Reforms of the NCA 1789-1791 Flashcards
(41 cards)
What did the August Decrees state
-Feudal obligations were abolished
-Tithe abolished
-Abolition of venality
-Corvee royale abolished
-all privileges abolished e.g. don gratuit
-Abolished the Estates System
When was the Declaration of Rights of Man and citizen passed and what did it outline?
-26 August 1789
-All men are equal
-Freedom of Speech
-Religious toleration
-unversal male suffrage- sovereignty to the nation
-Rule of Law
-Separation of powers
Why did the NCA seek religious reforms?
-As the philosophes spoke about how religon was limiting society (Voltaire and Diderot)
-Focus directed on monasteries and they thought nuns and monks should be reproducing (said by Louis Sebastien Mercier)
-The church’s wealth could be stripped from them and used to solve the financial issues in France
What religious changes were brought in between August 1789 - June 1790 that weakened the wealth of the church?
-They payment of annates was ended
-Pluralism abolished (addressing corruption of church)
-The tithe and right of the church to decide its own taxation in the don gratuit were abolished
-All church property was nationalised from 2 November 1789
What did the NCA do with nationalised church land (biens nationaux)?
-It was sold to the third estate
-25% bought by 1794
-peasants bought 48% of land and bourgeoisie bought 52%
Which religious helped the NCA stabilise the economy?
-Nationalisation of church land - especially selling monastery land which had begun to be closed down
Which bishop supported the nationalisation of church land?
-Bishop of Artun, Talleyrand (was in the society of thirty with Lafayette- radical)
When was religious toleration granted to a) Protestants and b) Jews
-Full citizenship granted to Protestants (Dec. 1789)
-All jews granted citizenship by Sep. 1791
What was the Civil Constitution of the Clergy and when was it passed?
-12 July 1790
-It decreased the number of Bishops from 135 too 83 as only 1 bishop per departement
-Clergyman would become state officials with new salary structure
-Bishops and priests would be elected
What was the Clerical Oath and when was it enforced?
-27 November 1790
-It meant that all Clerics would swear an Oath to the NCA and the state, not the Pope
How many bishops took the oath and what percentage of parish clergy took it?
-7/160 bishops too the Oath
-55% of Parish Clergy took the Oath but this varied by region ( numbers decreased after Pope’s response)
When was Louis forced to accept the CCC
-December 1790
What was the Papal bull ‘Charitas’ of April 1791 and why had the Pope not done this before?
-The Pope openly announced his rejection of The CCC and clerical Oath and suspended those who took the Oath
-He had not done this before as the Pope was involved in negotiations with the French over his papal territory at Avignon which France wanted to annex
What was the NCAs reaction to the Papal Bull?
-Occupied Avignon and after plebiscite it annexed it to France
-Declared in November 1791, that all refractory priests were counter-revolutionaries and were stopped from using religious buildings and income stopped
What was the name distinction between those who took the oath and those who did not?
-Those who took the oath were called jurors (juring priests)
-Those who did NOT take the oath = non-juring priests or refractory priests
When was a) religious dress banned and b) when could refractory priests be deported?
-a) religious dress banned in April 1792
-b) refractory priests could be deported from May 1792
What was the impact of the church reforms
-France became geographically split and very divided as Paris and its neighbours accepted it but peasantry in very catholic areas did not accept it - Vendee and Lyon
Were the church reforms enlightened?
-Yes: separated church from the state and reduced their wealth and power
-NO:
excessive treatment against refractory priests went against rule of law
What was Louis’ powers under the new 1791 constitution?
-King given a 4 year suspensory veto of legislature
-The king would be allowed to select ministers to form a cabinet but these would not be allowed to sit in the assembly
-Louis would be called “King of the French” not “King of France”
-King given 25m livres (20m reduction)
-Lost power of lit de justice and lettre de cachet
-Can still declare war and peace
When would elections be held what system would it use?
-Elections held every 2 years
-It would use an indirect voting system to vote in 745 deputies
When were the first elections called for?
- 1st October 1791 ( now the legislative assembly [LA]) - REMEMBER THIS IS AFTER FLIGHT TO VARENNES
What was the Active and Passive citizen distinction?
-Active citizens could stand as deputies and vote
-Limited to taxpaying males over 25- 60% of males (4m males)
-To stand as deputies you’;d have to pay a silver mark in taxes (50,000 people)
-Passive citizens could not vote- 40% of male pop.
How much taxation was needed to be paid to a) be a voter and b) be an elector and c) be a deputy?
a) Voter = 3 days worth of work paid in taxes (60% of pop)
b)Elector = 10 days worth of work paid in taxes ( 50,000)
c) Deputies = 1 silver mark
Who did the voting system benefit?
-The wealthy bourgeoisie (almost all of the deputies in LA were bourgois)
