Augustine Wars
The French Revolution was a revolutionary movement that hit France from the late 1780s to the late 1790s. The revolution marked the end of the Ancien Régime and paved the way for a more republican French Kingdom.
The Seeds of Revolution
Meanwhile, in France, the seeds of revolution had already been sown. After the French defeat at the Great Silesian War (1750), and the disproportionate concessions made by France to Great Britain and her allies, the legitimacy of the Kingdom in the eyes of her subjects waned. More so, when Philip VIII, King of France, refused to answer the calls to lift the restrictions against taxing the French nobility, resulting in the third estate carrying the financial burdens of France.
In 1788, it was announced that the national treasury was empty. With the growing unrest, Philip VIII's advisors advised convening the Estates-General, which had not been convened for more than a hundred years. However, Philip VIII refused to do so. However, as the fear of unrest spilling over into the capital became a serious threat, Philip VIII announced from Versailles that he would endorse and convene the Estates-General, to the shock of his advisors. This announcement temporarily pacified the unrest, but as 1789 neared its end, Philip VIII made no signs of convening the assembly.
In February of 1790, a mob of peasants marched to Versailles and surrounded the palace. They were accompanied by some of the liberal nobles, notably the ones who tried to convince Philip VIII to convene the Estates-General. At last, Philip VIII did. In 22 February 1790, the Estates-General had been convened. Eventually, this Estates-General would morph into the Assemblée Nationale Constituante (National Assembly). However, this national assembly would be unstable, as there would be a lot of political infighting that would ensue between the estates and the various political factions that had formed within the estate.
Flight to New France
Throughout 1790-1793, the political infighting within France would soon go out of control. It was starting to be clear that the authority of the King had waned. With the poor state of the army, the various political factions had started raising paramilitary groups. These militias would become more appealing for young men to join, rather than the under-rationed and poorly equipped Royal army, to the point that it became a point of prestige to become involved in these organizations. Conservatives had begun leaving France, most of them heading to the colony of New France, which became a Royalist stronghold.
Philip VIII had started to regret convening the Estates-General, instead of relying on his instincts and just crushing the initial unrest outright. Philip VIII contemplated leaving France and asking help from Austria and Britain, but his brother, the liberal Henri (Duc d'Anjou), had discouraged him from doing so. Without Henri's knowledge, Philip VIII and his family escaped their residence from Versaille and departed for Lé Hâvre in Northern France on 12 March 1793, bringing only their jewelry and other meager possessions, and only accompanied by three of his guards. This inconspicuity would make them successful in leaving Versailles, unlike the unfortunate Flight to Varennes that had failed IOTL). He had set sail for New France and had left France in a state of political turmoil.
Coronation of Henri, duc d’Anjou, as King of the French
When the news was revealed that Philip VIII had left France, the National Assembly labeled him as a traitor. “The King has abdicated!” became the cry of the people after Philip VIII’s betrayal of the French people. The National Assembly, however, still wanted to see to it that the new constitution of France would be respected. They had to find a replacement for Philip VIII. They had seen the perfect person in Henri, Duc d’Anjou, and brother of Philip VIII. Henri was a liberal-conservative. Although he had been arrested for allegedly conspiring with Philip in leaving France, he was pardoned by the National Assembly on the grounds of a national emergency. In June 1793, he would be proclaimed King of France. Despite his noble intentions, his reign would be marked with inefficiencies, as the Royal Army barely had any power, and his word would constantly be overruled by the National Assembly. In 1794, he would be deposed in a coup by the leaders of the majority party in the National Assembly, marking the end of the ancien regime, and the birth of the French Republic.
