By the late 18th century, that infamous Parisian address had come to symbolize everything the people despised about royal excess and unchecked power. France was crumbling under the weight of famine, drought, cattle disease, and soaring bread prices — all while King Louis XVI and his court lived in splendor. As anger at King Louis XVI’s abuses of royal power simmered, cries for liberté, égalité, and fraternité grew louder. Desperate, disillusioned, and hungry, Parisians took matters into their own hands. 

On July 14, 1789, an armed mob of nearly a thousand stormed the Bastille. Their goals were both practical and symbolic: seize the gunpowder and weapons inside, and strike a blow at the monarchy by toppling its most notorious fortress. The seven remaining prisoners (four forgers, two “lunatics,” and a count convicted of unsavory crimes) were freed that day, but the act itself was seismic. The storming of the Bastille marked the beginning of the French Revolution and the end of the Ancien Régime. 

Within months, demolition of the Bastille began and the old order was literally dismantled stone by stone. By November of 1789, little remained of the medieval fortress that had loomed over Paris for centuries. Its absence left behind more than an empty plot of land — it created a powerful symbol of the people’s triumph over tyranny. Stones were sold as souvenirs across France, while many blocks were used in the construction of the Pont de la Concorde bridge across the Seine. The Bastille, once the most feared address in Paris, became instead the birthplace of a Revolution.

But tearing down stone walls was only the beginning — soon, the Revolution would turn its sights on the monarchy itself.