The conflict between state,

people’s will and individual

Guillermo López Franco
The main actors

MONARCHY CHURCH COMMON NOBILITY BOURGEOISIE

PEOPLE
Investiture
Controversy
(1076)
• Henry IV, Emperor of the Holy Roman
Empire (Monarchy) , wanted to designate
the new bishops of his lands.
• Pope Gregory VII (Church) and all the
Roman bishops were against the
Emperor
• German and North Italian Bishops
(Church) supported Emperor
• Pope Gregory VII excommunicated the
Emperor and Henry IV had to ask for
forgiveness because he couldn't rule over
Christian people being cast away from
the Church
English Carta
Magna (1215)
• King John of England had serious
disagreements with the barons
(Nobles) and Bishops (Church) of
his kingdom, because of military
defeats and economic crisis.
• Barons threated King with a
rebellion. King accepted to sign a
series of laws to respect the
rights of freemen.
• Magna Carta stablished the rule
of Law
Medici Family and the Republic
of Florence (1402-1537)
• Medici Family (Golden coats of arms) was a dynasty of bankers of
late Middle Ages.
• Republic of Florence (red fleur de Lis) was an Italian city without
Kings or Nobles. It was ruled by a Government Council (Signoria).
• Members of Signoria were selected from the different guilds of
the city (Lawyers, Merchants, Bankers, Masons, Butchers,
Carpenters, etc.) [Bourgeoise]
• Giovanni di Medici was elected member of Signoria in 1402. His
descendants began to rule the Signoria.
• Cosimo di Medici abolished Republic and stablished the Great
Duky of Tuscany [Monarchy] in 1537
• King Charles I (Monarchy) [left] and part of the Nobility against
the Parliament (Nobles and Bourgeois)
• King Charles wanted to be an absolute monarch, but the
Parliament did accept that
• King was defeated and executed and Oliver Cromwell [right],
leader of the rebels, was appointed Lord Protector of a New
English Republic (Commonwealth)
• After Cromwell's death (1658) , Parliament invited the son of
King Charles, Charles II, to be the new king of England
• James II [Left] was the Catholic King of Protestant
and Anglican England and Scotland (Monarchy).
• When a new catholic heir, James Stuart, son of
the king and his wife, was born, Englishmen fear
about a Catholic Dinasty.
• Protestant Bishops (Church) and Parliament
Members (Nobles and Bourgeois) invited the
Anglican daughter of James, Princess Mary and
her husband, William de Orange, to be the new
queen and king (Right).
• William's Dutch troops invaded England; James II
was overthrown, and England had new
Protestant Dinasty .
 • King George III of United Kingdom (Monarchy)
American • American 13 colonies without enough government participation (People)
Revolutionary War • Planters, farmers, traders, military men, lawyers and artisans (Bourgeoise, Common People) started a
rebellion
(1775-1783) • British Army was defeated, and the Rebels stablished United States of America.
French
Revolution (1789)
• Kingdom of France in crisis
• King Louis XVI called a National
Congress with representatives of the
Nobility, Church and
Commons (Estates General)
• Commons (Common People and
Bourgeoisie) wanted a Constitutional
Monarchy and a Parliament
• People in Paris started a revolt against
the King
• Monarchy was abolished and began
the First French Republic.
Napoleon takes the
power, Bourgeoisie values
on full control (1799)

• French Republic in crisis

• Napoleon (Bourgeoisie) fought against the enemies of
revolution, including forces of foreign countries
• Napoleon accused Republican government of bad
administration
• Napoleon coup d'état (1799), seized the power.
• Napoleon changed the Constitution with an almost
unanimous vote of the French citizens in the elections
• Napoleon First Consul of France (1799)
• Napoleon Emperor of France (1804)
• Napoleonic Code (1804) abolished Medieval laws and
customs. First modern Constitution.
References
• American Battlefield Trust (2023). American Revolutionary
War https://www.battlefields.org/learn/articles/american-revolution-faqs
• English Heritage (2023). English Civil Wars https://www.english-
heritage.org.uk/learn/histories/the-english-civil-wars-history-and-stories/
• Historic UK (2023). Glorious Revolution https://www.historic-
uk.com/HistoryUK/HistoryofEngland/The-Glorious-Revolution-1688/
• Libertarianism.org (2008). French
Revolution https://www.libertarianism.org/topics/french-revolution
• Lumen Learning (2023). Napoleonic Code https://courses.lumenlearning.com/suny-hccc-
worldhistory2/chapter/the-napoleonic-code/
• PBS (2023). Medici https://www.pbs.org/empires/medici/renaissance/republic.html
• UK Parliament (2015). Magna Carta https://www.parliament.uk/about/living-
heritage/evolutionofparliament/originsofparliament/birthofparliament/overview/magna
carta/