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The Estates General was composed of three estates – First, Second and Third estate. The estate which taxed the heaviest was the Third estate. They were 96% of the French population. The anger of the powerless of the Third estate and the opening of The Estates General marked the start of the French revolution. https://en.chateauversailles.fr/discover/history/key-dates/summoning-estates-general-1789 -
The third estate was fed up with the injustice and torture from those lavishing. So they thought that since they were the majority of people in France, the party they formed would be influential. Therefore the National Assembly was born. https://edurev.in/question/2120726/why-was-the-national-assembly-formed-Related-Detailed-Chapter-Notes-French-Revolution- -
The nobility blocked all the buildings to prevent the meeting of the National assembly. So They moved to a tennis court to continue the meeting and took an oath that they will never dismiss until a constitution was established. The importance of this event was that this is the first action people took against the French Monarchy. https://study.com/learn/lesson/tennis-court-oath-history-significance.html -
Jacques Necker, who was King Louis XVI’s finance minister, was dismissed due to his support of the Third Estate of the Estates General. He implemented a policy to limit the budget on the royal finances. The hopes and compromise to the Third Estate were ended when he was dismissed. https://moneyweek.com/328872/july-11-1789-louis-xvi-dismisses-his-finance-minister -
Hunger and anger had continued to grow to a point where people could no longer tolerate the force of the monarchy. In addition, the dismissal of Jacques Necker was the catalyst of the attack. The injustice and imbalance had been pressuring them for years. https://www.worldhistory.org/Storming_of_the_Bastille/ -
The Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen, written by Marquis de Lafayette a military officer in French, was adopted by the National Assembly. The terms are exceptionally important to the French Revolution because they challenged absolute power and authority. It listed terms that state that individuals’ rights are protected by the law. https://www.historycrunch.com/declaration-of-the-rights-of-man-and-of-the-citizen.html#/ -
Due to the financial crisis and the pressure from the people, Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette tried to escape from Versailles but eventually got arrested. And the attempt undermined the credibility of the citizens to the king. As a result, Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette were judged to be executed. https://en.chateauversailles.fr/discover/history/great-characters/louis-xvi -
The Legislative Assembly was formed to replace the National Assembly. The compositions of the members in the Legislative Assembly was elected by citizens. And they had the power to make laws, say whether the decisions of the king is approved or rejected. -
The execution methods were boiling, burning at the stake, hanging, drawing (removing inner organs), and quartering. Which are extremely inhumane. So Joseph-Ignace Guillotin proposed to use a device for execution that is more humane, the guillotine. https://deathpenaltyinfo.org/facts-and-research/history-of-the-death-penalty/early-history-of-the-death-penalty -
The most radical period of the French Revolution was The Reign of Terror. Many suspects, which means they haven’t been proven guilty, were being executed. According to the data, 300,000 people were arrested as suspects, 17,000 people were executed, and 10,000 even ended their lives in prison. https://vmfa.museum/learn/resources/napoleons-rise-fall-illustrated-timeline/