Ancien Regime
- Submitted by: chrisrush1471
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- Category: History: European
- Date Submitted: 11/03/2015 03:09 PM
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Did the refusal of the Assembly of Notables lead to the downfall of the Ancien Regime?
The king had called on an Assembly of Notables to help ease his countries financial woes. The Assembly of Notables was made up of 144 members of the country’s first and second estates. He had hoped that he’d be able to convince them, on behalf of their estates, to agree to pay a land tax. They refused because they felt like they’d be losing an important privilege. This upset Louis and he dismissed them in anger.
None of this would’ve happened had Louis not accumulated a huge debt. With the burden of having fought two wars, an inefficient tax system and the upkeep of the Versailles, debt had built up. He had seeked help from the bank, but they were reluctant to help. The French government, who were crippled by debt, were forced to take action.
Louis was not the ideal monarch for a crisis. He was out of touch and had led a sheltered life, having only left the Versailles a handful of times. His marriage to Marie Antoinette was also an issue, as she was heavily disliked by the French people. Their immediate issue with he was that she wasn’t French. She was Austrian. She was also seen to be promiscuous and of being extravagant with money. He wasn’t properly suited to leadership either, he was childish and lacked interest in it. He’d probably rather of pursued his hobby of being a locksmith. Louis was not the effective leader France needed at the time.
The Ancien Regime resembled a rickety old house that was about to fall down. The society was divided into three estates. The first was the clergy. The second was the nobles. The third was made up of everyone else. The top two had certain privileges. The top jobs were always reserved to them. The first estate also didn’t have to pay tax. The second estate paid very little tax, which they often got out of paying. That left the rest to be paid by the third estate, who had to pay a salt tax and a work tax...
The king had called on an Assembly of Notables to help ease his countries financial woes. The Assembly of Notables was made up of 144 members of the country’s first and second estates. He had hoped that he’d be able to convince them, on behalf of their estates, to agree to pay a land tax. They refused because they felt like they’d be losing an important privilege. This upset Louis and he dismissed them in anger.
None of this would’ve happened had Louis not accumulated a huge debt. With the burden of having fought two wars, an inefficient tax system and the upkeep of the Versailles, debt had built up. He had seeked help from the bank, but they were reluctant to help. The French government, who were crippled by debt, were forced to take action.
Louis was not the ideal monarch for a crisis. He was out of touch and had led a sheltered life, having only left the Versailles a handful of times. His marriage to Marie Antoinette was also an issue, as she was heavily disliked by the French people. Their immediate issue with he was that she wasn’t French. She was Austrian. She was also seen to be promiscuous and of being extravagant with money. He wasn’t properly suited to leadership either, he was childish and lacked interest in it. He’d probably rather of pursued his hobby of being a locksmith. Louis was not the effective leader France needed at the time.
The Ancien Regime resembled a rickety old house that was about to fall down. The society was divided into three estates. The first was the clergy. The second was the nobles. The third was made up of everyone else. The top two had certain privileges. The top jobs were always reserved to them. The first estate also didn’t have to pay tax. The second estate paid very little tax, which they often got out of paying. That left the rest to be paid by the third estate, who had to pay a salt tax and a work tax...