Table Of Content

Title Page Page: iii Preface Page: v Contents Page: vii List of illustrations Page: ix 1: Echoes Page: 1 Cross-Channel perspectives Page: 3 Dramatic depictions Page: 6 Twentieth-century parallels Page: 9 The Corsican contribution Page: 9 Human rights Page: 15 A disputed legacy Page: 17 2: Why it happened Page: 19 Financial overstretch Page: 19 The ancien régime: government Page: 21 The ancien régime: society Page: 25 Public opinion Page: 27 The 'Pre-Revolution' Page: 34 3: How it happened Page: 37 Electoral politics Page: 37 National sovereignty Page: 39 The first reforms Page: 42 Polarization: religion Page: 45 Polarization: monarchy Page: 47 Polarization: war Page: 50 Civil war and terror Page: 52 The thermidorean dilemma Page: 58 The Directory Page: 61 Napoleon Page: 63 4: What it ended Page: 65 Despotism Page: 66 Aristocracy Page: 67 Corporatism and privilege Page: 69 The confessional state Page: 70 Dynastic diplomacy Page: 71 Colonial slavery Page: 72 Redrawn maps Page: 73 Achievable dreams Page: 74 Resistance and persistence Page: 76 Illusory restorations Page: 77 A world transformed Page: 79 5: What it started Page: 81 Totalitarian democracy Page: 82 Liberalism Page: 82 The People Page: 84 Terror Page: 86 Left and right Page: 87 Conspirators and revolutionaries Page: 87 Patterns and paradigms Page: 90 Conservatism, reaction, and religion Page: 92 Rationalization Page: 95 A limited legacy Page: 96 6: Where it stands Page: 98 A historical challenge Page: 98 The classic interpretation Page: 99 Revisionism Page: 101 Post-revisionism Page: 102 The bicentenary Page: 103 The end of a dream? Page: 107 Timeline: Important dates of the French Revolution Page: 109 Further reading Page: 119 Index Page: 125

Description:

Beginning with a discussion of familiar images of the French Revolution, garnered from Dickens, Baroness Orczy, and Tolstoy, as well as the legends of let them eat cake, and tricolours, Doyle leads the reader to the realization that we are still living with developments and consequences of the French Revolution such as decimalization, and the whole ideology of human rights. Continuing with a brief survey of the old regime and how it collapsed, Doyle continues to ellucidate how the revolution happened: why did the revolutionaries quarrel with the king, the church and the rest of Europe, why this produced Terror, and finally how it accomplished rule by a general. The revolution destroyed the age-old cultural, institutional and social structures in France and beyond. This book looks at how the ancien regime became ancien as well as examining cases in which achievement failed to match ambition. Doyle explores the legacy of the revolution in the form of rationality in public affairs and responsible government, and finishes his examination of the revolution with a discussion as to why it has been so controversial. ABOUT THE SERIES: The Very Short Introductions series from Oxford University Press contains hundreds of titles in almost every subject area. These pocket-sized books are the perfect way to get ahead in a new subject quickly. Our expert authors combine facts, analysis, perspective, new ideas, and enthusiasm to make interesting and challenging topics highly readable.