Dear Diary: Things have been crazy here in France over the past few years, I guess I can say I was one of the lucky ones during all of this. For I was neither rich nor poor but in the middle and I made it through the issues of France safetly. I can say things started off when Charles X became the new king. When Charles X became king of France he started off with many changes. And this is what gave start to the problems that would soon occur. It seemed that he was set on only helping the rich. He lowered interest rates on government lands that would help the rich who had lost their lands in the revolution. I could remember how angry my father had become at this, how every night he would come home from work telling my mother about lost income from his bonds. But this was only the start of all his changes, he restored the rule of primogeniture and he enacted a law that punished sacrilege. My family considered ourselves to be Liberals and my father being a strong liberal along with the other liberals in France disagreed highly with this. The people wanted a genuinely costitutional regime and though once the liberals gained seats in the Chamber of Deputies it became a less conservative ministry the liberals were still unsastisfied. Things were changing and they began to change even more for me and the people of France when the king came up with the Four Ordinances in 1830. This restricted the freedom of the press, dissolved the Chamber of Deputies, restricted the franchise to the wealthiest people in the country and new elections were held. Things became truly scary and intense when the liberal newspapers came out. I can remember when the word first began to spread around, calling the nation to reject the monarch's actions. I can remember as well when the people actually took to the streets, putting up barracades. I can recall the anger and the hatred that filled the crowd, the feelings pooring out in waves. I can remember the fear that I felt when the king sent out his troops to the streets and the way my mom kept us inside during the time. I remember hearing the next day about all of the people that had died in this, some even being close to my family. It was when Charles X finally went exiled that hope returned. The Bourbon dynasty ended and Louis Philippe became the new king. He was known as the "King of the French" and with him we belived that there was a chance for new change. During the revolution the liberals had filled a power vaccum and the middle class liberals had overthrown the restoration of the monarchy and avoided a republic. Things were looking very bright for us. With the new king came a new flag, it was three colors now instead of one. My father told me that a new constitution was made which was more for the people instead of the monarch. Catholicism became a religion of majority but it wasnt the official religion. It seemed at this time that things would continue to go well, but nothings ever perfect. Things were still conservitive in a social aspect. Hereditary peerage was abolished and money was still the way to get power and influenece in the government. The lower and working class were still not getting their demands met and there was still much corruption. France had delt with many problems over these past years and Im lucky that me and my family got through it all without facing to many problems. However it was hard to see the other people of France face these difficult issues.
Dear Diary, Things are getting really interesting. It seems that nobody is happy right now. Our unity has faltered and I am unsure if we will ever be a powerful nation again. Napoleon ran our country into the ground when he spread up too thin. Upon losing the Napoleonic wars, we fell behind countries like Britain. This called for men like Charles X to step up as leaders whom promoted change. We needed change but not necessarily all change was good. He favored the rich, surprise surprise. In order to bail out those who lost lands, interest rates were lowered which caused bond holders to take a financial hit. In a country full of liberals like myself, it was absurd that a panel of liberals put in charge could not appease anyone. Riots ensued. The damages were major and there was quite a death toll. My fellow liberals took to the streets in protest of the king’s actions. Charles also created the four ordinances of 1830 restricting rights we had just been promised in the revolution. We lost freedom of the press and in a direct reaction to that, the liberal newspapers were published and distributed. When we began the Chamber of Deputies, all citizens could feel equally represented, yet one of the ordinances was to dissolve this legislative body. All of these absolutist actions are what caused the protest full riots. The king sent out troops to battle the dissatisfied citizens. I watched from the safety of my home as I had a family to worry about. This does not mean I was exempt from the pains of the riots, as several of my closest friends failed to survive the madness. This opened my eyes to the truth that nobody was safe when troops lined the streets as barricades with their guns drawn. A beneficial change was obviously needed and that had to start with the removal of Charles X from power. All we had done to flea absolutism in our revolution was erased when napoleon took over but at least he cared for the people as a whole. Charles has yet to serve anyone but the rich. Who could have a nationalistic feeling of unity when we can’t even have a fair ruler? This is why we had to extinguish the Bourbon dynasty. He was succeeded by a ruler for the people, Louis Philippe. As a country who still remains conservative, we have quite a few liberals which may foreshadow a change to the progressive. A new constitution was established to adhere to the people and not the ruler. It may seem like the people would be satisfied, but not quite. The government still favored the rich, I’m shocked. However we did have the freedom to pick our religion again. Our country took steps to unify with the new three color flag, showing a shift in power to not one absolute man. We would not be unified however, until we were equal as there is still work to be done. Sincerely, Arnaud Benedicte
September 17, 1825 Charles X has been ruler for one year, and I am already tired of him. He does not know what is best for the people as a whole. It is not fair that only those close to him get the privileges and benefits which I, a middle class man, and the people like myself have worked extremely hard for and still have not reached. King Charles does not realize that this idea of Divine Right is far outdated. Does he not remember what we fought for thirty years ago? All he sees are the “hardships” that the aristocrats went through during the revolution, and so he sits on his throne and takes money from my family and from my friends and my neighbors and gives it to the émigrés, the noblemen that survived the revolution. Not to mention, the man brought back primogeniture. Seriously, that’s so last century. The Bourbons have got to go.
December 20, 1827 Last month my friend Pierre gained a seat in the Chamber of Deputies. He and some other liberals in the chamber are making it harder for the king and the aristocrats to hold all power. They appointed less conservative ministers, and they restricted the government’s control of education, but I am still not content. I want a new constitution!
October 5, 1829 Charles has changed his ministry once again, this time appointing Prince de Polignac and the king’s supporters! This cannot happen! I am a middle class man in society and I cannot stand to not have a say in my own country. The king does not know what we need; only WE know what we need!
July 28, 1830 What is this?! Does this mean the Chamber of Deputies is no longer?! Just because Polignac has defeated Algeria earlier this month, it does not mean the hot-headed royalists can run things now! Charles has issued the Four Ordinances stating his plan for overthrow. He’s trying to take away all our rights! The newspapers are even speaking out harshly against him, and everyone is going crazy in the streets! Yesterday, I witnessed three men get killed by the kings troops only four blocks from my house! Chaos everywhere!
August 3, 1830 Thank the Lord! CHARLES IS GONE! He's stepped down as king and is leaving for England! I hear that a new ministry will be named, consisting of those supporting a constitutional monarchy, and Louis Philippe of Orleans will be named king! Am I mad that we will still have a king? No! Of course a republic sounds appealing, but certainly not in our case. We cannot have the revolution happen all over again, so as long as the king rules for the peoplnd the people and not for himself and as long as the people can have a say, then I am content.
December 13, 1830 This constitutional monarchy with Louis Philippe is working out well so far (for us middle class men especially), and the majority of the country is proud to call him our king. There is even a new flag! Instead of the white Bourbon flag, our flag is blue, white, and red! And thankfully, with this new government, the king must cooperate with the Chamber of Deputies. Finally, things are beginning to work out how they should be!
November 29, 1832 Everything had been working out fine until the poors complained that they didn't get their share. They say they are mad we didn't fix economic problems, but I don't see anything wrong! The workers revolt in the street like wild animals, and just the other day troops even had to get involved in Lyons! I thought things were going well, but I'm not sure how much longer it'll be until something big happens again..
Charles X is an interesting character. I found it surprising that this man would actually support the aristocracy. He should really read up on his history because the lower classes can really pack a punch. I feel he was a failure of a king because he was unwilling to acknowledge the poor. Surprisingly the people did not just overthrow him like in the previous revolution.
During this French revolution, Charles made some major mistakes... obviously. His blatant disregard for the majority of the people in his country made his reign one of misery. Due to the fact that his conservative thoughts deeply contrasted with those of the liberal population, the time period in which Charles was in power was not a fun time. The only thing that the lower classes accomplished was to rid themselves from the absolute monarchy, however, that's not nearly as much as they desired to reform in France.
Charles X seems to be just like every other ignorant monarch who failed. It started with a lack of wanting to actually help the people who needed it. He went about it all wrong and only gave assistance to the rich, who were getting along fine as it was. Ignorance of the poor is one thing, but he was downright punishing them for no reason. His issue of the Four Ordinances gave the Chamber of Deputies to the rich, and left the poor with nothing, no type of representation to work with. Louis Philippe wasn't perfect, but at least he knew enough to try and help everyone, not just the wealthy. A new constitution was made and things started to look up for the people of France.
I like the way Becky structured it, into short diary entries, it made it easier to read. But I liked the way in which she connected how they had just fought for a revolution to end a reign and Charles was about to repeat the same type of monarchy they had fought so hard to overthrow. You'd think that the french goverment would learn after the french revolution that they need to appease the majority rather than the rich and Becky did a good job of discussing that. -Sarah Walters
Chris- i found your comment on the middle class "packing a punch" interesting. What makes these revolutions so interesting is that they did not involve people skilled in combat and war, they involved regular people with ambition. Avary's post really did capture the esence of what the people wanted and what they were willing to do to get it. When the need for change comes about, change will happen, violently most times.
I also found it interesting that, with a nation that seems to never get what they want, they aren't alone in the fight for freedom. I did the revolution of Haiti andi can honestly say these two different fights were for the same goal. Ironically, Haiti was trying to fight from France which had a tyrannical grip over Haiti. The people wanted change, and like many revolutions, violence was needed. I don't know if any one else finds this true, but i just happened to make a connection.
I thought it was intersting that charles x somehow managed to stay in power despite his gross malice towards the lower class. His allegances clearly lied with the aristocracy. I also found it out of character for the people not to just overthrow him.
Kevin, I found your journal very interesting especially how you expressed that the French although opposing the rule of Napoleon would of preferred him over Charles X who essentially did not care about the majority of the people rather of that of the wealthy, and powerful. I also like how you explained how the French people faught and attempted so long to form liberal ideas through the French Revolution and were immediately denied any attempt to fulfill their ideals as a country through the four ordinances of 1830 that further limited their rights as French people rather than expanding them.
Dear Diary:
ReplyDeleteThings have been crazy here in France over the past few years, I guess I can say I was one of the lucky ones during all of this. For I was neither rich nor poor but in the middle and I made it through the issues of France safetly. I can say things started off when Charles X became the new king. When Charles X became king of France he started off with many changes. And this is what gave start to the problems that would soon occur. It seemed that he was set on only helping the rich. He lowered interest rates on government lands that would help the rich who had lost their lands in the revolution. I could remember how angry my father had become at this, how every night he would come home from work telling my mother about lost income from his bonds. But this was only the start of all his changes, he restored the rule of primogeniture and he enacted a law that punished sacrilege. My family considered ourselves to be Liberals and my father being a strong liberal along with the other liberals in France disagreed highly with this. The people wanted a genuinely costitutional regime and though once the liberals gained seats in the Chamber of Deputies it became a less conservative ministry the liberals were still unsastisfied. Things were changing and they began to change even more for me and the people of France when the king came up with the Four Ordinances in 1830. This restricted the freedom of the press, dissolved the Chamber of Deputies, restricted the franchise to the wealthiest people in the country and new elections were held. Things became truly scary and intense when the liberal newspapers came out. I can remember when the word first began to spread around, calling the nation to reject the monarch's actions. I can remember as well when the people actually took to the streets, putting up barracades. I can recall the anger and the hatred that filled the crowd, the feelings pooring out in waves. I can remember the fear that I felt when the king sent out his troops to the streets and the way my mom kept us inside during the time. I remember hearing the next day about all of the people that had died in this, some even being close to my family. It was when Charles X finally went exiled that hope returned. The Bourbon dynasty ended and Louis Philippe became the new king. He was known as the "King of the French" and with him we belived that there was a chance for new change. During the revolution the liberals had filled a power vaccum and the middle class liberals had overthrown the restoration of the monarchy and avoided a republic. Things were looking very bright for us. With the new king came a new flag, it was three colors now instead of one. My father told me that a new constitution was made which was more for the people instead of the monarch. Catholicism became a religion of majority but it wasnt the official religion. It seemed at this time that things would continue to go well, but nothings ever perfect. Things were still conservitive in a social aspect. Hereditary peerage was abolished and money was still the way to get power and influenece in the government. The lower and working class were still not getting their demands met and there was still much corruption. France had delt with many problems over these past years and Im lucky that me and my family got through it all without facing to many problems. However it was hard to see the other people of France face these difficult issues.
Dear Diary,
ReplyDeleteThings are getting really interesting. It seems that nobody is happy right now. Our unity has faltered and I am unsure if we will ever be a powerful nation again. Napoleon ran our country into the ground when he spread up too thin. Upon losing the Napoleonic wars, we fell behind countries like Britain. This called for men like Charles X to step up as leaders whom promoted change. We needed change but not necessarily all change was good. He favored the rich, surprise surprise. In order to bail out those who lost lands, interest rates were lowered which caused bond holders to take a financial hit. In a country full of liberals like myself, it was absurd that a panel of liberals put in charge could not appease anyone. Riots ensued. The damages were major and there was quite a death toll. My fellow liberals took to the streets in protest of the king’s actions. Charles also created the four ordinances of 1830 restricting rights we had just been promised in the revolution. We lost freedom of the press and in a direct reaction to that, the liberal newspapers were published and distributed. When we began the Chamber of Deputies, all citizens could feel equally represented, yet one of the ordinances was to dissolve this legislative body. All of these absolutist actions are what caused the protest full riots. The king sent out troops to battle the dissatisfied citizens. I watched from the safety of my home as I had a family to worry about. This does not mean I was exempt from the pains of the riots, as several of my closest friends failed to survive the madness. This opened my eyes to the truth that nobody was safe when troops lined the streets as barricades with their guns drawn. A beneficial change was obviously needed and that had to start with the removal of Charles X from power. All we had done to flea absolutism in our revolution was erased when napoleon took over but at least he cared for the people as a whole. Charles has yet to serve anyone but the rich. Who could have a nationalistic feeling of unity when we can’t even have a fair ruler? This is why we had to extinguish the Bourbon dynasty. He was succeeded by a ruler for the people, Louis Philippe. As a country who still remains conservative, we have quite a few liberals which may foreshadow a change to the progressive. A new constitution was established to adhere to the people and not the ruler. It may seem like the people would be satisfied, but not quite. The government still favored the rich, I’m shocked. However we did have the freedom to pick our religion again. Our country took steps to unify with the new three color flag, showing a shift in power to not one absolute man. We would not be unified however, until we were equal as there is still work to be done.
Sincerely,
Arnaud Benedicte
September 17, 1825
ReplyDeleteCharles X has been ruler for one year, and I am already tired of him. He does not know what is best for the people as a whole. It is not fair that only those close to him get the privileges and benefits which I, a middle class man, and the people like myself have worked extremely hard for and still have not reached. King Charles does not realize that this idea of Divine Right is far outdated. Does he not remember what we fought for thirty years ago? All he sees are the “hardships” that the aristocrats went through during the revolution, and so he sits on his throne and takes money from my family and from my friends and my neighbors and gives it to the émigrés, the noblemen that survived the revolution. Not to mention, the man brought back primogeniture. Seriously, that’s so last century. The Bourbons have got to go.
December 20, 1827
ReplyDeleteLast month my friend Pierre gained a seat in the Chamber of Deputies. He and some other liberals in the chamber are making it harder for the king and the aristocrats to hold all power. They appointed less conservative ministers, and they restricted the government’s control of education, but I am still not content. I want a new constitution!
October 5, 1829
ReplyDeleteCharles has changed his ministry once again, this time appointing Prince de Polignac and the king’s supporters! This cannot happen! I am a middle class man in society and I cannot stand to not have a say in my own country. The king does not know what we need; only WE know what we need!
July 28, 1830
ReplyDeleteWhat is this?! Does this mean the Chamber of Deputies is no longer?! Just because Polignac has defeated Algeria earlier this month, it does not mean the hot-headed royalists can run things now! Charles has issued the Four Ordinances stating his plan for overthrow. He’s trying to take away all our rights! The newspapers are even speaking out harshly against him, and everyone is going crazy in the streets! Yesterday, I witnessed three men get killed by the kings troops only four blocks from my house! Chaos everywhere!
August 3, 1830
ReplyDeleteThank the Lord! CHARLES IS GONE! He's stepped down as king and is leaving for England! I hear that a new ministry will be named, consisting of those supporting a constitutional monarchy, and Louis Philippe of Orleans will be named king! Am I mad that we will still have a king? No! Of course a republic sounds appealing, but certainly not in our case. We cannot have the revolution happen all over again, so as long as the king rules for the peoplnd the people and not for himself and as long as the people can have a say, then I am content.
**for the people and
DeleteDecember 13, 1830
ReplyDeleteThis constitutional monarchy with Louis Philippe is working out well so far (for us middle class men especially), and the majority of the country is proud to call him our king. There is even a new flag! Instead of the white Bourbon flag, our flag is blue, white, and red! And thankfully, with this new government, the king must cooperate with the Chamber of Deputies. Finally, things are beginning to work out how they should be!
November 29, 1832
ReplyDeleteEverything had been working out fine until the poors complained that they didn't get their share. They say they are mad we didn't fix economic problems, but I don't see anything wrong! The workers revolt in the street like wild animals, and just the other day troops even had to get involved in Lyons! I thought things were going well, but I'm not sure how much longer it'll be until something big happens again..
Charles X is an interesting character. I found it surprising that this man would actually support the aristocracy. He should really read up on his history because the lower classes can really pack a punch. I feel he was a failure of a king because he was unwilling to acknowledge the poor. Surprisingly the people did not just overthrow him like in the previous revolution.
ReplyDeleteDuring this French revolution, Charles made some major mistakes... obviously. His blatant disregard for the majority of the people in his country made his reign one of misery. Due to the fact that his conservative thoughts deeply contrasted with those of the liberal population, the time period in which Charles was in power was not a fun time. The only thing that the lower classes accomplished was to rid themselves from the absolute monarchy, however, that's not nearly as much as they desired to reform in France.
ReplyDeleteCharles X seems to be just like every other ignorant monarch who failed. It started with a lack of wanting to actually help the people who needed it. He went about it all wrong and only gave assistance to the rich, who were getting along fine as it was. Ignorance of the poor is one thing, but he was downright punishing them for no reason. His issue of the Four Ordinances gave the Chamber of Deputies to the rich, and left the poor with nothing, no type of representation to work with. Louis Philippe wasn't perfect, but at least he knew enough to try and help everyone, not just the wealthy. A new constitution was made and things started to look up for the people of France.
ReplyDeleteI like the way Becky structured it, into short diary entries, it made it easier to read. But I liked the way in which she connected how they had just fought for a revolution to end a reign and Charles was about to repeat the same type of monarchy they had fought so hard to overthrow. You'd think that the french goverment would learn after the french revolution that they need to appease the majority rather than the rich and Becky did a good job of discussing that.
ReplyDelete-Sarah Walters
Chris- i found your comment on the middle class "packing a punch" interesting. What makes these revolutions so interesting is that they did not involve people skilled in combat and war, they involved regular people with ambition. Avary's post really did capture the esence of what the people wanted and what they were willing to do to get it. When the need for change comes about, change will happen, violently most times.
ReplyDeleteI also found it interesting that, with a nation that seems to never get what they want, they aren't alone in the fight for freedom. I did the revolution of Haiti andi can honestly say these two different fights were for the same goal. Ironically, Haiti was trying to fight from France which had a tyrannical grip over Haiti. The people wanted change, and like many revolutions, violence was needed. I don't know if any one else finds this true, but i just happened to make a connection.
ReplyDeleteI thought it was intersting that charles x somehow managed to stay in power despite his gross malice towards the lower class. His allegances clearly lied with the aristocracy. I also found it out of character for the people not to just overthrow him.
ReplyDeleteKevin, I found your journal very interesting especially how you expressed that the French although opposing the rule of Napoleon would of preferred him over Charles X who essentially did not care about the majority of the people rather of that of the wealthy, and powerful. I also like how you explained how the French people faught and attempted so long to form liberal ideas through the French Revolution and were immediately denied any attempt to fulfill their ideals as a country through the four ordinances of 1830 that further limited their rights as French people rather than expanding them.
ReplyDelete