1. The Early Days of the French Revolution

2. The Monarchy King Louis XVI (that’s the 16th) King of France 1774-1792
Grandson of King Louis XV (that’s 15th), and third son of the Dauphin

3. The Monarchy Queen Marie Antoinette Queen from 1774-1792
Also Archduchess of Austria, and youngest daughter of Empress Maria Theresa

4. Marie and Louis Married when he was 15, and she was 14
As a couple, very devoted to one another
As rulers, however, they left a lot to be desired

5. Louis and Marie
He was generous and good-hearted, but had real problems handling money
She was viewed as an outsider, a foreigner from Austria instead of a French princess, who was even worse with money than her husband was

6. Louis’ Greatest Enemy The British!
To create trouble for them, Louis borrowed heavily in order to provide troops and financial help to the American Revolution
Good for us; bad for him

7. America Wins, Louis Loses
Americans gain their independence and set up a new nation
By the late 1780’s, Louis can’t pay his debts and France is nearly bankrupt

8. Louis’ Solution?

9. Louis Tried Something New
Louis was already taxing most of the people of France as much or more than they could afford
He tried to avoid bankruptcy by taxing his nobles
Historically, nobles in France had not been taxed for decades

10. Nobles Say NO!
Nobles refuse, saying they will not pay any unless Louis first calls the Estates-General to discuss the issue
The Estates-General is the name given to the meeting of representatives of all three estates
Usually convened in times of national emergency

11. The Estates-General Louis didn’t like the idea, but he had no choice
Called the Estates-General to meet at the Palace of Versailles on May 1, 1789
Last time they had met had been in 1614, 175 years earlier

12. Versailles

13. Old Way of Meeting
Under old rules, representatives of the Three Estates would meet separately, and each estate would get one vote
First estate (clergy) usually allied with Second estate (nobles), so they could always defeat the Third estate by a 2-1 margin

14. This Time
In 1789, Third estate demanded that all three meet together, and that each individual person have one vote
Estates represented in proportion to population; Third Estate had 610 representatives, while the other two combined had 591

15. The Third Estate Already heavily taxed
There is often no food for them to buy, even in major cities like Paris
Many are starving, or living in the streets eating rats and garbage
Making this demand, they felt, was the only fair way for them to get their voices heard

16. Louis Stepped In Nobles overruled the demands of the Third Estate
Third Estate turned to Louis for support
He sided with his nobles, and refused their demand to change the vote

17. Third Estate Revolted
They decided they had already been hurt too much by the monarchy
Decided to do away with it entirely, and set themselves up as the government, or at least force Louis to accept a constitution
They would call their ruling body the National Assembly

18. June 17-20, 1789
On the 17th, Third Estates voted overwhelmingly to form the National Assembly
On the 20th, Louis panicked and locked all members of the Third Estate out of Versailles so they could not meet
They broke into the palace, and convened a meeting in an indoor tennis court

19. The Tennis Court Oath

20. The Tennis Court Oath
Held on the tennis court because it was the first place they could find that fit all 610 of them
They swore an oath to stay from June 20th until such time as they had drafted a constitution

21. Louis Panicked (Again)
Some time passed after the Tennis Court Oath
Members of the Third Estate did stay on and try to draft a constitution
Members of Louis’ army are also members of the Third Estate
Louis didn’t trust the loyalty of his own soldiers

22. Bring on the Swiss
Louis sent to Switzerland for mercenary soldiers, figuring they would be more loyal than his own troops

23. Meanwhile, In Paris
Word of what is going at Versailles was leaking out
Riots begin in support of the Third Estate, and in anger over the cost of bread

24. And in the Countryside. . .
The Swiss reached French soil and began to march toward Paris to answer Louis’ call
Word spread that the Swiss were coming to kill the rioters and to massacre French citizens
It was also reported that the Swiss were actually invading France, and the country was in peril

25. Rally ‘Round The Flag
French people, even rioters, saw it as their duty to their country to protect Paris from foreign invasion
Soldiers, officers, even peasants began to take up guns and whatever other weapons they could find

26. Bastille Day – July 14, 1789

27. Bastille Day – July 14, 1789
The Bastille was a prison within the city of Paris
Kept a fairly large guard, but a very large stash of gunpowder
Rioters stormed the Bastille gates to get the gunpowder in order to fight off the Swiss
July 14 is still a national holiday in France, and is celebrated as the official start of the French Revolution

28. The Great Fear
Rumors spread from Paris to the country that nobles had hired outlaws to terrorize peasants
The Swiss, apparently, never did any real harm to anyone
Panic swept through France, called The Great Fear

29. Mobs on Parade
People began to notice that in Paris and in the country, huge mobs of people with weapons were all over the place
In the country, peasants broke into the houses of nobles to rob what they could, or tore up papers that bound them to the nobles’ houses

30. In Paris
Mobs began to get vocal about their support for a National Assembly
For once, they have both the numbers and the firepower at the same time
In October 1789, mobs marched to Versailles and broke in, killing two guards
They forced Louis to leave Versailles, and he and the Royal family were marched back to Paris under guard