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Tennis Court Oath
The Tennis Court Oath was when King Louis called all of the Estates to the meeting. When the first and second Estate locked the third estate out, the third estate created their own general estate and took the tennis court oath. The Third Estate vow to continue to gather until a solid constitution had been written. It created progress because it started off the revolution and it motivated people to take action in the country. -
Grievances of the Third Estate
Prior to the revolution, there was lots of inequality between the clergy, nobles, and third estate. In 1789 Louis XVI called for a meeting of the Estates-General after social discontent and financial problems. The third estate (97% of people) had a list changes that they insisted on. Their goal was to ensure financial equality, make a constitution that gave the king less power, fix the taxing system ect. This gave a voice and allowed people to start enforcing the change they wanted to see. -
Meeting of the Estates General
The Meeting of the Estates General was important because the french hoped that it would be a way to address their problems. In the past, the Three Estates met seperatly and each only had one vote, thus the third estate was always out numbered. This event created a huge amount of progress in the revolution because now people had a real voice in the government, and the Third Esate had representatives. This group later turned into the National Assembly and pushed toward more equality in France. -
The Storming Of Bastille
This event was the spark that really sparked off the revolution. A mob of people where attacking Bastilles, which was used by the king, and this showed that the people where rebelling against the monarch for the first time. At dawn on July 14, a great crowd armed with muskets, swords, and various makeshift weapons began to gather around the Bastille. The guards shot people, claiming that they had weapons, even though many were unarmed. This event gave momentum that kicked start the revolution. -
Womens storming of Versailles
A crowd of several thousand Parisians, many of them women, marched on Versailles to pressure the royal government. This movement was instigated by the severe food shortages in Paris. Others had more violent intentions, seeking revenge on the royal family. The women were armed with many household weapons. Many had intended for the king to leave Versailles and relocate to Paris. Not only did the march accomplish this, but it also transformed the role of women in the French Revolution. -
Forming of the constitution
In 1792 the National Assembly finished writing a constitution for France.This was important because the constitution limited the authority of the king and divided the government into branches- executive/ legislative/ judicial. It became a limited monarchy and the revolution because the king could no longer make or block laws on his own. King Louis reluctantly agreed to his new limited powers. Soon after the legislative Assembly was formed. This created progress that the french aspired to make. -
France declares war on Austria
In April, the Legislative Assembly voted to voted to declare war on Austria. The king forced War because he hoped that foreign army would defeat the French army and restore him back to power. His marriage with Marry provided a failed attempt to connect with Austria. The war made life difficult in France but it was a huge event that many agreed was necessary. -
Death of King Louis XVI
On this date, the National Convention condemned Louis XVI to death, his execution scheduled for the next day. This king was highly un favored by the French, well before the revolution, for his weakness, disconnect from the people, and lack of political insight. After events such as the king tried to flee the country, and the was proof he had conspired against the country, people demanded his death. His death was great news and meant that the revolution would now go forward. -
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The Reign of Terror
The reign of terror resulted in 17,000 deaths and 300,00 arrests. The government took harsh measures against those suspected of being enemies of the Revolution (nobles, priests, hoarders.) There was huge wave of executions that took place. As a result, the Commity of Public Safety was formed. It was very violent and a dark time, but it created progress because the government was sorting things out with the formation of the country. Unfortunately, they used terror to keep things in place.
