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Convening the Estates General
The first meeting since 1614 of the French Estates-General, the estates being the nobility, the Church, and the common people. -
Tennis Court Oath
A pledge signed by 576 of the 577 members from the Third Estate who were locked out of a meeting of the Estates-General -
Storming of the Bastille
A public holiday, this is the day that the middle class stormed the Bastille prison -
Great Fear
Peasants, fearing grain shortages and militias guarding grain supplies, attacked manors in self-defense -
Declaration of the Rights of Man
The National Assembly adopted the French constitution -
Women’s march to Versailles
This was the time when women were near rioting about the high price of bread. -
Louis and Marie’s flight to Varennes
Louis XVI takes the royal family and attempts to flee from Paris to Montmedy but they only make it to Varennes before they are caught and arrested. -
Constitution of 1791
Louis XVI reluctantly accepts the draft of the Constitution. -
Brunswick Manifesto
A proclimation is issued by Charles Ferdinand, the Duke of Brunswick, threatening that if the royal family was harmed, the people would be too. -
National Convention
Held power during the first years of the First French Republic -
Reign of Terror
The period of violence in which tens of thousands were executed by guillotine. -
The Directory
Government system where 5 directors had executive power in France. -
Napoleon Bonaparte Takes Over
He gained a lot of power through military success and installed himself as First Consul. -
Concordat of 1801
Agreement between Napoleon and Pope Pius VII that solidified the Roman Catholic Church as the majority church of France. -
Louisiana Purchase
U.S. buys louisiana territory from France for 78 Francs (15 million dollars). (Not a very good deal for the French). -
Napoleon Becomes Emperor
Napoleon established control over most of continental Europe during his reign as emperor. -
Napoleonic Code
This forbade privilages based on birth, allowed freedom of religion, and said government jobs must go to the most qualified. -
Battle of Trafalgar
Sea battle fought between the British Navy and the combined fleets of the French and Spanish Navy. -
Continental System
Trade embargo against Britain and Ireland during the Napoleonic wars. -
Peninsular War
War between the French and the combined forces of Spain, Portugal, and the UK for the Iberian Peninsula. -
Invasion of Russia
Napoleon tries to take over Russia, Russian army wins by retreating deep into the country and starving out French army. -
Exile to Elba
Napoleon was exiled to an island 20 km off the Tuscan coast, in charge of 12,000 inhabitants of the island, kept his title of Emperor. -
Battle of Waterloo
Napoleon returns to power in 1815 and gets taken down by the 7th coalition. Last campaign of Napoleon. -
Exile to St. Helena
Napoleon was exiled for the rest of his life on St. Helena Island. Not allowed to return to France again, Napoleon died on St. Helena Island in 1821.
