 Absolute Monarchy
 3 rigid classes: Estates
 1st Estate – Clergy
 2nd Estate – Nobles
 3rd Estate – Commoners
PRIVILEGED CLASSES
1ST Estate – Clergy
 Paid no taxes
 Wealthy
 Tithe
 Land
2nd Estate – Nobility
 Great wealth and
Privileges
 Exempt from most
taxes
The Old Regime
 Underprivileged Classes
 Paid taxes in money, produce
and labor
The Third Estate
 Bourgeoisie (Middle Class)
Wealthy, educated, & outspoken
Lawyers, bankers, merchants
and businessmen
 Sans Culottes (City Workers)
 Little education, little money
 Peasants (Largest Group)
Heavy taxes
Corvee – forced labor
Political Cartoon
These 18thc. Political
cartoons show a peasant
bearing on his and her
back a clergyman and a
noble. The policies
cartoonist is making a
bitter comment of the fact
that peasants must pay
taxes and other dues to
support the church, the
nobles, and the
government, while the
clergy and nobles were
exempt from most taxes.
The triangle represents number of people
in each class.
Huge Debts had accrued from Previous Rulers:
Louis XIV
Endless wars
Versailles
Lavish Spending
 brought France to the brink of Bankruptcy
Louis XV
Continued wars
Refused to tax the nobility
Louis XVI
Appointed 2 finance ministers: Turgot and
Necker
Their solution: Tax the nobility
Louis feared the nobles and dismissed Turgot
and Necker
1788 France entered bankruptcy
Louis called the Estates-General into session
(Which had not met since 1614)
Estates General – Meeting of Representatives from
the 3 Estates
1st
Estate
2nd
Estate
3rd
Estate
Despite somewhat proportional representation the
voting policy was unfair, with 1 vote per Estate.
The Third Estate
Demanded the
Creation of the National
Assembly – Each
delegate = 1 vote
Locked out of the
meeting
June 20, 1789 the
delegates of the 3rd
Estate assembled at an
indoor tennis court and
stayed until France had
a Constitution
July 14, 1789
Spurred by rumors– a
Paris mob surrounded the
Bastille.
The Bastille was a prison
for debtors and a symbol of
the oppression of the Third
Estate.
Governor of Prison and
mayor of Paris were killed
and their heads were
mounted on pikes and
paraded through the city.
This event symbolized the
beginning of the French
Revolution
•Peasants started
attacking the nobles
homes throughout France
•Nobles offered to pay
taxes in order to end the
violence
October 5, 1789
Women from
neighborhoods
around the Bastille,
gathered
10,000 people
(mostly women)
walked to Versailles
Goal: to convince
King to provide them
with bread
Louis greeted the
women and
promised them
bread
Just before midnight, Louis
accepted a prior proposal by
the nobles and clergy to the
National Assembly
What Enlightened
ideas to you see?
Which thinkers did
they come from?
End tax exemptions of
the privileged classes
End payment of feudal
dues by the peasants
End the tithe
End all class distinctions
King and his family would be
confined to Paris from this
point on.
 Constitution of 1791:
Limited Monarchy
 King remained but…
1. Could not propose
laws
2. Only had
temporary veto to
block legislation
What do you see in
his face? Why?
Separation of Powers
1. Legislative
Which
2. Executive
Philosophe
3. Judicial
Promoted
The Legislative
Assembly
1. Passed nation’s laws
2. Members had to be
property owners and
elected by taxpaying
citizens
Who was being left
out?
This?
 Eastern European
Powers feared the
spread of the Revolution
 Declaration of Pillnitz
 Prussia and Austria
threatened to use
force to protect
French Royal Family
 1792 The 2 powers
entered France
 August 10 – Paris mob
This is how
The British viewed the
Incident.
attacked the Tuileries
Palace and Legislative
Assembly
 Took King Captive
 Forced the Legislative
Assembly to suspend
the monarchy and
draft a constitution to
create a French
republic
 Universal Manhood
suffrage
 September 21, 1792
National Assembly
declared France a
Republic
 Louis XVI was put on
trial for Treason –
convicted
 January 21, 1793 Louis
XVI was executed
Louis’ execution is considered the beginning of the
Radical Phase of the Revolution – the Sans Culottes took
over the Revolution.

Leaders of 12 member
Committee
1. George Danton
2. Jean Paul Marat
3. Maximilien
Robespierre
Goal: protect Republic
from foreign enemies
compulsory
military service
created largest army
ever seen in Europe
Pushed invading
forces (Austria and
Prussia) back across
the Rhine
Turned attention to
Domestic Enemies
“Drunk with Power”
Robespierre instituted
the “Reign of Terror”
 September 1793 – July






1794
Committee arrested
people they suspected of
treason
20,000 – 40,000 were put
to death by guillotine
Marie Antoinette, was one
victim
Nobles and clergy went to
guillotine
Most victims however
were commoners
Ended with execution of
Robespierre July 1794
After Robespierre – power passed to
wealthy middle class
National Convention created a new
Constitution – The Constitution of 1795
Five Directors – The Directory – acted as
the executive authority
Incompetent and corrupt the new
government could not solve the countries
problems.
1799 The popular General Napoleon
Bonaparte seized power.