... main cause of the unrest, it is believably the peasants and 3rd estates that suffered the most. The peasants had many grievances. One of the main grievances was the seigniorial system. This system allowed for greater income disparity in France and a real separation of classes. Daily life in the countryside was extremely dire, particularly on small family farms. Their owners and workers were known as peasants, although they differed considerably in wealth and status. Many were day labourers desperate for work in exchange for a place to stay and food to eat. The landowners demanded excessive rent and often confiscated some of their produce for themselves. In the middle were others, including independent farmers, sharecroppers, and renters. Historians have estimated that in these lean years, 90 percent of the peasants lived at or below the subsistence level, earning only enough to feed their families. As can be seen from ...

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