1. Chapter 6, Section 1 On the Eve of Revolution

2. Section 1 – On the Eve of Revolution
1789, the people of France were divided into three classes or estates
1st Estate – Clergy (Catholic Church)
2nd Estate – Nobles (people working in the government
3rd Estate – Everyone else (98% of the population)

3. The First Estate – the Clergy
Enormous wealth & privilege
Owned 10% of French land
Collected tithes but paid no taxes
Provided some social services including:
Schools
Hospitals
Orphanages
High church leaders were wealthy land owners while parish priests were poor

4. The Second Estate – the Nobles
Top jobs in:
Government
Army
Courts
Church
Owned land but had little income
They feared losing privileges & freedom from paying taxes

5. The Third Estate 98% of the people
Bourgeoisie – middle class
Bankers, merchants, manufacturers
Officials in government bureaucracy
Lawyers, doctors, journalists, professors, artisans

6. The Third Estate 98% of the people
Rural (country) peasants
Landowners
Tenant farmers
Day laborers

7. The Third Estate 98% of the people
Urban (city) workers
Apprentices, journeymen – worked in industry
Servants, stable hands, porters, construction workers

8. Section 1
Unhappy because members of 3rd Estate resented privileged 2nd & 1st Estates
Wealthy bourgeoisie could buy political offices & titles
Nobles had best jobs but hardest urban workers got very low wages
Peasants had to pay high taxes
Nobles had the right to hunt, but peasants could not even kill rabbits who ate their crops

9. Political Cartoon

10. Financial Crisis
Financial crisis because of deficit spending – government spending more money that it takes in
Burden of debt
Louis XIV – left France deeply in debt because
7 Years War/French & Indian War
American Revolution
Lavish court expenses
½ of income from taxes went to paying interest on debt
To solve financial crisis, the government had to:
Increase taxes
Reduce expenses, objected to by 1st & 2nd Estates

11. Reform Failures Failure of reform Heirs of Louis XIV
Louis XV ( ) pursued pleasure & ran up debt
Louis XVI well-meaning but weak & indecisive, chose Jacques Necker as financial director

12. King Louis XVI
When Louis XVI succeeded to the throne in 1774, he was not yet 20 years old.
He had an enormous responsibility, as the government was deeply in debt, and resentment to 'despotic' monarchy was on the rise.
Louis also felt woefully unqualified for the job.

13. Marie-Antoinette (Queen)
Initially charmed by her personality and beauty, the French people generally came to dislike her.
They accused her of being promiscuous and of harboring sympathies for France's enemies, particularly Austria, since Marie Antoinette was, after all, Austrian.

14. Jacques Necker Necker urged Louis XVI to Reduce court spending
Reform government
Abolish tariffs on trade

15. Poor Harvests in 1780’s Food prices rose
Hunger for poor peasants & city dwellers
People rioted & demanded bread, attacked nobles’ manor houses

16. Pressure for Reform Mounted
Powerful classes demanded king summon Estates General
Hoped to bring king under control of nobles & guarantee own privileges

17. Estates General Called
Louis XVI called Estates General – first meeting in 175 years
Cahiers – notebook with grievances from the 3 Estates
Fairer taxes
Freedom of the press
Regular meetings of Estates General

18. Tennis Court Oath
Delegates to the Estates General from Third Estate were elected:
Lawyers, middle class officials, & writers (men with property)
Solve financial crisis & reform
Delegates dead-locked over voting issue
Each group had one vote & 1st & 2nd estates outvoted 3rd Estate
After being locked out, the members from the 3rd Estate moved to a nearby indoor tennis court nd they made their famous oath
3rd Est. separated & called themselves National Assembly & wanted to write own constitution

19. Tennis Court Oath

20. The Bastille

21. Bastille Paris Crowd Storms the Bastille
July 14, 1789, 800 Parisians met outside Bastille prison
Demanded weapons & gunpowder
Commander of Bastille refused & opened fire on the crowd, killing many
Angry crowd broke through defenses, killed commander & 5 guards, but found no weapons
Bastille became a symbol of French Revolution