6. Where it stands

The historian François Furet proclaimed in 1978, at the start of a much celebrated essay, that ‘The French Revolution is finished’. He meant the Revolution ought to be the subject for detached historical enquiry. ‘Where it stands’ examines what ended the French Revolution, the legacy it left behind, and various interpretations of its legacy, both within France and worldwide. The history of the Revolution, in France at least, has been more a matter of commemoration than scholarly analysis. The bicentenary in 1989 released a torrent of vituperative publishing, most of it denouncing one aspect or another of the Revolution and its legacy.

5. What it started

The Revolution began as an assertion of national sovereignty. Nations were the new supreme source of authority in human affairs. ‘What it started’ considers the effects of the French Revolution over the 19th century. A new principle of political legitimacy began, and the sovereignty of nations achieved successful acceptance throughout the Western world. In the 20th century, it would be used to expel Europeans from overseas colonies. What part did the Revolution play in defining a ‘nation’ in 19th-century terms? What significance did popular power have? Can there ever be a true revolution without terror? The legacy of the French Revolution in the 19th century was momentous, yet always partial and often paradoxical.

3. How it happened

Just before the monarchy collapsed into bankruptcy, a hailstorm swept across France, bringing with it agricultural and economic disaster. The political storm that was about to break would take place against a background of economic crisis. ‘How it happened’ examines the events that led up to the storming of the Bastille and beyond. There were three issues that polarized France at this time: war, religion, and the monarchy. How did the polarization of these three issues lead to the terror? What caused Louis XVI to flee? Why did it go wrong and what were the ramifications of his attempt to leave France? How did Napoleon ‘save’ France from slipping deeper into chaos?

4. What it ended

The French Revolution began as a destructive force. The revolutionaries wanted to abolish anything associated with the old order. ‘What it ended’ describes how the French Revolution had begun as an attack on despotism, aristocracy, old-style corporatism, and privilege. It provided an opportunity to dispense with the old and replace with new. However, although the Revolution symbolized the assertion of political will against the constraints of history, circumstance, and vested interest, the revolutionaries soon realized that will alone is not enough to destroy the old. The old fought back. But these attempts were always problematic as concerns with the old regime remained. No true restoration was ever possible.

2. Why it happened

Describing why the French Revolution happened poses challenges. The French Revolution was not a single event; it was a series of developments that stretched over a number of years beginning between 1787 and 1789. ‘Why it happened’ attempts to outline the causes of the French Revolution by looking at the events leading up to the end of the 1780s. This was a period of uncertainty and confusion. What role did the monarchy have in causing the initial disquiet? Were the seeds of disorder already present in French society in the late 18th century? How important was France’s financial difficulties in causing a crisis?

1. Echoes

‘Echoes’ examines the legacy of the French Revolution in the Western world through the lens of late 18th-century and 19th-century literature and culture. It considers writing by Edmund Burke and Thomas Carlyle, but it is Charles Dickens’s A Tale of Two Cities (1859) that offers the most influential image that posterity has of the French Revolution. It took as its main theme the contrast between violent Paris and tranquil London. The images of this book define the French Revolution for many, and were reinforced elsewhere, for example in The Scarlet Pimpernel (1905). Despite enjoying all the romance of the French Revolution in books and plays, did people really know what caused it?