Monarchy, Social Classes, and Revolutions: 18th Century
Political Life in 1789
By 1789, the political system was a monarchy. The King claimed his power derived from God, and his subjects had no right but to obey. The King declared war and peace and led the entire administration. Provincial governors administered the provinces. The King was subject to the law but should consider the people’s needs. Torture was used to obtain confessions.
Social Life
Clergy
The clergy was the most privileged class. They had a good reputation, large territories, and did not pay taxes.
Nobility
The nobility was the second privileged class, with land and similar importance. They paid taxes only in special cases.
Third Estate
The Third Estate was distinguished into the upper and lower middle class, workers, and peasants. They had to pay state taxes, tithes, and feudal rights.
Economic Life
Industry was burdened with excessive regulations and taxes. Internal customs existed.
Mutiny Tea
Three British ships loaded with tea, a product that paid taxes, were anchored in Boston. American patriots refused to pay taxes without representation in the English Parliament.
USA Independence
Great Britain had imposed many trade restrictions on its North American colonies. Their products could only be exported to the Metropolis. By 1770, the Crown tried to force the colonies to pay war expenses. The Stamp Act required payment for all public documents through a stamp. The colony of Virginia declared that settlers should only pay taxes imposed by their assembly. In 1738, England conceded defeat and recognized the independence of the United States of America. The defense of property rights and freedom was paramount. There was a clear division of powers: an executive, a legislature, and a Senate composed of state senators.
Tupac Amaru
In Peru in 1780, a descendant of the Incas, taking the name of the last Inca emperor, Tupac Amaru, who had been killed by Viceroy Francisco de Toledo, led a rebellion. Thousands of Indians joined Tupac Amaru’s liberating army, demanding the end of Spanish rule and the return of American land to its rightful owners. The rebellion initially succeeded, with Tupac implementing a revolutionary return of stolen lands to farmers, the cancellation of slavery, and personal services. After heroic fighting, in which over 100,000 Indians died, the first cry of American freedom was silenced, and its leader was detained. On May 18, 1781, after killing most of his family, Spanish authorities subjected Tupac Amaru to dismemberment. His body parts were placed on pikes in cities where the attempted revolution had triumphed.
The French Revolution
The European eighteenth century was overshadowed by England. This new world led to the downfall of the old. In 1789, a revolution ended centuries of monarchy in France. King Louis and his wife Marie Antoinette were guillotined. The French Revolution marked the beginning of the end of absolute monarchy and the triumph of popular sovereignty and the separation of powers. The people of Paris formed an assembly that took power and abolished all the privileges of the nobles. The assembly drafted the “Declaration of the Rights of Man and Citizen.” Many who saw the revolution as the triumph of the bourgeoisie identified with liberal ideas, the right of every man to exercise their fundamental rights. Of all the revolutions, the French Revolution was the only major movement of ideas that produced a real effect on everyone.
Europe Monarchy
Thus began a long war that would extend for 23 years. To cope with such a formidable enemy, the urban poor were mobilized and became present in the revolutionary government.
Napoleon Invades Spain
In 1808, Napoleon invaded Spain and forced Charles IV to renounce the throne in favor of his son Ferdinand VII. Ferdinand was taken prisoner and forced to leave the throne to Joseph Bonaparte.