French Revolution

The French Revolution (French: Révolution française [ʁevɔlysjɔ̃ fʁɑ̃sɛːz]) was a period of radical political and societal change in France that began with the Estates General of 1789, and ended with the formation of the French Consulate in November 1799. Many of its ideas are considered fundamental principles of liberal democracy,[1] while the values and institutions it created remain central to French political discourse.[2]

Quick facts: Date, Location, Outcome... ▼

French Revolution

Part of the Atlantic Revolutions
The Storming of the Bastille, 14 July 1789
Date	5 May 1789 – 9 November 1799 (1789-05-05 – 1799-11-09) (10 years, 6 months, and 4 days)
Location	Kingdom of France
Outcome	Abolition of the Ancien Régime and creation of constitutional monarchy Proclamation of the French First Republic in September 1792 Reign of Terror and Execution of Louis XVI French Revolutionary Wars Establishment of the French Consulate in November 1799

Part of a series on the
History of France
Ancient Prehistory   Greek colonies 600 BC – 49 BC Celtic Gaul   until 50 BC Roman Gaul 50 BC – 486 AD
Middle Ages Francia and the Franks   Merovingians 481–751 Carolingians 751–987 Direct Capetians 987–1328 Valois 1328–1498
Early modern Ancien Régime Valois-Orléans kings 1498–1515 Valois-Angoulême kings 1515–1589 Bourbon kings 1589–1792
Long 19th century French Revolution 1789–1799 Kingdom of France 1791–1792 First Republic 1792–1804 First Empire 1804–1814 Restoration 1814–1830 July Monarchy 1830–1848 Second Republic 1848–1852 Second Empire 1852–1870 Third Republic 1870–1940     Belle Époque 1871–1914
20th century Third Republic 1870–1940     Interwar period 1919–1939         Années folles 1920–1929 Free France Vichy France 1940–1944 Provisional Republic 1944–1946 Fourth Republic 1946–1958 Fifth Republic 1958–present
Topics
Economy Health care Law Medicine Military Monarchs Consorts Politics Religion Christianity Islam Judaism Territory
Timeline
France portal
v t e

Part of a series on
Revolution
Types Bourgeois Colour Communist Democratic Nonviolent Permanent Proletarian Social Wave
Methods Boycott Civil disobedience Civil war Class conflict Coup d'état Demonstration Guerrilla warfare Insurgency Nonviolent resistance Protest Rebellion Revolutionary terror Samizdat Strike action Tax resistance Terrorism
Causes Authoritarianism Autocracy Capitalism Collaborationism Colonialism Cronyism Despotism Dictatorship Discrimination Economic depression Economic inequality Electoral fraud Famine Fascism Feudalism Imperialism Military occupation Monarchy Millenarianism Natural disaster Nepotism Persecution Political corruption Political repression Poverty Tyranny Totalitarianism Unemployment
Examples Neolithic Commercial Scientific Industrial English Atlantic American Brabant Liège French Haitian Serbian Greek Of 1820 Of 1830 Belgian Texas Of 1848 Hungarian (1848) Eureka Rebellion Bulgarian unification Philippine 1st Iranian Young Turk Mexican Chinese Of 1917–1923 Russian German Spanish Guatemalan Chinese Communist Hungarian (1956) Cuban Rwandan Cultural Argentine Nicaraguan 2nd Iranian Saur People Power August Revolution Carnation Of 1989 Yogurt Velvet Romanian Singing Bolivarian Bulldozer Rose Orange Tulip Kyrgyz Arab Spring Tunisian Egyptian Yemeni Euromaidan 2018–2020 Arab protests Sudanese
Politics portal
v t e

Its causes are generally agreed to be a combination of social, political and economic factors, which the Ancien Régime proved unable to manage. In May 1789, widespread social distress led to the convocation of the Estates General, which was converted into a National Assembly in June. Continuing unrest culminated in the Storming of the Bastille on 14 July, which led to a series of radical measures by the Assembly, including the abolition of feudalism, the imposition of state control over the Catholic Church in France, and extension of the right to vote.

The next three years were dominated by the struggle for political control, exacerbated by economic depression and civil disorder. Austria, Britain, Prussia and other external powers sought to restore the Ancien Régime by force, while many French politicians saw war as the best way to unite the nation and preserve the revolution by exporting it to other countries. These factors resulted in the outbreak of the French Revolutionary Wars in April 1792, abolition of the French monarchy and proclamation of the French First Republic in September 1792, followed by the execution of Louis XVI in January 1793.

Following the Paris-based Insurrection of 31 May – 2 June 1793, the constitution was suspended and effective political power passed from the National Convention to the more radical Committee of Public Safety. An estimated 16,000 "counter-revolutionaries" were executed during the subsequent Reign of Terror, which ended with the so-called Thermidorian Reaction in July 1794. Weakened by a combination of external threats and internal opposition, in November 1795 the Republic was replaced by the Directory. Four years later in November 1799, the Consulate seized power in a military coup led by Napoleon Bonaparte. This is generally seen as marking the end of the Revolutionary period.