On 21 January 1793 an event occurred which sent spasms of shock through Europe and still echoes through western history. French King Louis XVI, just 38 years old and the leader of one of the world’s most modern and powerful countries, had been executed by what was seen as a revolutionary rabble.
The chaos that followed would usher in war, Napoleon’s empire, and a new age of European and world history.
Vive la révolution
Contrary to popular belief, however, the initial aim of the revolution was not the disposal of the King. When the violence started with the storming of the Bastille in July 1789, Louis’ overall position, let alone his life, was not under threat. However, over the next few years a series of events lead to his position becoming untenable.
In the years after the revolution, many of its ardent supporters on the more moderate right began to backtrack slightly and introduce the idea of the King, who still enjoyed a lot of support particularly in rural areas, being a British-style constitutional monarch who would enjoy a fair degree of power, but kept in check by an elected body.
