-
Bad Harvests
Bad harvests caused a food shortage, food prices to go up, and unemployment. -
Tennis Court Oath
When the National Assembly was locked out of their meeting place, they moved to an indoor tennis court. At this court, they swore they would continue to meet until they had a new constitution. -
Storming of Bastille
An angry crowd gathered outside the Bastille (an old fortress that was used as an armory and prison) because the price of food was increasing and people were becoming hungry. Rumors spread about the king's army coming, so the people stormed the Bastille. They eventually got the prison warden to surrender (and cut off his head) and released the seven prisoners. The crowd became angry when they found no weaponry inside, so they destroyed the Bastille brick by brick. -
Declaration of the Rights of Man
A declaration adopted by the National Assembly that states natural laws and natural rights, as well as “liberty, property, security, and resistance to oppression.” Although these rights made all men equal, it did not include women which raised disputes. -
Period: to
Napoleon's Rise to Power
Napoleon got his start in the military, quickly becoming commander of French armies in Italy in just four years. He won many battles using unique strategies that gave him attention. His efforts won France northern Italy. His troops were devoted to him because of his self-confidence and Intelligence. -
Start of the French Republic
The National Conventions ended the monarchy and declared France a Republic. This lead to Louis XVI's death. -
Period: to
Reign of Terror
When the Committee of public safety took over the government they adopted policies known as the reign of terror. The goal was to crush the rebellion and in their efforts, they killed thousands of people. -
Louis XVI's Death
After the Convention passed a decree condemning the King to death, he was later killed on the guillotine. This caused new problems for France. -
End of Reign of Terror
People of the National Convention feared Robespierre (the man who conducted the Reign of Terror and killed many), so they gathered the votes to do so and killed him (guillotined). This ended the Reign of Terror and the moderate middle class came into power. -
Period: to
Napoleon's Return to France and Egypt Defeat
When he returned to France in 1797 he was a hero and was given the command to invade Britain with an army in training, but he knew it wouldn't be possible. So he decided to turn to Egypt to take out Britain's route to India. He never succeeded in taking Egypt because the British were too powerful in the Mediterranean (taking out French ships supporting the army in Egypt), so the army was abandoned and Napoleon went back to Paris in 1799. -
Napoleon Comes to Power/ End of the Revolution
Napolean came to power after the coup d’état of 1799. A new government was set up called the consulate that gave him absolute power even though it was a republic. This event ended the Revolution. -
Napoleon makes Peace with the Pope
The Catholic Church was the oldest enemy of the revolution; Napoleon made sure to try and fix this. He knew most of the French people were catholic and he thought religion was at most a social convenience so, he came to an agreement with the pope. The agreement was that France would recognize that Catholicism was the majority religion (of its people) and the pope would not ask for the church lands seized in the revolution to be returned. This agreement mended the bonds of the Church and Fance. -
The Civil Code
The Civil Code was a part of the Napoleonic Code by none other than Napoleon. It was seven law codes that preserved some of the parts of the revolution (like fighting for religious toleration and the abolishment of serfdom), while others were a step back from what was fought for ( for example, that women are "less equal than men"). -
Battle of Trafalgar
Napoleon's mind was set on invading Britain, so that's what he attempted to do. The French and Spanish fleet was destroyed by the British in the Battle of Trafalgar. Great Britain was able to defeat the fleet because of its great sea power. The battle ended Napoleon's hope of invading Great Britain. -
The Grand Army invades Russia
After the Russians ignored the terms of the Continental system, Napoleon was forced to invade Russia to show the other allied states to obey. Napoleon gathered 600,000 soldiers and marched to Russia, but when they got to Moscow it was burned and emptied leaving them no food. This is because the Russian villagers burned down their homes so the soldiers would starve. This actually worked! When Napoleon's Army got to Poland in January 1813, they only returned with 60,000 soldiers. -
Napoleon's First Exile
Napoleon's first exile was to the island of Elba, off the coast of Italy. He was exiled here because of his loss of soldiers during the Russian invasion. While he was exiled here the other European states became stronger and Paris was captured. -
Napoleon's Second Exile / Death
After sneaking out of Elba and a failed attempt at invading the British, Napoleon was again exiled, but to an Island called St Helena, this is where Napoleon eventually died in 1821. He had made a huge impact on political France even after he had died. -
Napoleon's Escape
Napolean managed to sneak out of Elba and get back into France. In France, he was met with troops sent by the new king to capture him. When they found him none of them opened fire or did anything, they all stood with him shouting "long live the Empire". They marched with him to Paris. -
Napoleon's Last Defeat
Napoleon's last defeat was in Waterloo, Belgium where he met the British and Prussian army. He obviously, lost severely after rallying his troops of men from veterans that had once served him. After the loss, he was exiled, again, to St. Helena.
