French Revolution, Estates-General of 1789

Entitled: Allegorie dedie au tiers etat. Shows an allegorical scene with a member of the nobility and a member of the clergy, representing the estates general, helping to hold aloft a large heart-shaped frame, which rests on the back of a man representing the working class, or third estate, who is bent under its weight, implements of his trade at his feet. Within the frame is depicted France praying before a crucifix. At the top, two hands extend from the heavens to help lift France. The Estates-General of 1789 was the first meeting since 1614 of the French Estates-General, a general assembly representing the French estates of the realm: the clergy (First Estate), the nobles (Second Estate), and the common people (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, signaling the outbreak of the French Revolution. No artist credited, dated 1789

Restrictions Only for Ireland and United Kingdom

1780s 1789 Clergy Commoners Nobles Sans-culottes States-general

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