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Tennis Court Oath
The Tennis Court Oath was a pivotal event during the first days of the French Revolution. The Oath was a pledge signed by 576 of the 577 members from the Third Estate who were locked out of a meeting of the Estates-General on 20 June 1789 so they made a makeshift conference room inside a tennis court located in the Saint-Louis district of Versailles . The deputies pledged to continue to meet until a constitution had been written, -
Fall of Bastille
A huge, bloodthirsty mob marched to the Bastille, searching for gun powder and prisoners that had been taken by the unpopular and detested King, Louis XVI. The Bastille had been prepared for over a week, anticipating about a hundred angry subjects and along the thick rock walls of the gargantuan fortress and between the towers were twelve more guns that were capable of launching 24-ounce case shots at any who dared to attack. -
Great Fear
In Spring there became a shortage in grain. Grain supplies were now guarded by local militias. Fearful peasants armed themselves and in some areas, attacked manor houses. -
The Declaration of the rights of man
The Declaration of the Rights of Man is a fundamental document of the French Revolution, defining the individual and collective rights of all the estates of the realm as universal.It was influenced by the doctrine of natural right. These rights do not apply to women or slavery. -
Women march on Versailles
In the Womens'march on Versailles, women rioted over high pice and scarcity of bread. Women grew in mobs of thousands and ransacked the city armory. The crowd besieged the palace and in a dramatic and violent confrontation they successfully pressed their demands upon King Louis XVI. The march symbolized a new balance of power that displaced the ancient privileged orders of the aristocracy and favored the nation's common people. -
Civil Constitution of Clergy
The Civil Constitution of the Clergy was a law that subordinated the Roman Catholic Church in France to the French government.
About half of the lower clergy and only a small number of bishops took the oath of loyalty to the French Constitution, as required by the National Assembly in a separate piece of legislation. -
The Royal Escape
Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette and their two children attempted to flee to France and gather forces tor eclaim his royal authority. Louis diguised himself as valet. Marie Antoinette disguised herself as a governess. The children and a loyal friend were disguised as a wealthy russian employer. The escape was unsuccessful because they were discovered trying to escape and were beheaded as punishment. -
Declaration of Pillnitz
The Declaration of Pillnitz was a statement issued at the Castle of Pillnitz in Saxony. This declaration was intended to serve as a warning to the French revolutionaries not to infringe further on the rights of Louis XVI and to allow his restoration to power. The declaration stated that Austria would go to war if and only if all the other major European powers also went to war with France. -
Constitution of 1791
The French Constitution of 1791 was the very first written Constitution of France. It adopted the Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen as its introduction. The main controversy was the level of power to be granted to the King of France in such a system. -
Creation of National Convention
The National Convention was elected to provide a new constitution for the country after the overthrow of the monarchy. its early acts were the formal abolition of the monarchy and the establishment of the republic . -
Execution of a Monarch
Louis XVI was tried by the National Convention, found guilty of high treason, and executed by guillotine. He is the only King of France ever to be executed. Although Louis XVI was beloved at first, his indecisiveness and conservatism led some people of France to eventually view him as a symbol of tyranny . -
Reign of Terror
The Reign of Terror was a period of violence that occurred after the onset of the French Revolution, incited by conflict between rival political factions, the Girondins and the Jacobins, and marked by mass executions of "enemies of the revolution." About 16,000 to 40,000 people were killed. -
Constitution of 1795
The Constitution of 1795 established a liberal republic with a franchise based on the payment of taxes, similar to that of the French Constitution of 1791; a bicameral legislature, (Council of Elders, Council of 500) to slow down the legislative process; and a five-man Directory. The central government retained great power, including emergency powers to curb freedom of the press and freedom of association. -
The Directory
The Diectory was made up of 5 men and 2 legislatures.The Directory suppressed the riots and called in Napoleon Bonaparte for assistance. -
Invasion of Spain
The spanish rioted against Napoleon. Napoleon deposed the spanish king and replaced him with his brother.The spanish fought back using the guerillawarfare strategy. This attack was the seconf of Napoleon's 3 mistakes. -
Napoleon becomes Consulate
Napoleon Bonaparte had established himself as the head of a more conservative, authoritarian, autocratic, and centralized republican government in France while not declaring himself head of state. -
The Concordat of 1801
The Concordat of 1801 was an agrrement with the Catholic church. In the Concordat of 1801, Napoleon makes peace with the Catholic church. The church remained under state control and recognized the religious freedom for Catholics. This agreement also helped Napoleon gain support of the peasantry. -
Coronation of an Emperor
Napoleon decides to crown himself emperor of France. Napoleon has a huge ceremony where he invites the pope to Notre Dame. He steals the pope's rown in front of thousands f people and puts it on his head. -
Battle of Trafalgar
The Battle of Trafalgar was a sea battle fought between the British Royal Navy and the combined fleets of the French Navy and Spanish Navy, during the War of the Third Coalition. The battle was the most decisive British naval victory of the war. 27 british ships defeated 33 french and spanish ships. -
Battle of Austerlitz
Napoleon and the French army decisively defeated a Russo-Austrian army, commanded by Tsar Alexander I and Francis II of Holy Roman Empire, after nearly nine hours of difficult fighting. The French victory at Austerlitz effectively brought the Third Coalition to an end. Victory at Austerlitz also permitted the creation of the Confederation of the Rhine, a collection of German states intended as a buffer zone . -
Invasion of Russia
Napoleon's russian allyas not fllowinghrough with the continental system. In the sspring Napoleon led 500,000 troops into Russia. The Russians implemented the scorched-earth policy (burn everything as you retreat). Napoleon captured a fire set Moscow and tens of thousands of troops died in retreat. -
Exile to Elba
Under the terms of the Treaty of Fontainebleau Napoleonwas exiled and forced to leave for the island of Elba. Napoleon would be allowed to rule Elba under the treaty. In March 1815, he escaped his island exile and returned to Paris, where he regained supporters and reclaimed his emperor title. -
Congress of Vienna
The Congress of Vienna was a conference of ambassadors of European states. The objective of the Congress was to settle the many issues arising from the French Revolutionary Wars, the Napoleonic Wars, and the dissolution of the Holy Roman Empire.The Congress of Vienna also attempted to forge a peaceful balance of power in Europe, -
A Hundred Days
Napoleon escapes exile and returns to Paris. Lois XVI was reinstated and Napoloen saw a chance to regain power. Napoleon rejoined the awaiting army. Napoleon was initially successful in the Battle of Waterloo.After defeat Napoleon was banished to ST Helena and died 6 years after. -
Battle of Waterloo
The Battle of Waterloowas fought in what is now present-day Belgium. Napoleon was defeated by combined armies such as The Seventh Coalition and a Prussian army, led by Duke of Wellington and Gebhard Von Blucher. The defeat at Waterloo put an end to Napoleon's rule as Emperor of the French and marked the end of his Hundred Days' return from exile.
