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Because of the expenses of the wars Louis XIV waged and the extravagante costs of the court of Lois XV, the French goverment was in a financial crisis. These costs, along with the cost of supporting the American Revolution but France in a very bad financial position.
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In 1774, Louis XVI became the king of France at the age of 19. He was married to Marie Antoinette and inhereted a kingdom that was fraught with debt.
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France was in such a bad position, economically that banks refused to lend money to the French government.
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In May of 1789, Louis XVI summoned the Estates-General to meet in Versailles. He attempted to tax the First and Second estates, but they didn't cooperate. Instead, as each estate had one vote, they hoped to join together to protect themselves and eventually gain control of the government. The Third Estate wanted to let every delegate vote as an idividual, which would give them the advantage. The king turned down this idea, and wanted the three estates to meet separately.
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In June of 1789, representatives of the Third Estate, who had been locked out of the Estates-General because they refused to meet the king's demands, created the National Assembly and demanded that a French Constitution be written. One of the first things they did was gather at a tennis court with supporters from other estates and vow not to disband until there was a French Constituion. This is known as the Tennis Court Oath.
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One of the major violent revoluts during the revolutino occured when a huge mob surrounded the Bastille, a French prison, which was seen as a symbol of what was hated in the old system, and attempted to steal weapons to defend the Naioonal Assembyly. They freed the seven prisoners in the Bastille, and soilders killed 98 rioters. Because of this attack, a revolutionary city government was created in Paris.
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After demolishing the estate system, the next issue for revolutionists was giving all French citizens basic rights. This was done in August 1789, with the Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen. This stated all people as equal before the law and gave certain rights such as freedom of press, speech, and religion. This rights weren't given to women. It was inspired by the American Delaration of Independence and Constitution and also the English Bill of Rights.
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After the violence of the "Great Fear" nobles realized they could no longer deny the recalls for reform. They announced they were ready to give up their privileges. The meeting to remove this privileges lasted until 2 A.M. and as a result the last remants of feudalism were gone from France. There were no more tithes, nobels were also to be taxed, and goverment, army, and church offices were open to male citizens of any status.
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Louis XVI refused to accept the changes to France and the Declaration of Rights, so many people surrounded the kings palace in Versailles. The guards were unable to hold back the mob, so the king relented to go to Paris, and leave the wealth that Versailles symbolized.
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The National Assembly created the Civil Constitution of the Clergy to resolve their financial problems and weakened the Catholic church. They confiscated church lands and sold them, and decided that every church should elect their own priest. Because of these changes, Pope Pius VI condemned the revolution and the Catholic Church was split.
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The National Assembly presented a new constitution. It kept the monarchy but also aded a one-house assembly in which the members were elected by voters. Only men who paid a tax could vote.
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The French Revolutionists declared war on Austria for fear that they would try and reinstate Louis XVI. Austria gained support from other monarchies, such as Prussia and Sardinia. The Revolutionists won.
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After the victory at Valmy, France was elated and the National Convention gathered in Paris to destroy the monarchy and create a republic. The convention met from 1792 to 1795 to finalize all the details.
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In November, it was discovered that Louis XVI was holding a secret correspondence with other foreign monarchs. In December, Louis XVI was tried by the Convention and determined as an enemy of the people. He was beheaded by the guillotine.
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Because most of the members of the Plain joined together to support the Mountain, the more radical political theory of the Jacobins caused the revolution to become more radical and the Girondists lost power.
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The monarchies in Europe were afraid that the French Revolution would spread so Great Britain, the Netherlands, Spain, Sardinia, Austria, and Prussia joined forces against Revolutionary France.
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During this time, Jacobins tried to crush all opposition in France. Over 17,000 people were killed, including Marie Antoinette. In the spring of 1794, Danton tried to put a end to the killings, but Robespierre had him killed and attempted to increase the Terror. His followers feared for their lives and had him executed on the gullotine, which ended the Reign of Terror.
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In the new constitution, only men who owned land could vote, which gave the wealthy middle class control of the governemnt. They also created an executive council of five men, called the Directory. The Directory was faced with uprisings from boht the royalists and the radicals (who were angered by food shortages and rising prices). They didn't bridge the gap before the rich and poor and were on the brink of bankrutcy. They were rather inept and people started to look to the army to save France.
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Because the French people were tired of war and revolution, Napoleon and other leaders sieze power from the Directory in a coup d' état. He becomes the supreme Emperor of the French, and all the democracy "progress" was lost as France became an empire.
