French_Revolution

Erupting in 1789 the people of France overthrew the French monarchy. By the fall of Napoleon they had installed a dictator, ruled most of Europe, and undergone tremendous social upheaval.

The French are a motley bunch of rebels who have no respect for their superiors. They dare to denounce the divine right of kings. They think the system adopted by our ancestors is corrupt! They think all of a sudden the working class can rule a country. If this spreads, the Aristocracy will have no power.

This madness started when King Louis XVI and his lady, Marie Antoinette, came into power through the Bourbon line. There was nothing wrong with them, really. The French peasants, however, thought the lady was the cause of the country’s debt[iii]. A bit of extravagance is good for such a high member of the peerage, and the peasants were probably just lazy. The peasants were also concerned about the taxation and corruption[iv]. However, it is only fair to tax the people, and the government seems corrupt only to traitors of the system. What’s more, a group of the scoundrels are massacring the king’s guard and have carted him and his queen off to the guillotine. As of now, their heads hang at the palace to the cries of “Vive la Revolucion!” This is outright mutiny![v]

This must be stopped, for if it spreads to England, the peerage will be no more. Proud men with a rich family will inherit nothing but a position in a factory. Her Majesty will hold no more control of this outbreak, and might be killed by the fanatics. This condition is already arriving in England. Middle classmen are climbing into the upper class, just because they are getting rich off of this accursed industrialism. The working class is starting to petition for equality, and are pleading to the queen for more political power. They are fools! The country belongs to its king and his lords. The lower class has no idea how to rule a country in the first place. They hardly know how to run a farm! The system works just fine and the classes should be kept in their proper places.

1English lords were members of the peerage, or upper class. They included barons, earls, dukes, and counts. The first-born son of a lord inherited money and land, and usually ended up very wealthy. Lords were generally “decorations,” but also participated in politics.

2The French Revolution started in 1789. The working and middle classes were displeased with the government for giving them few rights and taxing them heavily. Many believed that the government was corrupt and that the aristocracy lost all care for the peasants. Two groups started a series of violent revolts to overthrow the government and to set up a republic. These began with the storming of the Bastille, and eventually led to the deaths of many, including King Louis XVI.

3 The French despised Marie Antoinette not only because of her Austrian heritage, but also because of her spending habits, which worsened the country’s debt. King Louis XVI opposed this selfishness, but many believe he was too cowardly to go against his queen.

4The government, under the Louis’ rule, stopped functioning as a feudal community and was concerned mostly with taxing the people. Taxes including the salt tax and the land tax took most of the peasants’ money.

5Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette were executed by the guillotine in 1791. In the few years that followed, tens of thousands of people were executed for treason. Two political powers, one being led by Robspierre, battled for political power. Although Robspierre was victorious against his opponent, he was overthrown by the people and executed for tyranny. His head was the last the guillotine would see. At that time, France was at war with Austria. In the weakened state of France, Napoleon, the famous general, took over as despot and began the Napoleonic Wars. He was successful in conquering most of Europe, but was defeated by his former European allies (including Spain and Germany), largely due to his defeat in Russia. After Napoleon’s defeat, King Louis XVIII was crowned and a monarchy, though reformed, was restored.

The French Revolution Seen Through the Eyes of Victor Hugo[1]

When a man walks down the street and goes into a small kiosque he cannot buy a little treat without a man getting up on a table and yelling his thoughts about the French Revolution. This passion for your rights drives the courage and inner strength of a man’s heart. They know what is right in their minds and they test their courage up against their enemies even if their life is on the line.

Everyone talks about the men and how much they fight, but who can forget the women during the French Revolution? When a woman walks down the street going to buy bread, her money that she has saved all week in hand, she walks up to the bakery and realizes that the prices of bread has risen again. What type of cruel person could raise the price of bread on the people who work their heart and souls everyday to get their week’s pay to feed their families? How could anyone say to women who walk about 40 miles “Let them eat cake?” None other than the dumbfound Marie Antoinette[2], that’s who. There are poor women who are in a hole and cannot dig their way out and their intentions are good, but their reputation is bad. This passion not only for bread but also for stable prices of food is a keen example of what life was like for the poor. It was awful living conditions and they were treated like dirt.

King Louis[3] was by far the most cowardly, rude, and crude man there can ever be. To lock men out of a building just to stop them from taking an oath and rebelling shows a true coward underneath the gold and the jewelry. He prevented them from making a historical oath that would change history. Instead they took the Tennis Court Oath[4]. History would not be the same unless they had taken the oath. I marvel at their passion for equality and their tight bond that they made with each other.

The novel that I wrote, Les Miserables, is a parody that reflects what the French Revolution stands for. It proves that the poor are not what everyone thinks them to be. There are generous and warm-hearted people that are trying to make a living and feed their families. They are true and honest people and should be given the same rights that everyone else has, including equal tax pay, equal land amounts. A passion for life and a passion for their families is a beautiful thing that I wish that I could have seen.

The French Revolution is not only a part of history, it was an example of the passion that man has for his rights. Admiration is the feeling that I have for the demonstrators and the people who were involved with the French Revolution.

[1] A French novelist- wrote the novel Les Miserables.

[3] Was the king who ruled France during the time of the French Revolution.

[4] An oath that was taken by the National Assembly saying that they would stay united until the government system was changed.