France was having a hard time with overspending and harvest poor harvesting which led them to financial crisis. The Estates General met in the meeting hall by May 1789. Louis the XVI requested that every estate start preparing Cahiers outlining their grievances to bring to the meeting. In the government the 1st and 2nd state had much more rights than the third estate not only in the government but also generally. Third state didn't want to be the last ones in voting by order. So they declared themselves.
The March on Versailles 
Throughout the debate, the National Assembly was forced to relocate to a nearby tennis court, where they feared the King would dismiss them. They would pledge in the now-famous "Tennis Court Oath" to save France from ruin and to never separate until a constitution was drafted. The assembly was made up of reformers from the First and Second Estates. The King was furious, and rumors quickly spread that he might try to sabotage the meeting's progress. The Assembly would eventually finish the 1791 Constitution, which established a limited monarchy and a new legislative assembly to "make laws, collect taxes, and decide on war and peace issues." "
The Reign of Terror
Rumors began to circulate on July 14th, 1789, that royal troops might occupy the capital. A crowd of worried Parisians began to demand gunpowder and weapons from the Bastille, a medieval fortress that had previously served as a prison. Over 800 Parisians wished to defend themselves against the  king and his number of people. The storming of the Bastille is a symbol of the French Revolution that is commemorated to this day.  
The Rise of Napoleon
An angry crowd of women marched from Paris to Versailles on October 5th, 1789, demanding bread and a meeting with their King. Their anger was directed at the King, and at his "deficit" wife, Queen Marie Antoinette. According to these enraged women, "Madam Deficit" was responsible for France's financial crisis. The women wanted a promise that their King and his family return to Paris so that they could see him whenever they wanted. For the next three years, the royal family was imprisoned by the revolutionaries at the Tuileries Palace in Paris.
The Reign of Terror, which lasted from July 1793 to July 1794, was led by Maximilien Robespierre. Approximately 40,000 people would perish during this time, and many feared that if they spoke out against the republic, they would be killed as well for treason. No one was safe from the Guillotine, which beheaded nobles, clergy, middle-class people, and peasants alike. The majority were peasants, but 15% were nobles and clergy, and another 15% were middle-class citizens. This device would behead France's very own King and Queen. The Reign of Terror would last until its very own, Robespierre, was consumed. During the French Revolution, the Guillotine became a symbol of terror. On July 27th, 1794, Robespierre was apprehended and executed the next day.
Napoleon Bonaparte began his military career at the age of nine, when he was sent to be trained. Napoleon rose to prominence as a political figure who helped overthrow the Directory and establish the Consulate, the country's governing body; he also had a number of military successes, effectively reforming the revolution. Two years later, he ascended to the position of Emperor of France. Napoleon implemented a number of reforms during his reign, including price controls and encouraging the construction of canals and railroads in order to restore France's prosperity. To ensure that future military officers were properly prepared and educated, he "established public schools under strict government control."