Fighting for freedom and democracy: After reading the 1830 and 1848 Revolution in France

【Abstract】According to the long history， most of time， people will choose the hardest but most practical way to regain their own rights， freedom and democracy which leads them to take part in the revolutions again and again， without any hesitation or regret. So did the French people in 1830 and 1848.

【Key words】July Revolution; February Revolution; freedom and democracy

【作者簡介】龍品丹，華東師范大學。

1. July Revolution in 1830——the three glorious days

After Napoleons final defeat at Waterloo and the overturn of the Bourbon Dynasty， the Parliament passed the Chapter in 1830 and elected Louis Philippe （Charles X） to be the King of the newly-built Monarchie de Juillet， whose regime restored the Catholic Church to its traditional place in French classrooms. Due to the so-called July Ordinances of 1830 by Charles X， all Frenchmen could no longer bear the despotism. Therefore， they took part in the July Revolution to protect their interests and rights. The three-day intense street battles， followed in which the revolutionaries， fighting behind hastily constructed barricades， defied the army and the police. Charles X in Western Civilization abdicated without support from others.

There was an important meaning of July Revolution in France， because it was the first successful revolution in Europe at that time after the Congress of Vienna， which also encouraged the revolutions of other European countries from 1830 to 1831. It shows us clearly the French desire and their pursuit of nationalism and liberalism which can never be restrained though the Austrian Empire supported the restoration.

2. February Revolution——the three influential days

With July Dynasty hindering the development of France and the Economic Crisis in France in 1847， most of the people could not live a life， but they can just complaint without doing anything. The new king Louis Philippe did not satisfy the basic needs of French people. He just promoted his own policy of “do nothing”， so the regime disappointed the high hopes that it had inspired. The thought of getting the life people want never disappeared. Finally， rebellions that defying the kings threat broke out in Lyons and Paris on February 22，1848. To our surprise， Louis Philippe abdicated his throne in such a surprisingly short time.

February Revolution had so important influence that it was the bourgeois revolution of overthrew the July Dynasty and built French Second Republic. Also， it broke the conspiracy of Austrian Empire which wanted to lead France to declination. People gradually found and made a new way for France to have their own system and politics， which can make them richer， stronger and more powerful， that is， Capitalism， the all-round domination of bourgeois.

3. Comparison

Both revolutions had an indelible influence on France and they were one of the indispensable processes of the development of France. With time going by and consciousness of pursuing freedom being raised， people realized that the republic was suitable for their national society instead of the monarchy which could encourage them to fight for their rights. At the same time， there are some differences between July and February Revolution. July Revolution was aim at overturning the restored Bourbon Dynasty that only oppressed people to enrich the emperors life. February Revolution was the continuation， progress and development of The French Revolution in 1789， which was an important stage of the spread of Capitalism in both France and other European countries.

4. Conclusion

Nowadays， in the most part of countries around the world， people live a peaceful life while some Middle East countries still encounter plenty of difficulties about their territories， peoples rights and so on. From my viewpoint， whether people who believe in freedom can gain success or not， they should raise up their hands and take measures to have a try to protect their rights and freedom. With several revolutions and rebellions， maybe people can explore the best and most suitable way for their country to develop rapidly and easily instead of only complaining without doing anything. Freedom， democracy， and rights do not come to us until we put what we think about into practice according to the reality， never regretting.

References：

[1]Cole， J. and Symes， C. Western Civilizations： their history & their culture[J]. New York： W. W. Norton & Company，2011，Print.