Description
Book SynopsisThe Bastille, symbol of injustice and monarchial tyranny, surrendering to the Parisian throng; the hungry women of Paris, demanding bread from their king. This title provides a reasoned analysis of the causes, course, and legacy of this distinct turning point in history.
Table of ContentsForeword v
Introduction ix
1. The Old Regime To 1789 1
The Great Surprise 1
The Origins of French Absolutism 2
Eighteenth-Century France 4
The Financial Crisis 21
The Revolt of the Nobles 24
Preparations for the Estates-Genera 25
2. 1789 28
The Estates-General 28
Paris Erupts 33
Municipal Revolutions and the Great Fear 39
The Declaration of the Rights of Man 43
The Legislature and the Veto 44
3. Government by the National Assembly 46
The October Days 46
The Political Clubs 49
Nationalization of Church Property 50
Civil Constitution of the Clergy 53
Administrative and Judicial Reform 56
The Flight to Varennes 57
Massacre of the Champ de Mars 61
The Constitution of 1791 63
The Radicalization of the Revolution 65
4. The Fall of the Monarchy 67
The Legislative Assembly 67
War 68
The Tuileries 71
The September Massacres 74
The Battle of Valmy 77
The Convention 78
The Trail and Execution of Louis XVI 81
The Fall of the Girondins 84
5. The Reign of Terror 86
The Terror 86
The Republican Calendar 88
The Organs of the Terror 89
The Vendée 97
The Federalist Revolts 99
The Nation at War 101
Other Accomplishments 103
De-Christianization 105
Hébertists and Dantonists 109
Cult of the Supreme Being 111
Thermidor 113
6. The Directory and the Rise of Napoleon Bonaparte 116
The Thermidorian Reaction 116
Military Victory in the Vendée 118
Paris, the Convention, and the Constitution of the Year III 120
Thermidorian Last Acts: The Cultural Legislation 125
The Directory (1795-1799) 125
Napoleon Bonaparte 127
Brumaire 136
Conclusion 139
Bibliographical Essay 143
Index 157
