The French Revolution in a Nut Shell

                  History

         In 1774,Louis the 16th became king of France.He succeeded his grandfather

                  Louis the 15th and at the age of twenty he had become one of the most powerful
                  men in Europe.Yet, before the end of the century,this system of government was
                  to be swept away for ever in a bloody revolution.Louis lost both his crown and  
                   his head.

                  The Government Before the Revolution
                      -The First Estate - priests,bishops,monks and nuns who worked for the 
                                                        Catholic Church.
                      -The Second Estate -the nobility
                      -The Third Estate- poor peasants,the rich middle class,towns people
                                                         (lawyers,merchants etc.they called the "bourgeoisie"}

                    The first two estates had many privileges,they paid fewer taxes,though they
                     were the richest.The great bulk of taxes were paid by the French town 
                     people and the peasants. 

                     The Plight of the Peasants
                        Though the peasants were by far the biggest group in the French society,
                      they were the least privileged.They lived under a feudal system that remained 
                      from the Middle Ages.
                      - they farmed land owned by members of the nobility
                      - every year they had to give part of their harvest to their lord
                      - they had to grind their corn at their lord s mill,press their grapes at his
                         wine- press and bake their bread in his oven,all at a PRICE!
                      - they had to do unpaid work to maintain local roads and bridges.

                      The Third Estate Discontented
                          Life was hard to the peasants and the middle class.The towns people were 
                       unhappy too.They were envious of the nobility s privileges.Not only the 
                       nobles paid fewer taxes,but all the senior jobs in the Army,Navy and church
                       were reserved for nobleman.

                      The Fall of the King
                           Slowly but surely,Louis s government headed towards bankruptcy
                       The king,the queen,an Austrian Princess called Marie Antionette and 
                       many wealthy nobles lived lives of recklace luxury in the magnificient 
                       Palace of Versailles about ten kilometers outside Paris.They spent the 
                       most of the nation s wealth.

                      The National Assembly
                           By the year 1789 food was in short supply, and riots broke out across
                       the country.Angry demonstrates filled the streets of Paris.Army barracks 
                       were looted for weapons,the Third Estate got the control of the country 
                       to their hand.The king was no longer in control of the country.The Royal 
                       family tried to escape from Paris to the north-east frontier of France.
                       They traveled in disguise for twenty four hours,but were recognized at 
                       the village of Varennes and sent back to Paris.The Royal family was 
                       imprisoned in 1792.The victorious Revolutionary Committee declared
                       it self the new "Commune"or the "Town Council",of Paris.
         
                       A New Machine Introduced
                         "The Guillotine"a new machine was introduced for beheading criminals.
                        It was a popular spectacle at that time.
                               Louis was beheaded on the 21 January 1793
                               Marie Antionette in October 

                                          Bibliography
                                          Pratt Stephen - The French Revolution and Napoleon
                                                       
                     
                       


         
                                                           
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