How did philosophy influence the French Revolution?

Answer 1

If you abide by the School of Thought that says the French Revolution was begun as grass roots movement by the man on the street with the Storming of the Bastille then abandon the role of Philosophy and Philosophers because the Nation had less then a 20% literacy rate. For the illiterate peasant it was about hope for a better tomorrow and bread for today.

If you hold the position that the origin of the French Revolution is with the Tennis Court Oath, then Enlightenment and philosophy may have had a meaningful role. The Third Estate delegates were literate and more then a few held conversant positions on the Rights of Man. For most of them however it was a tax issue and a matter of tax fairness.