The French Revolution

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The French Revolution
To a great extent the common people of France were the primary impetus for action during the French Revolution. When Marquis de Lafayette came back with his love of liberty, life in France was never the same. It started the idea of reform. The people who had no rights or land were the commoners, and they really needed and wanted the reform. The commoners needed the reform in order to continue life in France. When they needed more then words to identify themselves to the king, they obtained arms. If they felt the need to express their dissatisfaction with the king, they marched right up and demanded it. Simply, if they felt they didn’t like what was going on, they changed it. For these reasons the common people of France pulled the revolution together in order to get what they wanted; which was radical reformation of equality.
The revolution evolved from France’s national debt. After France fought the American Revolution, Louis XVI had accumulated a national debt. The country was unable to pay this debt, due to a lack of central bank, paper currency, credit, and an out of date tax system. Louis XVI imposed monitorial rights, which gave noble the right to tax peasants for their own profit, as Louis did. This unfair taxing system caused the Estates General to meet for the first time in several years. (Mckay 698) The Estates General consisted of three estates; the clergy, nobles, and commoners (third estate). Ironically, the three bodies were together separately.
At first, the three bodies voted separately as Louis had requested. Louis was only interested in divine right, and to achieve that no one could over power him. He told the three orders that they should meet as one body only for common interest, but vote separately. (Belloc 49) The proposals of the Prime Minister Necker, were brought to the attention of the Estates General. These reforms requested the vote be taken by head rather then by state...