BELLWORK
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
In 3-5 sentences, explain the Brazilian Revolution (445)
How are the revolutions in Latin America different than
the U.S. Revolution?
What is an absolute monarch?
Who was Louis XIV? List three ways he abused his
power (pg. 267)
THINKER: The French Revolution starts when
peasants stand up and revolt. What are some positive
and negative effects of standing up against your
government?
Review Crossword: Revolutions in
the Americas
Causes of the
French Revolution
Pages 336-339
Long-Term Factors:





The Enlightenment: Encouraged liberty and individual
rights
The American Revolution: An example of freedom and
democracy
Social Problems: The Estates System
Political Conflict: Unfair absolute monarchy
Economic Weakness: Expensive wars, lavish spending
by kings
Louis
XVI and
Marie
Antoinette
Marie Antoinette






Born in 1755 to the Emperor and Empress of Austria.
After the Seven Years’ War, France needed to cement their
alliance with Austria, so Louis decided to take an Austrian wife.
When Marie Antoinette was 12, her entire family contracted
small pox.
The disease killed her brother and two sisters – who was going
to marry Louis?
Two years later, Louis paid 200,000 crowns ($11,000) for
Marie’s hand in marriage.
Immediately, French citizens did not support the marriage
because there remained high tensions between Austria and
France.
Marie at age 13; this portrait was sent
to Louis to see if he approved
Marie Antoinette


Marie and Louis had four
children together: MarieTherese Charlotte and
Dauphin Louis Joseph.
After Louis’ birth, fighting
between Austria and
France broke out
This controversial portrait was
considered “improper” for a queen
Marie Antoinette’s declining popularity








Louis refused to allow his wife to participate in politics
Austrian family was disappointed
First son (Louis) was very ill, but Marie had a second son
France was in a huge economic downturn; could not finance
war
French citizens felt she sided with Austria
Parliament was dissolved
Spent a lot of money on diamonds, clothing, palaces, and art.
Famous for the saying “Let them eat cake!”
Vocabulary

In your notes, define the following words:

Estate
Tithe
Bourgeoisie
Coup d'état



BELLWORK – 2/4

Why did people dislike Louis XVI and Marie
Antoinette? List as many reasons as
possible!
French Society: The Old Order


Before 1789, France’s
class system was made
of ESTATES (orders of
society) and all French
people belonged to 1 of 3
estates
The estates determined a
person’s legal rights and
status
The First Estate





Made up of clergy
About 1% of the
population
Controlled 5 – 10% of
land in France
Enjoyed many privileges
Did not have to pay
taxes
The Second Estate






Made up of the nobility
About 2% of the population
Owned 25% of land in France
Held high positions in the
government and military
Owned large estates and paid
no taxes
Incomes came mostly from
peasants living and working
on their land






Made up of Middle Class
(bourgeoisie), peasants, and
artisans
About 97% of population
Middle Class (doctors, lawyers,
merchants) were educated and
wealthy, but had no prestige or
privileges
Looked to Enlightenment
philosophers that spoke about
freedom and social justice
Peasants were forced to pay over
half of their income to king, clergy
and nobles
Members of this estate had no
voice in government
The Third Estate
Causes of the French Revolution


Now that you know about the Estate
system and problems within France, you
will read more about how this lead to
revolution!
Read pages 336-339 and complete the
worksheet – these are your notes!
Call For Change:




In 1774, King Louis XVI and
wife Marie Antoinette came
to power
The king was faced with
severe debt and wanted to
tax the First and Second
Estates
The two estates refused to
pay the taxes
The king was forced to call
the Estates-General in 1789
The Estates-General



The Estates-General was made
up of delegates from each estate
and each estate was given I vote
With this type of voting, the
clergy and nobility would vote
together and always overrule the
Third Estate
The Third Estate felt the vote
should be based on the number
of people in the estate, thus
giving them the majority vote
The Tennis Court Oath



Fearing a revolt, the king locked
the Third Estate out of their
meeting place in the EstatesGeneral
The Third Estate then declared
themselves the National
Assembly and began meeting in
an indoor tennis court
Here, they took an oath called the
Tennis Court Oath—refusing to
disband until they had a written
constitution for France
The Storming of the Bastille



The Bastille (a Paris prison)
symbolized injustices of the
monarchy
July 14, 1789 a mob surrounded
the Bastille in an attempt to
steal weapons needed to
defend the National Assembly
The soldiers killed 98 rioters
and the rioters released 7
prisoners
The Storming of the Bastille



This outbreak led to the
formation of a Revolutionary
Government in Paris
The Storming of the Bastille
led to a wave of violence in
France
This event is considered the
beginning of the French
Revolution
CLOSURE




Describe the Estate System in France.
Why did Louis XVI call the Estates-General?
How did the third estate feel about this?
What was the Tennis Court Oath?
Why did a mob storm the Bastille? What was
the outcome?
BELLWORK – 2/4
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
Why did the Third Estate dislike the French government?
What was the Estates-General? How did they make decisions?
How did Louis XVI propose to get France out of debt? Was it
successful?
Why did Louis XVI lock the Third Estate out of the Estates-General?
How did the Third Estate respond to being locked out of the EstatesGeneral?
THINKER: If the First and Second Estate were so wealthy, why
couldn’t they just pay taxes too? Why was it such a big problem to tax
the First and Second Estates?
Marie Antoinette






During the French Revolution, Louis and Marie were blamed for
the majority of the country’s problems.
A mob broke into their palace
Marie became a widow in January 1793 when her husband was
executed
By this time, Marie’s health was deteriorating – she had
tuberculosis and cancer.
Marie was tried by the Revolutionary Tribunal and found guilty
of treason.
She was executed in October 1793, at the age of 37.
Homework




Two of the main causes of the French Revolution were
the estates system, and lavish spending by the
monarchy.
To review over these causes, you are going to complete
a worksheet.
One side focuses on the characteristics of the estate
system
The other side is a profile of Marie Antoinette