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Jacques Necker
Jacques was a Swiss statesman and financier. He was born in Geneva. He was a devout Protestant who amassed considerable wealth as a successful banker. -
Emmanuel-Joesphy Sieyes
Emmanuel was a French Roman Catholic. He was a clergyman and a political writer who was the chief political theorist of the French Revolution. He held offices in the governments of the French consulate. -
Olympe de Gouges
Olympe de Gouges was a French Playwright and Political Activist. She is best known for her Declarations of Rights for Women. She did many writings on women's rights and abolitionism. -
Louis XVI
Louis was the last king of France. He was married to Marie Antoinette. Louis was executed in 1793 for treason. -
Marie Antoinette
Marie was married to Louis XVI. She was one of the most iconic characters in Versailles rich history. She was the last queen of France before the French Revolution. -
Marquis de Lafayette
Lafayette was a French aristocrat and freemason. He volunteered to join the continental army. He fought against the British in the American revolutionary war. -
Maximilien Robespierre
Maximilien was a Prominent French Lawyer and statesman. He was widely recognized as one of the most influential and controversial figures of the French Revolution. He is best known for spearheading the Reign of Terror. -
Calling of the Estates General
This assembly was composed of three estates. These estates were the clergy, the nobility, and the commoners. They had the power to decide on the levying of new taxes and to undertake reforms in the country. -
Formation of the National Assembly
The national assembly was a revolutionary assembly of the Kingdom of France formed by the representatives of the Third Estate of the estates general and eventually joined by some members of the first and second estates. -
Tennis court oath
This oath was a revolutionary act and an assertion that political authority derived from the people and their representatives rather than from the monarchy. The tennis court oath was that they would not stop meeting until France had a constitution. -
Attack on the Bastille
The attack on the Bastille occured in Paris, France, on July 14, 1789. This happened when revolutionary insurgents attempted to storm and seize control of the medieval armoury, fortress, and political prison known as the Bastille. -
Great Fear
The great fear was a period of panic and riot by peasants and others amid rumors of an "aristocratic conspiracy" by the king and privileged to overthrow the Third Estate. -
Execution of Louis XVI
Ultimately unwilling to cede his royal power to the revolutionary government, Louis XVI was found guilty of treason and condemned to death. He was guillotined on January 21, 1793. -
National Convention is Formed
The national convention was formed during the revolution to replace the previous legislative bodies after the end of the monarchy. Largely composed of three political factions, the body served as a legitimate government body until its end in 1795. -
Reign of Terror
The Reign of Terror was a period of the French Revolution when a series of massacres and numerous public executions took place in response to revolutionary fervor, anticlerical sentiment, and accusations of treason by the Committee of Public Safety.