Kevin Du Revolt and Revolution in Early Modern Europe Due 4/20/24.
Before the French Revolution was the Ancien Regime, lasting from the 15th century to 1789. Seignorialism, absolutist monarchy, and social hierarchy characterized this era of France. Seignorialism was a nonreciprocal relationship between peasants and landowners, with the landowners doing nothing for the peasants but providing land to farm on. Furthermore, the king of France held almost unlimited power over his subjects, causing France to be in a state of absolutism. The National Assembly divided society into three estates: the clergy, the nobility, and everyone else. The clergy and nobility enjoyed many privileges that common people did not, and common people were left with overwhelming taxes, …show more content…
Those facing punishment had little opportunity to defend themselves or appeal sentences. Thus, to create radical change, French society began to embrace Enlightenment ideals such as equality and support of the general will, championed by John Locke and Jean-Jacques Rousseau, respectively. This resulted in the Tennis Court Oath on June 20, 1789, creating the National Assembly, the Storming of the Bastille on July 14, 1789, and ultimately, The Declaration of the Rights of Man and Citizen. The Declaration, adopted in August of 1789, was a revolutionary document, outlining the rights of citizens in France and doing away with the unjust and unequal nature of the Ancien Regime. In the Declaration of the Rights of Man, the National Assembly wanted to establish equality as well as rights of the accused; the former would survive the Revolution, while the latter would cease to protect the citizens of France after 1789. Through the Declaration of the Rights of Man and Citizen, the French government, or more specifically, the National Assembly, aimed to ensure that all citizens were entitled to the same rights and privileges, protected the general
Before the French Revolution was the Ancien Regime, lasting from the 15th century to 1789. Seignorialism, absolutist monarchy, and social hierarchy characterized this era of France. Seignorialism was a nonreciprocal relationship between peasants and landowners, with the landowners doing nothing for the peasants but providing land to farm on. Furthermore, the king of France held almost unlimited power over his subjects, causing France to be in a state of absolutism. The National Assembly divided society into three estates: the clergy, the nobility, and everyone else. The clergy and nobility enjoyed many privileges that common people did not, and common people were left with overwhelming taxes, …show more content…
Those facing punishment had little opportunity to defend themselves or appeal sentences. Thus, to create radical change, French society began to embrace Enlightenment ideals such as equality and support of the general will, championed by John Locke and Jean-Jacques Rousseau, respectively. This resulted in the Tennis Court Oath on June 20, 1789, creating the National Assembly, the Storming of the Bastille on July 14, 1789, and ultimately, The Declaration of the Rights of Man and Citizen. The Declaration, adopted in August of 1789, was a revolutionary document, outlining the rights of citizens in France and doing away with the unjust and unequal nature of the Ancien Regime. In the Declaration of the Rights of Man, the National Assembly wanted to establish equality as well as rights of the accused; the former would survive the Revolution, while the latter would cease to protect the citizens of France after 1789. Through the Declaration of the Rights of Man and Citizen, the French government, or more specifically, the National Assembly, aimed to ensure that all citizens were entitled to the same rights and privileges, protected the general