Causes of french Revolution

This event shows how corrupt and money hungry the government had become, by letting anyone get high up in the political chain just by feeding the gluttonous king. The next king, Louis XVI saw that the majority of France (75%) was peasants and serfs. Consequently, to try to ensure their happiness (and prevent the Revolution), he had the Estates-General abolish the feudal system, in which they held no ranking.4 This made the nobility extremely unhappy. With no feudal system, they no longer were much higher up politicly than the commoners. The next noble atrocity came with Louis XVI making the nobles pay taxes.

But people started fighting and things turned hostel in between the three orders. On June 12th, the National assembly continued to meet at Versailles. By this time fear and violence consumed the capital. All though people were enthusiastic about the break down of royal break down, Parisians became panicked as rumors of an impending military coup began to go around. A well known insurgency climaxed on July 14th, when rioters stormed the Bastille fortress in attempt to get gun powder and weapons, this is now a holiday in France called Bastille da... ... middle of paper ... ...t. Royalists and Jacobins fought the new regime but were shut down by the army led by Napoleon Bonaparte.

The Enlightenment, the American Revolution of 1775 through 1783, and France’s political, social, and economic state in the years before the outbreaks of revolts, all acted as stimuli to the anger of France’s citizens. This anger brought about the three major phases of the French Revolution: the uprisings of peasants such as the Storming of Bastille, the Red Terror which resulted in many unjust deaths, and the Thermidorean Reaction in which the Committee of Public Safety lost its power. The incompetence of the monarchs led the French government in great desperation, and out of this desperation, France was forced to call the first Estates-General meeting s... ... middle of paper ... ... or mutiny, against the government and allowed Napoleon to rise to power shortly afterwards. The French Revolution was an inevitable event in France’s history. The incompetence of the monarchy of Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette, along with the built up anger of the French society influenced by philosophes and the American Revolution and the tension between estates, were all key factors of the disintegration of the old regime of France.

During his reign as king, France participated in several wars including the War of Devolution, in Anglo-Dutch War, and the War of the Spanish Succession. Another major action he took was the proclamation of the Edict of Fontainebleau, which revoked the Edict of Nantes, imposing religious uniformity through Catholi... ... middle of paper ... ...roblems and turned a great number of people against the monarchy. These events lead to the resentment that was another key factor in beginning the French Revolution. The end of King Louis XIV’s rule was especially disastrous. After the death of his advisor Colbert, King Louis XIV made even more horrible and costly decisions.

At the end of the 18th century, France was the center of cultural sophistication. However, beneath the shiny surface, a storm was brewing. The absolute monarchy was broken; majority of France was starving and disgruntled with the system of government. As the Enlightenment took hold and ideas about the right kind of government began to spread, tension only began to increase. By the late 1780’s, France was in the middle of the French Revolution, thanks to weak leadership, the call for change across France’s social classes, and radical thinkers willing to make a stand.

During the eighteenth century, France was one of the most richest and prosperous countries in Europe, but many of the peasants were not happy with the way France was being ruled. On July 14, 1789, peasants and soldiers stormed the Bastille and initiated the French Revolution. This essay will analyze the main causes of the French Revolution, specifically, the ineffectiveness of King Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette, the dissatisfaction of the Third Estate, and the Enlightenment. It will also be argued that the most significant factor that caused the French Revolution is the ineffective leadership of King Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette. The first and main reason for the French Revolution was the terrible leadership of King Louis XVI and Queen Marie Antoinette.

Overall, the weakness and indecisive actions of Frances monarch, King Louis XVI did not make those serving him respect or be loyal to him and his choices. Revolution broke out in France as a result of a weak monarch, operating an unfair system that did not account for the majority of his people. The influence of the revolutionaries and the thinkers during the Age of Enlightenment gave the people new ideas and made them question the Church and absolute monarchy as well as the Ancien Regime. The increasing financial difficulties and the high rise in the price of flour made the Third Estate desperate for food, and the high taxes placed on them in order to fix the financial difficulties prevented the Third Estate from having enough money to feed themselves.

The revolution began with a government financial crisis but quickly became a movement of reform and violent change. In one of the early events, a crowd in Paris captured the Bastille, a royal fortress and hated symbol of oppression. A series of elected legislatures then took control of the government. King Louis XVI and his wife, Marie Antoinette, were executed. Thousands of others met the same fate in a period known as the Reign of Terror.

The Radical Period of The French Revolution By the end of 1971, Europe was preparing to witness the end of a seemingly triumphant revolution in France. The country was restructuring its government in a forceful and bloodless manner, while the tyrant King Louis the XVI agreed to the demands of the masses (albeit without much choice). However, due to the fanatical aspirations of men such as Danton, Marat and Robespierre,it would be only a matter of months before the moderate stage of social and political reform was transformed into a radical phase of barbaric and violent force. In their quest for freedom, equality and fraternity, the leaders of the Jacobins inadvertently turned the revolution into an oligarchic dictatorship that threatened to destroy all that was achieved in the previous two years of insurrection. The revolution took a sharp turn on August 9th, 1792.

French Revolution Questions The Outbreak of the Revolution: 1) French society around 1789 was split into three groups of people or the Three Estates. The First Estate consisted of the clergy or the leaders of the church. The Second Estate were the nobles who were highly privileged. The Third and final estate consisted of peasants, city workers, and the middle class, all of which were taxes heavily and underprivileged. 2) The complains of the Third Estate were they were being taxed to heavily, they had land too small to support their families, and they lived in poverty compared to the other classes.