Unlike the American Revolution which is considered to be a relatively good thing, the French Revolution is often seen as a brutally bloody period in history and its sacrifices were not worth the outcomes. -Ended in an authoritarian regime, just as it began. -Although, its ideals changed history forever.
France in the 18th century was a rich and populace country, but it had a systemic problem collecting taxes because of the way the society was structured. They had a system with kings and nobles we now call the “Ancien Regime”. For the majority of the society, the system of government was unfair and damaging because the clergy never paid taxes, the third party did all of the work while the rich would bathe in their riches.
By 1789, France
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But the Revolutionaries saw this as a provication, so they responded by seizing the Bastille prison on July 14th which coincidentally, is also Bastille Day. The Bastille was stormed distensively to free prisoners, although there were only seven in jail at the time, but mostly to get guns. But the really radical move in the National Assembly came on August 4th when they abolished most of the Ancien Regime. Feudal Rights, tides, privileges for nobles, unequal taxation, all abolished in the name of writing a new constitution. Then, on August 26th, the National Assembly proclaimed The Declaration of Rights of Man and Citizen. This document laid out a system of rights that applied to every citizen and made those rights integral to the new …show more content…
Then, in October of 1789, a rumor started that Marie Antoinette was hoarding grain somewhere inside the palace. And with what became known as the Women’s March, a bunch of armed peasant women stormed the palace and demanded that Louis and Marie move from Versailles to Paris, which they did. This was a nice reminder that to many people at the time, the French Revolution was not primarily fancy Enlightenment ideas, it was mostly about lack of food and a political system that made economic tractions hardest on the poor.
A good argument can be made that this first phase of the Revolution wasn’t all that “revolutionary”. The National Assembly wanted to create a constitutional monarchy, they believed that the King was necessary for a functioning state and they were mainly concerned that voters and officeholders be men of property. Only the most radical wing, the Jacobins, called for the creation of a republic. But things started to get much more revolutionary, and also worse for
They arrived for the large munitions storages that were kept in the prison. "The governor wasn 't complying with the mob, so after a violent battle the mob seized control of the Bastille and the governor was killed with his head put on a spike for everyone to see" ("Differences"). Some of the other events of the revolution include the women9s march to Versailles, the royal flight to Varennes, and the accomplishment of the Constitution. "The French Revolution resulted in the failure of the constitutional monarchy. This resulted in a constitutional crisis as well during this period" (Rana),
The first phase the destruction of the old regime successfully used Enlightenment ideas to form French society. The Revolution began when the third estate broke out into protest and formed the National Assembly in 1789. This led to the Tennis Court Oath which promised to meet as many times as it took to create a constitution. In the summer of 1789, common people decided to save the third estate from the ruling of the king by breaking into the prison courtyard and taking over the prisoners and their weapons, this soon became known as the storming of the Bastille. A new government for France took place when the National Assembly wrote the “Declaration of the Rights of Man and Citizen”. This was written to make the first and second estate recognize that the rights and freedoms they take for granted, should be experienced by all humans from the time they are born to the day they die and be protected no matter what. This declaration granted all men equal and abolished aristocratic freedoms which goes back to the ideas of the Enlightenment philosophers. By 1791, France created a new constitution that was set up by the Legislative Assembly at The National Convention due to food shortages and high prices that led France out of monarchy and into a republic.
What is a revolution? By definition it means the overthrow of a government by those who are governed. That is exactly what the French and the Mexican revolutions were all about. The living conditions and overall treatment of the poor, pheasants, lower class, last man on the totem pole or what ever you want to call them, was a large factor in the coming of these revolutions. "Those who are governed" are exactly what the lower class people were. Also, liberty was one of the people's major concerns. They were ruled by men whose only desire was power and greed which is what led them into revolt.
The National Assembly’s revolutionary spirit galvanized France, manifesting in a number of different ways. In Paris, citizens stormed the city’s largest prison, the Bastille, in pursuit of arms. In the countryside, peasants and farmers revolted against their feudal contracts by attacking the manors and estates of their landlords. Dubbed the “Great Fear,”these rural attacks continued until the early August issuing of the August Decrees, which freed those peasants from their oppressive contracts. Shortly thereafter, the assembly released the Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen, which established a proper judicial code and the autonomy of the French
Lastly, the Storming of Bastille, one of the most symbolic and radical events of the revolution, took place. With the emergence of the New Assembly, headed by Joseph Sieyes, King Louis couldn't do much to put it down due to the lack of trust amongst the French army. This enabled the French citizens the ability to storm and capture Bastille due to the lack of defense from the French. Word of this began to travel across France and riot began to take place across the entire country, and the revolution was now in full force.
The Bourgeois were wealthy and were able to afford such taxation, but nonetheless, their aim was civil equality and to destroy the tax privileges of the nobility and clergy. The peasants, too, were laden with extensive amounts of taxation that was nearly impossible for them to pay. Burrowing France deeper into debt and economic crisis was the persistent drought followed by massive storms, ravaging the
The year 1789 was an important one for France. The American Revolution had recently ended in a victory and now the French wanted to take their stand. France had helped the Americans in their war and the ideas of democracy and liberty were in the air. Liberty is the idea of living freely within a society, being able to think, speak and act any way that you want to without being controlled by the government. Because of the French Revolution it led to the overthrow of the monarchy and the creation of a democracy. Another influential point that the Revolution made was that the French created the Constitution of 1792 which granted freedom of speech, religion, and equality before the law, and they also abolished slavery and gave legal rights to women. The French Revolution was inspired by the ideals of the American Revolution but carried the ideas one step further. The Americans spoke about liberty and equality but still kept people as slaves and did not grant rights to women, while the French did. The American Revolution was led by wealthy, educated men, but the French Revolution was led by peasants and ordinary
Throughout history revolutions have been essential to making change in governments and countries. The French Revolution of the late 18th century was critical to making France how it is today. The people of France and Europe were the ones involved in the revolution. The people of France were one of the causes for the start of the revolution and the riots throughout. The other Europeans were involved because the French tried to spread their revolutionary ideas to the rest of Europe. The revolution was important to the people of France because the Third Estate or lower class were severely under represented and many lead lives full of poverty, while the upper class lead a lavish lifestyle. The French Revolution was caused by the decline of the French political structure, economic struggles, and debt
The French Revolution was a period of time from 1789 to 1799 in France where there was political instability. It officially began on the 14th of July, 1789, when the Bastille, which was a symbol of the King’s harsh policies, was stormed. The King, Louis XVI, the Queen, Marie-Antoinette and about 40,000 people were all brutally murdered. But there was also a positive side, the Declaration of the Rights of Man and Citizen was formally adopted on August 1789 and feudalism was abolished. This essay will address the issues of the three estates system, food shortages and the fiscal crisis. It will also be argued that the most significant cause of the French Revolution was the social inequality that stemmed from the three estates system.
Throughout the French Revolution the people fought for their equality amongst each other. They got the rights of life, liberty, equality, protection and resistance of oppression. The Declaration of Rights of Man and Citizen was a document that proclaimed the equality of men and the sovereignty of the people which gave the rights and duties of a citizen. "Droits garantis par la constitution,” (French Constitution 1791) means the rights guaranteed by the constitution, which the people got in the end
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.
Economics also played an important role in the French Revolution. In France there was an abundance of debt and taxation. The French monarchy managed their fiscal affairs by using an unequal system of taxation, borrowing money, or selling noble titles and other privileges. This led to a long running fiscal debt. France could not solely rely on tariffs to generate income. Although other countries had higher taxation rates, the burden on the common people was greater in France. Peasants and other third estates were taxed harshly which in good times was burdensome and in bad times it was devastating. Nobility and clergy were exempted from paying taxes. This left the peasants, wage earners, and the professional and business classes with the burden of taxes. This burden caused the unrest, which eventually led to the French Revolution.
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.
Revolutions are a common occurrence throughout world history. With the amount of revolutions in history, there are those that get lost and those that are the most remembered or well known. One of the well known revolutions is the French Revolution which occurred in the years 1789 to 1799. Before the French Revolution, France was ruled by an absolute monarchy, this meaning that one ruler had the supreme authority and that said authority was not restricted by any written laws, legislature, or customs, a definition given by wikipedia.com and the feudal system, which was a system that said a peasant or worker would receive a piece of land in return for serving under a king, a definition given by vocabulary.com. Those who opposed the, then
When reading about the French revolution there are many things that stood out that were great accomplishments. For instance, they got rid of kings, introduced a farrier tax system, and gave the people the freedom to practice different religions. The most important, however, were the rights that people were given. Before the revolution, the common people were not treated like people, they were treated like criminals, thieves, royal pains and so on. There did not seem to be any good in anyone that was not of nobility. Then things started to change though, people started to fight