Flashcards on The French Revolution: Overview
French Revolution Overview: Causes, Events & Lasting Impact
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French Revolution: Origins & Events
30 cards
Card 1
Question: What type of revolution was the French Revolution described as in the content?
Answer: A political revolution.
Card 2
Question: What general reasons did people in France have for starting the French Revolution by 1789?
Answer: They disliked many aspects of the political system and social structure.
Card 3
Question: Which new influences helped spark the French Revolution according to the content?
Answer: The spread of new ideas about freedom, equality, and how countries should be governed.
Card 4
Question: What specific economic conditions contributed to the outbreak of the French Revolution in 1789?
Answer: An economic crisis marked by poverty and hunger.
Card 5
Question: How did the calling of the Estates General contribute to the start of the Revolution?
Answer: People were disappointed because the Estates General had been called to increase taxes rather than to improve conditions.
Card 6
Question: Summarize the combined factors that led to the outbreak of revolution in France in 1789.
Answer: Unhappiness with the political system and social structure, the influence of new ideas about freedom and governance, economic crisis (poverty and hung
Card 7
Question: What were the main economic problems facing France before 1789?
Answer: Large national debt from wars, rising interest payments, government overspending (royal lifestyle and officials), poor harvests, food shortages and ri
Card 8
Question: Why did France have to keep borrowing money in the 18th century?
Answer: Because wars (including funding armies) and royal expenses left the country in debt and by the 1780s it had to borrow just to pay interest on existing
Card 9
Question: Which groups were largely exempt from paying taxes in pre-revolutionary France?
Answer: The nobles and the Church (First and Second Estates) were largely exempt from taxes.
Card 10
Question: Who paid most of the taxes in France before the Revolution?
Answer: The Third Estate — the middle class, urban workers and peasants — paid most or all of the taxes.