Question

Upon his accession, Louis XVI found an empty treasury because of:

Answer 1

Answer:

Five causes for the empty treasury of France under Louis XVI are:

(i) Long years of war had drained the financial resources of France.

(ii) High cost of maintenance of immense palace of Versailles and court.

(iii) Under Louis XVI France helped the thirteen American colonies to gain independence.

(iv) War added to a debt.

(v) Lenders began to barge high interest on loans.

Answer 2

Answer:

In 1774, Louis XVI of the Bourbon family of kings ascended the throne of France. He found an empty treasury because :-

(i) Long years of wars had drained the financial resources of France. The condition was served when under Louis XVI, France helped the thirteen American colonies to gain their independence from Britain.

(ii) The king's court at the immense palace of Versailles was extravagant and the cost of maintaining it was also high.

(iii) Taxes were levied only on third estate and exempted first and second estates which were rich.

(iv) The war with Britain added more than a billion livres to a debt that had already risen to more than 2 billion livres.

(v) Lenders who had given the state credit, now began to change 10 per cent interest on the existing loans. So, the French government had to spend an increasing percentage of its budget on interest payment.

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