Exam French Revolution and Napoleon
1. Promotion within Napoleon’s new bureaucracy was
a. based on height.
b. given to those Napoleon favored, but taken away as soon as they fell out of favor.
c. based on ability only, not rank or birth.
d. designed to benefit the nobility and keep the middle class from obtaining high-ranking positions.
2. The Duke of Wellington defeated Napoleon at
a. Annecy in France. c. the Black Forest in Germany.
b. Waterloo in Belgium. d. Moscow in Russia.
3. ____ was the brutal head of the Committee of Public Safety.
a. Maximilien Robespierre c. Jean Valjean
b. Jean-Paul Marat d. Victor Hugo
4. The most important of the seven legal codes established by Napoleon was
a. the Religious Code. c. the Merchant Code.
b. the Food Code. d. the Civil Code.
5. The Declaration of the Rights of Man and the Citizen proclaimed
a. equal rights for all men, but no political rights for women.
b. an end to the monarchy and the abolishing of a National Assembly.
c. equal rights for all citizens, including equal political rights for women.
d. an end to the National police force.
6. Which of France’s estates was NOT exempt from the taille?
a. the First Estate (clergy) c. the Third Estate (commoners)
b. the Second Estate (nobility) d. the Fourth Estate (middle class)
7. The three major parts of Napoleon’s Grand Empire were
a. the First Estate, the Second Estate, and the Third Estate.
b. France, Morocco, and Algeria.
c. the French Empire, the dependent states, and the allied states.
d. Austria, Prussia, and Serbia.
8. The Committee of Public Safety was given broad powers to
a. drain all the canals.
b. defend France from threats.
c. protect the Paris Commune from thieves.
d. restore order to Brussels.
9. In its attempts to create a new order that reflected its belief in reason, the National Convention
a. declared new national holidays celebrating great French cuisine.
b. ordered the building of several new libraries and universities, even though the treasury was empty.
c. pursued a policy of dechristianization, going so far as to adopt a new calendar.
d. drafted yet another Constitution to reflect the ideas of the Enlightenment.
10. Louis XVI was forced to accept the National Assembly’s decrees because
a. the army turned against him and threatened to execute him.
b. it was the only way he would be allowed to remain mayor of Paris.
c. thousands of armed Parisian women descended on the palace and captured him and his family.
d. his attempt to escape to Poland had failed.
11. What were the two major reasons that Napoleon’s Grand Empire collapsed?
a. Napoleon’s greed and laziness within his bureaucracy
b. the survival of Great Britain and the force of nationalism
c. the resentment of the clergy and the plotting of the accountants
d. France’s weak economy and the drain of Napoleon’s many wars
12. The Russians defeated Napoleon’s superior Grand Army by
a. retreating hundreds of miles and burning their own villages and countryside.
b. waiting to attack during the brutal Russian winter.
c. splitting their meager forces in half and attacking from two sides.
d. making an alliance with Egypt, which launched an attack on Turkey to draw Napoleon out of Russia.
Liberty consists of the power to do whatever is not injurious to others; thus the enjoyment of the natural rights of every man has for its limits only those that assure other members of society the enjoyment of those same rights; such limits may be determined only by law.Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen, French National Assembly, 1789
13. According to the passage, what determines the limits of liberty?
a. the king c. the people
b. the law d. God
14. What is the best definition of the word injurious from the passage?
a. harmful c. helpful
b. beneficial d. pleasing
Law is the expression of the general will; all citizens have the right to concur personally, or through their representatives, in its formation; it must be the same for all, whether it protects or punishes. All citizens, being equal before it, are equally admissible to all public offices, positions, and employments, according to their capacity, and without other distinction than that of virtues and talents. Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen, French National Assembly, 1789
15. How, according to the passage, is law an expression of the general will?
a. The king, as the people’s leader, defines the law.
b. The nobles ensure that the law meets the needs of all people.
c. Old laws are changed to meet new needs.
d. All citizens are able to influence the law’s creation.
16. According to the passage, are all citizens given public office?
a. Yes; all citizens are equal and given public office.
b. No; only 50 percent of the citizenry are given public office.
c. No; all citizens are equal, but some with more talent and skill earn public office.
d. Yes, but only if they pay for access to the public office.
Free communication of ideas and opinions is one of the most precious of the rights of man. Consequently, every citizen may speak, write, and print freely, subject to responsibility for the abuse of such liberty in the cases determined by law. Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen, French National Assembly, 1789
17. According to the passage, what is one of the most precious rights?
a. freedom of movement c. freedom of worship
b. freedom from taxation d. freedom of speech
18. Which country provided the inspiration for the ideas presented in this passage?
a. Spain c. Russia
b. United States d. Netherlands
“My people, remember that if in the republic justice does not reign with absolute sway, and if this word does not signify love of equality and of country, then liberty is but a vain phrase! O people, you who are feared—whom one flatters! you who are despised; you who are acknowledged sovereign, and are ever being treated as a slave—remember that wherever justice does not reign, it is the passions of the magistrates that reign instead, and that the people have changed their chains and not their destinies!” Maximilien Robespierre, 1794
19. According to Robespierre, what is necessary to ensure that liberty exists?
a. magistrates c. citizens
b. justice d. the republic
20. What does Robespierre mean when he says that only chains have changed when the magistrates reign?
a. Magistrates have replaced the king as ruler.
b. The lives of citizens have improved.
c. Citizens are no longer treated as slaves.
d. The government had agreed to release all political prisoners.
One of Napoleon’s reforms . . . was destined to have an impact far beyond the borders of France. That was the creation of the French Civil Code, the [Napoleonic Code]. In many ways, the code embodied the ideals of the French Revolution . . . . On the whole, the code was moderate, well organized, and written with commendable brevity and outstanding lucidity. As a result, the code has not only endured in France . . . but has been adopted, with local modifications, in many other countries.” From The 100: A Ranking of the Most Influential Persons in History, Michael H. Hart
21. According to the passage, the French Civil Code embodied the ideals of what period?
a. Enlightenment c. American Revolution
b. French Revolution d. Age of Exploration
“Of all Napoleon’s actions . . . the one that has perhaps had the most enduring and significant consequences was one that was almost irrelevant to his main plans. In 1803, Napoleon sold a vast tract of land to the United States. He realized that the French possessions in North America might be difficult to protect from British conquest, and besides he was short of cash. The Louisiana Purchase, perhaps the largest peaceful transfer of land in all of history, transformed the United States into a nation of near-continental size.” From The 100: A Ranking of the Most Influential Persons in History, Michael H. Hart
22. According to the passage, why did this action have the most enduring and significant consequences?
a. It gave Napoleon influence over the Catholic Church.
b. It made Napoleon the wealthiest monarch in Europe.
c. It allowed France to bargain peace with England.
d. It gave the United States significant territorial power.
23. Why did Napoleon sell French land to the United States?
a. It was too far removed from the rest of the French empire.
b. He needed the United States as an ally.
c. He was forced to by his government.
d. France had too many overseas possessions.
Robespierre made the most of his opportunity to help the common people. He spoke at debates and won a reputation as a strong supporter of democracy. In September 1792, he was elected to the National Convention and demanded that Louis XVI be executed as a traitor. The Convention agreed, and on January 18, 1793, ordered the king’s death. By early June, Robespierre controlled the convention.
24. How did Robespierre gain support to win election to the National Convention?
a. He publicly demanded the execution of Louis XVI.
b. He marched an army to the Assembly meeting place.
c. He spoke out and was a defender of democracy.
d. He bribed election officials.
“But let that impatiently awaited savior give a sudden sign of his existence, and the people’s instinct will divine him and call upon him. The obstacles are smoothed before his steps, and a whole great nation, flying to see him pass, will seem to be saying: ‘Here is the man.’ . . . A consecutive series of great actions never is the result of chance and luck; it is always the product of planning and genius. Great men are rarely known to fail in their most perilous enterprises . . . Is it because they are lucky that they become great? No, but being great, they have been able to master luck.” The Mind of Napoleon, J. Christopher Herold, 1955
25. What does this passage indicate about Napoleon’s view of himself?
a. He believed his life was full of lucky breaks.
b. He believed in his ability to shape his life.
c. He was very pessimistic about his own skills and choices.
d. He felt he needed constant improvement.