French Revolutionary Wars

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Definition

The French Revolutionary Wars (1792-1802) were a series of conflicts that arose from the tensions surrounding the French Revolution (1789-1799). The wars were fought between Revolutionary France and several European powers, most notably Austria, Prussia, Russia, Spain, and Great Britain. Ten years of conflict resulted in a French victory and the rise of Napoleon.

More about: French Revolutionary Wars

Timeline

  • 5 May 1789
    The Estates-General convenes in Versailles for the first time in 175 years.
  • 14 Jul 1789
    The Bastille in Paris is stormed.
  • 27 Aug 1791
    Austria and Prussia release the Declaration of Pillnitz, threatening Revolutionary France with military action.
  • 20 Apr 1792
    Revolutionary France declares war on Austria, sparking the War of the First Coalition.
  • 20 Sep 1792
    The Battle of Valmy results in a French victory over Prussian invaders.
  • 6 Nov 1792
    The Battle of Jemappes results in a victory for the French Republic over an Austrian army, allowing for the French conquest of Belgium.
  • Feb 1793
    The French Republic calls for 300,000 new soldiers to be raised, by conscription if necessary, prompting revolt across the nation.
  • 18 Mar 1793
    The Battle of Neerwinden results in an Austrian victory, driving the French Republican forces from Belgium.
  • 23 Aug 1793
    The levée en masse is enacted, flooding France's armies with conscripts.
  • 6 Sep 1793 - 8 Sep 1793
    The Battle of Hondschoote results in a victory for the French Republic over an Anglo-Hanoverian army during the French Revolutionary Wars.
  • 6 Sep 1793 - 8 Sep 1793
    Battle of Hondschoote results in victory for the French Republic over an Anglo-Hanoverian-Hessian army
  • 13 Sep 1793
    Battle of Menin results in a victory for the French Republic over a Dutch army.
  • 25 Sep 1793
    General Jean-Baptiste Jourdan takes command of the French Army of the North during the War of the First Coalition.
  • 15 Oct 1793 - 16 Oct 1793
    Battle of Wattignies results in victory for the French Republic over an Austrian army.
  • Nov 1793 - Feb 1794
    Drownings at Nantes; between 1,100 and 4,000 Vendean rebels and Catholic clerics are drowned in the Loire River by French Republican soldiers.
  • 24 Jun 1794
    The French are victorious at the Battle of Fleurus; their armies remain ascendent for the rest of the War of the First Coalition.
  • Jan 1795
    The Dutch Republic falls and is replaced by the Batavian Republic, first of the French satellite states known as sister republics.
  • Apr 1795 - Jun 1795
    Prussia and Spain exit the French Revolutionary Wars with the treaties of Basel.
  • 10 Apr 1796 - 2 Apr 1797
    Napoleon Bonaparte's Italian Campaign.
  • 17 Oct 1797
    Austria and France sign the Treaty of Campo Formio, ending the War of the First Coalition.
  • May 1798 - Sep 1801
    Napoleon's Campaign in Egypt and Syria serves as a catalyst for the formation of the Second Coalition.
  • 1 Aug 1798
    The French fleet anchored at Aboukir Bay is completely destroyed by a British fleet under Horatio Nelson at the Battle of the Nile.
  • 12 Nov 1798 - 25 Jun 1802
    The War of the Second Coalition.
  • 25 Mar 1799
    French General Jean-Baptiste Jourdan is defeated by a larger Austrian army under Archduke Charles at the Battle of Stockach.
  • 15 Apr 1799
    Russian Field Marshal Alexander Suvorov takes command of Allied forces in Italy.
  • 27 Aug 1799 - 27 Oct 1799
    The Anglo-Russian invasion of Holland, led by the Duke of York, ends in failure.
  • 25 Sep 1799
    The Second Battle of Zurich results in a French victory against an Austro-Russian army.
  • 14 Jun 1800
    First Consul Napoleon Bonaparte narrowly defeats an Austrian army at the Battle of Marengo.
  • 3 Dec 1800
    French General Jean-Victor Moreau beats the Austrians at the Battle of Hohenlinden.
  • 2 Apr 1801
    The British attack a Danish fleet at the First Battle of Copenhagen, because of Denmark's participation in the League of Armed Neutrality.
  • 25 Mar 1802
    The French Republic and the United Kingdom sign the Treaty of Amiens, ending hostilities between the two nations.
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