Jeanne Martin was an ordinary housewife in France. Her journal started from Versailles, but in July of 1789, Jeanne moved to Paris with her husband and her ten-year-old son, hoping to find employment with higher wages, though unsuccessful nonetheless. She’d hoped to live through the revolution peacefully and would’ve never imagined having to suffer such an unbearable loss…
Many changes occurred due to the French Revolution. For one, the revolution brought the Declaration of the Rights of Man and Citizen which consisted of seventeen articles that ensured freedom and equality towards citizens. This included freedom of speech, removal of noble privileges, and the abolition of unequal taxation for citizens. Furthermore, the revolution resulted in the spread of Nationalism, due to France’s successful military campaigns under Napoleon’s lead. The revolution also led to a shift of political power: absolute monarchy was abolished, leading to various forms of government, from the National Assembly to the Directory, and finally, Napoleon’s Empire.
Though the French Revolution brought numerous changes to the French society; however, several things remained the same throughout the revolution. For one, despite the Revolution’s emphasis on equality, social inequalities remained, though the criteria of the upper class changed from noble birth to service and wealth during the Napoleonic era. Moreover, the French administration continued to be a bureaucracy, with Napoleon further centralizing it, creating a more efficient but also more authoritarian state. Lastly, while the Revolution led to confiscations of Church lands and the establishment of a secular state, during the Napoleonic era, Napoleon removed the anti-religion policies established during the revolution, returning the Catholic Church to its original social status pre-revolutionary France.
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