How Did France Break This Three-Estate System

In the eighteenth and nineteenth century, any area under the influence of European control, including colonies in the Americas, saw a spark of new ideas in what was later referred to as the enlightenment period. This time of development set in place many of the rights and social aspects that seem necessary and guaranteed in modern society. It was the result of the innovations in preceding revolutions of science, commerce and religion all converging into a final revolt and allowing the world to change as a whole in the Industrial Revolution. At this time, egalitarian feelings, like feminism and abolitionism, as well as the principal of natural rights and democracy saw progression. These innovative concepts lead to a breaking of the
France was suffering from national debt after supporting America in its revolution, and the result was harsh taxes on the French people. The corrupt three estates of the realm allowed these taxes to slip through the first and second realms and fall completely onto the third. The result was a dangerously wide wealth gap. The first and third realms lived in splendor. They were well fed and dressed, and the royal family enjoyed life in the Palace of Versailles. The third estate, however, was horrifyingly poor. Severe hailstorms had led to famine and levies had crippled commoner wealth. According to an adaptation of Travels in France by Arthur Young, the price of bread had “risen above people’s ability to pay” and the markets were plagued with “riots and disturbances, and calling in the military.” The life of a commoner was chaotic and miserable. This injustice in the system is illustrated by the political cartoon of the three estates of the realm in document 7: the third estate was being destroyed by harsh taxes that were supporting the first and second estates’ regal living. Examining this system, it is apparent why the idea of rebellion was appealing to the French common
The main push given towards a new perspective of government and society was by another product of the Enlightenment, the American Revolution. Enlightenment thinking was already affecting France when the American Revolution broke out, but as historian Lord Acton suggested the state of French society was consistently awful and it was only by exposure to the American’s success at revolt that the French Revolution took off. In summary, the French Revolution was only a reality because the American Revolution inspired radicals and proved that the people had the ability to change their