The Constituent Assembly Flashcards
Not needed for A-Level exms
What did the Constituent Assembly work on between 1789-91?
Replacing the governmental and administrative structure.
What two things was the new constitution based on?
The king who retained ‘supreme power’ but only a four year veto on law and an elected national assembly.
What happened to the right to vote?
It was restricted and citizens were divided into two groups- “active citizens” and “passive citizens”- only “active citizens” could vote.
Who were active citizens?
Men over 25 who had lived in one place for a year, paid the equivalent of 3 days labour in taxes and had the right to vote in the first stage of both local and national elections.
What was an individual required to do in order to stand for office or vote in the second stage of elections?
Pay the equivalent of 10 days labour in taxes.
What did someone have to do to become a deputy in the National Assembly?
Pay the equivalent of 50 days labour in taxes which was known as the marc d’argent- a silver mark or 52 livres.
What percentage of men and women had the right to vote in the first stage of elections?
61% of French men and no women.
Out of 100, how many men were eligible to stand for deputy?
1/100.
What happened to the local administration?
It was reorganised and decentralised under a new three tier system of departements, districts and communes.
How many departements were there?
83.
How many districts were subdivided from departements?
547.
How many communes were subdivided from districts?
43,360.
How were officials elected?
Voting by active citizens.
What were councils responsible for?
Law and order within their localities and a range of specific duties.
What were four duties that councils were responsible for?
- The assessment and collection of taxes
- The construction of public amenities such as roads
- Maintenance of churches
- Supervision of the local national guard
What happened to local governments?
They fell largely into the hands of the educated bourgeoisie- men of some wealth but selected on their merits.
What two problems occurred and why?
- There were insufficient educated men to fill offices
2. In some rural communes there were too few literate people.
What legal system was established?
Single legal system established.
What three forms of violence were forbidden?
Torture, branding and hanging forbidden.
What was the form of death penalties?
All death penalties in the form of decapitation- formerly only a privilege of nobles.
What were the new law courts based on?
The local departements.
What happened to tribunals?
Tribunals were established at each level of local governments, plus a central court of appeal and high court for cases of treason.
What would justices of the peace do?
At the lowest level, they would deal with minor civil cases.
Where did more serious cases go?
District courts.
How were judges and magistrates elected?
Elected by active citizens from a panel of suitably qualified candidates.
How were judges of the court of appeal elected?
They were elected by departements.
How many jurors would there be for criminal cases?
12 citizens within each departement.
Why was financial reform essential?
To rebuild the economy, finance the government and put France in a stronger position.
What did the Assembly believe and what did these beliefs lead to?
Too many thought taxation as gone for good and attempts to impose new taxes were therefore met with resistance and so the assembly was forced to rely on short term measures.
What was the public response to taxes?
Such opposition that the gabelle (salt tax) was withdrawn in March 1790 and nearly all other unpopular indirect taxes within the next year.
What were the tailles and vingtieme tax replaced with?
A new tax on land and property in 1791, similar to that proposed by Calonne.
When was free trade in grain introduced?
August 1789.
What happened to internal tariffs?
They disappeared.
What happened to the system of weights and measures?
A unified system of weights and measures was established.
What happened to restrictive guilds, trade unions and strikes?
Old restrictive guilds (groups of skilled workers) disappeared in 1791 and trade unions and strikes were declared illegal.
What was announced in November 1789 to gain short term finance?
That church land was to be sold off for the benefit of the state. In return the government undertook to pay the salaries of the clergy directly and to take over the church’s role in education and poor relief.