Consitutional Monarchy: Reforming France 1789-92 Flashcards
What were the 6 key areas the reforms of 1789-92 focused on?
Local government Taxation and finance Economy Legal system Church Constitution
Under the reforms, how many departments, districts and communes was France divided into?
83, 547 and 43,360
How many sections was Paris divided into?
48
What was the minimum amount of tax you would have paid to be an active citizen
3 days of labour
How many Frenchmen were passive citizens in 1790?
4.3 million
How much tax did you have to pay to be able to stand for the National Assembly
54 days of Manual labour
What was the role of the councils in 1790? [5]
Assess and collect tax Maintain law and order Carry out public works Upkeep of Churchs Control the National Guard
Why were the councils in rural areas often inefficient?
There wasn’t enough literate men to fill the council so many couldn’t read or write
When was Church land nationalised?
2nd November 1789
What were the 3 main reasons for nationalising Church land?
- Provide money for the government
- Guarantee the success of the revolution as the landowners would have vested interests
- Ensure the support of the clergy
Of the 25% of Church land bought in 1799, what was the social breakdown?
52% peasants
48% bourgeois
What was the contribution fonciere?
A land tax from which there were no exemptions or special privileges?
What was the contribution mobiliere?
A tax on movable goods, such as grain, payable by active citizens
What was the patente?
A tax on commercial profits
When was the new financial system introduced?
January 1791
What was the difference in tax paid by citizens in Seine-et-Marne and citizens in Ariege
Those in Seine-et-Marne paid 5 times as much
Why did the new tax system benefit the poor?
The burden of taxation fell on producers rather than consumers
In terms of trade, what did the majority of Assembly deputies believe in?
Laissez-faire
Why did the people not like the laissez-fairs approach from the government?
They wanted the price and distribution of goods to be controllers, to avoid scarcity, high prices and potential starvation
When were guilds abolished?
1791
What did Le Chapeliers law state in June 1791
Bargaining and strikes were made illegal
Trade unions banned
The Church had been in charge of relief. Why did the Assembly not take up this role?
There was 2 million people that needed relief and so it would have cost too much money
When was the legal system changed?
16th August 1790
What 3 things did the Legal system reforms abolish?
- different types of law in the north and south
- different types of law court
- letters de cachet