PRINCE OF WALES LIBRARY: SOCIAL STUDIES 9
FRENCH REVOLUTION

INTRODUCTION

Imagine your terror. You are the daughter of a minor noble. All you have ever known is your family's pleasant country house, which is surrounded by gardens and farms. One night you are dragged out of bed, dressed in servants' clothes, and rushed away in the old market cart. Your parents have been warned that the family is about to be arrested.

The concentration of power and wealth amongst a few at the expense of many is a recipe for unrest. Some of the primary causes for the French Revolution can be found in the class structure of the three estates. By the end of this assignment you will have gained a better understanding of the causes and events of the French Revolution. You will also have a greater understanding of the social conditions of the time.

Proceed to Tasks to find out more about the project.

TOP

TASKS

Your task is to produce a newspaper containing articles about the French Revolution. All the articles must be written from the same point of view. You will be assigned the first, second, or third estate as your point of view. Your finished newspaper should look like an historical document.

Proceed to Process for details of the assignment.

Template: Newsletter (MS Publisher Ver. 2003)

PROCESS

Preliminary Research: Getting Started
1. You will be working with a partner. Agree upon a timeline and the division of labour. You will have three class periods for research, and your assignment will be due two weeks later. Decide who will be responsible for each segment of the project. Write this out and submit it to your teacher.

2. Using your text book and encyclopedias as background references, select ten topics from the list below to include in your newspaper.
   1. The Palace of Versailles
   2. The Estates General 1789
   3. Lifestyles of Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette
   4. Women's March on Versailles
   5. The National Assembly
   6. The storming of the Bastille - July 14, 1789
   7. The “Declaration of the Rights of Man”
   8. The Tennis Court Oath
   9. The Royal Family's Flight to Varennes
   10. The Execution of Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette
   11. The Execution of .... (Your choice)
   12. Louis Saint-Just
   13. The Jacobins
   14. Robespierre's contribution to the French Revolution
   15. The Reign of Terror
   16. The Revolutionary Tribunal
   17. The Stabbing of Marat
   18. The New Constitution and Government
   19. Napoleon
   20. Your choice: any other topic related to the French Revolution

3. Select a format for each topic. What follows is a list of suggestions based on a modern newspaper.
   1. ARTICLE/CURRENT EVENTS: If you choose to write an article, the length should be about 200 words. Focus on an event that individuals or groups were involved in rather than merely biographical information.
   2. LETTERS TO THE EDITOR: These letters might be about social conditions, political views, or reaction to an event.
   3. EDITORIALS: Freedom of the press, the killing of Marat, social issues, or political comment are possible topics for an editorial.
   4. FASHION AND SOCIETY PAGES
   5. SPORTS
   6. CLASSIFIEDS
   7. ADVERTISEMENTS
   8. BUSINESS/TRADE
   9. CARTOONS: These should be political cartoons that comment on an event or social condition.
   10. OBITUARIES
   11. REAL ESTATE
   12. ADVICE COLUMN
   13. CROSSWORD PUZZLE

4. When formatting your newpaper include a table of contents, price, date, page numbers, article titles, and headlines.
5. You will submit a separate bibliography.

Research: Information Collection and Evaluation
You now are ready to collect more information about the topics that you have chosen. Be sure to use a variety of resources and verify your information.

Proceed to the Resources section for more information.

TOP

RESOURCES

You have a wide variety of resources from which to choose. These include books, encyclopedias, and online resources. It is important to consider the authority of your resources. This is especially important for Internet resources. Collect your bibliography as you go. Consult the Bibliography Requirements if you are unsure of the format required.

World Wide Web Resources

General Searching: Use the person's full name. Use quotation marks for names or phrases so that your search will look for adjacent words rather than for each word.

Authority: Be careful! Anyone can post anything on the World Wide Web. Make sure that you verify your information by using more than one source. Cite your sources. For the World Wide Web you need: the person responsible for the site, the title of the web page, the title of the web site, the date that appears on the page or the site, the address of the web page, and the date that you access the site.

General Sites

These sites are comprehensive and cover many topics.
• French Revolution
  This site includes information on people and events. A timeline is also included.
• Internet Modern History Sourcebook
  This site contains a very long list of links to topics on the French Revolution. This site also contains links to documents.
• A Chronology of Events
  This site provides you with brief information on events in chronological order.
• Liberty, Equality, Fraternity: Exploring the French Revolution
  An extensive site containing texts, documents, and pictures.
• Spark Notes
  Look here for brief information on many topics.