Essential Questions
French Revolution
- What were the most important causes and effects of the French Revolution?
- To what extent was the French Revolution a product of the Enlightenment?
- In what ways was Napoleon both a “child of the revolution” and “the last of the enlightened despots"?
- What were the differences between liberalism and conservatism in the early 19th century?
- Is the use of terror ever justified?
Napoleon
- Was Napoleonic France the ultimate expression of the ideals of the Enlightenment?
- Did Napoleon's desire to spread his Code across Europe doom the Enlightened goals he and the rest of France were pursuing?
- What does Napoleon teach us about the desire to spread natural rights to and entrenched world of dictatorships where the privileged few benefit?