The French Revolution - Turning Point

Throughout written history, vast changes in social, political, and economic establishments have been sparked by extraordinary people or conditions. Often, these changes mark a turning point in the progress of civilization as new ideas are formed, new governments raised, or new discoveries put to use in the interest of progress. Whether these pivotal moments in history may be due to a single nonconforming person or a vast, radical multitude, each turning point has certain specific influences and outcomes which shaped the world for innumerable years. Two major negative turning points in history where the French and Russian Revolution.

The French Revolution was a critical turning point in European social and political history. The French Revolution was a very significant turning point in Global History. It paved the way for independence movements in every continent. It was the first European independence war that affected an entire continent. It was also the catalyst for the Concert of Europe at the Congress of Vienna, which was like an early predecessor for the United Nations. So, without the power balance issues caused by the French Revolution, we might not have the UN. It forced the aristocracy to give the vote to some members of the middle classes. In other words it caused an early breath of democracy. The French Revolution was a turning point in global history because it effected the way people thoughts. The French Revolution coupled with the American Revolution showed people that you did not have to be governed by royalty and that ordinary people were capable of governing themselves. Both revolutions ended the governing by royalty or at the very least put a dent in it other than constitutional monarchies. Colonies of the European powers revolted and gained Independence. The entire thought process of government was changed from royalty to the common man to govern.

The Russian Revolution took place in 1917, during the final phase of World War I. It removed Russia from the war and brought about the transformation of the Russian Empire into the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR), replacing Russia's traditional monarchy with the world's first Communist state. The revolution happened in stages through two separate coups, one in February and one in October. The new government, led by Vladimir Lenin, would solidify its power only after three years of civil war, which ended in 1920. The Russian monarchy had become progressively weaker and increasingly aware of its own vulnerability. Nicholas II, the tsar who led Russia in the years leading up to the revolution, had personally witnessed revolutionary terrorists assassinate his grandfather and, subsequently, his own father respond to the assassination through brutal oppression of the Russian people. it gave birth to communism. The revolution enabled the Bolsheviks to seize power and rule Russia and eventually the Soviet Union for the next 70 years.

In conclusion