Pre- 1789 Dates

1740s

The Enlightenment, a period of intellectual curiosity, scientific investigation, philosophical and political debate, begins to reach its peak in France.

April 1748

The War of the Austrian Succession is ended by the Treaty of Aix-la-Chapelle. This war ended in a stalemate, with no advantage for France, however it greatly expanded the French national debt.

October 1748

Baron de Montesquieu publishes The Spirit of the Laws, a treatise on political philosophy. Montesquieu’s book explored different systems and conceptions of government, particularly the separation of powers.

August 23rd 1754

August 23rd: Louis, Duc de Berry – the future Louis XVI – is born at Versailles.

Nov 2 1754

Marie Antoinette, youngest daughter of Maria Theresa and the Holy Roman Emperor Francis I, is born in Vienna.

18th May 1756

The outbreak of the Seven Years’ War with Britain and her colonies, which further exacerbates the French debt crisis.

1762

The French writer and philosopher Jean-Jacques Rousseau publishes The Social Contract, which explores the relationship between individuals, liberty and the state.

20 Dec 1765

Louis, Dauphin of France, dies of tuberculosis at Fointainebleau. His son, the future Louis XVI, becomes heir to the French throne.

May 16 1770

The marriage of Louis, Dauphin of France (the future Louis XVI) and the 14-year-old Austrian princess Marie Antoinette.

10 May 1774

The death of King Louis XV. His grandson, the Dauphin, becomes King Louis XVI.

24 August 1770

The new king appoints the French economist Anne Robert Turgot as his finance minister.

August-Sep 1774

Poor grain harvests are recorded across France. The government implements emergency measures and the new king agrees to fix the price of bread.

April 1775

The American Revolutionary War begins, after American colonists and British soldiers open fire at Lexington.

June 1775

Louis XVI is crowned as king.

May 1776

After attempting some limited economic reform, finance minister Anne Robert Turgot is dismissed by Louis XVI.

Oct 1776

Swiss banker Jacques Necker is appointed as Turgot’s successor.

July 1777

The young French nobleman Marquis de Lafayette sails to America and volunteers to fight with the American revolutionaries. He is later given a general’s commission in the American Continental Army

Feb 1778

The French government signs a military alliance with the American Continental Congress.

July 1778

Louis XVI formally declares war on Britain and orders a full mobilisation of the French army and navy.

Jan 1781

Jacques Necker publishes Compte Rendu, a comprehensive though rather misleading account of the national finances of France.

19 May 1781

Necker resigns as the controller-general of finances, after failures to implement reform and opposition from several quarters of the government.

Oct 22 1781

Marie Antoinette gives birth to a son, Louis Joseph Xavier, Dauphin of France.

1782

De Laclos publishes Les Liaisons Dangereuse (‘Dangerous Liaisons’), novel that depicts the French nobility as leisure loving, amoral and debauched.

Sep 3 1783

The Treaty of Paris brings the American Revolutionary War to a close. Involvement in the war has cost the French government more than 1.8 billion livres.

Nov 3 1782

The king appoints lawyer Charles de Calonne as the controller-general of finances.

Aug 1785

Marie Antoinette and her inner circle become embroiled in the ‘Diamond Necklace affair’, following the theft of a necklace valued at around 2 million livres.

May 31 1786

Cardinal de Rohan and others are acquitted by the Paris parlement for their role in the ‘Diamond Necklace affair’. While she was not involved or implicated in the trial, Marie Antoinette is discredited by rumours.

Aug 20 1786

New finance minister Charles de Calonne informs Louis XVI that the nation is facing bankruptcy. He proposes immediate reforms including a new land tax, a stamp duty and commutation of the corvee.

Sep 26 1786

French  ministers sign a trade agreement with England, containing reductions in duty for certain imports and exports.

Dec 29 1786

Seeking to push through his reforms and bypass the parlements, Calonne orders the convocation of the Assembly of Notables.

Feb 22 1787

The first Assembly of Notables opens. Over the following days it hears evidence and testimony about the nation’s financial plight.

March 1787

Calonne publicly floats his tax reforms, however they are opposed by the Assembly of Notables.

April 8 1787

Louis attempts to break the stalemate by dismissing Calonne as finance minister.

May 1 1787

The king appoints Etienne Brienne as finance minister, a move intended to win support from the Assembly of Notables.

May 25 1787

After debating and rejecting Brienne’s own package of taxation reforms, the first Assembly of Notables is dissolved.

June 1787

Brienne sends bills proposing taxation reform to the parlements.

June 27th 1788

The Brienne government issues an edict commuting the corvee and replacing it with a money tax, approximately one-sixth of the taille.

July 1787

The Paris parlement rejects Brienne’s legislative proposals for reforming the taxation system.

August 1787

The king dismisses the Paris and Bordeaux parlements, ordering them into exile.

Sep 1787

Unable to register his taxation reforms, Brienne withdraws them and settles for an extension of the vingtieme.

Oct 1787

The king allows the exiled parlements to be recalled and re-seated.

Nov 19 1787

At Brienne’s suggestion, the king calls a lit de justice to push through several reforms. This triggers protests from the parlement and the Duke of Orleans.

Nov 20 1787

The Duke of Orleans is exiled from Paris and Versailles by lettre de cachet after criticising the king’s treatment of the parlements.

Jan 1788

The parlement registers further national loans but declares all lettres de cachet to be illegal.

May 3 1788

The Paris parlement issues a “Declaration of the Fundamental Laws of France”. Among its clauses were strong criticisms of lettres de cachet and a demand that the Estates General be convoked to verify any tax reforms.

May 8 1788

The king and his ministers issue edicts removing some of the powers of parlements and formally abolishing the use of torture.

June 7 1788

Mobs protest in Grenoble and Brittany, demanding the reinstatement of their local parlement.

June 1787

Church representatives authorise a don gratuit of only 1.8 million livres, less than one quarter the figure sought by the government.

July 1788

Several provincial assemblies and gatherings demand the reinstatement of the parlements and the convocation of the Estates General.

July 13 1788

Much of France is struck by a severe storm with prolonged heavy hail. This decimates already struggling crops and contributes to poor returns at harvest time.

Aug 8 1788

After learning the state is unable to meet its loan repayments, Brienne schedules the Estates General for May 1789.

Aug 16 1788

Now virtually bankrupt, the government suspends making interest payments on some of its debts.

August 25 1788

Brienne resigns as finance minister and is replaced by Necker. His resignation triggers celebrations in Paris. Critics of Brienne are released from arrest or exile.

Sep 25 1788

The parlement decrees that the Estates General convenes with the same structures and procedures as its previous assembly (1614). Several days later the parlement attempts to ban publications which demand political representation for the Third Estate.

Oct 5 1788

Necker convenes another Assembly of Notables to discuss arrangements for the Estates General. He proposes that representation for the Third Estate be doubled.

Nov 1788

The Society of Thirty, a group of liberal nobles in favour of constitutional reform, is formed at Versailles.

Dec 12 1788

After refusing Necker’s proposal to increase Third Estate representation and failing to provide any solutions to the taxation crisis, the second Assembly of Notables is dissolved.