French Revolution: The Beginnings
- Causes
- Four Major One
- Debt
- The debt of the French Government was around 8-12 billion livre
- Louis XVI spent a lot of money on very luxurious things, instead of being financially responsible. Louis Married Maria Antoinette
- Also they still had war debts from the Seven Year's War with England (1756-1763)
- Much of their debt was complied because they weren't exploring like their rival, Engalnd
- England was able to use the colonies as a steady source of income
- France had not completely bought into Mercantilism either at this time like England had.
- Taxation Issues
- France, at this time, was heavily 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 of 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 even 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
- Debt
- Guillotine
- The condemned person is secured at the bottom of the frame, with his or her neck held directly below the blade.
- However, it continues 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 bit more than 30 yrs ago.)
- Marie Antoinette
- Born in Vienna, Austria
- Married Louis the XII
- Became the Queen of France
- Had one son and one daughter
- Very popular with the people at the beginning of her reign, very unpopular
- At the end of her reign, very unpopular executed by the 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 Tactics
- Battle of Waterloo
- Four Major One
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