Beginning with the separation of the Estates General, the French Revolution was a huge political, social, and economic upset that occurred in three parts: the First Revolution, the Second Revolution, and the Thermidorian Reaction with Napoleon’s era. Each section benefitted a different part of France’s vast class system and was detrimental to others. While the First Revolution was most beneficial for the bourgeoisie, the Second Revolution helped the sans culottes, and the Thermidorian Reaction and Napoleon helped the wealthy classes again. The First Revolution of the French Revolution was based around the Enlightenment thinker Locke’s ideas. He believed that there should be consent of the governed and that all citizens have the rights …show more content…
Along with the nobility, they were also granted the right to vote. The nobles, however, lost their titles and privilege, which had until then meant that they were not taxed and suffered no physical punishment. As a result of the Great Fear, they also gave up large portions of their land as well as their feudal rights, which consisted of hunting and fishing rights, judicial authority, tithes, and special exemptions. This gave the peasants their land, which is what they wanted, and they also got civil rights under the new constitution.
Unfortunately, the peasants along with the sans culottes were still denied the right to vote, and the sans culottes also lost the ability to protect their wages. Ceiling prices were introduced to bread, which, while it increased affordability, caused the merchants to lose the money they could otherwise charge.
Women in the First Revolution were denied voting as well, but they did enjoy civil rights. Women also increased their political activity, marching on Versailles to drag the king out and speed up the progression of the …show more content…
All citizens, even sans culottes and peasants, could vote, provided they were male. Sans culottes were also given public welfare, which prevented the price of bread from rising and gave rise to food affordability.
The bourgeoisie and nobles did not fare as well, however. Many of the upper classes suffered from mass executions and, in the case of the nobility, loss of land. Among the bourgeoisie, the Jacobins pitted themselves against the wealthier class members. Women, regardless of class, were denied voting and lost all the political influence that had been gained in the First Revolution. While they remained equal under the law, their political groups were disbanded and any sense of power removed. As the end of the French Revolution drew near, Thermidorian Reactionaries and Napoleon created a France that was peaceful, but not at all what the French Revolution had set out to do. The refractory and constitutional clergy were forced to resign, as Napoleon had decided to begin the Church again with a clean slate. All chosen clergy members were then required to swear loyalty to the state before they could be