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THE FRENCH REVOLUTION: THE OLD ORDER IN FRANCE
By Chris Anderson
Randolph-Henry High School
Introduction France will reach its height during the
same time as the American Revolution France was very rich and powerful Although a rich nation, most of the people
of France were not rich--instead, the people had very few rights
the people of France saw how the American colonists were able to gain their independence and yearned for a change in France
French Society Divided
France’s class system allowed for lots of inequality among the people
there were three estates--classes--in French society:First Estate--Catholic
ClergySecond Estate--NobilityThird Estate--97% of all
French people
Third Estate people had very few rights and were envious of the 1st and 2nd Estates
the 3rd Estate was the only class required to pay taxes
3rd Estate people did not share the same rights as the 1st or 2nd
First Estate This was constructed
of the Roman Catholic clergy
this Estate was comprised of only 1% of the French population
2 groups existed in the 1st Estate-- higher clergy--bishops,
abbots lower clergy--parish
priests
High Clergy these controlled 5-
10% of all French land they collected a tithe
from each church member
Low Clergy poorer clergy socially part of the 3rd
estate
Second Estate
Formed by the French nobility only about 2% of the French population these members owned about 25% of the
land in France held high government positions usually they were rich--their main
income coming from feudal dues paid to them by peasant farmers
Third Estate The 3rd Estate was the
largest social group in France
Although the largest group and the only group that paid taxes, they had no voice in government
peasants, artisans, middle class (bourgeoisie)
very few political rights members of the
bourgeoisie lived in cities and towns
bourgeoisie were usually educated
Poor artisans and workers also lived in cities
made little money in very bad jobs
many lived in the Paris slums
peasants lived outside the cities in rural areas peasants owned 40% of
the land but were still very poor
paid heavy taxes they will eventually call
for social equality
Growing Unrest The people of the 3rd
Estate will be unhappy and want change
as the cost of living , the peasants’ anger also
peasants were also being over-charge for the use of mills and wine presses
artisans were experiencing high prices but no change in wages--inflation
The bourgeoisie were also unhappy along with some nobles
the nobles did not like the king’s absolute power
nobles wanted more influence in government
Louis XIV had spent a lot of money on many wars during his reign
these wars had left France with a huge debt
his grandson, Louis XV, increased the debt during his reign
these debts had left France economically weak
1774: Louis XVI becomes king of France he is only 19 years old
Louis XVI is the grandson of Louis XV
Louis XVI is married to 18-yo Marie Antoinette
Louis XVI understood the financial troubles facing France
Louis decided he must tax the clergy and nobility in order to reduce France’s debts
problem: the clergy and nobility refused to pay the taxes
Louis XV (15) Louis XVI (16)
Marie Antoinette
1786: French banks were refusing to loan $ to the government
1786: crop failures bread shortages in 1788 & 1789
the clergy and nobility refuse to help the government
Louis was forced to call the Estates-General into session to raise additional funds
Calling the Estates General When Louis XVI called the Estates-
General into session in 1789, it was the 1st time since 1614
the Estates-General was made up of people from each different estate
Louis hoped the Estates-General would levy new taxes
the nobles had different ideas
Meeting of the Estates General
The nobles wanted to:
weaken the power of the kinggain control of the government
each estate had only 1 vote in the Estates-Generalthe nobles hoped the votes of the 1st & 2nd
estates would outweigh the vote of the 3rd the 3rd estate members refused to follow
the plan set by the noblesthe 3rd estate--since it made up 97% of
France’s population--believed it should more of a right to represent France than the nobles
The 3rd estate wanted their members to have
individual votes--each delegate having a vote many nobles supported this 3rd estate’s ideas king Louis XVI did not like the 3rd estate’s idea of
having a mass meeting where each individual member gets a voteLouis wanted the different estates to meet
separately the bourgeoisie--members of the 3rd estate--ignored
the kingthese bourgeoisie were locked out of the meetingsthese bourgeoisie will demand a constitution for
France and rename themselves the National Assembly
This National Assembly gathered more
supporters they met, many times, on indoor tennis courts--
thus those who became members had to take what was called the Tennis Court Oath
members promised not to break-up until France had a constitution
the king did not want the members of the National Assembly (3rd estate) to create a constitution
Louis orders the 1st and 2nd estate to join in the National Assembly to help create a national constitution
the king also ordered troops to come to Paris
A Call to Revolt In the National Assembly, people voiced their
unhappiness over the French government most members of the 3rd estate wanted total
social equality and the end of titles other delegates wanted to copy the
constitutional monarchy present in Britain as the National Assembly was meeting, the idea
of rebellion spread throughout France because of fear, the Louis XVI began gathering
troops at Versailles French citizens reacted against this troop
movement by storming a prison--the Bastille
Fall of the Bastille The Bastille was a
prison located in Paris the French people saw
the Bastille as a symbol of the power and unfairness of the French government
July 14, 1789: a large group of French people surrounded the prison these people were out to
steal weapons to help defend the National Assembly from a possible attack
The people tried to force their way into the Bastille
eventually, the people were able to get into the prison, freeing 7 prisoners
soldiers defending the Bastille fired upon the mob of people killing 98 French citizens
some of the soldiers, too, were killed by the mob
The mob of angry people took over the Bastille a revolutionary government was set up in the city
of Paris news of what happened in Paris spread quickly in
France other areas in France erupted into violence--a
period called the Great Fear peasants in the country began to arm themselves
for protection these peasants eventually began violently
combing the country side robbing, pillaging, and destroying property, driving landlords off of the land
this was the beginning of the French Revolution
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