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Beginning of the Revolution
Began with a government financial crisis but quickly became a movement of reform and violent charge. Most members of the first two estates wanted each of the three estates to take up matters and vote on them separately by estate. The third estate had as many representatives as the other two estates combined. It insisted that all the estates be merged into one national assembly and that each representative have one vote. The third estate also wanted the Estates-General to write a constitution. -
The Guillotine
The guillotine was a beheading machine that was used for executions during the French Revolution (1789-1799). It had two posts joined by a crossbeam at the top. A heavy steel knife with a slanting edge fit in grooves in the posts. A cord held the knife in place. When the executioner cut the cord, the knife dropped and cut off the victim's head. Paris grew accustomed to the rattle of two-wheeled carts called tumbrels carrying people to the guillotine. Victims included Marie Antoinette. -
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The French Revoution
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Storming the Bastille
The storming of the Bastille in Paris on July 14, 1789, was an early event in the French Revolution. This famous prison had come to symbolize the hated government of King Louis XVI. A huge crowd of Parisians captured the fortress, forcing royal troops to withdraw from Paris. -
Trial of Louis XVI
Louis XVI was placed on trial for betraying the country. The National Convention found him guilty of treason, and a slim majority voted for the death penalty. The king was beheaded on the guillotine on Jan. 21, 1793. The revolution gradually grew more radical -
Reign of Terror
The Terror began primarily in response to a series of military setbacks and civil uprisings. It ended with the execution of Robespierre, one of the leaders of the revolution. From September 1793 to July 1794, the revolutionary government killed thousands of people in a wave of executions intended to defend the revolution. -
Robespierre's Death
Robespierre's enemies in the Convention finally attacked him as a tyrant on July 27, 1794. He was executed the next day. The Reign of Terror ended after Robespierre's death. -
End of the Revolution
Conservatives gained control of the Convention and drove the Jacobins from power. Some of the democratic reforms of the past two years were abolished in what became known as the Thermidorian Reaction. By 1799, most were probably weary of political conflict altogether. But the revolution created the long-lasting foundations for a unified state, a strong central government, and a free society dominated by the middle class and the landowners.
