France continued to spend much more than it received in income Took out loans to pay for wars with England and gov’t operations By 1788 France spent 50% of its budget for interest payments on their nat’l debt 25% on military expenditures 6% for extravagant life style of the king and his court With no other options, a sharp rise in taxes became inevitable New tax burden was born by the peasants Clergy and nobles were exempt from taxes Peasants had poor harvests and price of bread soared

King called for a meeting of the Estates General Had not convened since 1614 Divided France into 3 orders or estates: clergy, nobility and commoners The orders were segregated and they voted in block 1 order-1 vote Their mission was to find a resolution to the financial crisis in France

The meeting of the Estates General May 5, 1789 Each estate solemnly marched into the hall at Versailles. The third estate, dressed all in black, the nobility dressed in all their finery clergy dressed in full regalia. Estates vote in block; 1 vote per estate

What is the Third Estate?? The Third Estate consisted of the bourgeoisie (middle class) as well as peasants. Abbe Sieyes, a liberal clergyman, rallied the commoners of France to assert their power and take charge of the Estates General. at his suggestion, they declared themselves the National Assembly and invited the other two orders to join them. The next day they found their meeting hall locked. At the suggestion of one of the delegates they moved to a nearby indoor tennis court,

Meeting of the Estates General 3 rd Estate refused to conduct any business until the king ordered all three estates to sit together as a single representative body When it was clear that the EG would meet and vote as separate orders, the 3 rd estate adopted the title Nation Assembly and declared itself thee true representative body of France On June 19 th, a majority of the clergy voted to join the 3 rd estate On June 20, 1789, members of the National Assembly were locked out from their hall in Versailles because of “repairs” They move to a large indoor tennis court in a town and swore the famous ‘Tennis Court Oath’, pledging never to disband until they had written a new constitution for France

Had enough??

Homework! On page 41 of your ISN, write a diary entry as your character on your role card Explain what your day is like and how you feel about your king and your future

Ancien Regime What do you think this term means or refers to? the political and social system of France before the Revolution of 1789 What did that look like? Feudal society, absolutism, impoverished and abused peasant class

July 14, 1789 By July 1789, about ¼ of the population of Paris was unemployed Bread prices soared so high many people were left without food Rumor spread that the King’s troops were coming to sack Paris Angry citizens seized arms for defense of the city On July 14, hundreds of people marched to the Bastille, a medieval fort and prison, to search for gunpowder The Bastille was a prison, a symbol of absolute monarchy filled with stories of abuse and torture The commanding officer of the Bastille, Governor DeLunay, refused to give up the gunpowder and fired on the crowd, killing 98 people

Storming of the Bastille The soldiers finally surrendered hours later and the revolutionary crowds took the Bastille The mob grabbed DeLunay and cut off his head, they put it on a pike and began marching through the streets of Paris with it The mob paraded through the streets, showing off their captives, and crudely cutting off many heads. The National Guard tried to stop the crowds from looting, but it was useless The king was informed of the incident and asked, “Oh my, is this a revolt?” His general replied, “No sire, this is a revolution” The French Revolution had begun

In your Micro Journal, Describe the events of the day, July 14, 1789 we are just getting started