‘The French revolution broke out in 1789 because of the monarchy’s debts” To what extent do you agree? The French Revolution of 1789 had many long-term causes. Political, social, and economic conditions in France contributed to the discontent felt by many French people-especially those of the third estate. The ideas of the intellectuals of the Enlightenment brought new views to government and society. They thought of not an absolute monarch but a kind of democracy where everyone stated their views and everyone would listen.
Because of Napoleon’s selfishness when conquering other countries he is considered a tyrant. Even though Napoleon was a tyrant, he still had many accomplishments to help benefit France. Napoleon ended the French revolution, therefore ending many of the country’s problems. Before Napoleon, there was constant violence, acts for revolution, and economic instability. Napoleon overthrew the Directory in a coup d’etat in 1799 and was the beginning of the Napoleonic Era.
1) Evaluate the ways in which the different approaches to Enlightenment held by France, Britain, and America impacted their own societies. Thesis: The extreme and different approach of to Enlightenment of the French alienated it from the British and Americans, and also led to the destruction of the country. Both America and Britain had a moderate reform, while the French had an extreme upheaval that led to its ruin. All three Enlightenments were based on the same concepts of reason, liberty and justice. Britain built their Enlightenment on ‘social virtues’, not reason.
Causes of the French Revolution France in 1789 was one of the richest and most powerful nations in Europe. Only in Great Britain and the Netherlands did the common people have more freedom and less chance of arbitrary punishment. Nonetheless, a popular rebellion would bring the regime of King Louis XVI of France under the control of a constitution, then it would depose, imprison, try, and execute the king and, later, his wife Marie Antoinette. Many factors led to the revolution; to some extent the old order succumbed to its own rigidity in the face of a changing world; to some extent, it fell to the ambitions of a rising bourgeoisie, allied with aggrieved peasants and wage-earners and with individuals of all classes who were influenced by the ideas of the Enlightenment. As the revolution proceeded and as power devolved from the monarchy to legislative bodies, the conflicting interests of these initially allied groups would become the source of conflict and bloodshed.
In 1789 France abolished all privileges and came up with the Declaration of Rights of Man 1789. These events led to the debate “Was the French Revolution Worth its Human?” which is being argued by Peter Kropotkin and Simon Schama. In this debate Peter Kropotkin argues yes and Simon Schama argues no. Reviewing the debate from Kropotkins point of view the author of the article “The Great French Revolution 1789-1793”, the French Revolution was indeed worth its human cost. Although many deaths occurred, France did change tremendously.
William Ottenjohn The Portable Edmund Burke Edmund burke was a quintessential forerunner of the revolution. All though he was only a forerunner in thought he helped to set the stage for how the rest of Europe would view the French revolution. Burke did not initially condemn the French Revolution. In many of his letters he wrote how England was gazing with astonishment at a French struggle for Liberty and not knowing whether it would be for the better of the content of if it would be disastrous for everyone involved. Then events on 5–6 October 1789, in which a mob of Parisian women marched on Versailles and took King Louis XVI turn to Paris, turned Burke against the entire movement because it became to radical.
The First and Second Estates were the Aristocracy and the Clergy who were satisfied with the way things were. The Third Estate people wanted to be relieved of the current feudalism system, religious freedom, and a democratic government. The French government was in debt deeply from their support in the American Revolution, and the French people were not able to afford the high taxes and tariffs,
The idea of monarchy was becoming a disappointing plan. However the Enlightenment was not the only reason why the French Revolution began. The social and political factors also played a big part in the start of the Revolution. The social cause was the important factor because it separated the people according
France wasn’t part of the colonies like America was, America was sick of being treated badly, and unfairly so they decided to fight. But as for France they were having trouble with their government and needed to create a new one witch they did. And to me it seems like America had much more at stake. The American and French Revolution both worked out in favor of France and for America they both got what they wanted France got the government they fought for, and America parted ways with Britain. The two revolutions were a big part in both America’s history, and a big part in Frances history.
In one of his most well known works “Letters concerning the English nation”, Voltaire contrasts the overbearing French government with the English government. He believed that the French government had more social barriers that kept the lower classes from ever moving up or getting rich through hard work. Instead, people were stuck in the class that they were born into. Voltaire could see that the government inherently favored the aristocracy and wrote "In general, the art of government consists in taking as much money as possible from one class of citizens to give to the other. "(Dictionnaire Philosophique) The French government did their best to keep Voltaire's writings out of the hands of the common people, however his views and philosophies became widely known in France.