Unit 8: The French Revolution:
What the French Revolution Involved:
● The French people revolted against a monarchy that taxed them unfairly
● 1789-1799
○ Began on July 14, 1789
● Louis XVI was king when it started
● Marie Antoinette was queen during the revolution
● She gossiped and spent money on lavish things
● She was beheaded on October 16, 1793
● Georges Danton was one of the first leaders of the revolution and is considered a huge
help and leader in the war
● Jean-Paul-Marat was a journalist during this period of time
● He helped fight for poor people’s rights
● Olympe de Gouges made political pamphlets and believed that both genders should be
treated equally. She was an author and a playwright
● He was president of the national convention
● Started with people storming the Bastille prison
● Ended with general Napoleon in 1799
● Prior to revolution, french people divided into social classes called estates
● First Estate- church leaders
● Second Estate - nobles
● Third Estate - commoners
● The third estate paid the most taxes while the higher one's got a better quality of life and
better treatment
● At the start of the revolution, members of the third estate established the national
assembly, an assembly that demanded certain rights from the government
● They took control of the country and changed their name to the National Convention
● September 5th, 1793: Reign of Terror began
● On July 14, 1795, La Marseillaise was selected as the national anthem of France
● On November 9th, 1799, Napoleon formed the French Consulate and took control of the
country
● End result was an entire new social structure for France
● Took away feudalism and the French monarchy ● Gave france more liberty and freedom