The Main Cause Of The French Revolution Outbreak.

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The French Revolution of 1789 was a revolution which caused rapid and radical socio-political change in France. While it is true that the incompetency of the monarch, Louis XVI, was partly responsible for the revolution, it can be seen that the French Revolution was a result of other root causes which led the way to revolution even before Louis XVI had ruled. I present the claim that this incompetency, along with Enlightenment ideas acting as inspiration which led to the outbreak of the revolution in 1789, created the right conditions in which a revolution was further fuelled, whereas the main cause of the revolution lay in socioeconomic conditions of the time. Louis XVI was, like many other rulers, insensitive to the needs of and problems faced by the lower classes. The difference laid in the fact that he was or was perceived to be an incompetent and indecisive monarch. This indecisiveness caused him to surrender to opposition in court, thus leading him to fail to set up a limited constitutional monarchy, or respond to the need for introducing tax reforms. For example, the appointed financial advisor of the time, Jacques Necker, realised that there was a need for a tax reform, since the current tax system subjected the lower classes to pay high taxes while allowing numerous unfair tax exemptions for the nobles and clergy. Naturally, such a proposed reform met with opposition from the ministers, and the incompetent king yet again backed down and rejected the appeal. Eventually, the king dismissed Necker, which led to the one of the significant events in the revolution, the Storming of the Bastille. This king, who was easily influenced by his ministers, can be seen as one of the main reasons for which no improvements were made by the state to introduce new laws which benefited the people. However, it is necessary to recognise that the king did not so much to
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