1. Mr. Bellisario Woodridge High School
Chapter 6 “The French Revolution & Napoleon” Section 1 On the Eve of Revolution
Mr. Bellisario
Woodridge High School
The Social Structure of the Old Regime in France was an outdated social system from the Middle Ages…the King live a carefree life, along with the nobles and clergy while most of the French population suffered

2. The First Estate – Clergy (church)
Enormous wealth & privilege
Owned 10% of French land
Collected money but paid no taxes
Provided some social services
Schools
Hospitals
Orphanages
High church leaders were wealthy land owners while parish priests were poor

3. The Second Estate – Nobles
Top jobs in:
Government
Army
Courts
Church
Owned land but had money
Feared losing privileges & freedom from paying taxes

4. The Third Estate – 98% of the French Population
Bourgeoisie – middle class
Bankers, merchants, manufacturers
Officials in government bureaucracy
Lawyers, doctors, journalists, professors, artisans
Rural peasants
Landowners
Tenant farmers
Day laborers
Urban workers
Apprentices, journeymen – worked in industry
Servants, stable hands, porters, construction workers

5. Why is the 3rd Estate upset with the 1st and 2nd?
…Because members of 3rd Estate resented privileged 2nd & 1st Estates
Wealthy bourgeoisie could buy political offices & titles
Nobles had best jobs but hardest urban workers got very low wages
Peasants had to pay high taxes
Nobles had the right to hunt, but peasants could not even kill rabbits who ate their crops

6. Economic problems in 1789
Financial crisis because of deficit spending – government spending more money that it takes in
Burden of debt left by Louis XIV (14th)
7 Years War/French & Indian War
American Revolution
Lavish court expenses
½ of income from taxes went to paying interest on debt

7. How to solve the problem
To solve financial crisis, the government had to
Increase taxes
Reduce expenses, objected to by 1st & 2nd Estates

8. Result of Poor harvests in 1780’s
Food prices rose
Hunger for poor peasants & city dwellers
People rioted & demanded bread, attacked nobles’ manor houses

9. Heirs of Louis XIV (14th)
Louis XV ( ) pursued pleasure & ran up debt
Louis XVI well-meaning but weak & indecisive, chose Jacques Necker as financial director

10. Jacques Necker’s Suggestions
Reduce court spending
Reform government
Abolish tariffs on trade

11. Pressure for reform mounted
Powerful classes demanded king summon Estates General
Hoped to bring king under control of nobles & guarantee own privileges

12. Estates General
Louis XVI called Estates General – first meeting in 175 years
Cahiers – notebook with grievances from the 3 Estates
Fairer taxes
Freedom of the press
Regular meetings of Estates General

13. Tennis Court Oath
Delegates to the Estates General from Third Estate were elected
Lawyers, middle class officials, & writers
Solve financial crisis & reform
Delegates dead-locked over voting issue
Each group had one vote & 1st & 2nd estates outvoted 3rd Estate
3rd Estate separated & called themselves National Assembly & wanted to write own constitution

14. The Beginning…the Bastille
July 14, 1789, 800 Parisians met outside Bastille prison
Demanded weapons & gunpowder
Commander of Bastille refused & opened fire on the crowd, killing many
Angry crowd broke through defenses, killed commander & 5 guards, but found no weapons
Bastille became a symbol of French Revolution