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Estates General meets
King Louis XVI called for a spring session of the Estates General. Louis had enforced controversial taxes on property, and the people protested until he gave in and let the Estates General make decisions about the taxing. Reluctantly, representatives from all three estates met to discuss the taxing. -
National Assembly is formed
Almost every decision of the Estates General was positioned in favor of the first and second estate, even though the third estate made up 98% of the population. Fed up with this, te tird estate formed the National Assembly. They pledged the Oath of the Tennis Court, promising not to disband until they formed a new and improved constitution. -
Storming of Bastille
Revolutionaries in the Third Estate were concerned that after there many demands, the government would attack them. In order to prevent this, they made the first move. On July 14, they stormed Bastille in search of weapons and gupowder. They tried to negotioate, but military leader Governer de Launay refused. Eventually, soldiers at Bastille attacked the crowd, and some soldiers fought on he side of the people. De Launey surrendered. -
Declaration of the Rights of Man
The National Assembly realized that a major factor in all the inequity and calamity was the fact that the natural rights of the people were being ignored. So, they wrote the Declaration of the Rights of Man. Some amedments included men being born free and equal, people can act as they chose as long as they don't harm others, and all people are innocent until proven guily. -
Women march on Versailles
A major portion of the people's daily diet came from bread. However, bread was limited and very expensive. So, many women got together and rioted in the streets, demanding bread. They marched all throughout the city, as the group got bigger and bigger, and eventually, they stormed Versailles. At first, meeting with the king was peaceful and he promised more bread, but many stayed to protest for longer and some violence occured. -
Royal family attempts to flee France
On August 10, 1792, crowds attacked the royal palace, and eventually captured it. In fear, the King and the royal family attempted to flee, but they were captured by the Legislative Assembly. From there they were imprisoned, and as a result, the National Convention was formed to rule. -
France declares war on Austria
Many countries were suspicious of how France was being overthrown and didn't want the chaos to spread. Revolutionaries wanted war to unite the people. Reactionaries wanted war because they thought it would restore government to the way it was before the Revolution. So, Louis XVI declared war on Austria. -
September Massacres
People of France heard that counter-revolutionaries, specifically priests and aristocrats, were plotting with invaders. So, the people became angry. Many crowds invaded the prisons of Paris and killed. They killed half of the people that they found. As a result of this, the National Convention declared France a republic. -
Execution of Louis XVI
The National Convention convicted Louis XVI of treason. The National Convention voted, and a slight majority agreed that he should be executed. So, on January 21, Louis was killed by the guillotine. One of his last statements was "I am innocent and shall die without fear. I would that my death might bring happiness to the French, and ward off the daners which I forsee." -
The Second Coalition and Napolean
The Second Coalition started when Napoleanlead the invasion of Egypt. It was formed between Britain, Austria and Russia against France. More fighting continued until Napolean finally took over the directory and seized power. -
France declares war on Britain, Spain and Holland
This was the start of the French Revolutionary Wars. France wanted to continue wars against tyranny. The wars were split into two- the War of the Fist Coalition and the War of the Second Coalition. France took over a lot of land, and spread their reolutionary ideas doing so. The First Coalition ended when Austrians asked for peace with the Treaty of Campo Formio. During this time the Directory ruled.
