The French Revolution was a drastic time for the people of France. In 1789, the majority of people were living in poverty and dealing with terrible conditions. People were split into three estates: the first, second, and third, the first being the wealthiest. Political, economic, and social situations were what contributed to people’s desire for change. The three main, or biggest causes of the French Revolution, were taxes, inequality, and lack of reform.
The Revolution abolished monarchy and replaced it with a republic. It was a period of social and political chaos. The cost from the American Revolution and the expensive spending from King King Louis XVI left France close to bankruptcy. The spending left many peasants and urban poor with little to nothing to eat. The purpose of the French Revolution was to help solve the financial problems of the government.
During the Eighteenth Century, France had an absolute monarchy with Louis XVI as king and Marie Antoinette as queen. In that time period, French society was based upon a system of Estates where the clergy made up the First Estate; the nobility comprised the Second Estate, and everyone else including professionals, peasants, and the bourgeoisie made up the Third Estate. The Third Estate was immensely unhappy with the old regime, the Estates General, and Louis XVI’s leadership. France was also in the midst of a fiscal crisis due to the American Revolution, Louis XVI’s lavish lifestyle, the Seven Years War, and the tax exemption of the First and Second Estate. Following the surge of new ideas and impactful philosophers from the Enlightenment,
The French Revolution and Latin American Revolution both followed the pattern of: citizens became dissatisfied with government, moderates gaining more power, radicals taking over, and then entering a period of acceptance. France was divided into three estates. The third estate
King Louis XVI, who was the ruler at the time, was a main contributor to these problems that led France to its downfall. The country had a massive lack of resources and food, which led King Louis XVI to borrow more money than he could afford, thus putting the country in immense debt. Despite the very visible crisis overthrowing the country, the king was incapable of accepting his mistakes and refused to change his ways. He maintained the unjust voting system, known as the Estates-General, and worsened the taxing system in order to pay off his debts. The people, especially those of the Third Estate, were clearly angry and dissatisfied with the state of the country, which led them seek out a movement for what was right.
The French Revolution was one of the most significant wars that changed France’s history. The Revolution started in 1789 and ended in 1799 and was mainly initiated by the conditions affecting the Third Estate. Louis XVI was predominately the king during this time period but little did he know that an uprising among the peasants was happening. The French Revolution was caused by the Enlightenment ideas because of the American Revolution, the knowledge of rights, and the questioning of France’s government. The American Revolution was basically the “fire” that ignited the change the Third Estate wanted to see in their country.
On the other hand, in France, members of the Third Estate led a revolt against the monarchy in hopes that by overthrowing the monarchy, they would be granted a constitution and a new assembly would be created with delegates of the Third Estate. Although the radicals were successful and a National Assembly was created, there were still problems. The worsening economic issues had not been solved and many citizens did not gain any rights. When the Revolution took a radical turn in 1792, the French Republic was formed. Finally, in 1799, after the end of the Reign of Terror in which the monarchy and its allies were executed, the French Revolution came to an end, with Napoleon gaining power over France.
Currently, the France, that people know today, is the aftermath of the French Revolution. The government of France “is a unique hybrid of presidential and parliamentary systems that reflect rich political traditions and culture” (Guardian). In the current France, there is no absolute monarchy. There is no divine ruler like King Louis XVI. France is now a democratic country with the President as the leader along with his hers subsidiaries.
However, the French revolution had led France to dictatorship and tens of years’ chaos after that. There was endless struggles between the left wing and the right wing during the French revolution. Although the left has published the Declaration of the rights of man, since the political environment was so unstable, that didn 't really changed the society into a republic. After “The Terror” which killed 40,000 people, Napoleon Bonaparte was crowned as an Emperor, a dictator of France. Then, after Napoleon died, monarchy and republic appeared alternately.
Firstly, the French Revolution was a
In this paper I discuss the four phases of the French revolution and how they influenced one and other, these phases consist of The National assembly/ The Constitutional Monarchy, The Reign of Terror, The Directory, and the Age of Napoleon. The First phase of the French revolution is the National assembly or Constitutional Monarchy. " Constitutional monarchy, system of government in which a monarch shares power with a constitutionally organized government.
The French Revolution all began after people in France decided it was time to fight for their rights and freedom and escape the tyranny that took place and give the people more power. At the time King Louis XVI was the French king and had power from 1774 to 1792 and was later executed in 1793. In France, the people were divided into three separate social estates, clergy, nobility, and the commoner as the lowest and the highest above all of course would be the king. The Enlightenment was a movement by intellectuals who promoted reason and science, and they began to question the system in place at the time in France and they began to spread revolutionary ideas that got people thinking about change. The “French Revolution was influenced by Enlightenment ideals” and when the ideas began to spread people were newly educated about something they never thought about, and after
Was the French Revolution preventable? This is a question that is fascinating to think about. What could have been done differently to prevent this revolution that cost countless people their lives? Why were others willing to give their lives, for what cause? Why was life so turbulent?
1) Challenges against the newly-formed Third Republic, started right after its foundation. Although overwhelming defeat against Prussia after the Franco-Prussian War in 1880-81 was the Second Empire’s fault, peace deal signed between the Third Republic and Prussia. Republic, even from its very beginning, lost significant prestige and France’s “grandeur” (greatness) in the eyes of her rivals both inside and outside. On the one hand, monarchist, which hold the majority in parliament expects the humiliation of the Republic and republicans in order to proclaim a new system and the third empire, on the other hand, Unification of the German Empire created a vital threat not just the French influence in Europe also French sovereignty itself. In addition to that, the Republic had challenges in the system itself between making reforms to implement a fully democratic order and creating a secular republic which create “état laic”.
Why: The reason that Republics kept happening was because the King and Emperors were living a very lavish life filled with luxuries and lots of food, but then you span to the government who is very poor and in debt, then you also look at the people if France who are poor, have no food, and a bout of cholera is going around. So that basically means that France is very angry and the rulers are happy, which then leads to a major revolution
