french rev timeline

  • Storming of the Bastille

    Storming of the Bastille
    French citizens take preemptive action against the military coup against the national assembly by raiding Bastille prison for supplies. these supplies ultimately saved the national assembly. This day is known as Frances independence day.
  • Meeting of the Estates General

    Meeting of the Estates General
    This occurred in Versailles. it was a meeting to determine what should be done about economic reforms. The third estate demanded to have more of a say.
  • Tennis Court Oath

    Tennis Court Oath
    the National Assembly was barred from their usual meeting place, so they improvised. they moved their meetings to an indoor tennis court and continued doing so until a new constitution was created. the king eventually caved.
  • Women's March on Versailles

    Women's March on Versailles
    a mob of women who work on the harbor form a mob and tear through Versailles. they demand an end to the food shortage and that the royal family come back to Paris with them. These women, because of their experience on loading docks and with other manual labor were very strong and intimidating.
  • September Massacres

    September Massacres
    this took place shortly after Napoleons downfall. rumors circulated through the city that invaders were colluding with priests and aristocrats in the prisons. they raised the prison and slaughtered roughly half the people they found there.
  • Reign of terror

    Reign of terror
  • Period: to

    the Reign of Terror

    this was a time when anyone who opposed the Revolution was beheaded. as ordered by the Sans Culottes, any one who was "disloyal" was sent to the guillotine, without trial. this lasted until Robespierre death.
  • Period: to

    Napoleonic Control

    a coup that marked the end of the French Revolution also brought the beginning of Napoleon Bonaparte's dictatorship. during this time, the government was bankrupt. This, and Napoleons new power brought rise to political turmoil. Much of the French army died of exposure in Russia, so Napoleon is left with out a strong military force and is eventually forced to abdicate the throne.
  • Invasion of Russia

    Invasion of Russia
    the single most disastrous military expedition took place in Russia. Napoleon leads his army into russia during the winter. not being acclimated to such unexpectedly harsh conditions, they were forced to retreat. most of the French army is annihilated, and Russia crushes it once again.
  • Napoleonic control

    Napoleonic control
  • Congress of Vienna

    Congress of Vienna
    European Monarchs gather to discuss the issue of governing France after the fall of Napoleon. They decide to reestablish the old order of things. this is unsurprising, due to the past rebellion shaking up practically the whole continent.
  • Exile to St Helena

    Exile to St Helena
    this occurs after the French lose the battle at Waterloo against Duke Wellington. Napoleon and his men are exiled to a small island in the middle of the ocean. there, he died