- On July 14, 1789, a large crowd of Parisians stormed the Bastille, a fortress prison that had come to symbolize royal oppression.
- The Bastille had been a prison for political prisoners, and its fall was seen as a symbolic victory for the French Revolution.
Establishment of the National Constituent Assembly:
- The fall of the Bastille sparked a series of revolts throughout France, and the king was forced to call the Estates-General, an assembly of representatives from the clergy, the nobility, and the common people, to address the crisis.
- On August 4, 1789, the Estates-General was transformed into the National Constituent Assembly, which set about the task of drafting a new constitution for France.
- The Assembly would eventually abolish the monarchy, declare the rights of man and of the citizen, and establish a new republican government.
Peasant Revolts:
- In the countryside, peasants rose up against their landlords, burning their chateaux and seizing their land.
- The Great Fear spread throughout the countryside as rumors of an imminent aristocratic counter-revolution circulated, leading to widespread panic and violence.
Women's March on Versailles:
- In October 1789, a group of women marched from Paris to Versailles to demand that the king return to the capital and accept the new revolutionary government.
- The king agreed to their demands, and he and his family were forced to move to the Tuileries Palace in Paris.
Execution of King Louis XVI:
- In 1792, the monarchy was abolished, and France was declared a republic.
- King Louis XVI was put on trial for treason and executed by guillotine on January 21, 1793.