The French Revolution

Q24. Against whom did France declare a war in 1792?

Ans. The National Assembly voted in April 1792 to declare war against Prussia and Austria.

Q25. Why was bastille hated by all in France?

Ans. Bastille was hated by all, because it stood for the despotic power of the king.

Q26. When was French declared as republic?

Ans. On 21 September 1792 it abolished the monarchy and declared France a republic.

Q27. When did Louis XVI call together an assembly of the Estates General to pass proposals for new taxes?

Ans. On 5 May 1789, Louis XVI called together an assembly of the Estates General to pass proposals for new taxes.

Q28. What is ‘guillotine’ and who invented it?

Ans. The guillotine is a device consisting of two poles and a blade with which a person is beheaded. It was named after Dr Guillotin who invented it.

 
Q29. Who stormed the bastille the fortress prison during the last years of 18th century?

Ans. A group of several hundred people marched towards the eastern part of the city and stormed the fortress-prison, the Bastille.

Q30. Which section of society in France got political rights by the constitution of 1791?

Ans. Constitution of 1791 gave political rights only to the richer sections of society.

 
Q31. Who enjoyed certain privileges by birth in French society during the late eighteenth century?

Ans. The members of the first two estates, that is, the clergy and the nobility, enjoyed certain privileges by birth.

Q32. Name the political body to which the three estates of French society sent their representatives.

Ans. The Estates General was a political body to which the three estates sent their representatives.

Q33. Highlight the three laws enforced by Napoleon to modernize France.
Or
Mention any three laws enforced by Napoleon to modernize France.

Ans. He introduced many laws such as the protection of private property and a uniform system of weights and measures provided by the decimal system.

Q34. Who in France was given the status of active citizens?

Ans. Only men above 25 years of age who paid taxes equal to at least 3 days of a labourer’s wage were given the status of active citizens, that is, they were entitled to vote.

Q35. Name the philosopher who proposed a division of power between the legislature, the executive and the judiciary.​

Ans. In The Spirit of the Laws, Montesquieu proposed a division of power within the government between the legislative, the executive and the judiciary.

Q36. When was the bastille prison attacked by the people and why?

Ans. On the morning of 14 July 1789, a group of several hundred people marched towards the eastern part of the city and stormed the fortress-prison, the Bastille, where they hoped to find hoarded ammunition.

 
Q37. Describe the status of nobles in France before the Revolution.

Ans. The nobles enjoyed certain privileges by birth. The most important of these was exemption from paying taxes to the state. The nobles further enjoyed feudal privileges. These included feudal dues, which they extracted from the peasants.

Q38. Why were women disappointed by the constitution of 1791 in France?

Ans. One of women’s main demands was that women enjoy the same political rights as men. Women were disappointed that the Constitution of 1791 reduced them to passive citizens. They demanded the right to vote, to be elected to the Assembly and to hold political office.