...to the world and destroyed the old order of the government. The middle class became modern society and feudalism was swept away. Since Louis XIV, France was growing wealthy and also becoming the most populated country in Europe. Although economically they were growing, the people were not pleased with the idea of their society and government. France was ruled by an absolute monarch and divided in 3 unequal classes. Ultimately, three important factors caused the French Revolution: a political, social and economic crisis. The political crisis was due to Louis XVI. Louis XVI cost the people of France millions of dollars during their financial crisis from lavish spending’s. This caused him to be very unpopular to the people. After his army was defeated in 1787 by the Prussians, the people no longer believed in the divine right of the kings. The people started to become enlightened from the philosophers who led them to believe that leaders were only legit if they had the peoples consent. This was a problem because the people no longer believed in Louis XVI....
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...Louis XVIs failings as a monarch primarily account for the strength of the challenge to absolutism in France which existed by the beginning of May 1789 - How far do you agree? Yes to a large extent it can be argued that it was Louis XVIs failings as a monarch that accounted for the strength of the challenge to the Ancien Regime. For example Louis' weak leadership meant he lacked the confidence to act assertively meaning he couldn't combat the growing strength of the privileged class and push through reforms. Moreover he was too easily influenced and took appeasement of the privileged too far instead of stopping them in their tracks. Although it could be argued that the power of the privileged accounted for the challenge to absolutism due to their self interest and corruption it is clear that without Louis weaknesses this would not of been such a serious issue and thus Louis failings remain the primary account to the strength of the challenge as he failed to keep control and influence within the privileged classes which in turn created difficulty when attempting the all important reforms. Moreover although the grievances could be seen as the primary reason and account for the strength of the challenge to absolutism it is clear they are not the most important. For example although it could be argued that the resentment from the third estate ,due to the tax burdens placed on them, mainly account for the strength in challenge it is clear that without Louis failures to reform and...
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...revolution, events seemed minor and proceeded in a logical fashion. One of the reasons the revolution originated was the discontent among the lower and middle classes in France. By law, society was divided in to three groups called estates; The Estates-General. The first estate was made of up clergy, nobles comprised the second and the rest of the citizens, the third estate. The third estate resented certain advantages of the first two estates. The clergy and nobles did not have to pay most taxes. The third estate, especially the peasants, had to provide almost all the country’s tax revenue. Many members of the middle class were also worried by their social status. They were among the most important people in French society but were not recognized as such because they belonged to the third estate. Financial crisis developed because the nation had gone deeply into debt to finance the Seven Years War (1756-1763) and the American Revolutionary War (1775-1783). The Parliament of Paris insisted that King Louis XVI could borrow more money or raise taxes only by calling a meeting of the Estates-General. The Estates-General was made up of representatives of the three estates, and had last met in 1614. Unwillingly, the king called the meeting. The Estates-General...
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...government of France. King Louis XVI was an incompetent and ineffective ruler. The Monarchy and nobility engaged in political conflict over reform of the tax system, leading France to bankruptcy. In order to regenerate French society the revolutionaries had to reform the main leading figure and symbol of power, King Louis XVI and the absolute monarchy. Although the revolutionaries at first did not intentionally try to inspire nationalist symbols from the events of the French Revolution, the republican ideals of liberty, freedom, and equality that arose from the fighting, nevertheless came to be embodied in French art as powerful symbols that helped to further drive the revolution. The events of the French Revolution were not intended to create nationalist symbols, and only later developed symbolic significance, they were at the time rational acts in attempt to reach a goal. Nevertheless, paintings of the events reinforced republican ideals and symbolism and artwork became a visual aid to the revolution. The artwork was a way for the revolutionaries to visually express nationalism and their goals in a coterminous fashion, combining the two and linking them. French art in a way advertised the revolutionary ideals and the events which publicized the French Revolution. In July 1788 the announcement that the king was going to make the Estates General caused tremendous uproar. In response to this the Parliament of Paris gave an ultimatum that the Estates be organized equitably to...
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...socioeconomic inequality of the 3rd estate. The 3rd estate, which made up 92% of French’s population, owned most of the land, paid most of the taxes, but they were not given as much legislative power in the National Assembly and that made the 3rd estate extremely angry. King Louis XVI was the king at the time before the revolution and because of food shortages, prices rose and there was great discontent throughout France and at the same time, the French government was almost bankrupt. The king rose expenses to pay for wars....
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...about tradition and hierarchy regarding monarchs, aristocrats, and the Catholic Church were abruptly overthrown by new principles of Liberté, égalité, fraternité (liberty, equality and fraternity). The royal houses across Europe were horrified and led a countercrusade that by 1814 had restored the old monarchy, but many major reforms became permanent. So too did antagonisms between the supporters and enemies of the Revolution, who fought politically over the next two centuries. Amidst a fiscal crisis, the common people of France were increasingly angered by the incompetency of King Louis XVI and the continued indifference and decadence of the aristocracy. This resentment, coupled with burgeoning Enlightenment ideals, fueled radical sentiments, and the French Revolution began in 1789 with the convocation of the Estates-General in May. The first year of the Revolution saw members of the Third Estate proclaiming the Tennis Court Oath in June, the assault on the Bastille in July, the passage of the Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen in August, and an epic march on Versailles that forced the royal court back to Paris in October. The next few years were dominated by struggles between various liberal assemblies and a right wing of supporters of the monarchy intent on thwarting major reforms. A republic was...
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...overnight, but many different factors from multiple sources, piled-up grievances and contradictions that were long precipitated, contributed to the finality of a traditional system and led to the establish of a modern constitutional government, together with democracy and nationalism. Under the reign of Louis XIV and XV, France had been put under an enormous financial and economic burden by 18th century. Louis XIV’s aggressive international policies had led to lasting and destructive Seven Years War outside the European lands and French government had experienced some period that the spending greatly exceeded the revenue income,especially with expensive military expenditures . And to make it worse, the outcome of these long drawn-out battles against the Great Britain oversea on the North America territory only threw French into bigger financial crisis. Normally the exceeding funds were borrowed, but by the time Louis XV passed away, funding sources may have been cut off and France was left in mounting debts. France had been seeking ways to repay its debts and interest, and to continue supporting the lavish royal courts in Versailles. To address the economic hardship, the Louis XVI government did propose a series of reforms regarding taxation system and expenditure reduction. One of the enlightened thinkers and economists, Robert-Jacques Turgot, had tried to implement many effective policies and his most significant contribution was the proposition of “Free Trade Law”,...
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...The French Revolution © Student Handouts, Inc. www.studenthandouts.com The Old Regime (Ancien Regime) • Old Regime – socio-political system which existed in most of Europe during the 18th century • Countries were ruled by absolutism – the monarch had absolute control over the government • Classes of people – privileged and unprivileged – Unprivileged people – paid taxes and treated badly – Privileged people – did not pay taxes and treated well Society under the Old Regime • In France, people were divided into three estates – First Estate • High-ranking members of the Church • Privileged class – Second Estate • Nobility • Privileged class – Third Estate • Everyone else – from peasants in the countryside to wealthy bourgeoisie merchants in the cities • Unprivileged class The Three Estates Estate Privileges Exemptions •Collected the tithe •Censorship of the press •Control of education •Kept records of births, deaths, marriages, etc. •Catholic faith held honored position of being the state religion (practiced by monarch and nobility) •Owned 20% of the land •Paid no taxes •Subject to Church law rather than civil law •Moral obligation (rather than legal obligation) to assist the poor and needy •Support the monarchy and Old Regime •Collected taxes in the form of feudal dues •Monopolized military and state appointments •Owned 20% of the land •Paid no taxes •Support the monarchy and Old Regime •Nobles First Population •Circa 25,000,000 •None •None •Paid all taxes...
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...The revolutionaries claimed that liberty was an inalienable right, especially because the American colonist defeated the British in the War of Independence. On October 5, 1789 six thousand Parisian women marched on toward Versailles forcing the King to make decisions on problems with the bread supply, high prices, and starvation (Geary, Kishlansky, & O’Brien 2010). Equality and Democracy The French citizens not only wanted liberty, but they also wanted equality. The French people were willing to give up their political liberty to gain equality. The old regime equality consisted only for the First Estate and Second Estates (nobles and clergy). Nobles and clergy were exempt from direct tax or land tax. The majority of the taxes were paid by the Third Estate, which consisted of peasants, artisans, merchants, and professional men. Among the different three estates,...
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...Declaration of the Rights of Man | C. | the riots of 1791 | D. | war with Austria/Prussia | | | Q.2) | In 1789, King Louis XVI summoned the Estates-General primarily to | | | A. | eliminate feudal dues. | B. | increase the influence of the peasants. | C. | raise taxes to pay off growing debt. | D. | protect the privileges of the First and Second Estates | | | Q.3) | The Tennis Court Oath was made by | | | A. | a group of moderates known as Girondists. | B. | King Louis XVI. | C. | Napoleon. | D. | representatives of the Third Estate. | | | Q.4) | The Tennis Court Oath pledged | | | A. | that the Third Estate would never belong to a Tennis club | B. | that all tennis bracelets in France should be destroyed | C. | that the Third Estate/National Assembly would remain together until a Constitution was written | D. | that King Louis XVI should die | | | Q.5) | Which of the following were treasonous acts committed by Louis? | | | A. | supporting the Revolution | B. | declaring the National Assembly unconstitutional | C. | declaring war on Austria | D. | trying to escape France | | Q.6.) Who created the Committee of Public Safety? A. Louis XVI B. Maximilien Robespierre C. The Directory D. The National Convention Q.7) | King Louis XVI left Versailles for Paris when his palace was surrounded by | | | A. | nobles demanding greater privileges. | ...
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...middle and lower classes from participation in the government. Louis XVI was the absolute monarch during the early stages of the revolution, which served as a catalyst for extreme governmental neglect, starvation, and abuse of the lower and middle classes during the 1780s. More so, an increased interest in Enlightenment principles, the American Revolution, and Republican government created a middle class platform for protesting the king as a threat to participatory governance. Eventually, the Estates-General sought diplomatic means to end the monarchy, but Louis XVI refused to abdicate. However, the Estates General formed a military and overthrew the monarchy, which resulted in the formation a Republican government in 1792....
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...The Rise and Fall of The French Revolution By Rhiannon Collins When starting this paper the question that was kept in mind was the French Revolution worth the price that was paid and was the revolution a success. My first answer was no due to the amount of violence and the amount of lives lost, also due to the fact that the monarchy in some sense, had been reestablished through Napoleon. Though there was tens of thousands of lives lost the French Revolution played an important role in history. Jeff Goodwin, a professor of sociology at New York University, defines revolution as," any and all instances in which a state or political regime is overthrown and thereby transformed by a popular movement in an irregular extra constitutional and/or violent fashion". The sheer violence of the revolution was something that stood out to me. The French Revolutionary war was certainly violent, especially compared to our own American Revolution in 1775. It is quite possible that the French were encouraged by the American Revolution. They saw the colonies join together in revolt against an overseas king, so why could they not revolt in their own country, against their own monarch for their own rights. In the time leading up to the French Revolution, France was wealthy and extremely powerful. Through my perspective there were a few causes of the historic event of the French Revolution. Let us take a look at some of them. One causes I believe is the rise of the cost of food prior to the...
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...time period it was still a struggle for equal rights during the rest of country’s upheaval. The French Revolution was caused by a downfall in the royal family, having to do with serious financial issues. King Louis XVI call in the French Estates General in 1788, to help with the financial crisis the country was going through (Doyle). The Estate General was divided into three estates: First Estate representing the upper class, the Second Estate representing middle class, and the Third Estate representing the lower class. There was one vote for each estate, and in the past the Second Estate and the First Estate had joined together to defeat any proposals for reform from the Third Estate. The Third Estate was determined that would not be so in the current assembly and pushed for the vote of each representative to be counted as a separate vote. They were not able to agree on a voting method. Leading the Third Estate and the lower half Second Estate to break away from the Estates General, forming the National Assembly on June 17, 1789 (Doyle). King Louis XVI admitted defeat on June 27, first appeasing then confrontational ordered his nobles, and the upper half Second Estate to join the National Assembly effectively ending the Estates General. In July 1789 King Louis tried again to dominate the elected assembly (Bosher). Peasants who were consider the lower class in France before the French Revolution lived in horrible conditions. The country depended on feudal systems in...
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...1814, when he was exiled. In the time period between the beginning of the French Revolution and Napoleon’s exile, France had undergone many social and political changes that have permanently affected the way France is today. The French Government was largely affected by the Revolution, in more ways than one. The French Revolution began because the majority of France was fed up with the way King Louis XVI was putting the country in debt and then only taxing the Third Estate, whom didn’t have enough money to pay the taxes. To resolve the problem of debt, King Louis called upon the Estates General, a representative group of all three Estates to discuss the debt crisis. Members of the Third Estate broke off from the Estates General, and took an oath that they would...
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...power in November 1799 and began his dictatorship. Before the revolution France was ruled by the nobles and the church. The Old Regime consisted of three estates; First Estate, Second Estate, and Third Estate. The First Estate consisted of the Clergy. The Clergy lived wealthy lives and owned 10% of all the land in France. The Second Estate consisted of the Nobility of France. Richelieu and Louis XIV had crushed the nobles military power but given them other rights under strict royal control. The Third Estate consisted of 90% of the people in France. They were the peasants and the bourgeoisie. The Third Estate did not like their place in social society and wished for change which was a long term cause for the Revolution. Causes of the French revolution- It was caused by factors such as the bad governing system of France at the time, weak superiority within the government system and inequality of the classes of people in France at the time. The first estate consisted of the church officials, priests. •They collected church tax. •They supervised education (decide about the education) •Registered births, deaths, marriages •They collected tax (feudal dues), from the peasants. The first estate did not need to pay taxes. The third estate, who did not own any privileges, was forced to pay taxes. This angered the third estate because they were the poorest group and thought that the church ought to be taxed more. Ideas of freedom and equality were growing throughout the middle...
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