French Revolution Research Paper

Starting in 1789, there was a large clamor to change the economic and fiscal world in France. Many events characterized this revolution, such as the Tennis Court Oath, Storming of the Bastille, the Declaration of the Rights of Man, National Assembly, and the March on Versailles. It started due to argument over power of the king and the method of voting. Leaders looked to end feudalism and have a constitutional monarchy rather than an absolute monarchy. The first major concept of the revolution dealt with problems with the method of voting. At this time, it was a 2 to 1 vote. The third estate refused to accept the traditional way of voting. To try and solve this problem, Louis XVI called a meeting that included the estates general. The nobles wanted to limit the power of the king. In June, the third estate became locked out of the estates general. They wanted to announce that they would be replacing the estates general with the national assembly. To do this, they went to a nearby tennis court, because it would fit more people than any building would and they would be able to reach a larger group of people. They all agreed not to break up until a new constitution came in place. The king was aware of all of this, and it became known that he planned to end the assembly. …show more content…
Word spread around that troops wanted to siege the capital. After this, around 800 Parisians assembled at the Bastille, which held political prisoners. The Bastille leader did not open the gates as the people had wished, and instead shot towards the crowd. This started a bloody battle in which many were killed. However, some Parisians were able to fight through this and they ended up murdering the commander and multiple guards. Furthermore, they released a large number of prisoners. The storming of the Bastille alerted the king and sent a message to the regime that was unlike any protest that had come