The story of the map of Europe, its making and its changing . the government. One minister of financeafter another tried to devise some schemewhereby the country might meet its debts, butwithout success. The costly wars and wastefulextravagances of the past hundred years wereat last to bring a reckoning. In desperation,the king summoned a meeting of representa-tive men from all over the kingdom. Therewere three classes represented, the nobles, theclergy, and what was called the third estate,which meant merchants, shopkeepers, and thepoor gentlemen. A great statesman appeared, aman named Mirabe
The story of the map of Europe, its making and its changing . the government. One minister of financeafter another tried to devise some schemewhereby the country might meet its debts, butwithout success. The costly wars and wastefulextravagances of the past hundred years wereat last to bring a reckoning. In desperation,the king summoned a meeting of representa-tive men from all over the kingdom. Therewere three classes represented, the nobles, theclergy, and what was called the third estate,which meant merchants, shopkeepers, and thepoor gentlemen. A great statesman appeared, aman named Mirabeau. Under his leadership,the third estate defied the king, and the temper The Map of Europe 107 of the people was such that the king dared not force them to do his will. In the midst of these ^, , „ , The fall of exciting times, a mob attacked the great Paris the Bastilleprison, the Bastille. They took it by storm, andtore it to the ground. This happened on thefourteenth of July, 1789, a day which the Frenchstill celebrate as the birthday of their nations. THE PALACE OF VERSAILLES liberty. All over France the common people ^, ^ ^ The signal rose in revolt. The soldiers in the army would for revoltno longer obey their officers. The king wasclosely watched, and when he attempted toflee to Germany was brought back and throwninto prison. Many of the nobles, in terror,fled from the country. Thus began what isknown as the French Revolution. As soon as the king was thrown into prisonand the people of France took charge of theirgovernment, a panic arose throughout thecourts of Europe. Other kings, alarmed over 108 The Story of the fate of the king of France, began to fearfor themselves. They, too, had taxed andoppressed their subjects. They felt that thisrevolt of the French people must be put down,and the king of France set back upon histhrone, otherwise the same kind of revolt mightKings must ^^^^ place in their countries as well. Accord-unite in ingly, the king of Prussia, the kin
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Keywords: ., boo, bookcentury1900, bookdecade1910, booksubjectworldwar19141918
