April 20, 1792

French Revolutionary Wars

France declares war on the king of Hungary and Bohemia

The parliamentary record identifies only seven deputies as opposing the decree.

20 April 1792: the king proposes the war

On 20 April 1792, Louis XVI appeared before the Legislative Assembly in Paris, had foreign minister Charles-François Dumouriez's report read out, and formally proposed war against the king of Hungary and Bohemia. The Constitution required the proposal to come from him.

The transcript notes an alteration in the king's voice as he proposed war against the family of his wife, Marie Antoinette.

The grievances, and the name of the enemy

The decree named Vienna's protection of French émigrés, its military preparations, its support for German princes' claims in France, and Francis's diplomatic notes of 18 March and 7 April. It presented the war as defensive and disavowed conquest.

The target was a person, not a state. When the draft called him Francis II, a deputy interrupted to argue that as king of Bohemia he was still only Francis I; he became Holy Roman Emperor later in 1792.

Sanctioned the same day

At its evening sitting the Assembly adopted the proposal and decreed war in the name of the French nation. Seven deputies are identified in the record as opposed.

A deputation of 24 members carried the decree straight back to Louis XVI, and he sanctioned it that day.

Sources

Researched 23 Aug 2026 5 sources 2 audit passes

How this was checked

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What the sources leave uncertain

Calling the target “Austria” is conventional but legally imprecise: the decree declared war on Francis as king of Hungary and Bohemia, not on a state formally styled the Austrian Empire, which did not yet exist.
During the debate a deputy corrected “Francis II” to “Francis I” in his capacity as king of Bohemia; he became Holy Roman Emperor Francis II later in 1792.