The French Revolution

a summary

(1789-1799)

Reasons for the

French Revolution

Setting the Stage

Background Causes

A. The financial crisis

King Louis XVI needs cash • 1788 France was in massive debt

– The 7 Year War against the British

• (French & Indian War)

– Supporting America in the American

Revolution

– Lifestyle of the Bourbon family

• Upkeep on Palace of Versailles

B. Louis XVI was a weak ruler

• Little influence over nobility

– Nobility did not want to increase taxes

– Would not raise taxes unless Estates General

met

– It had not met since 1614.

• Little influence with public

• Often unable to address pressing issues

King’s Louis XVI’s Abuse of Power

• He could arrest

anyone on any

charge

• He spent large

amounts of money on

himself

• He held secret trials

(he was judge and

jury all

in one)

Enlightenment Ideas

• Stirred interest in reforming the monarchy

and ending privileges of the clergy and

nobles

• American Revolution inspired French

Revolution

Inequality Among Social Classes

• Privileged Classes - 3% of the

population

• They got the most important government

jobs, paid no taxes,

and lived in luxury.

C. The Three Estates

• The First Estate: Catholic Church/Clergy

• Made up only 1% of the population

– Controlled about 10% of the land.

– Paid a 2% gift to the monarch

C. The Three Estates

• The Second Estate: The Nobility

– Less than 2% of the population.

– Owned 25% of the land

– Could tax peasants at will.

– Resented authority of crown

C. The Three Estates

• The Third Estate: everyone else

• Unprivileged Class (The bourgeoisie) - 97% population

• Third Estate: Doctors, lawyers, merchants, farmers

• Paid the taxes, most were poor, no say in the

government

Unfair Tax System

• Costly wars increased taxes

• Taxes were applied to the Third Estate

• The First and Second Estate were exempt

from taxes

• Towns started taxing each others’ goods

which hurt trade

Struggle For Power:

• Nobles refused to pay taxes unless King

summoned Estates General, with all 3

classes represented

Louis Calls the Estates-General

• Estates General

– Similar to Parliament

– Representatives from each of the 3 classes of

French society

1st Estate - Clergy

2nd Estate - Nobles

3rd Estate – Everyone else

- bourgeoisie

- artists, farmers,

Peasants, city workers etc

2%

1

200

2nd

1%

1

200

1st

Percentage of

the population

Votes in the

Estates

General

Representativ

es in the

Estates

General

Estate

or Social

Class

97%

1

600

3rd

2%

1

200

2nd

1%

1

200

1st

Percentage of

the population

Votes in the

Estates

General

Representativ

es in the

Estates

General

Estate

or Social

Class

Meeting of the Estates General

Demand for Change

• All Estates agreed change was

needed

–Political reform

–Address corruption

• But bitter division over how to vote.

• King Louis XVI requests estates to

meet separately

1. The nobles wanted to use the

Estates General to control the king.

• However, the

Third Estate, or

bourgeoisie,

opposed them

because of

unfair voting

methods.

The First and Second Estates supported by

heavy taxes imposed on the Third Estate

• . What

conclusion

about France’s

three estates

can be drawn

from the

situation

depicted in

this cartoon?

King Louis XVI’s Response

• NADA!!! No!!, No Way!!! Aint gonna

happen!!!, Forgetaboutit!!! Nope!!! Uh-

uh!!! Not on my watch!!! Not here, not

now, not ever!!!

• Get the idea??

3rd Estate Response

• May 1788 -Representatives meet on an indoor

tennis court and pledged that they would not

leave until the king agrees to their demands

– “The Tennis Court Oath”

• Like a big “sit in”

• Embarrassing situation for the king

– Why?

• King finally agrees

• Establishment of The National Assembly

The National Assembly

• Vowed to write a constitution

• Members of other estates joined

• King gave in to National Assembly

• The Declaration of the Rights of Man and Citizens.

so what does

that mean?

And the result? Peasants were freed from

their feudal contracts and the Declaration of

the Rights of Man and of the Citizen, which

established a proper judicial code and the

autonomy of the French people, was

released.

Leading up to Bastille Day

• July 1788 French farmers, peasants do not have

enough to eat and are paying high taxes

– Nobles out of touch (“Let them eat cake”)

– People can not afford food

• Peasants getting a bit rowdy

• Louis XVI starts assembling troops at Versailles

• People fear he is planning to attack the new

National Assembly and arrest members

Fall of the Bastille: July 14, 1789

“The Third Estate Awakens”

Bastille Day – July 14, 1789

• While National Assembly meets, Paris has riots. – Poor wheat crop cause price increases.

– Riots over rising prices of bread.

• Louis XVI called for his Swiss guards to come to Paris – To Protect the crown

– The crowds feared this move.

– The National Assembly feared the Guards were coming after them.

• Peasants attack Bastille to seize weapons for defense

Fall of the Bastille

Bastille Day

• People in Paris hear about the troops – Begin to riot.

– July 14, 1788 - Attack the Bastille – fortress prison in Paris.

• Seen as a symbol of Kings power

• People storm the prison, free the prisoners, take guns and ammo.

The Bastille

Then

Now

• National Assembly votes to eliminate all

classes, titles, nobility.

– Say nobles and clergy must pay taxes too

• Serves as a basis for French Constitution

“Liberty,

Equality,

Fraternity”

a bill of rights modeled on English

and American examples, which

guaranteed that "men are born and

remain free and equal in rights." It

also guaranteed that "property being

an inviolable and sacred right, no one

may be deprived of it except for an

obvious requirement of public

necessity, certified by law . . . ."

http://faculty.fullerton.edu/nfitch/history110b/rev.html

Reformed the legal system:

Elected judges, trial by jury,

ended brutal punishment.

Wrote a constitution (1791):

Reformed the government

by establishing a limited

monarchy.

Abolished the special

treatment of nobles

and clergy.

French Revolution Slogan:

• “Liberty, Equality,

Fraternity”

Revolution gets out of hand

• Riots soon spread to countryside

– Peasants attack nobles in their houses. Kill

many nobles

– Nobles and Clergy living in fear

• “A Tale of Two Cities” is set in this time period

The Great Fear: Summer 1789

• Peasant mobs rise

against nobility.

– Attacked manors

– Destroyed legal

documents

– Seized land

– Stopped paying taxes

• National Assembly

forces Louis XVI to

end Feudalism

The March on Versailles:

10/5/1789 • Rising bread prices anger woman of Paris.

– They march on the assembly.

– They march to Versailles.

• The woman and mobs attack Versailles.

• Force King to agree to return to Paris.

Revolution Getting out of Control

• King Louis XVI attempts to flee the

country with his wife Marie Antoinette

• Captured and brought back