French Revolutions Terms

The Estates General-
The Estates General was a meeting in 1789. It was the first meeting since 1614 of the French Estates General. It was a general assembly that represented the French collection of peoples. This assembly showed that they were independent from the Crown. It led to the French Revolution.

1st Estate-
The first estate consisted of the entire clergy. The higher clergy was composed of people from families involed with the 2nd estate. The bishops of France were noblemen and the lower clergy. The Lower clergy consisted of monks, priests, and nuns, which made up about 90% of the first estate. The responsibilities of the clergy included: being in charge of the records between births, deaths, and marriages. The Clergy collected tithe and censored books. They also served as moral police, administered schools and hospitals, and distributed relief to the poor.

2nd Estate-
This estate consisted of nobles. The Nobles in French society had the rights: to hunt, to wear a sword, have a coat of arms, and to possess a fief or seigneurie. Nobles were not required to pay taille, a tax ordered by the king, unless it was on non-noble lands that they might have possessed. Only nobles were allowed to have certain military, civic, and ecclesiastic positions. The Nobles were required to honor, serve, and advise the king. They were also required to follow orders of their military services.

3rd Estate-
The third estate consisted of people who weren't in the first or second estate, the commoners. The commoners consisted of peasants, laborers, and the bourgeoisie. The laborers were paid very little money and the peasants didn't have any sort of a job.

Bourgeoisie-
The bourgeoisie were the more affluent members of the third estate. The Bourgeoisie were workers who earned their money. They usually were self-employed proprietors, small employers , entrepreneurs , bankers, or merchants.

Declaration of the Rights of Man-
This was a document created during the French Revolution which is stating that all the individual and collective rights of every man are universal. This declaration was influenced by the doctrine of natural rights. It is clearly stating that the rights of man are universal. The Declaration stated that all men without exception or citizens had the universal rights. I noticed that it didnt mention the rights of either women or slaves, just men.

Era of Mutual Discontent-
The subjects of society that weren't affluent, not of the clergy or nobility, and were members of the third estate, started to feel discouraged and unhappy. They all had the desire to make a stand to get the rights that they deserve.

National Assembly-
It was the first legislature established in the French Revolution in 1789. This was originally called upon or created to deal with financial crisis of the french, but it did not get any where close to solving that crisis because it did nothing other than argue about its own structure. The third estate assumed the role as the representatives for all the commoners, so it was granted double representation instead of just a small representation. Although they got double representation the assembly informed them that the voting would be influenced by the estates as a whole, not by the number of members, so double representation was did nothing for them in the means of a say in control or power.

Tennis Court Oaths-
These were a pledge that was signed by 576 out of 577 members of the third estate along with a few members of the first estate. This oath was signed on June 20, 1789 inside a tennis court building near the Palace of Versailles. The one deputy that was recorded to not take the oath was Joseph-Martin Dauch. The oath stood as a marker of significance as the very first time the French citizens stood in defiance against King Louis XVI.

King Louis XVI-
August 23, 1754-January 21, 1793. He was the only king of France known to be executed. King Louis XVI was charged for treason and died by guillotine. He was made fun of because had a hard time having children in the beginning. King Louis XVI was suspended and arrested during the Insurrection of August 10, 1792. He was tried by the National Convention. He betrayed his people and attempted to flee from the country.

Maximilien Robespierre-
He was an important person during the French Revolution. He was the man who argued for human rights and was known for being an excellent argumentative representative who would stand up for his clients. Earlier, He was against the death penalty, which was odd because he pro-execution of King Louis XVI . Robespierre believed that the king must be sacrificed in order for to save the Revolution. He strongly believed that by being the king in the first place, he was a living danger to the state.

Reign of Terror-
This was a period of time that occured for four years and two months after the span of the French Revolution. It was the conflict between Girondins and Jacobins. It was estimated that about 16,000-40,000 people died. Among them, Several important leaders were executed.

Jacobins-
A Jacobin was a member of the Jacobin club. The majority of the members belonged to the more commoners of society, such as small shopkeepers, artisans, and even servants. Their leader was Maximilien Robespierre .

Committee on Public Safety-
This committee was set up by the National Convention in July 1793. They were responsible for denunciations, trials, and executions under the committee. This committee was composed of nine members in the start, but later increased to twelve. It was responsible for thousands of executions, that were committed inorder to justify the safety of the public of France.

Girondins-
It was a political group that existed within the Legislative Assembly and the National Convention during the French Revolution. This group sybolized the Democratic Revolution's principle and had patriotic opposition towards the European powers that didn't have it.