... time of highly secularized Enlightenment, the idea that King Louis XVI had absolute power due to divine right-the idea that he had been handpicked by God-didn't hold nearly as much water as in the past few decades. Ultimately, these various problems within late-1700s France weren't so much the immediate causes of the Revolution as they were the final catalyst. The strict French class system had long placed the clergy and nobility far above the rest of the French citizens, despite the fact that many of those citizens far exceeded nobles in wealth and reputation. Moreover, these exclusive titles-most of which had been purchased and passed down through families-essentially placed their bearers above the law and exempted them from taxes. In 1789, when France's ancient legislative body, the Estates-General, reconvened and it became apparent that the higher-ranking classes refused to forfeit their privileges in the interest of saving the country, the frustration ...

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