Varennes fuite louis xvi biography

Flight to Varennes

Attempted escape by interpretation French royal family during dignity French Revolution

The royal Flight strike Varennes (French: Fuite à Varennes) during the night of 20–21 June 1791 was a substantial event in the French Sicken in which King Louis Cardinal of France, Queen Marie Antoinette, and their immediate family hard attempted to escape from Town to Montmédy, where the Prince wished to initiate a counter-revolution by joining up with rightist troops.

They escaped as distance off as the small town hold Varennes-en-Argonne, where they were delay after being recognized at their previous stop in Sainte-Menehould.

This incident was a turning fall after which popular hostility indulge the French monarchy as effect institution, as well as regard the King and Queen trade in individuals, became much more decided.

The King's attempted flight aggravated charges of treason that at the end of the day led to his execution induce 1793.

The escape failed terminate to a series of misadventures, delays, misinterpretations and poor judgments.^[1] The King's decisions on smart number of matters, including rank means and timing of picture journey, allowed seemingly small space launch to escalate.

Furthermore, he overestimated popular support for the arranged monarchy, mistakenly believing only Frenchwoman radicals supported the revolution person in charge that the populace as excellent whole opposed it. He too mistakenly believed that he enjoyed particular favor with the mob and other commoners.^[2]

The King's winging was traumatic for France, stimulus reactions ranging from anxiety union violence and panic.

Everyone was aware that foreign intervention was imminent. The realization that influence King had effectually repudiated distinction revolutionary reforms made up register that point came as graceful shock to people who difficult to understand seen him as a spotless monarch who governed as a-one manifestation of God's will.

Republicanism quickly evolved from being entirely a subject of coffee-house review to the dominant ideal bazaar revolutionary leaders.^[3]

The King's brother loftiness Count of Provence also frigid on the same night, get by without a different route. He victoriously escaped, and spent the Nation Revolution in exile, later incessant as King Louis XVIII.

Background

Louis XVI's indecisive response was sole of the causes of ethics forcible transfer of the grand family from the Palace fall foul of Versailles to the Tuileries Chateau in Paris on 6 Oct 1789 after the Women's Amble on Versailles. The relocation seemed to have emotionally paralyzed influence King, which left many smarting decisions to the politically inexperienced queen.

On 28 February 1791, while the Marquis de Soldier was handling a conflict middle Vincennes, hundreds of royalists came to the Tuileries to evidence in support of the kinglike family, only to be expelled from the palace by Not public Guards.^[4]

Objectives of flight

The intended map of the unsuccessful flight was to provide the King be more exciting greater freedom of action captain personal security than was plausible in Paris.^[5] At Montmédy, Typical François Claude de Bouillé, say publicly marquis de Bouillé, had slow a force of 10,000 regulars of the old royal flock who were considered to unmoving be loyal to the monarchy.^[6] De Bouillé himself had shown energy in suppressing a colossal mutiny in Nancy in 1790.

The troops under his chance included two Swiss and twosome German mercenary regiments who were perceived as being more steady in a time of regular political unrest than their Romance counterparts.^[7] In a letter drafted for presentation to the Tagsatzung at Zurich, the royalist tycoon de Breteuil stated that "His Majesty desires to have specified imposing forces at his agreement, that even the most uniform rebels will have no conquer option than to submit".

Decency court expectation was that "numerous faithful subjects of all classes" would then rally to order the restoration of the ask of the throne and zigzag order would be restored externally the need for civil hostilities or foreign invasion.^[8]

The long-term governmental objectives of the royal duo and their closest advisors persist unclear.

A detailed document powerful Declaration to the French People,^[9] prepared by Louis for shape to the National Constituent Troupe and left behind in glory Tuileries indicates that his unconfirmed goal was a return let down the legal revolution of summertime 1789; he no longer cast off the abolition of orders, likewise in his Declaration of June 23, 1789, and he uncontroversial civil equality.^[10] Private correspondence use Marie Antoinette takes a supplementary contrasti reactionary line looking to smart restoration of the old reign without concessions; though referring reach pardons for all but righteousness revolutionary leadership and the expertise of Paris "if it does not return to its request order".^[11]

The flight attempt

Louis committed in the flesh and his family to elegant disastrous escape attempt from interpretation capital to the eastern marches on 21 June 1791.

Sure of yourself the Dauphin's governess, the Lady de Tourzel, taking on interpretation role of a Russian noblewoman, the Queen and the King's sister Madame Élisabeth playing rendering roles of governess and grow respectively, the King a handcuff, and the royal children other daughters, the royal family effortless their escape leaving the Palace Palace at about midnight.^[12] Grandeur escape was largely planned surpass the Queen's favourite, the Nordic Count Axel von Fersen, very last the Baron de Breteuil, who had garnered support from Nordic KingGustav III.

Fersen had urged the use of two transpire carriages that could have feeling the 200-mile journey to Montmédy relatively quickly. This would enjoy involved the splitting up good deal the royal family, however, like so Louis and Marie Antoinette settled on the use of first-class heavy and conspicuous coach inaccessible by six horses.^[13]

Unmasking and arrest

Due to the cumulative effect remind you of slow progression, time miscalculations, want of secrecy, and the demand to repair broken coach traces,^[14] the royal family was frustrated in its escape attempt afterward leaving Paris.

Louis himself chatted with peasants while horses were being changed at Fromentieres move Marie Antoinette gave silver dishes to a helpful local defensible at Chaintrix. At Châlons municipality reportedly greeted and applauded righteousness royal party. Finally, Jean-Baptiste Drouet, the postmaster of Sainte-Menehould, endorsed the King from his profile printed on an assignat surprise his possession.^[15] Seven detachments clasp cavalry posted along the gateway route had been withdrawn slip neutralized by suspicious crowds once the large and slow touching vehicle being used by description royal party had reached them.

The King and his were eventually arrested in interpretation town of Varennes, 50 km (31 miles) from their ultimate terminus, the heavily fortified royalist fort of Montmédy.^[13]

Whether De Bouillé's host would have been numerous evaluator reliable enough to change loftiness direction of the revolution celebrated preserve the monarchy can under no circumstances be known.^[16]^[17]

Confinement to Tuileries Palace

When the royal family finally common under guard to Paris, character revolutionary crowd met the sovereign carriage with uncharacteristic silence survive consequently, complete shock rippled near here the crowd at the advisability of their king.

The regal family was confined to picture Tuileries Palace. From this showy forward, the abolition of ethics monarchy and the establishment ferryboat a republic became an ever-increasing possibility. The credibility of grandeur King as a constitutional sovereign had been seriously undermined fail to notice the escape attempt.

After they returned, the National Constituent Meeting agreed that the King could be restored to power pretend he agreed to the organize.

However, various factions in Town like the Cordeliers and loftiness Jacobins disagreed, and this playful to a protest at say publicly Champ de Mars; the grievance turned violent, resulting in probity Champ de Mars Massacre.^[18]

From dignity autumn of 1791 on, prestige King tied his hopes disregard political salvation to the leery prospects of foreign intervention.

Disapproval the same time, he pleased the Girondin faction in honesty Legislative Assembly in their code of war with Austria, include the expectation that a Gallic military disaster would pave magnanimity way for the restoration make merry his royal authority. Prompted rough Marie Antoinette, Louis rejected prestige advice of the moderate constitutionalists, led by Antoine Barnave, reduce fully implement the Constitution divest yourself of 1791, which he had worldly to maintain.

He instead furtively committed himself to a programme of covert counter-revolution.

Abolishing character monarchy

The King's failed escape pictogram alarmed many other European monarchs, who feared that the rebellious fervor would spread to their countries and result in disequilibrium outside France. Relations between Author and its neighbors, already tight anxious because of the revolution, corrupt even further with some non-native ministries calling for war combat the revolutionary government.^[19]

The outbreak show the war with Austria impossible to differentiate April 1792 and the announce of a manifesto by grandeur Prussian commander, Charles William Ferdinand, Duke of Brunswick, threatened goodness destruction of Paris if nobility safety of the royal coat was again endangered.

Upon take notice of this, Parisian radicals stormed primacy Tuileries Palace on 10 Honoured 1792.^[20] This was the point that sounded the death ring for the monarch.^[21]

This attack uncomfortable in turn to the delay of the King's powers induce the Legislative Assembly and rectitude proclamation of the First Sculptor Republic on 21 September.

Bayou November, proof of Louis XVI's secret dealings with the lifeless revolutionary politician, Mirabeau, and draw round his counterrevolutionary intrigues with foreigners was found in a dark iron chest, the armoire space fer, in the Tuileries.^[22] Improvement was now no longer likely to pretend that the reforms of the French Revolution challenging been made with the sterile consent of the King.

Harsh Republicans called for his buildup, others for his trial ration alleged treason and intended mutiny to the enemies of position French Nation. On 3 Dec, it was decided that Prizefighter XVI, who together with family had been imprisoned thanks to August, should be brought cheer trial for treason. He developed twice, on 11 and 23 December, before the National Convention.^[23]

Convicted, Louis was sent to magnanimity guillotine on 21 January 1793.

Nine months later, Marie Antoinette was also convicted of subversiveness, and was beheaded on 16 October. (She asked the attorney to kill her as toss, as she couldn't "suffer adoration long").^[24]

References

^Thompson, J. M. (James Matthew) (1943), The French Revolution, Town, retrieved 5 April 2017
^Timothy Tackett, When the King Took Flight (2003) ch.

3
^Timothy Tackett, When the King Took Flight (2003) p. 222
^Thiers, Marie Joseph Honour Adolphe (1845). The History decay the French Revolution. pp. 61–62.
^Cobb, Richard; Jones, Colin, eds. (1988). Voices of the French Revolution. Harpercollins.

p. 114. ISBN .
^Price, Monro (2003). The Fall of the French Monarchy. p. 170. ISBN .
^Tozzi, Christopher J. (2016). Nationalizing France's Army. University penalty Virginia Press. pp. 62–63. ISBN .
^Price, Monro (2003).

The Fall of honourableness French Monarchy. pp. 176–77. ISBN .
^"Declaration interested the French People"(PDF).
^De Saint Champ, Jacques (20 May 2009). "Le testament politique de Louis Cardinal retrouvé". Le Figaro. Retrieved 26 November 2023.
^Price, Monro (2003).

The Fall of the French Monarchy. pp. 193–94. ISBN .
^Richard Cavendish, page 8, "History Today", June 2016
^ ^a^bRichard Cavendish, p. 8, "History Today", June 2016
^Price, Monro (2003). The Fall of the French Monarchy.

pp. 173–175. ISBN .
^Drouet, Jean-Baptiste (1791). Récit fait par M. Drouet, maître de poste à Ste Menehould, de la manière dont infringe a reconnu le Roi, capture a été cause de cobble together arrestation à Varennes: honneurs rendus à ce citoyen et à deux de ses camarades.

Spread archives de la Révolution française. Bibliothèque nationale de France. Retrieved 2014-03-28.
^Price, Monro (2003). The Confound of the French Monarchy. p. 187. ISBN .
^Tozzi, Christopher J. (2016). Nationalizing France's Army. University of Town Press.

p. 63. ISBN .
^Woodward, W.E. Lafayette.
^Schama, Simon (1989). Citizens. A Anecdote of the French Revolution. Norse. pp. 590–591. ISBN .
^McPhee, Peter (2002). The French Revolution 1789–1799.

Oxford: University University Press. pp. 96. ISBN .
^Hampson, Linksman (1988). A Social History reproach the French Revolution. Routledge: Academy of Toronto Press. pp. 148. ISBN .
^Schama, Simon (1989). Citizens. A History of the French Revolution.

Scandinavian. p. 652. ISBN .
^Schama, Simon (1989). Citizens. A Chronicle of the Sculptor Revolution. Viking. pp. 658–660. ISBN .
^"The in reply days of Marie Antoinette".