This Day in History: 21 September 2020
21 September 1792
228 years ago, today, the Legislative Assembly in Revolutionary France voted to abolish the monarchy and establish the First Republic. This measure came one year after King Louis XVI reluctantly approved a new constitution that stripped him of much of his power. The National Convention of France, who had announced the abolition, had been instructed to put an end to the crisis that had broken out since the flight to Varennes of Louis XVI in June 1791 and the capture of the Tuileries in August 1792. Their middle-class origin and political activity meant that they held no sympathy for the monarchy. The revolution's first military success at the Battle of Valmy confirmed their convictions.
Louis had ascended to the French throne in 1774 and was predisposed to be unsuited to deal with the country's financial problems. In 1789, food shortages and economic crises led to the outbreak of the French Revolution. Louis and his queen, Mary-Antoinette, were both imprisoned, allowing the monarchy to be abolished. Soon after, evidence of Louis' counterrevolutionary interests with other nations were discovered, and he was put on trial for treason. He was condemned to death by guillotine in January 1793. His wife would meet the same fate nine months later.
Want to find out more about the abolition of the French monarchy? Click here for more information, or here for more about the French Revolution.
Great post, thanks.
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