Hi there, I'm Mr. Roberts, and thanks for joining me for today's history lesson where my job will be to guide you through our history resources.

I'll be making sure that by the end of today's lesson, you'll be able to securely meet our lesson objective.

In today's lesson, we'll be looking at British responses to the French Revolution.

By the end of the lesson, you'll be able to explain how historians study pamphlets to understand reactions to the French Revolution in Britain.

There are five key terms that we'll be using to help us navigate our way through today's lesson.

Those key terms are revolution, status quo, pamphlets, upheaval and constitution.

A revolution is the forcible overthrow of a government or a great or complete change.

The status quo is a term used to refer to the way things are or the existing way society is set up.

A pamphlet is a small booklet or leaflet written to argue for or against an idea.

When there is a great change in society, it is known as social upheaval.

A constitution is a set of basic principles or laws that govern a nation.

Our lesson today is going to be split into three parts, and in the first part, we're going to be looking at the French Revolution and its influence on Europe.

The French Revolution of 1789, inspired by the country's economic troubles, social injustice and political discontent, dramatically altered the status quo in France.

King Louis XVI's failure to properly address these issues led to widespread calls for change.

French commoners known as the Third Estate formed their own national assembly to respond to France's crisis, signalling the beginning of the revolution.

This was followed by Parisians storming the Bastille Prison, which was seen as a symbolic act of defiance against the king and his ancien regime.

The monarchy was abolished, and France declared itself a republic.

The revolutionaries aimed to create a more equal society based on the principles of liberty, equality and fraternity, which is another word for togetherness.

Next came violence and chaos, with King Louis XVI and Queen Marie Antoinette being executed in 1793.

The new French Republic also faced opposition from those in France who wished to restore the monarchy, and opposition from other European powers, with France having to fight to defend its new republic.

Ultimately, the French Revolution would have far reaching consequences, inspiring revolutions elsewhere and shaping the course of history for centuries to come.

Time for a learning check now.

True or false, the French Revolution led to social upheaval in France.

Pause the video, have a think, and when you're ready, press play for the answer.

Welcome back, and well done if you said it was true that the French Revolution led to social upheaval in France.

Now let's justify our answer.

Which of the following provides the correct justification? A, the French Revolution preserved the status quo as the monarchy retained power.

Or B, the French Revolution altered the status quo as the monarchy was abolished.

Again, pause the video, have a think, come back and press play when you're ready for the answer.

Welcome back, and well done if you said the correct answer is B, the French Revolution altered the status quo as the monarchy was abolished.

With revolutions occurring in both America and France in the late 1700s, many Europeans feared a pattern was emerging.

Edmund Burke, a prominent Anglo-Irish thinker, expressed concerns about the French Revolution in particular and its potential impact on European society.

In his 1790 pamphlet, "Reflections on the Revolution in France," Burke argued that the ideas unleashed by the French Revolution would spread, and destabilise monarchies and trigger social unrest.

Many European thinkers admired the French Revolution's commitment to liberty, equality and fraternity, but at the same time were concerned at how rapidly it was challenging the status quo.

In other words, the stability of society and the legitimacy of traditional authority.

Burke and others believed that there must be balance between tradition and change, and that revolution pushed society into changing too quickly without respecting the tradition of the status quo in European countries like Britain and Ireland.

Now it's time for another learning check.

True or false, Edmund Burke and his supporters praised the French Revolution.

Have a think, pause the video, and return when you're ready for an answer.

Welcome back, and well done If you said it's false, Edmund Burke and his supporters did not praise the French Revolution.

Now justify your answer.

A, the ideas spread by the French Revolution were beginning to challenge the status quo in Britain.

Or B, the ideas spread by the French Revolution were helping to preserve the status quo in Britain.

Once again, pause the video, and have a think about which justification is correct.

When you're ready, press play for the answer.

Welcome back, and well done if you said A, the ideas spread by the French Revolution were beginning to challenge the status quo in Britain, causing Edmund Burke and his supporters to criticise the French Revolution and the impact it was having on British society.

Now it's time for a written task.

Based on your learning so far, explain why Sophia's opinion on the screen is correct.

Sophia says, "The French Revolution "was really worrying for many people in Britain "in the late 1700s." Use the sentence starter on the screen to help you.

Pause the video, and press play when you're ready for some feedback.

Hello again.

There are plenty of things you could have written, but well done if your answer looked anything like this.

"Sophia's opinion is correct "because I know that the French Revolution "overthrew the French monarchy, "and the people, known as the Third Estate, took charge.

"This was a massive social upheaval "that Burke and other thinkers "were afraid would spread to Britain." Now it's time to move on to the second part of our lesson today, where we will be looking at the impact of contemporary pamphlets in Britain.

That is to say pamphlets that were produced in Britain at the time of the French Revolution.

During the late 1700s, Britain saw a big increase in the publication of political pamphlets, driven by interest in the French Revolution and its aftermath.

These included Burke's "Reflections on the Revolution in France," as previously mentioned, and they shaped public opinion about events unfolding in Europe.

English thinker Mary Wollstonecraft wrote "A Vindication of the Rights of Men" in response to Burke's worries.

In her pamphlet, she defended the French Revolution, and argued it secured rights for everyone in French society, regardless of their social status.

She went on to argue for similar drastic political change in Britain and elsewhere.

A quote from her pamphlet reads, "You must have seen the clogged wheels of corruption "continually oiled by the sweat of the poor, "squeezed out of them by never ending taxation." Based on what you've just learned, is it true or false to say that Mary Wollstonecraft is on the side of the poor? Pause the video while you have a think, and press play for the answer.

Welcome back, and well done if you said it was true that Mary Wollstonecraft was on the side of the poor when she was writing her pamphlet, "A Vindication of the Rights of Men" in response to Edmund Burke's pamphlet criticising the French Revolution.

Now let's justify the answer.

A, Wollstonecraft believed that the poor had no good jobs, or B, Wollstonecraft believed that the poor paid too much tax.

Pause the video, come to a decision, and press play for the answer.

Welcome back, and well done if you said the correct answer was B, Wollstonecraft believed the poor paid too much tax.

Anglo-American writer Thomas Paine penned a similarly named 1791 pamphlet named "The Rights of Man," also defending the French Revolution, particularly its concern with democracy and individual rights.

Paine, a key figure in the American Revolution, argued passionately for the overthrow of the British monarchy, and desired a much more equal society in Britain and elsewhere.

Paine advocated for a British constitution similar to the ones implemented by America and France after their respective revolutions.

Paine had actually immigrated to Britain's American colonies after meeting American Enlightenment thinker Benjamin Franklin in London.

He supported the colonies' overthrow of British rule, becoming one of the United States' Founding Fathers, and signing the U.

S.

Constitution into law in 1788.

Naturally, Paine wanted to see similar constitutions, a decrease in the power of monarchy and greater rights for ordinary people in Britain and the rest of Europe.

Now on your screen, you can see a contemporary cartoon depicting Thomas Paine on the right, treating Britannia, the traditional embodiment of Britain, roughly.

What I would like to know is what's the underlying message? Is it A, Thomas Paine is unhappy with Britain, or is it B, Thomas Paine is happy with Britain? Based on what we have just discussed, have a think about what the correct answer might be.

Pause the video, and when you are ready for the answer, just press play.

Welcome back, and well done if you correctly identified that the cartoon is suggesting that Thomas Paine is unhappy with Britain.

A quote from Thomas Paine's pamphlet reads, "Mr Burke is mistaken in the opinions he has formed "of the French Revolution.

"Sovereignty belongs to the nation, "not to any individual." Based on what you know so far and what Thomas Paine is saying here in his pamphlet, true or false, Thomas Paine is suggesting the people should have the power, not a monarch.

Pause the video while you come to a decision, and press play for the answer.

Hello again, and well done if you said the correct answer was true.

It is true to say that Thomas Paine in his pamphlets is suggesting that people should have the power, not a monarch.

Let's just make sure our knowledge is secure one more time.

Why was Thomas Paine unhappy with Britain? A, thinkers like Burke were too quick to criticise the French Revolution, or B, thinkers like Burke had no interest at all in the French Revolution.

As ever, pause the video, and press play for the answer.

Hello again, and well done if you said the correct answer was A.

Thinkers like Burke were too quick to criticise the French Revolution in Thomas Paine's opinion.

Pamphlets therefore give us an insight into the diversity of public opinion in Britain at the time of the French Revolution.

Supporters of Burke saw the revolution as a dangerous threat to social order and stability.

While supporters of Wollstonecraft and Paine saw France as a beacon of hope for oppressed peoples everywhere.

The popularity and accessibility of pamphlets made them a powerful mode of political expression, and they provided the platform for people from various backgrounds to take part in discussions about the potential impact of the French Revolution outside of France.

Now it's time for a written task to put into practise all our learning so far.

I would like you to write a paragraph to explain why a historian would argue that there were diverse responses to the French Revolution amongst contemporary British thinkers.

Diverse means different types, and it's worth noting that contemporary British thinkers means British thinkers who were around at the time.

I would like you to include the following thinkers in your answer.

Edmund Burke, Mary Wollstonecraft and Thomas Paine.

Pause the video while you complete your answer.

And when you're ready, press play for some feedback.

Welcome back.

Well done for completing that task.

It's worth noting that everybody will have written something different, but well done if your answer looks anything like this.

"A historian would argue "that there were a diverse range of responses "to the French Revolution amongst British thinkers "because British thinkers at the time "did not all agree with each other.

"For example, Edmund Burke's pamphlet "against the social upheaval caused by the French Revolution "was criticised in the pamphlets "'Vindication of the Rights of Men' by Mary Wollstonecraft "and 'Rights of Man' by Thomas Paine.

"Critics of Burke "argued for a decrease in the power of monarchy "and greater rights for ordinary people, "with these rights set out in a written constitution.

And that brings us nicely onto the final part of today's lesson where we will be looking at the response of the British government to the unrest caused by the French Revolution.

British Prime Minister William Pitt the Younger was greatly concerned by the potential impact of the French Revolution on Britain, as he was worried that the spread of radical ideas that was influencing British thinkers to publish their pamphlets might also escalate into violence and revolution on British soil.

As a result, Pitt and his government tried to suppress revolutionary ideas and maintain social order by using soldiers to ensure good behaviour in towns and cities.

They also issued new laws in 1795, designed to prevent people from gathering to discuss politics, the Seditious Meetings Act, and to make it more likely that people discussing revolutionary ideas would be arrested and tried for treason, the Treason Act.

These measures did not succeed in calming radical ideas in Britain completely, but along with new laws aimed at improving conditions for the working class, such as giving them more rights at work and beginning to put an end to the exploitation of child labour in 1802 through the Factory Act, Pitt succeeded in avoiding a revolution and largely maintaining the status quo in Britain.

Now let's check that we've secured what we've just learned.

Who was British Prime Minister at the time of the French Revolution, and feared the unrest that it brought to Britain? Was it A, William Pitt the Elder, who was prime minister between 1766 and 1768, B, William Pitt the Younger, prime minister between 1783 and 1801, or C, Arthur Wellesley, who was prime minister of Britain between 1828 and 1830.

Pause the video while you have a think, and press play when you're ready to find out the answer.

Welcome back, and well done if you said the answer was B.

William Pitt the Younger was prime minister of Britain at the time of the French Revolution.

Let's try another one now.

Which three laws were brought in by Pitt the Younger's government due to discontent caused by the French Revolution? A, the Seditious Meetings Act, B, the Treason Act, C, the Revolutionary Ideas Act, or D, the Factory Act.

Pause the video while you think of the three correct answers, and press play when you're ready for me to reveal them.

Hello again, and well done if you said the correct answers were A, B and D.

The three laws that were brought in were the Seditious Meetings act, the Treason Act and the Factory Act.

Now it's time for the final task of our lesson today.

There are four statements on the screen.

Each one of them is incorrect.

What I would like you to do is change each statement so that it becomes correct.

The four incorrect statements are, "The French Revolution worried many people in Britain "as its ideas supported the status quo." "Thinkers in Britain "perceived the French Revolution in the same way." "Wollstonecraft and Edmund Burke "supported the French Revolution, "and hoped its ideas would spread to Britain." "Prime Minister William Pitt the Elder "brought in new laws to limit revolutionary ideas "and improve people's lives." Pause the video, and change each statement to make sure it's correct.

Then press play for me to reveal the answers.

Welcome back.

These are the correct statements.

The French Revolution worried many people in Britain, as its ideas challenged the status quo.

Thinkers in Britain perceived the French Revolution differently.

Wollstonecraft and Thomas Paine supported the French Revolution and hoped its ideas would spread to Britain.

Prime Minister William Pitt the Younger brought in new laws to limit revolutionary ideas and improve people's lives.

And that brings us to the end of our lesson today.

To summarise our learning, we started by looking at the French Revolution and how it led to the execution of King Louis XVI, which changed France forever.

We then learned how British thinkers like Edmund Burke feared that the French Revolution would inspire similar events across Europe.

We looked at how pamphlets written in Britain are used by historians to understand what British people thought about the French Revolution at the time.

We also learned how other thinkers like Wollstonecraft and Paine thought Britain needed a written constitution like France and the USA.

And we finished the lesson by looking at how Prime Minister Pitt the Younger worried about the effect of the French Revolution on Britain and brought in new laws to deal with this.

Thank you so much for all your hard work today.

It's been an absolute pleasure to guide you through our lesson resources, and I look forward to seeing you next time, where we begin to look at how radical French revolutionary ideas impacted on Ireland.