Louis XVI's Flight to Varennes: The French King Tries to Escape
Louis XVI nearly escaped. The royal family dressed as servants, crammed into a hired coach, and slipped out of Paris at midnight — and it almost worked. But Louis couldn't stop himself. He kept peering out the window. Locals recognized him from his face on the coins. Stopped at Varennes, 31 miles short of the Austrian border. Arrested. Brought back to Paris in humiliation. And that failure didn't just end his freedom. It ended the monarchy. The king who tried to run convinced France he'd never truly accepted the Revolution at all.
June 20, 1791
235 years ago
Key Figures & Places
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