Deck 18: The French Revolution

Question 1

Peasants in prerevolutionary France paid a disproportionate share of the taxes,such as the corvée and the tithe to the Church,but the most onerous of these was the tax on:

A) wine.
B) wheat.
C) salt.
D) truffles.
E) meat.

Answer 1

salt.

Question 2

The most notable action of the "October Days" in 1789 was:

A) the march on Versailles by the women of Paris.
B) the revolt of the army, which caused the king to abdicate.
C) the seizure of power by Napoleon Bonaparte.
D) the publication of the French National Constitution.
E) the abdication of the king in favor of his son.

Answer 2

the march on Versailles by the women of Paris.

Question 3

The wars Napoleon waged to build his empire may be viewed:

A) as textbook examples of how to win wars with very little loss of life.
B) as a patchwork of defeats from which Napoleon managed to ultimately emerge victorious.
C) as an example of the idea of "total war."
D) in a manner similar to how Americans viewed their own Revolutionary War.
E) as a senseless waste of life since Napoleon continually lost his battles.

Answer 3

as an example of the idea of "total war."

Question 4

The Fall of the Bastille,the "Great Fear," and the "October Days" were all important because they:

A) precipitated war with various European nations, but primarily Austria.
B) signaled the shift from the moderate stage of the revolution to the radical.
C) were all popular uprisings initiated by the Jacobins during the summer of 1789.
D) reflected the depth of discontent on the part of the French people in 1789.
E) all of these

Question 5

The lists of grievances drawn up by the delegates of the three Estates were called:

A) the Cahiers des doléances.
B) the Enrages.
C) the Assignats.
D) the Levée en masse.
E) the Sans-culottes.

Question 6

In 1789,Louis XVI called a meeting of the Estates-General,which had not met since 1614,because:

A) Marie Antoinette wanted to throw a ball for the entire country to attend.
B) France faced severe economic hardship and financial chaos.
C) he decided to democratize France and believed a popular legislature was needed.
D) a surplus in the country's treasury needed to be disbursed equitably.
E) he needed a vote of the assembly to authorize supporting the United States in its revolution.

Question 7

The meeting of the Estates-General was radicalized from the beginning because of the positions taken by the members of the Third Estate and also because of the published popular views of _________,a member of the First Estate:

A) Comte de Mirabeau
B) Marquis de Lafayette
C) Baron de Montesquieu
D) Abbé Emmanuel Sieyès
E) Viscount Louis de Capet

Question 8

By the time of the French Revolution,the line between noble and non-noble was quite blurred due to many families purchasing their titles.A good example of this change in the aristocracy is the family of a maverick noble:

A) Baron de Montesquieu.
B) Marquis de Lafayette.
C) Viscount Louis de Capet.
D) Comte de Mirabeau.
E) Baron Louis du Bourbon.

Question 9

The event that marked the beginning of the French Revolution was:

A) the September Massacre.
B) the passage of the Constitution of 1791.
C) the Oath of the Tennis Court.
D) the drafting of the Declaration of the Rights of Man and the Citizen.
E) the execution of Louis XVI.

Question 10

Louis XVI wanted to better the lot of the French people by enacting reforms.Unfortunately,his plans were not completely successful.Among the improvements that he failed to enact was:

A) abolishing torture.
B) revamping the administrative system.
C) shifting the tax burden from the poor to the rich.
D) restructuring the tax system.
E) all of these

Question 11

The French financial system was brought to the brink of collapse because of Louis XVI's support of:

A) his many mistresses and their large, extended families.
B) a free market economy urged by his finance minister and based on Adam Smith's Wealth of Nations.
C) the English colonists in North America in their war of independence from Great Britain.
D) the parliaments in their struggle for power against the central, national government.
E) all of these

Question 12

Those who urged the French government to reform its economic policies were known as:

A) the economists.
B) the physiocrats.
C) the philosophes.
D) the mercantilists.
E) the Second Estate.

Question 13

"French Revolution" refers to:

A) a complex series of events from 1789 to 1799.
B) the series of French upheavals between 1789 and 1871.
C) the events that took place from 1789 to 1815.
D) the radical changes Napoleon made in the French legal system after 1800.
E) the three stages of rebellion in France in 1789, 1830, and 1848.

Question 14

The textbook states that "ideas did not cause the revolution," but they did:

A) play a critical role in articulating grievances by the French people.
B) allow people to vent their problems and thus forestall the revolution for decades.
C) give the peasantry a voice in the electing the delegates to the Estates-General.
D) cause the philosophes to gain the upper hand in negotiations in the Estates-General.
E) cause Louis XVI to be convinced by the arguments made by the Third Estate for reform.

Question 15

French society in the eighteenth century was influenced by a new,emerging group composed of:

A) the aristocracy and merchants.
B) clergy, merchants, and the aristocracy.
C) officeholders, merchants, philosophes, and the clergy.
D) officeholders, professionals, merchants, and the aristocracy.
E) the aristocracy, merchants, and professionals.

Question 16

For many people,the event that is the epitome of the French Revolution occurred on July 14,1789.

A) the storming of the Bastille
B) the expulsion of all foreign armies from French soil
C) the Declaration of the Rights of Man
D) the abdication of Louis XVI
E) the execution of Louis XVI

Question 17

The "October Days" of 1789 were caused by:

A) the disbanding of the Jacobin political clubs by the National Assembly.
B) the king's triumphal return to Paris from Versailles at the head of his subjects.
C) a continuing economic crisis sparked by the price of bread.
D) fears of an aristocratic counterrevolution in the provinces.
E) the invasion of France by Austrian and Prussian armies.

Question 18

On August 4,1789,the French National Assembly:

A) broke with the past completely by abolishing the last remnants of feudalism.
B) abolished the monarchy and declared France a republic.
C) urged the people of Paris to march on the king at Versailles.
D) declared the French Revolution to be successfully completed.
E) outlawed slavery throughout French lands.

Question 19

The Declaration of the Rights of Man and the Citizen:

A) was never accepted by Louis XVI and thus never went into effect.
B) was renounced two years later in favor of the Constitution of 1791.
C) gave equal political and social rights to all men and women.
D) was a moral document specifying the natural rights of human beings.
E) was written by Jean-Jacques Rousseau and formed the basis for the French Revolution.

Question 20

When the Third Estate renamed itself the National Assembly and was locked out of the Estates-General meeting hall at Versailles,it and sympathetic members of the First and Second Estates met at another site at Versailles and swore what was known as the _________ not to separate until a constitution for France had been drafted.

A) Hippocratic Oath
B) Oath of the Stables
C) Oath of Versailles
D) Oath of the Gardens
E) Oath of the Tennis Court

Question 21

The summer of 1792 was when:

A) the Paris Commune was abolished by the National Assembly.
B) the French Revolution entered the radical stage of its history.
C) Louis XVI was executed by the National Assembly as a common criminal.
D) French forces defeated the allied armies of Prussia and Austria.
E) the Directory seized control of France and ended the "Terror."

Question 22

The changes Napoleon made in French society gave rise to a new elite composed of:

A) bankers.
B) merchants.
C) landowners.
D) businessmen.
E) all of these

Question 23

The French policy in Italy,referred to by the Italians as "liberty and requisitions," concerned:

A) allowing the local people to rule themselves.
B) requiring locals to support the French military and to serve in the army.
C) the Roman Catholic Church and the French control over all priests in Italy.
D) allowing the Roman Catholic Church to regain control over church affairs.
E) exempting locals from serving in the French army, but levying a special tax to support the army.

Question 24

In general,it can be stated that Maximilien Robespierre was:

A) entirely responsible for originating the idea of the "Terror."
B) a fervent disciple of Rousseau's concept of "the general will."
C) a selfish, bloodthirsty madman.
D) never a member of the National Convention.
E) a minor character in the revolution who fought against the "Terror."

Question 25

The radical stage of the French Revolution was destructive for many reasons; among these reasons was the weakening of the traditional institution of:

A) the Church.
B) the guild.
C) the parish.
D) the family.
E) all of these

Question 26

Although the French government had been ruled by one committee or another since the revolution began in 1789,this came to an end in 1799 when Napoleon Bonaparte assumed the title of:

A) caesar.
B) temporary consul.
C) emperor.
D) kaiser.
E) first consul.

Question 27

In the book Reflections on the Revolution in France,the English author _________ reversed his position on revolutions,after having supported the American revolutionaries the decade before.

A) William Pitt
B) Frederick, Lord North
C) Edmund Burke
D) Arthur Wellesley
E) William Godwin

Question 28

Which of the following was a member of the French Committee of Public Safety?

A) Thomas Paine
B) Charlotte Corday
C) Samuel Adams
D) Georges Danton
E) Paul La Fayette

Question 29

Of the "Terror," it can be stated that:

A) all of those executed were convicted before a revolutionary tribunal and a jury of their peers.
B) more than 500,000 people were executed.
C) the majority of its victims were peasants and laborers.
D) only members of the royal family were executed during the "Terror."
E) it was mostly the creation of the enemies of the revolution as fewer than one thousand people died.

Question 30

Napoleon's foreign minister who continued to serve the monarchy after the restoration was:

A) Charles Maurice de Talleyrand
B) François Marie Arouet
C) Baron de Montesquieu
D) Georges Danton
E) Louis Antoine St. Just

Question 31

A declaration by some European states in 1791 that restoring the rights of the French monarchy was a matter of "common interest to all sovereigns of Europe" led to:

A) the National Assembly's declaration of war against Austria and Prussia.
B) the September Massacres.
C) the Continental System.
D) the creation of the Committee of Public Safety.
E) the declaration of war against France by all the countries of Europe.

Question 32

Olympe de Gouges is best known as:

A) the author of Frankenstein.
B) the writer of pamphlets advancing the rights of women.
C) the author of the pamphlet, What Is the Third Estate?
D) the assassin of Jean-Paul Marat.
E) the only female member of the Estates-General.

Question 33

Napoleon Bonaparte ordered the establishment of _________ in every major town to train government officials.

A) enrages
B) lycées
C) assignats
D) academies
E) collèges

Question 34

When the Committee of Public Safety fell from power in 1794,it was replaced by a more moderate group known as:

A) the Commissariat.
B) the Jacobins.
C) the Mountain.
D) the Directory.
E) the Girondins.

Question 35

In the French revolutionary calendar,September 22,1792,marked:

A) the execution of Louis XVI.
B) the birth of the republic.
C) the trial of Louis XVI.
D) the Festival of Reason.
E) the end of the "Terror."

Question 36

In 1798,the French under Napoleon Bonaparte's command attempted to defeat the British by attacking:

A) its Egyptian and Near Eastern colonies.
B) its North American colonies.
C) the British Isles.
D) its Indian colonies.
E) its Chinese colony of Hong Kong.

Question 37

The Eighteenth Brumaire is important because:

A) it was the day that Napoleon was declared a "temporary consul."
B) it was the day that Napoleon Bonaparte crowned himself king.
C) it represented the victory of the Directory over the National Convention.
D) it abolished the French republic.
E) it was the day the First Republic was declared.

Question 38

Jean Paul Marat was an early leader of the revolution and editor of the popular news sheet:

A) Common Sense.
B) Le monde.
C) Révolution dans le révolution?
D) The Friend of the People.
E) The Secrets of the Revolution.

Question 39

In the second stage of the French Revolution,the Terror,between 25,000 and 30,000 French were executed; the vast majority of these were members of:

A) the aristocracy.
B) the clergy.
C) the peasantry.
D) the foreign diplomatic corps.
E) the bourgeoisie.

Question 40

The Concordat of 1801:

A) returned authority over all matters concerning the Catholic Church to the pope.
B) was an intensification of principles established by the Civil Constitution of the Clergy.
C) renewed the hostilities between the French state and the Catholic Church.
D) returned all Church lands appropriated by the revolution.
E) did not revoke the principle of religious freedom established by the revolution.

Question 41

Most victims of the "Reign of Terror" were aristocrats,nobility,or wealthy merchants and artisans.

Question 42

At the Battle of the Nations,fought near Leipzig:

A) Russia surrendered to Napoleon's armies.
B) Napoleon won his greatest victory against the Fourth Coalition.
C) Napoleon surrendered and was sent to Waterloo in exile.
D) Britain defeated the French army.
E) the allies dealt the French a resounding defeat.

Question 43

According to the Napoleonic Code,fathers could imprison their children without cause.

Question 44

The September Massacres only killed seven prisoners,five of whom were petty criminals and two who were mentally incompetent.

Question 45

After the defeat of Napoleon,the Cognac family was restored to the throne,though briefly.

Question 46

England was the most densely populated country in Europe by the close of the eighteenth century.

Question 47

One of the most important legacies of the French Revolution was the new term:

A) "nation."
B) "citizen."
C) "patriotism."
D) "assembly."
E) "comrade."

Question 48

The Civil Constitution of the Clergy demanded the clergy serve France,rather than Rome.

Question 49

The naval battle in 1805 between the French and British naval forces was won by:

A) Admiral Francisco Goya.
B) Viscount Arthur Wellesley.
C) Admiral Horatio Nelson.
D) Comte de Mirabeau.
E) Vice Admiral Maximilien Robespierre.

Question 50

Louis XVI was condemned to death not by a unanimous vote,but by a very narrow margin in the Assembly.

Question 51

The Haitian Revolution was important because it:

A) served as a training ground for Napoleon's armies.
B) showed that Napoleon had a liberal/philosophical side and a military side.
C) anticipated the more moderate stage of the French Revolution to come.
D) carried on the French monarchy in its fight against the revolution.
E) was the only successful slave revolt in history.

Question 52

The battle that broke French naval power in the Mediterranean was fought at:

A) Abukar.
B) Wagram.
C) Trafalgar.
D) Leipzig.
E) Borodino.

Question 53

By order of the king,the Estates-General was replaced by the National Assembly,which asserted the right to remake government in the name of the people.

Question 54

French society was legally divided into the Three Estates,which legally divided society into an upper (First Estate),middle (Second Estate),or lower (Third Estate)class.

Question 55

Napoleon Bonaparte was defeated for the last time in Belgium at the battle of:

A) Waterloo.
B) Arnheim.
C) Liège.
D) Leipzig.
E) Amiens.

Question 56

The Russian campaign of 1812 was marked by minor fighting until the Russians made a stand just outside Moscow at:

A) Jaffa.
B) Pushkin.
C) Wagram.
D) Borodino.
E) Saint Petersburg.

Question 57

In 1799,Napoleon assumed the title Pater Patrae and governed in the name of the republic.

Question 58

The war fought in Spain was significant because:

A) it proved once and for all the invincibility of Napoleon's battlefield tactics.
B) it indicated that Napoleon could be defeated on the battlefield.
C) it finally allowed Spain and Portugal to be reunified into a single country.
D) it was the means to forge the Fourth Coalition to finally defeat Napoleon.
E) it showed the superiority of French rifles and artillery over that of the Spanish.

Question 59

The leader of the Haitian Revolution,who did not live to see independence,was:

A) Toussaint L'Ouverture.
B) Jean-Jacques Dessalines.
C) Marie-Louis Gouze.
D) François Babeuf.
E) Vincent Ogé.

Question 60

The economic system created by Napoleon Bonaparte to starve British trade was known as:

A) the Napoleonic System.
B) the Continental System.
C) the Anti-English Union.
D) the European System.
E) the French System.

Question 61

What factors account for the rising levels of violence and radicalism in the French Revolution?

Question 62

Why were Napoleon's armies so successful?

Question 63

What worldwide effects did the Haitian Revolution have?

Question 64

Who were included or excluded in the Declaration of the Rights of Man,and what does this reveal about French society on the eve of revolution?

Question 65

Napoleon was interested in rebuilding and beautifying his own country,and ordered work to be undertaken to restore the ruins of Rome and to make the Prado Palace in Madrid into a museum.

Question 66

One of the most important discoveries made in Napoleon's excursion to Egypt was the Rosetta Stone.

Question 67

How did the Convention differ in its aims from the First Revolution?

Question 68

In December 1804,Napoleon crowned himself Emperor Napoleon I in Notre Dame in Paris.

Question 69

In what ways did Napoleon's state mark the transition from absolute government to the modern state?

Question 70

The Haitian slave rebellion broke out when the National Assembly in Paris refused to seat a delegation from Saint-Domingue.

Question 71

Why is it inaccurate to view the causes of the French Revolution as a struggle between the bourgeoisie and the aristocracy? What were the reasons for the revolution?

Question 72

What was the impact of the Second French Revolution (1792-1794)on French society?

Question 73

How did the popular uprisings from 1789 to 1792 shape royal policy?

Question 74

Why was the formation of a law code important to Napoleon,and how did his differ from previous attempts to establish a national law?

Question 75

When fighting the Russians in Moscow,Napoleon torched the city,leaving no place for the Russians to shelter.