How far were Louis XVI's problems of his own making? The problems Louis XVI faced during his reign were partially due to his lack of leadership ability, his poor decisions and unwise actions. He created these problems by giving too much power to his nobles and hardly utilizing his power in his Divine Right. However, he did inherit an archaic system which was on the verge of collapse in Europe in general and the government of France had many inbuilt weaknesses already. He was faced with a tidal wave of new, enlightened ideas that was also fueled by France's involvement in the American war of independence.
Absolutist power is always dangerous in the hands of a monarch as well as in the hands of a movement (in this situation, the National Assembly). Freedom of speech opinion, religion and press were in France before the revolution, but disappeared because of it. And they blamed it all on their presents
To control the situation, the people of France quickly organized their own authoritative forces. Timothy Tackett argues in When the King Took Flight that Louis XVI’s escape is significant because it destroyed faith in the monarch and amplified the violence of the Revolution but at the same time instilled a new sense of unity among the French. King Louis XVI’s failed escape upset many people because they had invested so much trust and affection for him. Despite his indecisiveness, chubbiness, and lack of royal grace, they respected him and therefore tolerated his flaws. On June 23 for instance, Louis stood by the nobility and denounced the existence of the National Assembly, but many patriots forgave him and instead blamed his advisors.
By exiling the Huguenots he lost a lot of potential revenue, and the lavish building of Versailles was not cheap. Moreover, he did not have the revenue to keep up his enormous army and after the early 1680’s his success in wars went in a never ending downward spiral. Perhaps if Louis XIV had learned to manage his money better and not gone to war so readily, his subjects would have been happier and he would have had an even more successful reign, but without a doubt he still remains one of the most powerful rulers in
This social and population imbalance led to thoughts of revolution, which later became a reality for these nations. A clear difference between the two revolutions is how they were able to overthrow their governments. In France’s case, the third estate had built up so much anger due to over taxation, along with not having the ability to move up in social class, even if they became successful and rich. They overthrew their governments with riots and battles that ultimately led to the downfall of the French government. Haiti on the other hand had a little help from their friends.
To some extent, I agree with this statement as John had many faults such as, he was a bad fighter and the people of medieval England liked their kings to be great warriors. He lost all of the land in France and some sources written by barons say that it was because he was idle and was not bothering to fight. He was also over taxing the barons which obviously was not sensible as the barons in medieval times had a lot of power. If they inherited land, king John would get a large share of it, or if they didn’t want to fight in a battle, they would have to pay a large amount of money to the king. However I also disagree with this statement for as many reasons as I agree with it, one being that Johns brother was Richard the Lion Heart.
This campaign did weaken Great Britain but it actually put France in even more debt than there was already. More debt lead to more taxes, but the French monarch could not tax the wealth nobility. As a result, "the financial minister, Jacques Necker, attempted to levy taxes on the nobility. That action brought the wrath of the aristocrats, as a result he was forced to dismiss Necker and abandon the new tax in 1781” (“Louis XVI”). As time went
University of Phoenix Material French Revolution and Napoleonic Era Worksheet 1. Essay In 250 to 300 words, explain how the following ideas and ideals influenced the events and motivated the participants in the French Revolution: • Liberty • Equality • Brotherhood • Hubris • Fiscal irresponsibility • Democracy • Technology Liberty influenced the French revolution and motivated the because it consisted in the freedom to do everything which injured no one: hence the exercise of the natural rights of each man had no limits except those which assure to the other members of the society the enjoyment of the same rights. Equality influenced the revolution because in the Declaration of the Rights of Man and Citizen it stated that “Men are born and remain free and equal in rights. Social distinctions may be based only on common utility.” Basically saying that every man will be equally views just as any other man would under all circumstances. That document amalgamated a variety of Enlightment ideas drew from the works of political philosophy.
Social distinctions may be based only on common utility.” Basically saying that every man will be equally views just as any other man would under all circumstances. That document amalgamated a variety of Enlightened ideas drew from the works of political philosophy. The French Revolution was influenced by Brotherhood because the irate citizens of Paris stormed the Bastille together; it was an expression of the power of the people to take politics into their own hands. Fiscal irresponsibility influenced the Revolution because after debts were brought to a higher level than before then taxes were raised on the people to end the financial trap which was not easy and required the support of the aristocracy. Democracy influenced the French Revolution the new construction of politics, in which all individuals were equal, ran counter to prevailing ideas about collective identities defined in guilds and orders.
From the beginning of Henry VIII’s reign it was clear he was going to rule differently to his father, firstly unlike his father Henry VIII was not interested in administration, and he was prepared to spend his finance on war, but though Henry was different from his father it does not mean he was necessarily great. Henry VIII’s views of foreign policies were completely different to those of his fathers, Henry VIII was adamant to claim France, though his claim was were, and it was going to be a vast expense, again Henry Viii was not afraid to spend money on war, he wanted to replicate old and courageous kings. William Wareham tried to stop the young King, but he later resigned die to Henrys naïve attitude. Unlike Henry Tudor, who was more sympathetic towards those who betrayed him, and his nobles, Henry VIII was not, he had two nobles executed early on in his reign, showing his ruthless attitude to those who betrayed him. During Henrys reign though it was some time after the war of the roses he felt paranoid about ‘pretenders’ and betrayers, and he was extremely harsh when dealing with those who dare threaten him, this was a very different attitude to Henry Tudor, this made the country seem much more brutal, and during these times, executions were entertainment and during Henrys reign the country was not short of entertainment because of Henrys careless approach, gaining popularity throughout the country.