A. Provide basic information about the following figure and their participation in the French Revolution and in the Napoleonic War . Also include their achievements and he reason of their downfall.
1. Napoleon Bonaparte

Napoleon Bonaparte (French: Napoléon Bonaparte [napoleɔ̃ bɔnɑpaʁt], Italian: Napoleone Bonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821) was a military and political leader of France and Emperor of the French as Napoleon I, whose actions shaped European politics in the early 19th century.

Napoleon was born in Corsica, France to parents of minor noble Italian ancestry and trained as an artillery officer in mainland France. Bonaparte rose to prominence under the French First Republic and led successful campaigns against the First and Second Coalitions arrayed against France. In 1799, he staged a coup d'état and installed himself as First Consul; five years later the French Senate proclaimed him emperor. In the first decade of the 19th century, the French Empire under Napoleon engaged in a series of conflicts—the Napoleonic Wars—involving every major European power. After a streak of victories, France secured a dominant position in continental Europe, and Napoleon maintained the French sphere of influence through the formation of extensive alliances and the appointment of friends and family members to rule other European countries as French client states.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Napoleon_bonaparte

2. Duke Wellington
The Dukedom of Wellington, derived from Wellington in Somerset, is a hereditary title in the senior rank of the Peerage of the United Kingdom. The first holder of the title was Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington (1769–1852), the noted Irish-born career British Army officer and statesman, and unqualified references to the Duke of Wellington almost always refer to him. He is most famous for, together with Gebhard Leberecht von Blücher, defeating Napoleon Bonaparte at Waterloo in Brabant (now Walloon Brabant province, Belgium). The Wellesley family is, in origin, an Anglo-Irish aristocratic dynasty.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Duke_of_wellington
3. Maximilien Robespierre

Maximilien François Marie Isidore de Robespierre (IPA: [maksimiljɛ̃ fʁɑ̃swa maʁi izidɔʁ də ʁɔbɛspjɛʁ]; 6 May 1758 – 28 July 1794) is one of the best-known and most influential figures of the French Revolution. He largely dominated the Committee of Public Safety and was instrumental in the period of the Revolution commonly known as the Reign of Terror, which ended with his arrest and execution in 1794.

Robespierre was influenced by 18th century Enlightenment philosophes such as Jean-Jacques Rousseau and Montesquieu, and he was a capable articulator of the beliefs of the left-wing bourgeoisie. He was described as being physically unimposing yet immaculate in attire and personal manners. His supporters called him "The Incorruptible", while his adversaries called him "dictateur sanguinaire" (blood-thirsty dictator).

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maximilien_Robespierre

4. George Danton
Georges Jacques Danton (French pronunciation: [ʒɔʁʒ dɑ̃tɔ̃]; 26 October 1759 – 5 April 1794) was a leading figure in the early stages of the French Revolution and the first President of the Committee of Public Safety. Danton's role in the onset of the Revolution has been disputed; many historians describe him as "the chief force in the overthrow of the monarchy and the establishment of the First French Republic".^[2] A moderating influence on the Jacobins, he was guillotined by the advocates of revolutionary terror after accusations of venality and leniency to the enemies of the Revolution.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Georges_Danton


B. What happened to France after the Napoleonic War. Discuss and provide a brief and concise account about the war.

The Napoleonic Wars were a series of conflicts declared against Napoleon's French Empire and changing sets of European allies by opposing coalitions that ran from 1803 to 1815. As a continuation of the wars sparked by the French Revolution of 1789, they revolutionized European armies and played out on an unprecedented scale, mainly due to the application of modern mass conscription. French power rose quickly, conquering most of Europe, but collapsed rapidly after France's disastrous invasion of Russia in 1812. Napoleon's empire ultimately suffered complete military defeat resulting in the restoration of the Bourbon monarchy in France. The wars resulted in the dissolution of the Holy Roman Empire and sowed the seeds of nascent nationalism in Germany and Italy that would lead to the two nations' consolidation later in the century. Meanwhile, the Spanish Empire began to unravel as French occupation of Spain weakened Spain's hold over its colonies, providing an opening for nationalist revolutions in Spanish America. As a direct result of the Napoleonic wars, the British Empire became the foremost world power for the next century,^[1] thus beginning Pax Britannica.

No consensus exists as to when the French Revolutionary Wars ended and the Napoleonic Wars began. An early candidate is 9 November 1799, when Bonaparte seized power in France with the coup of 18 Brumaire. 18 May 1803 is probably the most commonly used date, as this was when a renewed declaration of war between Britain and France (resulting from the collapse of the Treaty of Amiens), ended the only period of general peace in Europe between 1792 and 1814. The latest proposed date is 2 December 1804, when Napoleon crowned himself Emperor.

The Napoleonic Wars ended following Napoleon's final defeat at Waterloo on 18 June 1815 and the Second Treaty of Paris.

http://wiki.ask.com/Napoleonic_Wars

C. Introduce the following personalities and their accomplishments in their respective countries:
1Queen Isabela

Isabella I was born on April 22, 1451 in the town of Madrigal de las Altas Torres. She died on November 26, 1504 in the castle of La Mota. She is often referred to as "La Católica" (the Catholic) a "title" given to her by the Spanish Pope, Alexander VI. This is a title that the Kings and Queens of Spain still retain. She was the daughter of John II, King of Castile and his second wife, Isabella of Portugal
2King Carlos V
Charles V (Spanish: Carlos I or Carlos I de España y V de Alemania; German: Karl V., Dutch: Karel V, French: Charles Quint, 24 February 1500 – 21 September 1558) was ruler of the Holy Roman Empire from 1519 and, as Charles I, of the Spanish Empire from 1516 until his voluntary retirement and abdication in favor of his younger brother Ferdinand I and his son Philip II in 1556.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charles_V,_Holy_Roman_Emperor

3. King Philip II
Philip II (Spanish: Felipe II; Portuguese: Filipe I ; 21 May 1527 – 13 September 1598) was King of Spain (kingdoms of Castile, Navarra, this one disputed by the French and the Crown of Aragon) and Portugal, Naples, Sicily, and, while married to Mary I, King of England and Ireland.^[1][2] He was lord of the Seventeen Provinces from 1556 until 1581, holding various titles for the individual territories such as Duke or Count.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Philip_II_of_Spain

4. Ivan the Terrible
Ivan the Terrible succeeded his father Vasilii III and was the first Grand Prince to have himself officially crowned tsar. With his reign, Russia became a fully autocratic state. He succeeded to the throne at the age of three and regents ruled for him until at the age of 16 he had himself crowned tsar. He also married Anastasia who was a member of the Romanov boyar family. As a boy, Ivan IV suffered under the regents. While he was treated with respect in public, in private he was often neglected and tortured. He also witnessed the boyars fighting to come to power. These two things are believed to have caused Ivan IV to be cruel. As a child he was known to torture animals, and as an adult his actions earned him the name Ivan the Terrible. His title in Russian was Gronzy which actually means the awesome. He was also very suspicious of the boyars and heavily persecuted them. This too may have been from seeing the actions of the boyars when he was a child. He even had a leading boyar named Andrei Shuisky fed to the dogs to show his power.
http://www.mnsu.edu/emuseum/history/russia/ivantheterrible.html

5. Peter the Great

Born: May 30 (June 9), 1672, Moscow.

Died: January 28 (February 8), 1725, St. Petersburg.

Crowned Tsar of Russia on April 27, 1682; became Emperor of Russia on October 22, 1721.

Peter was a grandson of Tsar Michael Romanov (who was crowned as Tsar in 1613). In 1682 Peter was proclaimed Tsar at the tender age of 10. But due to power struggles between different political forces in the country, the young Tsar was forced to rule jointly with his brother Ivan, under the patronage of their sister Sofia. In 1689, after a failed coup d'etat, Sofia was overthrown and exiled to a convent. When Tsar Ivan died in 1696, Peter remained monarch and engineered a series of reforms that were to put Russia among the major European powers of the day. Peter opened Russia to the influences of the West and invited the best European engineers, shipbuilders, architects, craftsmen and merchants to come to Russia and modernize the country. Hundreds of Russians were sent to Europe to get the best education possible and learn the different arts and crafts that would sustain Russia in its future growth.

http://www.saint-petersburg.com/history/peter1st.asp

6.Catherine the great

Born a princess in Germany, Catherine the Great converted to Orthodoxy and was married to the heir to the Russian throne, the Grand Duke Peter of Holstein, grandson of Peter the Great. Though Catherine the Great had the support of Peter's mother, the Empress Elizabeth, she disliked her husband and helped engineer his removal from the throne. She took power as Tsarina or Queen, calling herself Catherine II. Soon after, she may have been behind Peter's death.

http://womenshistory.about.com/od/catherinegreat/p/catherinegreat.htm

7.Maria Theresa

Maria Teresa, Grand Duchess of Luxembourg was born in Marianao, Havana, Cuba, to José Antonio Mestre y Alvarez (Vedado, Havana, 1926 -) and wife (m. Vedado, Havana, 1951) María Teresa Batista y Falla de Mestre (Vedado, Havana, 1928 - 1988), both from families of the bourgeoisie and Spanish nobility (including some Conquistadors).^[1]

In October 1959, at the time of the revolution, Maria Teresa Mestre left Cuba with her parents. The family settled in New York City, New York, where, as a young girl, she was a pupil at Marymount School. From 1961 she carried on her studies at the Lycée Français. In her childhood, Maria Teresa Mestre took ballet and singing courses. She practices skiing, ice-skating and water sports. She lived in New York City, Santander, Spain and Geneva, where she met the Grand Duke.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maria_Teresa,_Grand_Duchess_of_Luxembourg

Note: URL should be placed at the last part of each answers. Answers should be posted in your own blog. Meaning you have to create your own blog and add knowieclose1028@yahoo.com as author. Thank u. Worth 100 points and should be complied up to Friday night February 18, 2011.

1. Where did the name France came from?
answer:
The name France comes from Latin Francia, which literally means "land of the Franks". Originally it applied to the whole Frankish Empire, extending from southern France to eastern Germany.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Name_of_France

2.What is absolute monarchy? Tell how its ended as a system of government in France?
answer: A monarchy is a form of government in which all political power is passed down to an individual (usually hereditary) known as a monarch ("single ruler"), or king (male), queen (female).

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Monarchy

The French Revolution (French: Révolution française; 1789–99) was a period of radical social and political upheaval in French and European history. The absolute monarchy that had ruled France for centuries collapsed in three years. French society underwent an epic transformation as feudal, aristocratic and religious privileges evaporated under a sustained assault from liberal political groups and the masses on the streets. Old ideas about hierarchy and tradition succumbed to new Enlightenment principles of citizenship and inalienable rights.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/French_Revolution.

3. Tell something about the following leaders in France ( their role, achievements, accomplishments)

a. King Louis XIII

Louis XIII (27 September 1601 – 14 May 1643) was King of France and Navarre from 1610 to 1643. Along with his First Minister Cardinal Richelieu, Louis "the Just" is remembered for the establishment of the Académie française and participation in the Thirty Years' War against the House of Habsburg.[1] France's greatest victory in the war came at the Battle of Rocroi, five days after Louis' death—apparently from complications of intestinal tuberculosis, "marking the end of Spain's military ascendancy in Europe.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Louis_XIII_of_France

b. King Louis XIV

Louis XIV (5 September 1638 – 1 September 1715), known as the Sun King (French: le Roi Soleil), was King of France and of Navarre.[1] His reign, from 1643 to his death in 1715, began at the age of four and lasted seventy-two years, three months, and eighteen days, and is the longest documented reign of any European monarch.[2]

Louis began personally governing France in 1661 after the death of his prime minister, the Italian Cardinal Mazarin.[3] An adherent of the theory of the divine right of kings, which advocates the divine origin and lack of temporal restraint of monarchical rule, Louis continued his predecessors' work of creating a centralized state governed from the capital. He sought to eliminate the remnants of feudalism persisting in parts of France and, by compelling the noble elite to inhabit his lavish Palace of Versailles, succeeded in pacifying the aristocracy, many members of which had participated in the Fronde rebellion during Louis' minority.

For much of Louis's reign, France stood as the leading European power, engaging in three major wars—the Franco-Dutch War, the War of the League of Augsburg, and the War of the Spanish Succession—and two minor conflicts—the War of Devolution and the War of the Reunions. He encouraged and benefited from the work of prominent political, military and cultural figures such as Mazarin, Colbert, Turenne and Vauban, as well as Molière, Racine, Boileau, La Fontaine, Lully, Le Brun, Rigaud, Le Vau, Mansart, Perrault and Le Nôtre.

Upon his death just days before his seventy-seventh birthday, Louis was succeeded by his five-year-old great-grandson who became Louis XV. All his intermediate heirs—his son Louis, le Grand Dauphin; the Dauphin's eldest son Louis, duc de Bourgogne; and Bourgogne's eldest son Louis, duc de Bretagne—predeceased Louis.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Louis_XIV_of_France

c. Cardinal Richelieu

Armand Jean du Plessis de Richelieu, Cardinal-Duc de Richelieu (French pronunciation: [ʁiʃəljø]; 9 September 1585 – 4 December 1642) was a French clergyman, noble, and statesman.

Consecrated as a bishop in 1608, he later entered politics, becoming a Secretary of State in 1616. Richelieu soon rose in both the Catholic Church and the French government, becoming a Cardinal in 1622, and King Louis XIII's chief minister in 1624. He remained in office until his death in 1642; he was succeeded by Cardinal Mazarin, whose career he fostered.

The Cardinal de Richelieu was often known by the title of the King's "Chief Minister" or "First Minister." As a result, he is considered to be the world's first Prime Minister, in the modern sense of the term. He sought to consolidate royal power and crush domestic factions. By restraining the power of the nobility, he transformed France into a strong, centralized state. His chief foreign policy objective was to check the power of the Austro-Spanish Habsburg dynasty. Although he was a cardinal, he did not hesitate to make alliances with Protestant rulers in attempting to achieve this goal. His tenure was marked by the Thirty Years' War that engulfed Europe.

Richelieu was also famous for his patronage of the arts; most notably, he founded the Académie Française, the learned society responsible for matters pertaining to the French language. Richelieu is also known by the sobriquet l'Éminence rouge ("the Red Eminence"), from the red shade of a cardinal's clerical dress and the style "eminence" as a cardinal.

As an advocate for Samuel de Champlain and of the retention of Quebec, he founded the Compagnie des Cent-Associés and saw the Treaty of Saint-Germain-en-Laye return Quebec City to French rule under Champlain, after the settlement had been captured by the Kirkes in 1629. This in part allowed the colony to eventually develop into the heartland of Francophone culture in North America.

He is also a leading character in The Three Musketeers by Alexandre Dumas, père and its subsequent film adaptations, portrayed as a main antagonist, and a powerful ruler, even more powerful than the King himself, though events like the Day of the Dupes show that in fact he very much depended on the King's confidence to keep this power.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cardinal_Richelieu

d. Mazarin

Jules Mazarin (French pronunciation: [ʒyl mazaʁɛ̃]; July 14, 1602 – March 9, 1661), born Giulio Raimondo Mazarino or Mazarini,[1] was a French-Italian[2] cardinal, diplomat, and politician, who served as the chief minister of France from 1642 until his death. Mazarin succeeded his mentor, Cardinal Richelieu. He was a noted collector of art and jewels, particularly diamonds, and he bequeathed the "Mazarin diamonds" to Louis XIV in 1661, some of which remain in the collection of the Louvre museum in Paris.[3] His personal library was the origin of the Bibliothèque Mazarine in Paris.
Mazarin had largely pursued the policies of his predecessor.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cardinal_Mazarin

4. What is a General Estates in France? What is its composition? Describe each.

In France under the Ancient Regime, the States-General or Estates-General (French: états généraux, IPA: [eta ʒeneʁo]), was a legislative assembly (see The Estates) of the different classes (or estates) of French subjects. It had a separate assembly for each of the three estates, which were called and dismissed by the king. It had no true power in its own right—unlike the English parliament it was not required to approve royal taxation or legislation[1] instead it functioned as an advisory body to the king, primarily by presenting petitions from the various estates and consulting on fiscal policy[2]. The Estates-General met from intermittently until 1614 and rarely afterwards, but was not definitively dissolved until after the French Revolution.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/French_States-General

First Estate

The First Estate comprised the entire clergy, traditionally divided into "higher" and "lower" clergy. Although there was no formal demarcation between the two categories, the upper clergy were, effectively, clerical nobility, from the families of the Second Estate. In the time of Louis XVI, every bishop in France was a nobleman, a situation that had not existed before the 18th century.[1] At the other extreme, the "lower clergy" ( about equally divided between parish priests and monks and nuns) constituted about 90 percent of the First Estate, which in 1789 numbered around 130,000 (about 0.5% of the population).
[edit] Second Estate

The Second Estate (Fr. deuxieme état) was the French nobility and (technically, though not in common use) royalty, other than the monarch himself who, stood outside of the system of estates.

The Second Estate is traditionally divided into "noblesse de robe" ("nobility of the robe"), the magisterial class that administered royal justice and civil government, and "noblesse d'épée" ("nobility of the sword").

The Second Estate constituted approximately 1.5% of France's population.[citation needed] Under the ancien régime, the Second Estate were exempt from the corvée royale (forced labour on the roads) and from most other forms of taxation such as the gabelle (salt tax) and most important, the taille (the oldest form of direct taxation). This exemption from paying taxes led to their reluctance to reform.
[edit] Third Estate

The Third Estate was the generality (or the statement) of people which were not part of the other estates.

The Third Estate comprised all those not members of the above and can be divided into two groups, urban and rural. The urban included the bourgeoisie 8% of France's population, as well as wage-laborers (such as craftsmen). The rural includes the peasantry, or the farming class (about 90% of the population). The Third Estate includes some of what would now be considered middle class—e.g., the budding town bourgeoisie. What united the Third Estate is that most had little or no wealth and yet were forced to pay disproportionately high taxes to the other Estates.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/First_Estate

5. Tell something about the following events in the history of France:

1. Hundred Years War

The Hundred Years' War (French: Guerre de Cent Ans) was a series of wars waged from 1337 to 1453 by the House of Valois and the House of Plantagenet, also known as the House of Anjou, for the French throne, which had become vacant upon the extinction of the senior Capetian line of French kings. The House of Valois claimed the title of King of France, while the Plantagenets claimed to be Kings of France and England. The Plantagenet kings were the 12th century rulers of the Kingdom of England, and had their roots in the French regions of Anjou and Normandy.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hundred_Years%27_War

2. Thirty Years War

The Thirty Years' War (1618–1648) was one of the most destructive conflicts in European history. The war was fought primarily in what is now Germany, and at various points involved most of the countries of Europe. Naval warfare also reached overseas and shaped the colonial formation of future nations.

The origins of the conflict and goals of the participants were complex, and no single cause can accurately be described as the main reason for the fighting. Initially, the war was fought largely as a religious conflict between Protestants and Catholics in the Holy Roman Empire, although disputes over the internal politics and balance of power within the Empire played a significant part. Gradually, the war developed into a more general conflict involving most of the European powers.[9][10] In this general phase, the war became more a continuation of the Bourbon–Habsburg rivalry for European political pre-eminence, and in turn led to further warfare between France and the Habsburg powers, and less specifically about religion.[11]
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thirty_Years%27_War

3. War of Spanish Successions

The War of the Spanish Succession (1701–1714) was fought among several European powers, principally the Spanish loyal to Archduke Charles, the Holy Roman Empire, Great Britain, the Dutch Republic, Portugal and the Duchy of Savoy against the Spanish loyal to Philip V, France and the Electorate of Bavaria over a possible unification of the Kingdoms of Spain and France under one Bourbon monarch. Such a unification would have drastically changed the European balance of power. The war was fought mostly in Europe but included Queen Anne's War in North America and it was marked by the military leadership of notable generals including the Duc de Villars, the Jacobite Duke of Berwick, the Duke of Marlborough and Prince Eugene of Savoy. It resulted in the recognition of Philip as King of Spain while requiring him to renounce any claim to the French throne and to cede much of the Spanish Crown's possessions to the Holy Roman Empire, the Dutch Republic, Savoy and Great Britain, partitioning the Spanish Empire in Europe.

In 1700, Charles II, the last Spanish monarch of the House of Habsburg, died without issue, bequeathing his possessions to Philip, grandson of his half-sister and King Louis XIV of France. Philip thereby became Philip V of Spain and since he was also the younger son of the Dauphin of France, Philip was in the line of succession of the French throne. The specter of the multi-continental empire of Spain passing under the control of Louis XIV provoked a massive coalition of powers to oppose Philip's succession.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_the_Spanish_Succession

4. French Revolution

The French Revolution (French: Révolution française; 1789–99) was a period of radical social and political upheaval in French and European history. The absolute monarchy that had ruled France for centuries collapsed in three years. French society underwent an epic transformation as feudal, aristocratic and religious privileges evaporated under a sustained assault from liberal political groups and the masses on the streets. Old ideas about hierarchy and tradition succumbed to new Enlightenment principles of citizenship and inalienable rights.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/French_Revolution.

Note: URL should be placed at the last part of each answers. Answers should be posted in your own blog. Meaning you have to create your own blog and add knowieclose1028@yahoo.com as author. Thank u. Worth 100 points and should be complied up to Friday night February 18, 2011.
1. Where did the name France came from?
2. What is absolute monarchy? Tell how it ended as a system of government in France?
3. Tell something about the following leaders in France ( their role, achievements, accomplishments)
a. King Louis XIII
b. King Louis XIV
c. Cardinal Richelieu
d. Mazarin
4. What is a General Estates in France? What is its composition? Describe each.
5. Tell something about the following events in the history of France:
1. Hundred Years War
2. Thirty Years War
3. War of Spanish Successions
4. French Revolution