I've started reading 'The French Revolution' by Christopher Hibbert, and I'm not clear on why there was violence 'all over France' in 1788. What were the edicts which King Louis XVI imposed, and was this the primary cause of unrest that year? Previously Hibbert has discussed the new tax on land which had been blocked by the Assembly of Notables - was this imposed by the King as part of his edicts and how did the lower classes react? Alternatively, was the long-term problem of poverty in France for the peasantry the principal driver of rioting? My main confusion is to why there was widespread rioting when the measures imposed by the monarch, as I understand them, acted against the nobility rather than the peasants. Why were so many people involved?
Are you referring to the "Day of the Tiles"?
Also, the reason that the lower classes revolted in this was was partially because the first and second estates (clergy and nobles) refused to take on more taxes and financials burdens to help pay France's debt. Some historians like Simon Schama say that the Assembly of Notables disagreed with the financial plans because it was actually too conservative, however this is just one opinion. It is also important to remember that the Assembly has no legal power, they were nearly advisors, albeit advisors who had some influence in the nation. The long term poverty of the lower class was a huge issue, as was the fact that France had had a bad harvest that year, forcing the price of bread to rise, which angered the lower class.