The French Revolution

The French revolution by many, is regarded as the first modern revolution. This means that many that followed would attempt to implement some of the methods that the French used, or use modify them to make them work best for them. The people of France, like many countries in Europe at the time, were unhappy with the way that they were being ruled, but many were too worried about the consequences to do anything about it. The French lower and middle class were able to use the recalling of the Estates General - a meeting in which the three estates (classes) of France met to discuss issues within the government and the future of the nation - to their advantage. At first they tried to bring about change through the conventional method of voting …show more content…
The lasting impact being that while violence normally plays some role in revolutions, it doesn’t have to be the spark to get attention and gain support. Another tool important for nonviolence to work, was to get the opinions of as much people as possible, which the French were able to do during the meetings like the Tennis Court Oath, which established that members from all across the French hierarchy would all come together to come up with a new constitution. We see even today the impact that allowing everyone to have a voice can have in making any decision, and that it is not only the people with typically the most power that have the best ideas.
Some people around the world don’t pay as much attention to the French Revolution, mainly because of the events going on in the Americas at the time. Both nations had a heavy influence on the other, with the French loaning a lot of support to the Americas in terms of troops on land and sea. Meanwhile many American thinkers and some military went over to France after the success of their own revolution was nearly complete. The two nations would form a close bond in the years after, and in both world wars, the friendliness between them would be crucial, and is still strong