InNo+annielo822+09.03.10

= France Before the Revolution = p. 19-23 September 3, 2010

__**Questions p. 26-27**__ 1.

2. Many people, especially peasants, wanted change in the way France was run because it was unfair to them. They did all the work, yet received the least income and still had to pay the most, including rent of the land, feudal rights and dues, and the most taxes.

3. E: The government sent more each year than it received in taxes, so... I: the government went bankrupt so... B: the government was deeply in debt, so... G: the Finance Minister planned to raise money with the new tax land. But.. A: an assembly of nobles and clergy refused to agree to the new tax, so... C: Louis XVI ordered a meeting of the Estates General, hoping it would agree to the new tax. But... D: the Third Estate deputies took over the Estates General and turned it into a National Assembly, so... H: Louis XVI decided to hold a royal session of the Estates General, and warn the third estate not to defy him, but... F: the deputies gathered in a tennis court and swore an oath that they would continue to meet.

4. Reasons why Louis XVI and his government were unpopular by 1789: Political: - People thought the king and his ministers had too much power (e.g. lettres de cachet) Social: - People disliked the fact that Marie Antoinette was Austrian Economic: - Nobles disliked the government's plan for a new land tax because they would lose their privileges of tax exemption - People disliked Marie Antoinette's extravagent spending - Many people blamed the government for high prices and unemployment

5. I think the most important reasons for the government's unpopularity were the economic reasons. All three estates had a reason to dislike the government. The government made unfair laws, especially with the taxes. They also spent a lot of money on their own luxury, rather than using it to help the problems of the people such as poverty. Because the government spent so much money, they had to make a new tax law, which the nobles and clergy disliked.

6. I think if Louis XVI was not married to Marie Antoinette, his government wouldn't be so unpopular. Some reasons of why his government was unpopular in 1789 was because of her, such as the fact that she was Austrian, and that she spent enormous amounts of money, on pointless things. Instead, this money could have been used for the good of the people.

The Estates General
- Nobles and clergy liked king’s decision to call an Estates General - Intended to use it to prevent tax - Thought they could do this because of voting system by the Estates General

**The voting system**
- Estates General met whenever king wanted to consult it - Not often, last time it met was 1614 - Made up of around 750 members, 250 from each of the three estates - Met in three separate rooms - When they voted, each estate had one vote - Third estate complained system was unfair - If used in 1789, nobles and clergy could out-vote them 2-1 - Asked king to double numbers in Estates General, give one vote/member - December 1788, king agreed to first demand - Gov’t was bankrupt, new finance minister, Jacques Necker, said to double third estate - Hoped Estates General would give every member a vote, and vote on new tax

**The food crisis**
- In countryside, mass hunger was developing - Caused by freak weather - 13 July 1788, massive hailstorm destroyed crops over central France - Followed by drought - Harvest in 1788 was very poor - Might not have mattered with weathered got better - Drought followed by coldest winter - Rivers froze, stopping windmill from grinding flour - Blocked roads prevented food going to markets - Snow thawed in spring, floods ruined farmlands - Result was sharp rise of price in bread - Price of a loaf rose to 15 sous in Feb. 1789 - Poor families spend almost all earnings on bread - Stopped buying clothes, shoes, candles, and fuel - Factories lost business, so workers lost jobs - Unemployment and hunger led to riots and strikes

**The complaint list**
- Elections for the Estates General held in spring 1789 - Elected deputies to speak for them - Voters asked to draw up lists of changes they wanted Estates General to discuss with king - Over 60,000 “lists of complaints” were drawn up - Million of French people wanted major changes - These included o Tax-free salt o Adjustment of tithe o Suppression of the right of the mill o Controls on the price of bread - Drawing up lists of complaint created excitement in France - When Estates General met at Versailles in May 1789, millions of people had great expectations - Seemed king was interested in their problems and was going to take action to solve

**The Estates meet**
- 5 May 1789, first meeting of Estates General - Over a thousand deputies met in largest hall in Versailles - After long speeches by King and chief ministers, they told estates to split up and carry on meetings - Third estate deputies were unhappy with the order - Meeting in separate hall meant each estate had single vote, so they would be out-voted - Refused to discuss anything as separate group - Would only take part if all discuss together in one “National Assembly” - Nobles and clergy refused - Weeks of argument, then third estate gave them a ultimatum - If at end of week nobles and clergy didn’t join them, they would start work of the Estates General themselves - This was an act of defiance against the king - Third estate refused to work by his rules for the Estates General - Louis ordered a Royal Session of the Estates General - Intended to warn third estate not to defy him - Louis was losing control of events in Versailles - 19 June, clergy decided to join third estate - Third estate deputies arrived to find meeting hall doors locked and guarded by soldiers - Workmen were preparing for the king’s Royal Session inside

**The Tennis Court Oath**
- Third estate deputies were angered - Feared Louis would break up assembly by force - Raining, so found shelter in nearest empty building, a tennis court - Inside the court, they took an oath to carry on meeting until they changed the way France was governed - Dramatic oath tied the deputies together in a common cause - When king held Royal Session on 23 June, and ordered to meet in separate estates, they refused - A leader told him they will only leave at the point of bayonets - Louis could order soldiers to make them leave - But he gave in to such determination - 27 June, ordered nobles and clergy to join third estate in single assembly - The National Assembly became France’s legal parliament - To many people, events seemed like a revolution - But this was the beginning of the revolution

Questions

 * 1) Why didn't the government help solve the food crisis?
 * 2) If more votes in the third estate would have a bigger chance having the new tax law approved, why didn't Louis tell the three estates to have one meeting together?
 * 3) When the third estate refused to have separate meetings, why didn't Louis order the soldiers to make them leave?

Summary
This section of the chapter is about the Estates General, and it explained the voting system. There was a food crisis in France, because of the disastrous weather, and this caused job losses, which caused riots and strikes to occur. For the elections for the Estates General, the voters drew up lists of complaints, or changes. People had great expectations when the Estates General met in Versailles. It seemed that the king was actually interested in their problems and wanted to take action and solve them. During the first Estates meeting, the three estates were told to split up. However, the third estate disliked this because then it meant each estate had one vote, which was unfair since they would be out-voted by the nobles and clergy. The third estate refused to discuss anything as a separate group, only if the clergy and nobles joined them. This was going against the king's orders, so Louis ordered a Royal Session of the Estates General. Then, the clergy decided to join the third estate. The third estate arrived to greet them, but the doors were locked and guarded by soldiers. They were angered, fearing Louis would break up the assembly by force. Since it was raining, they found shelter at a nearby empty tennis court. There, they took an oath to carry on meeting until they changed the way France was governed. The dramatic oath tied them together in a common cause. When the king ordered the estates to have separate meetings at the Royal Session, the third estate refused. Louis gave in to their determination, and ordered nobles and clergy to join them in a single assembly. The National Assembly became France's legal parliament. Many people thought this was the revolution, but the revolution was just beginning.