First,+Second,+and+Third+Estate

The First, Second, and Third Estates, collectively known as the Estates of the Realm, were the names for the different social groups in the Middle Ages of European history before the 1st Industrial Revolution. They include the clergy, the nobility, and the commoners (although commoners could be further divided into the burghers/bourgeoisie). In France, they were known as //États-Généraux// or the Estates-General.


 * The First Estate**: otherwise known as the clergy or those who pray. It was the First Estate's duty to perform the birth, marriage, and death rites, collect a tithe (10% of a person's income), serve as the moral leaders, serve as ministers to the poor, operate schools and hospitals, and censor books. They also owned around 10 to 15 percent of the land in France.


 * The Second Estate**: otherwise known as the nobility/royalty (excluding the king because his stature was removed from the system) or those who fight. Only about 0.5% of France's population qualified for this title. This estate could be further divided into "the nobles of the pen" and "the nobles of the sword". The nobles of the pen were those who administered justice and civil government. The Second Estate was exempt from forced labor on the roads and most forms of taxation that were administered to the common people. This class was not restricted to heriditary nobles, meaning that rich landowners could gain acess to these rights for themselves and or their children. The unique privleges of this class was the right to carry a coat arms and a sword. They also could collect taxes from the Third Estate.


 * The Third Estate**: otherwise known as those not grouped in the other estates or those who work. These people were commonly the peasants, working people, and the bourgeoisie. The two sub-parts could be considered as the bourgeoisie, who were paid, and the rest, who were either paid very little or not even employed. The bourgeoisie made up approximately 97% of France's population at one point, and occupied around 40% of the land. Most of the members of this estate had few rights (representatives were usually bourgeoisie) and had to pay hefty taxes to the first and second estates.

Want to return to the Units 7 & 8 Term Page? Click Here! Click Here! http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Estates_of_the_realm Created by Rachellm on 2/10/08. Edited by Jaclyn Speer 2/11/09 Edited by Allie Pinosky 2.12.09 Edited by Becca Ellison 2-12-09 Edited by Anna Mack 2-12-09