press, modifying the electoral laws so that three-fourths of the electorate lost their votes, and calling for new Europe in Turmoil elections to the Chamber. In protest, the Parisian masses took to the streets for the first time since . The royal forces were unable to contain the insurrection. Charles X was advised to go into exile and put in his place, a relative, Louis Philip of Orleans who had the backing of the middle class.
The tactics worked in France. But in other parts of Europe there arose a number of risings. The revolution was successful in the Netherlands, where Belgium was separated to form an independent state. The Greeks, who had been fighting for independence from Turkish rule, attained independence in , with the support of the Great Powers.
But the revolt of Poles against the Russian Tsar was suppressed. February Revolution ( ) February Revolution The French King, Louis Philippe, had to abdicate and flee the country in February, Louis Philippe , when there was a spontaneous rising in Paris. Crowds chanting “Vive de la reforme,” an expression in French to show patriotism, stormed into the lines of troops and swarmed through the palaces and the assembly buildings. The opposition rallied behind the French revolutionary poet Lamartine.
Louis Blanc also joined. In the elections held in April , on the basis of universal manhood suffrage, the moderates were elected in large numbers. Only a few socialists were elected. The newly elected Assembly decided to shut down the workshops that had been started at the initiative of Louis Blanc, as the workshops were seen as a threat to social order.
The workers retaliated and braved the government repression. Between June and , thousands of people were killed and eleven thousand revolutionaries were imprisoned or deported. The period came to be known as the bloody June days. The Constituent Assembly drafted a new constitution based on which elections were held.
Louis Napoleon, the nephew of Napoleon Bonaparte, was elected President in December . Before long, in January ,