In the late 18th century, France and the British colonies in America experienced wars that opened the eyes of the nations. The French Revolution and the American Revolution radically changed political thinking. During the French Revolution, monarchism was abandoned and political power was given to the people until the country spiraled out of control and a military dictatorship was needed to regain control of France. During the American Revolution, a new nation was formed when the British colonies broke away from the English monarchy. Ultimately, France and the new United States of America moved away from the absolute power of a king or queen and wanted to put political power in the hands of their people. However, there are many differences as well as similarities throughout the political reform process. One of the first differences between the revolutions is how each one began. At the start of the French Revolution, the government was on the verge of collapse. Whereas at the beginning of the American Revolution, the colonist felt oppressed but had a stable governing body. The French Revolution was caused by problems that can be classified into three categories: political and social imbalance, government failure, and Enlightenment thought. The American Revolution was caused by England's ban on political laws and taxation of the British colonies. France was on the verge of collapse due to imbalance, bankruptcy and a new way of thinking. In France, feudalism was still practiced where the nobles and clergy enjoyed exceptional advantages over the commoners and lower classes. For example, nobles and clergy did not have to pay taxes; they owned most of the land and had the greatest political power in France. However, middle of paper, three branches of the federal government each have a way to control the other branches of government. With the system of checks and balances, no branch of government had too much power, and the power of government remained in the hands of the people. The American Revolution successfully transformed the ruling government from a supervised monarchy to an independent nation with a government run by the people. Both the French and American Revolutions were revolutionary at the time and still are today. The French and American revolutions still have lasting effects. The French Revolution had lasting effects such as the birth of nationalism and the considerable move away from monarchism. To us Americans, the lasting effects of the American Revolution are obvious. We still live in freedom with the same system of government established by our first political leaders..