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1793 BCE
The Reign of Terror
It was a period of state-sanctioned violence and mass executions during the French Revolution. France's revolutionary government ordered the arrest and execution of thousands of people. -
1770 BCE
When King Louis XVI married Marie Antoinette
n 1770 the Dauphin Louis, future Louis XVI, married Marie Antoinette de Habsbourg-Lorraine. Together they had four children. -
1682 BCE
When King Louis moved the capital of France from Paris to Versailles
Louis XIV's court and government were moved to Versailles. Louis XIV hoped to extract more control over the government from the nobility and to distance himself from the people of Paris. -
1631 BCE
Palace of Versailles Built
Ut was the principle residence of the French kings from the time of Louis XIV to Louis XVI. It provided Europe with a of the ideal royal residence for over a century. -
Period: to
Napoleon as Emperor
He became Emperor of the French under the name of Napoleon I, and was the architect of France's recovery following the Revolution before setting out to conquer Europe, which led to his downfall. -
Tennis Court Oath
Representatives of the non-clergy and non-nobles of France swore they would not disperse until a constitution was established for France. While the oath-makers were successful, the French Revolution soon tumbled out of control. -
Bastille is Stormed
Hundreds of Parisians stormed the Bastille, a state prison, seizing 250 barrels of gunpowder and freeing its prisoners. The storming of the Bastille was a pivotal moment in the French Revolution. -
When The Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen was written
The Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen came into existence in the summer of 1789, born of an idea of the Constituent Assembly, which was formed by the assembly of the Estates General to draft a new Constitution. -
Women’s March on Versailles
Concerned over the high price and scarcity of bread, women from the marketplaces of Paris led the March on Versailles on October 5, 1789. This became one of the most significant events of the French Revolution, eventually forcing the royals to return to Paris. -
King Louis XVI is executed
Former king of France since the abolition of the monarchy. He was publicly executed on 21 January 1793 during the French Revolution at the Place de la Révolution in Paris. -
Napoleon launches a Coup d’Etat on the weak & corrupt Directory.
Coup d'état that overthrew the system of government under the Directory in France and substituted the Consulate, making way for the despotism of Napoleon Bonaparte. -
Creation of the Napoleonic Code
Originally established in 1799 by Napoleon Bonaparte as a successor to the King's Council and a judicial body mandated to adjudicate claims against the State and assist in the drafting of important laws. The French civil code established under Napoleon I in 1804 -
Napoleon crowns himself emperor.
Napoleon crowned himself Emperor Napoleon I at Notre Dame de Paris. According to legend, during the coronation he snatched the crown from the hands of Pope Pius VII and crowned himself. -
Defeat in Russian Campaign
The campaign effectively ended in December 1812, with the last French troops leaving Russian soil. Napoleon's army eventually reached a Moscow abandoned and destroyed by the Russian army based on the scorched-earth policy. -
When he was exiled
His attempt to regain power over France, ultimately led to his defeat and permanent exile.Napoleon's exile on Elba—an island in the Tyrrhenian Sea just 10 miles from the Italian mainland. -
Battle of Waterloo
The decisive battle of its age, it concluded a war that had raged for 23 years, ended French attempts to dominate Europe. It also destroyed Napoleon's imperial power forever.