In the seventeen hundreds, France was one of the most advanced and prestigious countries in Europe; they prospered from trade and taxes. Nobles and clergy lived luxurious lives, owning 30% of french land and paying little or no taxes. As 3% of the population, they controlled 100% of the country. The king spent money as he pleased, unphased by the rest of France’s struggles. The middle and lower classes, without liberty or equality, were unable to make changes in their lives or a difference in French society. In the early 1800s, the French economy began to decline, causing food prices to go up and business profits to go down. This caused alarm, frustration and anger among the middle and lower classes. While the tension grew, Enlightenment ideas
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The Declaration Of The Rights Of Man states that law “must be the same for all, whether it protects or punishes. All citizens, being equal in its eyes, shall be equally eligible to all high offices, public positions and employments, according to their ability, and without other distinction than that of their virtues and talents” (doc 2) This statement destroys the inequality among the upper class and the lower classes, saying that one 's status among society should only be determined by one 's “virtues and talents”, not by their family name. Equality was something which before the revolution, did not exist among the upper, middle and lower classes of France; the upper class would always get privileges which the lower and middle classes wouldn’t get. This declaration of equality among all classes was a direct result of the revolution and its original goals. Thomas E. Kaiser also believes that when one thinks about the French Revolution “They recalled the Revolution’s abolition of serfdom, slavery, inherited privilege, and those who, for reasons of social status or religion, had been traditionally excluded.”(doc 7) Slavery, serfdom and inherited privilege are now looked upon as forms of inequality, slavery and serfdom being the most extreme and popular forms of inequality. Through abolishing them, France rids itself of the most infamously popular forms of inequality and therefore …show more content…
After Napoleon’s return from war he “took steps to end corruption and inefficiency in government. He dismissed corrupt officials and, in order to provide the government with trained officials, set up lycées, or government-run public schools. These lycées were open to male students of all backgrounds. Graduates were appointed to public office on the basis of merit rather than family connections.” (Textbook) In the decision to create a school system and dismiss corrupt officers, Napoleon and France as a whole use reason to abandon the traditions which had lasted centuries. They instead decided to use reason to create a new, intelligent system of finding better people who can help run the country. Before the revolution, reason was a non existing factor in finding officials or other government employed workers; Usually the main thing that was assessed was their wealth and/or family name. According to the Assembly Decree Abolishing Feudalism, “All citizens, being equal in its eyes, shall be equally eligible to all high offices, public positions and employments, according to their ability, and without other distinction than that of their virtues and talents.” (doc 9) According to this statement, the french government was using reason based on one 's ability to place people into high offices, no other virtues would be considered. By using reason to find officials instead of the old traditions,
The Declaration Of The Rights Of Man states that law “must be the same for all, whether it protects or punishes. All citizens, being equal in its eyes, shall be equally eligible to all high offices, public positions and employments, according to their ability, and without other distinction than that of their virtues and talents” (doc 2) This statement destroys the inequality among the upper class and the lower classes, saying that one 's status among society should only be determined by one 's “virtues and talents”, not by their family name. Equality was something which before the revolution, did not exist among the upper, middle and lower classes of France; the upper class would always get privileges which the lower and middle classes wouldn’t get. This declaration of equality among all classes was a direct result of the revolution and its original goals. Thomas E. Kaiser also believes that when one thinks about the French Revolution “They recalled the Revolution’s abolition of serfdom, slavery, inherited privilege, and those who, for reasons of social status or religion, had been traditionally excluded.”(doc 7) Slavery, serfdom and inherited privilege are now looked upon as forms of inequality, slavery and serfdom being the most extreme and popular forms of inequality. Through abolishing them, France rids itself of the most infamously popular forms of inequality and therefore …show more content…
After Napoleon’s return from war he “took steps to end corruption and inefficiency in government. He dismissed corrupt officials and, in order to provide the government with trained officials, set up lycées, or government-run public schools. These lycées were open to male students of all backgrounds. Graduates were appointed to public office on the basis of merit rather than family connections.” (Textbook) In the decision to create a school system and dismiss corrupt officers, Napoleon and France as a whole use reason to abandon the traditions which had lasted centuries. They instead decided to use reason to create a new, intelligent system of finding better people who can help run the country. Before the revolution, reason was a non existing factor in finding officials or other government employed workers; Usually the main thing that was assessed was their wealth and/or family name. According to the Assembly Decree Abolishing Feudalism, “All citizens, being equal in its eyes, shall be equally eligible to all high offices, public positions and employments, according to their ability, and without other distinction than that of their virtues and talents.” (doc 9) According to this statement, the french government was using reason based on one 's ability to place people into high offices, no other virtues would be considered. By using reason to find officials instead of the old traditions,