HBL+-+Group+6


 * HBL Source-Based Questions**
 * Source A --**

Source A agrees with the hypothesis. It states that King Louis XVI’s decision to tax the nobility and the clergy was “excessive and unreasonable”; this shows that the Parlement was not happy with the King’s decision. From contextual knowledge, because of the deteriorating economic conditions, the King has to tax the nobles and the clergy as the Third Estate was not enough to pay off the debts France had incurred. Understandably, there was a growing discontent within them, as they have always been exempted from paying taxes. With cross-reference to Source D, we can see that the price of wheat shot up in 1789, showing the extent of the economic crisis in France at that time, leading to unhappiness within the people. When it got to the point that it was beyond what they could bear, they decided to revolt against the absolute monarchy whom they felt was incompetent. This source is reliable as it comes from the Parlement President’s response to King Louis XVI’s decision to tax the nobility and the clergy dated on 6 August 1787, which means this is a first hand source. The tone of this source is formal, since it is a response to the King; the purpose is informing the King of their refusal to “vote for such crushing taxes” and they would “continue to protest with firmness and respect”. Thus Source A supports the view that the French Revolution was due to deteriorating economic conditions. -Lidia-


 * Source B --**

 Marie Antoinette’s letter says that the parlements was thinking of “to create another assembly that will have the right to register taxes and general laws for the kingdom.” This means that they Estates wanted to control the amount of taxes that they had to pay and to change the current policy that the King on the taxes. According to Source B, the parlements have been persisting for “several months” with “troublemaking resolutions and protests.” The protests were troubling enough that Marie Antoinette acknowledged the fact that “any delay would reduce the resources for preserving and consolidating the King’s authority.” This shows that the financial problems and disagreement over taxes were causing protests and was making King Louis make changes in his rule. This complements my prior knowledge about the causes of the French Revolution. The Third Estate, mainly made up of peasants and others were not of noble blood, was being taxed in large amounts while the Second Estate, nobles, and the First Estate, the clergy, was not being taxed. This unfair treatment was part of many factors that tied in together and caused the French Revolution. The parlements created another parliament to decide on taxes and to stop the overtaxing of the Third Estate. This source, hence, does show that the French Revolution was due to deteriorating economic conditions.  -Iram-

This source shows that the Third Estate, which consists of the majority of the population, was greatly displeased with the French government. They asked to be “liberate(d) from this miserable scourge of the gabelle”, and their use of the word “liberate” and “miserable” show that they were in a very terrible situation as they had been exploited by the rich and the nobles and were treated unfairly. This complements my prior knowledge from an external body of information, that members of the Third Estate were made to bear the brunt of all the taxes, and that the fruits of their labour often went to the benefit of the First and Second Estate. Hence, this source is reliable. It is also valuable in telling us that the unhappiness amongst the Third Estate was mounting so much that they raised the issue to the government to oppose the government, like they had never done before. As such, th is source illustrates that it was indeed a possibility that the French Revolution was caused by the unhappiness and discontent of the citizens. Hence, this source does not really support the statement as it talks about a different cause of the French Revolution. -Huijun-  **Source D -- ** From the graph in the source, it is shown that the price of wheat went up drastically from around 1787, peaking in 1789, the year when the French Revolution happened. Right after in 1790, the wheat prices began to decrease. We can imply that rising food costs drove the people of France (especially the Third Estate Peasants) to be discontented with the French government. The source can be said to be reliable, as there was really rampant inflation just before the Revolution. Peasants suffered wide-spread hunger and economic difficulty. The rising food costs support the statement, as the Third-Estate people could not keep up with the rising cost of living and were suffering, becoming more and more discontented with the French ruler Louis XVI -Esna-  From the graph Source D, it can be seen that the price of wheat increased drastically from around 1787, with an increase of about 5 F, which is approximately a 20% increase. This is a serious economic problem since wheat is used to make staple food, so the third estates peasants were the most affected. The increase in the price of wheat peaked in 1789, to about twice of the original price, in the year when the French Revolution happened. Right after the French Revolution ended, in 1790, the wheat prices began to decrease. Thus, it can be inferred that the rising wheat costs drove the people of France to be discontented with the French government. Source D is reliable. From contextual knowledge, before the French Revolution, the king, Louis XVI, had monetary problems and debts to pay off, thus he increased the prices of staple food that was compulsory for everyone to buy, such as wheat, and thus the third estates peasants, could not afford the food, and suffered wide-spread hunger and economic difficulty. The rising food costs support the statement, the people from Third-Estate peasants could not keep up with the rising cost of food and were starving,and thus became discontented with the king, Louis XVI.-Wen Xin-
 * Source C --**