French Revolution: The beginnings-
Causes of the Revolution
- debt
- taxation issues
- failure to reform
- famine
Debt
- the debt of the French government was around 8-12 billion livre (their currency)
- Louis XVI spent a lot of money on very expensive things, instead of being financially responsible
- also they still had war debt from the Seven Years's War (with England) 1756-1763
- much of their debt was compiled because they weren't exploring like England was
- England was able to use the colonies as a steady source of income
- France had not bought into Mercantilism at this time like England was
Taxation
- France was heavily involved in trading (good)
- to be a great trading country, you cant have high tariffs, so you need to tax your people heavily (bad)
- masses of people of France didnt like this, nobles didnt pay these taxes
Failure to Reform
- Some French "ecomonist" said nobles should be included in taxation
- plan backfired, peasants had to pay even more then before
- France continued to stick to economic plan even though their debt kept piling up
Famine
- crop failure in the 1780's didnt help much
- supply and demand occurs here with bread
- got to the point where peasants thought the crown had wished for them to die (conspiracy)
Guillotine
- condemned person's head is locked in the bottom of the frame, directly below the blade
- 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 Metterrand in 1981. a little more than 30 years ago
Marie Antoinette
- born in Vienna, Austria
- married Louis the XVI
- became the queen of England
- had 2 sons and 2 daughters
- very popular with people at beginning of her reign
- at the end of her reign very unpopular
- killed by guillotine
Napoleon
- military leader during the later stages of the Revolution
- became the Emperor of the French in 1804
- known for: Napoleonic code, Height, Battle tactic, waterloo
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