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Society was broken up into three estates (classes). The Third Estate contained about 97% of the population and was controlled by people in the higher estates. The people of the Third Estate knew that they were being taken advantage of and soon after formed their own party, the National Assembly of France. They met in a room and attempted to organize themselves so the other estates would notice them.
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Three days after the National Assembly, the Third Estate delegates found themselves locked out of their meeting room. They went and broke down a door to an indoor tennis court in Versailles, pledging to stay until they had drawn up a new constitution. In response, Louis stationed his mercenary army of Swiss guards around Versailles to guard in case of rebellion.
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People began to gather weapons in order to defend the city against any attack that might result from the rumor that King Louis was intent on using military force to dismiss the National Assembly. A mob of angry attackers hacked the prison commander and several guards to death, and then paraded around the streets with the dead men’s heads on pikes. This was aside from their original goal of just obtaining gun powder from the prison.
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Thousands of Parisian women rioted over the rising prices of bread. With knives, axes, and other weapons, they marched to Versailles to demand that the National Assembly take action to provide bread. They also broke into the King and Queen's palace, killing some of the guards, and demanded that Louis and Marie return to Paris (which they eventually agreed to).
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Louis XVI questioned his stance as a monarch due to the National Assembly's restructure between church and state. The King and Queen were warned that their safety could be in danger so they tried to flee the country to the Austrian Netherland. They were unsuccessful and when returned to Paris, had more hate from the members of the Assembly.
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Prussian forces were advancing on Paris and the war began badly for the French. About 20,000 men and women invaded the Tuileries where the royal family was staying and the mob massacred the royal guards and imprisoned Louis, Marie Antoinette, and their children. Due to the lack of french retaliation, they reinforced the French army in the field. Through much of September brutal massacres happened and prisons were a large target.
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After years of strong efforts, the National Assembly had removed Louis XVI from the role of king to a common citizen and prisoner. The country would now be guided by Jacobins, a radical political organization. The Jacobins group was composed of people like Jean-Paul Marat who was known for his devotion to the protection of Paris’s poor people, which was something that Louis XVI lacked. In early 1793, the former king actually was executed by a guillotine machine.
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The National Assembly agreed with continuing the war with Austria and Prussia. When the Convention took office, the French army had a victory against the Austrians and Prussians at the Battle of Valmy. However, Great Britain, Holland, and Spain joined Prussia and Austria to fight against France. With the French going up against so many powerful armies, they suffered a string of defeats. To strengthen the French army, Jacobin leaders ordered a draft of 300,000 French citizens.
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One Jacobin leader, Maximilien Robespierre, slowly gained power. Robespierre and his supporters set out to build a “republic of virtue” by wiping out every trace of France’s past. This leadership became much like a monarchy and Robespierre even went as far as re-arranging the length of the year, re-naming months, and closing all churches in Paris. He saw a "connection between virtue and terror" and was feared throughout the country due to his role as leader of the Committee of Public Safety.
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After the country of France lived in fear for many years, members of the National Assembly turned on Robespierre and demanded his arrest and execution. The Reign of Terror phase would end when Robespierre was sent to the guillotine. French public opinion shifted dramatically after his death and drafted a new plan of government that placed power in the hands of the upper-middle class. This form would call for a two-house legislature and an executive body of five men, known as the Directory.
