Estates-General of 1789

The estates general, a general assembly representing the French estates of the realm: the clergy (First Estate), the nobility (Second Estate), and the commoners (Third Estate). Summoned by King Louis XVI to propose solutions to his government's financial problems, the Estates-General sat for several weeks in May and June 1789 but came to an impasse over the first item on the agenda: whether they should vote by estate, giving the first two estates an advantage, which was the King's choice, or vote all together, giving the Third Estate the advantage. It was brought to an end when the Third Estate formed into a National Assembly, inviting the other two to join, against the wishes of the King. This signals the outbreak of the French Revolution.

The suggestion to summon the Estates General came from the Assembly of Notables installed by the King on 22 February 1787. It had not met since 1614. The usual business of registering the King's edicts as law was performed by the Parlement of Paris. In this year it was refusing to cooperate with Charles Alexandre de Calonne's programme of badly needed financial reform, due to the special interests of its noble members. Calonne was the Controller-General of Finances, appointed by the King to address the state deficit. As a last measure, Calonne was hoping to bypass them by reviving an archaic institution.

The initial roster of Notables included 137 nobles, among them many future revolutionaries, such as the Comte de Mirabeau and the Marquis de Lafayette, hero of the American Revolution. Lafayette had served in George Washington's army. Much of the debt had been incurred on behalf of the Americans. The final defeat of Lord Cornwallis at the Battle of Yorktown was due in large part to the participation of the French army and navy. If Calonne thought he would find more cooperation by changing the assembly, he was mistaken. He proposed a "land tax," Subvention Territoriale, to be imposed on all land-holders, rich or poor. A storm of protest arose. Charges of mismanagement were made. Calonne was dismissed on 8 April 1787, and then was exiled. He commented on the French political scene from London.

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