法国人民于1789年推翻了旧政权,当时提出的口号是著名的“自由、平等、博爱”。而对于法国革命者来说,平等又是三者中最重要的。为了平等,他们宁愿牺牲政治上的自由,当他们接受拿破仑一世的统治时即作出了让步。至于博爱,即“四海之内皆兄弟”,他们也同样放弃了,最后总算赢得了法律上的平等。法国人为何渴求平等法国人渴望平等是有充分理由的,因为1789年前旧政府完全不讲平等。贵族和教士是“特权阶层”,他们可以免缴象土地税这样的直接税,大部分赋税是由“第三等级”交付的。第三等级包括农民、手工艺工人、商人和雇用人员。即便在这些人之间,税收也是不平等的。有的省份免征诸如盐税 The French people overthrew the old regime in 1789, at the time the famous slogan “Freedom, Equality, Fraternity.” For the French revolutionaries, equality is the most important of the three. To be equal, they would rather sacrifice political freedom and make concessions when they accept Napoleon I’s rule. As for fraternity, that is, “brothers in all quarters”, they also gave up and finally won the legal equality. Why French Desire for Equality The French desire for equality is well-founded because the old government did not speak of equality at all until 1789. Aristocrats and priests are “privileged classes” who are exempt from direct taxation such as the land tax, with most of the tax paid on “third tier.” The third level includes farmers, craftsmen, tradesmen and employed personnel. Even among these people, taxes are not equal. Some provinces are exempt from such as salt tax