Editing French Revolution (section)

== Constitutional monarchy (July 1789 – September 1792) ==
=== Abolition of the ''Ancien Régime'' ===
Even the limited reforms the king had announced went too far for [[Marie Antoinette]] and Louis' younger brother the [[Charles X of France|Comte d'Artois]]. On their advice, Louis dismissed Necker again as chief minister on 11 July.{{Sfn|Schama|1989|pp=357–358}} On 12 July, the Assembly went into a non-stop session following rumours that the king was planning to use the [[Swiss Guards]] to force it to close. The news brought crowds of protestors into the streets, and soldiers of the elite {{Lang|fr|[[Gardes Françaises]]}} refused to disperse them.{{Sfn|Schama|1989|pp=380–382}}

On 14 July many of these soldiers joined a crowd [[Storming of the Bastille|attacking the Bastille]], a royal fortress with large stores of arms and ammunition. Its governor, [[Bernard-René de Launay]], surrendered after several hours of fighting that cost the lives of 83 attackers. Launay was taken to the {{Lang|fr|[[Hôtel de Ville, Paris|Hôtel de Ville]]}}, where he was killed and his head placed on a pike and paraded around the city. Although rumoured to hold many prisoners, the Bastille held only seven: four forgers, a lunatic, a failed assassin, and a deviant nobleman. Nevertheless, it was a potent symbol of the {{Lang|fr|[[Ancien Régime]]}} and it was demolished in the following weeks.{{Sfn|Schama|1989|pp=404–405}} [[Bastille Day]] has become the French national holiday.{{Sfn|Davidson|2016|p=29}}

[[File:Prise de la Bastille.jpg|thumb|right|upright=1.0|The [[Storming of the Bastille]] on 14 July 1789; the iconic event of the Revolution, still commemorated each year as [[Bastille Day]]]]

Alarmed by the prospect of losing control of the capital, Louis appointed the [[Gilbert du Motier, Marquis de Lafayette|Marquis de Lafayette]] commander of the [[Garde Nationale|National Guard]], with [[Jean-Sylvain Bailly]] as head of a new administrative structure known as the [[Paris Commune (1789–1795)|Commune]]. On 17 July, Louis visited Paris accompanied by 100 deputies, where he was greeted by Bailly and accepted a [[Flag of France|tricolore]] [[cockade]] to loud cheers. However, it was clear power had shifted from his court; he was welcomed as 'Louis XVI, father of the French and king of a free people.'{{Sfn|Schama|1989|pp=423–424}}

The short-lived unity enforced on the Assembly by a common threat quickly dissipated. Deputies argued over constitutional forms, while civil authority rapidly deteriorated. On 22 July, former Finance Minister [[Joseph Foullon de Doué|Joseph Foullon]] and his son were lynched by a Parisian mob, and neither Bailly nor Lafayette could prevent it. In rural areas, wild rumours and paranoia resulted in the formation of militia and an agrarian insurrection known as the [[Great Fear]].{{Sfn|Hibbert|1982|p=93}} The breakdown of law and order and frequent attacks on aristocratic property led much of the nobility to flee abroad. These ''[[émigré]]s'' funded reactionary forces within France and urged foreign monarchs to back a [[counter-revolution]].{{Sfn|Lefebvre|1962|pp=187–188}}

In response, the Assembly published the [[August Decrees]] which [[Abolition of feudalism in France|abolished feudalism]]. Over 25% of French farmland was subject to [[Manorialism|feudal dues]], providing the nobility with most of their income; these were now cancelled, along with church tithes. While their former tenants were supposed to pay them compensation, collecting it proved impossible, and the obligation was annulled in 1793.{{Sfn|Forster|1967|pp=71–86}} Other decrees included equality before the law, opening public office to all, freedom of worship, and cancellation of special privileges held by provinces and towns.{{Sfn|Lefebvre|1962|p=130}}

With the suspension of the 13 regional {{Lang|fr|parlements}} in November, the key institutional pillars of the old regime had all been abolished in less than four months. From its early stages, the Revolution therefore displayed signs of its radical nature; what remained unclear was the constitutional mechanism for turning intentions into practical applications.{{Sfn|Furet|Ozouf|1989|p=112}}

=== Creating a new constitution ===
{{Revolution sidebar}}
On 9 July, the National Assembly declared itself the [[National Constituent Assembly (France)|National Constituent Assembly]]{{Sfn|Doyle|1990|p=118}} and appointed a committee to draft a constitution and statement of rights.{{Sfn|Israel|2014|p=58}} Twenty drafts were submitted, which were used by a sub-committee to create a [[Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen]], with [[Honoré Gabriel Riqueti, comte de Mirabeau|Mirabeau]] being the most prominent member.{{Sfn|Israel|2014|pp=77–84}} The declaration was approved by the Assembly and published on 26 August as a statement of principle.{{Sfn|Baker|1994|pp=154–196}}

The Assembly now concentrated on the constitution. [[Jean Joseph Mounier|Mounier]] and his monarchist supporters advocated a [[bicameral]] system, with an [[upper house]] appointed by the king, who would also have the right to appoint ministers and veto legislation. On 10 September, the majority of the Assembly, led by Sieyès and [[Charles Maurice de Talleyrand-Périgord|Talleyrand]], voted in favour of a single body, and the following day approved a "[[suspensive veto]]" for the king, meaning Louis could delay implementation of a law but not block it indefinitely. In October, the Assembly voted to restrict political rights, including voting rights, to "[[Active citizenship|active citizens]]", defined as French males over the age of 25 who paid direct taxes equal to three days' labour. The remainder were designated "passive citizens", restricted to "civil rights", a distinction opposed by a significant minority, including the [[Jacobin club]]s.{{Sfn|Ludwikowski|1990|pp=456–457}}{{Sfn|Israel|2014|pp=106–107}} By mid-1790, the main elements of a constitutional monarchy were in place, although the constitution was not accepted by Louis until 1791.{{Sfn|Israel|2014|p=103}}

Food shortages and the worsening economy caused frustration at the lack of progress and led to popular unrest in Paris. This came to a head in late September 1789, when the Flanders Regiment arrived in Versailles to reinforce the royal bodyguard and were welcomed with a formal banquet as was common practice. The radical press described this as a 'gluttonous orgy' and claimed the tricolour cockade had been abused, while the Assembly viewed their arrival as an attempt to intimidate them.{{Sfn|Schama|1989|pp=459–460}}

On 5 October, crowds of women assembled outside the ''[[Hôtel de Ville, Paris|Hôtel de Ville]]'', agitating against high food prices and shortages.{{Sfn|Doyle|1990|p=121}} These protests quickly turned political, and after seizing weapons stored at the ''Hôtel de Ville,'' some 7,000 of them [[Women's March on Versailles|marched on Versailles]], where they entered the Assembly to present their demands. They were followed to Versailles by 15,000 members of the National Guard under Lafayette, who was virtually "a prisoner of his own troops".{{Sfn|Schama|1989|pp=460–463}}

When the National Guard arrived later that evening, Lafayette persuaded Louis the safety of his family required their relocation to Paris. Next morning, some of the protestors broke into the royal apartments, searching for Marie Antoinette, who had escaped. They ransacked the palace, killing several guards. Order was eventually restored, and the royal family and Assembly left for Paris, escorted by the National Guard.{{Sfn|Doyle|1990|p=122}} Louis had announced his acceptance of the August Decrees and the declaration, and his official title changed from 'King of France' to 'King of the French'.{{Sfn|Schama|1989|pp=465, 470}}

===Catholic Church ===
Historian [[John McManners]] argues "in eighteenth-century France, throne and altar were commonly spoken of as in close alliance; their simultaneous collapse ... would one day provide the final proof of their interdependence." One suggestion is that after a century of persecution, some [[Huguenots|French Protestants]] actively supported an anti-Catholic regime, a resentment fuelled by Enlightenment thinkers such as [[Voltaire]].{{Sfn|Censer|Hunt|2001|p=16}} [[Jean-Jacques Rousseau]], considered a philosophical founder of the revolution,{{Sfn|Garrard|2012|p=37}}{{Sfn|Ross|Holtermann|Bindreiter|2019|p=323}}{{Sfn|Lauritsen|Thorup|2011|p=100}} wrote it was "manifestly contrary to the [[natural law|law of nature]]... that a handful of people should gorge themselves with superfluities, while the hungry multitude goes in want of necessities."{{Sfn|Hunt|Martin|Rosenwein|2003|p=625}}

[[File:Decret de l'Assemblée National qui supprime les Ordres Religieux et Religieuses.jpg|thumb|right|upright=1.0|In this caricature, monks and nuns enjoy their new freedom after the decree of 16 February 1790.]]

The Revolution caused a massive shift of power from the Catholic Church to the state; although the extent of religious belief has been questioned, elimination of tolerance for religious minorities meant by 1789 being French also meant being Catholic.{{Sfn|Betros|2010|pp=16–21}} The church was the largest individual landowner in France, controlling nearly 10% of all estates and levied [[tithe]]s, effectively a 10% tax on income, collected from peasant farmers in the form of crops. In return, it provided a minimal level of social support.{{Sfn|Censer|Hunt|2001|p=4}}

The August Decrees abolished tithes, and on 2 November the Assembly confiscated all church property, the value of which was used to back a new paper currency known as {{Lang|fr|[[assignats]]}}. In return, the state assumed responsibilities such as paying the clergy and caring for the poor, the sick and the orphaned.{{Sfn|McManners|1969|p=27}} On 13 February 1790, religious orders and [[monasteries]] were dissolved, while [[monk]]s and [[nun]]s were encouraged to return to private life.{{Sfn|Censer|Hunt|2001|p=92}}

The [[Civil Constitution of the Clergy]] of 12 July 1790 made them employees of the state, established rates of pay, and developed a system for electing priests and bishops. [[Pope Pius VI]] and many French Catholics objected to this since it denied the authority of the [[Pope]] over the French church. In October, 30 [[Bishop (Catholic Church)|bishops]] wrote a declaration denouncing the law, further fuelling opposition.{{Sfn|Shusterman|2013|pp=58–87}} When clergy were required to swear loyalty to the Civil Constitution in November, it split the church between the 24% who complied and the majority who refused.{{Sfn|Kennedy|1989|p=151}} This stiffened popular resistance against state interference, especially in traditionally Catholic areas such as [[Normandy]], [[Brittany (administrative region)|Brittany]] and the [[Vendée]], where only a few priests took the oath and the civilian population turned against the revolution.{{Sfn|Shusterman|2013|pp=58–87}} The result was state-led persecution of "[[refractory clergy]]", many of whom were forced into exile, deported, or executed.{{Sfn|Censer|Hunt|2001|p=61}}

=== Political divisions ===
The period from October 1789 to spring 1791 is usually seen as one of relative tranquility, when some of the most important legislative reforms were enacted. However, conflict over the source of legitimate authority was more apparent in the provinces, where officers of the {{Lang|fr|Ancien Régime}} had been swept away but not yet replaced by new structures. This was less obvious in Paris, since the National Guard made it the best policed city in Europe, but disorder in the provinces inevitably affected members of the Assembly.{{Sfn|Scott|1975|pp=861–863}}

[[File:Federation.jpg|thumb|left|upright=1.0|The {{Lang|fr|[[Fête de la Fédération]]}} on 14 July 1790 celebrated the establishment of the constitutional monarchy.]]

Centrists led by Sieyès, Lafayette, Mirabeau and Bailly created a majority by forging consensus with {{Lang|fr|[[monarchiens]]}} like Mounier, and independents including [[Adrien Duport]], [[Antoine Pierre Joseph Marie Barnave|Barnave]] and [[Alexandre Lameth]]. At one end of the political spectrum, [[Reactionary|reactionaries]] like [[Jacques Antoine Marie de Cazalès|Cazalès]] and [[Jean-Sifrein Maury|Maury]] denounced the Revolution in all its forms, with radicals like [[Maximilien Robespierre]] at the other. He and [[Jean-Paul Marat]] opposed the criteria for "active citizens", gaining them substantial support among the Parisian proletariat, many of whom had been disenfranchised by the measure.{{Sfn|Schama|1989|pp=498–499}}

On 14 July 1790, celebrations were held throughout France commemorating the fall of the Bastille, with participants swearing an oath of fidelity to "the nation, the law and the king." The {{Lang|fr|[[Fête de la Fédération]]}} in Paris was attended by the royal family, with Talleyrand performing a [[mass (liturgy)|mass]]. Despite this show of unity, the Assembly was increasingly divided, while external players like the Paris Commune and National Guard competed for power. One of the most significant was the Jacobin club; originally a forum for general debate, by August 1790 it had over 150 members, split into different factions.{{Sfn|Schama|1989|pp=527–529}}

The Assembly continued to develop new institutions; in September 1790, the regional {{Lang|fr|Parlements}} were abolished and their legal functions replaced by a new independent judiciary, with [[jury trial]]s for criminal cases. However, moderate deputies were uneasy at popular demands for universal suffrage, labour unions and cheap bread, and over the winter of 1790 and 1791, they passed a series of measures intended to disarm popular radicalism. These included exclusion of poorer citizens from the National Guard, limits on use of petitions and posters, and the June 1791 [[Le Chapelier Law 1791|Le Chapelier Law]] suppressing trade guilds and any form of worker organisation.{{Sfn|Tackett|2003|p=478}}

The traditional force for preserving law and order was the army, which was increasingly divided between officers, who largely came from the nobility, and ordinary soldiers. In August 1790, the loyalist General [[François Claude Amour, marquis de Bouillé|Bouillé]] suppressed a serious mutiny at [[Nancy, France|Nancy]]; although congratulated by the Assembly, he was criticised by Jacobin radicals for the severity of his actions. Growing disorder meant many professional officers either left or became émigrés, further destabilising the institution.{{Sfn|Doyle|2009|pp=334–336}}

===Varennes and after===
{{Main|Flight to Varennes}}
Held in the [[Tuileries Palace]] under virtual house arrest, Louis XVI was urged by his brother and wife to re-assert his independence by taking refuge with Bouillé, who was based at [[Montmédy]] with 10,000 soldiers considered loyal to the Crown.{{Sfn|Price|2003|p=170}} The royal family left the palace in disguise on the night of 20 June 1791; late the next day, Louis was recognised as he passed through [[Varennes-en-Argonne|Varennes]], arrested and taken back to Paris. The attempted escape had a profound impact on public opinion; since it was clear Louis had been seeking refuge in Austria, the Assembly now demanded oaths of loyalty to the regime and began preparing for war, while fear of 'spies and traitors' became pervasive.{{Sfn|Tackett|2003|p=473}}

[[File:Retour Varennes 1791.jpg|thumb|right|upright=1.3|After the [[Flight to Varennes]]; the royal family are escorted back to Paris]]

Despite calls to replace the monarchy with a republic, Louis retained his position but was generally regarded with acute suspicion and forced to swear allegiance to the constitution. A new decree stated retracting this oath, making war upon the nation, or permitting anyone to do so in his name would be considered abdication. However, radicals led by [[Jacques Pierre Brissot]] prepared a petition demanding his deposition, and on 17 July, an immense crowd gathered in the [[Champ de Mars]] to sign. Led by Lafayette, the National Guard was ordered to "preserve public order" and responded to a barrage of stones by [[Champ de Mars massacre|firing into the crowd]], killing between 13 and 50 people.{{Sfn|Tackett|2004|pp=148–150}}

The massacre badly damaged Lafayette's reputation; the authorities responded by closing radical clubs and newspapers, while their leaders went into exile or hiding, including Marat.{{Sfn|Conner|2012|pp=83–85}} On 27 August, Emperor [[Leopold II, Holy Roman Emperor|Leopold II]] and King [[Frederick William II of Prussia]] issued the [[Declaration of Pillnitz]] declaring their support for Louis and hinting at an invasion of France on his behalf. In reality, the meeting between Leopold and Frederick was primarily to discuss the [[partitions of Poland]]; the declaration was intended to satisfy Comte d'Artois and other French émigrés, but the threat rallied popular support behind the regime.{{Sfn|Soboul|1975|pp=226–227}}

Based on a motion proposed by Robespierre, existing deputies were barred from [[1791 French legislative election|elections held in September]] for the [[French Legislative Assembly]]. Although Robespierre was one of those excluded, his support in the clubs gave him a political power base not available to Lafayette and Bailly, who resigned respectively as head of the National Guard and the Paris Commune. The new laws were gathered together in the [[French Constitution of 1791|1791 Constitution]], and submitted to Louis XVI, who pledged to defend it "from enemies at home and abroad". On 30 September, the Constituent Assembly was dissolved, and the Legislative Assembly convened the next day.{{Sfn|Lefebvre|1962|p=212}}

=== Fall of the monarchy ===
The Legislative Assembly is often dismissed by historians as an ineffective body, compromised by divisions over the role of the monarchy, an issue exacerbated when Louis attempted to prevent or reverse limitations on his powers.{{Sfn|Lyons|1975|p=5}} At the same time, restricting the vote to those who paid a minimal amount of tax disenfranchised a significant proportion of the 6&nbsp;million Frenchmen over 25, while only 10% of those able to vote actually did so. Finally, poor harvests and rising food prices led to unrest among the urban class known as ''[[sans-culottes]]'', who saw the new regime as failing to meet their demands for bread and work.{{Sfn|Schama|1989|p=pp. 581, 602–603}}

This meant the new constitution was opposed by significant elements inside and outside the Assembly, itself split into three main groups. 264 members were affiliated with Barnave's {{Lang|fr|[[Feuillant (political group)|Feuillants]]}}, constitutional monarchists who considered the Revolution had gone far enough, while another 136 were Jacobin leftists who supported a republic, led by Brissot and usually referred to as {{Lang|fr|Brissotins}}.{{Sfn|Schama|1989|p=582}} The remaining 345 belonged to {{Lang|fr|[[The Plain|La Plaine]]}}, a centrist faction who switched votes depending on the issue, but many of whom shared doubts as to whether Louis was committed to the Revolution.{{Sfn|Schama|1989|p=582}} After he officially accepted the new Constitution, one recorded response was "{{Lang|fr|Vive le roi, s'il est de bon foi!}}", or "Long live the king – if he keeps his word".{{Sfn|Thompson|1932|p=77}}

Although a minority in the Assembly, control of key committees allowed the {{Lang|fr|Brissotins}} to provoke Louis into using his veto. They first managed to pass decrees confiscating émigré property and threatening them with the death penalty.{{Sfn|Schama|1989|pp=586–587}} This was followed by measures against non-juring priests, whose opposition to the Civil Constitution led to a state of near civil war in southern France, which Barnave tried to defuse by relaxing the more punitive provisions. On 29 November, the Assembly approved a decree giving refractory clergy eight days to comply, or face charges of 'conspiracy against the nation', an act opposed even by Robespierre.{{Sfn|Gershoy|1933|pp=IV–VI}} When Louis vetoed both, his opponents were able to portray him as opposed to reform in general.{{Sfn|Schama|1989|pp=585–586}}

[[File:Tuileriensturm.jpg|thumb|The [[insurrection of 10 August 1792]]]]

Brissot accompanied this with a campaign for war against Austria and Prussia, often interpreted as a mixture of calculation and idealism. While exploiting popular anti-Austrianism, it reflected a genuine belief in exporting the values of political liberty and popular sovereignty.{{Sfn|Lalevée|2019|pp=67–70}} Simultaneously, conservatives headed by Marie Antoinette also favoured war, seeing it as a way to regain control of the military, and restore royal authority. In December 1791, Louis made a speech in the Assembly giving foreign powers a month to disband the émigrés or face war, an act greeted with enthusiasm by supporters, but suspicion from opponents.{{Sfn|Schama|1989|p=586}}

Barnave's inability to build a consensus in the Assembly resulted in the appointment of a new government, chiefly composed of {{Lang|fr|Brissotins}}. On 20 April 1792, the [[French Revolutionary Wars]] began when French armies attacked Austrian and Prussian forces along their borders, before suffering a series of [[Louis XVI and the Legislative Assembly#The initial disasters of war|disastrous defeats]]. In an effort to mobilise popular support, the government ordered non-juring priests to swear the oath or be deported, dissolved the [[Constitutional Guard]] and replaced it with 20,000 {{Lang|fr|fédérés}}; Louis agreed to disband the Guard, but vetoed the other two proposals, while Lafayette called on the Assembly to suppress the clubs.{{Sfn|Shusterman|2013|pp=88–117}}

Popular anger increased when details of the [[Brunswick Manifesto]] reached Paris on 1 August, threatening 'unforgettable vengeance' should any oppose the Allies in seeking to restore the power of the monarchy. [[Insurrection of 10 August 1792|On the morning of 10 August]], a combined force of the Paris National Guard and provincial fédérés attacked the Tuileries Palace, killing many of the Swiss Guards protecting it.{{Sfn|Dwyer|2008|pp=99–100}} Louis and his family took refuge with the Assembly and shortly after 11:00 am, the deputies present voted to 'temporarily relieve the king', effectively suspending the monarchy.{{Sfn|McPhee|2013|pp=164–166}}