by the end of the 18th century, the third estate of france’s old regime was fed up. overtaxed, starving, and largely impoverished, many turned to revolution as a doorway to a better future. on july 14th 1789, thousands of revolutionaries stormed the Bastille, an armory / prison. they demanded its weapons and gunpowder be handed over. the guards defended the bastille to the best of their abilities, but they were far outnumbered. it did not take long for the overseer of the bastille, governor jourdan de launay, to wave a white flag and open the gates. the angered revolutionaries seized control of the bastille, freeing its seven prisoners and taking its weaponry. while launay may have been sympathetic to the revolutionaries, they were far from forgiving. once the gates were open, the revolutionaries beat and stabbed launay to death, chopped off his head in classic french revolution guillotine fashion, and placed his head on a pike. marching through the streets of paris with a decapitated symbol of victory, onlookers cheered. bastille day, which continues to commemorate the onset of france’s initial freedom from monarchy, signified the official start of the french revolution. often overlooked, the violence employed by bastille’s revolutionaries set a popular precedent of revolution by any (guillotine) means necessary. soon the monarchy and other figures of power would meet the same fate. and soon after that, maximilian robespierre, an extremist revolutionary leader, would begin his reign of terror, chopping off the heads of over 40,000 people who were (loosely) suspected of going against the revolution. the popularization of revolutionary violence may have begun with the storming of the bastille, but few could foresee the never-ending, headless bloodshed that laid ahead. anyways, happy bastille day! here’s a cute pic of marie antoinettes bedroom in versailles. i wonder what ended up happening to her. probably a happy ending, right? sources: britannica, national geographic, and my personal knowledge of the french revolution (from primary and secondary sources). feel free to fact check if u please!