1. Describe the circumstances leading to the outbreak of revolutionary protest
in France.
2. Which groups of French society benefited from the revolution? Which
groups were forced to relinquish power? Which sections of society would
have been disappointed with the outcome of the revolution?
3. Describe the legacy of the French Revolution for the peoples of the world
during the nineteenth and twentieth centuries.
4. Draw up a list of democratic rights we enjoy today whose origins could be
traced to the French Revolution.
5. Would you agree with the view that the message of universal rights was
beset with contradictions? Explain.
6. How would you explain the rise of Napoleon?
Answers
Answer:
Q1)
-In 1774, Louis XVI of the Bourbon family of kings ascended the throne of France. Upon his accession the new king found an empty treasury.
-Long years of war had drained the financial resources of France. Added to this was the cost of maintaining an extravagant court at the immense palace of Versailles.
-Under Louis XVI, France helped the thirteen American colonies to gain their independence from the common enemy, Britain. The war added more
than a billion livres to a debt that had already risen to more than 2
billion livres.
-livres. Lenders who gave the state credit, now began to charge 10 per cent interest on loans. So the French government was obliged to spend an increasing percentage of its budget on interest payments alone.
-To meet its regular expenses, such as the cost of maintaining an army, the court, running government offices or universities, the state was forced to increase taxes. Yet even this measure would not have sufficed.