The Flight to Varennes during the night of 20–21 June 1791 was a significant event in the French Revolution in which the French royal family—comprising Louis XVI, Marie Antoinette, the Dauphin Louis Charles, Marie-Thérèse, Madame Royale, and Madame Élisabeth—unsuccessfully attempted to leave Paris for Montmédy, along with loyal members of their retinue. The King hoped to regain his freedom there, with the protection of royalist troops, as the Revolution was intensifying and the threat to the royal family's safety grew. They reached the small town of Varennes-en-Argonne, where they were stopped and arrested after being recognised at their earlier stop in Sainte-Menehould.