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Tennis Court Oath
The National Assembly (of the third estate) meets in an indoor tennis court and decides they will not leave until a constitution was established. This signifies the start of the third estate's revolt. -
Storming of the Bastille
Members of the third estate wanted weapons to fight against the people who supported the monarchy. They burnt down the prison. The Bastille represented the monarch’s authority over the people of France. It symbolized the unfairness and the misuse of the powers of the monarchy towards the lower class. When the people burnt down the Bastille, it was the start of the people’s revolt. -
The Great Fear
Peasants and people in rural areas begin revolting against feudalism and burning places that the church owned. Members of the aristocracy become émigrés out of fear. -
The Declaration of the Rights of Man and the Citizen
Issued by the National Assembly, it outlined the equality of the third estate. It preserved liberties similar to those in the Declaration of Independence. It too ignored women and slaves. The king didn't accept it. -
March of Versailles
Louis XVI, Marie Antoinette and their family are forced to move out of The Palace of Versailles and to Paris due to the March of Versailles. The people had started to get power over the king. -
Royal's Attempted Escape
The Royal Family attempt to leave Paris and go somewhere safer on the edge of France. They were caught and this proved Louis didn't support the democratic changes. He was then forced to accept the constitution. -
Legislative Assembly Formed
The Legislative Assembly is composed of the radical Jacobins, interested in extreme justice for the people, and the more conservative Girondists. -
Guillotine Implemented
The guillotine is adopted as the official means of execution. This was used throughout the revolution and was pivotal to the rule without the monarch. -
France Declares War on Austria
They didn't want Austria intervening with their plans of dethroning the monarch. Austria thought that their own country may be influenced by these ideas and were worried about their own country. -
Monarchy Abolished
First French Republic formed after Louis was no longer king and instead Citizen Louis Capette. -
First Day of the French Revolutionary Calendar
This symbolized the church's end to power. They no longer had a day of worship, and thus created a new way of living without the power of the church. It was issued in 1793. -
Louis Brought to Trial & Execution
33 charges were laid against him. He defended himself in that he tried to tell them he was planning on a constitutional monarchy, but was charged with death nonetheless. Guillotined on January 23. -
Jean-Paul Marat Murdered
Charlotte Corday murdered Marat, a Jacobin interested in guillotining many people who disagreed with him. She thought that by taking one life she was saving thousands. She was executed not much later. -
Reign of Terror Begins
The government was controlled by the committee of public safety. Led by Robespierre, laws were issued that were meant to scare anyone out of disobeying them. Execution would be issued to anyone who disagreed, was not a citizen of France or anyone who was a food speculator. -
Robespierre Guillotined
After the rest of the Committee of Public Safety began disagreeing with Robespierre's drastic and violent rule, they decided against him. Danton, an old ally of Robespierre had recently been executed for disagreeing with the amount of executions. This symbolized the beginning of a new start after the violent revolution.
