Russian Revolution Timeline

Response:
Three events that I'd consider to be the "turning points" in the progression of the revolution are Lenin returns from exile, War Communism, and the Great Purge. 

First of all, Lenin returns from exile set as the primary ignition for the revolution against the czar. His return had spread the message of 'Peace, bread, and land', which appealed to all those who were tired of war and the weak government that couldn't take care of them. Upon this event, the revolutionaries were inspired potently and therefore could eventually take official action to crush down the czar; it gave them power and strength to finally fight for their rights. Hence, this event had led to certain influential others such as protests against the czar, the emergence of the Bolsheviks, the treaty of Brest-Litovsk, etc. In short, Lenin's return was indeed the turning point in the first stages of the Russian Revolution. 

Second of all, War Communism can also be considered a turning point in the revolution because it was the first policy that ensured the Bolsheviks' power over the citizens. The policy had magnificently changed Russia economically, and greatly declined the population; it had purged almost all of the White factors so that Russia could be safely be under one solid control (the Reds/the Bolsheviks). Additionally, this turning point of event later led to other policies or ideals that deprived the citizens in order to serve the government. 

Last but not least, the Great Purge was also a turning point in the Russian Revolution because it had eliminated all forces that could conspire against Stalin. This wasn't just  the turning point in the Russian Revolution, but also in world history for it had caused many global disputes about communism and dictatorship. This turning point had led to Russia's decline in population, total control over the citizens' private lives and needs - due to the changing of photographs or historical facts, etc. This event would later inspire other communist nations to absolutely control and strain their citizens, promoting the power of only one person; hence, the profits would also come to certain things depending on that person's will. 

Independence Movements in Latin America

a. The greatest factor that caused the Independence to occur was the spread of the Enlightenment ideas because without it, no one would have a different perspective on life and authority. By acknowledging and studying about the Enlightenment ideas, the people in the Americas probably had a wider knowledge and view of their desired standard life because the Enlightenment's ideals promoted one's well being by leading freedom and liberty. This factor had stimulated the Southern American countries to question their authority; it also helped them recognize their natural rights as a human, which urged them to seek their own freedom.

b. In my opinion, besides Bolivar, Toussaint L'Ouverture was one of the most important revolutionary figure in Latin America. Even though he was only known for leading the slave revolt, his accomplishment had inspired many other revolts against slavery. Latin American revolutions in my definition not only worked to aim liberty, but also the freedom of one's nature. Toussaint L'Ouverture might not have freed any of the Southern American territory out of the Spanish rule, yet he had ended slavery in Haiti, freeing the lives of so many innocent people that were exploited for their labour and well-being. To me it is better to have the freedom to be yourself (of course under regulations) and to attain adequate human rights so that one can grow and develop healthily.

French Revolution - Five Stages

STAGE 1

The First Estate and the Second Estate made up only 2% out of the whole population for France; however they had the most power over the country. Louis XVI was a corruptive king at the time because he succeeded the throne at a very young age; plus, the Austrian wife he married was abhorred by the Third Estate - the class that included the bourgeoise and peasants. In additional, every time it came to election, the ratio had always been 2:1; the Third Estate eventually wanted to question the King for their right, yet he refused talking to them.
STAGE 2

The Third Estate declared themselves as the National Assembly, the de facto government, and met on a tennis court, plotting for a revolution that would establish a Constitution. Louis XVI asked the First and Second Estates to join him to write the cnstitution together yet they refused to. This led to the Storming of the Bastille on July 14, 1789 - in which the peasants destroyed all the tax records. In addition, they also attacked the nobility and feudal institutions. Consequently, the National Assembly wrote the Declaration of the Rights of Man, and distributed across Europe. Last but not least they also abolished the feudal system, broke from the Catholic Church, established the nation-state as the source of all sovereignty, and set up a constitutional monarchy.
STAGE 3

The group of counter-revolutionaries were the people who didn't want the revolution to happen. They were 3 specific groups of people: the nobles and clergy; the peasants; and the neighboring states - each because of different reasons. The nobles and clergy were the king's friends; if the king lost his power then they would lose their power as well, so they were against the revolution. The peasants also opposed due to their religious belief. The National Assembly wanted to tolerate more religions into France and also break from the Catholic Church, which threatened the peasants with their religion and they didn't want anyone to mess up their salvation, so they didn't like that. The neighboring countries ( which included Maria Antoinette's brother - the Austrian emperor attacked France) were afraid that the revolution would affect their people, causing their own citizens to rebel, so they didn't like the revolutionaries so much.
STAGE 4

After the convention was formed, three splintering brands also emerged including the Conservatives, the Girondists, and the Jacobins. However, the Jacobins were leading the Convention; they imprisoned the Royal Family and beheaded the king for treason in 1793. Robespierre remained the leader of the Jacobins after many competitions with the other leaders; he beheaded thousands of French and built a strong national military.Followed this event was the Reign of Terror - in which the French were in fear of foreign invaders, plus counter-revolutionaries; whoever went agaisnt them got executed. From that point, Robespierre had gone too far with his act and therefore the people decided to guillotine him; this period was referred as the Thermidorian Reaction, which then led to the formation of a new constitution in 1795 and the formation of the Directory - the five men government.
STAGE 5

Not long after, Napoleon Bonaparte overthrew the Directory in 1799; then, he legitimized actions with popular votes and declared himself the First Consult under the fourth new Constitution. Afterward, he reformed agriculture, education, and infrasture; he worked things out with the Catholic Church and established the Napoleonic Codes in 1804, which recognized equality of French citizens. In the same year, he crowned himself the emperor of French; within his reign he had built a strong empire by conquering neighboring countries and assigned family members on thrones of the conquered regions. He also traded lands to fund his army. Napoleon had successfully promoted nationalism - in which one is to show tremendous pride and devotion in and to his/her country. Napoleon is the messiah in the messiah theory.

Posted with Blogsy

The Enlightenment

1. Take notes or create a chart that describes how the philosophers Thomas Hobbes and John Locke each view:

	Thomas Hobbes	John Locke
Human nature?	Miserable state of war à Obey those who are in power, otherwise there would be a state of civil war – the authority helps us attain peace by having laws/regulations à Do not treat others in ways we would not have them treat us à without the power of the state, human cannot survive	Humankind is God’s property – one doesn’t have the liberty to destroy himself or others of his kind
What role the government should play in people’s lives?	Protect its people; king cannot be overthrown	Act in the favor of those who are governed + protect private property – can be overthrown
What type of government would he favor?	Absolutism – one is in charge of everything so that there aren’t disputes over different decisions – which inevitably leads to conflict/war	Republic/Democracy

2. Define John Locke's notions of Social Contract and tabula rasa.

• Social contract – legitimate government is instituted by the consent of those who are governed; those who make this agreement transfer to the government their right of executing the law and justice. This is the power that they give to the government, which makes the justice system of a government legitimate.

• Locke believed that human mind was a clean sheet of paper – called “tabula rasa” – which means that an infant knows nothing when he/she is born, and his/her ideas develop from experience.

3. What historical figures or modern day characters can you think of that would align to Thomas Hobbes description of leadership? Who would align with John Locke's description of leadership?

Adolf Hitler, Hosni Mubarak, Charles I, and many Chinese kings would align to Thomas Hobbes description of leadership because they believed in absolutism. They held absolute power, or at least attempted to, and gave themselves the power to control their people the way they wanted instead of making laws and enforcing justice in the favor of the people they governed. They protected their nations in protective ways that they thought were right, but most of the time those didn’t appeal to the citizens. In contrast, many U.S. presidents would align with John Locke’s description of leadership because they stick to God’s morals and lead the country under laws that are voted by the people. They act in the favor of the people governed, and therefore they can be overthrown if they do a bad job.

Development of Constitutional Monarchy

1. Elizabeth I dies
2. Stuart family begins to rule England for the first time
3. Puritans want to purify the Church of England
4. Charles I becomes king
5. Charles I needs to increase taxes, Parliament forces him to sign the Petition of Right
6. Charles I dissolves Parliament
7. The Long Parliament meets and executes Charles I's chief ministers
8. Charles I leads an army into the House of Commons to arrest those causing trouble in Parliament
9. Civil War breaks out in England between the Roundheads and the Cavaliers
10. Oliver Cromwell successfully captures Charles I
11. Charles I is beheaded
12. Oliver Cromwell becomes Lord Protector and declares England a Commonwealth
13. Cromwell attacks the Irish
14. Charles II becomes king
15. James II becomes king of England
16. William and Mary sign the English Bill of Rights

 2. Why do you think absolutism did not manage to rise and thrive in England when it rose and flourished in kingdoms like France, Russia, and Spain?

Because the English Parliament was extremely powerful, consisting of people who had high authority and voice in society. The Parliament beheaded Charles I and declared him public enemy – this event had come to remark the Parliament of England as a very powerful unit, in which it only worked to enforce justice. Many of the Parliament’s ideals were also appealing to the people.

3. Compare and contrast the ruler-subject relationship for one of the two pairs:

b) William & Mary of England and Peter the Great of Russia

The only thing they had in common was that they were all leaders of the nations. However, William and Mary had to sign the Bill of Rights in order to be crowned. They didn’t have absolute power because they were in a way controlled by the Parliament. They had to recognize certain degrees that the Parliament proposed, including:

1. Parliament was to meet frequently.
2. The crown retained the right to veto bills and to pardon whomever he or she chose.
3. Freedom of speech was guaranteed.
4. The crown was not allowed to interfere in the selection of members of Parliament.
5. The crown was to keep no standing army without the consent of Parliament.
6. People were to be free from cruel and unusual punishments, and they were guaranteed freedom from excessive bail.

Therefore they had to perform in favor of the Parliament and the people, in which that kept them fairly just. In contrast, Peter the Great of Russia acceded to power when he was only 10 (after the rule of his grandfather Tsar Michael Romanov). Though he was forced to rule jointly with his brother Ivan and sister Sofia at first, when Ivan died and Sofia was exiled, Peter the Great had all the power to himself. Therefore, he was ruthless and violent – he did what he wanted because no one was above him and there was no one to consult him; he could kill as many people who went against him as he wanted. Also, he was versatile at many fields, in which it provided him a solid power to control his people.

Proliferation Of Protestanism

Mary & Lisa

The Renaissance - Italy

Two reasons why the Renaissance started and blossomed in Italy were that first, Italy was composed of wealthy city-states such as Rome, Venice, Florence, etc., and families from the middle class who stimulated the economy to prosper; second, Italy was the center of the Roman Empire where the Church was located. The Black Death had caused many deaths during the late Medieval time and hence a new middle class, as bankers, merchants, and tradespeople, emerged with new demand for goods and services and therefore had come to prosper Italy. People from neighboring regions also came here to trade because of its diverse market of goods as well as art and other things. The middle-class desired to show off their wealth by indicating their style in fashion, houses, food, and reputation; which caused them to promote education among the youth and sponsor great artists/architects/merchants/explorers to showcase paintings, buildings, etc. Last but not least, since the Church was located in Italy, it was provided with solid financially support from the Pope. With its prosperous historical legacies, wealthy families, and the Church's support, Italy was the perfect place for the Renaissance to start.