Abbe Sieyes
Emmanuel Joseph Sieyes, better known as Abbe Sieyes, is considered by some scholars, the leader of the early Revolution in France; however, others consider him a selfish, jealous man. No matter what one believes, there are some indisputable facts about Abbe Sieyes. Emmanuel Joseph Sieyes was born on May 3rd, 1748 in Frejus. His father was a postmaster and collector of king's dues, while his mother was connected to the lower ranks of nobility. Sieyes' parents gave him the best education they could afford, first at home under a tutor, then in the Jesuits' College at Frejus. Most graduates of the college attended military academies and Sieyes expected the same, but was forced into a different occupation. Emmanuel's parents pushed him into Holy Orders in the hope that he would support the family, especially his two brothers. The Bishop of Frejus was a family friend and helped Emmanuel's parents send him to Paris to study at the Seminary of St. Sulpice. His studies lasted for ten years and he was ordained a priest in 1773. Two years after his ordination, Abbe Sieyes became secretary to the Bishop of Treguier. His advancement in the priesthood was hindered of course, because he came fr
The next interpretation I examined was that of J. M. Thompson. Thompson sees Sieyes as a philosopher with one major flaw. In Leaders of the French Revolution, Thompson states, "In both those acts (the creation of the National Assembly and the Constitution of Brumaire) Sieyes did well by his country, and did so because he was human enough to forget, for the moment, he was a philosopher"(Thompson 15). Thompson interprets this ignorance as Sieyes' major weakness. He thinks Sieyes could not philosophically detach himself from a situation. Thompson also thinks Sieyes was unfit for the priesthood and was closer to the philosophes' movements. Overall, Thompson believes that Sieyes is responsible for the National Assembly, the National Guard, and the Departmental System and in effect a great political thinker. I think many of his political theories and actions came out of his deep seeded hatred for the nobility. He first disliked the priesthood, then the nobility within it because they hindered his advancement. Sieyes' ego took that as an insult. I think his theory of government was created to destroy the nobility's power. Sieyes did not hold hatred toward the King. In actually, Sieyes loved monarchy just the same as he loved liberty. He wanted both liberty and monarchy, but he could not implement this form government because he lacked the leadership and confidence to do it. Sieyes' lack of confidence led many to view him as weak, feeble man, but I have to disagree. Overall, Emmanuel Joseph Sieyes was a great political thinker who wanted a constitutional monarch, but lacked the confidence to create this form of government. A lack of confidence does not create a weak man or a failure, he is just human. No one can be expexted to be perfect at the perfect times. Sieyes was essential to the Revolution, he helped create the National Assembly and the Constitution of Brumaire. No matter how you view his potential ability, in reality, he did well by his country om a middle-class family that lacked nobility. Then in 1784, he became vicar general and chancellor to the Bishop of Chartres. Abbe Sieyes then became a member of the Provincial Assembly of Orleans in 1787. When the Estates General was called in late 1788, Abbe Sieyes wrote his most famous pamphlet, Qu'est-ce que le Tiers Etat? "What is the Third Estate?" With its publishing in January 1789, Sieyes became a prominent figure at the Estates General. On June 12, 1789, Sieyes brought about the vote to allow the privileged to join
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Approximate Word count = 1694
Approximate Pages = 7 (250 words per page double spaced)
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