As Revolutionary panic swept France in 1789, the deputies of the Third Estate convened a deliberative body that omitted the “privileged” classes (the clergy and the nobility). This National Assembly would serve as the French parliament in the early years of the Revolutionary period.
What does the Third Estate do?
The Estates-General had not been assembled since 1614, and its deputies drew up long lists of grievances and called for sweeping political and social reforms. The Third Estate, which had the most representatives, declared itself the National Assembly and took an oath to force a new constitution on the king.
What was unique about the Third Estate?
Members of the Third Estate paid all of the taxes but had none of the privileges the other estates enjoyed. Members of the Third Estate were struggling under the financial burden, and they resented the fact that the other estates were able to lead lavish life styles while they themselves suffered.
What were the main demands of the Third Estate?
The demands of the third estate of the French society were equal taxation, proportionate voting, and estate general set special meeting times.
What was life like in the Third Estate?
The rural peasantry made up the largest portion of the Third Estate. Most peasants worked the land as feudal tenants or sharecroppers and were required to pay a range of taxes, tithes and feudal dues. 3. A much smaller section of the Third Estate were skilled and unskilled urban workers, living in cities like Paris.
What were the professions of the Third Estate people?
Members of the Third Estate ranged from lowly beggars and struggling peasants to urban artisans and labourers; from the shopkeepers and commercial middle classes to the nation’s wealthiest merchants and capitalists.
What was the role of the Third Estate?
But the dramatic inequality in voting—the Third Estate represented more people, but only had the same voting power as the clergy or the nobility—led to the Third Estate demanding more voting power, and as things developed, more rights.
What was the Third Estate in medieval France?
The Three Estates. Sometimes, in late medieval and early France, a gathering termed an ‘Estates General’ was called. This was a representative body designed to rubber-stamp the decisions of the king.
Where did the Third Estate swear not to disperse?
Oath of the Tennis Court: the deputies of the third estate meeting in the tennis court at the Château of Versailles, swearing not to disperse until a constitution is assured. Etching by L-F. Couché after J. L. David.
What did estates do during the French Revolution?
They played a vital role in the early days of the French Revolution, which also ended the common use of the division. Sometimes, in late medieval and early France, a gathering termed an ‘Estates General’ was called.
