The origins of the French Revolution Flashcards
(42 cards)
What is the Ancien Regime?
French society and government before the Revolution of 1789.
What was the royal government before 1789?
France was an absolute monarchy ruled by the Bourbons.
This meant the authority of the Crown was not limited by any representative body, e.g. elected parliament.
The king was only answerable and responsible to God.
This system is absolutism.
What were the limitations to power of the king?
Kings were bound by the laws and customs of their kingdom.
For example, there were many independent bodies such as the assembly of the clergy which had rights and priveleges guaranteed by law, which the king could not interfere with.
The king also had to consult his council of ministers and advisers to make laws.
This meant considerable power was in the hands of a small number of men, who dealt with the king individually, not as a cabinet system.
The most important minister was the controller-general, in charge of royal finances.
What was the royal government in the provinces like?
It was carried out by intendants, who had far-reaching powers in the generalites.
Intendants were officials directly appointed by and answerable to the Crown who were mainly responsible for police, justice, finance, public works, and trade and industry.
What sort of character was the king?
In 1774, Louis XVI, aceded to the french throne.
He was well intentioned but never came to terms with the State’s financial problems.
In an absolutist system the monarch needed to be a strong figure with a dominant personality.
Louis was rather weak and indecisive.
Who was Marie Antionette?
Louis married the Austrian Marie Antionette.
Initially, they were very popular, but this dissipated over the following years due to Marie Antionette’s extravagance and scandals.
She was portrayed very negatively and suggested to be wildly out of touch with ordinary people.
Widely believed by revolutionaries that she influenced the king to avoid granting them concessions.
What is tax farming?
Taxes were collected in this way where the government agrees a tax assessment figure for an area, which is then collected by a company that bids for the right to collect it.
The Farmers-General collected indirect taxes, keeping any money above the fixed sum for themselves.
This meant the government never received enough money from taxes to cover its expenditure, and frequently borrowed money.
Interest rates increased.
What is venality?
The sale and purchase of certain jobs which could be inherited by descendants.
Many taxes were collected by venal office holders, who could therefore not be dismissed.
Corruption and wastage were vast, so the crown could not recieve an adequate income, and the taxpayers knew most of their money did not reach the treasury.
How did Louis respond to the tax problem?
He was very aware of the problems regarding finance.
He appointed Turgot as Controller-General, who was influenced by philosophes and created a reform programme.
His attempts to abolish trade guilds and the corvee and to reform the tax system sparked protest.
So Louis removed his support and Turgot left office.
What are guilds, corvee and parlements?
Guilds - tightly control entry into a trade.
Corvee - unpaid labour service to maintain roads.
Parlements - all edicts handed down by the crown had to be registered by them before being enforced as law.
Who were the first estate?
The clergy, which consisted of members of religous orders and clergy (parish priests).
Numbered about 115,000.
The Church was very unpopular with many people.
Why did plurality and absenteeism cause unpopularity?
Many bishops and archbishops came from noble families and earned large incomes.
Some bishops controlled more than one diocese (made up of a large number of parishes), called plurality.
Many never visited their diocese - absenteeism.
This made the church very unpopular with the people, who considered that bishops were more interested in wealth than in the religous needs of the people.
Why did tithes mean the church was unpopular?
The wealth of the church came from the land it owned - 10%, and the tithes paid to it.
The tithes were paid yearly by landowners based on a proportion of crops they produced.
The income provided the church with 50 million levres each year.
Tithes were supposed to provide for parish priests, poor relief and the upkeep of church buildings, but most went into the pockets of bishops and abbots.
The peasantry and ordinary people greatly resented this.
What are Cahiers?
Lists of grievances and suggestions for reform drawn up by representatives of each estate and each community and presented to the Estates-General for consideration.
Why did tax exemption cause the church to be unpopular?
Even though the church had an immense income from property (100 million livres), instead of paying tax, the church agreed to make an annual payment, which was under 5% of their income.
Why did power over the people cause the church to be unpopular?
France was very religous and the Church had huge influence.
They could censor books that were critical of it, provided poor relief, hospitals and schools, and kept records of all births, marriages and deaths.
Its wealth and resistance to new ideas made it unpopular with the people.
Who were the second estate?
The Nobility - the most powerful.
Numbered about 350,000.
The most powerful were the 4000 court nobility, they lived at Versailles and had direct access to the king.
The remainder lived in the countryside, the eldest son inherited the land, while the younger joined the church, army or administration.
Their main income source was land, and owned between a 1/4 and 1/3 of France.
What were the privileges of the second estate?
Tried in their own courts.
Exempt from military service.
Exempt from paying the gabelle.
Exempt from the corvee.
Recieved feudal dues.
Exclusive rights to hunting and fishing.
Why were many nobles protective of their privileges?
Provinicial nobles, unlikely to be wealthy, relied on them for their source of income.
Consequently, they were determined to oppose any changes that threatened their position.
Many ordinary people resented the tax exemption and land privilege, contributing to the causes of the revolution.
How could one join the nobility?
Besides inheriting:
By direct appointment by the king or buying venal offices that carried hereditary titles.
There were about 12,000.
They could then be brought, sold or inherited.
Who were the Bourgeoisie?
The top end of the third estate, rich commoners who weren’t peasants or urban workers, making a living through skills or businesses.
The wealthiest were merchants and traders.
Others were landowners, doctors, lawyers and civil servants.
Many were venal-office holders.
Their number was increasing, and importance, but no conflict with the nobles until the end of the Ancien Regime.
They felt their wealth and power should be reflected in the political system.
Who were the peasantry?
Made up 85% of population.
Top end is small group of large farmers who owned their land and employed labourers.
Half the peasants did not own their land but farmed and gave half the crops to the landlords instead of rent.
1/4 were landless labourers who owned only their house.
Serfdom (slaves), a million in the east, and the bottom of the social structure.
What were the grievances of the peasants?
They bore the tax burden.
All peasants had to pay a tithe to the church, feudal dues to their lord and taxes to the state.
The peasants could be tried in a seigneurial court, where the lord acted as both judge and jury.
What increased the peasants grievances?
Taxes paid to the state were taille, capitation and gabelle.
These increased enourmously to pay for the various wars France was involved in.
The increase in population increased the rent to the landlords, increasing the demand for farms.
This increasing financial burden was an important long-term cause of the revolution.
