To what extent was the course of the revolution in the months May to October 1789 influenced by popular protest in Paris?

The revolution developed rapidly in the months May to October 1789, sparked by the King’s refusal to put forward a programme of reform in order to satisfy the Third Estate during the meeting of the Estates General on the 5th May 1789. Consequently, the Third Estate assembled in order to take the Tennis Court Oath agreeing not to disperse until France had a Constitution. Fearing his position was being threatened by the radical Third Estate, Louis contemplated using military force and ordered the stationing of 20000 troops round Paris in preparation to dissolve the National Assembly by force if necessary. On the 11th July 1789, Louis made the mistake of dismissing Jacques Necker, who was not only popular with the Third Estate but additionally considered the only financer capable of tackling the financial crisis. With France already in severe economic crisis, the dismissal of Necker angered the ordinary Parisians who had not only recently become politically active through popular movement but additionally considered Necker’s dismissal as marking the start of Louis’ attempt to restore power by means of force. Parisians flocked to the Palais Royal which had, in recent months become the unofficial headquarters for the popular movement, where thousands of Parisians gathered each night to listen to revolutionary speeches. Here, revolutionary speakers called upon Parisians to take up arms against Louis’ troops and thus the search for ammunition began. Significantly, this marked the beginning of a renouncement of military loyalty to the King as royal infantry regiment Gardes-francaises disobeyed their orders and deserted to join the representatives of the people of Paris. The decision to capture the Bastille on the 14th July 1789 was influenced primarily by a desire to acquire gunpowder needed to spark the canons, captured from Les Invalides. However the Bastille, an imposing royal prison, was additionally a symbol of the ancien regime and power of the King within such a