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Yan Starodubets

Dr. Sydney Watts

HIST 239

05 March 2025

The impact of The National Assembly during the French Revolution

The French Revolution is one of the most important events in modern history, as it

brought much more than just solutions to economic issues, new leaders, or execution of the king.

It brought a whole new philosophy of society and structure of a state. The period of the

revolution dealt with questions like abolition of feudalism, reforms in the church, new type of

monarchy, economic policies, the Declaration of the Rights of Man and the Citizen, and finally

concluding with the idea of the end of the Old Regime. Those issues had to be solved and

discussed systematically, taking into consideration the thoughts and opinions of people of France

from different backgrounds and philosophical views. The National Assembly became the place

where different ideas of indiffrent people were gathered in order to make vital changes in the

state of France. From 1789 to 1791, the National Assembly was main governing body of France.

By accepting a bunch of reforms, the National Assembly laid the foundation for modern ideas of

democracy and liberty in France, and consequently, became a motivation for other European

countries to move towards this direction in the future. This essay will explore the origins and

formation of the National Assembly, the major political issues it addressed, the key figures who

shaped its decisions, and its lasting legacy.

The National Assembly originated from the Estates-General, a traditional assembly

representing France's three estates: the clergy (First Estate), nobility (Second Estate), and

commoners (Third Estate). Although the Estates-General was made to mainly address the

financial crisis that was happening at the time, the Third Estate's minimal participation led to

protests for fair representation due to its lack of visible influence. The National Assembly

emerged as a more effective platform for expressing ordinary citizens' and lesser nobles' thoughts

and ideas. On June 17, 1789, the Third Estate, led by figures like Emmanuel Joseph Sieyès,

proclaimed itself the National Assembly, claiming to represent the will of the French nation

(Sieyès, 1789, Masson & Rizzo, p. 51). Sieyès, an influential intellectual and clergyman,

highlighted Third Estate's grievances in his pamphlet “What is the Third Estate?”, where he

argued that commoners made up the true nation and deserved political rights, power.

As mentioned before, the National Assembly dealt with many issues like politics, society,

religion, and the economy that built up during the years of monarchy in France. Their changes

were very significant and changed French society in a big way. In next paragraphs, I am going to

cover some of the achievements of delegates.

One of the major accomplishments of the Assembly was the elimination of the unfair

privileges that the feudal system provided to the landowners, clergy and royal family. On the

night of August 4, 1789, members from both the nobility and the clergy relinquished their feudal

rights in an important session. This action was influenced by widespread rural unrest, referred to

as the Grande Peur, during which peasants destroyed feudal documents (Lefebvre, p. 112). The
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Duke d’Aiguillon, a reform-minded noble, contended that feudal rights conflicted with the ideals

of equality and liberty. In his address, he stated, "We cannot deny that such rights are property,

and that all property is sacred; but they are onerous for the people and everyone agrees that these

rights impose continual troubles on them" (Doyle, p.103). His appeal for the elimination of

feudal dues and the creation of a more fair tax system established the mood for the night’s

renunciations. The decree from the Assembly abolished seigneurial dues, the corvée (forced

labor), and various other feudal obligations, signifying the conclusion of the feudal system in

France.

One of the National Assembly's notable accomplishments was working on the

Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen, which was accepted on August 26, 1789.

Inspired by Enlightenment ideals, the Declaration supported such ideas as: liberty, equality, and

fraternity, asserting that "men are born and remain free and equal in rights" (Article 1,

Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen). It was also aimed at keeping freedom of

speech and freedom of religion. The Declaration represented a peak of Enlightenment thought,

drawing from philosophers such as John Locke, Jean-Jacques Rousseau, and Montesquieu.

Lafayette, a brave soldier of the American Revolution, played a special role in crafting and

modifying this declaration. Having an experience of American revolutionaries' mentality and

greatly influenced by their ideals, Lafayette wished to introduce similar concepts of liberty and

equality in France. The impact of Enlightenment ideas was evident, and even those who profited

from the Old Regime acknowledged the need for change in the unjust system.
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The question of power of the Catholic Church was very relevant too. With increasing

popularity of alternative versions of Christianity, like Calvinism or Lutheranism, people became

more critical of the power of the Catholic Church. The National Assembly aimed to place the

Catholic Church under state authority through the Civil Constitution of the Clergy, which was

implemented in July 1790. This initiative was made not only due to the feelings of people, but

also because the change was part of a more significant movement to decrease the Church’s

political and economic influence, a key element of the Old Regime. The Civil Constitution led to

the nationalization of Church properties, and mandated that clergy affirm an oath of loyalty to

the state (McManners, 1998, p. 45). These reforms encountered considerable resistance from

both the clergy and the Pope, resulting in a conflict within the Church. Numerous clergy

members refused to take the oath and were referred to as "non-jurors," while those who did were

known as "jurors" (Tackett, 1986, p. 67)

The National Assembly’s probably most significant and big accomplishment was the

preparation of France’s new constitution, which was completed in 1791. This Constitution set up

a new constitutional monarchy in France, cutting the power of the monarch and establishing a

legislative body elected by ordinary citizens. The decision to implement a constitutional

monarchy was, in part, inspired by the successful model of such a system in England. While the

monarchy was still alive, the Constitution represented a significant transition toward

representative governance and the enforcement of law. In such a way, France did not make a

rapid change of the power system, which could result in a big resonance and dissolution of the
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state. But at the same time, it was an enormous step towards the desired improvement. It is

important to mention the contributions of Jean-Sylvain Bailly, the first President of the National

Assembly and later the mayor of Paris. He played a vital role in maintaining order during this

turbulent time of heated debates and opposing perspectives between “rights” and “lefts”. Bailly,

a well-respected scientist and moderate figure, attempted to reconcile the revolutionary

ambitions of the Assembly with the necessity for stability (Doyle, 2002, p. 98). However, even

with those efforts of making the change gradual and debates respectful, the effect of the creation

of the Constitution was very divisive, and led to big fights between sides and instability.

Although the National Assembly made important democratic changes, their choice to keep a

constitutional monarchy caused controversy. The king didn't want to accept the new system, and

with more people becoming radical, this resulted in increased political chaos.

To conclude, the National Assembly’s effect is enormous and essential. It fought the

feudal system, established the principles of liberty and equality in religion and status, laid the

foundation for modern democracy in France and established constitutional monarchy. Its reforms

inspired revolutionary movements across Europe and the world, directing the vector of

contemporary history. However, the Assembly’s inability to fully resolve the tensions between

conservatives and revolutionaries set the stage for the more radical and bloody phases of the

Revolution. Anyway, by 1792, the monarchy was gone, and the French Republic was officially

established. The head of the Old Regime was cut, indicating the historical transformation of the

state. On September 30, 1791, the National Assembly was closed after finishing the final project,

the Constitution of 1791. The creation of the Legislative Assembly followed it.
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Works Cited

Burke, Edmund. Reflections on the Revolution in France. 1790.

Constitution of 1791.

Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen. 1789.

Doyle, William. The Oxford History of the French Revolution. 2nd ed., Oxford University Press,

2002.

Lefebvre, Georges. The French Revolution: From Its Origins to 1793. Translated by Elizabeth

Moss Evanson, Columbia University Press, 1962.

Mason, Laura, and Tracey Rizzo. The French Revolution: A Document Collection. Houghton

Mifflin, 1999.

McManners, John. Church and Society in Eighteenth-Century France. Oxford University Press,

1998.

Sieyès, Emmanuel Joseph. What is the Third Estate? 1789.

Tackett, Timothy. Religion, Revolution, and Regional Culture in Eighteenth-Century France:

The Ecclesiastical Oath of 1791. Princeton University Press, 1986.