A number of revolutions have taken place in history; many appeared in the 18th and 19th centuries in the West. The French Revolution can be considered the most significant of all because of the "extreme causes" and violence associated with it; as well as the general causes shared by most of the revolutions of the time, such as cultural change, led by philosophers like Jean Jacques Rousseau and Voltaire, commercialization, and massive population increases. The specific causes were widespread peasant discontent, including low standards of living and the need for natural and political rights, as well as the influence of the Enlightenment; all of which were motivated by the American Revolution. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why violent video games should not be banned”?Get the original essay Before the French Revolution of 1789, France was under an absolute monarchy divided into 3 areas; the 3rd state being the most populated and composed mainly of bourgeoisie, artisans and peasants. The unjust attitude of the 3rd power is demonstrated in Document 7 (The political and social system in France), which illustrates that the 1st and 2nd powers were stable because they earned the most money, did not pay taxes , collected the high amount of taxes imposed. in the 3rd power and held the power that applied these corrupt laws. The peasants were tired of being crushed; they no longer wanted to support feudalism/manorialism, but they pushed for freedom of landowners and equality in taxation. Their desires were mentioned in the extract from the Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen, which states: "Men are born and remain free and equal in rights... these rights are liberty, property, security..." Besides the inequality between related domains. Along with taxes and land ownership, discussed in Arthur Young's observations in Travels in France, we must also mention the horrible conditions in which commoners lived. Young mentions: “The poor seem very poor indeed. The children are terribly in tatters… The price of bread has become higher than people’s ability to pay.” This shows how the peasants were affected by the high taxes, they had no money to feed themselves or support their families. This pushed the peasantry into rebellion, which had the most significant impact in the rebellion since they made up most of the French population. As the philosophies of the Enlightenment spread, the middle class became more informed. They used these new ideas as inspiration for their political thinking, which challenged the government to create new institutions. Jean Jacques Rousseau's idea of ​​a government based on the general will and democratic-style voting is one of many ideas that influenced the French National Assembly. Keep in mind: this is just a sample. Get a personalized article from our expert writers now. Get a Custom Essay Albert Mathiez supports the idea that the middle class used their knowledge of Enlightenment ideas to participate in leadership. This led to changes that the people demanded within the French government; manorialism was abolished, equality (among men) was established and the power of the aristocracy and the Church diminished. Some argue that the American Revolution was a major cause of the French Revolution, such as Lord Acton, who suggested that "the situation of France alone did not bring about the overthrow of the monarchy...the ideas of the philosophers.