-
Louis XVI summons the Estates General
Summoned by King Louis XVI to propose solutions to his government's financial problems -
Estates General Convenes
On May 5, 1789, Louis XVI convened the Estates-General. -
Tennis Court Oath
vowing "not to separate, and to reassemble wherever circumstances require, until the constitution of the kingdom is established." -
Storming of the Bastille
The Storming of the Bastille occurred in Paris, France, on the afternoon of 14 July 1789. The medieval fortress, armory, and political prison in Paris known as the Bastille represented royal authority in the center of Paris. -
Declaration of the RIghts of Man
valid at all times and in every place, pertaining to human nature itself. It became the basis for a nation of free individuals protected equally by law. -
March on Versailles
The Women's March on Versailles. On this day in 1789, an angry mob of nearly 7,000 working women – armed with pitchforks, pikes and muskets – marched in the rain from Paris to Versailles in what was to be a pivotal event in the intensifying French Revolution. To the beat of a drum, the women chanted “Bread! -
National Assembly abolishes the Nobility
The National Assembly decrees that hereditary nobility is forever abolished. Consequently, the titles of Prince, Duke, Count, Marquis, Viscount, Vidame, Baron, Knight, Lord, Squire, Noble, and all other similar titles shall neither be accepted by, nor bestowed upon, anyone whomsoever. -
Civil Constitution of the Clergy
The Civil Constitution of the Clergy was a law passed on 12 July 1790 during the French Revolution, that caused the immediate subordination of the Catholic Church in France to the French government. -
Louis and Marie Antoinette flee: Captured at Varnnes
June 1791 was a significant episode in the French Revolution in which King Louis XVI of France, his queen Marie Antoinette, and their immediate family attempted unsuccessfully to escape from Paris in order to initiate a counter-revolution -
Dissolution of the National Assembly
France was proclaimed a constitutional monarchy, while the National Assembly was dissolved and replaced by a new political body named the Legislative Assembly. -
War
France declared war on Austria. -
Attack on the Tuileries Palace
The Revolution was moving into a more radical phase. Over the next month, hundreds of suspected royalists were executed in what became known as the “September Massacre”. Many French men and women fled for their lives. -
Declaration of the Republic and the Trial of Louis
Following the arrests of Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette, the Legislative Assembly disbanded and replaced itself with a new political body named the National Convention. -
Execution of the King
It was a major event of the Revolution. He was convicted in a near-unanimous vote, and condemned Louis XVI to death by a large majority. -
Reign of Terror
a period of violence that occurred after the onset of the French Revolution, incited by conflict between two rival political factions, the Girondins and Jacobins, and marked by mass executions -
Passing of the Civil Code
The Code, with its stress on clearly written and accessible law, was a major step in replacing the previous patchwork of feudal laws. -
Coronation of Napolean
It marked "the instantiation of modern empire" and was a "transparently masterminded piece of modern propaganda". -
Exile to Elba
Following the Treaty of Fontainebleau, French Emperor Napoleon I was exiled to Elba after his forced abdication in 1814 -
Congress of Vienna
The Congress of Vienna was a conference of ambassadors of European states chaired by Austrian statesman Klemens von Metternich, and held in Vienna -
100 Days
Hundred Days, French Cent Jours, in French history, period between March 20, 1815, the date on which Napoleon arrived in Paris after escaping from exile on Elba, and July 8, 1815, the date of the return of Louis XVIII to Paris.
