Estates Of The Realm

From these terms came the name of the medieval French national assembly: the '' remained Absolute .

IN FRANCE

France under the ''; the Second Estate or Nobility ; and the '''Third Estate''' or Commoners .

First Estate

The First Estate (Fr. ''premier état'') was the Clergy .

In principle, the responsibilities of the First Estate included "the registration of births, marriages and deaths; they collected the , which was collected via the "décime", a tax on ecclesiastic offices.

The First Estate comprised the entire clergy, traditionally divided into "higher" and "lower" clergy. Although there was no formal demarcation between the two categories, the upper clergy were, effectively, clerical nobility, from the families of the Second Estate. At the other extreme, parish priests and many monks had more in common with the Third Estate than the Second, and, within the Third Estate, more in common with the peasants and wage-earners than with the Bourgeoisie .

In 1789 , the First Estate numbered somewhat over 100,000, with about 10% of these being "higher clergy." The lower clergy would have been about equally divided between parish priests on the one hand and monks and nuns on the other. Almost all of the 139 dioceses were controlled by the great nobles in France. {Link without Title}

The French inheritance system of Primogeniture meant that nearly all French fortunes would pass largely in a single line, through the eldest son. Hence, it became very common for second sons to join the clergy. Although some great churchmen came out of this system, much of the higher clergy continued to live the lives of aristocrats, enjoying the wealth derived from church lands and tithes and, in some cases, paying little or no attention to their churchly duties. The ostentatious wealth of the higher clergy was, no doubt, partly responsible for the widespread Anticlericalism in France, dating back as far as the Middle Ages , and was certainly responsible for the element of class resentment within the anticlericalism of many peasants and wage-earners.

Similar class resentments existed within the First Estate.

During the latter years of the ''Ancien Régime'', the Catholic Church in France (the Gallican Church ) was a separate entity within the realm of Papal control, both a State within a State and Church within a Church. The King had the right to make appointments to the bishoprics, abbeys, and priories and the right to regulate the clergy. {Link without Title}

Second Estate

The Second Estate (Fr. ''second état'') was the French Nobility and (technically, though not in common use) Royalty , other than the Monarch himself, who stood outside the estates.

The Second Estate is traditionally divided into ''"noblesse d'épée"'' ("nobility of the sword") and ''" Noblesse De Robe "'' ("nobility of the gown"), the magisterial class that administered royal justice and civil government.

The French inheritance system of Primogeniture meant that nearly all French fortunes would pass largely in a single line, through the eldest son.

Under the ''ancien régime'', the Second Estate were exempt from most forms of taxation.

The French Nobility was not a closed class, and many means were available to rich land owners or state office holders for gaining nobility for themselves or their descendants.

The second estate made up about 2% of France's population and paid little or no taxes.

Third Estate

1st. What is the third estate? Everything.

2nd. What has it been heretofore in the political order? Nothing.

3rd. What does it demand? To become something therein.

::— Abbé Sieyès , "What is the third estate?"(''"Qu'est-ce que le Tiers-Etat?"''), January 1789 {Link without Title}

The Third Estate (Fr. ''tiers état'') was the generality of people which were not part of the other estates.

The Third Estate comprised all those who were not members of the aristocracy or the clergy, including peasants, working people and the Bourgeoisie . In 1789 , the Third Estate made up 98% of the population in France. Due in part to a limited franchise, the representatives of the Third Estate actually came from the wealthy upper bourgeoisie; sometimes the term's meaning has been restricted to the Middle Class , as opposed to the Working Class .

The French Estates-General

''See main articles French States-General , Estates-General Of 1789

The first Estates-General was called by Philip IV in 1302 , in order to obtain national approval for his Anticlerical policy. Philip organized the assembly into three divisions, and every following Estates-General down to 1789 maintained the division.

The Estates-General of France dwindled in importance, and after ( June 17 , 1789 ) and then as the National Constituent Assembly ( July 9 , 1789 ), a unitary body composed of the former representatives of the three estates.

End of Nobility in France

The formation of the National Constituent Assembly marked the end of the Estates-General, but not of the three estates. The momentum continued rapidly in that direction. On August 4 , 1789, Seigneurial Dues were abolished, along with religious Tithe s. The nobility were subjected to the same taxation as their co-nationals, but for the moment they retained their titles.

Notions of equality and fraternity would soon triumph over official recognition of a noble class. Some nobles such as the Marquis De Lafayette supported the abolition of legal recognition of nobility, but even some other liberal nobles who had happily sacrificed their fiscal privileges saw this as an attack on the culture of honor. Nonetheless, the French Nobility was disbanded outright by the National Constituent Assembly on June 19 , 1790 , during the same period in which they were debating the Civil Constitution Of The Clergy .

OUTSIDE FRANCE

United Kingdom

In the United Kingdom , an analogous division exists to this day, although with attenuated significance, between Lords Temporal , Lords Spiritual , and Commons .

Note one contrast between the French and British systems: the lower clergy in France were part of the First Estate, but in Britain they were commoners. Similarly, in Britain only titled Peers are Lords Temporal. Other members of aristocratic families are also considered commoners.

Sweden and Finland

The Estates in Sweden and Finland were nobility, clergy, Burgher s, and land-owning Peasants . Each were free men, and had specific rights and responsibilities, and the right to send a representative to the governing assembly, the Riksdag Of The Estates in Sweden and the Diet Of Finland , respectively. A summary of this division is:

Nobility is exempt from tax, has an inherited Rank and the right to keep a Fief , and has a tradition of military service and government

Clergy is the priests, exempt from tax, governed by the Church

Burghers are city-dwellers, tradesmen and craftsmen, and have a monopoly in commerce; entry to this Estate is controlled by the government

Peasants are land-owners and their families, which represented the majority in medieval times

To no estate belonged propertyless farmers, farmhands, servants, travelling salesmen, vagrants, parasites

Modern Parliamentary System

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Estates Of The Realm

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