French Revolution

By boonecaili

  • Estates General

    In desperation, Louis XVI called the Estates General in hopes of repairing France. The last time the Estates General was called was in 1614.

  • National Assembly

    The Third Estate felt that there was no equal voting and decided to branch away from the other estates. The National Assembly contained the lower class and few from the first and second estates.

  • Storming the Bastille

    The National Assembly needed weapons, so they stormed the Bastille, an armory and a prison. The prisoners were freed and the guards were killed, with their heads put on sticks.

  • Declaration of Rights of Man

    This was influenced directly by Thomas Jefferson. It protected free individuals equally by law.

  • Abolition of nobility and titles

    Any title, such as Prince, King, Duke, Lord, etc. can not be bestowed to anyone's name. Some Liberal nobles happily gave up their title.

  • Civil Constituion of the Clergy

    The National Assembly requires clergymen to swear an oath.

  • Louis tries to flee France

    The royal family attempts to leave Paris. They are intercepted and arrested at Varennes.

  • Legislative Assembly Begins

    Was the national parliament during the revolutionary period. In 1792, it was replaced by the National Convention.

  • France declares war on Austria

    Revolutionaries thought war would unify the country and they wanted to spread the ideas of the Revolution to all European countries.

  • Jacobins storm the Tuileries Palace

    Six hundred volunteers came from Marseilles to storm the Tuileries Palace. The Jacobins wanted to imprison and remove the king from office.

  • National Convention replaces Legislative Assembly

    They drew up a constitution. The National Convention was also the first French Assembly elected by males without the distinctions of class.

  • Louis XVI is executed

    He was convicted of conspiracy with foreign powers and his sentence was death. He was killed with the guillotine.

  • Maximum Price Law

    With this new law, the National Convention gave the people of France a person to blame for their hunger and poverty. Those who did not abide by this new law were repressing, detaining and executing them.

  • Marie Antoinette is tried and executed

    October 14, she was tried for crimes against France. Two days later on October 16, she was executed by the guillotine.

  • The French Flag

    Blue and red are the traditional colors of Paris. The white represents the clergy, the red represents the clergy and the blue represents the bourgeoisie.

  • Execution of Robespierre

    Many people felt that they were safer to be opposing him than to be supporting him. It is rumored that he was executed face up.

  • Churches reopen to Christian worship

    Churches closed to Christians in hope of exterminating the Christian religion. Napoleon saw that if relations with the Church were mended, he could use it to help his rule in France.

  • Constituition Year 3 approved

    This new system of government included a five man government named the Directory. It also included a bicameral assembly.

  • War against Holy Roman Empire

    This was part of the First Coalition, the first major efforts of European monarchies to defeat the Revolutionaries of France. The War of the First Coalition lasted for five years.

  • End of Directory

    Napoleon Bonaparte overthrew the Directory and replaced it with the Consulate. France had been suffering from Napoleon's adventures in the Middle East