted a democratic government. After the French Revolution, Napoleon took over as the emperor of France. However, Napoleon asked for a plebiscite whether the people wanted him as their leader before throning himself as an emperor. A plebiscite is a public question or vote that is addressed to the public. The plebiscite’s result was a 92% approval rate of Napoleon as their king. In the process of choosing a leader, it was considered democratic. For it allowed all the people in France to vote with no exceptions. The outcome of the process of choosing a leader was a mixture of both democratic and undemocratic. Napoleon ruled France as a dictator with most of the power being held by him. He got rid of the National Assembly and reinstated slavery once he was emperor. Although it may seem that there were no democratic choices during his rule, there were several actually. For example, Napoleon created a list of civil codes for the people, called the Napoleonic Code. The code allowed freedom of religion, forbade privileges based on birth, and official jobs should be given to the most qualified. Napoleon later on allowed freedom of press and shared some of his power with other officials. He allowed the right of voting on budgets by counting votes as sections, and created equal taxes for all. A great deal of rights and equalities were achieved during Napoleon’s rule. The undemocratic view of his rule was the reinstated slavery, and the unbalanced power being held between him and his officials. The power Napoleon ruled wasn’t evenly divided, since only he was allowed to appoint his officials, despite not judging by birth, but work. Overall the process of achieving a government was democratic, but the outcome of the process, although gained many rights and equalities, wasn’t exactly democratic.
Resulting from the Seven Years War (French and Indian War), the government was in debt. They taxes highly on the colonies in order to pay back the debt. This caused tensions between the colonists and the British government. King George imposed the Stamp Acts, taxes for documents, contracts, newspapers. The colonists were angered by the lack of representatives for the colonies. Since they had no representative to speak out for them, when King George appointed new taxes, it enraged several merchants and colonists even more. The colonists boycotted from Britain by not using any of the documents being taxed. However, Britain then sent British Troops and passed the Intolerable Acts. The Intolerable Acts placed limits on the colonists, such as not allowing self governments and closing off the Boston Port until the colonies paid for the tea. Thomas Paine then wrote a pamphlet, Common Sense, inspiring ideas about fighting off Britain to gain their independence. The colonists were inspired to gain independence and not be ruled by a monarch.
After the American Revolution, the colonists gained independence from Britain and were able to rule by democracy. The colonists wrote the Declaration of Independence during the revolution and established that “all men are created equal.” The Bill of Rights was also established, which stated the freedom of speech, religion, press, petition, and assembly. The Bill of Rights also stated that no one was above the law and that the law is equal to all. People were allowed to have representatives for each area. The power of the government was also limited due to the balanced out power to different branches. The three branches were the Executive Branch, the Legislative Branch, and the Judicial Branch. This allows the government to not hold a major power in the country and limits each official’s power. In the process of selecting a government, the leader was chosen through elections. Although it may seem like it was democratic in both the process and the outcome of the revolution, there were still undemocratic acts being made. For example, women weren’t allowed to vote or to be politically involved. Besides women, people in lower social classes and African Americans were not able to vote too. African Americans weren’t even considered human. The only people who were allowed to vote were white men in high social classes, which doesn’t hold a high percentage in population. The wealthy men were mostly in power. Slavery still existed after the Bill of Rights were created. America wasn’t democratic in the process of achieving a democratic government due to the unequal voting rights. The outcome of the election held some democratic elements, such as the equal distribution of power and having a fair judicial system. However, the Bill of Rights did not give rights to all people and only allowed few, which was undemocratic.
Both the American and French Revolution changed the original governmental system. New rights and equalities were given to the people. The French Revolution was successful in the process of achieving a government democratically, but the outcome of the revolution was a mix of democratic and undemocratic components. It was more democratic on giving the people freedom, but undemocratic in distributing power within the government. The American Revolution was successful in achieving a democratic government with limited power and allowing freedom of speech, religion, and press. However, the American Revolution was undemocratic during the process in achieving the democratic revolution. They were democratic at different aspects. Without these two revolutions, we would have never achieved to what we see as America and France today.
Bibliography
“Avalon Project - Declaration of the Rights of Man - 1789." Avalon Project - Declaration of the Rights of Man - 1789. N.p., n.d. Web. 25 Nov. 2014.
“British Reforms and Colonial Resistance, 1767-1772 - American Memory Timeline- Classroom Presentation | Teacher Resources - Library of Congress." British Reforms and Colonial Resistance, 1767-1772 - American Memory Timeline- Classroom Presentation | Teacher Resources - Library of Congress. N.p., n.d. Web. 25 Nov. 2014.
“Causes and Effects of the American Revolution." MrNussbaumcom A FREE Learning World for Kids Teachers and Parents Causes and Effects of the American Revolution Comments. N.p., n.d. Web. 25 Nov. 2014.
“French Revolution." Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia. N.p., n.d. Web. 26 Nov. 2014.
“Internet History Sourcebooks." Internet History Sourcebooks. N.p., n.d. Web. 23 Nov. 2014.
“Napoleonic Code." Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, 12 Jan. 2014. Web. 07 Dec. 2014.
“Overview of the American Revolution." Digital History. N.p., n.d. Web. 25 Nov. 2014.
“Revolutionary War: Birth of the Nation." Causes of the Revolutionary War. N.p., n.d. Web. 24 Nov. 2014.
"Second French Empire." Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, 12 June 2014. Web. 07 Dec. 2014.
“William Pitt's Speech on the Stamp Act January 14 1766." N.p., n.d. Web. 26 Nov. 2014.