1689-1789: The French Revolution
Within the context of the period 1689-1789, to what extent was the French Revolution mainly a product of economic distress?
Taxation system
• Governments benefit from a well-organized and efficient taxation system. The taxation system in France is best described as being diabolical, the taxation system was burdensome upon the middle class and the more prosperous peasants, given that the nobles were largely able to exempt themselves from it.
• The fundamental fiscal problem in France was structural. The government primarily relied on direct taxation the taille for financing. However neither the Clergy who owned about 10% of the land nor the nobility who owned about 25-30% paid this tax. Expenditure exceeded revenue and the cycle of war and …show more content…
Various finance ministers who had no central bank had relied on loans from other countries.
• France participated in the Seven Years’ War and American Revolution. France’s prolonged involvement in the Seven Years’ War of 1756–1763 drained the treasury, as did the country’s participation in the American Revolution of 1775–1783. Aggravating the situation was the fact that the government had a sizable army and navy to maintain, which was an expenditure of particular importance during volatile times. The French devoted 25% of their budget to the army and Navy and about 50% to pay off the debt.
• The wars resulted in the crown being 112 million liver in debt and over half was due to interest. The French government faced a hurdle, it could not generate taxes when the third estate was already being drained from taxes and the wealthy did not pay. It could be said that it was not the wars that caused the revolution due to the fact that Britain was also involved in a substantial amount of wars but it was the ineffective system of the French …show more content…
This gathering was dubbed the Assembly of Notables. After giving his presentation, Calonne urged the notables either to agree to the new taxes or to forfeit their exemption to the current ones. Unsurprisingly, the notables refused both plans and turned against Calonne, questioning the validity of his work. He was dismissed shortly thereafter, leaving France’s economic prospects even grimmer than before.
• Louis and Marie Antoinette’s indulgent fashion that so irked the common folk, mammoth costs associated with the upkeep of King Louis XVI’s extravagant palace at Versailles and the frivolous spending of the queen, Marie-Antoinette, did little to relieve the growing debt. Antoinette’s self-indulgent tendencies became a symbol of royal excess and extravagance. A proportion of the Kings revenue went into building or rebuilding castles.
• Louis realised the amount of debt France had was spiralling out of control. Louis as a result sold tens of thousands of official juridical and administrative post. This shows how dire the situation
Taxation system
• Governments benefit from a well-organized and efficient taxation system. The taxation system in France is best described as being diabolical, the taxation system was burdensome upon the middle class and the more prosperous peasants, given that the nobles were largely able to exempt themselves from it.
• The fundamental fiscal problem in France was structural. The government primarily relied on direct taxation the taille for financing. However neither the Clergy who owned about 10% of the land nor the nobility who owned about 25-30% paid this tax. Expenditure exceeded revenue and the cycle of war and …show more content…
Various finance ministers who had no central bank had relied on loans from other countries.
• France participated in the Seven Years’ War and American Revolution. France’s prolonged involvement in the Seven Years’ War of 1756–1763 drained the treasury, as did the country’s participation in the American Revolution of 1775–1783. Aggravating the situation was the fact that the government had a sizable army and navy to maintain, which was an expenditure of particular importance during volatile times. The French devoted 25% of their budget to the army and Navy and about 50% to pay off the debt.
• The wars resulted in the crown being 112 million liver in debt and over half was due to interest. The French government faced a hurdle, it could not generate taxes when the third estate was already being drained from taxes and the wealthy did not pay. It could be said that it was not the wars that caused the revolution due to the fact that Britain was also involved in a substantial amount of wars but it was the ineffective system of the French …show more content…
This gathering was dubbed the Assembly of Notables. After giving his presentation, Calonne urged the notables either to agree to the new taxes or to forfeit their exemption to the current ones. Unsurprisingly, the notables refused both plans and turned against Calonne, questioning the validity of his work. He was dismissed shortly thereafter, leaving France’s economic prospects even grimmer than before.
• Louis and Marie Antoinette’s indulgent fashion that so irked the common folk, mammoth costs associated with the upkeep of King Louis XVI’s extravagant palace at Versailles and the frivolous spending of the queen, Marie-Antoinette, did little to relieve the growing debt. Antoinette’s self-indulgent tendencies became a symbol of royal excess and extravagance. A proportion of the Kings revenue went into building or rebuilding castles.
• Louis realised the amount of debt France had was spiralling out of control. Louis as a result sold tens of thousands of official juridical and administrative post. This shows how dire the situation