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Louis XVI Calls the Estates General
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French Society Divided
In the French society there was three classes or people, or estates. The first estate was filled with the clergy, the kings, and peoplke who worked for the church. The Second Estate was all of the nobility. Then the thrid Estate made up 95% of the population and it was filled with the rest of the people, the bourgeoisie or the middle class and the peasants. have to pay taxes. But the pronblem was that the majority of the -
French Society Divided 2
One of the privliges of being in the first two estates were that you didn't have to pay taxes. But the problem with that is that its not fair because some people aren't paying taxes. Also the problem is that the majority of the money was in the first and second estates, and the third estate was very poor so they couldnbt pay everybodys taxes. With France going through expensive wars and the king building palaces France was in debt. So the king raised the price on bread to a months salary. -
Fall of Bastille
An angry mob of 800 Parisians gathered outside the Bastille in Paris demanding weapons and gun powder. The commander of the Bastille refused to open the gates and shot at the mob. The mob broke into the Bastille and killed the commander and five gaurds. They also released a bunch or prisoners being held there. To the French people it was a symbol for yhe years of abuse by the monarchys. The fall of the Bastille is now the France National Independence Day. -
Civil War (Radicals Take Over)
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Threats from Abroad
When Louis XVI tried to escape to go back into Paris he was caught and that started a huge fuss throughout France. The King of Prussia and the Emperor of Austria made the Declaration of Pilnitz. In the Declaration of Pilnitz the 2 Monarchs threatened to intervene the revolution to protect the French Monarchy. The revolutionaires took the Declaration of Pilnitz seriously and prepared for war. -
Monarchy is Abolished
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Spread of Nationalism
The revolution and the war gave people a sense of nationonalism and the whole country was nationalist. People made festivals to celebrate the nation and the revolution. From port city Marseilles troops marched to new songs that were made. One of those songs was the "La Marseillaise" which became the French National Anthem. -
Third Stage of the Revolution
Another consitution was made in the third stage of the revolution. The third constituition had a 5 man directory and a 2 house legislative that was elected by male citizens of the property. The middle class was the dominant force during the third stage. The directory made peace with Prussia and Spain but the Austria and Britian war continued. Polititians used Napolean Bonaparte to try and advance their own goal, but istead Napolean became to ruler of France.
