Bust of Sieyès by David d'Angers (1838). What is the Third Estate? Everything. What has it been hitherto in the political order? Nothing. What does it desire to be? Something. Sieyès's pamphlet ...
In 1787, France entered an economic downturn that gradually turned into a crisis: production was declining, and cheaper British goods flooded the French market. This was compounded by poor harvests ...