HIST362: Modern Revolutions

Once the monarchy had been deposed, the revolutionary government suffered from instability. Infighting and mistrust prevented the revolutionaries from creating a new functional government and led to the so-called Reign of Terror. More than 300,000 people were arrested, and 17,000 were executed as enemies of the revolution from 1793 to 1794. Watch this video for an overview of the events of the French Revolution. Hostilities began in May 1789 with the meeting of the Estates-General – a general assembly representing the three French estates of the realm: the nobility, the church, and the common people. Summoned by King Louis XVI to propose solutions to his government's financial problems, the Estates-General sat for several weeks in May and June 1789. They arrived at an impasse when the three estates clashed over their respective powers. Members of the Third Estate created a National Assembly, which signaled the outbreak of revolution. On July 14, a mob famously stormed the Bastille, a medieval fortress and prison that represented royal authority in the center of Paris, and demanded the arms and ammunition stored there.