- On the morning of 14 July 1789 , Paris was in a state of alarm because the king had commanded troops to move into the city. Rumours were spreading that he would soon order his troops to open fire upon the citizens.
- 7,000 men and women gathered in front of the town hall and decided to form a people’s militia . In search of arms , they broke into several government buildings .
- A group of several hundred people marched towards the eastern part of the city and stormed the fortress prison , the Bastille , where they hoped to find hoarded ammunition.
- The commander of the Bastille was killed and the prisoners were released (there were only seven of them), in the armed fight.
- All hated the Bastille because it stood for the king's despotic power.
- The fortress was demolished and its stone fragments were sold in the markets to all those who wished to keep a souvenir of its destruction .
- Coming days, there was more rioting both in Paris and the countryside because of the high price of bread .
- This event became the beginning of the chain of events that ultimately led to the execution of the king in France, though most people at the time did not anticipate this outcome.
- How and why did this happen?
