The time period of 1787-1815 was a period of overlap of the Enlightenment and the French Revolution. Up until 1792, Louis XVI was reigning in France. He was experiencing an economic downfall, and had to call the Estates General as a result of disagreement over taxation to deal with the issues. The Third Estate joined forces with some of the nobles and clergy, and became the National Assembly or the National Convention as they would later be called. Together, they developed a constitution with intentions of creating peace within France. However, that peace did not last long because of differences in political beliefs between the moderate Girondists favoring a constitutional monarchy, and the radical Jacobins who wanted to demolish the monarchy. The Jacobins took over because of a French defeat between the Ironists and a Prussia/Austria alliance. The monarchy ended up abolished, and a republic style government was restored. A lot of these events corresponded with enlightenment beliefs. The French Revolution ultimately nelped the advancement of European Enlightenment ideals by following through with their dispotition…
Enlightenment thinkers essentially believed in freedom. They believed in freedom of the state from the church, freedom of the people from oppression and the monarchy, and freedom of the politicians to change government when things become corrupt. Revolutions followed through those beliefs and separated church and state by dissolving rights and privelegas, gave the people the power they wanted in the third estate, and continually innovated the government structure in search of something better. Ultimately, the Revolutionaries lived up to their motto “liberty, equality,…
