The Palace of Versailles from the point of view of the 3rd Estate
The Palace of Versailles is a beautiful representation of the engineering feats humans are capable of. Built in 1642, it started as a ‘simple’ hunting lodge, but gradually (over the course of three kings) became the extravagant palace it is today. It boasts an incredible 700 rooms, including a full functional opera house, stables, two Grand Apartments (one for the King, and one for the Queen), and a Royal chapel. Truly an engineering marvel, this is what I think the members of the 3rd estate would’ve thought of it.
The bourgeoisie, the business class of France, were informed and educated. They knew about debts and deficits, they knew the value of money, and (for the most part) understood the world around them. They were more humble than Nobles, Clergy, and Royals, but they were more educated than City workers and peasants. This may sound like a modern day middle class, however monopolies placed on industries made it hard for them to make money by investing money in business. The bourgeoisie had money to invest, but industries were too closed for them to do anything with. I think the bourgeoisie would have thought the Palace of Versailles was a waste of money, both the building and the upkeep of the grounds. When Louis XVI began to use the buildings as government headquarters, I think they would’ve thought it was a more reasonable use of the palace; however it was still very costly and rather wasteful of grounds and resources
City workers, the working class within all the big cities of France, were often uneducated, had dreadful living and working conditions, and received little pay for their services. City workers were artisans, blacksmiths, bakers, weavers, merchants, and other shop workers. I believe that, had they known about the appallingly expensive palace the King and his family was living in, they would’ve been shocked and offended that the King would spend so much money on himself with starving French people everywhere.
Peasants were the lowest on all the people in France. They made the least money, were forced to do work for the king, had to give 10% of their income (a tithe) to the King, paid the most taxes, and lived in the worst conditions possible. Had the peasants known that the King was spending so much money on himself and his residence, they would’ve been absolutely outraged and caused a revolt. Wait. They did; the French Revolution.
While the Palace of Versailles may have been a wonderful place to those who lived there, the people whose taxes paid for it were not as thrilled with it. The 3rd estate, made up of the bourgeoisie, the city workers, and peasants, thought this was a waste of their money, and waste of money was a big deal to them. The overspending of the King was a huge reason for the start of the French Revolution, and combined with his unworthy wife and advisers, and the wars he kept getting into, the ruling style of Louis XVI truly was a tipping point for the beginning of the French Revolution.