1789 was marked by severe bread shortages in Paris. Thunderstorms had destroyed the previous year’s crops, making wheat scarce. Plus King Louis XVI’s throne-coveting cousin, the Duc de Orleans, had bought up large quantities of flour to increase the effects of the shortage. He hoped to further increase discontent against Louis and Marie Antoinette. All of this left an uneasy atmosphere in Paris.
The King and queen had not ventured from Versailles, fueling speculation about his commitment to the people of France and particularly those of Paris. What the people of Paris did not know, was that the Dauphin (prince and heir to the throne) lay dying at Meudon Palace. Louis and Marie Antoinette were no doubt occupied by the deteriorating health of their oldest son.
By mid July, with oppressive summer heat bearing down and emotions running high, events started a chain reaction that would lead to one of the bloodiest revolutions in History.
Events leading up to the Storming of the Bastille
· Foreign troops were deployed to Paris with no clear explanation as to why they were there. They were stationed at Paris’s 54 barrières, the gatehouses that led to the city.
· Dismissal of Joseph Necker, minister of Finance who was very popular with the common people
· July 12- Mob of people in the public gardens of Tuileriers Palace were attacked by a German cavalry, who were ordered to clear the area. Rumors begin to circulate that the king was planning some type of action against the people of Paris. People scramble to arm themselves.
· July 14th- The morning huge mobs gathered around the armory at Les Invalides. The break into the armory and begin handing out guns. However, there is very little gunpowder stored at the armory. It isn’t long before the mob heads toward the Bastille, an old prison on the River Seine, where 250 barrels of gunpowder is stored.
· The governor of the Bastille, Bernard de Launay, refuses to let the mob enter the Bastille or hand out any gunpowder. Someone cuts the ropes to the drawbridge and the mob rushes forth.
Aftermath of the Storming of the Bastille
The Storming of the Bastille marked the unofficial end of the French Monarchy. Even though tempers cooled slightly in the days following the storming, French nobles began fleeing abroad. Louis and Marie Antoinette refused to be parted from one another or their children. Even though it would be another two and half months until the king and queen of France would be forcibly taken to Paris, the end was certainly near for the French monarchy, which had reigned for 1300 years and the start of the French Revolution.
Today July 14th is known as Bastille Day in France, marking its independence.
Sources:
Lang, Sean. European History for Dummies. West Sussex: John Wiley & Sons, 2006.
Nagle, Susan. Marie Therese, Child of Terror: The Fate of Marie Antoinette’s Daughter. New York: Bloomsbury, 2008.
