In July of 1789, exasperated by misery and the lack of food, the population of Paris took to the streets to overturn the ruling Monarchy. The French Revolution had begun. Eighteenth-century French society was organized into three social classes, called Estates: the clergy, the nobility, and the Third Estate, made up of peasants and the bourgeoisie. The country was ruled by an absolute monarchy. Nobility and the clergy were exempted from taxes, leaving the entire fiscal burden squarely on the shoulders of the Third Estate. The bourgeoisie, made up of merchants and professionals, led the protest. They were cut out of political life, and demanded more freedom and lower taxes. The peasants were suffering, crushed by rising prices and mounting poverty.