French Revolution: The beginnings
Causes of French Revolution
- Debt
- Taxation Issues
- Failure of Reform
- Famine
Debt
- The debt of the French government was around 8 to 12 billion livre (their currency)
- Louis XVI spend a lot of money on very luxurious things, instead of being financially responsible
- Also they still had war debts from the Seven Year's War (with England) 1756- 1763
- Much of their debt was complied because hey weren't exploring like their rival, England
- England was able to use the colonies as a steady source of income
- France had not completely bought in to Mercantilism either at this time like England had
Taxation
- France, at this time, was heavenly involved in trading (good)
- However, to be a great trading country, you cannot have high tariffs, so you need to tax heavily on your people (bad)
- Masses of people of France, not too thrilled with this idea. Also nobles did not pay these taxes
Failure to Reform
- Some French "economists" stated that the nobles should be included in taxation
- This plan backfired, as peasants had to pay even more than before
- France continued to stick with their economic plan every though they were continuing to go deeper and deeper into debt
Famine
- Crop failure in the 1780's didn't help much either
- Supply and demand occurs here with bread
- Got to the point where peasants thought the crown had wished for them to die (conspiracy!)
Guillotine
- The condemned person is secured is secured at the bottom of the frame, with this or her nick help directly below the blade
- However, it continued to be used long after the Revolution and remained France's standard method of judicial execution until the abolition of capital punishment with the backing of President Francois Mitterrand in 1981. (A little more than 30 years ago)
Marie Antoinette
- Born in Vienna, Austria
- Married Louis the XVI
- Became the Queen of France
- Had one son and one daughter
- Very popular with the people at the beginning of her reign
- At the end of her reign, very unpopular
- Executed by the Guillotine
Napoleon
- Military leader during the later states of Revolution
- Became the Emperor of French in 1804
- Known for Napoleonic Code, height, battle tactics, and waterloo
French Revolution: Continues
- Fun Fact: during the French Revolution, George Washington became the first President of the USA
More Beginnings:
- started in 1789 and lasted until 1799
- in 1700's. France and England were considered the most advanced countries in Europe and the world
- it had a large population and a great (good and bad) foreign trade
- however, much of the world did not know the extreme debt that France had occurred
Old Regime
- in the 1770's, the social and political system of France was called the Old Regime
- Under this Regime, there were 3 large social classes called estates
First Estate:
- made up of clergy of the Roman Catholic Church (priest, bishops, deacons, cardinals)
- had to pay 2% of their earnings to taxes
- owned 10% of the lands in France
- Their jobs were to provide religion, education, and relief services to the poor
- less than 1% of French population were in this estate
Second Estate:
- this group was made up of rich nobles
- they held the highest offices in the government in France
- this estate paid 0% of income to taxes
- owned 20% of the lands in France
- this estates had only 2% of the population of France
Third Estate:
- included everyone that wasn't in the first two estates
- had no power to influence their government in France
- had to pay 50% of income/food taxes
- resented the first two classes
- owned 70% of the lands in France and consisted of 97% of the population
Enlightenment Ideals
- Enlightenment is a complex with many influences, for this chapter we will focus on the influence from USA
- the 3rd estate was becoming very tired of the Old Regime
- they prompted the ideals of equality, liberty, and a democracy
Weak Leader
- Louis XVI (married Marie Antoinette) was a very weak leader
- he was very indecisive and paid very little attention to his advisors
- Marie didn't help much either with constantly expressing her opinion and the fact that she was from Austria
- he finally wanted to tax the nobles, but they weren't happy there either so the Estates-General was called
Estates-General
- an assembly of representatives from all three estates
- their goal was to approve the new tax
- the meeting was held on May 5th, 1789 in Versailles
- it was the first time the assembly had met in 175 years
- in the past, the 3 estates would meet separately and there would only be 1 vote per estate
- this allowed for the 1st estate and 2nd estate to always beat the 3rd
- the king sided with the nobles again and they were outvoted
Order of Events
- Storming of the Bastille: See your research. Know that France lost their governor, secretary of state, and the "mayor: of Paris
- The Great Fear: The peasantry revolt against feudalism and a number of urban disturbances and revolts. Many members of the aristocracy flee Paris to become emigres
- Emigres: Someone who has migrated out of an area...(Emigrant)
August 26, 1789
- Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen is adopted by the assembly
- Is a fundamental document of the French Revolution and in the history of human rights, defining the individual and collective rights of all the estates of the realm as universal
- The U.S equivalent would be the Bill of Rights
Legislative Assembly
- Late 1789
- Emigres are required to return back to Paris with the threat of death if they didn't return
- King is still scared to return so he removes the idea that they have to come back
- This allows for new blood (3rd estate) to become apart of the legislative assembly
Women's March on Versailles
- Also known as The October March, The October Days, or simply the March on Versailles, was one of the earliest ad most significant events of the French Revolution
- The march began among women in the marketplace of Paris who, on the morning of October 5, 1789, were near rioting over the high price and scarcity of bread
- The market women and their various allies grew into a mob of thousands and , encouraged by revolutionary agitators, they ransacked the city armory for weapons and marched to the Palace of Versailles
- The next day, the crowd compelled the king, his family, and most of the French Assembly to return with them to Paris
- These events effectively ended the independent authority of the king
- Comprised the constitutional and legislative assembly of France and sat from September 20, 1792 to October 26, 1795
- It held executive power in France during the first years of the French First Republic
- The Republic ended in 1804 when napoleon changed it to the First french Empire
- Louis XVI is brought in front of the courts for trial
- Robespierre, a leader in the French Revo, utters the famous phrase that "Louis XVI must die so that the country can live"
- Citizen Louis Capet fuillotined, formerly known as Louis XVI
- Ratification of new Constitution by National Convention, but not yet proclaimed. Slavery is abolished in France until 1802
- 1802 is around the rise of power for Napoleon and he thinks that slavery is a good deal for France
- September 5, 1793- July 28, 1794
- Was a period of violence that occurred after the onset of the French Revolution, incited by conflict between rival political factions
- Mass executions of "enemies of the revolution:
- The death toll ranged in the tens of thousands, with 16,594 executed by guillotine (2,639 in Paris) and another 25,000 in summary executions (claiming them guilty without even having a trial, sending them to the guillotine) across France
- Queen Marie Antoinette is impeached and convicted for treachery against the country, and for incest with her child, the Dauphin, and is condemned to be executed in the Place de la Revolution
- The next day Marie Antoinette gets the guillotine
Comments