1. Arbitrary rulers. The kings of France were absolute rulers. They believed in the theory of Divine Right of Kingship. They claimed to be the representatives of God on the earth. Therefore, they did not consider that they had any duty towards the people. Their courtiers had signed and stamped but unfilled papers. They had just to write down the name of the person to be sent to jail. Thus, innumerable people were passing through miserable time in the French government. The people were really fed up with this form of government.
2. Inefficiency and corruption in the administration. The country was in the grip of corruption. The government offices were sold. The rulers were unintelligent and incompetent. The people of France wanted to end this corrupt rule.
3. Centralization of powers. All the political powers were in the hands of the king. All the representative bodies in the country had either ended or were a tool in the hands of the king. The king imposed taxes on the people at his own will. He also spent the money collected through taxes as he liked. Because of this centralisation of powers, there was a great resentment among the people.
4. No uniform system of law and order. The laws of the country were not uniform. There were different laws working in different parts of the country. In all, there were about 400 laws in operation in France. There were separate laws for the rich and the poor. The revolution could hardly be prevented in the country where no regard was shown to the law or the legal system.
