17th Century Literature Throughout Europe

It reached Europe in 1347. In a few years up to 50 percent of the population died, with higher mortality rates in urban areas. It returned every few years for centuries.

The burden of paying taxes fell upon the peasantry since the majority of nobility and high bourgeoisie were either exempt or effortlessly evaded payment. The social distress amongst the peasantry caused by the war taxation resulted in several uprisings between 1636 and 1639, which the Cardinal crushed violently and dealt with the rebels in a harsh manner which Machiavelli would have promoted.#

Lorenz Fries stresses this anger in his report to the Archbishop of Wurzburg, as he describes the wealth’s inability to share their profits and income with the poor (Doc 8). The peasants believe they are entitled to a share of wealth because all are considered to be brothers in the public eye of God. Considering Fries’s report is secret, it most likely states his candid opinions (Pov3). Although economic oppression is a crucial factor in pushing the revolt, Protestant influence is responsible for the revolt as well.

Nevertheless, this social injustice was the reason that leads to the farmers’ Revolt, seeking to remedy their

Grain stores were looted, chateaux were attacked and documents listing peasant obligations were seized and destroyed. The National Assembly realised that it had to act – the mainly bourgeoisie deputies feared for their property following the Great Fear which had spread the peasant rising throughout most of France. Consequently, the National Assembly issues the August Decrees, considered an important start in the process of dismantling the ancien regime. They marked the end of noble power and the privilege of birth, establishing a society instead based upon civil equality. The peasants were satisfied with this new regime as it removed their feudal obligations and thus they gave their support to the revolution in fear that if they did not support the changes, aristocratic privileges and the tithe would return. The support of the peasants had proved to be vital and necessary primarily due to the fact that they had such a huge influence because they made up such a huge amount of the population. The events in Paris had served as a catalyst which sparked the revolt in the countryside and brought about the August Decrees.

With labor shortages apparent, people began to starve due to a lack of farming because people had abandoned their farms and villages. The *Serfs at the time were the main laborers, and due to the inevitable plague they were no longer tied to their masters of land. Due to the economic strain at the time, Serfs who survived were able to demand higher wages and better working conditions from their new landlords (Utah State University). Therefore, worker’s wages had skyrocketed. It was known that “a reaper was not to be hired for less than eightpence [a day, 50-75% up], plus his meals,” (The Economist). This eventually led to the end of Serfdom and the start of workers rights in Europe. This in turn socially changed the way people felt about the different socioeconomic classes due to the Peasant's Revolt (Utah State University). The need for better working conditions and situations for Serfs forever changed Europe.

The German Peasants’ Revolt arose due to the various interpretations of Martin Luther’s ideals. Also, the peasants’ desire to end serfdom and seek equality within the social classes led to the revolt. The responses of the revolt varied from condemnation to sympathy and support towards the peasants.

The peasants in the French Revolution had many un-communicated complaints. The peasants felt they were being taxed too heavily. This was true because the government could not tax the clergy or the nobility, and they needed money. As a result, they raised

Digging a little deeper, it is seen that the peasants’ revolts were in fact influenced by the Black Death. In “A History of Western Society” it is made clear that people were weak and sickly even before the Black Death infected them. “People were already weakened by famine, standards of personal hygiene remained frightfully low, and the urban populace was crowded together. Fleas and body lice were universal affections.” (History, 326). When people are dying from starvation, sickness and the Black Death they tend to fight to remain alive. It is known that a number of peasants’ revolts took place and one of these is recorded by an unknown monk in 1381. The source document called “The Anonimalle Chronicle: The English Peasants’ Revolt”. It delves into the issues around labor shortage because of

Witchcraft in the 17th Century Witchcraft in Europe during the 17th century was common. It mainly took place in Germany, but also took place in England. Witches were associated with evil; it was believed witches inherited magical powers from Satan in exchange for the witch’s soul. Some of these magical powers included outrageous claims such as flying, being able to transform and cursing bad luck on others. It was extremely dangerous to be accused of being a witch as the most common punishment was death, often by beheading or even being burnt at the stake.

Before the time where an urge to revolt arose, the wealthy had the power. As part of their power, they had to keep things running smoothly. Unfortunately, their ideas of the world as a better place was making the working class do all the labor and in return giving them the least amount of reward possible so they could take most of the revenue into their own hands. The upper class made decisions for the feeble lower class and then it was up to these unstable people to produce the result desired. As far as the bourgeoisie were concerned, there was not anything wrong in the way they were going about life. This was one of the biggest problems at the time. The bourgeoisie

7. The causes of the peasants’ uprising known as the Great Fear of 1789 was the peasants impatience and want to take matters into their own hands because they were furious with being forced to deal with the most of the taxation, the church tithes, and the nobles abusing their privileges effecting their lives. The cause that pushed them over the edge to begin the uprisings was the rise in the price of bread. The outcomes of the uprising were the destroying of feudal documents, enclosed lands raided, and most importantly the Nation Assembly having no choice but to issue a decree on August 4, 1789 that abolished all noble privileges including the hunting rights, the fees for legal cases judged in a lord’s court, forcing peasants to work on roads, along with the abolishment of tithes.

The majority were already struggling with the cost of living, and the addition of extra taxes caused it to be near impossible for them to survive financially. This angered the third estate, and provided an incentive for the revolution. Therefore, it is evident that the social inequality that derived from the three estates system was the most significant cause of the French Revolution.

When prices got so high that peasants and other third estate citizens couldn't afford food there was an inevitable uprising. The peasantry became a class with the ambition to counteract social inequity and put a stop to escalating food prices. This unrest caused a riot, known as the bread riot, which became a central cause to the French Revolution.

In this way the privileged classes had combined to outvote the third estate, which included more than 90 percent of the population. Another cause was the fall of Bastille. The falling of the Bastille marked a turning point-attempts at reform had become a full-scale revolution. One of the causes was the economic problems of many common people had become worse, because poor weather conditions had ruined the harvest. As a result, the price of bread, the most important food of the poorer classes had increased. Violence grew in both the cities and the countryside during the spring and summer. While hungry artisans revolted in urban areas, starved peasants searched the provinces for food and work. These vagrants were rumored to be armed agents of landlords hired to destroy crops and harass the common people. Many rural peasants began to panic, known as the Great Fear. They attacked the homes of their landlords to protect local grain supplies and reducing rents on their land. Also Lewis XVI gave in so reluctantly, for example, taking months to approve the Declaration of Rights, which made hostility of the crown only increased.