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What are the causes of revolution essay
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Poverty is not enough to cause a revolution and the French Revolution supports Goldstones belief. The French Revolution of 1789 was a long time coming and had many long-term causes other than the specific condition of poverty in the country. During the time leading up to the Revolution, there were bad political, social, and economic conditions in France which together contributed to the discontent felt by the majority of French people, mostly those of the third estate. The ideas of the intellectuals of the Enlightenment also brought new views to government and society. It is important to realize the Revolution was not caused by one singular event, but rather it was caused by the conglomeration of many problems over many years. A cause of the …show more content…
Although Goldstone believes poverty is not the only cause of revolution, poverty is a key cause to remember. The old regime had a bad habit during the 18th century-the government spent more money than it collected by taxation, which led to their bankruptcy in 1788. While there was almost no bread to be had by commoners, massive amounts of money was spent on wars. Out of the previous one hundred years, France was at war for fifty of them. After supporting the Americans in their fight for independence, France was in financial ruins. The governments high spending led to the high taxation which the nation’s people couldn’t sustain. Arthur Young, an English agriculturalist of the time, traveled to France from 1787 to 1789 and angrily describes the living conditions of the third estate in his book Travels in France. He observed how unfair the taxes were; peasants and common landowners were taxed exuberantly. In contrast, the nobles and the clergy paid low taxes if any at all. Louis XVI tried to reform the taxation system but the nobility and the clergy refused to accept the new reforms. Therefore, the king was unable to make any financial reforms. France had a political system that was unfair and
The French revolution was also caused by a bad ruler and a bad economy. During the early 1780's a big percent of annual budget went towards king Louis XVI's lavish estate at Versailles. France also had no central bank, no paper currency, no ways of getting more money, and an out-dated tax system which only taxed the poor who had no money to begin with. Signs of revolution first appeared when the peasants stormed the fortress known as the Bastille looking for gun powder.
Economically, many changes could have been made in the way that would have prevented such anger arising from the people. However, there are also a few problems that could not have been avoided. Economic decline in the 1770s may have frustrated some bourgeois in their rise to power and wealth, and rising bread prices just before the Revolution certainly increased dissatisfaction among workers and peasants. France also suffered from harsh economic problems. Poor farm harvests by farmers hurt the economy, and trade rules from the Middle Ages still survived, making trade difficult. At this time, the gap between the rich and the poor was becoming greater, with the poor becoming poorer, and the rich becoming richer. A central bank was nowhere to be found, there was no paper currency and in general, taxes were becoming greater for the peasants. In this economically challenged society what could have been done to change all of these economic problems from the beginning?
Although the Political and intellectual factors of the revolution ave wood to the fire the social and economic problems were the spark to that fire that lead to the greatest revolution of all times. "What the Revolution was less than anyhting else was a chance event. While it is a true that it took the world by surprise, nevertheless it was only the culmination of a long period of travail-the sudden and violent termination of an enterprse on which men had laboured for ten generations." On this I belive that the social and economic disorder that took place in France in the eighteenth century was the cause of the revolution.
During the period of 1789-1799 people lived much differently than individuals do today and there were many reasons for this. During the French Revolution there was a large amount of taxation for certain class groups, “While average tax rates were higher in Britain, the burden on the common people was greater in France” (GNU, 2008, pg. 2). Due to these large taxations on the peasants and lower class and not on the clergy and nobles it caused excessive conflict between the classes. Not only was taxation a cause of conflict between classes but so was the corrupt monarchy of France. The main causes of the French Revolution were over taxation, class conflict, and corrupt monarchy.
The French Revolution was a period of political upheaval that occurred in France during the latter half of the 18th century. This revolution marked an end to the system of feudalism and the monarchy in France and a rise to democracy and new Enlightenment ideas. By 1789, when the revolution began, France was in a deep financial crisis due to the debt they had obtained over many years of reckless spending and France was nearly bankrupt. These financial issues fell almost completely on the bottom social class or the Third Estate which made up a majority of the country. Because of this financial trouble the common people were heavily taxed leaving many of them in poverty. In addition to the economic issues, France also held an Estate System that led to heavy
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.
The inflated opinion the French monarchy had about themselves and other nobles lent itself to how they contributed to and handled the economic downturn in France for centuries prior to the French Revolution. Forming the foundation of many of France’s financial issues, the monarchial system granted royals and the nobles who surrounded them the ability to feel as if they are intended to be superior to the rest of France, a mentality that would last until the French Revolution began. With this monarchial system, each king of France from 1610 to 1789 would contribute in both positive and negative ways, depending greatly on the Chief Ministers they appointed. [ADD]
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.
Cause of the French Revolution The essential cause of the French revolution was the collision between a powerful, rising bourgeoisie and an entrenched aristocracy defending its privileges”. This statement is very accurate, to some extent. Although the collision between the two groups was probably the main cause of the revolution, there were two other things that also contributed to the insanity during the French revolution – the debt that France was in as well as the famine. Therefore, it was the juxtaposing of the bourgeoisie and the aristocracy as well as the debt and famine France was in that influenced the French Revolution. Many people were making a case for a new concept of society, in which commoners, especially the educated middle classes (bourgeoisie), had.
The first underlying cause of the French Revolution was the Old Regime. The people of France were divided into three estates. The first estate was composed of the highest church officials. They held about ten percent of all the land in France. They paid no direct taxes to the royal government. The second estate was made up of nobles. 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. They paid feudal dues, royal taxes, and also owed the corvee, a form of tax paid with work (Krieger 484).
In order to understand the causes of the French Revolution we must first understand the separations within the French society at the time. The population was divided into 3 states, the Clergy and the Nobility which were the first and second Estates, both of whom did not have to pay taxes and were given privileges such as high positions in the army and civil service. 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 ...
The French Revolution was a bloody civil war that lasted from the years 1789-1799. [1] The revolution arose out of hard economic times that had befallen France. Widespread famine and hunger, due to a grain shortage, rampaged through sections of the country. The economic crisis led to an increase in taxes on the lower classes, known as the third estate, to upkeep the lavish lifestyle of the nobility. [1] All of these are the known factors that led to the rise of the French Revolution.
One cause of both Revolutions was that people from all social classes were discontented. Each social class in France had its own reasons for wanting a change in government. The aristocracy was upset by the king’s power while the Bourgeoisie was upset by the privileges of the aristocracy. The peasants and urban workers were upset by their burdensome existence. The rigid, unjust social structure meant that citizens were looking for change because “all social classes…had become uncomfortable and unhappy with the status quo.” (Nardo, 13) Many believed that a more just system was long overdue in France.
Causes and Effects of the French Revolution The Revolution. The major cause of the French Revolution was the disputes between the different types of social classes in French society. The French Revolution of 1789-1799 was one of the most important events in the history of the world. The Revolution led to many changes in France, which at the time of the Revolution, was the most powerful state in Europe. The Revolution led to the development of new political forces such as democracy and nationalism.
The bad living conditions of France and its depressed economy was one of the primary drivers for the French Revolution. The people of France were so poor that they had no shoes to wear and no food to eat. The poverty of France breaks its economy at its root. The economy got so bad that “By December 1788, there was a nationwide revolt against food shortages and rising prices, which continued to spread till the summer of 1789, when there was another bad harvest”(Todd 528). One ...