Amanda+G's+Essay

Amanda Goncalves Period 6 – Mr. D 4/29/2011 **King Louis XVI and the French Revolution **

When Louis the 16th was merely twenty years old, he was crowned the absolute ruler of France. He succeeded his grandfather Louis XV, and was obligated to try to solve the problems of a nation that had long been suffering at the hands of unable leaders, a weak economy and a feeble social structure. Needless to say, it did not go well considering he was not interested in politics or even remotely capable of handling a revolution. He had also lost the public’s favor because of his wife, Marie Antoinette. She was an Austrian archduchess who was not welcomed nor liked by a majority of the French people. They clearly weren’t in love and their marriage was described as being unstable and cold. Some historians argue that king Louis the XVI’s reign was a major contributing factor to the French Revolution. The French Revolution itself was a time of extreme social and political turbulence in France which lasted from1789 to 1799. It was basically the people’s rebellion against the monarchy after years of being displeased with the government’s actions and legislation. It transformed the country of France from a monarchical state into a modern nation with a new social structure of which provided the middle-class citizens of France with more power, ultimately forming a democratic republic. When Louis first became king he appointed one leader after another to help manage the country’s financial progress (among them Baron Turgot and Jacques Necker) and promote reform but none were very successful. If anything they made the country’s financial status worse considering they floated huge loans and many of their reform efforts failed. In addition to the already grim predicament was the king’s decision to become involved in the American Revolution, aiding the rebels with money, manpower and military supplies. His choice to continue helping the Americans despite their worsening financial situation plunged the country into further debt and surely gave the French people an example of which to help them model their own rebellion. It is incredibly ironic considering the events that would follow. When he finally gave the permission for a States-General (an assembly of various elected officials) to meet and discuss the financial matters of the country he was so indecisive that revolutionary delegates managed to dominate the discussion and even declare themselves a National Assembly. A mob soon formed and they stormed the Bastille on July 14, 1789 which signaled to almost everyone in the nation the beginning of a violent revolution. Storming the Bastille was not only important because of the munitions held inside, but the fortress itself was known as a symbol of royal absolutism, so raiding it was a clear attack on the monarchy. Three months later the royal family was forced to evacuate their home Versailles and go to Paris, where they lived in the Tuileries palace. He soon accepted the changes demanded by the revolutionaries but was suspiciously slow in passing any of the appropriate legislation. Louis’s failed attempt to flee the country and the public’s fear of his collusion with the Austrians and Prussians provoked a mob to rise against the monarchy in August of 1792. A republic was declared soon thereafter, on the 21st of September. A few months later Louis was sent to trial for treason, where evidence revealed that he had communicated with the Austrians. He was found guilty (by a biased republic of course) and was executed by guillotine on January 21st, 1793. Left behind was a new government, a set of social and political reforms based on Enlightenment ideologies and the beginning of an entirely altered and modern nation.


 * Here you'll notice that I've also created a Wordle, which is basically a visual representation of all the words you use in a text only it doesn't just show the words you use but with what frequeny you use certain words. The words you use more appear larger and more prominent in the image.

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