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Summary Reforms to establish a constitutional monarchy
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Notes on the reforms to establish a constitutional monarchy in the French Revolution
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Political, Administrative + Judicial Reforms to establish a constitutional monarchyAims of the National Assembly:
The Declaration of the Rights of Man + the Citizen (26 th August 1789) prepared a framework
for the new constitution
Philosophes wanted a system based on: rational principles; separation of powers
(Montesqieu); social contract (Rousseau); end of Divine Right; Rule of Law; written
constitution; constitutional monarchy
The National Assembly looked to the British system + US constitution of 1787 for inspiration
Political reforms:
Political Reforms (details) Significance (impact on success/failure of
constitutional experiment)
July/August 1789- a system of representative democracy Would King want to accept being executive
in which:
An elected governing body acted as the legislative
The King and royal ministers made up the
executive
The judiciary was made independent
September 1789- vote taken in favour of 1 chamber (the Feared that rule by an Assembly alone would
Assembly) rule in the deputies’ self-interest
Could be hard to be representative
Hard for everyone in the Assembly to agree
September 1789- decision taken in favour of a suspensory King’s suspensory veto granted to balance out
veto: after 3 consecutive legislatures (4 years) a measure power
would automatically become a law Limits assembly’s power
Will slow things down if King doesn’t want to
agree to anything- long 4 year delay
The King retained the right to select and appoint ministers Keep king happy
to form a cabinet (men wouldn’t be allowed to sit in the He will fill with people who support him and his
Assembly ideas only- not people w/ revolutionary ideas
October 1789- he was to be called ‘King of the French’ (not Intended to show that the King’s power
King of France) emanated from the people and the law, not
from Divine Right
The King retained a private income + was also granted a Has comfortable income but is almost halved-
‘civil list’ of 25 million livres (a reduction of c20 million different people react differently
livres on his spending before the revolution) King annoyed
People against the King still upset he’s getting
25million livres
Elections would be held once every 2 years (+ once a year Much like the US system
for municipal elections) through an indirect system of
electoral colleges
December 1789- a distinction was upheld between: Members of 3rd estate not active citizens-
Active citizens (males over 25 who’d lived in one majority of people thus unenfranchised
place for a year, spoke French + paid direct taxes Overpromised in Declaration of Rights of Man
equal to 3 days labour) given political rights and Even if active it is difficult to go from being that
thus the vote to a representative in politics
Passive citizens given civil rights but not vote (this Is a wide enfranchisement and good for the
was opposed by Robespierre) time
The Assembly would have the power to make laws, Previously done by Estates-General and King so
, collect taxes and decide on the issues of war and Assembly takes power- should be worthwhile
peace
Strengths:
Separation of powers achieved – elected governing body as legislative, King and ministers as
executive, independent judiciary
King not completely stripped of power so keeps royalists partly
on side – given suspensory veto, King of French, cabinet, income
Widest franchise in Europe at the time
Assembly given enough power to operate well, be more efficient
than the previous system
Louis agrees to the Constitution in September 1791
Weaknesses:
King still had power to block laws for some time – would slow down change
Not everyone had equal rights / right to vote yet as promised in Declaration
The Assembly deputies still came from a small elite – only 50,000 were eligible
Potential abuses of power – by king, passive citizens pretending to be active citizens
Administrative reforms:
Administrative reforms (details) Significance
November 1789- old provinces replaced by 83 Increased accountability and closer
departements, then divided into districts and contact; decentralisation
communes
Feb-June 1790- agreed departements have More uniformity across areas
elected councils of 36, directorate of 8 for
area’s administration
Income qualifications for voting / service meant Power still in hands of few qualified
local government controlled by bourgeoisie
Councils responsible for law, order, tax, roads Council made directly accountable to
community
Council had to do lots of work- varying
success
Strengths:
Decentralisation and accountability to prevent absolutism
More uniformity across different areas
Each council was directly accountable to its community
Weaknesses:
Power concentrated in the hands of the few who qualified
Some rural areas struggled to find people who would qualify
Councils had to do lots of work – some were more successful at this than
others
Judicial Reforms:
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