-
Marriage of Louis Auguste and Marie Antoinette http://www.history.com/news/10-things-you-may-not-know-about-marie-antoinette
Born in Austria, Marie Antoinette was the last child of Holy Roman Emperor Francis I. At the age of 14, she was sent to France to be married Louis Auguste who was 15.
Significance: Their marriage solidified the alliance between longtime enemies Austria and France. This brought peace to both nations...for a while.
Impact: They were both young and unprepared to rule a country with a growing number of problems. It also did't help that the French people hated Marie and her extravagant hobbies. -
Coronation of Louis XVI http://www.crisismagazine.com/2013/abbe-edgeworth-king-louis-irish-confessor
After the death of his grandfather Louis XV, Louis Auguste was crowned King Louis XVI at the age of 19. At the time, France was in need of a strong ruler who could solve their many growing problems like bankruptcy and famine. However, Louis was the exact opposite: inexperienced, shy and indecisive.
Impact: Since Louis was unable to fix the many problems facing France, the people were angry and felt that he was unfit to rule. Additionally, the king and queen were still unable to produce an heir. -
American Revolution 1775 - 1783 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/American_Revolution
A political war in which the Thirteen Colonies rebelled and overthrew the British Monarchy. The colonists fought for their rights and "no taxation without representation!"
Although this war was ongoing in North America, it played a significant role in the French Revolution. It spread Enlightenment ideas to France and gave the French people hope that it was possible to overthrow an oppressive government.
In addition, France sent resources and troops to the colonies despite their financial issues. -
Estates General - http://bastille-day.com/history/estates-general-1789
King Louis XVI called this meeting to help solve France's serious crisis. During this, representatives from each of the 3 Estates united in the Palace of Versailles to discuss some major political problems. The Estates began to argue over how they should decide the votes and it resulted in the Third Estate forming its own National Assembly.
Impact: The Third Estate had disobeyed the King and this represented Louis' lost of power. This was the beginning of change and the people knew it too. -
The Tennis Court Oath - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tennis_Court_Oath
When the Third Estate was locked out of the Estates General by King Louis XVI, they found an indoor tennis court and appointed themselves the National Assembly of France. There, the new National Assembly swears the famous Tennis Court Oath: to not stop until they have written a French constitution. Louis XVI had no choice but to acknowledge the authority of the assembly. These events significantly changed the French political system and it was pivotal to the progression of the French Revolution. -
Bastille's Fall - http://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/french-revolutionaries-storm-bastille
A mob of workers lead by the Sans-Culottes stormed the Bastille Prison in Paris. They needed the weapons and gunpowder stored in the prison so they attacked the guards and freed the seven prisoners being held at the time. The fall of Bastille marks the people’s important role in the revolution and this event is significant because it displayed what the people were truly capable of. It symbolically marked the end of the monarch’s dictatorial rule and the beginning of the French revolution. -
The Declaration of the Rights of Man and the Citizen - http://www.humanrights.com/what-are-human-rights/brief-history/declaration-of-human-rights.html
Influenced by Enlightenment ideas and thinker, this Declaration, passed by the National Assembly, contained the basic rights that all the citizens of France were guaranteed: “liberty, property, security, and resistance to oppression”. This document also ended privileges for nobles and limited the government’s power.
Significance: It recognized the people as equal and gave them natural rights as citizens. It showed King Louis XVI and the first two Estates that they no longer held all the power. -
The Women's March on Versailles - http://www.historywiz.com/womensmarch.htm
A mob of angry and hungry women and other discontented citizens marched to Versailles chanting for bread. There, they attacked and killed many guards and stormed the Palace. They demanded to see the royal family and that the King and Queen move back to Paris.
Significance: A group of angry women had managed to overpower the King of France! Louis XVI had no choice but to listen to the people and this resulted in the people gaining power while the monarchy lost control. -
Flight to Varennes - http://whenintime.com/EventDetails.aspx?e=0de52526-1127-434f-85bb-b2b5ba51359d&t=/tl/timelinewh12/French_Revolution/
The revolution was getting out of hand and the lives of Louis XVI and the his family was in danger. On the night of June 20th, the royal family disguised themselves in peasant clothes and headed towards the Austria via carriage. However, they were caught and brought back to Paris.
Impact: This incident led the French people to believe that the king had tried to betray and desert them and Louis lost all support. Also provoked charges of treason that ultimately led to King Louis's execution. -
Invasion of Tuileries Palace - http://www.1st-art-gallery.com/(after)-Prieur,-Jean-Louis,-II/The-Parisian-People-Invading-The-Tuileries-20th-June-1792,-1792.html
Similar to the storming of the Bastille (beginning of the revolution), the people of Paris attacked yet another royalist symbol: the Tuileries palace, home of Louis XVI. The armed mob fuelled by anger and hatred for the king invaded the palace = bloodshed.
Significance: Although the royal family was unharmed, after this day, King Louis XVI became known only as “Citizen Louis Capet”. He was stripped of his titles and he no longer had any authority. This day marked the fall of the French monarchy. -
The Execution of Louis XVI - http://www.historyguide.org/intellect/louis_trial.html
After Louis was stripped of his royal titles, he was arrested and locked up. At his trial, he was found guilty of committing a multitude of crimes (High Treason) and a total of 33 charges were laid against him. On Jan. 21st, 10:15AM Louis was guillotined in front of a cheering crowd at the Place de la Concorde.
Significance: The people of France had the power to execute their monarch. The death of their king symbolized that the monarchy was finally over and this meant the beginning of a new era. -
Assassination of Jean Paul Marat - http://www.bc.edu/bc_org/avp/cas/his/CoreArt/art/neocl_dav_marat.html
Jean Paul Marat was stabbed in the chest while lying in his medicinal bathtub. His killer was a Girondist named Charlotte Corday who pretended she wanted to reveal to him a list of traitors.
Significance: Marat was a radical leader who had ideas for major changes in French society. He was the president of the Jacobins club and his death had a huge impact on the people of the Third Estate. He became the first martyr for the people's cause in the French Revolution. -
Reign of Terror 1793 - 1794 - https://learnodo-newtonic.com/reign-of-terror-facts
The Reign of Terror was a period from September 5, 1793 - July 28, 1794, in which approximately 40,000 people died. Anyone who went against the ideas of the revolution or said something counter-revolutionary was immediately arrested and executed.
Significance: At this time, the Committee of Public Safety lead by Robespierre was in power. Harsh laws and the guillotine were effective methods of scaring the people and he believed he was purging France of internal enemies. -
Execution of Marie Antoinette - http://world4.eu/execution-of-the-king-louis-xvi-french-revoltion-history/execution-marie-antoinette/
After the execution of Louis, Marie Antoinette was put on trial for theft, treason, and sexual abuse against her son. She was found guilty by an all-male jury and she was sent to the guillotine to follow the same fate as her husband.
Significance: She and the people around her represented everything that was wrong with the monarchy. Her execution meant that France's last monarch had finally been executed. -
Execution of Robespierre - http://alphahistory.com/frenchrevolution/maximilien-robespierre/
The Fall of Robespierre began when he sent his fellow citizen and friend Danton to the guillotine. The Committee of Public Safety turned on him and he was arrested and charged for being a tyrant.
Significance: Robespierre died, ironically, at the blade of the guillotine. His death was a symbol of the end of the Reign of Terror and the people no longer had a leader for the revolution. This leads to the forming of The Directory (in October) that becomes the governing body of France. -
Rise of Napoleon - http://www.history.com/topics/napoleon
Napoleon Bonaparte was a successful French military leader
who conquered much of Europe. He lead invasions, and greatly expanded the French Empire, earning support from both the military and the people as he worked to reshape French society.
Significance: He became popular in France as a hero and this made him more ambitious. He became a political leader, and successfully overthrew the French Directory. Napoleon’s dictatorship helped to establish order in France, after the Revolution.
