InNo+Sean2013+08.26.2010



__ France before the Revolution  __ 1789 – Violent French Revolution · People in France used violence to change the way they lived · Destroyed their centuries old system of law and government · Changed religion, society and economy

French people and society

Social class - Peasants/Farmers – 20 million - Town workers, shopkeepers, traders, craftsmen, builders, labourers – 2 million - Bourgeois, middleclass – 2 million - Noble, ruling class, titles such as Duke, Marquis, or Viscount, 120k-350k people

The three estates French law – people divided into three estates - Clergy – work in church - Nobility - Everybody else First and second estate get advantages, financial privileges, off taxes · Middle ages French nobles = soldiers · Clergy ran country education and religious life · Important work they, gain own estate and privilege · 1789 - nobles and clergy less important, nobles did not fight · French people though this system was outdated and unfair

Poverty

· Wealth very unevenly distributed · In 1790 government committee worked food plan 435 pounds



Unequal taxation

· Poor people pay tax, government tax and goods tax - Clergy and nobles did not have to pay all tax - Peasants had to pay tax to landlords · Many clergy were landlords or seigners · Everybody had to give Church a tithe and feudal dues · Poor farm laborers could only pay in crops

Critics of French society - Philosophes, shared thought called Reason 0-     Be -Believed something was true only if observed and tested · Lavoisier discovered how things burn, by oxygen · He built experimental farm on his estate, try out farming method to improve crops · 1787 proposed number of reforms to help the poor, abolish taille, old age pentions and new hospitals.

The Calas affair

· The most famous philosophes was Voltaire · Questioned power and beliefs of French Church · Voltaire showed the major wrongs in French society.

Changes in public opinion

· Because of writings of philosophes such as Voltaire, public opinion changed · In 1780 many educated people agreed on ideas and values · No human torture free system of law · Change how the country was run

Summary: The people in France used way of violence to change the way they lived, they destroyed their government and made a new system of law and government. During this period, religion, society and economy changed. The people of France are split into three social classes or estates clergy, nobility and everyone else. The people in the higher class enjoyed their privileges while the peasants suffered poverty. Above that, the peasants had to pay unequal taxation. Then there were the critics of french society called philosophes, people who shared a thinking called Reason. The philosophes such as Voltaire changed French society and public opinion started to change.

Questions: Did any of the philosophes jailed for challenging the government? Since the people were poor and they had to pay the church, did most people lose faith and only payed tax because they had to?


 * 1) Han, Sean. // Lovely Charts //. Chart. Lovely, 27 Aug. 2010. Web. 27 Aug. 2010..

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