The Causes Of The French Revolution

The nobility had to pay little taxes, but nothing compare to what peasants had to pay. The commoners were really the foundation of France. According to the DBQ, document six it states, “The Third Estate is the People and the People is the foundation of the State; it is in fact the State itself.” The commoners lived poorly because of all the taxes they were giving directly to people who were above them. According to the DBQ, Document one, it states, “Lands held by the nobility are taxed very little. Lands held by commoners are taxed very heavily.” So by this information I believe the peasants were poor because of paying high taxes. They didn’t have much food, no freedom nor money, raggedy clothes, they had to work extremely hard, they had poor living conditions, and mistreatment of the monarchy, the clergy, and the nobility. The peasants were beginning to feel frustrated and outraged by the Monarchy’s inability to adhere, to the change of life that the peasants were demanding

Before the revolution France was ruled under the Ancien Regime system, meaning the country and all its people were under the reign of an absolute monarch. This was a tradition that had been upheld through the years and the Royal family had enjoyed a life funded by the people of France, the royal family’s lifestyle unaffected by the situation outside their palace. The Palace, Versailles, was built by king Louis XIV and the expenses for building this “village” was very high, and in later years the cost for its upkeep would play a significant role in Frances financial difficulties. In order for these difficulties to be overcome France needed a tax reform. The government had a very high tax rate on the poorest of their people, the Third Estate, and they were still not getting enough money to get out of their

The French Revolution of 1789 had many long-range causes. Political, social, and economic conditions in France mad many French people discontented. Most disaffected were merchants, artisans, workers, and peasants. The ideas of the Enlightenment thinkers brought new views of government and society. The American Revolution also influenced the coming of The French Revolution. Therefore, The French Revolution of 1789 had several causes not only due to political, but also due to social and economic issues and problems as well that made France ripe for revolution. The most important long-range causes of this revolution, however, were the ideas of the Enlightenment, the unfair taxes, the gap between the rich and poor, and the American Revolution

First of all, the vulgus of France were not habituated with their basic human rights. Cahiers, a list of grievances about the king, taxing and voting involving the estates explains how the third estate was not provided with equal rights. The third estate owned most of the land and made up a large percent of the population, yet were not accustomed with the rights they deserved. They paid for the wealthy to live an excessive life and didn't get anything in return. This was unjust and unfair.

According to an excerpt from Miss Betham-Edwards, ed., Arthur Young’s Travels in France During the Years 1787, 1788, and 1789, it states that “there is an injustice in levying the amount each person must pay… they had to pay a tax of 42 pounds of wheat, and three chickens, to one noble and 168 pounds of oats, one chicken and 1sou… (Doc. E)”. This quote shows that the amount of the tax that the 3rd estates have to pay is excessively abundant. Also, they are the ones making the least money compared to other estates. The people of the 3rd estates had a difficult time paying the taxes, eventually, they couldn’t take it and planned to change the taxation system.

The citizens of the 3rd estate and some citizens in the 2nd estate in France during 1789, were not happy at all. They were getting heavily taxed by Louis XIV, Marie Antoinette, and the Catholic Church. When they didn’t have the money to pay the taxes that was forced upon them. After all of the hard work they put in to growing crops, the crops were taken

The political, social, and economic conditions in France contributed to the French Revolution of 1789. The American Revolution was strongly influenced by the coming French Revolution. The government and society were eventually influenced by the open-minded Enlightenment ideas. The French Revolution was caused by unfair taxes, social inequalities, and the Enlightenment.

The third estate’s citizens had the lowest income in France, yet they were the ones who were supporting the government. The burden of the countries taxes was nearly impossible for the third estate to carry. One peasant woman said that the taxes were “crushing” her and her fellow third estate members. (Document 2).The first and second estate made up the wealthiest portion of France, yet they paid next to nothing in taxes. This obviously and rightfully angered members of the third estate. Why should the only people who can afford to pay taxes be exempt from them? This kind of inequality resulted in violence from the third estate. As a form of rebellion, peasants attacked tax collectors whom they owed money. They also burned land registers and court records. This example, along with the formation of the National Assembly show that the first actions of the revolution were a result of not giving the third estate the voice that it’s members felt it

The French Revolution had many contributions to its cause. One of these many causes was financial crisis and economic conflicts. There was an injustice in the amount each person must pay (document 1). The people of nobility were taxed very little and the commoners were taxed heavily. Also, the poor people were extremely poor.

The French Revolution is said to have a number of causes. It was a period of far-reaching social and political upheaval in France that lasted from 1789 until 1799, and was partially carried forward by Napoleon during the later expansion of the empire. The main causes of the French Revolution was the political, economic, and social problems happening in the society during this time. One of the causes of the French Revolution of the political tension going on during the time.

The third estate, the class with the largest population in France during this era, was treated extremely poorly. The third estate was heavily taxed and barely had any land amongst themselves. They were forced to live together in a small amount of space. On top of that they were starving. They were hungry and so poor that they could barely afford the most basic of food, bread. The lords and nobles had no respect/compassion for the third estate. They completely disregarded the fact that those in the third estate were humans and treated them with no sympathy. Property tax was so heavy that no one could afford to pay (Document 1). This poor treatment and lack of compassion and basic decency from the first and second estate towards the third gave the initial momentum to the wheels of the revolution, long before it actually begun (Document

The First and Second Estates were free from taxes, which led to the Third Estate, primarily peasantry, being heavily tax. Due to King Louis XIV’s Palace of Versaille, and his extreme deficit spending, an extreme overspending of the government’s money leading to debt, taxes became heavier and heavier. This was an extremely heavy burden on the Third Estate considering that they had low income to begin with, while the first two estates were swimming in money. When peasants couldn't afford to make bread because of taxes, then bread prices inflated (Doc. 1). The prices were more than the peasants could afford, so this led to riots and disturbances, which were the roots to the beginning of a revolution (Doc.

During their political and social system, Old regime, there was inequality in France. The 3rd estate did not receive as much of importance as the other 2 estates did. The members of the 3rd estate were very angry on the decisions taken account without their propositions for the government, so they decided to create one of their own. There were 3 main factors that led to the revolution. The enlightment period brought the ideas of equality; members of the 3rd estate liked this because they didn’t receive equality of their own. The French economy was failing, high taxes kept profits low and there was shortage of food supplies. They also were under the rule of Louis XVI, which was a weak leader with a wife that liked to spend money. Many worst things happened after the revolution, one of them was the Reign of

In both source one and source two, the author outlines the devastating effects of the burdens of heavy taxation, concentrating largely on the poor. Source 1, in particular, mentions the Nobility concentrating taxes on the poor, it says “The burden of taxes … at the expensive of their miserable neighbour” and one can assume the miserable neighbour in question is the destitute members of the third estate. Source 2 says, regarding the third estate in the countryside, “the would be immediately taxed, asked for road services or charges for labour and contributions of all kinds.” This demonstrates how the heavy taxation on the poorest members of society was noted by the third estate themselves as well as those who had merely witnessed the injustices

French society was ingrained with the ideology of a three class or estate society. The First Estate consisted of clergy who owned approximately ten percent of France’s land. The Second Estate contained the rich nobles who only occupied two percent of the French population, but had ownership of twenty percent of the country’s land. The Third Estate encompassed ninety-seven percent of the French population. The First and Second Estates had many privileges in French society, and they paid little to no taxes. Unfortunately, the tax burden fell upon the Third Estate, which caused them to yearn for political change. Hefty taxes fell upon business owners within the Third Estate who were unable to conduct a profitable business. On top of the tax crisis,