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King Louis XVI called the Estates-General to Versailles to address France’s financial crisis. The Third Estate quickly demands greater representation, setting the stage for a political break. -
Locked out of their usual meeting place, deputies of the Third Estate pledge not to separate until France has a new constitution, the Tennis Court Oath. This marks a radical step toward representative government. -
Parisians attack the Bastille prison searching for arms and gunpowder. The fall of the Bastille becomes a symbol of popular revolt and is later celebrated as France’s national day. -
The National Assembly issues a proclamation of universal rights, which are liberty, property, security, and resistance to oppression, that becomes the ideological foundation of the Revolution. -
Thousands of women march from Paris to Versailles, demanding bread and forcing the royal family to move to Paris and dramatically bringing the king under popular pressure. -
King Louis XVI and his family attempt to flee Paris to rally counter-revolutionary support but are captured at Varennes. The failed escape destroys remaining trust in the monarchy. -
France’s new constitution establishes a limited monarchy and a single-house legislature, reshaping the political landscape but leaving unresolved tensions. -
Louis XVI is tried for treason, convicted, and executed by guillotine, a turning point that radicalises the Revolution and leads to war with European monarchies. -
The Committee of Public Safety, led by revolutionary radicals, enacts policies to suppress perceived enemies and thousands are executed or imprisoned in the name of saving the Revolution.
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Popular and political backlash removes Robespierre and brings an end to the Terror. Years later, Napoleon’s coup overthrew the Directory and ultimately ended the revolutionary era by establishing the Consulate and then the Empire.