French Revolution Essay To what extent did The Enlightenment cause the French Revolution in 1789? During the French revolution The Enlightenment was a cause for their progression but so was their monarchical figure and their living conditions. Do to the Enlightenment thinkers in England, the French had looked to their philosophers and their teachings, especially when it came to their government ideas. The French looked towards the Enlightenment teachings, to form a new way of life for themselves. Robespierre and Louis Antoine de Saint-Just, in particular, were much influenced by the writings of Rousseau. (Todd 34). They read his philosophies and it help them modernize France. When it came to their monarchy, they were under full control of their king who had no interest in their wellbeing. Montesquieu L’Esprit de Lois (1748) argued that monarchical despotism was prevented by the privileges of other groups who shared political power. (Todd 33). This was able to help guide French into knowing there is a different way to run their government, with multiple people and not just one king. Due to the Enlightenment thinkers, French people took their teaching into their own hands. The teachings were not supposed to be used in revolt but it was. Philosophes of The Enlightenment undoubtedly contributed to the spirit of revolt. (Todd 34) They used these ideas to change their government and reshape France. The monarchical figure in France was where most of the problems occurred from. King Louis had no interest in his people and was only focused on taxing his people to make France look extremely wealthy. The people were poor and their civilization was failing and they needed someone to fix these problems. But the monarchy had no wish for a major reform of the government. (Spielvogel 338). King Louis was only concerned with his wellbeing and did not have the slightest thought about a new form of government. The people had had enough of their greedy king and wanted a new form of government. Parliament had gained new strength in the eighteenth century as they and their Nobel judges assumed the role of defenders against the arbitrary power of the monarchy. (Spielvogel 338). They decided it was time to overthrow their King and put forth a stronger government. The nobles decided to get rid of their King. The failure of French monarchy was exacerbated by specific problems in the 1780’s. (Spielvogel 338). He was no longer the monarch and the parliament took his place. The lack of effort their king had put towards his own country was astonishing. His cities were in ruin. There was no money to fix the occurring problems and their beloved city of Paris was disgusting.