7.5 The French Revolution (1)

• History
• Middelbare school
• vwo
• Leerjaar 1

The French Revolution

1. Why France revolted.

(DD2: ch3.11)

What you will learn in 

this lesson

• What the Three Estates were
• That the 1st and 2nd Estate had more rights and privileges than the 3rd Estate
• How the American Revolution affected France
• Why the King called for the Estates General in 1789
• Why the 3rd Estate members left the Estates General
• What the National Assembly was
• What a Constitution is.
• Why Paris people stormed the Bastille

In general you will learn WHY France revolted in 1789.

important  people

king Louis XVI (16th)

Why France revolted

In 1789, a revolution tore France apart. Some causes had been building up for years. 

King Louis XVI was an absolute ruler.

• He and his nobles lived in luxury. Nobles did not have to pay most taxes. For ordinary people life was hard. They had to pay most taxes. 
  
• The Church supported the king. It told people to obey him as a ruler chosen by God. It, too, did not have to pay all taxes. Ordinary people had to give the Church part of their income as a tax. 
  
• From 1770, there were many bad harvests, which pushed up the price of grain (and therefore the price of bread). The population rose, pushing bread prices up even more. Bread was the main food of the poor.
  

Influence of the American Revolution

The American War of Independence pushed France close to revolution for several reasons: 

• When France joined the war on the side of the Patriots, King Louis XVI borrowed large sums of money to pay for France's part in the war. He put taxes up to pay off some of the National Debt. 
  
• The Declaration of Independence led many French people to think about rights and equality (or rather the lack of them) in France. 
  
• When the Patriots won, a king was replaced by a new form of government. Enlightenment ideas about government were being put into practise. 
  

Remember John Locke’s ideas about politics? He argued that all people have natural rights and that people can dispose of a bad ruler.  

In France, these ideas were far from reality.

All people were divided in three groups: Three Estates. 

Which of the following describes
"Natural Rights" best?

1. rights that only poor people have , since rich people already have enough rights
2. rights every person has as long as they do not conflict with the constitution
3. the rights to overthrow a bad ruler and choose a better one
4. rights every person has and that cannot be taken away by any law or ruler

The Three Estates

(de 3 standen)

All the people in the country belonged 

to one of the 3 estates.

An estate is a group of people 

you belong to from birth.

An estate is hereditary.

You can not easily 

change into 

another

etstate

1st estate: clergy

2nd estate: nobles

The Third Estate

The Third Estate representatives in the Estates General was made up mainly of professional people such as doctors, lawyers, bankers and rich merchants. Many third estate people were just as rich as nobles.

These rich people in the third estate are called: bourgeoisie

Most 3rd Estate representatives in the Estates General were bourgeois people. 

Farmers and poorly paid city workers did not have time or money to come to Versailles to join the Estates General meeting that lasted several weeks.

So, despite the fact that bourgois people were just as rich as many nobles, they lacked the same rights as nobles. 

3rd estate: peasants

3rd estate: city workers

3rd estate: bourgeoisie

The third estate had many grievances. But not all third estate groups had the same grievances. Choose which groups were most affected by the following problems:
(you can pick 1 or 2 answers at each question)

1. not enough land

1. peasants
2. city workers
3. bourgeoisie
4. all three groups

2. no influence in politics

1. peasants
2. city workers
3. bourgeoisie
4. all three groups

3. low wages

1. peasants
2. city workers
3. bourgeoisie
4. all three groups

4. bad harvests

1. peasants
2. city workers
3. bourgeoisie
4. all three groups

5. high taxes

1. peasants
2. city workers
3. bourgeoisie
4. all three groups

6. very difficult to get a noble title

1. peasants
2. city workers
3. bourgeoisie
4. all three groups

Source A: A cartoon about the Three Estates, published in the 1780s.

Which estates do the people in the source represent?

1. A : clergy B: nobility C: commons
2. A: commons B: clergy C: nobility
3. A: nobility B: commons C: clergy
4. A: nobility B: clergy C: commons

What do you think the stone on top of the figure lying on the ground is supposed to mean?

The stone symbolizes the taxes the third estate had to pay (which is a
heavy weight) and the first and second estate did not.

The Estates General

This was a meeting of representatives from the three estates:

• 1st estate: clergy
  
• 2nd estate: nobles
  
• 3rd estate: commoners
  

Summoned in 1789 by King Louis XVI to propose solutions to his government's financial problems 

But the third estate wanted to use this opportunity to make some radical changes....

"Opening of the Estates-General in Versailles 5 May 1789."

Engraving by Isidore-Stanislaus Helman (1743–1806)

How to vote?

This is when trouble started..

The Estates-General sat for several weeks in May and June 1789 but came to an impasse over the first item on the agenda: whether they should vote by estate, giving the first two estates an advantage, which was the King's choice, or vote all together, giving the Third Estate the advantage.

first estate:        300 representatives

second estate:  300 representatives

third estate:       600 representatives

Explain why voting by estate was the king's choice.

Voting by estate:

clergy and nobles (who support the king): 2 votes

commoners: 1 vote.

2 to 1: the king gets what he wants

Explain why voting all together was 

the third estate's choice

voting all together:

clergy and nobles: 600 votes

commoners: 600 votes

If the third estate can get a few nobles and clergy on their side they can win the vote.

National Assembly

The king pressed for voting with one vote for each estate.

The third estate representatives were angry and called themselves the National Assembly because they represented more than 90% of the French people. 

The king responded by locking the third estate members out of the meeting.

The third estate relocated at an empty tennis court in Paris. They swore that they would not leave the tennis court before France had a new constitution.

They called members of the first and second estate to join them.

But he king and the other estates were furious.

The National Assembly and the Tennis Court Oath

June 20, 1789

Which of the following best describes the meaning of the term "National Assembly"?

1. a meeting of representatives from the three estates
2. a meeting of people who represent the French people
3. a meeting of people who only represent the third estate
4. an assembly of French nationalists

Which of the following best describes the term "constitution"?

1. a document that tells what rights the people have and what powers the government has (and hasn't)
2. a law in which the power of the king is limited and is no longer absolute
3. a law that abandons the division of people into three estates
4. another word for Trias Politica: the division of powers into the legislative, executive and judicial power

the king's reaction

A week after the third estate had left the Estates General meeting, Louis XVI agreed that the Three Estates should meet together as the National Assembly. 

But he also called troops to Paris, hoping to break up the National Assembly by force. 

 This news spread across Paris very quickly...

Quattorze Juillet, 1789 

 

Storming the Bastille

The people of Paris were already angry at the shortages of food and fuel. 

The poor people of Paris regarded the National Assembly as the only politicians who actually wanted to improve the poor peoples' lives and give them more rights. 

And now the rumour spread that the king was sending soldiers to arrest the members of the National Assembly at the tennis court.

On 14 July, the Paris people went to the most hated building in the city: The Bastille. This was a prison where the king locked up his enemies. 

An angry mob attacked the prison guards, took over the Bastille and freed the prisoners. They took control of the city. 

The French Revolution had begun. 

The Assembly was caught by surprise by the speed of events. They were in charge before they had even written a constitution. And the people of Paris were expecting them to make reforms and solve the problem of shortages fast.

Source B. A painting of the storming of the Bastille, made at the time

Source C

The nearer 14 July came, the greater became the shortage of food. The crowd, besieging every baker's shop, received only tiny amounts of bread, always with warnings of shortages next day. Fears were redoubled by complaints of people who had spent the whole day waiting at the baker's door without receiving anything. 

There was frequent bloodshed. Food was snatched; people came to blows. Workshops were deserted; workmen wasted their time quarrelling, trying to get hold of even smaller amounts of food. By losing working time queuing, they found themselves unable to pay for the next day's supply of bread. 

From L'Ami du Roi, a newspaper that supported 

the king, written shortly after the storming of the 

Bastille. 

Which part of the text shows that this newspaper supported the king?

• "workmen wasted their time quarrelling..."
  
• "By losing working time queuing, they found themselves unable to pay for the next day's supply of bread."
  

These parts indicate that it was not the king's fault that workers were hungry. It was their own fault.

chronology

Write these events in the correct order in your notebook. Include dates if possible

1789

• The Estates General is called together (May 5^th)


• Voting by estate or with all people together


• the Third Estate calls itself: National Assembly


• King Louis XVI sends soldiers to Paris to arrest the National Assembly


• Storming of the Bastille (July 14^th)

important words

Natural Rights:         rights every person has and that cannot be taken away by any law or                                      ruler

Estate:                       a group of people you belong to from birth. It is hereditary  (erfelijk)                                          and it is difficult for someone to change  into another estate

Estates General:       a meeting (assembly) of representatives of the three estates.

National Assembly:  a meeting of people (an assembly) who represent the French                                                   people  (the nation).

Constitution:             a  document that tells what rights the people have and what                                                      powers the government has (and hasn't)

bourgeoisie:             the rich part of the third estate, such as doctors, lawyers,
                                  bankers  and  rich merchants

 

Word Duty

WORD DUTY

Natural Rights: rights every person has and that cannot be taken away by any law or ruler

Estate: a group of people you belong to from birth. It is hereditary (erfelijk) and it is 

difficult for someone to change into another estate

Estates General: a meeting (assembly) of representatives of the three estates.

National Assembly: a meeting of people (an assembly) who represent the French people (the nation).

Constitution: a document that tells what rights the people have and what powers the government has (and hasn't). Even an king needs to obey the constitution, so it limits the power of an absolute king.

bourgeoisie: the rich part of the third estate, such as doctors, lawyers, bankers and rich merchants

Important dates in this lesson:

1789: July 14th: Storming of the Bastille: the beginning of the French Revolution

Summary 7.5: The French Revolution (1)

Summary 7.5: The French Revolution (1)

Write down a question about something from this lesson that you don't understand.

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