“The plan of this work is quite simple. We must ask ourselves three questions.
1. What is the Third Estate? Everything.
2. What has it been until now in the political order? Nothing.
3. What does it want? To become something…”
“What is a Third State?” was written by Abbé Sieyès in January of 1789—shortly before the outbreak of the French Revolution. Louis XVI of France proposed the convocation of the Estates-General of France after an interval of more than a century and a half in 1788. The radical position taken by the Third Estate created a sense of awareness that the problems of France were not simply a matter of addressing "royal tyranny," but that unequal privileges under the law had divided the nation. It was from this point that the Revolution’s struggle for fair distribution of power and equal rights began in earnest.
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Sieyès argued that the “third estate”, the commoners of France, was a nation within itself and did not need to rely on the first and second estates which consisted of clergy and aristocracy. He encouraged the people that they needed honest representatives of the Estates-General which would be equal representation of the people by the people and not by order. Sieyès also points out that the first and second estates look down upon the third estate which results in them being treated unfairly. He proclaims that since the third estate makes up for most of France’s population, it should replace the other two states
Sieyes also identifies the reality that if as a society if we were to remove the nobility that The Third Estate could in fact run on its own, if not “something less but something more”. In fact, society as a whole might actually go better without the two others but would cease to exists without The Third Estate. Sieyes actually goes as far to say that the nobility are a “burden for the nation and it cannot be a part of it.” Sieyes speaks to not only the social inequality between the classes but the lack of political representation of more than what is ninety percent of the population. Then nobility itself possess their own representation that was not appointed by the majority, who does not owe any powers to the people due to divinity, and finally it is foreign for the fact that it’s interests lie with private concern rather than public. In chapter two of What is the Third Estate Sieyes proclaims that up until now The Third Estate has been nothing and reform is coming. He says “Freedom does not derive from
Politically, the first two states had much more power than they should have had based on their numbers. In the Estates General, each estate is represented equally. This was true even though the Third Estate had about 98% of the population. The first estate had 300 votes, the second estate had 300 votes and the third estate had 300 votes until Louis XVI doubled their votes to 600.
Some people like Emmanuel Sieyès, middle-class writer who was taken by the Enlightenment ideas, believed that all of French Society lay on the backs of the third estate. On the contrary, Robespierre, the monarch at the time, believed that the third estate did not have the power to do anything important to society. The third estate had to pay taxes like the Gabelle and Taille while the first and seconds estates did not have to pay any taxes to the king. Also, the third estates had less of a representation in voting. The first and second estate could outvote the third estate every time and this was a huge inequality. The condition of the third estate was horrible but a good portion of this third estate was the bourgeoisie. The bourgeoisie had some wealth and social class, so they influenced the rest of the third estate about their rights, while also inspiring some lower clergies and provincial nobles and thus led to a group of rebellious people to fight the monarchy. This fight for political representation and political rights was only one cause of the French Revolution. Another causes lies in the French Monarchs: Louis XlV, Louis XV, and Louis XVl. When Louis XlV was ruling, the monarchy had unlimited power and was known as a
All people have power, some people are just more powerful than others. Having power is the ability to create change. Examples of power being used wrongly is during the French revolution, and the residential school crisis. During the French revolution, two examples were shown of people abusing their power. King Louie XVI raised taxes so that he could buy things that he and his wife Marie Antoinette wanted, and took away rights from the third estate. In the residential schools crisis, the teachers, priests and nuns had power over the students and abused the students in different ways. Superior people take away the rights from those who are below them, but they end up corrupt.
...d estate was made up of a city-dwelling, well educated middle class called the bourgeoisie, the urban lower classes and the farmers, all of which made up about 80 percent of Frances population and yet received less money than both the other two states combined. This did not stop from the government taxing the population though and the burden of it fell mostly, if not almost all on the peasants. They lost half or more of their income in taxes and were forced to pay ridiculous taxes like feudal dues to the nobles, tithes to the church and royal taxes to the king?s agent and besides all this, peasants had to pay a certain tax which was paid in work rather than money. The two other estates on the other hand paid no or very little taxes thus the third estate all had reasons to hate the old regime. The French and American revolution was partly the outcomes of these resentments towards the government and was also the result of weak leadership at the top.
France had to declare bankruptcy after the American Revolution--war and debt helped bring down the monarchy. King, in 1787, called the Estates General, an assembly of noblemen buried since 1614. Thus the Revolution becan with an aristocratic attempt to recapture the state. "Men born and live free and equal under the law." Not democratic, but constitutional. The King was not King of France, but King of the French!!
France, and the various conditions posed on the Third Estate were the foundations for the
The third estate could be broken down into three parts: the rich (bourgeoisie), the middle (lawyers, doctors, businessmen), and the poor (the peasant, farmer). There was much change in the economic world of the third estate. For instance the bourgeois were gaining land and therefore making money. 35% of the land was left to the 22 to 23 million peasants, the bourgeoisie held about 30% of the land, the 350 000 members of the nobility held about 20% of the land, and left with an unequally shared 10% the 130 000 member of the clergy. This sh...
Under the rule of Louis XVI, the people of France were divided into three main social classes or estates as they are called. The First Estate featured wealthy members of the Church such as Bishops and Priests who held great political power due to their influence on government affairs. The Second Estate was a class comprised of the wealthy nobles and political officials who held all power in government affairs.
The French Revolution started during 1789, it allowed for the people to have a better government that actually protected the natural rights of the people. This toke a nearly a decade of rioting and violence for the Third Estate to have their way and get the rights they deserved. From all the causes like the famine of wheat, long debts because of wars, the heavy taxes, and their rights not being protected, some causes stood out more than the others. It is noted that these reasons had to play a major role in order for the French Revolution to occur. The three most important causes of the French revolution are the ideas that came from the Enlightenment, the Old Regime not being an efficient class system, and the heavy taxation.
On August 26, 1789, the assembly issued the “Declaration of the Rights of Man and Citizen.” Through judicial matters, this document was written in order to secure due process and to create self-government among the French citizens. This document offered to the world and especially to the French citizens a summary of the morals and values of the Revolution, while in turn justifying the destruction of a government; especially in this case the French government, based upon autocracy of the ruler and advantage. The formation of a new government based upon the indisputable rights of the individuals of France through liberty and political uniformity.
They were only two percent of France’s population, but owned twenty percent of the land. They paid no taxes (Krieger 483). The third estate accounted for ninety-eight percent of France’s population. The third estate was divided into three groups; the middle class, known as the bourgeoisie, the urban lower classes, and the peasant farmers. The third estate lost about half their income in taxes.
The Third Estate consisted of everyone else, the pheasants, farmers, landless labourers, serfs and the emerging middle class called the bourgeois. 80% of the population was rural and were very highly taxed by the king, like the rest of the Third Estate.... ... middle of paper ... ... Overall, the weakness and indecisive actions of France's monarch, King Louis XVI, did not make those serving him respect or be loyal to him and his choices.
A small number of people said that the Third Estate, that which was drawn from the towns, should have power to equal the other Estates. Clubs of the bourgeoisie. the middle class, were formed, proclaiming, "Salus populi lex est. " It was a simple cry meaning "the welfare of the people is law." To these people, Estates General was like a pair of shoes that no longer fit.
The Privileges of the First and Second Estates in France in the 1780's Under the Ancien Régime, the French people were divided, according to their status, into ‘estates’ or social groups. These groups were very unequal in size and power. It is difficult to give exact figures for this period, but it is estimated that the First Estate, the clergy, had around 170,000 members, the Second Estate, the nobility, had 300,000-400,000 members, while the remaining Third Estate made up the rest of the population. Louis XVI was an absolute monarch and under his regime, the people of France had to pay taxes, which went towards the army, the public officials and the luxurious life that the royal family led at the Palace of Versailles. Even though the Third Estate was the poorest overall, the unfair Ancien Régime meant that the huge burden of taxes fell mainly upon them.