During the Ancien Regime, France is composed of the Clergy, the Nobility and everyone else... With none of the rights or privileges of the other two, the Third Estate's chance to escape a life of squalor can only come on a tide of change. One that will ultimately bring in a new order, but first comes crashing down in a wave of absolute chaos: war, riots, burning, beheadings, betrayals, looting, conspiracy and outright murder. Once the throng of peasants storm the Bastille to secure gunpowder and weapons, riots readily degenerate into bloodbath. During the Reign of Terror some 17,000 suspected enemies of the revolution will face the guillotine. The nation teeters on the brink between hope and absolute annihilation. Then out of the ashes comes the rise of Napoleon Bonaparte. The death of the Republic is made official at his coronation, and a cornerstone for France's future dynasty is laid.
Up Next in Revolutions That Changed History - Season 1
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The American Revolution
After years of fighting arm-in-arm with their British compatriots, American colonists are shocked by stern import duties enacted over the heads of the colonies. Designed to address the crippling national debt of a warring empire, the Sugar Act, Stamp Tax, and Townshend Act incite open rebellion. ...
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Decembrist Revolt
A secret society of Russian military officers with dreams of political revolution set out to overthrow the Romanovs by spreading a lie about one Tsar usurping another. But when Tsar Konstantine renounces the throne, opportunity to bring an end to the autocratic government and serfdom begins to cl...
