OCR Specification focus:
‘the ideas of the Enlightenment and the impact of the American Revolution and the War of Independence; social discontents; economic problems from 1787’
The Enlightenment and the American Revolution fundamentally reshaped France’s intellectual, social, and political climate. Combined with worsening economic pressures, they contributed to mounting discontent that culminated in revolution.
The Enlightenment and its Influence
Core Principles of Enlightenment Thought
The Enlightenment was an intellectual movement of the eighteenth century which emphasised reason, science, and individual rights over tradition and religious authority.
Enlightenment: An intellectual movement (c. 1715–1789) stressing rational thought, empirical evidence, and the questioning of traditional institutions such as monarchy and the Church.
Key ideas included:
Natural rights: all individuals possess inherent rights such as liberty, property, and equality.
Social contract theory: political authority arises from the consent of the governed (Jean-Jacques Rousseau).
Separation of powers: political power should be divided between executive, legislative, and judicial branches to prevent tyranny (Montesquieu).
Religious toleration and freedom of thought (Voltaire).
These principles directly challenged the Ancien Régime, where monarchy, aristocracy, and the Catholic Church held immense power.
Enlightenment Writers and Influence in France
Voltaire criticised clerical corruption and championed civil liberties.
Montesquieu provided frameworks for constitutional monarchy and checks on royal power.
Rousseau emphasised popular sovereignty and collective will, appealing particularly to radical revolutionaries.
Diderot’s Encyclopédie spread Enlightenment ideas widely, making knowledge accessible.
Title page of Diderot’s Encyclopédie, symbolising Enlightenment commitments to reason and knowledge. The imagery highlights philosophy, science, and dissemination of learning as core values. Source
The salons of Paris, hosted by influential women such as Madame Geoffrin, facilitated debates among intellectuals, aristocrats, and bourgeois reformers, creating a political culture of criticism.
The Impact of the American Revolution
French Support for American Independence
France’s military and financial aid to the American colonists against Britain during the American War of Independence (1775–1783) provided a concrete example of Enlightenment ideals in practice.
The Declaration of Independence (1776), influenced by Enlightenment thinkers, proclaimed the rights to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.
Benjamin Franklin and Thomas Jefferson became admired figures in France, symbolising the real-world application of philosophical principles.
French officers, most famously the Marquis de Lafayette, returned from America inspired by republican ideals and calls for reform.
Consequences for France
The war cost France over 1.3 billion livres, exacerbating its financial crisis.
Exposure to American political models strengthened French demands for representative government and written constitutions.
The example of colonies defeating a monarchy fed belief that reform and revolution were achievable.
Social Discontents in Pre-Revolutionary France
The Estates System
The rigid social hierarchy of the Ancien Régime deepened resentment.
1789 caricature illustrating the Third Estate burdened by clergy and nobility. A powerful representation of inequality and resentment driving popular discontent under the Ancien Régime. Source
First Estate (Clergy): owned vast lands, enjoyed privileges, and were exempt from many taxes.
Second Estate (Nobility): held seigneurial rights and monopolised high offices.
Third Estate (Commoners): over 95% of the population, burdened with taxes and with little political representation.
Growing numbers of bourgeois professionals (lawyers, merchants, financiers) resented exclusion from political power despite their wealth and education.
Peasant Grievances
Obliged to pay tithes to the Church and feudal dues to lords.
Suffered from poor harvests, especially the severe winters of 1787–1789.
Rising bread prices often consumed up to 80% of household income, causing deep hardship.
Urban Unrest
In cities such as Paris, skilled artisans and workers faced unemployment and high food costs. The Sans-culottes (working-class radicals) became a powerful force in the revolutionary movement.
Economic Problems from 1787
Financial Crisis and Taxation
By 1787, France’s finances were near collapse.
Royal debts exceeded 4 billion livres.
The taille (land tax) and gabelle (salt tax) weighed heavily on the Third Estate.
Attempts to reform taxation to include clergy and nobles met resistance.
Attempts at Reform
Charles Alexandre de Calonne (Controller-General, 1783–1787) proposed a universal land tax and creation of provincial assemblies.
His reforms were rejected by the Assembly of Notables (1787), dominated by privileged elites unwilling to lose exemptions.
Successive ministers (Necker, Brienne) failed to push through reforms, deepening the political deadlock.
Short-Term Triggers
Bad harvests in 1787 and 1788 worsened food shortages.
Rising unemployment in urban areas created instability.
Calls for the Estates-General to be convened in 1789 were fuelled by these pressures.
The Interplay of Ideas and Circumstances
Enlightenment Meets Crisis
The Enlightenment provided ideological fuel, but the revolution’s outbreak was accelerated by financial and social realities. Intellectual critiques gained power because:
The American Revolution proved change was possible.
Economic collapse exposed the injustice of privilege.
Social discontent transformed abstract philosophy into mass political demands.
Thus, the convergence of new ideas, foreign inspiration, entrenched inequality, and fiscal collapse set the stage for the revolutionary explosion of 1789.
FAQ
Censorship by the monarchy and Church sought to suppress writings that criticised authority or religion. Many Enlightenment works, such as Rousseau’s Social Contract, were banned.
However, illegal book trade and clandestine printing presses smuggled copies into France, ensuring widespread circulation. Salons and cafés also allowed debate to flourish beyond official control.
Lafayette fought in the American War of Independence and returned to France as a celebrated hero.
He became a symbol of Franco-American friendship.
His advocacy for a National Assembly and constitutional monarchy directly drew on his American experiences.
Lafayette embodied how exposure to republican ideals abroad influenced reformist politics at home.
Salons were social gatherings hosted by influential women like Madame Geoffrin and Madame de Staël.
They provided:
A space where nobles, bourgeois intellectuals, and foreign guests debated politics and philosophy.
An avenue for Enlightenment texts to be discussed and popularised.
A rare opportunity for women to exercise cultural and political influence in shaping opinion.
Unlike the Seven Years’ War, the American conflict ended in victory, yet the financial cost was crippling.
Loans and subsidies totalled over a billion livres, worsening debt.
No territorial or trade benefits offset the expense.
The contrast between military success abroad and financial ruin at home fuelled anger at royal mismanagement.
Different groups drew different lessons:
Nobles and officers admired military success and republican values.
Bourgeoisie were attracted to constitutionalism and equality before the law.
Commoners were less directly inspired, but news of a monarchy defeated by colonists encouraged belief in change.
The Revolution therefore resonated across social boundaries, though in varied ways.
Practice Questions
Question 1 (2 marks)
Name two key Enlightenment thinkers whose ideas influenced pre-revolutionary France.
Mark Scheme
1 mark for each correctly identified Enlightenment thinker, up to a maximum of 2 marks.
Acceptable answers include: Voltaire, Montesquieu, Rousseau, Diderot.
Do not award marks for thinkers not directly associated with the French Enlightenment (e.g. Locke, Hobbes).
Question 2 (6 marks)
Explain how the American Revolution contributed to political change in France before 1789.
Mark Scheme
Award up to 6 marks for a clear, structured explanation with accurate factual knowledge.
1–2 marks: Basic knowledge of French involvement in the American Revolution (e.g. France helped America, costly war). Limited or no explanation of political change.
3–4 marks: Some explanation of how Enlightenment ideals in America influenced French thought (e.g. Declaration of Independence, Lafayette’s return). Limited linkage to French political climate.
5–6 marks: Developed explanation showing how exposure to American revolutionary ideas encouraged demands for representative government and written constitutions in France, alongside financial costs leading to discontent. Clear linkage to political developments before 1789.
