The French Revolution 1789-1795

PAGE The Monarchy in France 1 Social condition of France 3 Feudal rights 4 Condition of the Church 6 Government and administration 7 The privileged classes 8 Taxation 9 Conditio...

The Ministry of Turgot 18 Opposition raised to his reforms 19 Character of Louis XVI. 19 Character of Marie Antoinette 20 1776. Dismissal of Turgot 21 Movement of Reform extends...

May 5, 1789. Meeting of the States General 33 Relation of the King to the Revolution 33 Question whether the States were to sit as one or as three chambers left undecided 33 Evi...

Results of the Movement of October 6 63 The Jacobins 64 The Constitution; Administrative Changes; Establishment of 44,000 Municipalities 65 Judicial Reforms 66 Increase of the S...

Unpopularity of Marie Antoinette 87 June 20, 1791. Flight of the Royal Family 88 Ultra-Democrats seek the Establishment of a Republic 91 July 17. Massacre of the Champ de Mars 9...

Formation of the new Commune of Paris 119 The September massacres 121 The defence of the Argonnes 123 The meeting of the Convention, and the abolition of Monarchy 124 The Girond...

State of public feeling 156 Girondist and Royalist movements; Resistance in Lyons and Toulon 157 General submission to the Convention 158 War in La Vendée 159 Successes of the V...

Condition of the Army 188 Carnot’s military reforms 189 Campaign in Belgium and the Rhine; Victories of Hondschoote and Wattignies 191 The Allies expelled from Alsace by Hoche a...

Despotism of the Committee of Public Safety 204 Aims of Robespierre 205 Aims of St. Just 206 Financial object of the continuation of the Terror 207 The Terror systematised 208 R...

Reactionary Movement in Paris and in the Departments 221 Parties in the Convention 222 Readmission of the expelled Girondist Deputies to the Convention 223 Repeal of Maximum Law...

Vendémiaire Sept. Oct. Brumaire Oct. Nov. Frimaire Nov. Dec. Nivose Dec. Jan. Pluviose Jan. Feb. Ventose Feb. March Germinal Mar. April Floréal April May Prairial May June Messi...

Like the rest of Western Europe, France, in the Middle Ages, was ruled by a feudal nobility, holding their lands of the king. Nowhere in Western Europe in the tenth century was...

When the necessity of reform had been demonstrated by a band of powerful and brilliant writers, whose works were the popular reading of the day, it was inevitable that desire fo...

The States-General were opened by the King at Versailles amid a vast concourse on May 5, 1789. There were about 1,200 deputies, of whom about 300 represented the clergy, 300 the...

The movement of October 6 was not, like the rising of July 14, unpremeditated. The scarcity of bread had been made use of by agitators to suggest to the populace the idea of bri...

To the King and Queen their position had long since become intolerable. They regarded the constitution as a monstrous work, based on principles subversive of all good government...

The departments accepted passively the results of the insurrection of August 10. Men feared lest by offering opposition they might render easier the advance of the allies. Lafay...

The fall of the Girondists was the necessary result of their unfitness to govern France in the midst of war and revolution. The constitutionalists had been overthrown, because t...

While the internal condition of France was such as has been described, her enemies were being successfully held in check on the frontiers. After the great conscription decreed b...

The members of the Committee of Public Safety now concentrated all the powers of government in their own hands. The Mountain was crushed with Danton, the Commune with Hébert. Th...

It is calculated that during the fourteen months which had elapsed since the ejection of the Girondists, about 16,000 persons had perished throughout France by the sentence of r...

While internally France was a prey to bankruptcy, hunger, crime, and civil strife, the triumph of her armies continued uninterruptedly. After the evacuation of Belgium by the En...