The French Revolution

Introduction

The French Revolution was one of the defining events of modern European history. It was a social process, at times unspeakably violent, that radically transformed France, effectively ending the era of feudalism and laying the foundations of Modern France. Despite the Romantic idea of a popular uprising inspired by the ideas of liberty and equality, the French Revolution, while ending a political system based on hereditary rights and privileges, by no means instituted a democratic form of government. The social structure of the ruling elite changed, but the country was still ruled by an elite, which means that the political system remained based on inequality.

Division of Society

French society was divided into three estates. The First Estate was composed of the clergy, who wielded significant power. The Second Estate was the nobility, or titled landowners. Everybody else was in the Third Estate. Put together, the First and Second Estates comprised less than three percent of the population but owned most of the land and held all of the political and legal power. For the most part, they paid no taxes. The nobility held all of the high-ranking positions in the military. Its sons also became the clergy, creating blood ties between the two ranking estates that guaranteed their loyalty to each other, often at the expense of the Third Estate.

Tradespeople, merchants, bankers, industrialists, philosophers, teachers, farmers, shopkeepers, and peasants belonged to the Third Estate. This group, that represented about ninety-seven percent of the population, paid all the taxes, created most of the wealth, and did all the work. Wealthy industrialist or illiterate peasant, members of the Third Estate had exactly the same legal status.

The Excesses of the Nobility

By the late eighteenth century the nobility had become incredibly corrupt. Louis XVI, for example, had more than 20,000 courtiers at his palace. (A modern-day example would be the American White House, which has about 200 staffers). The king had complete authority, with no parliament or legislature to help keep him in balance. The questionable expense of maintaining his lifestyle cost taxpayers the same as maintaining a standing army.

The rank-and-file nobility had become little kings. Because they owned the land, they were the landlords of the masses. They charged what they wished, and ordinary tenants were forced to pay simply because there wasn't anywhere else for them to go. They were virtually unbound by law, and could treat their tenants any way they chose. Furthermore, they were absolutely convinced of their inherent, genetic superiority.

The clergy, far from being virtuous, had degenerated into an arm of the state. Untrained laymen from the nobility were often ordained as priests, bishops, and even cardinals to secure political loyalty and extend power over new parishes. The clergy collected its dues from the Third Estate, too, in the form of "required contributions".

The First and Second Estates had become overbearing, unwieldy institutions that held all the legal authority and took what they wished from the Third Estate while providing very little in return. The "little people" paid all the taxes and a small, insulated elite derived the benefit. Furthermore, many non-nobles of the merchant class had gained significant economic power, but were still as beholden to the nobility and clergy as ever before. The stratified system no longer resembled the actual society of France. (Gale Student Resource Center)

Your Task

Directions:

1. Read about the French Revolution to gain a background. (see links below)

2. Using Microsoft Publisher, create a Newspaper Special Supplement describing this historic era. Your newspaper is to be a special edition, similar to what is published in newspapers or magazines at the end of a year looking back at what has transpired during the year. In this case, you are looking back at the entire French Revolution era from 1789 to 1815.

3. Divide your newspaper into the following segments:

Causes of the Revolution
Economics of the French Revolution society
Major Events of the French Revolution
Role of the Church in the French Revolution
Key People of the French Revolution
Lasting Effects and Impact of the French Revolution

4. The newspaper must also contain an editorial in which a position is taken on an issue related to the French Revolution and supported. You are to consider the issue, take a clear stand, have reasons or arguments for your position, provide support from your research for your reasons and write an essay using the CAPT format.

Topics:

The French Economy
The Old Regime
The Estates (First, Second, Third)
Louis XVI
Marie Antoinette
Estates General
National Assembly
Tennis Court Oath
Storminig the Bastille
Great Fear
Declaration of the Right of Man and the Citizen
Role of the Catholic Church
French Constitution
Legislative Assembly
Emigres
Foreign Affairs from 1785-1795
Jacobin Club or Republic
Maul Marat
Georges Danton
Guillotine
Maximilien Robespierre
Committee of Public Safety
Reign of Terror
National Convention
Significance of the French Revolution

Resources

Evaluation

Conclusion

The French Revolution's legacy was not democratic society but the first modern European state: unified, centrally organized, and far more efficient in its use of violence than the ancien regime.