<Dd> From the social point of view, the Revolution consisted in the suppression of what was called the feudal system, in the emancipation of the individual, in greater division of landed property, the abolition of the privileges of noble birth, the establishment of equality, the simplification of life...The French Revolution differed from other revolutions in being not merely national, for it aimed at benefiting all humanity ." </Dd> <P> The most heated controversy was over the status of the Catholic Church . From a dominant position in 1788, it was almost destroyed in less than a decade, its priests and nuns turned out, its leaders dead or in exile, its property controlled by its enemies, and a strong effort underway to remove all influence of Christian religiosity, such as Sundays, holy days, saints, prayers, rituals and ceremonies . The movement to dechristianise France not only failed but aroused a furious reaction among the pious . Napoleon's Concordat was a compromise that restored some of the Catholic Church's traditional roles but not its power, its lands or its monasteries . Priests and bishops were given salaries as part of a department of government controlled by Paris, not Rome . Protestants and Jews gained equal rights . Battles over the role of religion in the public sphere, and closely related issues such as church - controlled schools, that were opened by the Revolution have never seen closure . They raged into the 20th century . By the 21st century, angry debates exploded over the presence of any Muslim religious symbols in schools, such as the headscarves for which Muslim girls could be expelled . J. Christopher Soper and Joel S. Fetzer explicitly link the conflict over religious symbols in public to the French Revolution, when the target was Catholic rituals and symbols . </P> <P> The revolutionary government seized the charitable foundations that had been set up (starting in the 13th century) to provide an annual stream of revenue for hospitals, poor relief, and education . The state sold the lands but typically local authorities did not replace the funding and so most of the nation's charitable and school systems were massively disrupted . </P> <P> In the ancien regime, new opportunities for nuns as charitable practitioners were created by devout nobles on their own estates . The nuns provided comprehensive care for the sick poor on their patrons' estates, not only acting as nurses, but taking on expanded roles as physicians, surgeons, and apothecaries . During the Revolution, most of the orders of nuns were shut down and there was no organised nursing care to replace them . However, the demand for their nursing services remained strong, and after 1800 the sisters reappeared and resumed their work in hospitals and on rural estates . They were tolerated by officials because they had widespread support and were the link between elite male physicians and distrustful peasants who needed help . </P>

What did the american revolution produce that the french revolution did not