Today’s Class (11/28/16) Agenda: Outcome: Be able to analyze the social, economic, and philosophical causes/problems in prerevolutionary France? Agenda: Notes: Beginnings of the French Revolution Estates Graphic Organizer & Graph Analysis

Was the French Revolution Successful?

11.1 The French Revolution begins

The Estate System The immediate cause of the revolution was economic and inequality in the French social system – Known as the estates system A. The first estate was made up of the clergy did not pay taxes – (about 130,000 people who owned 10% of the land) B. The second estate was the nobility did not pay taxes– (about 350,000 people who owned about 25 to 30% of the land) C. The third estate consisted of commoners they paid all taxes (or everybody else, but did have some division according to occupation - peasants, craftspeople, artisans, shopkeepers, merchants, bankers, lawyers)

Feudalism Relics of Feudalsim still existed – aristocratic privileges (1st and 2nd estates did not have to pay for certain services) 3rd Estate paid for the use of village facilities such as the flour mill & community oven

Other Causes of Revolution Other causes that fueled the revolution were 1. Collapse of government finances (the Louis now XVI) The most immediate cause Extravagant government spending on wars & luxuries 2. Bad harvest in 1787 & 1788 Shortage of grain & bread 3. Food shortages led to price inflation Farmers forced to charge more for crops 4. Fewer purchases of manufactured goods led to high unemployment Unemployment meant less spending & fewer taxes for government

King Louis XVI To avoid financial collapse of government, King Louis XVI was forced to call meeting of Estates-General (French Parliament – had not met since 1614 – 174 years!)

Meeting of the Estates-General 3rd Estate wanted to set up constitutional government & abolish tax exemptions of 1st/2nd Estates May 5th 1789 in Versailles Each estate had 1 vote 1st and 2nd estate could outvote the 3rd 3rd estate demanded that a majority vote King ruled in favor of current system June 17th 1789, Third estate declared themselves the National Assembly Locked out of their meeting place…

See how this could be a problem? Estates-General Representation in the Estates-General: = See how this could be a problem?

Tennis Court Oath Being locked out of their meeting place, the National Assembly moved to a nearby indoor tennis court & swore to meet there until they drafted a constitution. Declaration of the Rights of Man- similar to DOI but did not give rights to women

Storming the Bastille The violence had begun… July 14, 1789 Fearing that the King would send an army to stop the National Assembly, peasants stormed the Bastille (a royal prison and armory) and took it apart brick by brick. They also killed the guards and put their heads on spikes. The violence had begun…

Ponte de la Concorde Bricks from the Bastille were used to build the Ponte de la Concorde Connects to the Palace of Legislative Assembly, where French legislature meets today.

March on Versailles Louis XVI refused to accept the laws of the National Assembly. Thousands of Parisian women armed with pitchforks, muskets and swords marched to Versailles. Some of them met with Louis XVI and convinced him to move back to Paris. He and his family would never see Versailles again. Louis forced to accept decrees of National Assembly