AICE Euro History Unit 1: France 1774-1814

I. The Long-Term Causes: The Ancien Régime

Concept/Term	Context & Significance for the Revolution
Ancien Régime	The political and social system of pre-1789 France, characterized by absolute monarchy (Louis XVI) and a highly stratified social order (Three Estates). Governing was inefficient due to regional differences, different legal systems, and internal customs/taxation barriers.
The Three Estates	1st Estate (Clergy): Enjoyed significant wealth and privilege; did not pay direct taxes but gave a Don Gratuity to the state. Plagued by plurality and absenteeism. 2nd Estate (Nobility): Held numerous privileges, including exemption from direct taxes (like the taille), exemption from the corvée, and the right to collect feudal/seigneurial dues. 3rd Estate (Everyone Else): Bore the financial burden. Comprised of 70% Peasants, 10% Urban Workers (Sans-culottes), and 7% Bourgeoisie (the educated, wealthy middle class who resented noble privilege).
Corvée	Compulsory labor/work for a landlord or the state; the Second Estate was exempt, intensifying the burden on the Third Estate.
Gabelle	An unfair indirect tax levied on salt, which varied widely by region and was deeply unpopular.

II. The Immediate Causes: Financial Crisis

Concept/Term	Date/Context	Significance & Financial Impact
Financial Crisis	Late 1780s	France was a "wealthy nation with a poor government" due to massive debt, resulting in a deficit of 126 million livre.
Foreign Policy Debt	1756–1783	The primary cause of the financial ruin. Massive spending on the Seven Year's War (1756-1763) and aid to the American Revolution (1775-1783) crippled the treasury.
Economic Hardship	August 1788 – April 1789	Poor harvests led to a devastating bread crisis. By April 1789, the purchase of bread could consume up to 88% of a typical worker's income, driving urban workers (the sans-culottes) to despair and political action.
Jacques Necker	1788	The finance minister who advised Louis XVI to summon the Estates General as a last resort to secure new funds.
Cahiers de Doléances	Pre-May 1789	"Lists of Grievances." The King asked all three estates to draw up their issues. The nobility's cahiers showed they were willing to give up some tax privilege but demanded more power be returned to the aristocracy (away from the King).

III. The Political Revolution: Shift in Sovereignty

Event/Concept	Date/Context	Significance (Turning Point)
Estates General	May 5, 1789	Convened for the first time since 1614. The crucial debate was over voting: Voting by Head (favored by the Third Estate, where they had double representation and could outvote the other two) vs. Voting by Order (favored by the First and Second Estates, where each estate got one vote). Failure to resolve this led to the revolutionary act.
National Assembly	June 1789	The Third Estate, frustrated by the stalemate, declared themselves the National Assembly. This was the most critical political shift of 1789, asserting that sovereignty (supreme power) now lay with the people of France, represented by the Assembly, not the monarchy.
Tennis Court Oath	June 20, 1789	After the King locked their meeting room, members of the National Assembly swore they would not separate until they had written a new, reformed constitution. This cemented their defiance and confirmed their role as the sovereign power.

IV. The Popular Revolution & Legislative Change

Event/Concept	Date/Context	Significance (Action, Impact, and Legislation)
Storming of the Bastille	July 14, 1789	A major journée (day of popular action). The Parisian populace, driven by high bread prices and fear of royal troops, stormed the Bastille prison to seize gunpowder and cartridges. Significance: It was a symbolic victory over royal despotism. Louis XVI lost control of Paris, and the monarchy was forced to recognize the newly formed National Guard.
The Great Fear	July/August 1789	A period of intense rural panic where peasants rose against their landlords, driven by rumors. Significance: This forced the National Assembly, fearing anarchy, to take immediate legislative action to appease the peasantry.
August Decrees	August 4, 1789	The National Assembly, in a single night, abolished the feudal system in France to end the peasant revolt. This removed the privileges of the Second Estate, including tax exemptions, feudal dues, and the corvée.
Declaration of the Rights of Man and Citizen	August 26, 1789	The foundational document of the revolution. Its purpose was to establish the principles of the new constitutional order, based on Enlightenment ideas of natural rights, liberty, and equality before the law.
March of the Women (October Days)	October 5, 1789	A journée where 7,000–10,000 people (mostly women) marched to Versailles. Significance: The King was forced to sign the August Decrees and the Declaration, and the royal family was compelled to move from Versailles to Paris. This action demonstrated the power of the Parisian populace to influence national politics and essentially made Louis XVI a captive of the Revolution.
Constitutional Monarchy Shift	Post-October Days	The Assembly changed Louis XVI's title to "King of the French." Significance: He was no longer King by divine right or simply of the territory, but by constitutional law, making him subject to the law.