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Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette took the throne leading to possibly the worst period in French history. They were both horrible leaders and neglected any responsibility. Marie would spend large amounts of money on useless things while the people on the streets would starve. This would start resentment towards the royals and ultimately lead to the revolution. This would be the most important event of the Revolution. Even though it wasn't during the Revolution, it was the sole cause.
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The timespan of the French Revolution
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The third estate delegates named themselves the National Assembly. They would form to pass laws and reforms for the French people since the royals weren't. On this day, the National Assembly was established and would proclaim the end of the absolute monarchy and start a representative government. -
The king caught wind of what the Third Estate was doing and locked their meeting room. The Third Estate would go and break down a door to an indoor tennis court in Versaille. Here they would draft and write up a new constitution for France. -
King Louis XVI would call in foreign troops to try and gain some control back over his people. This would cause panic among the people as they believed the troops were coming to mass murder the French citizens. The people would begin preparing to fight back and located weapons and gunpowder in the Bastille. They stormed the Bastille, freed war prisoners, and collected weapons. This act has become a national French holiday. -
A rumor went around that Marie Antoinette was hoarding grain in the palace. The French people were starving and outraged when they heard about this. Peasant women armed with weapons stormed up to the palace. They even managed to get inside and demanded the royals be moved to Paris. -
Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette wanted to flee from the spotlight. One of the king's generals offered an estate to stay at in the frontier area. They dressed as servants and made their way to the estate. However, they were caught by citizens and dragged them back to Paris. -
The Champ De Mars is a park in Paris. French citizens gathered here to protest that the National Assembly wasn't radical enough. The National Assembly sent troops down to the park to control the crowd and not long after, they shot into the crowd, killing 50 people. -
Nations surrounding France wanted to publish their feelings on the situation. They sent out the Declaration of Pillnitz stating that they were going to reinstate the monarchy in France. This caused more panic among the French citizens. -
Louis XVI decided to start a war with Austria. He believed this would be beneficial whether he won or he lost. He thought if he won, they could take grain and wealth from controlled countries, but if he lost, he would be put back into power by the other monarchs. -
Louis XVI is executed. He was guillotined publicly. This, however, didn't end the revolution.
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This day would mark the end of the French Revolution. Bonaparte staged a coup d'etat and crowned himself France's "First Consul." This would start a new era called the Napoleonic era.
