In 1787, the French Finance Minister Calonne proposed a package of reforms. It included land tax and stamp tax that were supposed to be paid by everyone. He also persuaded the king to summon an Assembly of Notables after reassuring him that this would not undermine his authority.
Unfortunately for Calonne, the Notables rejected his reforms and the king, sided with them. The Assembly of Notables was led by de Brienne, the former archbishop of Toulouse. Under his leadership, the Assembly argued that tax increases could only be authorised by the Estates-General. In May 1787, Brienne replaced Calonne as Finance Minister.
The Estates-General was split into three bodies: the clergy or First Estate, nobility or Second Estate, and the commons or Third Estate. Each of the three sat separately. Though the clergy and nobility comprised of less than five per cent of the population, they could easily outvote the Third.
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