Pre-war and moderate phase

Louis XIV

Absolute monarch who put France in debt when he built hte Palace of Versailles

Louis XV

• weak

• ceded New France to Great Britain during the French and Indian War

• poor economic policies drove them into more debt

Louis XVI

* A weak and indecisive leader
* doubled France’s debt by providing aid to the American Revolution to get revenge on Great Britain for the events in the French and Indian War.
* Married to Marie Antoinette.
* already not well liked due to austiran background
* “madame deficit” because of her excessive spending

Reasons for unrest in France

• economic issues

  • debt

• far-reaching change demands

Ancien Regime (the old regime)

• no powerful parliament with Burbons (abs monarchs)

• Palace of Versailles cost half of the national budget and the additions made to house the nobles were costly

• estates

France was a:

• Center of Enligtenment

• leader in scientific advances

• huge country (AS IN LARGE POPULATION)

• prosporus in foreign trade

The First Estate

The Roman Catholic Clergy. Targeted by philosophes for being idele, interfering with politics, and intollerating dissent. In response, they condemned the Enlightment for undermining religious and moral order.

KING IS ABOVE EVERYTHING.

Second Estate

The nobles, made up about 2% of the population and owned 20% of the land

The third estate

97% of people belonged to the Third Estate

• First group - Bourgeoisie (middle class)

  • Well educated, some were rich

• Second group - Workers

  • Poorest group, tradespeople

• Third group - Peasants

  • 80% of France’s 26 mil people

They resented the clergy and nobles for their privileges and special treatment. The third estate themselves had little rights and paid half of their income in taxes while the other estates paid nothing.

What ideas of the Enlightment inspired change?

• power and authority

• sucess of the american revolution

• the questioning of the long-standing societal structure

• equality

Role of women

• servantants

• construction workers

• street sellers

• unemployed

• begging and crime

Economic troubles in France

• heavy taxes made it impossible to conduct profitable businuess

• bad weather caused widespread crop falures

  • food became scarce and expensive so people starved to death

  • no one was happy so peasants rioted nobles houses

Jacques Necker

Louis XVI’s financial advisor

• reduced extravagant spending

• abolished burdensome tariffs

• published doings of the treasury which won him the public’s favor

• dissmissed when he called for the first and second estates to be taxed

Estates General

Notables refused changes to taxation system: goverment expenditures cut, trade restrictions removed, and limiting the taxation privileges of the first and second estates.

Even though it was last called in 1614 because absolute monarchs had no need to meet with parliament officials since they had full control.

Legeslative body containing representatives from each estate.

• urged fro fairer taxes

• freedom of the press

• regular EG meetings

Why was the Estates General unfair?

The clergy and nobles dominated it since each estate had one vote each.

The privileged estates could outvote the third estate 2:1 each time to get what they wanted.

What did the third estate propose so that they would have a fair say in the Estate’s General?

Bourgeoisie insisted that votes should be determined by population so that the third estate would have an advantage. King and nobility said no.

Emmanuel-Joseph Sieyes

A clergy sympathizer who called for hte third estate to name themselves the National assembly and pass laws/refors in the name of the French people as an act of rebellion to end absolute monarchy.

Some clergy and nobles sided with them for their own advantage when the inevitable revolution came about.

When it came to be the day of the estates general….

Third Estate delegates were locked out of their meeting room, so they broke down the door to an indoor tennis court.

Tennis Court Oath

A vow made by the third estate delegates/National assembly to never separate and meet whenever the circumstances might require until the formation of a sound and just constitution was drawn up.

Did Louis recognize the national assembly?

Not until the educated 1rst and 2nd estates men joined. However, there were rumors that he wanted it dissolved.

Storming the Bastille

July 14, 1789

Bastille- a prison where political and criminal commoners were taken and tortured. Repressed people.

Stormed in to take gunpowder and arms however they ended up seizing control of the building

Beginning of the French Revolution

Political Crisis 1789

• worst famine in history

• 80% of income was spent on bread

The Great Fear

Rebellion spread from Paris into the countryside and rumors circulated that the nobles were hiring outlaws to terrorize the peasants.

People started to panic and peasants became outlaws and stormed into nobles’s houses to destory legal doccuments that bound them to feudal work.

Women’s march on Versailles

In response to rising bread prices, Parisian women marched to the Palace of Versailles

• They demanded that Louis return to Paris

• Signaled the change of power and radical reforms about to overtake France

Women against Marie Antoinette

July 17-August 3, 1789 - Women resented Marie Antoinette and her lavish lifestyle, blaming her for France’s problems. 

The Declaration of the Rights of Man and Citizens

• Influenced by the Declaration of Independence

• “Men are born and remain free and equal in rights”

• “Liberty, Equality, Fraternity”

  • Guaranteed men equal justice, freedoms of speech and religion

• Natural rights and fair taxation also promised

• Government existed to protect natural rights

• All citizens were equal before the law

• anyone could hold office

• No incarceration without a crime

Olympe De Gouges

published declaration for the rights of women, was condemmed and denied

Additional reforms by the National assembly

* church under state control
* church land was siezed and sold to pay off debt
* divided peasants
* civil constitution: no papal authority, officials nad priests are to be elected and salaried.

Constitution of 1791

• Limited monarchy was established, stripping the king of much of his power, ending royal absolutism

• legeslative assembly formed

  • make laws

  • collect taxes

  • make decisions about war and peace

  • elected tax paying males over 25

  • king still had executive power

What did Louis XVI think about the constitution of 1791?

Pledged to “maintain it at home, defend it abroad and cause its execution by all the means at my disposal”.

With this done, the national assembly dissoved itself and handed its power to the legislative assembly

What split the legislative assembly into three groups?

question of how to handle food shortage and government debt.

radicals, moderates, conservatives

Radicals

Opposed monarchy completely and wanted sweeping changes

Moderates

wanted some changes, but not as much. happy with what they had

conservatives

upheald the ideas of limited monarchy

Factions outside of government that played a role

emigres, sans-cutottes, jacobins

Emigres

Nobles/clergy who fled France during the revolution and told others stories of what was going on - they sought help to restore the Old Regime - sounds like emigration

Sans-culottes

Working-class men and women who pushed the revolution into radical action - term means “Without breeches” - knee breeches were wore by men of the upper class - caused chaos and disorder in an effort to push for the republic

Jacobins

Revolutionary political club - mostly middle-class lawyers and intellectuals - used pamphlets and newspapers (propaganda) to further their democratic cause

Declaration of Pillnitz

King of Prussia and Emperor of Austria (brother to Marie Antoinette) threaten to protect the French monarchy

What sparked war between countires

Monarchs and nobles in other countries had growing concerns, spread by the emigres. Austria and Prussia urged the French to restore Louis XVI as an absolute monarch (Pillnitz)

• National Assembly responds by declaring war

• 1792, Prussia threatened to destroy Paris if the royal family was harmed Parisians invaded the Tuileries, imprisoned the royal family