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F.X. Emmanuelli
In this article F-X Emmanuelli examines the experiences of three sets of provincial Estates, those of Provence, Comtat Venaissin and Corsica in face of the pressures from the governments of Louis XV and Louis XVI aimed at undermining the autonomy of the Pays d'Etats and extending the direct authority of the royal government. The article suggests that the royal government did follow a consistent policy of seeking to enlist the support of the social groups in provincial society which it judged most likely to be cooperative and at the same time seeking to reduce the sphere of activity of the Estates to routine administration and the assessment of taxation, for the royal government did not venture to try and suppress their traditional fiscal privileges. After an examination of the different experiences of these three provinces, the article suggests reasons why the Estates enjoyed considerable success in resisting the pressures put upon them and safeguarding their traditional liberties. The level of success, however, is shown to depend on the particular nature of the institutions of the province and the social structure of the Estates themselves.
