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American Revolution
Although the American Revolution officially began when the Second Constitutional Congress adopted the Declaration of Independence on July 4, 1776, the fighting originally began in 1775. The French sided with the colonies and financed their efforts extensively. By the time the war ended in 1783, France was in so much debt that 50% of the government's tax was allocated to paying off these debts. -
What is the Third Estate?
"What Is the Third Estate?" is a political pamphlet written iby the French thinker and clergyman Abbé Emmanuel Joseph Sieyès in January 1789. By saying the Third Estate was the most powerful Estate and it is in fact the entirety of the nation, his words became the battle cry for the French bourgeoisie and working class. -
The Calling of the Estates General
When Parlement refused to register a tax on property of all three estates, France entered a conflict between the noble Parlement and royal government. With the government at a standstill, King Louis XVI requested the Estates General to reconvene for the first time in over 100 years. -
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French Revolution
A period of social and political upheaval that saw the overthrowing of a monarchy, the establishment of a republic and political turmoil. The revolution culminated in a Napoleon dictatorship that helped bring liberal and radical ideals to Western Europe and beyond. -
The Tennis Court Oath
The Third Estate was outraged due to the disproportionate representation. Starting on the 17th of June, they began to call themselves the National Assembly. On 20 June, they were surprised to find out the the king had locked the Third Estate out of the gathering place. Immediately fearing the wrath of the king, the National assembly occupied a local tennis court and pledged "not to separate, and to reassemble wherever circumstances require, until the constitution of the kingdom is established". -
The Storming of the Bastille
On July 14, 1789, a mob looking for military supplies raided the Bastille, a medieval fortress utilized as a prison. The attackers then brutally murdered the commander and paraded through the city with his head as well as that of Paris's chief magistrate on pikes. -
Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen
With the help of insightful and enlightened thinkers such as Thomas Jefferson and Lafayette, the National Assembly wrote a declaration asserting the political and social equality for all men, as well as the natural right to "liberty, property, security, and resistance to opposition." The document echoes Enlightenment ideals as well as the English Bill of Rights and the American Declaration of Independence -
Women's March on Versailles
Outraged by the high price and scarcity of bread, women in Parisian marketplaces were near rioting. Encouraged by revolutionary agitators, they ransacked the city for weapons and thousands of Parisian women marched to Versailles and escorted the French assembly and the royal family back to Paris. This event put a stop to the king's independence and signified the sudden change in power. -
Declaration of the Rights of Woman and the Female Citizen
Olympe De Gouges, a self educated petit-bourgeois French woman, wrote this document in response to the National Assembly's "Declaration of the Rights of Man." In this work de Gouges advocates for women's suffrage, free speech and equal educational opportunities for both men and women -
The Insurrection
A crowd similar to the one that marched on Versailles forced its way into the king's palace in Paris and forced him to seek refuge in the Legislative Assembly. The Assembly subsequently ended the French monarchy, suspended the king and ordered for his imprisonment. -
France Goes to War
On April 21, 1792, the French government declared war on Austria. As Prussia was allied with Austria, France found itself fighting a war against both countries. -
The Execution of Louis XVI
While the Girondins argued for clemency for the king, the Jacobins wanted to execute him. On January 21, 1793, the Legislative Assembly sent its former king to the guillotine. -
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The Reign of Terror
The most radical and violent period in the French revolution which was incited by rivaling political factions: the Girondins and the Jacobins. -
The Execution of Robespierre
After the Revolution became secure from domestic and foreign obstacles, many of Robespierre's closest political allies were executed during the Reign of Terror. This led to conservatives in the National Convention to feel secure enough to vote for the arrest of Robespierre in July of 1794. Over the next two days, him and 100 of his remaining allies were executed by guillotine.
