Chapter 1 - Origins Of French Revolution 1774-1789 Flashcards
What was Louis XVI’s character?
Shy, indecisive, not a proud figure of authority
Who was Marie Antoinette?
4th daughter of Empress Maria Theresa of Austria
What was Marie Antoinette’s personality like?
Attractive but naive, and had a reputation of spending a lot of money, had no sympathy for the revolution, had a play farm, had a reputation as a spendthrift
When did Louis become the king of France?
1774
What age did Louis become King?
20
When were Louis and MA married?
1770
Why were Louis and MA married?
To create diplomatic peace between the two former enemies France and Austria
How did the royal family live?
In Versailles, isolated from outside world, expensive lifestyles
Why was there gossip with Louis and MA?
It took them 8 years to produce a child
What’s a Dauphin?
The title given to the heir to the french throne
Why was Louis role seen so highly?
Partially aware his role was sacred, Gods representative (divine right) justified absolute powers of the monarch
What was the ‘lettres de cachet’?
Letter with royal seal allowing king to order imprisonment
What structure was France in the ancien regime?
Absolute monarchy
Was Louis a ‘despot’?
Not as much, didn’t use the L de C as much as Louis XV, wasn’t decisive or have absolute power
What was the ancien regime?
Out of date political and social system of France before revolution
What were the series of councils?
In theory they governed France, people specialised in certain affairs and were in the presence of the king as he had to consult others
How was France governed in reality?
It fell in the hands of a restricted number of influential people who acted independently
Who chose the ministers?
Louis
Who influenced Louis decision of ministers?
Marie Antoinette
What did Ministers do for their reputation?
They knew they might not hold the position for long so they protected their reputation and tried to maintain support
Was the control centralised or decentralised?
Centralised
What were Intendants?
Royal agents to maintain rule in the provinces and feed back information
What were the duties of the intendants?
Responsible for finance policing and justice
What were the problems with governing through intendants?
Dependant on the king
Overworked
Few staff
Can’t make decisions for themselves and had to ask permission
Their role was challenged
What are provinces?
Regions roughly equivalent to the historic counties of England, each with its own traditions and institutions
What are provincial officers?
Came from the nobility and were responsible for France’s historic provinces and maintaining order
What was the ‘provincial dynasty’?
Families who were provincial govenors
What were the pays d’états?
Six areas of France that discussed with the king taxation in their area, then paid a large sum to him
How did the pats d’états agree taxes?
They had powerful assemblies where intendants were forced to share power
Who were Local officers?
Like barons, bought their position through venality and served in the municipal administration and local bodies
What’s a municipal administrator?
Someone who oversees operations of all city departments
What are seigneurs?
Land owning nobles in rural areas who exercised influence and ran their own courts and thought they were superior to intendants
What were the different french courts called?
Prévôtés
Bailliage
Parlements
Seigneurial
Church
What was the lowest level of courts?
Prévôtés
How many bailliage courts were there?
430
What was the most important parlement?
The Paris parlement responsible for 2/5 of France
What was the job of the Parlements?
To hear civil and criminal cases that the local courts couldn’t solve
What other powers did the parlements have?
Controlled guilds
Corporations
Markets
Local government finances,law and order
Who could the parlements come into conflict with?
The intendants
What were seigneurial courts?
Descended at the lowest level in the villages by feudal landlords
What were corporations?
People with mutual interests usually in business
What were guilds?
Specifically for members of the same trade to maintain standards
What was the most important right of the parlements?
To register edicts (laws passed by the king) to ensure conformity with previous legislation and provincial codes
What’s a remonstrance?
A remonstrance is a document sent by a parlement to the monarch as a complaint of the decree
What’s the lit de justice?
‘Bed of justice’
A royal session in the Paris parlements for the registration of royal edicts
Who made up the membership of the parlements?
12 magistrates who bought their positions to become noblesse de robe
Intendants
Crown ministers
When did the Paris parlements block a series of royal reforms and policies?
1763
What happened in 1771?
Louis XV tried to abolish the parlements altogether
Who restored the parlements to their previous status?
Louis XVI
How was the French population divided into estates?
First
Second
Third
What was the first estate?
The clergy
How many people were in the first estate?
150,000
What was the second estate?
The nobility
How many people were in the second estate?
2-4 million
What was the third estate?
Commoners
How many people were in the third estate?
The rest of the country
In the 1780’s who had the largest population in Europe?
France
How many people live in France in 1780?
27 million
How many people were engaged in agriculture?
21 million
Who were the clergy?
Males who were essential to the nations wellbeing in the church
What did male clercs do?
Religious routines
Mass
Confessions
Christenings
Marriage
Controlled education
Provided for the sick and elderly
How did wealth vary in the first estate?
Church was wealthy
Cardinals, archbishops and bishops majority less flamboyant lifestyles and far poorer than their own parishioners
Where did the church’s wealth come from?
Rents and dues paid from the land
Church taxes = tithe
How much land did the church own?
10%
What obligations did the clergy not have to meet?
Didn’t have to pay the taille
Could meet in their own assemblies
Decide own affairs
Only pay don gratuit
Only prosecuted in their own
Couldn’t be asked to perform military service or provide money or house royal troops
What did the second estate do?
Advise the king
How much land did the second estate own?
1/5 - 1/4
What did the second estate live off?
Rents and landed estates
Pensions
Offices
Signeures
Unearned income
What is unearned income?
Earnings from rents or investment
Why didn’t the second estate do many commercial and manual activities?
Fear of losing noble status
What were the noblesse d’eprée?
Nobles of the sword, traditionally the only group allowed to wear a sword
What type of nobility were the noblesse d’épée?
Hereditary
Who were the noblesse de court?
The nobles in residence at Versailles
What did the noblesse de courts do?
Had patronage (privileges from the king)
Were ambassadors and councillors
What did the other nobles do?
Lived in chateaux or manor houses on their country estates
Had titles
Included members of the kings family
Were all the nobility wealthy?
Some hereditary nobility became impoverished it cling onto their status and privileges
What was the impoverished nobility’s nickname?
‘Hobereaux’ = sparrow hawks by the upper nobility
What did it mean to live away from Versailles as a noble?
Prevented them gaining state office
Attempts to maintain a noble lifestyle could easily send them into debt
Who were the ‘noblesse de robe’?
Squired noble status because of their venal jobs
How many noblesse de robes were there by 1789?
70,000
What did the noblesse de robe do?
Legal and administrative duties
What privileges did the nobility have?
Right to display a coat of arms
Take precedence at public ceremonies
Could be beheaded rather than hung
What exemptions did the nobility have?
Didn’t pay the taille
Lower rate for other direct taxes
Some only paid a tiny part of their income
How could people join the second estate?
Buy nobility
Purchase offices
Marry
Who were the third estate?
Commoners
Amount they lived on varied
Who were the bourgeoisie?
The wealthiest commoners
Relied on their skills
What were the two types of bourgeoisie?
Haute + petite
What jobs were in the haute bourgeoisie?
Doctors
Lawyers
Financiers
What jobs were part of the petite bourgeoisie?
Small shopkeepers
Self employed artisans
Was everyone in the third estate less privileged than the first two estates?
A prosperous merchant might have more income than an impoverished nobleman
What was the rest of the population?
Peasants
What did peasants do?
Worked the land with a seigneur
What feudal obligations did the third estate have?
No privileges
Pay direct and indirect taxes
Military service
Unpaid labour
Seigneurial dues
What were the direct taxes?
Taille
Vingtieme
Capitation
What were the indirect taxes?
Gabelle (salt tax)
Aides on drinks
Taxes on tobacco
Tithe for the church
What were the seigneurial dues?
Champart (paid in grain)
Cens (paid in cash)
Had to ground their grain in his mill then pay banalités
Why were the feudal peasants better off than the bottom of the third estate?
Day labourers didn’t know when their next days work would come from
Others feared as ‘outsiders’
What’s a ‘centralised government’?
Absolute monarchy
Major decisions made by the king
Was France an absolute monarchy in the late 18th century?
Limitations to the kings rule
Many influences on rules
Collapsed wake of revolution 1789
