The Trial of King Louis XVI Part I– Role-play project
His majesty King Louis XVI has recently been captured with his family after trying to flee France to Austria. He is now on trial for high treason and your role is to convince the jury that he is either guilty of high treason or innocent of the charge, depending on the role you will play.
Prosecution: from the sheet of evidence and your own research about this matter, you will prepare a powerful speech and convincing arguments backed up by visual evidence that should make the jury believe that Louis XVI is indeed a villain and a man ripe for the guillotine. In your speech you should include the following:
· the King’s extravagant lifestyle
· his inability to govern well, hence the near collapse of the French economy
· his plan to sabotage the gathering of the Third Estate and use of violence to stop the creation of the National Assembly
· his endeavors to mobilize internal and external enemies against his own country
· other relevant materials and arguments for the King’s guilty verdict
Defense: First you will make a virulent attack against the accusers’ reputation and credibility. You can choose one of the prominent leaders of the National Convention, such as Robespierre, St. Just, Jacque-Louis David etc.).
From the sheet of evidence and your own research about this matter, you will prepare a powerful speech and convincing arguments that should make the jury believe that Louis XVI is indeed innocent of all charges.
· Louis is not to blame for all the bad things in France
· the King is a loving father who was afraid for the safety of his family and, therefore, tried to escape abroad
· he is surely not the best of all the kings France has had, but overall he is a nice person (make sure to present evidence)
· if he tried to organized an armed opposition to the revolution it was only because he wanted to protect his kingdom from anarchy
· he too loves freedom, after all, it was he who supported the American Revolution with manpower and money
1. King Louis XVI
The King will speak at the end of the trial about himself. He will argue for his life, but not beg for it. You might want to include the following:
· your childhood as a crown prince
· your passion for manual work (you like working on locks)
· your love for the Queen, your wife, and your children (the reason why you wanted to leave France)
· your willingness to give up a lot of power to become a constitutional monarch
· you will deny your involvement in trying to crash the revolution
· your support for enlightened ideas and the American Revolution (you sent money and soldiers to help the colonists win their independence)
Judges: they will be presented with all the evidence and will make a final decision whether Louis XVI is guilty or not guilty. They will have to weight all the evidence carefully, as this trial is about life and death of a monarch!
The attorney on the defense side will try to undermine the reputation of some of the members of the National Convention that want the king to be executed. Conversely, the prosecution will defend the integrity of the accusers. In other words, you can call out: “I object” and attack the credibility of the accuser or the accused but you must sit down once the judge call ourfor silence.
Requirements:
1. Each speech must be between 4 and 6 minutes in length, accompanied by evidence and questions directed at the jury.
2. You can use PowerPoint, but only in point form to remind you of your lines and to show visual evidence. No paragraphs must appear on the screen, you are to memorize your lines.
3. The Jury does not have to memorize anything, just take notes and reach a final verdict.
4. A typed copy of your script must be handed on the day of your presentation. It will be marked based on ideas, convincing arguments, grammar and organization.
5. You will have 2 classes to research and work on your project and you will be marked during your prep time as well on how well and efficiently you work during the class. Don’t blow it! See the rubric for more details.
Presentation: April 18th and 21st 2012