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The National Constituent Assembly (1789-1791) was the first government of the French Revolution. It began when the Third Estate broke from the Estates-General. They took the Tennis Court Oath, vowing to write a constitution. Key achievements: Abolished feudalism. Wrote the Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen. Created the Constitution of 1791, establishing a Constitutional Monarchy. It dissolved itself once the constitution was finished.
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The events of 1789 started the French Revolution. In May, the Estates-General met. In June, the Third Estate formed the National Assembly and swore the Tennis Court Oath. On July 14, the Storming of the Bastille happened. In August, feudal rights ended, and the Declaration of the Rights of Man was issued. -
The Tennis Court Oath (June 20, 1789) was a key act of defiance against King Louis XVI at the start of the Revolution. The Third Estate deputies, who formed the National Assembly, swore not to separate and to meet wherever needed until they had written a written constitution for France. This event proved that power was shifting from the King to the people's representatives. -
The Storming of the Bastille (July 14, 1789) was a famous event in the French Revolution. A large crowd of angry Parisians attacked the Bastille, an old royal fortress and prison, to seize gunpowder and weapons. This act of violence against a symbol of the King's harsh power showed that ordinary people supported the revolution. This day is now France's national holiday. -
The Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen (August 26, 1789) is a founding document of the French Revolution, inspired by the spirit of the Enlightenment and the American Declaration of Independence. It states the "natural and inalienable" rights of every person, which are: Liberty Property Security Resistance to Oppression It establishes equality before the law for all citizens and confirms the principle of separation of powers. It remains a core text for French law. . -
The August Decrees (August 4–11, 1789) were a set of 19 articles passed by the National Constituent Assembly in France. Passed in response to the Great Fear, a wave of peasant unrest, the decrees formally abolished feudalism in France. They eliminated many privileges enjoyed by the noble and clerical classes, including exclusive hunting rights, tax exemptions, and the power of seigneurial courts. -
In June 1791, King Louis XVI and the royal family secretly tried to flee Paris to reach an area where they could get military support against the Revolution. They traveled in a large carriage toward the eastern border. -
he Legislative Assembly (1791–1792) was France's parliament under the Constitutional Monarchy. It was deeply divided and short-lived. It declared war on Austria and Prussia, leading to military disaster and public fear. After the King was overthrown in August 1792, the Assembly ended, and the Republic began.
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The National Convention (Sep 1792–Oct 1795) was the most radical government of the French Revolution. Its first act was abolishing the monarchy and founding the French Republic. It tried King Louis XVI and ordered his execution. It created the Committee of Public Safety and started the Reign of Terror, led by Robespierre, to crush enemies. After Robespierre was executed, the Convention created a new constitution for the next government, the Directory.
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The French Revolution caused great instability in Europe, leading to the French Revolutionary Wars (1792–1802). Initially, European powers like Austria and Prussia were more focused on gaining territory in Poland and Turkey than on fighting France. However, after the French royal family's escape attempt (Flight to Varennes), Austria and Prussia warned France in the Declaration of Pillnitz. -
The Attack on the Tuileries (August 10, 1792). This event, sometimes called the "second French Revolution," saw a large attack the Tuileries Palace . The crowd was angry at King Louis XVI. The King and his family fled to the Legislative Assembly for protection. A fierce battle broke out between the attackers and the King's Guards, who were massacred. The result was that the Legislative Assembly suspended the King from all his powers and called for a new assembly -
The execution of King Louis XVI on January 21, 1793, was a major event in the French Revolution. The King was driven to the Place de la Révolution and killed using the guillotine, which revolutionaries saw as a symbol of equality because it provided the same quick death for all citizens, regardless of their social class. The execution confirmed the final end of the French monarchy. -
The fall and execution of Maximilien Robespierre on July 28, 1794, marked the end of the most extreme phase of the French Revolution, known as the Reign of Terror. Robespierre, the architect of the Terror and head of the Committee of Public Safety, was overthrown when members of the National Convention turned against him, fearing his increasing dictatorial power and his cryptic threats of a new purge. After being denounced and briefly taking refuge in the Hôtel de Ville, he was captured. -
The Directory (1795–1799) was the government of France after the Reign of Terror. It featured a weak executive branch led by five Directors and a two-house legislature. It was known for widespread corruption and financial issues. It relied heavily on the successful French army to stay in power. It was ended by a coup d'état led by Napoleon Bonaparte in November 1799.
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The Consulate (1799–1804) was the French government established after the Directory was overthrown by Napoleon Bonaparte . Though led by three Consuls, Napoleon, as First Consul, held all the real power. He ended the revolutionary period's chaos, centralized the government, reformed finance, and created the Napoleonic Code (a new legal system). This period of military success and reform ended when Napoleon declared himself Emperor in 1804.
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he First French Empire (1804–1815) began when Napoleon Bonaparte crowned himself Emperor . This was a period of vast military expansion, known as the Napoleonic Wars. Napoleon controlled most of continental Europe by 1810. After the devastating loss in Russia (1812) and a final defeat at Waterloo (1815), Napoleon was forced to step down, ending the Empire.
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The Battle of Trafalgar (October 21, 1805) was a decisive naval engagement during the Napoleonic Wars. Key Facts: Result: A British fleet of 27 ships, led by Admiral Horatio Nelson , completely crushed a larger combined fleet of 33 French and Spanish ships off the coast of Spain. Casualties: The Franco-Spanish fleet lost 19 to 20 ships and 14,000 men. The British suffered no ship losses, though Admiral Nelson was mortally wounded during the victory. -
The Battle of Austerlitz (December 2, 1805), also known as the Battle of the Three Emperors, is considered Napoleon's greatest victory . Key Facts: Combatants: The French army led by Napoleon I fought against a larger coalition of Russian and Austrian forces. Result: Napoleon's 68,000 troops decisively defeated nearly 90,000 Allied troops through superior tactical genius. -
The Battle of Leipzig (October 16–19, 1813), also known as the Battle of the Nations, was a massive and decisive defeat for Napoleon following his disastrous Russian campaign. Key Facts: Scale: It was the largest battle in Europe prior to World War I, involving approximately 185,000 French troops against a combined Allied force of 320,000 soldiers from Austria, Prussia, Russia, and Sweden. -
was Napoleon Bonaparte's final defeat, permanently ending 23 years of recurrent European warfare. Key Facts: Combatants: Napoleon's French army (72,000 troops) fought against a combined force led by the Duke of Wellington (68,000 British, Dutch, Belgian, and German troops) and the timely arrival of Prussians (45,000 troops) under Gebhard Leberecht von Blücher. Result: The Allied forces successfully repulsed the final French assaults, leading to a complete rout of the French army.