Chapter 4 - Devopments February 1787 - May 1789 Flashcards
When was the Assembly of Notables?
Feb - May 1787
Why did Louis call the assembly of notables?
To help with reform plans
To present and get support for Calonne’s plans
What did Louis expect out of the Assembly?
For people to abide by what he wanted and agree
What did the assembly actually do?
Very hostile to new plans on taking the church
Notables didn’t think the situation was bad enough
When was the last time such an Assembly had met?
1626
What did Calonne do in response?
Revealed Necker was wrong
Accused the Notables of letting self interest get in the way of change
What did the Notables then see Calonne as?
Example of the hated ‘ministerial depotism’
What year was Calonne forced to go?
1787
Who replaced Calonne?
Brienne
What changes did Brienne propose?
Changes to the army, navy, administration of govt + royalty
Tolerance to Protestants
Deregulated grain trade
Change corvée royale into tax
Extend provincial assemblies giving taxpayers the right to vote for these
Spread of education
Codification of the law
Abolishment of tax farming
Establish a central treasury
Who would oppose these changes?
The wealthiest
What lead to accusations of incompetence for Brienne?
The publication of accounts
What did the government say with the breakdown of trust?
‘No taxation without representation’
What did the Notables want?
A meeting of the Estates General
What did Louis do in return?
Dismissed the Assembly
What did Brienne have to resort to?
Borrowing a loan
What is the Estates General?
An Assembly that could be called by the King to discuss major issues that included the three different estates
Without the Assembly to endorse tax changes who did Brienne ask?
The parlements
What did he ask the parlements?
Land tax
Higher stamp duties
Why did they decline?
They benefitted from the system
What did the parlements want to do?
‘Speak for the nation’
Help against depotism
What did those aims resemble?
The Enlightenment
What did Brienne do to try and force the registration of the tax proposals?
Use the lit de justice
What is the lit de justice?
The compulsory registration of royal edicts
What did Paris Parlements do in July?
Refused this and petitioned to the King for an Estates General
Where did ordinary Parisians gather to support this?
The Palais-Royal
Whose home was it?
The kings liberal minded cousin
Where else had his cousin spoken out against Louis?
The Assembly of Notables
What did Louis do to retaliate?
Banished the Parlement to Troyes
What did the provincial parlements refuse to do?
Register the edicts
What did Louis’ action increase?
Rioting in the streets of Paris
What did Louis do as the financial crisis was growing?
Allowed the Paris Parlements to return in September
What did Louis hold in November?
A ‘royal session’
What happened to his cousin in the session?
He was exiled in the letters de cachet for being too outspoken
What else happened in the royal session?
As royal troops surrounded more loans were approved through the lit de justice
What did the parlements get for approving another Vingtième?
Louis was forced to have an Estates General
When did Louis promise to have an Estates General by?
1792
What were the ‘fundamental laws of the kingdom’?
Laws that couldn’t be changed even by royal demand
What was needed for the ‘fundamental laws of the kingdom’?
An Estates General
How did Louis respond?
Arrested more members
Planned to remove parlements’ powers
What was the removal of the parlements’ powers known as?
The ‘May Edicts’
What did the May Edicts say?
New people will be selected by the King
Legal work transferred to lower courts
Numbers of judges in PP reduced
How were the edicts forced through?
Lit de justice
What did this provoke?
An all-night protest session in the PP
How did the provincial parlements add to the political breakdown?
Flooded the royal court with remonstrances
How did the PP add to the political breakdown?
Wanted to end the letters de cachet + imprisonment without trial
Who were political pamphlets attacking?
Brienne + Lamoignon
Who added their voice for having an Estates General?
Assembly of Clergy
What collapsed?
Royal authority
Who lead or coordinated many sporadic risings?
Nobles
What happened in Grenoble?
Royal troops who arrived to restore order had been pelted with stones or roof slates
What day was this known as?
‘Day of tiles’
7 Jun 1788
Why was Louis forced to call for an Estates General?
France couldn’t afford anymore loans
(Bankrupt)
What did Brienne do?
Resigned
(MA request)
Who was reinstated?
Necker
Why was there debate about how the Estates General should be run?
Was there going to be equal representation of the Estates?
Should they meet separately or together?
Was there one vote per Estate?
Why wasn’t it good to follow the same procedures as the last meeting in 1614?
It would work against the third estate
What happened because of the disproportionate representation?
New enlightened leaders rose up
What were the new enlightened leaders fighting for?
Fundamental rights
What did the King and Necker do at the end of Dec 1788?
Gave the third estate double representation
But still 1 vote
Who was frustrated at the lack of preparation for the Estates General?
Compte de Mirabeau
Why did the Kings minister of foreign affairs refuse to see Mirabeau?
He had a dispute with Necker
What society influenced the third estate to become more politicised?
Société des Trente - noble liberal reformers - Lafayette
Held meetings and made pamphlets
What publication made the third estate more politicised?
Abbé Sieyes pamphlet - ‘What is the Third Estate?’
Wrote in simple language, encouraging for them to act like leaders
How did the economic situation make the third estate more politicised?
Poor 1788 harvest
88% wages on bread
Why were the Third Estate encouraged to voice their opinions?
They had to write a cahiers de doléances for discussion at the Estates General
What were the Cahiers de Doléances?
Ledgers of complaints
When did the elections take place?
At a time of economic discontent
