summary of French Revolution

Feudalismand Unfair Taxation

　　No one factor was directly responsible for the FrenchRevolution. Years of feudal oppression and fiscal mismanagementcontributed to a French society that was ripe for revolt. Notinga downward economic spiral in the late 1700s,King Louis XVI brought in a number of financial advisorsto review the weakened French treasury. Each advisor reached thesame conclusion—that France needed a radical change in the way ittaxed the public—and each advisor was, in turn, kicked out.

　　

　　Finally, the king realized that this taxation problemreally did need to be addressed, so he appointed a new controllergeneral of finance, Charles de Calonne, in 1783. Calonnesuggested that, among other things, France begin taxing the previouslyexempt nobility. The nobility refused, even after Calonnepleaded with them during the Assembly of Notables in 1787.Financial ruin thus seemed imminent.

　　

The Estates-General

　　In a final act of desperation, Louis XVI decided in 1789 toconvene the Estates-General, an ancient assembly consistingof three different estates that each represented aportion of the French population. If the Estates-General could agreeon a tax solution, it would be implemented. However, since two ofthe three estates—the clergy and the nobility—weretax-exempt, the attainment of any such solution was unlikely.

　　

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　　Moreover, the outdated rules of order for the Estates-General gaveeach estate a single vote, despite the fact that the ThirdEstate—consisting of the general French public—was many timeslarger than either of the first two. Feuds quickly broke out overthis disparity and would prove to be irreconcilable. Realizing thatits numbers gave it an automatic advantage, the Third Estate declareditself the sovereign National Assembly. Within daysof the announcement, many members of the other two estates had switchedallegiances over to this revolutionary new assembly.

　　

The Bastilleand the Great Fear

　　Shortly after the National Assembly formed, its memberstook the Tennis Court Oath, swearing that they wouldnot relent in their efforts until a new constitution had been agreedupon. The National Assembly’s revolutionary spirit galvanized France,manifesting in a number of different ways. In Paris, citizens stormedthe city’s largest prison, the Bastille, in pursuitof arms. In the countryside, peasants and farmers revolted againsttheir feudal contracts by attacking the manors and estates of theirlandlords. Dubbed the “Great Fear,” theserural attacks continued until the early August issuing of the AugustDecrees, which freed those peasants from their oppressive contracts.Shortly thereafter, the assembly released the Declaration ofthe Rights of Man and of the Citizen, which established aproper judicial code and the autonomy of the French people.

　　

Rifts in the Assembly

　　Though the National Assembly did succeed in draftinga constitution, the relative peace of themoment was short-lived. A rift slowly grew between the radical andmoderate assembly members, while the common laborers and workersbegan to feel overlooked. When Louis XVI was caught in a foiledescape plot, the assembly became especially divided. The moderate Girondins tooka stance in favor of retaining the constitutional monarchy, whilethe radical Jacobins wanted the king completely outof the picture.

　　

　　Outside of France, some neighboring countries feared that France’srevolutionary spirit would spread beyond French land. In response,they issued the Declaration of Pillnitz, which insistedthat the French return Louis XVI to the throne. French leaders interpretedthe declaration as hostile, so the Girondin-led assembly declaredwar on Austria and Prussia.

　　

The Reign of Terror

　　The first acts of the newly named NationalConvention were the abolition of the monarchy and the declarationof France as a republic. In January 1793,the convention tried and executed Louis XVI on thegrounds of treason. Despite the creation of the Committeeof Public Safety, the war with Austria and Prussia went poorlyfor France, and foreign forces pressed on into French territory.Enraged citizens overthrew the Girondin-led National Convention,and the Jacobins, led by Maximilien Robespierre, tookcontrol.

　　Backed by the newly approved Constitution of 1793,Robespierre and the Committee of Public Safety began conscriptingFrench soldiers and implementing laws to stabilize the economy.For a time, it seemed that France’s fortunes might be changing.But Robespierre, growing increasingly paranoid about counterrevolutionaryinfluences, embarked upon a Reign of Terror in late 1793–1794,during which he had more than 15,000 peopleexecuted at the guillotine. When the French army successfully removedforeign invaders and the economy finally stabilized, however, Robespierreno longer had any justification for his extreme actions, and hehimself was arrested in July 1794 andexecuted.

　　

TheThermidorian Reaction and the Directory

　　The era following the ousting of Robespierre was knownas the Thermidorian Reaction, and a period of governmentalrestructuring began, leading to the new Constitution of 1795 anda significantly more conservative National Convention. To controlexecutive responsibilities and appointments, a group known as the Directory wasformed. Though it had no legislative abilities, the Directory’s abuseof power soon came to rival that of any of the tyrannous revolutionariesFrance had faced.

　　

Napoleon

　　

　　Meanwhile, the Committee of Public Safety’s war effortwas realizing unimaginable success. French armies, especially thoseled by young general Napoleon Bonaparte, were makingprogress in nearly every direction. Napoleon’s forces drove throughItaly and reached as far as Egypt before facing a deflating defeat.In the face of this rout, and having received word of politicalupheavals in France, Napoleon returned to Paris. He arrived in timeto lead a coup against the Directory in 1799,eventually stepping up and naming himself “first consul”—effectively,the leader of France. With Napoleon at the helm, the Revolutionended, and France entered a fifteen-year period of military rule.