Consequences
The conservative government under the leadership of the well-known reactionary Count Polignac, who succeeded the moderate cabinet of Martinjak in the summer of 1829 , consistently ignored the House of Representatives. Together with the social problems of the beginning of the industrialization era, this policy created acute public discontent, which could not weaken even the conquest of Algeria in the spring of 1830.
The session of the Chambers of 1830 was opened on March 2 by a throne speech in which King Charles X threatened to resort to extraordinary measures if the parliament “creates obstacles to his power”. On March 18, 1830, an address signed by 221 deputies was presented to the king, in which the leader expressed fear for the liberties of the French people under the Cabinet of Polignac. To this policy statement, Charles X responded with a postponement of the parliamentary session and then the dissolution of the Chamber of Deputies on May 16, 1830. However, the opposition liberals won general elections on June 23 and July 19, 1830, only consolidating their positions and gaining 274 seats.
Revolution
The immediate impetus for the July Revolution was the four government decrees dated July 25/26, which were immediately signed by the king. According to them, the House of Representatives was dissolved, the suffrage was toughened, freedom of speech was further restricted, and the full volume of censorship was restored.
On July 27, barricade fights erupted in the streets of Paris, in which students, workers, artisans, and the petty bourgeoisie participated. July 28, some soldiers with weapons in their hands began to move to the side of the rebels. On July 29, the rebels captured the Louvre and the Tuileries. July 30 over the royal palace rose French tricolor, the Chamber of Deputies proclaimed the Duke of Orleans governor of the kingdom. On August 2, the king signed a renunciation in favor of his grandson. On August 7, the Chamber of Deputies proposed the crown to the Duke of Orleans, which he accepted on August 9 and was crowned as Louis Philippe I , nicknamed “the king-citizen.” On 14 August an updated Charter was published, representing a more liberal version of the Charter of 1814 : with the somewhat expanded competence of the parliament and the best provision for its domination, with the responsibility of the ministry, with the jury for “press crimes”. Freedom of speech was proclaimed without any restrictions, and the government was deprived of the right to restore censorship in any form.
The King still had full executive power and exercised legislative power together with the bicameral parliament; but the right of legislative initiative now belonged not only to the king, but also to both chambers. The peerage chamber, as before, was formed by the king at its own discretion. The Chamber of Deputies was still elected by the population, but the age limit was lowered: active suffrage operated from the age of 25. The property qualification was retained, but it was regulated not by the Charter itself, but by special laws.
Due to the decrease in the property and age qualifications, the number of voters increased 2.5 times – from 90 to 240 thousand; while the overwhelming majority of workers and small owners were still deprived of the right to vote. The laws that prohibited the organization of labor unions and the conduct of strikes were also not abolished. The national tricolor again becomes the official flag of France.
The disturbances of the proletarian strata were quickly suppressed. “The Jacobins,” as the ardent anti-monarchists called themselves, could not prevail, since the abolition of the monarchy would mean foreign policy complications right up to the intervention of the Holy Alliance. A moderate party of the big bourgeoisie came to power. After these events, the era of the July monarchy started, which is considered the golden age of the French bourgeoisie
Consequences
The July revolution had an impact on the whole of Europe. Liberal currents everywhere gained confidence and determination. In some states of the German Union, riots broke out. The excitement arose in Italian states as well, including the Papal States. However, the July Revolution produced the greatest effect on the territory of Poland.
The consequences were also in the immediate neighborhood of France. The Southern Netherlands rebelled against the rule of the north and proclaimed themselves an independent kingdom of Belgium. Despite the monarchical status, Belgium’s constitution is considered one of the most progressive constitutions of Europe of that time. The final borders of Belgium were determined after some military operations in 1839.
In the long term, the July Revolution strengthened liberal and democratic aspirations throughout Europe. As King Louis Philippe moved ever further from liberal origins, it led to a new bourgeois-liberal revolution in France, which resulted in the proclamation of the Second French Republic. Like the July Revolution, it also led to uprisings and attempts at coups throughout Europe.
Sources:
Encyclopaedic dictionary of Brockhaus and Efron