Was The Gallic Revolution Preventable? Essay, Research Paper

The Gallic Revolution was a major transmutation of the society and political system of France, enduring from 1789 to 1799. During the class of the Revolution, France was changed from an absolute monarchy, to a democracy of purportedly equal and free citizens. The effects of the Gallic Revolution were widespread, both inside and outside of France, and impacted all of Europe. At times the result of rebellion led to societal alteration and at times it merely led to unneeded gores. Be this revolution inevitable? Was at that place something different that the authorities or people could hold done to forestall the atrocious atrociousnesss of The Reign of Terror under Robespierre and his work forces? There are clear societal, economic and political alterations that could hold been made excessively prevent this revolution from happening when it did. However, although the authorities could hold postponed this revolution, it was besides slightly inevitable, because of the great differences in the society of the provincials and the Lords divided the full society.

The authorities was besides merely seeking to do excessively many things right at the incorrect clip and this is why they could perchance hold non avoided the Gallic Revolution. Economically, many alterations could hold been made in the manner that would hold prevented such choler originating from the people. However, there are besides a few jobs that could non hold been avoided. Economic diminution in the 1770s may hold frustrated some businessperson in their rise to power and wealth, and lifting staff of life monetary values merely before the Revolution surely increased dissatisfaction among workers and provincials. France besides suffered from rough economic jobs. Poor farm crops by husbandmans hurt the economic system, and trade regulations from the Middle Ages still survived, doing trade hard. At this clip, the spread between the rich and the hapless was going greater, with the hapless going poorer, and the rich going richer. A cardinal bank was nowhere to be found, there was no paper currency and in general, revenue enhancements were going greater for the provincials. In this economically challenged society what could hold been done to alter all of these economic jobs from the beginning? One of the major jobs that the authorities should hold dealt with long ago is the usage of the financess that they did hold. Under swayers in the past such as Louis the XIV, hapless economic determinations were made. Louis the Fourteen did non put sagely, he used major financess in trade and geographic expedition causes that were non deriving the Gallic anything, but they continued to put in. Besides, France became really involved with other environing state & # 8217 ; s trade market. The Gallic authorities besides borrowed much money to pay for the wars of Louis XIV. Louis continued to borrow money to contend wars and to maintain Gallic power alive in Europe. These costs greatly increased the national debt, which was at the clip, already excessively high. The job with this is that the French were non gaining from the investings that they made, and this is what caused them to be in such great economic debt. This debt lead to the heavy revenue enhancement of provincials to do up for losingss, and an eventual revolution. What could the Gallic authorities have done to pr

event these mistakes? They should have learned from their first mistakes and had not continued to suffer from them. Once they realized that they were not profiting from their exploits, they should have discontinued them. Also, France never should have fired their financial aid, just because things get better for a while. When France decided its aid was no longer needed because they seemed to have the problem in control, is when the problem came back again. Eventually under Louis the XVI, two men were appointed as aids, Turgot and Necker . Although these men did try to make change, most of the reforms were soon undone as the result of pressure from a variety of financial groups, and the government continued to borrow at high rates of interest through the 1780s.By 1789 many French people had become critical of the monarchy, even though it had been largely successful in militarily defending France and in suppressing religious and political violence. The peasants resented the rising and unequal taxes, the persecution of religious minorities, and government interference in their private lives. These resentments, coupled with an inefficient government and an old-fashioned legal system, made the government seem increasingly bad to the French people. The royal court at Versailles, which had been developed to impress the French people and Europe generally, came to symbolize the waste and corruption of the entire French government. (Encarta) How could the Government possibly had made this situation better? Why did the government not respond quicker when the peasants wanted more rights? The government was well aware of the problem that they were causing, and the unrest among the peasants, so why did they not stop the taxes and bring peace to the divided nation? It was not as easy as just stopping taxes because the French government was still in a large debt to other nations. Also at the same time the Government was trying to get the full support of the nobles, because they would need them to help make the country thrive eventually. Also since the Government could not have the backing of the peasants or all of the nobles, they need an estate that they could always rely on and have them vote the way they wanted. So in trying to make friends with the nobles, the rulers did not tax the nobles as heavily as the other estates because they were trying to gain their support. In the sense, the Revolution could not have been prevented because the French Government was trying very hard to please both sides, fixing the debt and pleasing the nobles. The government could not win this part of the problem because either way, one group had to give. Economically speaking, the French Revolution could have been most likely not have been stopped, unless decisions in the past could have been changed. The excess spending by Louis the XIV caused this once great nation to fall into a deep period of debt and economic problems. In the long term, the liberation of the economy from royal controls, and the development of a uniform civil law code helped pave the way for the future. But the effects of war on the French economy offset the positive effects of these changes because the economy in general was probably set back a generation.

Published by
Essays
View all posts