preview

The Rise Of The American Revolution

Better Essays

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

Get Access