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Building of the Palace at Versailles
The Palace at Versailles was built in 1631. Then opened in 1634 -
The publication of the Leviathan by Hobbes
Leviathan argues for a social contract and rule by an absolute sovereign. Hobbes wrote that civil war and the brute situation of a state of nature ("the war of all against all") could only be avoided by strong, undivided government. -
The publication of the Social Contract by Rousseau
Rousseau argues that laws are binding only when they are supported by the general will of the people. His famous idea, 'man is born free, but he is everywhere in chains' challenged the traditional order of society. -
Napoleon is born
Napoleon is born in Ajaccio, Corsica in Italy. He is born into a family of noble Italian ancestry, but France owns the island so Napoleon is actually a French citizen. -
Louis XVI is crowned
King Louis XVI was crowned in June 11, 1775. -
Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen
On 26 August 1789, the French National Constituent Assembly issued the Déclaration des droits de l'homme et du citoyen (Declaration of the Rights of Man and the Citizen) which defined individual and collective rights at the time of the French Revolution. -
Tennis Court Oath
On 20 June 1789, the members of the French Third Estate took the Tennis Court Oath vowing "not to separate and to reassemble wherever circumstances require, until the constitution of the kingdom is established" -
Storming of the Bastille
The Storming of the Bastille took place in Paris, France on July 14, 1789. This violent attack on the government by the people of France signaled the start of the French Revolution. -
Women’s March on Versailles
The Women's March on Versailles, also known as the October March, the October Days or simply the March on Versailles, was one of the earliest and most significant events of the French Revolution. -
The Murder of Marat
The Murder of Marat is a 1793 painting by Jacques-Louis David of the murdered French revolutionary leader Jean-Paul Marat. It is one of the most famous images of the French Revolution. -
Execution of Louis XVI
The execution of Louis XVI by means of the guillotine, a major event of the French Revolution, took place on 21 January 1793 at the Place de la Révolution in Paris -
Execution of Robespierre
After a year of harsh rule by Robespierre, many of the revolutionary leaders had had enough of the Terror. They turned on Robespierre and had him arrested. He was executed, along with many of his supporters, by guillotine on July 28, 1794. -
Napoleon marries Josephine
Napoleon wants a rich wife and proposes to Josephine, who comes from a wealthy family. Josephine agrees to marry him, but she is not sure she wants to marry him at first because she thinks he is a little odd. -
Napoleon named Emperor of the French Empire.
Napoleon is named Emperor of the French Empire and, in December, is crowned in a very fancy ceremony at the Notre Dame in Paris. He is named King of Italy a year later. -
Napoleon's first son is born.
Napoleon II, called The King of Rome by Napoleon, is born. He is also called Franz, after his grandfather, Francis I -
Napoleon gives up the throne again.
After his defeat at Waterloo, Napoleon gives up the throne again. This time, he will be sent away to Saint Helena in the South Atlantic, which is much farther away from France than Elba. -
Napoleon dies.
While exiled to Saint Helena, Napoleon dies. There are rumors that he is poisoned, but the actual cause of death is most likely stomach cancer.
