Causes of 1789 Revolution

Long Term Causes
1. Enlightenment
  1. Growth of rational evidence-based thought
    1. Opposed to superstitious religious assumptions -- Divine Rights of Kings.
    2. Began in England -- Newton and Locke -- brought to France by Voltaire
  2. Brought ideas of popular sovereignty and men being 'born free and equal' (Rouseeau - Social Contract)
  3. Significant cause
    1. Led many (especially bourgeoisie) to Q system of absolute monarchy in Fr.
      1. Directly linked to events of 1789 -- Abbe Sieyes 'What is the Third Estate?'
        'It is the whole'
2. Structure of Fr Society
  1. Division within 3 Estates
    1. Growing anger among Third Estate
      1. Overburdened by taxes
      2. Under-rewarded with titles/govt posts
      3. First and Second Estates conversely under-burdened
  2. Link anger too;
    1. Demands for voting by head rather than order at meeting of Estates Gen
    2. Tennis Court Oath -- refusal of Third Estate to accept status quo
    3. Great Fear (rural rev created by fear among peasants of wrath of Second Estate)
3. Foreign Policy
  1. 1754-63 The Seven Years War
  2. 1778-1783 American War of Independence (war began 1776)
    1. Added to existing financial burden and debt -- key factor in bankruptcy of 1788
    2. Fed into Enlightenment ideas -- liberty, equality and popular sovereignty
      1. Partly responsible for Louis being unable to use army against people in 1789
        Soldiers who fought for liberty abroad didn't want to defend tyranny at home
4. Govt and financial management of Fr (Louis)
  1. Absolute Monarchy
    1. King appoints judges, intendants (petty tyrants), tax collectors, military.
    2. King made all laws, declared war,issued blank arrest warrants (lettres de cachet)
  2. Taxation
    1. Inefficient and insufficient to meet govt spending.
  3. Louis
    1. Little interest in reforms
    2. Extravagant spending, (Versaille Palace) made him targe of ridicule and resentment, even from nobility
    3. Sacking of Necker also unpopular
Short term causes
1. Financial Crisis
  1. Result of war and lack of tax revenue
  2. 1781 - Necker dismissed (hidden probs from Louis and public)
  3. 1786 - Calonne tells Louis that Fr is close to bankruptcy and requires reform
  4. Feb 1787 - hand-picked Ass of Notables rejects Calonne's reforms and calls for Est-Gen
  5. April 1787 - Calonne dismissed; Brienne's reforms also rejected - further calls for Est Gen
  6. Aug 1788 - Fr declares partial bankruptcy as Brienne suspends payments from Treasury
    1. King agrees to meet Est Gen
  7. Sept 1788 - Necker recalled
    1. Symbol of king's waining power
2. Aristocratic Revolt
  1. Began once Ass of Notables called
    1. Without financial crisis, revolt may not have taken place
  2. Feb/April 1787 - Ass of Notables rejecting reforms until Est-Gen called.
  3. Aug 1787 - Paris Parl exiled to Troyes by Louis after demanding the calling of Est-Gen
  4. 1787-1788 - Aristocratic revolt in provs, especially through parl (Dauphine)
  5. Sept 1788 - Louis forced to recall Paris Parl
  6. Revolt indicated limits of Louis' power
    1. Forced to summon calling of Est Gen
      1. End of Abs Mon already beginning
3. Eco Crisis
  1. Poor harvests 1780s led to food shortage in cities (especially Paris) and rising bread prices
    1. Meant peasants had less surplus grain to sell and therefore struggled to meet tax payments
      1. Resentment of the First and Second Estates grew
    2. Disastrous harvest of 1788 (hailstones in July) exacerbated the situation
    3. During winter of 1788/89, Parisians workers expected to spend 88% of wages on bread, opposed to 50% under normal circumstances
  2. Textile and wine industries suffered/ unemployment rose
Immediate causes/events of 1789
1. Third Estate
  1. Bourgeoisie supported aristocratic revolt and Paris Parl stand against King
    1. Demanded 'double the third' when Est-Gen met - as had happened at Dauphine
  2. Cahiers
  3. Demanded voting by head
  4. Tennis Court Oath (20 June)
    1. Declared themselves sovereign Nat Ass on 17th June
      1. Had demanded that all estates meet and vote together
  5. Abbe Sieyes ('What is the Third Estate?')
    1. Highly influential -- brought enlightenment thinking directly into the events of 1789
      1. Argued Third Estate most important part of nation
  6. 15 July - Paris Commune
    1. Set up to govern city
      1. Established the middle class Nat Guard to protect property from sans culottes and people from the king
  7. Prov Revolt (July)
    1. Bourgeoisie in most prov towns followed Paris model
      1. Set up new or mod local councils, w/ wider memb and Third Estate control
        Lille, Rouen and Lyon force used.
        Nat Guards set up
        King's intendants fled; Louis = lost control
2. Paris (Sans culottes)
  1. July 12 - Large scale popular dems after Necker's dismissal
  2. July 14th (Bastille)
    1. Louis removed troops after this
      1. Led sans-culottes to believe that they had prevented despotism -- 'guardians of liberty'
  3. Link to bread prices (88% wages
  4. King in the hands of the mob
    1. Mobs job = oppose counter-rev
  5. Link to Oct Days - Capture of King
3. Peasants
  1. Great Terror - 20 July -6 Aug
    1. Peasants feared counter-rev - attacked churches (tithes), chateau (feudal docs) and grain stores
  2. Peasants expected King to listen to grievances listed in the cahiers
  3. Link to grain prices (most peasants bought their own bread)
4. Nobles/ Clergy/ Army
  1. Parl exiled to Troyes = aristocratic revolt
    1. Refused to enact new laws and cahiers
  2. Ass of Notables (1787)
    1. Refused to sign up to financial reforms - called for Est-Gen
  3. Aristocratic cahiers 1789 lib (89% voted to give up financial privs)
  4. Duc d'Orleans one of Louis' main opp (Opp based at his Palais Royal)
  5. Clergy - 1st to join 3rd Estate (from 19th June)
  6. Fr Guards (army)
    1. July 1789
      1. Called upon to attack uprising -- Louis pulled them back after sev days
        Couldn't count on discipline of troops
  7. Aug Decrees
    1. Aristocracy voted to end most of their privs

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