il y eut

Ce qui me sembla être plusieurs jours plus tard, il y eut de la lumière dehors.

What seemed to me like several days later, it was light outside.

Puis, il y eut un de ses cousins, un certain Favell.

Then there was one of his cousins, a certain Favell.

— Rebecca (1940)

Il y eut un superbe dessert à la fin du repas.

There was a superb dessert at the end of the meal.

Il y eut trois survivants.

There were three survivors.

D'abord, il y eut les poissons.

First, there were the fish.

— The Mermaid (2016)

Il y eut grosse mer.

The sea was rough.

Il lui tira dessus et il y eut un grand bruit.

He shot at him, and there was a loud bang.

— Mysterious Object at Noon (2000)

Il y eut un bref silence.

There was a brief silence.

Quelque part là-dedans, il y eut la quatrième erreur.

Somewhere in there, the fourth mistake occurred.

Il y eut un silence un peu embarrassé.

There was a slightly awkward silence.