Chapter-1

The French Revolution

Introduction
French revolution started in 1789. The series of events started by the middle class shaken the upper classes. The
people revolted against the cruel regime of monarchy. This revolution put forward the ideas of liberty,
fraternity, and equality.

• The revolution began on 14th July, 1789 with the storming of the fortress-prison, the Bastille.

→The Bastille, the fortress prison was hated by all, because it stood for the despotic power of the king.

→ The fortress was demolished

1. Causes of the French Revolution:

Social Cause

French Society During the Late Eighteenth Century

The term ‘Old Regime’ is usually used to describe the society and institutions of France before 1789.

The society was divided into three estates.

1. 1st Estate: Clergy (Group of persons involved in church matters)
2. 2nd Estate: Nobility (Persons who have high rank in state administration)
3. 3rd Estate: (Comprises of Big businessmen, merchants, court officials, lawyers, Peasants and artisans, landless
labour, servants)

• First two classes were exempted from paying taxes. They enjoyed privileges by birth. Nobility classes also
enjoyed feudal privileges.

• Only the members of the third estate had to pay taxes to the state.
→ Direct tax called taille and also a number of indirect taxes which were charged on articles of everyday
consumption like salt or tobacco.

• A tax called Tithe was also collected by the church from the peasants.

• Clergy and Nobility were 10% of the population but possessed 60% of lands. Third Estate was 90% o the
population but possessed 40% of the lands.

Economic Cause

Subsistence Crisis

• The population of France rose from about 23 million in 1715 to 28 million in 1789.
• This increased the demand for the foodgrains. However, production could not keep pace with th demand
which ultimately increased the prices of the foodgrains.

• Most workers work as labourers in the workshops and they didn’t see increase in their wages.

• Situation became worse whenever drought or hail reduced the harvest.

• This led to the scarcity of foodgrains or Subsistence Crisis which started occurring frequently during old
regime.

Political Cause

• Louis XVI came into the power in 1774 and found empty treasury.

• Long years of war had drained the financial resources of France.

• Under Louis XVI, France helped the thirteen American colonies to gain their independence from t common
enemy, Britain which added more than a billion livres to a debt that had already risen to more than 2 billion
livres.

• An extravagant court at the immense palace of Versailles also cost a lot.

• To meet its regular expenses, such as the cost of maintaining an army, the court, running government offices
or universities, the state was forced to increase taxes.

Growing Middle Class

• The eighteenth century witnessed the emergence of social groups, termed the middle class, who earned their
wealth through overseas trade, from manufacturing of goods and professions.

• This class was educated believed that no group in society should be privileged by birth.

• They were inspired by the ideas put forward by the various philosophers and became a matter o talk
intensively for these classes in salons and coffee-houses and spread among people through books and
newspapers.

• The American constitution and its guarantee of individual rights was an important example for political
thinkers in France

Philosophers and their contribution in revolution

• John Locke: (written a book named ‘Two Treatises of Government’) in which he criticized the doctrine of the
divine and absolute right of the monarch.

• Jean Jacques Rousseau (written a book named ‘Social Contract’) in which he proposed a form o government
based on a social contract between people and their representatives.
• Montesquieu (written a book named ‘The Spirit of the Laws’) in which he proposed a division of power within
the government between the legislative, the executive and the judiciary.

2. The Outbreak of the Revolution

• Louis XVI called an assembly of the Estates General to pass his proposals to increase taxes on 5t May 1789.

• The first and second estates sent 300 representatives each, who were seated in rows facing each other on two
sides, while the 600 members of the third estate had to stand at the back.

• The third estate was represented by its more prosperous and educated members only while peasants, artisans
and women were denied entry to the assembly.

• Voting in the Estates General in the past had been conducted according to the principle that estate had one
vote and same practice to be continued this time. But members of the third as demanded individual voting right,
where each member would have one vote.

• After rejection of this proposal by the king, members of the third estate walked out of the assembly in protest.

• On 20th June, the representatives of the third estate assembled in the hall of an indoor tennis in the grounds
of Versailles where they declared themselves a National Assembly and vowed t draft a constitution for France
that would limit the powers of the monarch.

• Mirabeau, a noble and Abbé Sieyès, a priest led the third estate.

• While the National Assembly was busy at Versailles drafting a constitution, the rest of France was trouble.

• Severe winter destroyed the food crops which resulted in increase in the prices. The bakers also hoarded
supplies of breads for making greater profit.

• After spending hours in long queues at the bakery, crowds of angry women stormed into the shops.

• At the same time, the king ordered troops to move into Paris. On 14 July, the agitated crowd stormed and
destroyed the Bastille.

• In the countryside rumours spread from village to village that the lords of the manor were on the way to
destroy the ripe crops through their hired gangs.

• Due to fear, peasants in several districts attacked the castle of nobles, looted hoarded grain and burnt down
documents containing records of manorial dues.

• Large numbers of noble fled from their homes and many migrated to neighbouring countries.

• Louis XVI finally recognised the National Assembly and accepted the constitution.

• On 4th August, 1789, France passed the law for abolishing the feudal system of obligations and taxes.
• The member of clergy were also forced to give up their privileges.

• Tithes were abolished and lands owned by the Church were confiscated.

France Becomes a Constitutional Monarchy

• The National Assembly completed the draft of the constitution in 1791 which main object was to limit the
powers of the monarch.

• The powers were now separated and assigned to different institutions – the legislature, executive and judiciary
which made France a constitutional monarchy.

• The Constitution of 1791 gave the power of making laws in the hands of National Assembly, which was
indirectly elected.

• The National Assembly was elected by a group of electors, which were chosen by active citizens.

• Active Citizens comprises of only men above 25 years of age who paid taxes equal to at least 3 days of a
labourer’s wage.

• The remaining men and all women were classed as passive citizens who had no voting rights.

France Constitution at that time

• The Constitution began with a Declaration of the Rights of Man and Citizen.

• Rights such as the right to life, freedom of speech, freedom of opinion, equality before law, were given to each
human being by birth and could not be taken away

• It was the duty of the state to protect each citizen’s natural rights

• Various Political Symbols:

→ The broken chain: stands for the act of becoming free.

→ The bundle of rods or fasces: Show strength lies in unity.

→ The eye within a triangle radiating light: The all-seeing eye stands for knowledge.

→ Sceptre: Symbol of royal power.

→ Snake biting its tail to form a ring: Symbol of Eternity.

→ Red Phrygian cap: Cap worn by a slave upon becoming free.

→ Blue-white-red: The national colours of France.

→ The winged woman: Personification of the law.

→ The Law Tablet: The law is the same for all, and all are equal before it.