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Agricultural Recession forces landowners to increase their sources of revenue: the lower class is taxed more and works harder.
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Charles Alexandre de Calonne, National Director of finances, called an assembly of Notables to have the upper class share in the national debt of paying tax. They refused in an effort to protect economic privileges.
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The harvest fails and the winter is fairly extreme, furthering, angering, and hurting the poor. Food becomes even more scarce and expensive.
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A meeting of the estate's general was called by Louis XVI in Versailles to discuss and approve a new tax plan. It includes the first and second and third estate, which had more members that were poorer. There is a discussion about meeting as all estates or collectively to vote. Meeting collectively gives the third estate a decided majority while meeting as individual estates give the smaller upper estates power. They go for the latter.
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The third estate is kicked and meet on the tennis court. A few of liberal nobles and many clergy join them and swear the Tennis Court Oath: "We won't separate until constitutional regime was established." On June 27, the King agrees to their demands, but also surrounds his palace with guards.
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The storming and fall of the Bastille.
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The period of the Grande Peur (Great Fear). Peasant's start robbing and burning some of the chateaux (mansions) of the rich and burn records of money owned.
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The Women of Paris invade Versailles. Parisans, led by a large number of women, march upon Versailles and force the royal family back to Paris, where they take up residence at the Tuileries. Louis XVI is considered by many a prisoner in Paris. The assembly, still in Versailles, declares, in the spirit of constitutional monarchy, it is inseparability from the King.
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Louis XVI and his family were arrested while trying to flee from France.
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France declared war on Austria. It is believed that Austria is intending to invade to help the King regain the monarchy.
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Churches are closed. The Republican armies were now inc command, and the terror became identified with ruthless and centralized revolutionary government. Any dissidence was classified as counter revolutionary, and Monteguards and extremists were guillotined early in 1794. Robespierre tries to associate it with virtue and make the republic a morally united patriotic community.
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The National Convention arrested Robespierre along with his deputies and most people who worked with him. They were all beheaded the next day.
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A new Constitution was adopted and it took effect after a reactionary rising in Vendemiare was suppressed by General Napoleon Bonaparte.
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The Parliament is purged ruthlessly. Many deputies were labeled as royalists and sent to the penal colony of French Guinea -- called the dry guillotine.
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The Fall of the Directory heralds the end of the French Revolution.