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    of 5

    HISTORY

    1) How was the French society organized? What privileges did certain sections of the society
    enjoy? Describe.
    Or
    ‘Social disparity was one of the major causes of the French Revolution.’ Justify by giving
    examples.
    Ans-

    Heavy Burden of Taxes on the Third Estate: The members of the first two Estates were exempted
    from paying taxes to the state. So all the taxes were paid by the people of the Third Estate.
    (iii) Wide Gap between People of Different Estates: Most of the people of the Third Estate were
    employed as labourers in workshops with fixed wages. The wages failed to keep pace with the
    rise in prices.
    (iv) No Political Rights: Although the upper two classes made up only a small fraction of the total
    population, yet they were the people who controlled the political and economic system of the
    nation. They enjoyed all the rights and privileges.
    (v) Unequal Distribution of Wealth : About 60% of the land was owned by nobles, the church and
    other richer members of the Third Estate.

    2) Explain the role of thinkers and philosophers in the French Revolution.


    Ans- Charles Montesquieu (1689-1775): A nobleman by birth, he became a lawyer and a
    judge. In his book, “The Spirit of Laws”, he criticised autocracy and praised the democratic
    republic.

    (iii) Francis Aronet Voltaire (1694-1778): Voltaire was another outstanding philosopher of
    the Revolution. He wanted the people to think about their material life on earth, and forget
    about heaven. He condemned the Church which supported the privileged class, and ignored
    the poor.

    (iv) Jean Jacques Rousseau (1712-1778): Rousseau is regarded as the architect of the French
    Revolution. He gave the slogan “Man was born free, yet he is everywhere in chains”. In the
    famous book, “The Social Contract”, he proved that the government was the result of a
    social contract between the people on the one hand, and ruler on the other. So if the ruler
    did not fulfil the contract, the people had the right to withdraw their loyalty to him, and
    bring down the tyranny of the ruler, by revolting.

    (v) John Locke: He was also a great political thinker. He wrote ‘Two Treatises of Government’
    in which he sought to refute the doctrine of the divine and the absolute right of the monarch.

    3) Explain the events that led to the insurrection of 1792 in France.


    ⚫ Ans- Assembly of the Estates: On 5th May, 1789 Louis XVI called together an assembly of
    the Estates General to pass proposals for new taxes. Voting in the Estates General in the
    past had been conducted according to the principle that each estate had one vote. But
    members of the Third Estate demanded that voting now should be conducted by the
    assembly as whole. When the king rejected this proposal, members of the Third Estate
    walked out of the assembly in protest.

    ⚫ National Assembly : The representatives of the Third state assembled in the hall of an
    indoor tennis court in the grounds of Versailles. They declared themselves a National
    Assembly, and swore not to disperse till they had drafted a constitution for France that
    would limit the powers of the monarch.

    ⚫ due to bad harvest, there was shortage of food, and there was also rumour that bands of
    brigands were on their way to destroy the ripe crops. Caught in a frenzy of fear, peasants
    started attacking nobles

    ⚫ On the morning of 14th July, 1789 the agitated crowd stormed and destroyed the Bastille.
    Under all these circumstances, Louis XVI finally according recognition to the National
    Assembly.

    ⚫ Subsistence crisis

    4)Explain the role of Mirabeau and Abbe’ Sieye’s in the French Revolution. HOTS
    Answer:

    ⚫ Both Mirabeau and Abbe’ Sieye’s were great political thinkers.


    ⚫ They were the leaders of the National Assembly which was formed in 1789 after the
    failure of the meeting of the Estate General.
    ⚫ Mirabeau was born in a noble family but was convinced of the need to do away with a
    society of feudal privilege.

    5) Explain how the new political system of Constitutional monarchy in France worked. HOTS
    Or
    Explain any five features of the Constitution drafted in 1791.

    Ans

    ⚫ The Constitution of 1791 vested the power to make laws in the National Assembly, which
    was indirectly elected.
    ⚫ With the new Constitution the powers of govern the country were assigned to different
    institutions, i.e., the legislature, executive and the judiciary.
    ⚫ The judiciary and the legislature were elected by the people. Only men above 25 years of
    age who paid taxes equal to at least 3 days of a labourer’s wage were given the status of
    active citizens, that is, they were entitled to vote.
    ⚫ Under this system the powers of the monarch were limited. Most of the powers were in the
    hands of legislatures.
    ⚫ The ministers were also answerable to the legislature. The king enjoyed the veto power.
    6) Describe the conditions of women during the period of French Revolution.
    Answer:
    Conditions of women during the period of French Revolution are

    ◆ Most women of the Third Estate had to work for a living as seamstresses or laundresses.
    They even sold flowers, fruits and vegetables at the market.
    ◆ They were employed as domestic servants in the house of prosperous people.
    ◆ They started their own political clubs and newspapers in order to voice their interests.
    ◆ They demanded the right to vote to be elected to the Assembly and hold political office.
    ◆ They did not have access to education or job training.
    ◆ Working women had also to take care of their families. Their wages were lower than those
    of men.

    7)

    8)

    9)
    10)

    11)

    12) What was subsistence crisis?


    Ans- Subsistence crisis is an extreme situation where the basic means of livelihood are endangered. The
    Factors Responsible for this Type of Crises were:
    The population of France rose from about 23 million in 1715 to 28 million in 1789. This led to a rapid
    increase in the demand for foodgrains. Production of grains could not keep pace with the demand..
    Most worker were employed as labourers in workshops whose owner fixed their wages.
    Things became worse whenever drought or haul reduced the harvest. This led to a subsistence crisis.

    RISE OF NAPOLEON

    ◼ After the French Revolution, France became a republic.


    ◼ The Jacobins introduced some radical reforms but they under Robespierre followed the
    policies so relentlessly that he himself was guillotine in July 1794.
    ◼ The fall of the Jacobin government allowed the wealthier middle class to seize power. Two
    legislative councils were elected, who then appointed a Directory, an executive made of five
    members
    ◼ Directors often clashed with legislative Councils and the latter sought to dismiss them.
    ◼ Political instability of the Directory paved the way for the rise of military dictator Napoleon
    Bonaparte

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