Compare And Contrast The American And French Revolution

Improved Essays
1. Compare the causes of revolution in the US vs. France. The American and French revolution were both extremely important in the changing path of world history. Even with different outcomes and variances in successes, the impact of both cannot be denied. The Causes of the French revolution and the American revolution are similar because they both were partially prompted by an over-reaching monarch, another similarity was that both revolutions were started by the commoners who wanted revolution to improve their lives, however a key difference is that the American revolution was sparked by outrage of political reasons whereas the french were fighting for complete social revolution. Overall the causes for the American and French Revolutions …show more content…
Haiti was French colony and Latin America was spanish but independence was paramount in both and changed these areas forever. The outcomes of independence movements in Haiti and the Spanish Americas were similar because they both ended successfully and with independence from the colonizing nation, a difference however was that in Haiti the revolution ended with a complete social overhaul and the re-arrangement of social classes whereas in the Latin American revolutions it ended as mostly the same as before. Another difference is that Latin America ended up with a dictator under Simon Bolivar, whereas Haiti constructed a new government with the predominantly black population in office. Overall the outcomes of independence movement in Haiti and the Spanish Americas were more different than …show more content…
But the American revolution changed not the social dynamics of North America but how the people saw themselves and their government. In North America between the years 1650-1850 the beliefs about government changed as the people thought that self-governance could be achieved and should be achieved by this newly founded american Government. Another change was that people believed that the United States Government was real, and that the many colonies could be united under one government. However a continuity is that the people believed the government should not intertwine in the daily lives of the people, just like the british had done when they were in power. Overall in the years 1650-1850 there was more change in the way people believed about government than continuity. These new ideas of how self-governance is paramount were not new ways of thinking, as they were pioneered within the enlightenment in france, and was one of the multiple reasons for the French

Related Documents

  • Improved Essays

    A history composed of specific people, wars, revolutions compose what we look back to today. It is the foundation of each country and what they are built upon. The American revolution inspired other revolutions and were performed by different events such as resenting their governing country or to be simply inspired and motivated as America, France, and Haiti were. As both the French and Haitian were inspired from the American revolution, it shows the greater importance of the American revolution. This is what made the American Revolution was more successful than the French Revolution and the Haitian Revolution.…

    • 467 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    American Revolution Dbq

    • 655 Words
    • 3 Pages

    The American Revolution was not only one of the first revolutions, but one of the most successful, setting an example to other nations. As many revolutions start, the people in America were angry with King George III of Britain, Parliament who put high taxes on the people, and not having equal rights with the people in Britain. The Enlightenment was also a huge influence on the American people as they wanted the…

    • 655 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Superior Essays

    In the American and French Revolution, both the American and French Revolution tried to use some ideas from the European Enlightenment to help resolve some of the problems that were going on. The Enlightenment ideals were mainly focused on reason to solve problems going on. Philosophers such as Hobbes states that people are naturally selfish, cruel, and greedy and started to question the rights of men that state to have some sort of power given to them. They were influenced by these ideas, trying to use logic to find solutions for their current government and societal issues. Many things worked and many terribly failed. Both had failures, but obviously there was one revolution that was more successful than the other. Although the Americans and French both pursued…

    • 1144 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Stemming from the Enlightenment are fundamental concepts that sparked the American and French Revolutions. Of these enlightenment ideals, reason is by far the most important. Reason – the freedom to think and act for oneself – is a core value that stems from this era. Kant argued that be human is to abandon a life of unreason or a reliance on faith and superstition. Reason, Kant claims, is the true meaning of humanity. Reason is the sign of maturity. As such, as we grow and develop as an autonomous person, then we gain reason and knowledge to become an enlightened being. Through reason and autonomy we can find truth. This truth we seek is found through science; not opinion, through inquiry; not blind faith.…

    • 2098 Words
    • 9 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    The American Revolution was a huge expression of what Americans wanted to create with the help of the traditional ideas of the Britians. The idea of creating an American government that had three branches, Executive, Legislative and Judicial Branches, was definitely inspired by the three branch British Government system at the time. The practice of governments creating their own constitutions in order to explain how they worked was also an idea passed down from English tradition, with the main difference being that the British constitution was a collection of laws created over centuries while American Constitutions were single written documents, but they were still constitutions that explained a government nonetheless. Probably the biggest…

    • 639 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    The French Revolution began because of reasons that were similar to the North American revolution. The French were on the verge of going bankrupt, and they searched for a way to make the tax system better for the people; however, the higher classes opposed the ideas. In France there were three classes of people, the clergy, the nobility, and the commoners. Only two percent of the population was clergy and nobility , the rest were commoners. In 1789, members of the Third Estate, or the commoners, created a new order called the National Assembly. The commoners said that they should have the authority to make laws for the people. A few days later they wrote the Declaration of the Rights of Man and Citizen, which declared, “men are born and remain free and equal in rights.” These events spurred the French Revolution. The French Revolution, as stated before, was inspired from American ideas. However, the American Revolution was a war that was fought because of tensions with a country that was across the ocean. The French Revolution was fought within the country because French people conflicted with their own government. During the first five years, the French Revolution was very violent, more violent than the American Revolution. Also, it changed many things in society. Slavery was abolished for a short while, and it ended feudalism in the country. They raised revenue by selling church lands. The king and queen were executed which started a new era in the violence, the Terror. France now under the leadership of Maximilien Robespierre, who led committee called the Committee of Public Safety, made arrests and executed thousands on the guillotine. The Americans only wanted a change in liberty and freedom for their country, whereas France wanted a new start, a completely different society. The country of France became a republic and created the…

    • 1427 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    From the 1700s through the 1900s, the Atlantic region had many revolutions. The first one being the North American Revolution, which began in 1775 and ended in 1787. Next, was the French Revolution which began in 1789 and lasted until 1815. The French Revolution began by the Declaration of the Rights of Man and Citizen being developed. This declaration fought for the idea that “men are born and remained free and equal in right.” The French and North American Revolutions differed in many ways. A few of these ways are how its influence spread, how violent they were, and the conflicts they had. Where the North American Revolution had conflicts with colonial relationship with imperial power, the French Revolution had conflicts within the French…

    • 381 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    The phase of the symptoms of the of the French and American Revolution have some differences and similarities . An example is that the American Revolution started because England was in war for 7 years and consider the American colonies as part of their country so they taxed them, where the French people fought when they disagree with the king. A similarities between these revolution was that both the colonies were not satisfied with the king's decisions…

    • 286 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    The American Revolution was started for many different reasons, however, I think the main cause was taxation. The American colonists was fighting to preserve their rights as British citizens which had been violated by the taxes imposed on the colonies. Taxes were imposed in order to pay off debt in which the county incurred during the war, and as result, protests began and colonists became angry. The American Revolution was also caused by The Boston Tea Party, The Intolerable Acts, The First Continental Congress and The Battle of Concord. Furthermore, I think it is safe to say that the French Revolution was kind of caused by the same factor. Both revolutions were products of Enlightenment ideals that placed importance on natural rights and equality. The common people of France felt like they did not have any opinion in their own government (monarchy), and the government debt was steadily growing from war, supporting allies, and maintaining the army. While both countries were trying to gain freedom, America was looking to gain freedom…

    • 556 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    The results of them were distinct that the American revolution eventually extricated America prom the led the American society into republic. Those colonial leaders who were influenced by the Enlightenment were unsatisfied to the monarchy government. Benjamin Franklin and Thomas Jefferson argued for the rights of the colonists and doubted the right of imposing on the colonists.After the fight against the British, the colonist leader had drafted Declaration of Independence, which suggested liberty of completely subverted the British domination and suggested the common liberality among all the citizens of America, and had led America to republic. There was no political major conflicts in America in tens of years after that. However, the French revolution had led France to dictatorship and tens of years’ chaos after that. There was endless struggles between the left wing and the right wing during the French revolution. Although the left has published Declaration of the rights of man, since the political environment was so unstable, that didn't really changed the society into republic. After “The Terror” which killed 40,000 people, Napoleon Bonaparte was crowned as a Emperor, a dictator of France. Then, after Napoleon died, monarchy and republic appeared alternately. These features suggested the French revolution changed France into dictatorship and was in chaos in tens of years, as the…

    • 704 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Superior Essays

    According to author Robin Blackburn, thanks to the Revolution in America, France would eventually have had to deal with their island of Haiti. Because America chose to rule itself rather than be ruled by Britain, the French borrowed this idea from the United States that led to the downfall of the monarchy. Comparable a stack of dominoes stood up and pushed over, the American rebellion set in motion a worldwide revolution that hit France which eventually reached Haiti. With the French asking for freedoms and equality in their Declaration of Rights, it would make sense that their slaves in Haiti would want the same as them since they were part of France. Unfortunately, this was not the case, and Haiti would draft its own Declaration of Independence. According to the Haitian Declaration, “It is not enough to have restrained those ever-evolving factions that one after another mocked the specter of liberty that France dangled before you.” Due to them not wanting to be slaves anymore, they fought a bloody war for the right to rule themselves. If equality was not an option, then independence was the answer for Haiti. As mentioned in their Declaration,” They must live independent or die.” The only way for Haiti to enjoy freedom was for independence even at the cost of many lives. Although this would not apply to all in the United…

    • 1111 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Unlike the French Revolution, the American Revolution was more fortunate. Essentially planned the purpose behind the American Revolution was to become independent, and have rights. Like usual, within revolutions, there will be battles but all these disputes had a reason behind it. The American Revolutionary war started after the French and Indian war because of the treaty, it doesn’t enable colonists to migrate past the Appalachian mountains and those that lived there must migrate back. The Sugar, Stamp, Declaratory, and Townshend acts entirely made the colonists despise the Parliament further each act. In the Boston Massacre is when the first shot that was fired it was called the “Shot heard around the world”. That was the turning point of…

    • 312 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    In a time of dire change and the opportunity for revitalization, the American and French…

    • 329 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    The reason the whole french revolution started was because the monarchy started going downhill and soon turning into a crisis. King Louis XIV started spendings large amounts of money and started leading the whole country into going bankrupt, which was also caused by the involvement within the american revolution. By the end of this revolution, they ended up abolishing the monarchy and the absolute rule of the king and created a democracy to rule…

    • 558 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Decent Essays

    wanted to rebel against their governments. The need for democracy and freedom of rights fueled…

    • 301 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Decent Essays