Description
The French Revolution was one of the most important upheavals in world history. This course examines its origins, course and outcomes.
This course is designed for you to work through successfully on your own. However you will not be alone on this journey. Use the resources included in the course and take part in the suggested learning activities to get the most out of your learning. To successfully complete this course, it is recommended that you devote at least six hours to every module over the six weeks of the course. In that time you should watch the video lectures, reflect and respond to in-video pause points, and complete the quizzes.
As part of the required reading for this course, during each week of this course you will have free access to a chapter of Peter McPhee’s textbook, The French Revolution, which is also available for purchase as an e-book.
View the MOOC promotional video here: http://tinyurl.com/gstw4vv
What you will learn
Week 1 – France in the 1780s
We begin this course with an introduction to the French Revolution. We will examine the social and institutional structures of the Old Regime. We will look at the main occupational groups and the roles of the First and Second estates (the clergy and nobility) in particular. We will also consider the relationship between Paris and the provinces in Old Regime France. Finally, you will be introduced to the Enlightenment and we will reflect on its significance and its possible revolutionary implications.
Week 2 – The Revolution of 1789
This week we look at the Revolution of 1789 and its causes. We will explore the tensions and conflicts that led to the crisis of the Old Regime. The focus will be on the Third Estate and the revolt of the bourgeoisie, the ‘menu peuple’ and the peasantry. We will look at the Declaration of the Rights of Man and citizen and you will be asked to reflect on its ‘universal’ significance.
Week 3 – The Reconstruction of France, 1789-92
Week three of this MOOC deals with the reforms introduced in 1789-91. We look at the institutional and administrative reorganisation of France. We will then consider three critical turning points of the Revolution: the Civil Constitution of the Clergy, the King’s attempted flight in 1791 and the outbreak of war in 1792. Finally we will look at the fate of the King and the ultimate failure of the monarchy. You will be asked to reflect on the immediate effects and longer-term consequences of these events.
Week 4 – The Republic in crisis 1792-93
Week four deals with the crisis of the Republic in 1792-93. We will examine the conflicts and disunity within the National Convention and consider the balance between revolutionary and counter-revolutionary forces by mid-1793. We will explore the civil war in the Vendee region of Western France and attempt to make sense of the growing revolutionary violence. We will look at the origins of the ‘Terror’, its institutions and its ideology, and students will be asked to reflect more broadly on the role of violence during the Revolution.
