InNo+mengxinw2013+08.31.10

AWESOME PART



It is possible to see from the picture above how luxurious Louis' life was while the country was highly in debt.



NOTES of pg.15-21

King Louis XVI & Marie Antoinette - governed by King Louis XVI; absolute monarch; did whatever he chose - governed France from magnificent, thousand-room palace of Versailles - thousands of nobles lived with him in the palace, serving as courtiers and helping run the affairs of the nation - Marie Antoinette, Louis’s wife, Austrian archduchess; been popular with the French public, but soon lost popularity; strongly disliked Marie Antoinette - People disliked Antoinette because she’s foreign, called her the “Austrian woman” - Disliked her for spending huge amounts of money on clothes, jewellery and gambling, having favorites at court, especially disliked her because thought she was unfaithful to Louis - Louis gave Marie Antoinette own small palace in the palace of Versailles, called Petit Trianon - Antoinette spent huge sums of money creating beautiful gardens around Petit Trianon, where she built a village, known as hamlet - Hamlet was made to look old and run-down, like real village, with sheep, goats and cows; many people thought the idea of farm was pointless and silly - Though outside is run-down, inside is equipped with every possible convenience

Abuse of Power – Sealed letters - many people disliked the fact that king had too much power - king used “sealed letters” (letters de cachet), a royal warrant ordering the imprisonment or exile of person named on it - the person whose name appeared on it stayed in prison or in exile for as long as the king wished - people especially hated the fact that the king’s ministers could use sealed letters - during reign of Louis XVI, 14,000 sealed letters were issued, mainly against people who disagreed with government - more and more people accused Louis of being a “despot,” 18th century way of saying dictator, or tyrant

Financial Problems and Tax Reforms <span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-hansi-font-family: Cambria;">- Louise’s government was deeply in debt <span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-hansi-font-family: Cambria;">- French government had been in debt for nearly 100 years <span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-hansi-font-family: Cambria;">- More money spent each year than received in tax <span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-hansi-font-family: Cambria;">- 1786, minister in charge of finances, Calonne, informed Louis that the government was close to financial collapse <span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-hansi-font-family: Cambria;">- must increase taxes, or reduce their spending, or borrow more money <span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-hansi-font-family: Cambria;">- Calonne drew up a plan to reform the tax system; tax on land, all landowners have to pay <span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-hansi-font-family: Cambria;">- Nobles and clergy could refuse to register it in the Paris law courts, Parlement, which they controlled, because all new laws had to be registered by the Paris Parlement <span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-hansi-font-family: Cambria;">- Calonne invited 150 leading nobles and clergymen, who were loyal supporters of the king, to discuss and approve new tax <span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-hansi-font-family: Cambria;">- Assembly of Notables refused to agree to the new tax; said they didn’t have power to approve new taxes, only Estates General, national parliament elected by all three estates, had that power <span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-hansi-font-family: Cambria;">- Louis tried to introduce new tax without their approval, however nobles in the Parlement refused to register itapprove th <span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-hansi-font-family: Cambria;">- People protested violently, fourpeople died in a “Day of Tiles” when a mob of protesters pelted soldiers with tiles torn from city’s rooftops <span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-hansi-font-family: Cambria;">- Protested for six months, finally Louis ordered elections to be held for an Estates General, first meeting is May 1st, 1789


 * Questions **
 * 1) Was Marie Antoinette really like how people described her as or was she simply a scapegoat?
 * 2) Where or who did Louis XVI borrow the money from?

France was governed by King Louis XVI from the palace of Versailles. Thousands of nobles lived with Louis, serving as courtiers and helping to run the nation's affairs. Louis' wife is Marie Antoinette, an Austrian Archduchess. They were popular among the public when they first married, however, soon lost popularity. People disliked Marie Antoinette because she's a foreign. They called her the Austrian woman. However, they disliked her mostly because Marie Antoinette spends large sums of money on clothes, jewelries, and gambling, having favorites at court, and they thought she was unfaithful to Louis. Louis had a lot of power, he was a monarch. He used sealed letters, where anyone's name written on it is either prisoned or exiled. People hated this more because the ministers could also use it. Around 14000 sealed letters were issued, mostly to people who disagreed with the government. As time went on, people called Louis a "despot," meaning dictator, or tyrant. The most urgent problem in France is that the government is highly in debt. Close to financial collapse, the only way to save France was to increase tax. The clergy and nobles weren't happy for the tax reform because the new tax was to be put on landowners. All new laws had to be registered by the Parlement, which the clergy and nobles controlled. They claimed that they didn't have the power to approve the new tax, therefore, an Estates General should be elected. Louis insisted that he is the one in charge of everything in France, and exiled the whole parlement. This angered the people of France, they protested violently. After six months of protesting, Louis finally gave in, and the first election of the Estates General was on May 1st, 1789.
 * Summary **