Pg.

Drew Gray
His. 358
Dr. Lerner
Feb. 3, 2016

The Assembly of the Estates General

The Estates-General of 1789 was called together because of the social tensions between

the clergy, the nobility, and the commoners (Social Causes 2). This assembly was extremely

important for all three people groups but especially for the Third Estate known as the common

people. This meeting presented the first gleam of hope for people outside of the clergy or

nobility in regards of their vote mattering equally, up until this point the three classes each had

one vote to put forth on issues. This setup was extremely profound as the nobility and clergy

actually only represented five percent of the population at the most (Social Causes 2). Citizens

of the Third Estate were searching and longing for a fair voice in political decisions and laws.

The fact that the simple people made up ninety-five percent of the population, but only had one-

third of the vote did not sit well at all. Commoners were looking for a way to proclaim their

thoughts and opinions, and they were convinced that the Estates-General of 1789 provided that.
A lot of tension was building up around France during the time of the Estates-General.

A leading cause of social stress in France during the Revolution was its large population

(Social Causes 1). France was growing rapidly, and with more people comes more opinions. At

the beginning of the eighteenth century, France had 20 million people living within its borders, a

number equal to nearly 20 percent of the population of non- Russian Europe (Social Causes 1).

As in any society, the influx of people affected how the construction of business took place. In

addition, the eighteenth century saw the intrusion of capitalism into everyday life. Thanks to a
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large expansion of oversees trade and a longer-term development of domestic trade, the money

economy experienced continued growth (Social Causes 1). As fantastic as this sounds, the

money economy was only funneling into a small percentage of the population. A few could

claim to be living nobly, meaning they rented their land to others to work in exchange for a

place to stay and food to eat (Social Causes 1). For the most part, everyone was living in the

Third Estate. Historians have estimated that in learn years 90 percent of the peasants lived at or

below the subsistence level, earning only enough to feed their families (Social Causes 1). These

eye popping numbers help us to understand why the common man of France in 1789 was not

getting a fair shake, in regards to political representation, and why this group saw the Estates-

General of 1789 as a real opportunity to receive fairly distributed voting leverage.

Sieyes wrote a piece entitled, What is the Third Estate? (Third Estate 154). He states,

This fourth class embraces all sorts of occupations, from the most distinguished liberal and

scientific professions to the lowest menial tasks (Third Estate 155). The common people for so

long were on the outside looking in. This group of citizens was pulling most of the weight, but

they had absolutely no power in regards to political authority. The Third Estates modest aim is

to possess an equal influence in the States-General to that of the privileged orders (Third Estate

160). The gathering of the Estates-General in 1789 was vital for these people; they felt that

change had to be made and it had to be made now. The King subsequently agreed to double the

size of the delegation of the Third Estate, but this move failed to appease critics of the political

system (Social Causes 2). The commoners knew that this act would not do them much good.

Many pamphlets appeared suggesting that representatives should vote by head rather than by

order (meaning all representatives should vote together as a single assembly, rather than as

three separate bodies representing separate orders) (Social Causes 1). These pamphlets were

not looking out for the Third State, they were striving to get everyone back on the same page
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(Social Causes 1). Their authors were making the case for a new concept of society, in which

commoners, especially the educated middle class, had the same value as the other orders (Social

Causes 1). This was just another way to bring the peasants outside of the nobility into their way

of thinking, so they could control the narrative and policy of whatever took place during the

assemblies. Sieyes quotes, There are, beyond any doubt, abuses in France; these abuses are

profitable to some persons: but they hardly ever benefit the Third Estate, and, on the contrary, it

is to the Third Estate that they do the most harm (Third Estate 166). The Third Estate would

have no part of this, and therefore we see tensions rise and the call of the Estates-General of

1789.
During the gathering together of the Estates-General in 1789, one of the driving forces

for common citizens was human rights. The statement was made that, If the guillotine is the

most striking negative image of the French Revolution, then the most positive is surely the

Declaration of the Rights of Man and Citizen, one of the founding documents in the human

rights tradition (Enlightenment and Human Rights 1). The Third Estate was eager for a voice,

one that actually gave them a chance in the presence of legal councils and gatherings. When the

French revolutionaries drew up the Declaration of the Rights of Man and Citizen in August 1789,

they aimed to topple the institutions surrounding hereditary monarchy and establish new ones

based on the principles of the Enlightenment (Enlightenment and Human Rights 1). The

Declaration of the Rights of Man brought about the thought of individual liberty (Enlightenment

and Human Rights 1). This was completely opposite thinking from the old system, where each

class got one single vote for the entire estate. This document presented that people should be

able to think and respond to issues for themselves, not as a grouped body. This way of thinking

along with many others, left the nobility elites in a state of uneasiness as they had always
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contained a strong grasp of control regarding voting in France. These ideas presented opened up

a whole new way people looked at who should have rights, and why they should have them.
As more and more fresh ideology came into fruition around the General-Estate of 1789,

The Petition of Women of the Third Estate to the King was written (Petition of Women 1).

Women were now coming to a visual reality of their rights. Women were looking to address

their problems and present their miseries to the king (Petition of Women 1). The passage states,

The women of the Third Estate are almost all born without wealth; their education is very

neglected or very defective: it consists in their being sent to school with a teacher who himself

does not know the first word of the language [Latin] he teaches (Petition of Women 1). Women

just like the men of the common citizens of France, are contributing greatly to society in France

yet they do not have a voice. They are crying out to the King of France to give them a fair

chance of making something of themselves. We implore you, Sire, to set up free schools where

we might learn our language on the basis of principles, religion, and ethics; may we be taught

above all to practice the virtues of our sex: gentleness, modesty, patience, charity (Petition of

Women 2). Women were now joining in on the push of the Third Estate for equal rights and

representation in society of France. They were seeking out a better way of life for themselves and

for their children. We ask to leave of ignorance, to give our children a sound and reasonable

education so as to make of them subjects worthy of serving you. We will teach them to cherish

the beautiful name of Frenchmen (Petition of Women 2). The people of the Third Estate across

the board just wanted to be a part of France in a way that mattered. We see this in men and

women all surrounding the assembly of the Estates-General of 1789.

The Estates-General came together because of many social tensions in France at the time

(Social Causes 1). The Third Estate was fighting for their rights of equality, and this made the

nobility extremely uncomfortable. However, the truth was that France was composed almost
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entirely of working class people. This group of citizens was not just going to sit back forever,

and allow others to have basically complete control of the assemblies and gatherings. They

wanted a voice and a right to explain and share their opinions. The Estates-General of 1789 gave

them this opportunity to start breaking into this way of thinking. This gathering did not

accomplish everything that they wanted by a long shot, but this is what started stirring the pot for

revolution to break out in and all throughout France. People started coming up with new

ideology of what it really meant to be a part of a governing body of people. Everyone deserved

to share and express their beliefs on issues revolving around France.

Works Cited
Sieyes, What is the Third Estate? (1789) Pg. 154-179. The Old Regime and the French

Revolution ed. Keith Michael Baker. [https://blackboard.olemiss.edu/bbcswebdav/pid-1689055-

dt-content-rid-40223873_1/courses/His_358_Section_1_Lerner_2015-2016_SPRG/Sieyes.pdf]
Social Causes of the Revolution CH.1 Pg. 1-4. [chnm.gmu.edu/revolution/chap1a.html]
Enlightenment and Human Rights Ch.3 Pg. 1-3 [chnm.gmu.edu/revolution/chap3a.html]
Petition of Women of the Third Estate to the King (1 January 1789) Pg.1-2

[chnm.gmu.edu/revolution/d/279] Source: The materials listed below appeared originally in the

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French Revolution and Human Rights: A Brief Documentary History, trans. ed. and with an

introduction by Lynn Hunt (Boston/New York: Bedford/St. Martins, 1996), 60-63