The Old Regime was the social and political system of France in the 1770s where everybody was divided into three groups based on the social standing of their family. The First Estate, made up of the clergy of the Church, gave 2% of its income to the government. The Second Estate, made up of rich nobles, paid none to minimal taxes. The Third Estate accounted for 97% of the population and was made up of three general groups---the bourgeoisie, workers, and peasants---defined by their economic conditions. The bourgeoisie were The people of the Third Estate, being heavily taxed without any rights, resented the clergy and nobles.…
Revolutions have been a part of political affairs for centuries. It’s ideologies, it’s leaders, it’s successes and failures have shaped the history of nations worldwide. Revolutions have existed throughout human history and differ widely in terms of methods, motivating ideology and duration.Their results include major changes in economy, socio-political and culture institutions. This comparative essay focuses on three major revolutions, beginning with the Industrial revolution in the eighteenth century, and continuing with the French and Russian revolutions.…
Thesis statement: The counter-intuitive insights in Alexis DeTocqueville's The Old Regime and the French Revolution (1856) intriguingly reveal the movement's poor planning. The abruptness, instability, and ignorance unveil a clumsy design. This explains the long term effects of the French Revolution.…
Politically: France before the Revolution was a monarchy, that is, hereditary rule, as was most of Europe. The Revolution literally threw off the monarchy and embraced the notion of a Republic. In doing so, they beheaded their king, Louis XVI. The revolutions proclaimations, embodied in the document "Declaration of the Rights of Man" threatened every other monarchy in Europe. Republican governments are representative, wherein they are chosen by at least some of the people. The kings and nobles of 18th century Europe were afraid of being overthrown. 2. Socially: Of Frances 26 million inhabitants in 1789, about 90% were poor peasants and farmers. The rest were either the nobility or the clergy. In fact, the very imbalance of the country socially begged for revolt. Each stratum of the society was called by one of three estates. The Nobility, including royalty, was the Second Estate, the clergy and the Church was the First Estate, and all of the rest of the people were the Third Estate. After the Revolution all offices were open to those with the most talent. This was never more true than during the First Empire, when Napoleon's many Codes were written and enforced in France. In fact, the Code Napoleon still exists as part of the legal structure of several European nations today. But privilege was looked down upon, and merit was gained by talent. 3. Economically: In this respect there was change on several levels. For one thing, the new government had to command revenues in a…
Before a revolution over the Absolutist State happened, it had to be conceivable. The Age of the Enlightenment saw cultural and intellectual forces emphasize reason, logic, analysis and individualism, changing the perspective of traditional medieval society. It fostered the critique of society and institutions, especially of despotism and the Church, laying the foundations for a new order. The French Revolution is a movement that is very widely studied amongst historians. It therefore has many interpretations as to its causes and effects. A classic interpretation, predominant in the work of Marxist historians, view the French Revolution in terms of a class struggle between the bourgeoisie and the landowning nobility, leading to the transition…
The time period of 1787-1815 was a period of overlap of the Enlightenment and the French Revolution. Up until 1792, Louis XVI was reigning in France. He was experiencing an economic downfall, and had to call the Estates General as a result of disagreement over taxation to deal with the issues. The Third Estate joined forces with some of the nobles and clergy, and became the National Assembly or the National Convention as they would later be called. Together, they developed a constitution with intentions of creating peace within France. However, that peace did not last long because of differences in political beliefs between the moderate Girondists favoring a constitutional monarchy, and the radical Jacobins who wanted to demolish the monarchy. The Jacobins took over because of a French defeat between the Ironists and a Prussia/Austria alliance. The monarchy ended up abolished, and a republic style government was restored. A lot of these events corresponded with enlightenment beliefs. The French Revolution ultimately nelped the advancement of European Enlightenment ideals by following through with their dispotition…
The French Revolution was a time of sweeping social and political change in France that kept going from 1789 until 1799, and was mostly conveyed forward by Napoleon amid the later development of the French Empire. The Revolution toppled the government, set up a republic, experienced fierce times of political turmoil, lastly finished in an autocracy under Napoleon that quickly conveyed a large number of its standards to Western Europe and past. Motivated by liberal and radical thoughts, the Revolution significantly modified the course of cutting edge history, setting off the worldwide decrease of outright governments while supplanting them with republics and liberal democracies. Through the Revolutionary Wars, it unleashed a rush of worldwide…
The French Revolution, which occurred around 1789 to 1814, which included Napoleon’s reign, is considered a major turning point in world history. This revolution led to major changes in France and other nations and regions of the world. For example, some changes were Napoleon changing peoples’ rights and the Latin American Revolution.…
A revolution is a change where something past becomes modified or completely outlawed for a better future. An incalculable number of revolutions happen every minute of every day, some on a global wide scale, but most minor and insignificant. However, not everyone advocates these changes, Although the American, Haitian, and French Revolutions were revolts driven by the lack of social and political equality that their native government provided them, revolutionary leaders also underwent a social struggle to transition from the past to the future, in which they abandoned military protection, had to reconstruct society, accepting an independent and vulnerable position in the world. The American, French, and Haitian Revolutions all were revolts…
“French Revolution, also called Revolution of 1789, the revolutionary movement that shook France between 1787 and 1799 and reached its first climax there in 1789.” (/www.britannica.com) During the eighteenth century, France was ruled by French Monarchs who believed they had full control and unlimited…
The French Revolution was born from the ideas of the enlightenment, including John Locke’s ideas of Natural Rights and Montesquieu’s ideas of separation of power. Before the French Revolution, France was ruled by a Monarchy. The king of the time was Louis XIV. Louis XIV was a terrible and weak leader who did nothing to help the suffering people of his nation. Marie Antoinette was selfish and obsessed with extravagance, draining the country’s funds for events at versaille. The king and queen stood for the exact opposite of what…
The French Revolution occurred in 1789 and was orchestrated by the French citizens. They “razed and redesigned their country’s political landscape, uprooting centuries-old institutions such as absolute monarchy and the feudal system” (History). Like the American Revolution, the Enlightenment ideas and values affected it, mostly the notion of popular sovereignty and the idea of inalienable rights. At the end of the eighteenth century,…
The balance of power in Europe was completely torn apart when to everyone’s surprise France fell to the Third Reich in a matter of six short weeks. On June 22, 1940, the French government officially surrendered to the Third Reich when signing an armistice that ultimately divided France. This allowed Germany to occupy the North and West while installing a puppet government known as the Vichy to maintain order and control. How did France’s war effort collapse so quickly? There are many reasons for the sudden collapse ranging from preparing for another WWI caliber war, improper equipment use, lack of military enthusiasm, military training, terror attacks, and political turmoil.While these all contribute to the French war effort collapsing, it…
Before the Revolution started in 1789, the French used a political and social system called the Old Regime. The Old Regime was the same as “Absolute power.” Absolute power is when the government controls everything that goes on. In the early 1700’s before the Revolution, the French kings had absolute power. King Louis XVIII started this way of government and it was kept going by King Louis XIV. The Kings had control over establishing judges, taxation, appointing new bureaucrats and the government. They also followed the…
The world has seen many revolutions in history. One of the biggest revolutions was the French Revolution because it came with many consequences and influences. Nothing else like this had ever happened this powerful to change the political status quo. Many people surprisingly don’t know how the French Revolution started but through this paper we will be learning more about it. Starting in 1789 through 1794 the people of France dethroned and arrested their king Louis XVI, took apart his monarchy, and executed him, his wife, and thousands of nobles. The French people then set up a new system of government on concepts of popular rule, personal liberty, and equal justice for all to replace their old leaders. This was a new start for France and would hopefully put them in the position they wanted to be in as a country.…