Only after the election of Hugh Capet and beginning of Capetian dynasty (987-1328) did France unite as a realm with a distinct territory. Hugh Capet recognized Paris as his power center, practically establishing the capitol, but the rest of the kingdom was controlled by powerful local lords. Under the Capetian dynasty, many of the basic administrative institutions of the French monarchy began to develop, while being the biggest contributor to the crusades, kings slowly solidified their power and influence over the kingdom. Philip II, for the first time, uses the title King of France, instead of King of the Franks, while his successor Louis IX enhanced the prestige of monarchy even further. Capetian Kings by extending and maintaining power, …show more content…
Both, more importantly the latter, will have colossal effect in fully structuring the French nation later on. Estates General was a representative assembly, consisting of three estates (social classes): First Estate (clergy) including Bishops and priests, the Second Estate (nobility) consists of former vassal lords and the Third Estate (bourgeoisie) envelopes all other members of the populace. (Palmer, p.567) The Estates General was first called in 1302, during the crisis of dispute between Philip the Fair and Pope Boniface VIII. Throughout the reign of monarchs Estates General was summoned a handful of times, including the meeting of 1614 conversing on the fierce clash of War of Religions, and later in 1789, during an economic crisis. It is evident, that at first Estates General could not become part of the French monarchy, but it made clear that these states could not agree and had different interests, it also highlighted the underrepresentation of the Third Estate, which later constructs something unimaginable to the monarchs of …show more content…
In contrast to Charlemagne’s feudalism, in Ancient Regime everyone was subject of the king, as well as of an estate and province, but nationality and citizenship didn’t exist. By this time, the military revolution has already begun, and with it absolutism rose in the political sphere of France. (Palmer) The Military Revolution was a product of insecurity and political tensions throughout Europe, which later requires the Balance of Powers within the continent. The feudal armies of the past were dispersing, so the possession of the army transferred from nobility to the King, granting him even more power. This aspect of military might became the key piece for centralizing power in France, controlling the army meant collecting taxes without the consent of the Estates General, therefore diminishing the power of Estates. This is the reason why the Military Revolution went hand-in-hand with the emergence of absolutism. Hatton describes “the term ‘absolutism’ denotes a form of power which is unrestrained; more specifically it implies that no external agency can suspend or delay the action of the sovereign power” (Hatton, 1976, p.18) Absolutism was also a product of power struggle between the King and the Estates, for example in France the Crown won, establishing monarchical
The second estate was made up of rich nobles. The nobles owned 20 percent of the land in France and paid almost no taxes. The third estate was about 90 percent of the people in France. The third estate laked privileges they had to pay high taxes. They felt that their wealth entitled them to a great degree of social states.
Although there were probably many factors that contributed to the start of the French Revolution, the three most important causes were taxes, the American revolution, and the spreading of the philosophes’ ideas. A very prominent cause of the French Revolution was the unfair amount of taxes for the Third Estate. According to Arthur Young, who traveled across France while it was still under the Old Regime, wrote about this in his book, Travels in France. An excerpt from his journal reads “Lands held by the nobility are taxed very little.
The French Revolution was a major event in history that impacted and changed the course of the world today, and most famous for the executions of King Louis XVI and Queen Marie Antoinette. It helped introduce modern civilization to multiple ideologies such as socialism, liberalism, and even patriotism, as well as reforming the government. With all these great advancements, there’s a pondering question left by many asking what happened to cause this revolution. There were many factors that led up the French Revolution, but one of the many significant causes was the king of France himself. According to the Sixth Document, Causes of the French Revolution, It was said that Louis XVI’s lack of leadership skills made him an ineffective ruler.
They owned 25% of the land and only paid 2% of taxes. Now comes the shocking part: the rich people paid nothing. The First Estate owned 10% of land and paid 0% of the taxes. According to Document 3, the Third Estate demanded that three changes should be made in the French Government: every tax should be granted by the Estates General for a limited time, they needed to schedule the meetings of the Estates General for definite times and the votes of the Third Estate should be taken by head in the assembly. Document 4 states that, when the middle class found out about Enlightenment ideas, they became the leaders of the Revolution.
The third estate, which makes up 98% of the population, is unhappy with the dramatic advantages that the first 2 estates receive. Getting rid of nobility helps all citizens have equal opportunity. Doc B “Jan 21,1793 Trial, conviction, and execution of Louis XVI for treason“. The execution of King Louis not only served as a symbol, but also showed that the French population want a honest leader in a democratic nation. “ February 1794, All slavery abolished in French colonies.”
(Source C) They also wanted to have their own opinions, and ideas. The people of France didn’t want the monarchy to decide their religion. (Source D) The people started to revolt against the king, and that is when Robespierre came into power, and became France’s dictator.
In a diagram from 1789, it shows that the First and Second Estates made up only a small percentage of the population, yet they owned ten times that amount in land, and paid no taxes. Meanwhile, the majority of the population, made up by the Third Estate, were taxed profusely and owned little land in comparison (Doc 2). The inequality between the estates and the extent to which the Third Estate was abused because of their social status was clear . This is portrayed in an illustration where the Third Estate was trampled by the taxes forced upon them by their social superiors (Doc 7). They were in no state to pay taxes or tithes to the church, and this mandatory tariff left little money for their own needs.
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,
Arianna Paulin Mr. Bonnet World History II, French Revolution 27th of October, 2017 Through His Actions and Policies, To What Extent was King Louis the XVI Responsible for the French Revolution? Introduction Paragraph Between the years of 1785 and 1793, the French society was on the verge of collapsing. There was poverty and famine roaming the streets, making it nearly impossible to survive given the ridiculously high and unjust taxing system.
He raised taxes on the lower people. During that time the American Revolution influenced them to rebel and also the philosophers of the enlightenment. These three examples became the result of the French revolution. King Louis xvi had many powers. He made and enforced the laws.
Nearly 10,000 French army officers and aristocrats (nobles) were ready to join the foreign invasion (Doc C). France was facing a real crisis with only two years into the revolution. The Reign of Terror was bloody, but it clarified the goals of all French citizens- join the army, protect the revolution, and resist the return to feudalism and the Old Regime. The map addresses that France had external threats, in August 1792, 80,000 Austrian and Prussian armies were marching towards France to suppresses the French Revolution. That was not the only problem France had though, they also had internal troubles, 10,000 French army officers and aristocrats had moved to the Austrian-controlled Netherlands to form armies and they allied themselves with France’s foreign enemies.
In 1789, France was precariously balanced on the edge of chaos. King Louis XVI was ruling monarch of France. King Louis’ youth depicted him as reckless, thoughtless, and unwise. A series of bad financial and political decisions, lead to his unpopularity among the people of France. King Louis was young, distracted and misguided.
The monarch may be the de facto head of state or a purely ceremonial leader. The constitution allocates the rest of the government 's power to the legislature and judiciary." (T. E. Britannica, Directory (French History))The Constitutional Monarchy lasted from 1789 to 1791 it was a revolutionary assembly formed by the Third Estate also known as the common people. It was formed to deal with some of Frances financial problems but without the king 's permission. They claimed their laws were in the king 's interest.
Something.” In response to his own title “What Is the Third Estate”, Sieyès answered, “The Nation.” The pamphlet expressed the widespread feeling in France that although a small faction may be in control, the country rightly belonged to the working crowd. Sieyès’s pamphlet bound the Third Estate to action, provoking the crowds to take matters into their own hands if the aristocracy failed to give them complete respect.
In 1643 the reign of Louis XIV. Louis begins to remove nobility from royal council by enticing the royals with court life keeping them under surveillance and keeping people trust worthy close by and people he could bribe to put his policies in place, and to gain support of the country he would go to war. Values that are essential for establishing a civil, orderly, and long-lasting democratic society is a sense of Justice, Equality, and Security. The 3rd estate which is most of the population was mostly poor and were the ones who suffered bad conditions such as little to no food. Justice was something that they desired.