“Prisionero Encadenado” (ca. 1812) by Francisco Goya
The French spend a lot of money helping the Americans fight the British in the War of American Independence.
But when King Louis XVI tries to raise taxes in 1789, the rich resist.
So for the first time in 175 years, the King calls for a political convention that will include common people.
When the Convention meets at the King’s palace in Versailles, the commoners don’t cooperate with the King or the nobles. In June, they give up on the Convention entirely and declare themselves to be an independent Assembly. Soon afterwards, frustration with the government leads to violence in the streets of Paris.
The commoners gather outside the Bastille, the prison where the King sends those who displease him.
On July 14, 1789, an armed crowd attacks the Bastille, and the French Revolution begins.
The crowd demands the release of the Bastille’s seven prisoners.
When the Convention meets at the King’s palace in Versailles, the commoners don’t cooperate with the King or the nobles. In June, they give up on the Convention entirely and declare themselves to be an independent Assembly. Soon afterwards, frustration with the government leads to violence in the streets of Paris.
The commoners gather outside the Bastille, the prison where the King sends those who displease him.
On July 14, 1789, an armed crowd attacks the Bastille, and the French Revolution begins.
The crowd demands the release of the Bastille’s seven prisoners.
When they are freed, the head of the Bastille surrenders, and the crowd kills him.
No comments:
Post a Comment