The Significance of the French Revolution

Prior to 1789, France was in a dire state of conditions. King Louis XVI's government was facing financial difficulties, and faced with few other options, the king imposed taxes on the people. What ensued was an explosion of rage in the French middle and working class that had been built up over the last hundred years--what we now call the French Revolution. While the French Revolution, like many other revolutions, occurred in response to the government's incompetence, what sets it apart from other revolutions in Europe is that it marked the birth of democracy. This concept, though idealist…