The French Revolution was a period in history where French citizens changed the way their country was run thus getting rid of an absolute monarchy and shaping modern history by showing the power of the people. It began in 1789 and ended in 1799. The revolution was effective as the third estate obtained greater power in society, a constitution was introduced which limited the powers of the upper class to make decisions, greater freedom for all and human rights were introduced. Section A- Summary of evidence From the evidence gathered, I can conclude that if it wasn’t for the increase in civil disobedience by the peasants and creating awareness about the injustices of the class society France wouldn’t be the Democratic country that we know …show more content…
Due to the lavish life of the Monarchy, an increase in taxes was placed on the Third Estate which created more difficulties for them as they were already struggling to survive. Marie Antoinette was not well liked as she only focused on being a figure of authority. In October 1779, women protested at the Palace of Versailles against high prices of bread and other goods. Marie was loathed as her response to the peoples struggle was “Qu’ils mangent de la brioche”- let them eat cake. The royals were captured and imprisoned by the people. In August 1792, France was at war with Austria which they lost. Due to this defeat the Queen was blamed. Shortly after King Louis was executed and Marie soon followed as she was executed by the Guillotine at 37. The cartoon depicts Marie as someone who is selfish and is mocked as she looks plus sized as she has a lot of food available compared to citizens who were struggling …show more content…
French society was divided into three estates. The higher and lower clergy were opposites as the higher clergy lived expensive lives whilst the lower clergy did not gain any wealth however they served every other estate. The second estate is divided into nobles, who are divided into court and provincial nobles. Court nobles were similar to the higher clergy as they obtained wealth and had a lack of interest in the needs of the people however the provincial nobles were similar to the peasants as they cared for the people and did not share the same values as the other nobles. The third estate was sub-divided into the poor and the bourgeoisie. As the revolution started, peasants became rebellious as they wanted change. The Bourgeoisie obtained wealth however it was taken away which led them to collaborate with the lower class. This source demonstrates how unequal each class was and how the failures of the country fell on the peasants as they bared most responsibility and contributed the
Lefebvre argues that the nobility formed a vast social and political network that reached all over France, from the government all the way down to the peasantry. He draws attention to the extent of the nobility’s power and the role they played in French politics and society even before the revolution. Lefebvre’s quote also suggests that the nobility’s influence was not limited
Taxes, which is still a commonly disagreed topic, were a major reason the people of France revolted. The members of the first estate were paying only a fraction of what the members of the third and event the second were. Arthur Young, a man who travelled through France from 1787 to 1789, made the observation that land owned by nobility and people of the upper class was taxed very little compared to the land owned by common citizens (Doc. 1). This injustice took a great toll on members of the third estate and
The second estate was made up of rich nobles. The nobles owned 20 percent of the land in France and paid almost no taxes. The third estate was about 90 percent of the people in France. The third estate laked privileges they had to pay high taxes. They felt that their wealth entitled them to a great degree of social states.
Taxes were a huge problem during the French Revolution, many had unequal problems. The third estate had very little land and payed more taxes. (Document 2) Third estate was the middle class, peasants, and city workers they were the ones that made 97% of the people and owned 65% of the land. The first and second estate owned more than the third estate.
They owned 25% of the land and only paid 2% of taxes. Now comes the shocking part: the rich people paid nothing. The First Estate owned 10% of land and paid 0% of the taxes. According to Document 3, the Third Estate demanded that three changes should be made in the French Government: every tax should be granted by the Estates General for a limited time, they needed to schedule the meetings of the Estates General for definite times and the votes of the Third Estate should be taken by head in the assembly. Document 4 states that, when the middle class found out about Enlightenment ideas, they became the leaders of the Revolution.
Lands held by the commoners are taxed very heavily” (Arthur Young). The King and Queen were seen as the “Two-Headed Monster” which is illustrated in document 2. The common people were getting fed up with the reckless spending and weak leadership that the King had shown them. They were at the tip of their anger and when the Third Estate Gad been locked out of their meeting room it pushed them over the edge. They shortly after Stormed the Bastille, the Bastille was a Paris prison that housed most of the country’s gunpowder.
This made the French Revolution really kick off. The Third Estate community now understood that they were being taken advantaged of. They began raids such as The Women’s March on Versailles. “After meeting with a delegation of these women, who tearfully described how their children were starving for lack of bread, Louis XVI promised them grain supplies for Paris, thinking that this would end the protest. But the women’s action had forced the Paris National Guard under Lafayette to follow their lead and march to Versailles” (569 Spielvogel)
A revolution is a complete overthrow of the government. The French Revolution, lasting ten years, was exactly that. The French Revolution was the time for the lower classes to fight back against their unfair government and against the higher classes. The Third Estate, made up of the peasants, the bourgeoisie, and the urban poor were fed up with the way they were treated, resorting to not only political arguments, but also physical violence. There were political, social, and economic causes, that each had enormous effects.
The French Revolution was one of the most important historical events that occurred during the eighteenth century, developed since the first months of 1789 until the late 1790’s. This revolutionary movement drastically changed France from a Monarchy to a Republic, making Louis XVI one of the last kings of France, and Napoleon Bonaparte rise as a Republican leader. The enlightenment ideals where what triggered the general discontent among all citizens, making them want liberty, equality and fraternity. The French Revolution not only influenced its own country but it also influenced countries all around the world and in different time periods. The social classification was a general discontent among the population and a first factor to the
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,
As what 's defined as a revolution from the dictionary, “is a forcible overthrow of a government or social order in favor of a new system”. This occurred multiple times around the world, some included in the countries France; The French Revolution, Mexico; The Mexican revolution, China; The Chinese Revolution, Russia; The Russian Revolution, and many others around the globe. As both French and Mexican revolutions fought for independence and to convert to a modern world government, they both were concerned with inequality with the lower classmen. The French Revolution fought to end monarchy establishment, while the Mexican Revolution fought to end dictatorship and to establish a constitutional republic.
The actions taken against the oppression of the monarchy demonstrate that the French Revolution challenged the traditional value of social inequality to a near-full
There were three estates of the Ancien Regime that made up the French society. The three estates that made up the French society was the Clergy, the Nobles, and the commoners or everyone else. Each estate had an important role in the French society, but one estate was treated very unfairly. The estate that was treated the most unfair was the third estate of the commoners. They weren’t given privileges like the other estates and this caused many problems for the French society.
In 1789, France was precariously balanced on the edge of chaos. King Louis XVI was ruling monarch of France. King Louis’ youth depicted him as reckless, thoughtless, and unwise. A series of bad financial and political decisions, lead to his unpopularity among the people of France. King Louis was young, distracted and misguided.
The nobles were at the top of the social hierarchy. Their job was to provide work, land, and protection to the peasants. They also provided funding, supplies, and military service to the king. The nobility often engaged in warfare for entertainment and protection to the citizens.