1. Reason #1 – The Estates

2. Breakdown of Estates

3. 1st Estate Composed of the clergy of the Roman Catholic Church
Owned 10 percent of the land in France
Contributed 2 percent of its income to the government

4. 2nd Estate Composed of rich nobles
Owned 20 percent of the land and paid almost no taxes
Along with clergy, dismissed Enlightenment ideas because they saw them as threats to their power

5. 3rd Estate Three different groups… Bourgeoisie (Middle Class)
Bankers, factory owners, merchants, etc.
Paid high taxes yet many had tremendous wealth
French city workers
Tradesmen, apprentices, laborers, etc.
Poorest group of the 3rd Estate
Paid low wages and often went hungry
Peasants
More than 80 percent of France’s 26 million people
Paid half of their income to taxes and duties to nobles

6. Reason #2 – Enlightenment Ideas
Members of the Third Estate were inspired by the success of the American Revolution
Began to question these assumptions of how society should be structured
Writers such as Rousseau and Voltaire began to impact the thoughts of the 3rd Estate

7. Reason #3 – French Economy
French economy, once in great shape, was in decline
Price of bread had doubled in 1789, leaving many peasants and city workers in a state of starvation
Louis XVI and his queen Marie Antoinette were heavy spenders and drove France deep into debt

8. Reason #4 – Weak Leader
Louis XVI was an indecisive leader and preferred to spend time enjoying his hobbies rather than attending to affairs of state
Marie Antoinette offered bad advice, drew the ire of the French people, and spent so much money on her fashion that she became known as “Madame Deficit”

9. Your Weak Leaders…