The Old Regime in Crisis: Causes, Failures, and the French Revolution - Prof. W. Jay Reedy | Study notes World History

Essays

a.) “The Old Regime in Crisis”

Features of Crisis

- Difficult economic conditions for two decades previously

- New political movement that demanded freedom of economic and social privileges

- Financial crisis in 1780s: caused the king to call the Estates-General

Failures of Monarchial Government

- Financial debt due to War of the Austrian Succession, the Seven Years’ War, and the

American War of Independence

- French gov’t collected taxes much less efficiently than British gov’t due to no central

banking system

- Two thirds of Governments money was debt

- Ignoring food shortages and rising prices

Nobles Contributions to Crisis

- Nobles, especially poorer nobles, always protested any plans to eliminate their

privileges (ex. tax exemptions) creating turmoil with the bourgeoisies

- “Nobles Revolt” caused French Revolution

oThey revolted as a result of king Louis XVI exiling Parlement of Paris

because they were refused to collect stamp and land taxes

oNobles wanted Estates-General, with representatives from each of three

estates, to assemble and help king

Maupeou (Chancellor Rene-Nicolas de Maupeou 1714-1792)

- In 1771 wanted an general tax increase (called vingtieme tax)

- Caused nobles to fear uprising from peasants and result in nobles losing

- Created more docile law courts that would not resist royal authority

- His ideas only lasted three and a half years, but it had a lasting effect on monarchy,

showed General-Estates can help protect nation from royal despotism unlike

parlement

Turgot (Anne-Robert Turgot)

- New minister, undertook ambitious reforms, supporter of Maupeou

- Goal was to cut away some of the privileges, making absolute monarchy more

efficient

- Convinced Louis XVI to issue royal edicts, despite opposition from parlement

oRoyal edict would end noble and clerical tax exemptions, abolished guilds,

freed internal commerce of grain (price first set free in 1760s), and exempted

peasents from having to work certain number of days each year repairing

roads

oHe hoped economic liberation would increase agricultural production and

manufacturing and therefore increase tax revenue

- Noble and other privileged groups opposition, parlement upset because of lack of

input

Necker (Jacques Necker)

- King’s Swiss minister of Finance who dealt with the French’s financial support of the

American War of Independence rebels against the British

- He began to give the American rebels more loans than previously budgeted

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Essays a.) “The Old Regime in Crisis” Features of Crisis

Difficult economic conditions for two decades previously
New political movement that demanded freedom of economic and social privileges
Financial crisis in 1780s: caused the king to call the Estates-General Failures of Monarchial Government
Financial debt due to War of the Austrian Succession, the Seven Years’ War, and the American War of Independence
French gov’t collected taxes much less efficiently than British gov’t due to no central banking system
Two thirds of Governments money was debt
Ignoring food shortages and rising prices Nobles Contributions to Crisis
Nobles, especially poorer nobles, always protested any plans to eliminate their privileges (ex. tax exemptions) creating turmoil with the bourgeoisies
“Nobles Revolt” caused French Revolution o They revolted as a result of king Louis XVI exiling Parlement of Paris because they were refused to collect stamp and land taxes o Nobles wanted Estates-General, with representatives from each of three estates, to assemble and help king Maupeou (Chancellor Rene-Nicolas de Maupeou 1714-1792)
In 1771 wanted an general tax increase (called vingtieme tax)
Caused nobles to fear uprising from peasants and result in nobles losing
Created more docile law courts that would not resist royal authority
His ideas only lasted three and a half years, but it had a lasting effect on monarchy, showed General-Estates can help protect nation from royal despotism unlike parlement Turgot (Anne-Robert Turgot)
New minister, undertook ambitious reforms, supporter of Maupeou
Goal was to cut away some of the privileges, making absolute monarchy more efficient
Convinced Louis XVI to issue royal edicts, despite opposition from parlement o Royal edict would end noble and clerical tax exemptions, abolished guilds, freed internal commerce of grain (price first set free in 1760s), and exempted peasents from having to work certain number of days each year repairing roads o He hoped economic liberation would increase agricultural production and manufacturing and therefore increase tax revenue
Noble and other privileged groups opposition, parlement upset because of lack of input Necker (Jacques Necker)
King’s Swiss minister of Finance who dealt with the French’s financial support of the American War of Independence rebels against the British
He began to give the American rebels more loans than previously budgeted

He also made false accounts of the revenue coming into the government from taxes and the amount that was being spent to make it look as if the government had sufficient funds
He hoped to prevent reform from happening, however, as a result of distrust in his figures Bankers and others would not loan the monarchy money Calonne (Charles-Alexandre de Calonne 1734-1802)
New finance minister who showed Necker’s calculations were incorrect
Calonne spent more money and put royal treasury into even more debt by borrowing money from officeholders to pay off people who needed to be paid back
Parlements became suspicious and believed Calonne to be financially irresponsible and arrogant
To sidestep parlements he asked the kind in 1787 to covoke Assembly of Notables which consisted of handpicking one representative from each of the three estates
He hoped the new Assembly would have tax reform and renegotiate loans, however his ideas were rejected and was eventually sacked “Third Estate” representative challenge sociopolitical “system”
People forcing king Louis XVI to convoke the Estates-General was the first act of the French Revolution
Voting system between clergy, nobles, and the third estate, each estate had one vote
Third estates- made of representatives of the population that are everyone but clergy and nobles
King makes it difficult for third estate to assemble and as a result they met in a nearby tennis court where they decided to assemble against the king and limit his authority
King Louis XVI obviously stated the third estates deliberation was invalid, however, later makes reforms such as abolishing the tax on land, labor tax, internal tariffs and tolls that interfered with trade, and the letters de cachet.
Also aloud Estates-General to count by head meaning number of votes per number of representatives, third estate had the most representatives
Nobles and clergy soon began to join the third estate
These events helped to cause people to storm the bastille and revolt in other ways against the king b.) “Consolidating” Stage of Revolution Tennis Court Oath (June 20, 1789)
Voting between the three estates from Estates-General
King prevents third estate from assembling so they meet in nearby tennis court
Although king tries to make them seem invalid, he still ends up reforming many taxes (as listed in above section) in order for there to be some peace The Declaration of the Rights of Man and Citizen (1789)
Created constitutional monarchy
Set forth general principles about freedom and liberty
Enlightenments influence is apparent in documents concern for individual freedom, civic equality, and the sense of struggle against corporatism unjust privilege and absolute rule
All men equal before the law
Sovereignty in French nation
Laws reflect “general will” Enlightenment concept, expressed by national reps.

o Made rights of property owners sacrosanct, the majority of the articles concerned private property o Equality of all people before the law and freedom of religion o Men control family and family property (These are just non-military accomplishments of Napoleon, you can form your own opinion about his status based on given examples) Peninsular War 1808- Portugal and Spain outraged Napoleon appointed his brother as King of Spain. Resisted with the help of Arthur Wellesley, British troops and guerilla warfare. Napoleons Concordat 1801 agreement between Napoleon and Pope Pius VII that reaffirmed Roman Catholic Church as religion of French people, giving some power back to the church Law of Suspects Sept. 17, 1793 allowed creation of revolutionary tribunals to try those suspected of treason against Republic and punish those convicted with death Assignats Bonds issued from profit of land to pay off debt. Issued after confiscation of church property in 1790 because the gov't was bankrupt levee en masse August 23, 1793 idea that new political rights given to the mass of the French people also created new obligations to the state All able-bodied men were expected to defend the nation lettres de cachet Abolished after Rev. by the Nat. Assembly, but reestablished by Napoleon in 1801 --subjects could be sentenced without a trial. Sans culottes 1790 consisted of the power members of the Third Estate. Mostly working class radicals of the revolution Committee of Public Safety Leading figure was Robespierre, the committee assumed more power as it oversaw the Terror. Put to death thousands of people considered 'enemies of the Rev." The Thermidorians reduced their power and eventually, in 1794 abolished it.

Le Chapelier Law June 14, 1791, prohibited workmen from joining together to refuse to work for a master. A victory for those in favor of free trade. Juenesse Doree "guilded youth", name given to a body of young people who after the fall of Robespierre, strove to bring about a counter revolution. Arthur Wellesley Irish soldier and statesman. Rose to prominence as a general in Napoleonic Wars. Served as ambassador to France after exile of Napoleon in 1814, returned to fight Napoleons forces during the Hundred Days war in 1815. Marquis de Condorcet Arrested by the Jacobins for alleged counter-rev. action and was condemned to death. He was an influential philosophe of the late Enlightenment and was elected to the assembly in

He believed all citizens had a voice in gov't and women's rights. He opposed slavery and the death penalty. He died of apoplexy or suicide in his cell before his execution date. Metric System Part of the scientific enlightenment. Consisted of factors of 10 led to the proposal of a new calendar consisting of 10-day weeks and 10 months of the year named after weather patterns. flight to varennes Fearing the growing violence, hoping for support from other European monarchs, Louis XVI and his family tried to flee France in June 1791. They were apprehended by the Nat. Guard in Varennes and were prevented from continuing their journey. His attempt was seen as treacherous Olympe de Gouges Daughter of a butcher who, in 1791 wrote "the rights of Women". She insisted on women's rights to education, property control in marriage and to initiate a divorce. She was among the Girondins guillotined by the Convention in 1793 Society of Thirty A group including liberal nobles from very old families that met to discuss, debate and distribute liberal political pamphlets. They proposed that the third estate be entitled to twice as many reps in the estates general as the nobility and clergy. Cahiers de doleances King Louis XVI asked local assemblies and first to estates to draw up a list of grievances which the estates general would discuss. Some Cahiers criticized monarchical absolutism and others called for a new national representative body

The Old Regime in Crisis: Causes, Failures, and the French Revolution - Prof. W. Jay Reedy, Study notes of World History

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