AUA Why Nations Fail - Daron Acemoglu | Page 324

B REAKING THE B ARRIERS: T HE F RENCH R EVOLUTION
For the three centuries prior to 1789, France was ruled by
an absolutist monarchy. French society was divided into
three segments, the so-called estates. The aristocrats (the
nobility) made up the First Estate, the clergy the Second
Estate, and everybody else the Third Estate. Different
estates were subject to different laws, and the first two
estates had rights that the rest of the population did not.
The nobility and the clergy did not pay taxes, while the
citizens had to pay several different taxes, as we would
expect from a regime that was largely extractive. In fact, not
only was the Church exempt from taxes, but it also owned
large swaths of land and could impose its own taxes on
peasants. The monarch, the nobility, and the clergy enjoyed
a luxurious lifestyle, while much of the Third Estate lived in
dire poverty. Different laws not only guaranteed a greatly
advantageous economic position to the nobility and the
clergy, but it also gave them political power.
Life in French cities of the eighteenth century was harsh
and unhealthy. Manufacturing was regulated by powerful
guilds, which generated good incomes for their members
but prevented others from entering these occupations or
starting new businesses. The so-called ancien régime
prided itself on its continuity and stability. Entry by
entrepreneurs and talented individuals into new
occupations would create instability and was not tolerated.
If life in the cities was harsh, life in the villages was probably
worse. As we have seen, by this time the most extreme
form of serfdom, which tied people to the land and forced
them to work for and pay dues to the feudal lords, was long
in decline in France. Nevertheless, there were restrictions
on mobility and a plethora of feudal dues that the French
peasants were required to pay to the monarch, the nobility,
and the Church.
Against this background, the French Revolution was a
radical affair. On August 4, 1789, the National Constituent
Assembly entirely changed French laws by proposing a
new constitution. The first article stated:
The National Assembly hereby completely
abolishes the feudal system. It decrees that,