The European Spring was a short but deadly wave of demonstrations and revolutions that occurred in Europe from the end of the Seven Years of War in 1763 to the end of the Russian Revolution in 1764. The European Spring officially began after the French government was overthrown by revolutionaries, and placed an democracy in its place.
Following the defeat of France and its allies in the Seven Years of War, King Louis XVI became unpopular among the peasants and middle class after he placed heavy taxes on goods, such as alcohol, tea, and sugar. These taxes were followed by the people of France to house and feed soldiers after the lack of funds to maintain the numerous military camps across the country. A young military officer by the simple name of Lafayette, spurred up protests in northern France, specifically around Caen. Lafayette soon gained support from the residents of Normandy, and soon gained most of northern France - minus Paris - and southern France. Lafayette led the French Revolutionary Army into Paris, and surrounded Louis and the remainder of the royal family. King Louis was executed on September 1, 1763 and the remainder of the family was executed a week after.
Following the fall of France in September of 1763, protests soon began in the Austrian Empire. The protests soon increased into riots and revolutions, and chaos was inflicted across the southern portion of the Empire. The Austrian Revolution soon began when Budapest fell to the revolutionaries, and the march toward Linz and Vienna begin. The Austrian Army soon collapsed from within, with some supporting the revolutionaries, and others supporting the monarchy. Protests began across the Kingdom of Spain, and a 1,000 army of peasants and rebels marched from Spain to Madrid. The King of Spain soon fled to Great Britain, and the country fell to the revolutionaries, while other pro-monarchy forces continued to resist until 1764. Portugal increased forces after the news of the fell to the Revolutionaries, and minor protests began in Portugal. The protests were soon snuffed out by small reforms that proved a big difference from the collapse of Portugal that was expected. The Russian Empire soon felt the effects of the European Spring, with protests began in January of 1764. The protests were snuffed out by the Russian Army, which led to more fuel for the fire that burned in the hearts of the revolutionaries. Noblemen and their possessions soon came under attack by rebels, and all of Russia west of the Ural Mountains was engulfed in chaos.
Minor protests occurred in the United Kingdom, Switzerland, Poland-Lithuania, and the Ottoman Empire. The protests soon were snuffed out by reforms. Such as Great Britain giving more rights to the Catholics in Ireland to prevent them from seceding, or the Ottoman Empire passing reforms that allow freedom of religion in its European possessions.