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Louis XVI Crowned
Louis XVI was the last king of France. He came to power at a young age and was very indecisive and unprepared. To make matters worse he had no self-confidence and the people degraded him because he didn't produce an heir for 8 years. -
Necker is FIred
He served Louis XVI as his director of general finances. However, the people began to dislike him when he founded a number of provincial assemblies where the three estates sat and voted together. He was eventually called back into office, but the people/officals once again called for his dismissal. -
Calling of the Estates General
Before 1789 the last time the Estates General met was in 1614. There were three parts to the the Estates General. The First Estate was the clergy, the Second Estate was the nobility, and the third estate was everyone else. The First and Second Estates overrulled the Third Estate. -
National Assembly
The National Assembly's name was originally the name of the revolutionary assembly. It was formed by the representatives of the Third Estate and it was formed without the permission of the king. -
Tennis Court Oath
The deputies of the Third Estate were locked out of their meeting room, so they had to meet in a tennis court instead. They were defiying the king's order to disperse. In the room, they took an oath not to disband until a new French constitution was adopted. -
Storming of the Bastille
An angry mob stormed the Bastille because they wanted the ammunition stores. This event marked the beginning of the French Revolution and is now celebrated each year as a national holiday. -
Great Fear
The Great Fear was a period of time where peasants panicked and rioted against the king. Part of this fear was because of the shortage of grain, which led to less production of bread, of which the peasants relied heavily on for food. -
Paris Commune
Most of the members were from the Bourgeoisie group and they favored a constitutional monarchy. However, the majority of the members were Bourgeoisie republican. Soon, it was abolished and most of its members were executed. -
Declaration of the Rights of Man and Citizen
Some declarations:
1. Men are born and remain free and equal in rights. Social distinctions are based only on common utility.
2. The purpose of all political association is the preservation of the natural and imprescriptible rights of man. These rights are liberty, property, security, and resistance to oppression. -
Women's March on Versailles
A group of mostly women, but some men, marched towards Versailles with the common goal to invade the palace and send a message of rebellion to the king. Ultimately the king and queen were not at the palace when the people invaded, but the queen did return to her apartments when she was warned. -
Constitution of 1791
It was a constitution created by the National Assembly that retained the monarchy. About two-thirds of adult men had the right to vote for electors and to choose certain local officials directly. It lasted less than a year. -
Declaration of War Against Austria
The Legislative Assembly declared war against Austria, who Prussia was allied with. The French troops did not have discipline and organization so they faired poorly at first. Ultimately, many patriotics arose from the French citizens and the French won the battle at Valmy, which won the war. -
National Convention
It was an assembly that goverened France from September 1792 until October 26, 1795. It was elected to provide a new constitution for the country. It included 749 deputies, of which they were businessmen, tradesmen and many professional men. -
Louis XVI Executed
After France was declared a republic, Louis was condemed to death by the National Convention. At 8 in the morning 1,200 horsemen guards arrived to escort Louis, via carriage, to his execution that was 2 hours away. He was then executed by the guillotine. -
Committee of Public Safety
It was created by the National Assembly and it formed the de facto executive government during the Reign of Terror. It was supposed to provide for the defense of the nation against its enemies and to oversee the existing organs of executive government. -
Reign of Terror
The Reign of Terror lasted until July 28, 1794 and was a priod where many people were ordered to be killed by the Revolutionary Tribunal. At this time over 30,000 people were guillotined and most of them were ordinary citizens. However, many political threats were also taken out. A person could be executed for saying something critical about the revolutionary government. -
Execution of Marie Antoinette
She was imprisioned and tried by the Revolutionary Tribunal, and was later found guilty of treason and sexually abusing her son, which has since been proven not true. Her hair was cut off when she was driven to the guillotine and executed. -
Death of Maxmilien Robespierre
When he first became known to the French people he was thought of as a hero. However, as time went on he made many political threats and even successfully argued for the execution of the king. He was sent to the guillotine after he was arrested by the National Convention because he got too "kill happy." -
Constitution of 1795
A new constitution was created which installed the executive power in five directors who were appointed by a bicameral parliment. Riots and counter-revolutionary acts were suppressed by the army and Napoleon Bonaparte gained power. -
Napoleon's Coup d'etate
It brought him to power as First Consul of France and ended the French Revolution. It overthrew the Directory and replaced it with the French Consulate.
