The “Mothers of the Nation” were highly celebrated upon their return and would be praised and solicited by successive Parisian governments for years to come. But it was the crudely decisive invasion of the palace itself that was most momentous; the attack removed for… However, the revolutionaries forced the royals to return to Paris. Despite its post-revolutionary mythology, the march was not a spontaneous event. Stories of a plot to destroy wheat crops in order to starve the population provoked the so-called Great Fear in the summer of 1789. He was imprisoned and only released by Napoleon in 1797. Their invasion of the palace removed all doubt that the monarchy was subject to the will of the people, and was a major defeat for France's Ancien Régime of heredity monarchy. The march became a rallying point through the next stages of the Revolution. Their demonstrations quickly became intertwined with the activities of revolutionaries seeking liberal political reforms and a constitutional monarchy for France. A famous illustration of Parisian women marching to Versailles, October 1789. On the morning of October 5, a young woman struck a marching drum at the edge of a group of market women who were infuriated by the chronic shortage and high price of bread. Rampant rumors of a conspiracy theory held that foods, especially grain, were purposely withheld from the poor for the benefit of the privileged (the Pacte de Famine). Their demonstrations quickly became intertwined with the activities of revolutionaries, who were seeking liberal political reforms and a constitutional monarchy for France. However, at about 6 a.m., some of the protesters discovered a small gate to the palace was unguarded. Versailles was seen as a glorious symbol of the absolute monarch, of France’s divinely ordained royal family, and of the state itself. It was an additional factor for the mobilization of the working poor in Paris and other cities during the early stages of the French Revolution. The Storming of the Bastille took place in Paris, France on July 14, 1789. Eventually, the popula… Attempting to escape and join with royalist armies, the king was once again captured by a mixture of citizens and national guardsmen who hauled him back to Paris. This violent attack on the government by the people of France signaled the start of the French Revolution. On the morning of October 5, 1789, women were near rioting in the Paris marketplace over the high price and scarcity of bread. Early the next morning, a small group invaded the palace, attempting to find the queen’s rooms. At the end of the Ancien Régime, the fear of famine became an ever-present dread for the lower strata of the Third Estate. Rumors swirled that foods, especially grain, were purposely withheld from the poor for the benefit of the privileged. The march began among women in the marketplaces of Paris who, on the morning of 5 October 1789, were near rioting over the high price and scarcity of bread. They demanded to see "the Baker," "the Baker's wife," and "the Baker's boy". The women who initiated the march were heroines, called “Mothers of the Nation.”. 1789-10-05 French Revolution: Women of Paris march to Versailles in the March on Versailles to confront Louis XVI about his refusal to promulgate the decrees on the abolition of feudalism, demand bread, and have the King and his court moved to Paris Following the Storming of the Bastille and the Great Fear, revolutionary fervor spread among the populace. The Women's March on Versailles began among women in the marketplaces of Paris who were near rioting over the high price and scarcity of bread. ... Summary: "March of the Penguins" is a documentary on the life cycle of Emperor Penguins. The king responded sympathetically and after this brief but pleasant meeting, arrangements were made to disburse some food from the royal stores with more promised. A 1789 engraving of the women’s march on Versailles. But they were not satisfied with some food for the day—they wanted the situation of food scarcity to end. The reasoning behind their march was the increased bread prices and the short term rumors. Some of the crowd returned to Paris, but most remained in Versailles. Initially demanding bread, they began, possibly with the involvement of radicals who had joined in the march, to demand arms as well. On 5th October 1789, a large crowd of protesters, mostly women, began to assemble at Parisian markets. A month later, in August, feudalism and many of the privileges of the nobility and royalty were abolished with the “Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen,” modeled on America’s Declaration of Independence and seen as a precursor to forming a new constitution. The Women's March on Versailles, also known as The October March, The October Days, or simply The March on Versailles, was one of the earliest and most significant events of … The Many Roles of Women in the French Revolution, Biography of Marie Antoinette, Queen Executed in the French Revolution, A History of the Palace of Versailles, Jewel of the Sun King, The Bastille, and its Role in the French Revolution, The Estates General and the French Revolution, The French Revolution, Its Outcome, and Legacy, Civil Rights Movement Timeline From 1965 to 1969, The French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars, Biography of Marie-Antoinette, French Queen Consort, Biography of King Louis XVI, Deposed in the French Revolution, American Revolution: Marquis de Lafayette, Everything You Need to Know About Bastille Day, A Narrative History of the French Revolution - Contents, Biography of King Louis XIV, France’s Sun King, M.Div., Meadville/Lombard Theological School. Lafayette eventually attempted to leave France, as many thought he’d been too soft on the royal family. The ceiling was painted by Antoine Coypel, 1708–09. However pleased it may have been by the royal displays, the crowd insisted that the king come back with them to Paris. After getting unsatisfactory responses from city officials, the women marched from Paris to the Palace of Versailles. The Women’s March on Versailles, also known as The October March, The October Days, or simply The March on Versailles, was one of the earliest and most significant events of the French Revolution. At about 1 p.m. on October 6, the vast throng escorted the royal family and a complement of 100 deputies back to the capital, this time with the armed National Guards leading the way. He was well known as a leader among the market women and is credited with discouraging marchers from burning down the city hall or any other buildings. The people were hungry. Stuart Bowman as Alexandre Bontemps, valet of the king. This combination of a bread shortage and high prices angered many French women, who relied on bread sales to make a living. The angry crowd demanded that King Louis XVI, Marie Antoinette, and their children return to Paris. This embellished tale of the royal banquet became the source of intense public outrage. The clergy and the aristocracy had lost their priviliges, and feudalism had been abolished, but true change for the working class was slow to come.Ordinary citizens were still struggling to keep themselves fed, with the price of grain having skyrocketed due to droughts in the summer of 1788. Summary. Lafayette and Maillard convinced the king to announce his support for the Declaration and the August changes passed in the Assembly. The whole march happened because the women were outraged by the bread prices, they were just completely fed up with them. They ended the march on October 7. They were convinced that the royal family lived in luxury oblivious to the problems … For its inheritors, the march would stand as an inspirational example, emblematic of the power of popular movements. Making their way inside, they searched for the queen’s bedchamber. Alexander Vlahos as Monsieur Philippe I, Duke of Orléans, brother of the king. Infuriated, the rest surged towards the breach and streamed inside. Their demonstrations quickly became intertwined with the activities of revolutionaries, who were seeking liberal political reforms and a constitutional mon… The power of the King was irreversibly curtailed, and he never again dwelt at Versailles. This excerpt from La Révolution française (1989) depicts the October March on Versailles in 1789 and the king's subsequent return to Paris. The chapel on the grounds of the Palace of Versailles, France, built on two levels, by Robert de Cotte, 1710. In some ways, this meant that hopes were high among the French for a successful change in government, but there was a reason for despair or fear as well. At the end of the Ancien Régi… As he spoke, the restless Parisians came pouring into the Assembly and sank exhausted on the deputies’ benches. Armed with sticks and clubs and shouting, “Bread!” a mob of women and men (some dressed as women) marched the 12 miles from Paris to Versailles on the night of October 5, 1789. After the king withdrew, the exultant crowd would not be denied the same accord from the queen and her presence was demanded loudly. By the time the marchers arrived at the city hall in Paris, they numbered somewhere between 6,000 and 10,000. The marchers' success in forcing the king to move to Paris and support the reforms was a major turning point in the French Revolution. A new goal began to form among marchers: to bring the king, Louis XVI, back to Paris where he would be responsible to the people, and to the reforms that had begun to be passed earlier. The march on Versailles's main purpose was to obtain bread and force the price of bread down to where it had been. The Women's March on Versailles, also known as the October March, the October Days or simply the March on Versailles, was one of the earliest and most significant events of the French Revolution. At the end of the Ancien Régime, the fear of famine became an ever-present dread for the lower strata of the Third Estate. The history of Versailles is inextricably linked with the figure of Louis XIV. For the women of Paris, the march became the climax of revolutionary hagiography. While the march turned into a more general revolutionary upsurge, this fear remained at its roots. The reign of Louis XIV 1638 - 1715. One of the men was Stanislas-Marie Maillard, a prominent conqueror of the Bastille, who by unofficial acclamation was given a leadership role. Calls for more radical action were increasing, and many nobles and those who were not French nationals left France, fearing for their fortunes or even their lives. But the crowd did not trust that his queen, Marie Antoinette, would not talk him out of this, as she was known by then to oppose the reforms. When the crowd finally reached Versailles, members of the National Assembly greeted the marchers and invited Maillard into their hall. Women's March to Versailles. From their starting point in the markets of the eastern section of Paris, the angry women forced a nearby church to toll its bells. October 5, 1789 – Women’s March on Versailles The Women’s March on Versailles was also another important turning point of the French Revolution. The south wing was nicknamed “the princes’ wing,” as the princes du sang (“ princes of the blood ”) were given quarters there. Bringing together people representing sources of the Revolution in their largest numbers yet, the march on Versailles proved to be a defining moment of that Revolution.=. Conversely, Robespierre’s impassioned defense of the march raised his public profile considerably. A poor French economy had led to a scarcity of bread and high prices. © Sarah DUSAUTOIR/Fotolia. The Women's March on Versailles October 5, 1789 was a crucial turning point in the French Revolution because it Placed the King and Assembly under the pressure of the Paris crowd The "Great Fear" of … Lafayette convinced the king and later the queen to address the crowd, which calmed the participants of the march. The Women's March on Versailles in October 1789 is often credited with forcing the royal court and family to move from the traditional seat of government in Versailles to Paris, a major and early turning point in the French Revolution. What was the Bastille? https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_Assembly_(French_Revolution), https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flight_to_Varennes, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Women%27s_March_on_Versailles, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pacte_de_Famine, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Women%27s_March_on_Versailles#/media/File:Women%27s_March_on_Versailles01.jpg, https://courses.lumenlearning.com/boundless-worldhistory/. As the Revolution progressed, he was hounded into exile by the radical leadership. Some years later he attempted to flee Paris but was again dragged back by a … Tygh Runyan as Fabien Marchal, the king's chief of police. The royals were effectively trapped in Paris. 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