At the seat of the French monarchy in , an alliance between France and Austria was created as King Louis XVI married .The king had inherited a financial crises as France had sent millions of dollars and resources overseas to support the . Poverty, debt, and malnourishment devastated the nation as the population in France continued to increase. Unrest was brewing as King Louis XVI called a meeting of the (which had not met for 175 years) to be held in May of . Meanwhile, a brilliant orator who will later become a leader of the French Revolution named sharpened his debating and political skills. There were three major social groups in France, referred to as “estates”. The three estates were the, nobility and the common people known as the . This estate comprised over 97% of the French population. were a group of people in France with poorest and roughest lives which made up 80% of all of France. A political and philosophical awakening spearheaded by thinkers such as Voltaire and Rousseau inspired the members of the Third Estate. This transformation, known as The , created rising expectations among the French people at the same time that malnourishment and harsh taxes turned them against an inept crown. At the Estates-General, the politically inspired Third Estate demanded popular

representation, forming a political body known as the . They demanded that France become a Constitutional Monarchy in which the Third Estate would be more fairly represented politically.

After being locked out of the Estates-General and after declaring their wishes to reorganize the French government in their “”, the Third Estate was met with violent repression. Thought he recognized the need to compromise politically, Louis XVI soon started a campaign to re-establish power and put an end to the Revolution. The king’s repression incensed the French people and hundreds of protestors stormed the on July 14, to get gun powder. Later that summer, the National Assembly outlined a basic human rights platform in a document written by the Marquis de Lafayette entitled. Furious at the monarchy, a group of Parisian women marched to Versailles and demanded the king and queen return to Paris which they did in fear of death by the mob.

The Revolution continued over the next few years, as the king ordered repressive measures against protestors and factions emerged among the Third Estate. In 1791, Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette attempted to flee Paris to acquire foreign aid, but they were recaptured. Following the formation of the new, in , Louis XVI was executed by the newly created (a more humane form of execution). Following the death of Louis XVI, the publisher of Friend of the People journal, was killed by the Girondist of . Robespierre, who had been a major leader in the Revolution, responded to the chaos in France by handing over power to the with the goal of returning order by finding traitors. This attempt spiraled out of control as thousands of people suspected to be traitors of the Revolution were executed by the guillotine. This chapter of the Revolution is known as the.

Toward the end of the Revolution, in Robespierre himself after overstepping his powers was put to death by the guillotine and a more moderate group assumed a leadership role. This transfer from radicalism to a more moderate form of government is known as a . Overall, the Revolution had transformed France. The era of divine right was over, the monarchy had been eliminated, and the basic standards of human rights were established. The next phase of French history started shortly thereafter, as took over through a coup in 1799 to become Emperor of France.