The last king of France was Louis XVI , who reigned from 1774 until 1792, when the French Revolution brought down the monarchy and the First French Republic was proclaimed.

Quick Scoop: Short Answer

  • In most history books and exams, when people ask “who was the last king of France?” the expected answer is Louis XVI.
  • He was executed by guillotine on 21 January 1793 after being tried as a traitor by the revolutionary government.

There is a twist, though: later in the 19th century, Louis-Philippe ruled as “King of the French” (not “King of France”), and some historians and forum discussions play with that nuance when debating who counts as the “last” monarch.

Mini Section: Why Louis XVI Is Considered “Last King”

  • Louis XVI was the final monarch to rule under the traditional Bourbon monarchy before it was formally abolished on 21 September 1792.
  • His fall is symbolically tied to the end of a thousand years of French monarchy, which is why many sources call him “the last king of France.”

In modern discussions, “who was the last king of France” is almost always answered: Louis XVI.

Mini Section: But What About Louis-Philippe?

  • After Napoleon and a brief Bourbon restoration, Louis-Philippe reigned from 1830 to 1848 with the constitutional title “King of the French,” emphasizing rule by popular sovereignty rather than divine right.
  • Because of this different title, some historians describe him as the last king of the French , while still treating Louis XVI as the last king of France in the old sense.

Mini Section: How Forums and “Latest News” Talk About It

  • Online history and monarchism forums regularly host debates and polls on “who was the last monarch of France?” with users split between Louis XVI and Louis-Philippe depending on how they define “of France.”
  • Recent educational and biographical pieces still frame Louis XVI as the last king of France before the Revolution, keeping that phrasing dominant in search trends and popular learning content.

Mini Section: Key Timeline (Super Short)

  1. 1774–1792 – Louis XVI, last king of France under the old monarchy.
  1. 1792 – Monarchy abolished; First French Republic declared.
  1. 1830–1848 – Louis-Philippe, “King of the French,” often called the last French king, but with a different, more constitutional title.

TL;DR:

  • Standard answer: Louis XVI was the last king of France before the monarchy was abolished in 1792.
  • Nuance: Louis-Philippe later ruled as “King of the French,” which is why some discussions say he was the last French king, but he is usually not counted as the last king of France in the strict phrasing of your question.

Information gathered from public forums or data available on the internet and portrayed here.