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Excessive spending and poor harvests led to a financial crisis in France
France's economy was the perfect melting pot of awful. The government was spending money on wars they could not afford to be a part of, like the Seven Years' War and the American Revolution. At the same time, the countryside was experiencing adverse weather conditions. An extremely cold winter, Icelandic volcanic eruption, and drought led to weak harvests. These weak harvests led to grain shortages which raised the price of bread. -
King Louis XVI calls the Estates General
Trying to solve the countries financial problems, Louis XVI convened the Estates-General for the first time in hundreds of years. This ended up causing more problems then helping. Even though the Third Estate was the same size as the First and Second combined, they still only received one vote per estate. This meant that the First and Second estate could override the Third estate easily. This caused great tension for the members of the Third estate because they were not being treated fairly. -
First and Second Estates join the Third Estate in the newly formed National Assembly
After having enough of not getting an equal voice, the Third Estate formed the National Assembly in order to take matters into their own hands. They invited members of other Estates to join them until eventually the National Assembly became so large that the king had to recognize them as an official body. -
The Tennis Court Oath
The King did not like the formation of the National Assembly. When the members of the National Assembly went to meet on the 20th of June, they were greeted by locked doors and royal guards at their usual meeting place. Thus they met at the closest place that was unlocked, Versailles indoor tennis court. Here the members of the National Assembly made the "Tennis Court Oath" which stated they would not disperse until a written constitution had been made for France. -
The storming of the Bastille
With the creation of the National Assembly, the members became scared that the King would take military action against them. Thus, they needed to be armed just in case. They had muskets but they did not have gunpowder. Along with political prisoners, the fortress of Bastille had been rumored to house gunpowder. On July 14, Parisian storeowners and craftsmen approached the Bastille, demanding that it be handed over to them. Eventually, fighting broke out and the Parisian ended up taking the Fort. -
The Great Fear
The Great Fear was a period of troubles and riots for the peasants of France. Inspired by the storming of Bastille, and troubled by rumors of military movements and paranoia, peasants began to revolt against their Lords. They damaged the private property of feudal authorities. To calm the peasants, the National Assembly abolished the feudal system and passed the Declarations of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen. -
The National Assembly adopts the Declaration of the Rights of Man and the Citizen
The National Assembly since their creation had been arguing on how necessary it would be to list out a list of rights. After taking in philosophies from the Enlightenment thinkers and writers such as Thomas Jefferson, The Declaration of the RIghts of Man and of the Citizen was created. It consists of a preamble and 17 articles that list the rights of every citizen such as life, liberty, property, and freedom of speech and religion. The writers wanted it to be an outline for the whole world. -
The Women’s March on Versailles
Grain shortages and rising bread prices were infuriating the women of Paris so they decided to take matters into their own hands. Gathering in a crowd in the streets of Paris, they marched 12 miles to Versailles to demand the King give them food. The king agreed to sign the Declaration of Rights of Man and to give the women all of the bread at Versaille. However, this was not enough and the women marched the King, the Queen, and their court from Versaille to Paris. -
The Constitution of 1791 sets up a constitutional monarchy in France
The Constitution of 1791 was the first French constitution. Members of the National Assembly looked to the US Constitution but wanted to retain a limited monarch, not a president. The government was organized into a unicameral legislature called the Legislative Assembly. The king's power was limited, only having the power of a suspensive veto. It divided citizens into "Active" and "Passive," actives being the ones with the right to vote. The Constitution inevitably failed due to the King. -
The Legislative Assembly declares war on Austria
Europe was threatened by the Revolution in France. Monarchs did not want to lose power the French king. Rumors started circulating that other Monarchs were threatening to invade France to place Louis XVI back into power, such as Leopold II of Austria, the brother of Marie Antoinette. To make a statement to the King and to test his loyalties to the new government, the Legislative Assembly declared war on Austria. The King also wanted the war, thinking it would give power back to him. -
Louis XVI is executed at the guillotine
In August 1792, there was an attack on Tuileries. This led to the King being stripped of his title completely and being reduced to Louis Capet. The newly formed National Convention decided to try Louis for his crimes against the state. He was charged with 33 crimes detailing sabotage and bad leadership. Being found unanimously guilty, it was debated on whether or not he should be executed. It was eventually voted that he should be and he was at the Place de la Révolution by guillotine. -
Robespierre's Reign of Terror
Due to increased tensions and civil war, stricter punishments were enforced for those who were enemies of the revolution. This became known as the Reign of Terror and was spearheaded by the Committee of Public Safety which was controlled by Maximilien de Robespierre. Rampant prosecutions and executions incurred. About 300,000 people were arrested, 17,000 of them were executed, 23,000 more were killed without trial or died in prison. The Reign of Terror ended when Robespierre was executed. -
The Directory is installed
The Directory was the government installed after the Reign of Terror. It was based off the Constitution of Year III and had five Directors in the executive branch running the country and the Corps Legislatif making laws. They faced many problems and controversies. They used the military to put down uprisings and annulled elections that they didn't like the outcome of. However, they did help return France to somewhat normal after the Reign of Terror. They were overthrown by Napolean in 1799.