Causes of French Revolution

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The French Revolution was the most momentous upheaval in the revolutionary age. The immediate causes looked to be the rise in bread prices and the locking out of the Third Estate in the National Assembly. Three underlying causes of the French Revolution include the Age of Enlightenment, the financial crisis, and political problems all rising in France at this time. The first of the three causes came from the Age of Enlightenment. New thinkers, such as John Locke, believed that every single person is born with rights. These natural right include: life, liberty and property. Locke wanted to get rid of an unjust ruler and people came to question the authority of the King. Another Enlightened thinker was Montisque who wanted freedom of speech without punishment. He believed that a powerful government should be divided into three branches. The Legislative branch made laws and was made up of National Assembly; Executive branch was made up of the King, with limited power, who enforces the laws. The Judicial branch was made up of judges that interpret laws to the people. The second cause of the French Revolution was due to the financial crisis. King Louis XVI had bankrupt the French by supporting the American Revolution. He spent more money on maintaining his palace at Versailles then he did on supporting the French army. The need for a taxation came about and this resulted in the high rise in food prices. Only the third estate was being taxed, since nobility and clergy were exempt, and that meant that not enough taxes were being collected properly to support France. The last main cause of the Revolution was the uprising political problems. The people of France were currently divided into three estates. The first estate was composed of the highest church officials, the clergy. They held about 10 percent of all land in France and paid no direct taxes to the
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