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The Age of George III |
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| 1774 | Louis XVI comes to the throne American War of Independence Famine in Paris and grain riots in northern France. |
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| 1776 | July 4 | American Declaration of Independence. |
| 1778 | France enters American war; at war with Britain. | |
| 1783 | September 3 | Peace of Versailles. |
| 1786 | September 26 | Commercial free trade treaty between Britain and France (Vergennes/Eden Treaty). |
| 1787 | February 22 | The first Assembly of Notables convened |
| July-September | Conflict between the king and the Parlement de Paris | |
| 1788 | June-July | Insurrection at Grenoble and district, with calls for profound reforms |
| August 8 | King and his minister, Brienne, convoke Estates General for May 1789 | |
| September 25 | Paris Parlement recommends that the Estates General should be held
as in 1614, and presents a list of grievances. Riots in Paris, Rennes, Dijon and Pau. |
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| November | Meeting of the Second Assembly of Notables | |
| 1789 | January-May | Preparation of Cahiers de Doléances (lists of grievances) and elections to the Estates General. |
| May 5 | Estates General assemble at Versailles. | |
| June 17 | Adoption of the title 'National Assembly' by the Third Estate. | |
| June 20 | Members of the Third Estate (plus some reform-minded clergy and nobility), excluded from their meeting place, assemble and take the 'Tennis Court Oath', swearing not to disband until a constitution is established. | |
| June 23 | Louis XVI rejects Resolutions of the Third Estate. | |
| June 27 | King orders clergy and nobility to join Third Estate. | |
| July 9 | National Assembly declares itself a Constituent Assembly. | |
| July 13 | Formation of National Guard | |
| July 14 | Fall of the Bastille. | |
| July 15 | Lafayette appointed Commander of the National Guard. | |
| July 17 | Beginning of the 'Great Fear', the peasant revolt against feudalism, and of municipal revolts. | |
| August 5-11 | National Assembly decrees the abolition of feudalism, equality of taxation and the sale of offices. | |
| August 26 | National Assembly approves the text of the Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen. | |
| October 5-6 | The 'October Days'- women's march to Versailles. Return of the king to Paris. | |
| October 10 | Louis XVI decreed 'King of the French' rather than 'King of France'. | |
| November 2 | Church property nationalised. | |
| December 14-16 | Legislation to reorganise local government, which will create 83 départements in January 1790. | |
| 1790 | January | First sale of assignats. |
| January 28 | Removal of civil disabilities of Jews. | |
| February | Edmund Burke condemns and Charles James Fox welcomes Revolution in speeches at Westminster. | |
| February 13 | Suppression of religious orders and monastic vows. | |
| June 19 | Abolition of nobility and titles by Constituent Assembly. | |
| July 12 | Civil constitution of the clergy. | |
| July 14 | Fête de la Federation: first public celebration of Bastille Day. | |
| August 18 | First counter-revolutionary assembly at Jalès (between Loire and Rhône). | |
| November | Publication of Edmund Burke's Reflections on the Revolution in France. Counter-revolutionary riots in Lyons. Inflation of French currency caused by immense issue of assignats. | |
| November 26 | First decree imposing civic oath on the clergy. | |
| 1791 | January 30 | Mirabeau elected President of the French Assembly. |
| February 9 | First bishops of constitutional church elected. | |
| March 2 | Abolition of guilds and monopolies | |
| March 10 | Pope condemns civil constitution and Declaration of the Rights of Man. | |
| April 2 | Death of Mirabeau. | |
| April 13 | Papal bull, Cavitas, condemns civil constitution. | |
| May 15 | Black inhabitants of French colonies born of free parents declared to have equal civil rights with whites | |
| June 20 | Louis XVI flees Paris for Varennes. | |
| June 25 | King returns to Paris under duress. | |
| July 15 | Assembly declares the king is inviolable and his prerogatives are restored. | |
| July 17 | 'Massacre of the Champs de Mars'- National Guard fire on crowd during protests against the king's reinstatement. | |
| August 27 | Declaration of Pillnitz - Austria and Prussia ready to intervene in French affairs, but Britain remains neutral. | |
| September 4 | France annexes Avignon. | |
| September 13-14 | Louis XVI formally accepts constitution. | |
| September 28 | Slavery abolished in France but not in colonies. | |
| September 30 | Constituent Assembly dissolved. | |
| October 1 | First meeting of Legislative Assembly. | |
| November 9 | Assembly orders all émigrés to return under pain of death. Civil marriage and divorce instituted. | |
| November 11 | King vetoes Assembly's ruling on émigrés. | |
| November 29 | Decree of Assembly against non-juring priests (i.e. those refusing to swear oath of allegiance to the State). | |
| December 19 | King vetoes Assembly's decrees against non-juring priests. | |
| 1792 | January- March | Food riots in Paris. |
| January 2 | Decree that 1 January 1789 shall be reckoned the start of the 'Era of History'. | |
| February 9 | Property of émigrés declared forfeit to the nation. | |
| April 20 | 'War of the First Coalition' begins - France declares war on Austria. | |
| April 24 | 'La Marseillaise' composed by Rouget de Lisle. | |
| August 10-13 | Revolution of 10 August. Storming of Tuileries. King imprisoned with his family | |
| August 19 | Lafayette, commander of the National Guard, flees to Austria. | |
| August 22 | Royalist riots in La Vendée, Brittany and Dauphiné. | |
| August 23 | Prussian army captures Longwy. | |
| September 2 | Prussian army captures Verdun | |
| September 2-6 | 'September Massacres' - Paris crowd murder 1200, including 100 priests. | |
| September 20 | French defeat Prussians at Valmy. | |
| September 20-21 | Final sessions of Legislative Assembly. First session of the Convention. Unanimous vote to abolish monarchy. Revolutionary calendar introduced. | |
| September 21-22 | Year I of the First Republic proclaimed | |
| September 29 | French occupation of Nice (Sardinian territory) | |
| October 10 | Convention decree forbids use of madame and monsieur, and replaces them with citoyen and citoyenne. | |
| November 6 | French victory over Austria at Jemappes; occupation of Belgium begins. | |
| November 19 | Edict of Fraternity offers aid to all subject people everywhere 'struggling to be free'. | |
| November 27 | Savoy (formerly Sardinia) decreed 84th French département. | |
| December 11 | Trial of the king begins. | |
| 1793 | January 21 | Louis XVI executed. |
| February 1 | France declares war on Britain and Holland. | |
| February 13 | First Coalition against France formed by Britain, Austria, Prussia, Holland, Spain and Sardinia. | |
| February 25 | Food riots in Paris. | |
| March 7 | France declares war on Spain. | |
| March 11-16 | Beginning of revolt in La Vendée. | |
| March 18 | France withdraws from Belgium. | |
| April 6 | Committee of Public Safety established with dictatorial powers. | |
| May - June | Insurrection leads to fall of Gironde and purge of all government committees except the Committee of Public Safety. | |
| May 4 | Maximum imposed on grain prices. | |
| June 24 | The Convention accepts the 'Jacobin' Constitution of 1793 (Year I). | |
| July 10 | Danton leaves Committee of Public Safety. | |
| July 12 | Royalist insurrection in Toulon. | |
| July 13 | Marat stabbed to death in his bath by Charlotte Corday. | |
| July 17 | Abolition of all feudal rights without compensation. | |
| July 27 | Robespierre and St Just appointed to Committee of Public Safety. | |
| August 1 | Metric system adopted in France. | |
| August 23 | Decree of Levée en masse. | |
| August 27 | Surrender of Toulon to British. | |
| September 4-5 | Popular riots in Paris. | |
| September 17 | Law of Suspects and beginning of the Terror. | |
| September 22 | Beginning of 'Year II' of the Revolution | |
| October 10 | Decree suspending constitution and sanctioning Revolutionary government for the 'duration of the war'. | |
| October 16 | Execution of Marie Antoinette. | |
| November 10 | Festival of Liberty and Reason. | |
| November 24 | Revolutionary calendar introduced. | |
| December 19 | Toulon retaken by French. | |
| December 23 | Revolt in La Vendée crushed by Republican forces (Battle of Savenay). | |
| 1794 | February 4 | Abolition of slavery in all French colonies. |
| February 15 | Tricolour adopted as French flag. | |
| June 1 | British naval victory against French in English Channel. | |
| June 10 | Law of 22 Prairial increases power of the Revolutionary Tribunal, leading to mass executions | |
| June 26 | Battle of Fleurus - French reconquest of Belgium. | |
| July 30-31 | Reorganisation of Committee of Public Safety. | |
| August 10 | Reorganisation of Revolutionary Tribunal. | |
| September 18 | State financial support for all forms of religious worship withdrawn. | |
| September 28 | Britain, Austria and Russia form Alliance of St Petersburg against France. | |
| November 12 | Jacobin Club closed. | |
| December 24 | New issue of assignats further depreciates French currency. | |
| 1795 | Year of near famine throughout France. | |
| February 19 | Peace treaty between France and Tuscany. | |
| February 21 | Decree permitting freedom of worship and separation of Church and State. | |
| April 5 | Peace with Prussia signed at Basle. | |
| April 16 | Peace with United Provinces. French recognition of the 'Batavian Republic' in Holland. | |
| May-June | 'White Terror' in south. | |
| June 8 | Death of Dauphin (Louis XVII) in captivity. Comte de Provence assumes title of Louis XVIII. | |
| July 21 | Hoche destroys Royalist landings at Quiberon. | |
| July 22 | Peace with Spain signed. | |
| August 22 | Convention approves 'Constitution of Year III' which establishes Directory. | |
| October 5 | Defeat of attempted Parisian insurrection of 13 Vendémiaire by Napoleon Bonaparte's 'whiff of grapeshot'. | |
| October 26 | Convention dissolved. Directory is inaugurated. Place de La Revolution renamed Place de la Concorde. | |
| 1796 | February 2-23 | Napoleon given command of French army in Italy. |
| February 19 | End of assignats. | |
| March 9 | Napoleon marries Josephine de Beauharnais. | |
| March 18 | Government issues land bonds to replace assignats; massive inflation. | |
| March 29 | End of rebellion in La Vendée. | |
| April | Napoleon's ultimately victorious campaign against Austrians in Italy begins. | |
| November 15-17 | Napoleon wins decisive battle against Austrians at Arcola in northern Italy. | |
| 1797 | March-April | Elections lead to defeat of Directory candidates; monarchists strengthened. |
| October 18 | Treaty of Campo Formio - peace with Austria. | |
| 1798 | May 19 | Napoleon sails for Egypt. |
| August 1 | French fleet destroyed in Battle of the Nile. | |
| August 22 | Formation of Second Coalition (Britain, Austria and Russia) against France. | |
| 1798-1799 | Winter - Spring | French power eliminated in Italy (except for besieged garrison at Genoa). |
| 1799 | March 12 | France declares war on Austria |
| June 18 | Directory resigns. | |
| August 22- October 9 | Napoleon abandons army in Egypt and returns to France. | |
| November 9-10 | Napoleon's coup d'état of 18-19 Brumaire. Napoleon proclaimed First Consul. |
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Last modified
12 January, 2016
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