The Bastille today is inextricably associated with the French Revolution. After all, the year of the capture of the Bastille was the beginning of epoch-making changes in the country. And not only in France, but throughout Europe. But who took the Bastille? Why was she so important and why is this event so remarkable?
Background of the revolution
Many scholars of history, studying certain revolutionary events, always
They are trying to single out two sets of their causes: the benefits of certain social groups in the country and the immediate conditions that made it possible to carry out the transformations. At the end of the 18th century, France was an
absolute monarchy, where the king’s power was based on a highly bureaucratic
state apparatus. However, such a system, which was progressive one and a half centuries ago, by the noted period turned into an outdated and reactionary one. The development of the ideas of the enlighteners of that time, in particular, the ideas of a social contract and estate representation in parliamentary structures, led to a conflict between the king and the aristocracy, the aristocracy and the bourgeoisie, the peasantry and all the upper classes, who increasingly exploited it. Moreover, it was discovered that the so-called Old Order only contributed to the emerging lag behind England. The revolutionary events were directly preceded by the parliamentary crisis in the country in 1787 and 1789, caused by the requirements of the Third Estate (i.e. the lower) of greater political rights (after all
they accounted for 96% of the country's population). The king’s attempt to dissolve the
Constituent Assembly gave rise to the movements of the masses.
Who took the Bastille? And why was this needed?
Mass clashes between the people and the army began on July 12, 1789. The riots in Paris continued for the next two days. The Bastille at that time was a political prison, personifying the atrocities of the royal regime against those who dared to oppose him. The capture of the Bastille is one of the most important symbols of this revolution - the struggle against monarchical arbitrariness. However, those who took the Bastille were probably quite surprised. At that moment, only seven prisoners were in prison. However, the fact of the fall of this stronghold was important.
Revolution Results
In August 1789, the French Declaration of Human and Citizen Rights was adopted. Two years later, the first constitution in the history of France (and the fourth in the history of Europe) was ratified. According to some estimates, the revolution continued until 1794, when the Thermidorian coup was carried out,
eliminated the
Jacobin dictatorship of Maximilian Robespierre, according to others - until 1799, when a new coup d'etat took place that brought Napoleon Bonaparte to power. Unfortunately, far from always revolutions lead to the desired results for the people. And the driving forces do not always use its fruits. So those who took the Bastille did not get what they wanted. Forty years after the event, the Bourbon dynasty was restored to the throne. However, the people of France (and indeed all of Europe) had successful experience in combating the absolutization of power. The next French revolution happened already in 1848 and spread throughout the continent. It was Paris that started these movements. The Bastille became their unchanging symbol. Today, prison day is celebrated in France as a national shrine, and July 14 is celebrated annually on a scale comparable to the celebration of Independence Day.