French Revolution: Estates, Marie Antoinette, Reign of Terror
The French Revolution/ The Three Estates
First Estate (Clergy):
Owned 10% of the land. Paid a ‘voluntary gift’ rather than taxes every 5 years. Levied the ‘tithe’ on landowners which went to the higher-ups in the Church and not to where it was needed at the parish level.
Second Estate (Nobles):
Owned 25% of the land and were taxed lightly by Louis XVI. They could tax the peasantry.
Third Estate (Everyone Else):
Majority were peasants and agricultural workers. Middle-class became the most exasperated at the noble ceiling they encountered, as they were prevented from climbing the social ladder in French society. Marie Antoinette, the queen of France, was put on trial by the Revolutionary Tribunal and found guilty of treason. She was stripped of all the trappings of monarchy and forced to don another costume. Dressed as a poor working woman, her hair shorn, the former queen mounted the guillotine, following in the footsteps of her husband, who had been executed earlier that year. The monarchy fell due to a rising democratic tide that carried ideas about political representation, participation, and equality.
Reign of Terror:
Spring of 1793 marked the beginning of what became known as the Reign of Terror. Following a defeat in the Austrian Netherlands and the betrayal of the French General to the side of the Austrians, the Mountain began to assume more power. This power was consolidated under their leader Maximilien Robespierre who openly advocated for a more peaceful external policy and rather focusing on the issues within the newly-founded First French Republic. The Jacobins under Robespierre worked to create a Republic of Virtue. The Reign of Terror saw the execution of many individuals considered traitors.
Napoleon Bonaparte:
Among the rising generation of new French generals, the most important was Napoleon Bonaparte. Napoleon recognized a major problem during the course of the Revolution was the ongoing hostility of French Catholics. He signed the Concordat of 1801 with Pope Pius VII to heal the wounds with the church. The Civil Code of 1804, or the Napoleonic Code, provides the framework for the French legal system to this day.
Haitian Revolution:
In the 18th century, Saint Domingue had become France’s wealthiest overseas colony. The Haitian Revolution began as a series of conflicts from the early 1790s. Among the causes of the conflicts were the affranchis’ frustrations with a racist society, turmoil created in the colony by the French Revolution, nationalistic rhetoric expressed during Vodou ceremonies, the continuing brutality of slave owners, and wars between European powers. Vincent Ogé led an uprising in late 1790 but was captured, tortured, and executed.
Toussaint l’Overture:
Toussaint was the son of an educated slave. He acquired through Jesuit contacts some knowledge of French, though he wrote and spoke it poorly, usually employing Haitian Creole and African languages. Winning the favour of the plantation manager, he became a livestock handler, healer, coachman, and finally steward. Legally freed in 1776, he married and had two sons. Toussaint was homely, short, and small framed. He was a fervent Roman Catholic, opposed to Vodou. He dressed simply and drank no alcohol and was a vegetarian. Although he slept little, his energy and capacity for work were astonishing. As a leader, he inspired awe and adulation.