ils firent

they did; they made

→ il
phrase Rare #32,137
they did; they made The literary or historical past tense of faire, commonly found in books and formal narratives. In everyday French, ils ont fait is usually used instead.
FR: Ils firent tout leur possible pour réussir.
EN: They did everything they could to succeed.

Ils firent une promenade.

They went for a walk.

Ils firent finalement la paix avec l'ennemi.

They finally made peace with the enemy.

Ils firent ce qu'il fallait.

They did what had to be done.

Ils firent l'amour.

They made love.

Au contraire, ils firent quelque chose que je n'avais encore jamais vu.

On the contrary, they did something I had never seen before.

— Rang de Basanti (2006)

Ils firent ce qu'on leur avait dit.

They did what they had been told.

Ils firent tous objection à sa proposition.

They all objected to his proposal.

Les allégations qu'ils firent étaient infondées.

The allegations they made were unfounded.

Ils firent des projets.

They made plans.