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Quizzes > History

French Revolution quiz: Names, Terms, and Key Events

Quick, free quiz to test your knowledge-instant results with questions about the French Revolution.

Editorial: Review CompletedCreated By: John ButterworthUpdated Aug 24, 2025
Difficulty: Moderate
2-5mins
Learning OutcomesCheat Sheet
Paper art illustration for French Revolution quiz on a coral background

This French Revolution quiz helps you check your grasp of causes, leaders, and turning points in a few quick questions. See what you remember from the Bastille to the Directory, then review what you miss. Want more practice on this topic? Try our French Revolution practice questions, or broaden your scope with a european history quiz and some world history trivia.

Which event is widely considered the formal beginning of the French Revolution on July 14, 1789?
Tennis Court Oath
Execution of Louis XVI
Storming of the Bastille
March on Versailles
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The Tennis Court Oath pledged that deputies would not separate until they had achieved what?
Abolition of the monarchy
Immediate universal male suffrage
End of all feudal dues without compensation
A written constitution for France
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Which document, adopted in August 1789, proclaimed liberty, property, security, and resistance to oppression?
Brunswick Manifesto
Law of 22 Prairial
Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen
Civil Constitution of the Clergy
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Which Parisian fortress-prison symbolized royal despotism before it was seized by a crowd in 1789?
The Temple
The Conciergerie
The Louvre
The Bastille
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Which event forced Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette to relocate from Versailles to Paris in October 1789?
The Flight to Varennes
The September Massacres
The Festival of the Supreme Being
The Women's March on Versailles
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Who wrote the influential pamphlet "What is the Third Estate?" in early 1789?
Maximilien Robespierre
Marquis de Lafayette
Honoré Gabriel Riqueti, Comte de Mirabeau
Abbé Emmanuel-Joseph Sieyès
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What was the principal goal of the August 4 Decrees passed by the National Assembly in 1789?
Establish the Revolutionary Calendar
Abolish feudal privileges and dues
Create the Committee of Public Safety
Depose Louis XVI
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Which term referred to working-class radicals known for wearing long trousers rather than knee breeches?
Sans-culottes
Muscadins
Emigrés
Feuillants
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What was the Civil Constitution of the Clergy (1790) primarily designed to do?
Abolish religious orders entirely
Declare France officially Protestant
Create a national tithe for the poor
Bring the Catholic Church under state authority
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What were assignats during the French Revolution?
Paper currency backed by confiscated Church lands
Tax receipts for the taille
Passports for internal travel
Mandatory military service certificates
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What did the Brunswick Manifesto (July 1792) threaten?
Immediate British invasion of Normandy
A papal interdict on France
Restoration of feudal dues in full
Punishment of Parisians if harm came to the royal family
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The September Massacres of 1792 primarily targeted which group?
British diplomats in Paris
Swiss Guards stationed at the Tuileries
Members of the Committee of Public Safety
Prisoners suspected of counterrevolution
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The Committee of Public Safety during Year II was most closely associated with which leader?
Joseph Fouché (as its first president)
Napoleon Bonaparte
Talleyrand
Maximilien Robespierre
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What was the Law of the Maximum?
A draft law requiring universal conscription
A rule standardizing jury sizes in tribunals
A statute dissolving religious orders
A price control on essential goods such as grain
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Which uprising in western France combined royalist and Catholic resistance to the Revolution?
The Flour War
The War in the Vendée
The Federalist Revolts
The Thermidorian Reaction
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Which law of June 1794 streamlined trials and increased death sentences by limiting defendants' rights?
Law of the Maximum
Law of Suspects
Law of 22 Prairial
Law of Frimaire
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Which policy aimed to centralize administration and curb local authorities in December 1793?
The Law of Frimaire
The Civil Constitution of the Clergy
The Law of Suspects
The Brunswick Manifesto
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Which political group favored a constitutional monarchy in 1791 and later split from the Jacobins?
The Feuillants
The Cordeliers
The Enragés
The Girondins
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Thermidor in the Revolutionary Calendar corresponds roughly to late July and August.
True
False
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The Law of 22 Prairial limited defendants' rights and expanded the use of the death penalty.
False
True
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Study Outcomes

  1. Recall Key Terms -

    Memorize and recall essential french revolution trivia terms like Estates-General, Reign of Terror, and National Assembly.

  2. Identify Influential Figures -

    Recognize major actors in Revolutionary France trivia such as Robespierre, Louis XVI, and Marie Antoinette.

  3. Differentiate Revolutionary Phases -

    Distinguish between key periods like the Moderate Phase, Radical Phase, and Directory in the timeline of the French Revolution.

  4. Analyze Landmark Events -

    Examine pivotal moments such as the Storming of the Bastille and the execution of Louis XVI within the context of the French Revolution quiz.

  5. Evaluate Causes and Effects -

    Assess social, economic, and political factors that led to the revolution and its long-term impact on France and beyond.

  6. Apply Knowledge to Trivia -

    Use your understanding to challenge yourself with French Revolution facts quiz questions and confidently answer each prompt.

Cheat Sheet

  1. Estates-General and the Three Estates -

    In May 1789, King Louis XVI convened the Estates-General, grouping clergy, nobility, and commoners into three estates; this split highlights key social tensions (britannica.com). Remember "1-2-3" (clergy, nobles, commons) as the foundation for Revolutionary France trivia and French Revolution terms and names. Reviewing how the Third Estate's push for "one man, one vote" led to the Tennis Court Oath is essential for any French Revolution quiz.

  2. Storming of the Bastille (14 July 1789) -

    The famous Bastille storming on 14/7/1789 symbolizes popular revolt; use the mnemonic "Bastille Heaven: 14/7" to lock in the date for your French Revolution facts quiz. This event marked the fall of feudal authority and ignited Revolutionary France trivia topics about popular uprisings. Cross-check with History.com or the French Archives for eyewitness accounts and historic illustrations.

  3. Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen -

    Adopted in August 1789, this foundational document enshrined liberty, property, security, and resistance to oppression; remember "LPSR" (Liberty, Property, Security, Resistance) to recall its four pillars. It set the stage for modern human rights discussions cited in academic journals like the Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy. Spot this topic often on French Revolution quiz questions about key principles and revolutionary ideals.

  4. Reign of Terror and Robespierre -

    From mid-1793 to mid-1794, the Committee of Public Safety, led by Maximilien Robespierre, oversaw mass trials and executions; recall "Terror 93-94" for the timeline. This phase intensified Revolutionary France trivia with the guillotine becoming a grim symbol. Reviewing scholarly articles from Institut d'Histoire de la Révolution Française helps clarify its political motives and aftermath.

  5. Coup of 18 Brumaire and Rise of Napoleon -

    Napoleon Bonaparte's coup on 18 Brumaire Year VIII (9 November 1799) effectively ended the Revolution and ushered in the Consulate; use "Brumaire 9/11-1799" (day/month-year) as a handy code. His rise and the Napoleonic Code are frequent topics in Revolutionary France trivia and academic courses. Check sources like the Napoleon Foundation for details on how this coup reshaped European politics.

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