Causes of the French
Revolution
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France in 1700:The Ancien Regime
 Seen by many as the ‘prime cause’
 Ancien Regime was chaotic, outdated, unfair and unfit for
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purpose
There were over 360 different feudal codes of law in different
regions of France and 29 feudal courts
A minority of the population spoke French with local dialects and
patois common in many areas. Literacy levels were very low
Taxation was chaotic with local customs and feudal dues making
economic development very difficult – for instance a trader
moving goods from the south coast to Paris would pay over 40
local tolls for his trouble.
Nearly all the burden of taxation fell on those least able to afford
it
Despite such inefficiency all power rested with the King and his
advisers – but even they lacked any sensible administrative
structure within France to express this power
Royal Power
 Louis XIV, XV and XVI ensured that France had
became an absolutist monarchy. ‘L’Etat, C’est moi’
(Louis XIV), ‘The thing is legal because I wish it’
(Louis XVI)
 Such ancient institutions that did exist as a nominal
check to royal power had been marginalised and
ignored e.g. the Estates General (hadn’t met since
1614) and the parlements (the 12 legal corporations
responsible for courts, justice etc.) had been filled
with aged loyal royalist supporters and were largely
ineffective
 Ordinary people, and perhaps more importantly for
the Revolution that followed, middle class people,
had no share or say in government.
Lettres de Cachet
 Throughout the 17th and 18th centuries the will
of the King had become law – so much so
that any opponent or even critic could be
arbitrarily arrested by the issue of a royal
lettre de cachet (sealed letter) and flung into
prison without charge or trial.
 150,000 lettres de cachet were issued by
Louis XV and around 14,000 by Louis XVI
The Estates
 France in 1700 was a hierarchical system based on
ascribed power and status (i.e. privilege/status you
were born into rather than achieve).
 The privileged estates were the First and Second
(clergy and nobility), together representing around
300,000 people out of a population of 25 million
 The First and Second Estates were supporters of
Royal power and the Ancien Regime worked almost
wholly to their profit.
 The First and Second Estates owned around 3/5ths
of all French land drawing substantial rents but were
almost completely exempt from taxation
Burden of the Peasants
 The peasants (majority of the population) in France in 1700 suffered a
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crushing burden.
Paid the vingtieme (20th of income) to the King
Paid the taille of land tax
Paid the poll tax or capitation
Paid the tithe to the Church
Paid the gabelle of salt tax (had to purchase 7 lbs of salt every year)
Paid customs duties if carrying goods through a village
Paid taxes to use the Landlords wine press or corn mill (which they had
to use)
Had to suffer Aristocrats hunting all over their crops (game laws)
Were subject to the corvee (3 days unpaid forced labour every year)
Were subject to military service (the only estate to be so)
Had fierce punishments metered out on them if they rebelled – around
10,000 imprisoned every year and 2.000 executed – many simply for
refusing to pay taxes.
Grievances of the Middle Class
 Much of the drive for the early French revolution came for the
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educated and wealthier sections of the 3rd Estate – the
professionals, lawyers, businessmen
The Middle classes were excluded from all official positions
They also resented the lack of free speech and religious
freedom (middle classes often protestants)
The discovery of a protestant church service could lead to the
execution of the entire congregation
Business people resented the ridiculous system of tax and
duties which severely restricted the growth of trade and the
economy
The Middle classes felt unfairly excluded from government
The Enlightenment
 Since the mid 18th century the philosophical
movement called the Enlightenment had
been giving the middle classes the political
education necessary to question and criticise
the Ancien Regime
 Especially influential ‘philosophes’ were
Voltaire, Diderot, Montesquieu and Rousseau
Idea of the Enlightenment Thinkers
 Voltaire (1694-1778 – fierce critic of Ancien regime, the Estates
system and the Church (had been a victim of a lettre de cachet
himself). Voltaire argued for religious toleration, fairer taxations
and the ending of torture and arbitrary imprisonment.
 Diderot (1751-72) leading ‘Encyclopaedist’ – a group who
aimed to codify all existing knowledge into one encyclopaedia.
Advocated the abolition of all taxation except that of land tax (to
be paid by First and Second Estate).
 Montesquieu (1689- 1755) ‘The Spirit of the Laws’ advocated
an English style constitutional monarchy for France with a
division of powers between Monarch, assembly, judiciary acting
as checks and balances against each other.
 Rousseau (1712- 1778) ‘The Social Contract’ argued for direct
democracy – the idea that ‘The General Will’ should be
sovereign NOT the monarch. The General Will can only be
established through direct rather than representative democracy
Example of the American Revolution
 Provided a practical example for French
revolutionaries.
 In 1776 the American colonies declared their
independence form Britain and by 1783 had secured
their independence and freedom.
 Louis XVI anxious to get revenge for the 7 Years War
(1756-63) sent troops to fight against the British.
French soldiers returned to France full of democratic
and revolutionary ideas! One of the leading French
revolutionaries Lafayette fought in the American War.
 Arguably the French had far more to revolt against
than the Americans!
Bankruptcy
 Cost of America war perhaps the final straw
for French national finances.
 The enormous cost of Louis’ court (e.g. Marie
Antoinette had 500 personal servants – she
accounted for about 1/12th of all government
expenditure herself!), the inheritance of debt
from Louis XIV and XV, the inefficient system
of taxation, the wars of the 17th and 18th
centuries – all of this contributed to a huge
national debt.
Attempts at Reform
 Earlier attempts at reform proposed by Finance
Ministers Necker and Turgot were resisted by vested
landed interests and the King hadn’t the strength to
push them through.
 In 1787 the new Finance Minister Calonne persuaded
Louis to call an ‘assembly of notables’ with a view
to abolishing First and Second Estate exemption from
taxation – the ‘assembly of notables’ met but resisted
Calonne’s proposals.
 Finally Brienne persuaded Louis to call the Estates
General to meet to discuss French bankruptcy and
his proposed solutions
Influence of Marie Antoinette
 Louis’ wife was extremely unpopular with the
French and her significant influence over the
King disliked and distrusted.
 She was nicknamed contemptuously ‘that
Austrian’
 Perceived to be unsympathetic to the poor
and utterly opposed to reform. She was
extravagant and wasteful.
Short Term- prices, famine, cold
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Price inflation increased steadily through the 18th century with no corresponding
wage inflation to match it.
 Population grew thanks to medical and scientific breakthroughs - this further
increased demand for food which put further upward pressure on prices
 The grain price rose by 60 percent from 1730-89 whilst wages only went up
about 22 percent. This caused hardship and hunger.
 The weather conspired to produce disastrously poor harvests ‘87 and ‘88
resulted in famine across France.
 A severe winter followed in 1789 and even in the south many rivers were frozen
solid.
 The cold unemployed and hungry massed in Paris hoping to find warmth, work
and food in the capital – the Paris Mob!
France now had a combustible collection of factors including;
1. An outdated and unfair system
2. A strong body of new and revolutionary ideas (The Enlightenment)
3. The successful example of the Americans
4. A weak King and unpopular Queen
5. An angry and hungry Paris mob
6. A bankrupt government