The French Revolution was a civil revolt that broke out in France against the absolute monarchy and the Roman Catholic Church, which lasted from 1789-1799. This resulted in the establishment of France as a republic, democratic government and caused the Roman Catholic Church’s necessity, as well as its power to be questioned. The French Revolution ended the thousand-year rule of the monarchy in France and began when King Louis XVI gathered representatives from the 3 social groups called the Clergy, the Nobilities and the Commoners to solve a great national debt and economic crisis France was experiencing.
The American Revolution is believed to have greatly influenced the French, and may have inspired the French Revolution. As the French
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The French commoners from the third estate proclaimed themselves as the National Assembly as they disliked the way King Louis XVI was dealing with their financial crisis.
The King gradually acknowledged the National Assembly’s constitution and their laws that stated all men would be treated as equals when more nobles and clergy joined the third estate. As time passed, food became very scarce in France due to poor harvests and it was feared that the King would end the existence of the National Assembly. Then on the 14th of July 1789, the French rebelled against the King, the nobles and the church by attacking the Bastille, a prison were weapons were stored. This prison was the symbol of power for the nobility and the King, therefore as a result; attacking it would rebel against all that the monarchy represented. The National Assembly besieged the Bastille, killed the Governor of the prison, and freed seven prisoners. The “Storming of the Bastille” was known as the first significant action of the French Revolution and is still commemorated today in France. As well as this, the French citizens also formed their own military forces, known as the National Guard to aid the National Assembly and its ideals.
During the months of August 1789 and September 1790, French society was reorganized. Feudalism, and advantages that that nobility and the clergy had
The French Revolution and the American Revolution have many similarities but there are definitely some differences between these two wars as well. Yes, both wars were focused around liberty and equality and both were trying to gain freedom but the main difference between these two wars were the context. (www.quora.com) America wanted to gain freedom from rules and taxes that Great Britain had put upon them, whereas France wanted to abolish the French monarchy and form a better government where people had more freedom of speech.
On August 4, 1789, the deputies in the National Assembly voted for the abolition of privileges, thus ending centuries of seigniorial domination. Following the motto of the French Revolution—Liberté (Freedom), Egalité (Equality), Fraternité (Fraternity)—the feudal system was abolished, causing immediate repercussions on the social status of the First and Second Estates. As historian Georges Lefebvre
The Declaration of Independence, which talked about Independence sparked the French Revolution. From the Declaration of Independence, French citizens realized how much better they could be treated and thus wanted to follow the American’s example of how their citizens were being treated. A quote from Albert Mathiez is, ‘The Revolution had been accomplished in the minds of men long before it was translated into fact…’ (Document 7). Another quote that goes with this subject from Lord Acton is, ‘…the spark that changed thought into action was supplied by the Declaration of Independence…The American example caused the Revolution to break out…” (Document 7). Those two quotes show how the French wanted to gain more independence and to have more rights. The Declaration of Independence helped them to do that. Also, it is shown from another quote from document 7, that since the lower class had a very low literacy rate, the upper classes helped them gain more independence and rights. The quote from Document 7 is, ‘The Revolution came from them-the middle class. The working classes were incapable of starting or controlling the Revolution. They were just beginning to learn to read’ (Document
In 1789, an event would take place that would shake a nation. This event further altered the country of France’s history and drastically changed its future. This event was known as the Storming of the Bastille, the first violent instance to instigate the French Revolution and the formation of a rebel alliance to overthrow French monarchy. However the motives of the renegades is far and wide. The question must be asked; What were the major reasons for the French Revolution? Many elements of France’s infrastructure were created to suppress the qualms of the people. However, the major influences that caused the French Revolution were the new ideas of the enlightened thinkers, powerlessness of the Third Estate, and famine crises. Without these factors within French society, a governmental collapse may not have occurred.
The French revolution which is also referred to as the Revolution of 1789 was a period characterized by both social and political upheaval that span close to a decade in France. It was during this period that the country’s political landscape was redesigned and it involved
After the national assembly of France was formed by the third estate in July 1789 the noblemen and the king were mad with the general of finance Jack Necker and fired him. Many took the streets of Paris in riots and protest because they though the king was going to try to stop the national assembly. The people of the national assembly then decided to attack the
After helping the colonists defeat the British in the American Revolution, France faced incredible debt. The king looked to an Assembly of Notables for help in repaying this debt, but they refused to aid him. Out of options, the king called the Estates General so that they would levy taxes in France. The Estates General was formed by members from each of the three Estates: the 1st Estate, which was comprised of the clergy; the 2nd Estate, which was comprised of the nobility; and the 3rd Estate, which was representative of everyone else in France. Excited by the prospect of getting involved in government, the 3rd Estate representatives did not just want to levy taxes for the king. The representatives from the 3rd Estate wanted to become a permanent fixture in government, so they broke off from the Estates General and called themselves the National Assembly. The National Assembly took an oath -- the Tennis Court Oath -- to not disband until they had created a constitution for France. They established a constitution and the legislative assembly convened, and they were in charge for about a year. However, once the National Convention abolished the monarchy and the King was executed, the government faced being controlled by radicals who would implement a Terror. The Terror officially began when the Convention declared it, but some events leading up to the Terror that could be considered a part of it happened before that declaration. The purging of the Girondins from the National
Over the time late 18th century and early 19th century, there were many changes and continuities that occurred during the French revolution. Changes include political configuration, social structure, new ideas and ideologies, relations with other countries/regions, and the role of the Catholic Church. However, there were also things that didn’t change throughout the revolution. The political involvement women had, religion, and status of poor people stayed the same. At the beginning of the time period, France was having a large amount of economic issues.
The other two social classes had no idea what the third estate was going to do. The third estate (the lower class) met alone and was named the National Assembly; they kept meeting and starting gaining a lot of new people (“French Revolution”). This led to people getting paranoid about what they were meeting about, which ultimately led to people storming the Bastille. They stormed the Bastille on July 14, in order to get gunpowder and weapons (“French Revolution”). According to Vikram Rana, the economic instability formed one of the most important causes of the French Revolution.
The French Revolution started with many series of events, The Storming of Battle Prison was a prison on the east side of paris that was attacked by an angry mob, The Reign of Terror was when they killed enemies including nobles and priest and The Rise of Napoleon was Napoleon Bonaparte rising to conquer, and this was The French Revolution which changed the social and political structure of france in 1789 with the storming of bastille prison, the reign of terror and the rise of Napoleon.
In the late 1700’s, France was running into a bunch of major troubles. Their society was divided into three social classes: the Clergy, the Nobles, and the Bourgeoisie. The third class, the bourgeoisie, made up approximately 98% of the population but had a little say in the government. Other than the problems with their society, France was having financial as well. Louis XIV left France deeply in debt, and Louis XV did no better by adding more to the debt during his rule. As more problems added up, the people realized it was time for a change.
The French Revolution (1789-1814) was a period that affected the outcome of world history tremendously. This is considered a major turning point in European history which has led to dramatic changes in France and other regions of the world. Various social and political issues led to the start of the revolution. Politically, France suffered under the rule of Louis XVI, who ruled by absolute monarchy. Many people had their natural rights renounced and weren’t able to have a political voice. Socially, France had divided its population within 3 estates (classes). French citizens took it upon themselves to remodel their country 's’ political structure. The French Revolution had encountered both positive and negative effects. However, many Europeans viewed the Revolution as much more than just a bloody massacre. The French Revolution was used to demonstrate new ideology that would emphasize the principles of liberty and equality throughout Europe.
The French Revolution, also known as the Revolution of 1789 was a traumatic movement that had an affect on both France and the world during the late 17th and early 18th century. This Revolution lasted from 1789 until 1814, for it made a large impact on the nation that caused a turning point in the history of the world. During this time, many events occurred like the executing of KIng Louis XIV and the rule of Napoleon.
France in the late 1700 's was based on a feudal system where they were divided into estates based on their birth. The king was at the top of the absolute monarchy and did not have to consult with anyone to pass a law. He had complete control over the country and could do things such as kill someone for no reason. This did not go well with most people and especially people of the Third Estate. Privileges were very common amongst the First Estate. One very famous privilege was being exempt for the Taille-the major tax in France at the time. The First Estate was made up of the Clergy and they were the richest and had the most power. The Second Estate was made up of the nobles who were also wealthy and held high positions in the French
The Revolution of 1789 began long before the Women’s March on Versailles or the Storming of the Bastille. It was the result of decades of neglect by the French monarchy and aristocrats and horrendous financial instability. To understand how the nobility lost control of the Revolution in its early days, one must first understand why the Revolution began. The French nobility lost control of the revolution due to the economic stress placed on the people of France and the inflamed ideas of the Third Estate.