What are some problems that the French peasants faced?
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What are some problems that the French peasants faced?
Transcribed Image Text:French peasants in the late eighteenth century were better off than the peasants
of Eastern and Central Europe, where serfdom predominated. The grear major-
ity of France's 21 million peasants were free; many owned their own land, and
some were prosperous. Yer the countryside was burdened with severe problems,
which sparked a spontaneous revolution in 1789,
A rising birthrate led to the continual subdivision of French farms among
peasant sons; on the resulting small holdings, peasants struggled to squeeze our
a living. Many landless peasants, who were forced to work as day laborers, were
also hurt by the soaring population. An oversupply of rural day laborers reduced
many of the landless to beggary. An unjust and corrupt tax system also contrib-
uted to the peasants poverty. Peasants paid excessive taxes to the state, church,
and lords; taxes and obligations due the lords were particularly onerous medieval
vestiges, as most peasants were no longer serfs. A poor harvesc in 1788-1789 and,
inflation worsened conditions.
Arthur Young (1741-1820), an English agricultural expert with a keen eye for
detail, traveled through France just prior to the Revolution. In Trarels Daring
the Years 1787, 1788, and 1789, he reported on conditions in the countryside.
The abuses attending the levy of taxes
were heavy and universal. The kingdom
was parceled into generalities (administra-
tive units), with an intendant at the head of
each, into whose hands the whole power of che
crown was delegared for everything except the
![1. Smugglers of salt, armed and assembled
to the number of five, in Provence, a fine of 500
liv. [livres, French coins] and nine years gal-
military authoritty; but particularly for all af-
fairs of finance The generalities were subdi-
vided into elections, at the head of which was
a sub-delegue appointed by the intendant. The leys (sentenced to backbreaking labor-rowing
rolls of the taille, capitation, vingtièmes, and
other taxes, were distributed among districts, death.
parishes, and individuals, at the pleasure of the
intendant, who could exempt, change, add, or
diminish at pleasure. Such an enormous power, years galleys. Second offense,
constantly acting, and from which no man was
free, must, in the nature of things, degenerate same punishments as for smuggling..
in many cases into absolute tyranny. It must
be obvious that the friends, acquaintances, and ing rights] were a dreadful scourge on all the
dependents of the intendant, and of all his sub- occupiers of land. By this term is to be under-
delegues, and the friends of these friends, to a
long chain of dependence, might be favoured granted by the king to princes of the blood, by
in taxation at the expense of their miserable which they were put
neighbours; and that noblemen in favour at erty of all game, even on lands not belonging to
court, to whose protection the intendant him- them.... In speaking of the preservation of the
self would naturally look up, could find little
difficulty in throwing much of the weight of that by game must be understood whole droves
their taxes on others, without a similar sup-
port. Instances, and even gross ones, have been by any wall or pale, but wandering at plea-
reported to me in many parts of the kingdom,
that made me shudder at the oppression to
which (people have been subjected) by the un-
due favours granted to such crooked influence.
But, without recurring to such cases, wwhat
must have been the state of the poor people Such were the exertions of arbitrary power
paying heavy taxes, from which the nobility which the lower orders felt directly from the
and clergy were exempted? A cruel aggrava- royal authority, but, heavy as they were, it is a
tion of their misery, to see those who could question whether the [abuses], suffered [indi-
best afford to pay, exempted because able! rectly] through the nobility and the clergy,
The corvées (taxes paid in labor, often road
building], or police of the roads, were annually
the ruin of many hundreds of farmers; more
than 300 were reduced to beggary in filling up
one vale in Lorraine: all these oppressions fell
on the trers etat [Third Estare] only; the nobil-
ity and clergy having been equally exempted districts indeterminate-appeals endless
from tailles, militia and corvées. The penal code
of finance makes one shudder at the horrors of
sea vessels], in all the rest of the kingdom,
2. Smugglers, armed, assembled, but in
number under five, a fine of 300 liv. and three
death.
甜
10. Buying smuggled salt, to resell it, the
The capitaineries (lords" exclusive hunt-
stood the paramountship of certain districts,
in
possession of the prop-
game in these capitaineries, it must be observed
of wild boars, and herds of deer not confined
sure over the whole country, to the destruction
of crops; and to the peopling of the galleys
by the wretched peasants, who presumed to
kill them in order to save that food which
was to support their helpless children.
were not yet more oppressive. Nothing can ex-
ceed the complaints made in the cabrers [lists
of Third Estare grievances drawn
under this head. They speak of the dispen-
sation of justice in the manorial courrs, as
up in 1789]
comprising every species of despotism; the
-
prosperity-and
irrevocably fcondemned) in the opinion of the
irreconcilable to liberry and
punishment inadequare co the crime.](/v2/_next/image?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcontent.bartleby.com%2Fqna-images%2Fquestion%2F989794fa-ee4b-4e8d-9b8d-e3c1d9131443%2F6dd6b0e8-7664-4c37-813e-9f2903e2a248%2Fhtr5s8f_processed.jpeg&w=3840&q=75)
Transcribed Image Text:1. Smugglers of salt, armed and assembled
to the number of five, in Provence, a fine of 500
liv. [livres, French coins] and nine years gal-
military authoritty; but particularly for all af-
fairs of finance The generalities were subdi-
vided into elections, at the head of which was
a sub-delegue appointed by the intendant. The leys (sentenced to backbreaking labor-rowing
rolls of the taille, capitation, vingtièmes, and
other taxes, were distributed among districts, death.
parishes, and individuals, at the pleasure of the
intendant, who could exempt, change, add, or
diminish at pleasure. Such an enormous power, years galleys. Second offense,
constantly acting, and from which no man was
free, must, in the nature of things, degenerate same punishments as for smuggling..
in many cases into absolute tyranny. It must
be obvious that the friends, acquaintances, and ing rights] were a dreadful scourge on all the
dependents of the intendant, and of all his sub- occupiers of land. By this term is to be under-
delegues, and the friends of these friends, to a
long chain of dependence, might be favoured granted by the king to princes of the blood, by
in taxation at the expense of their miserable which they were put
neighbours; and that noblemen in favour at erty of all game, even on lands not belonging to
court, to whose protection the intendant him- them.... In speaking of the preservation of the
self would naturally look up, could find little
difficulty in throwing much of the weight of that by game must be understood whole droves
their taxes on others, without a similar sup-
port. Instances, and even gross ones, have been by any wall or pale, but wandering at plea-
reported to me in many parts of the kingdom,
that made me shudder at the oppression to
which (people have been subjected) by the un-
due favours granted to such crooked influence.
But, without recurring to such cases, wwhat
must have been the state of the poor people Such were the exertions of arbitrary power
paying heavy taxes, from which the nobility which the lower orders felt directly from the
and clergy were exempted? A cruel aggrava- royal authority, but, heavy as they were, it is a
tion of their misery, to see those who could question whether the [abuses], suffered [indi-
best afford to pay, exempted because able! rectly] through the nobility and the clergy,
The corvées (taxes paid in labor, often road
building], or police of the roads, were annually
the ruin of many hundreds of farmers; more
than 300 were reduced to beggary in filling up
one vale in Lorraine: all these oppressions fell
on the trers etat [Third Estare] only; the nobil-
ity and clergy having been equally exempted districts indeterminate-appeals endless
from tailles, militia and corvées. The penal code
of finance makes one shudder at the horrors of
sea vessels], in all the rest of the kingdom,
2. Smugglers, armed, assembled, but in
number under five, a fine of 300 liv. and three
death.
甜
10. Buying smuggled salt, to resell it, the
The capitaineries (lords" exclusive hunt-
stood the paramountship of certain districts,
in
possession of the prop-
game in these capitaineries, it must be observed
of wild boars, and herds of deer not confined
sure over the whole country, to the destruction
of crops; and to the peopling of the galleys
by the wretched peasants, who presumed to
kill them in order to save that food which
was to support their helpless children.
were not yet more oppressive. Nothing can ex-
ceed the complaints made in the cabrers [lists
of Third Estare grievances drawn
under this head. They speak of the dispen-
sation of justice in the manorial courrs, as
up in 1789]
comprising every species of despotism; the
-
prosperity-and
irrevocably fcondemned) in the opinion of the
irreconcilable to liberry and
punishment inadequare co the crime.
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