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Causes of the french revolution
Immediate causes of french revolution
Causes of the french revolution
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The French Revolution started July 14, 1789 in France and endured till Nov 9, 1799. The French Revolution lead to the abolishment of a monarchy and turned it into a republic. The fundamental causes of the French Revolution were social imbalance, political injustice, and economic instability. Socially, France had an unequal distribution upon the 3 estates. Politically, the monarchy was over thrown and turned into a republic.
During the French Revolution it changed many things and as well as people. Many people from the middle class struggled as the French Revolutionaries' were plotting some changes. In the French Revolution many causes happened like many unfair conditions, the Monarchy being thrown, and the ideas from the enlightenments. A cause for the revolution to start was that middle-class people start to struggle, unfair conditions, and taxes.in document 1 it says, "the poor people seem very poor indeed." (document 1).
During the French revolution terror spread throughout the land. Before the revolution the country was falling into chaos. The king and his wife spent so much money on themselves, and on supporting the american revolution that they put the country in an economic crisis. Until the people rose up to make a change and started the revolution. Using terror as an instrument of the french revolution was common practice and it had many advantages and disadvantages, such as the many arrests made more jobs and more money for citizens, it kept the revolution on track, the many deaths of nobles, and the overall deaths of citizens.
France started out with a terrible king that didn’t give the people many rights. In the end of the Revolution people gained some rights, but the people still had a king named Napoleon. There were many changes to France during the French Revolution, but the end result was similar to the beginning, regarding the leader of their country, this is why the French Revolution can not be truly called successful. In pre revolutionary France the people wanted a lot of things, but they mostly wanted the power, they also wanted more freedom in their lives, but the absolutist monarch didn’t give the people any rights.
According to the document, the natural rights of men are that they are born free and have equal rights. These views were directly opposed by the French government before the revolution took place. Many people in the lower estates were not treated equally, whether it be with money or with the people's quality of life. (Document 8) This document proves it could have sparked rebellion because it showed French citizens that they could have freedom and that the government did not have complete control over them.
The French Revolution was a drastic time for the people of France. In 1789, the majority of people were living in poverty and dealing with terrible conditions. People were split into three estates: the first, second, and third, the first being the wealthiest. Political, economic, and social situations were what contributed to people’s desire for change. The three main, or biggest causes of the French Revolution, were taxes, inequality, and lack of reform.
The French Revolution was one of the most significant wars that changed France’s history. The Revolution started in 1789 and ended in 1799 and was mainly initiated by the conditions affecting the Third Estate. Louis XVI was predominately the king during this time period but little did he know that an uprising among the peasants was happening. The French Revolution was caused by the Enlightenment ideas because of the American Revolution, the knowledge of rights, and the questioning of France’s government. The American Revolution was basically the “fire” that ignited the change the Third Estate wanted to see in their country.
Our modern society has been sculpted by many revolts throughout history. Many governments and ideas have risen to power do to these revolutions. The French revolution began on July 14, 1789 due to the neglect of the people by the french government along with the mistreatment of the lower class. A important phase in the revolution was the Reign of Terror, A period where the government had been taken over by a revolutionary government called the National Convention. This new government rule france with force, executing all who opposed them and outlawing all counter revolutionary ideas and practices.
The French Revolution is often described as the Revolution of France and developed over several decades in the mid to late 1700?s. The leadership of mid 18th century France has been described as a Monarchal King reigning by the grace God with absolute power over the people, economy, and politics of the Empire.[footnoteRef:1] The decades following the Seven Years War and King Louis? XVI quest to restore the glory of the French Empire through wars ultimately devastated the French economy. Many historians state the attempts of the King to further tax the people and subjugate the church were significant influences in the Revolution of the French. Thomas Carlyle believed that revolution and anarchy are the products of the Social Contract.[footnoteRef:2]
The French Revolution The period between 1789 and 1871 was a turmoil for the country of France. The French economy had an impactful rise and fall during this period, due to many reasons. There were unjust rulers, and people who heavily disagreed with them. This whole time period is labeled as the French Revolution. The French Revolution came about for many reasons such as the rulers, the type of governing and the ongoing conflict between the people and the nobility.
Some of the characteristics included the nobility questioning the government: fighting among the classes and oppression (Brinton). For the purpose of this paper we are only going to be looking at causes of the French revolution. One of the characteristics that a revolution is going to happen is that the country has a growing economy, but a broke
During the Eighteenth Century, France had an absolute monarchy with Louis XVI as king and Marie Antoinette as queen. In that time period, French society was based upon a system of Estates where the clergy made up the First Estate; the nobility comprised the Second Estate, and everyone else including professionals, peasants, and the bourgeoisie made up the Third Estate. The Third Estate was immensely unhappy with the old regime, the Estates General, and Louis XVI’s leadership. France was also in the midst of a fiscal crisis due to the American Revolution, Louis XVI’s lavish lifestyle, the Seven Years War, and the tax exemption of the First and Second Estate. Following the surge of new ideas and impactful philosophers from the Enlightenment,
The first and most obvious cause to the French Revolution was the royal family themselves. During the period before the revolution the royal family was known for their extravagance, for throwing parties when their people were starving and couldn’t afford bread. Another contributing to the rebellion and revolution were the Class System called the Privileged Estates. France was severely in debt at that time, banks couldn’t give people who needed money because they didn’t have any to give, even with the high taxes.
Compare and contrast of The French Revolution and The American Revolution The American revolution and the French Revolution are two major incidents happened in the 1700s, which had intense social impacts on both French and American societies. In general, the American Revolution was more successful than the French revolution. The similarity between them is that the citizens in both countries, both faced the block of common economical development of the government. However, there is a difference that makes the American revolution succeeded while the French revolution doesn’t.