Introduction

French revolution started in 1789. The series of events started by the middle
class shaken the upper classes. The people revolted against the cruel regime of
monarchy. This revolution put forward the ideas of liberty, fraternity, and
equality.
• The revolution began on 14th July, 1789 with the storming of the fortress-
prison, the Bastille.
→The Bastille, the fortress prison was hated by all, because it stood for the
despotic power of the king.
→ The fortress was demolished.

Causes of the French Revolution:

Social Cause

French Society During the Late Eighteenth Century

The term ‘Old Regime’ is usually used to describe the society and institutions of
France before 1789.

The society was divided into three estates.

1. 1st Estate: Clergy (Group of persons involved in church matters)
2. 2nd Estate: Nobility (Persons who have high rank in state administration)
3. 3rd Estate: (Comprises of Big businessmen, merchants, court officials, lawyers,
Peasants and artisans, landless labour, servants)

• First two classes were exempted from paying taxes. They enjoyed privileges by
birth. Nobility classes also enjoyed feudal privileges.

• Only the members of the third estate had to pay taxes to the state.
→ Direct tax called taille and also a number of indirect taxes which were charged
on articles of everyday consumption like salt or tobacco.

• A tax called Tithe was also collected by the church from the peasants.

• Clergy and Nobility were 10% of the population but possessed 60% of lands.
Third Estate was 90% of the population but possessed 40% of the lands.
Economic Cause

Subsistence Crisis

• The population of France rose from about 23 million in 1715 to 28 million in

1789.

• This increased the demand for the foodgrains. However, production could not
keep pace with the demand which ultimately increased the prices of the
foodgrains.

• Most workers work as labourers in the workshops and they didn’t see increase
in their wages.

• Situation became worse whenever drought or hail reduced the harvest.

• This led to the scarcity of foodgrains or Subsistence Crisis which started

occurring frequently during old regime.

Political Cause

• Louis XVI came into the power in 1774 and found empty treasury.

• Long years of war had drained the financial resources of France.

• Under Louis XVI, France helped the thirteen American colonies to gain their
independence from the common enemy, Britain which added more than a billion
livres to a debt that had already risen to more than 2 billion livres.

• An extravagant court at the immense palace of Versailles also cost a lot.

• To meet its regular expenses, such as the cost of maintaining an army, the
court, running government offices or universities, the state was forced to
increase taxes.

Growing Middle Class

• The eighteenth century witnessed the emergence of social groups, termed the
middle class, who earned their wealth through overseas trade, from
manufacturing of goods and professions.

• This class was educated believed that no group in society should be privileged
by birth.

• They were inspired by the ideas put forward by the various philosophers and
became a matter of talk intensively for these classes in salons and coffee-houses
and spread among people through books and newspapers.

• The American constitution and its guarantee of individual rights was an

important example for political thinkers in France.

Philosophers and their contribution in revolution

• John Locke: (written a book named ‘Two Treatises of Government’) in which he

criticized the doctrine of the divine and absolute right of the monarch.

• Jean Jacques Rousseau (written a book named ‘Social Contract’) in which he

proposed a form of government based on a social contract between people and
their representatives.

• Montesquieu (written a book named ‘The Spirit of the Laws’) in which he

proposed a division of power within the government between the legislative, the
executive and the judiciary.

The Outbreak of the Revolution

• Louis XVI called an assembly of the Estates General to pass his proposals to
increase taxes on 5th May 1789.

• The first and second estates sent 300 representatives each, who were seated
in rows facing each other on two sides, while the 600 members of the third
estate had to stand at the back.

• The third estate was represented by its more prosperous and educated
members only while peasants, artisans and women were denied entry to the
assembly.
• Voting in the Estates General in the past had been conducted according to the
principle that each estate had one vote and same practice to be continued this
time. But members of the third estate demanded individual voting right, where
each member would have one vote.

• After rejection of this proposal by the king, members of the third estate walked
out of the assembly in protest.

• On 20th June, the representatives of the third estate assembled in the hall of
an indoor tennis court in the grounds of Versailles where they declared
themselves a National Assembly and vowed to draft a constitution for France that
would limit the powers of the monarch.

• Mirabeau, a noble and Abbé Sieyès, a priest led the third estate.

• While the National Assembly was busy at Versailles drafting a constitution, the
rest of France was in trouble.

• Severe winter destroyed the food crops which resulted in increase in the prices.
The bakers also hoarded supplies of breads for making greater profit.

• After spending hours in long queues at the bakery, crowds of angry women
stormed into the shops.

• At the same time, the king ordered troops to move into Paris. On 14 July, the
agitated crowd stormed and destroyed the Bastille.

• In the countryside rumours spread from village to village that the lords of the
manor were on their way to destroy the ripe crops through their hired gangs.

• Due to fear, peasants in several districts attacked the castle of nobles, looted
hoarded grain and burnt down documents containing records of manorial dues.

• Large numbers of noble fled from their homes and many migrated to
neighbouring countries.

• Louis XVI finally recognised the National Assembly and accepted the
constitution.

• On 4th August, 1789, France passed the law for abolishing the feudal system of
obligations and taxes.
• The member of clergy were also forced to give up their privileges.

• Tithes were abolished and lands owned by the Church were confiscated.