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The estates general were summoned to solve the monarch'y financial crisis. After being locked out of the meeting, the Third Estate took the Tennis Court Oath. They vowed to remain there until the new constitution had been written.
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An angry crowd marched onto the Bastille to vent their angers. The commander of the Bastille and his troops resisted for a few hours before surrendering.
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A group of unemployed and hungry people, mainly women, marched to the palace of Versailles. The crowd demanded bread and ordered Louis to live among the people.
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When the decision was made that the National Assembly could overrule the king's veto, the king and Marie Antoinette decided to try to leave quietly. They were recognized in Varennes and were forced to go back. This incident was bad for the National Assembly.
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France was proclaimed a constitutional monarchy. The National Assembly was replaced by the Legislative Assembly.
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The issue of war was a huge debate in the new Legislative Assembly. France declared war on Austria on April 20, 1792.
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20,000 people attacked the Tuileres Palace. The king and queen had escaped and were under the protection on the Legislative Assembly.
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The Legislative Assembly disbanded and was replaced by a new political body called the National Convention. Its first act was to declare France as a republic.
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From September 1793 to July 1794, an estimated 16,000 people were guillotined. Most leaders were either dead or had left the republic. Maximilien Robespierre, the leader of the Reign of Terror, was arrested and guillotined on July 27, 1794.
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Napolean Bonaparte, a successful military commander, returned from a miliary expedition and ousted the Directory. Napolean established the Consulate and named himself the First Consul.
