1.
French Revolution
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Through the Revolutionary Wars, it unleashed a wave of global conflicts that extended from the Caribbean to the Middle East. Historians widely regard the Revolution as one of the most important events in human history, the causes of the French Revolution are complex and are still debated among historians. Following the Seven Years War and the American Revolutionary War, the French government was deeply in debt, Years of bad harvests leading up to the Revolution also inflamed popular resentment of the privileges enjoyed by the clergy and the aristocracy. Demands for change were formulated in terms of Enlightenment ideals and contributed to the convocation of the Estates-General in May 1789, a central event of the first stage, in August 1789, was the abolition of feudalism and the old rules and privileges left over from the Ancien Régime. The next few years featured political struggles between various liberal assemblies and right-wing supporters of the intent on thwarting major reforms. The Republic was proclaimed in September 1792 after the French victory at Valmy, in a momentous event that led to international condemnation, Louis XVI was executed in January 1793. External threats closely shaped the course of the Revolution, internally, popular agitation radicalised the Revolution significantly, culminating in the rise of Maximilien Robespierre and the Jacobins. Large numbers of civilians were executed by revolutionary tribunals during the Terror, after the Thermidorian Reaction, an executive council known as the Directory assumed control of the French state in 1795. The rule of the Directory was characterised by suspended elections, debt repudiations, financial instability, persecutions against the Catholic clergy, dogged by charges of corruption, the Directory collapsed in a coup led by Napoleon Bonaparte in 1799. The modern era has unfolded in the shadow of the French Revolution, almost all future revolutionary movements looked back to the Revolution as their predecessor. The values and institutions of the Revolution dominate French politics to this day, the French Revolution differed from other revolutions in being not merely national, for it aimed at benefiting all humanity. Globally, the Revolution accelerated the rise of republics and democracies and it became the focal point for the development of all modern political ideologies, leading to the spread of liberalism, radicalism, nationalism, socialism, feminism, and secularism, among many others. The Revolution also witnessed the birth of total war by organising the resources of France, historians have pointed to many events and factors within the Ancien Régime that led to the Revolution. Over the course of the 18th century, there emerged what the philosopher Jürgen Habermas called the idea of the sphere in France. A perfect example would be the Palace of Versailles which was meant to overwhelm the senses of the visitor and convince one of the greatness of the French state and Louis XIV. Starting in the early 18th century saw the appearance of the sphere which was critical in that both sides were active. In France, the emergence of the public sphere outside of the control of the saw the shift from Versailles to Paris as the cultural capital of France. In the 1750s, during the querelle des bouffons over the question of the quality of Italian vs, in 1782, Louis-Sébastien Mercier wrote, The word court no longer inspires awe amongst us as in the time of Louis XIV
2.
National Guard (France)
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The National Guard was originally a French militia which existed from 1789 until 1872, including a period of official disbandment from 1827 to 1830. It was separate from the French Army and existed both for policing and as a military reserve, for most of its history the National Guard, particularly its officers, were widely viewed as loyal to middle-class interests. This had rapidly spread anger and violence throughout Paris, the National Assembly declared the formation of a Bourgeois Militia on 13 July. In the early morning of the day, the search for weapons for this new militia led to the storming of the Hotel des Invalides. Lafayette was elected to the post of commander in chief of the Bourgeois Militia on 15 July, similar bodies were spontaneously created in the towns and rural districts of France in response to widespread fears of chaos or counter-revolution. When the French Guards mutinied and were disbanded during the same month, the officers of the National Guard were elected. Under the law of 14 October 1791, all active citizens and their role was the maintenance of law and order and, if necessary, the defence of the territory. Following a nationwide scheme decided on in September 1791, the National Guard was organised on the basis of district or canton companies, five of these neighbourhood units made up a battalion. Eight to ten battalions comprised a legion, districts might also provide companies of veterans and young citizens, respectively drawn from volunteers of over 60 or under 18. Where possible, there was provision for mounted detachments and artillerymen, the citizens kept their weapons and their uniforms at home, and set forth with them when required. This combination of colours matched those of the revolutionary tricolour, the former Guet royal had held responsibility for the maintenance of law and order in Paris from 1254 to 1791, when the National Guard took over this role. In fact, the last commander of the Guet royal, de La Rothière, was elected to head the National Guard in 1791, in the summer of 1792, the fundamental character of the guard changed. After 9 Thermidor, year II, the new government of the Thermidorian Reaction placed the National Guard under the control of conservative leadership. The Paris National Guard thereafter ceased to play a significant political role, napoleon did not believe that the middle-class National Guard would be able to maintain order and suppress riots. Therefore, he created a Municipal Guard of Paris, a full-time gendarmerie which was strongly militarised, however, he did not abolish the National Guard, but was content to partially disarm it. He kept the force in reserve and mobilised it for the defence of French territory in 1809 and 1814, between 1811 and 1812 the National Guard, was organized in cohorts to distinguish it from the regular army, and for home defence only. By a skilful appeal to patriotism, and judicious pressure applied through the prefects, with the invasion of France by allied Austrian, Prussian, Russian and British armies in 1814, the National Guard was suddenly called on to provide support for regular Imperial forces. Existing National Guard units, such as those of Paris, were deployed as defence corps in their areas of recruitment, mass conscription was extended to age groups previously exempt from military service, to provide more manpower for the expanded National Guard
3.
Paris Commune (French Revolution)
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The Paris Commune during the French Revolution was the government of Paris from 1789 until 1795. Established in the Hôtel de Ville just after the storming of the Bastille, the Paris Commune became insurrectionary in the summer of 1792, essentially refusing to take orders from the central French government. It took charge of routine civic functions but is best known for mobilizing extreme views and actions among the people and for its campaign to dechristianize the churches and it lost much power in 1794 and was replaced in 1795. In 1792, the Commune was dominated by those Jacobins who were not in the Legislative Assembly due to the Self-Denying Ordinance, the all-powerful Commune demanded custody of the royal family, imprisoning them in the Temple fortress. A list of opponents of the Revolution was drawn up, the gates to the city were sealed, the government of the republic was succeeded by the French Directory in November 1795
4.
Civil Constitution of the Clergy
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The Civil Constitution of the Clergy was a law passed on 12 July 1790 during the French Revolution, that caused the immediate subordination of the Catholic Church in France to the French government. Earlier legislation had already arranged the confiscation of the Catholic Churchs French land holdings and this new law completed the destruction of the monastic orders, outlawing all regular and secular chapters for either sex, abbacies and priorships, both regular and in commendam, for either sex, etc. It also sought to settle the chaos caused by the confiscation of Church lands. Additionally, the Civil Constitution of the Clergy regulated the current dioceses so that they could become more uniform and it emphasised that officials of the church could not provide commitment to anything outside of France, specifically the Pope which was outside of France. Lastly, the Civil Constitution of the Clergy made Bishops and Priest elected, the measure was opposed, but ultimately acquiesced to, by King Louis XVI. The Civil Constitution of the Clergy document had 4 tittles with different articles, the document began with an introduction that introduced why the document was written. Title I focused on the dioceses and how they were to be administered, Title II focused on the administration of the dioceses and how elections were to take place. Title III focused on payment because the Clergy was an employee of the State. Title IV focused on the requirements for bishops, parish priests. Even before the Revolution and the Civil Constitution of the Clergy, even prior to the Civil Constitution of the Clergy, On 11 August 1789 tithes were abolished. On 2 November 1789, Catholic Church property that was held for purposes of church revenue was nationalized, on 13 February 1790, monastic vows were forbidden and all ecclesiastical orders and congregations were dissolved, excepting those devoted to teaching children and nursing the sick. On 19 April 1790, administration of all remaining property was transferred to the State. The Church owned about six percent of the land in France, in addition the Church collected tithes. Owing, in part, to abuses of this system, there was resentment of the Church, taking the various forms of atheism, anticlericalism. Many of the revolutionaries viewed the Catholic Church as a retrograde force, at the same time, there was enough support for a basically Catholic form of Christianity that some means had to be found to fund the Church in France. On 6 February 1790, one week before banning monastic vows, the Civil Constitution of the Clergy came before the Assembly on 29 May 1790. François de Bonal, Bishop of Clermont, and some members of the Right requested that the project should be submitted to a council or to the Pope. Joining them in their opposition to the legislation was Abbé Sieyès, one of the political theorists of the French Revolution
5.
Girondins
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The Girondins were members of a loosely knit political faction during the French Revolution. From 1791 to 1793, the Girondins were active within the Legislative Assembly and they were part of the Jacobin movement, though not every Girondin was a member of the Jacobin Club. The Girondins campaigned for the end of the monarchy, but then resisted the spiraling momentum of the Revolution and they came into conflict with The Mountain, a radical faction within the Jacobin Club. This conflict eventually led to the fall of the Girondins and their mass execution, Girondin leader Jacques-Pierre Brissot proposed an ambitious military plan to spread the Revolution internationally, thus the Girondins were the war party in 1792–93. Other prominent Girondins included Jean Marie Roland and his wife Madame Roland and they had an ally in the English-born, sometime American activist Thomas Paine. Brissot and Madame Roland were executed and Jean Roland committed suicide when he learned what had transpired, Paine was arrested and imprisoned but narrowly escaped execution. The famous painting Death of Marat depicts the killing of the radical journalist Jean-Paul Marat by the Girondin sympathizer Charlotte Corday. The collective name Girondins is used to describe a a loosely knit group of French deputies who contested the Montagnards for control of the National Convention and they were never an official organization or political party. Other names were employed at the time too, but Girondins ultimately became the term favored by historians, the term became standard with Alphonse de Lamartines History of the Girondists in 1847. Twelve deputies represented the département of the Gironde, and there were six who sat for this département in both the Legislative Assembly of 1791-92 and the National Convention of 1792-95. Five were lawyers, Pierre Victurnien Vergniaud, Marguerite Élie Guadet, Armand Gensonné, Jean Antoine Laffargue de Grangeneuve, the other, Jean François Ducos, was a tradesman. Madame Roland, whose salon became their gathering place, had a influence on the spirit. The group was identified by its enemies at the start of the National Convention, Brissotins and Girondins were terms of opprobrium used by their enemies in a separate faction of the Jacobin Club, who freely denounced them as enemies of democracy. In the Legislative Assembly, the Girondins represented the principle of democratic revolution within France and they supported an aggressive foreign policy and constituted the war party in the period 1792-93, when revolutionary France initiated a long series of revolutionary wars with other European powers. Brissot proposed a military plan to spread the Revolution internationally. The Girondins also called for war against Austria, arguing it would rally patriots around the Revolution, liberate oppressed peoples from despotism, in all of this activity, there was no apparent line of cleavage between La Gironde and The Mountain. Montagnards and Girondins alike were opposed to the monarchy, both were democrats as well as republicans, both were prepared to appeal to force in order to realise their ideals. Despite being accused of wanting to weaken the government, the Girondins desired as little as the Montagnards to break up the unity of France
6.
Jacobin
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Initially founded by anti-Royalist deputies from Brittany, the Club grew into a nationwide republican movement, with a membership estimated at a half million or more. The Jacobin Club was heterogeneous and included both prominent parliamentary factions of the early 1790s, the radical Mountain and the more moderate Girondins, in 1792–93, the Girondins dominated the Jacobin Club and led the country. Believing that revolutionary France would not be accepted by its neighbours, they called for a foreign policy. The Girondins were the dominant faction when the Jacobins overthrew the monarchy, when the Republic failed to deliver the unrealistic gains that had been expected, they lost popularity. The Girondins sought to curb fanatical revolutionary violence, and were accused by the Mountain of being royalist sympathisers. The National Guard eventually switched its support from the Girondins to the Mountain, in May 1793, led by Maximilien de Robespierre, the leaders of the Mountain faction succeeded in sidelining the Girondin faction and controlled the government until July 1794. Their time in government was characterized by radically progressive legislation imposed with very high levels of political violence, in June 1793, they approved the Constitution of Year 1 which introduced universal male suffrage for the first time in history. In September 1793, twenty-one prominent Girondins were guillotined, beginning the Reign of Terror, in October, during the Terror, the new constitution was ratified in a referendum which most eligible voters avoided participating in. In 1794, the Thermidorian Reaction pushed the Mountain out of power, the Jacobin Club was closed and many of its leaders, including Robespierre, were executed. Today, Jacobin and Jacobinism are used in a variety of senses and it was so named because of the Dominican convent where they met, which had recently been located in the Rue St. Jacques, Paris. The club originated as the Club Breton, formed at Versailles from a group of Breton representatives attending the Estates-General of 1789, when the Estates-General was convened in 1789, at Versailles, the club was initially composed exclusively of deputies from Brittany. However, they were joined by deputies from other regions throughout France. At this time, meetings occurred in secret, and few traces remain concerning what took place or where the meetings were convened. By the March on Versailles in October 1789, the club, the group rented for its meetings the refectory of the monastery of the Jacobins in the Rue Saint-Honoré, adjacent to the seat of the Assembly. The name Jacobins, given in France to the Dominicans, was first applied to the club in ridicule by its enemies and it occupied successively the refectory, the library, and the chapel of the monastery. Once in Paris, the club underwent rapid modifications, the first great change was its extension of membership to others besides deputies. All citizens were allowed to enter and even foreigners were welcomed, Jacobin Club meetings soon became a place for radical and rousing oratory that pushed for republicanism, widespread education, universal suffrage, separation of church and state, and other reforms. At the same time the rules of order of election were settled, by the 7th article the club decided to admit as associates similar societies in other parts of France and to maintain with them a regular correspondence
7.
10 August (French Revolution)
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The Insurrection of 10 August 1792 was one of the defining events in the history of the French Revolution. The storming of the Tuileries Palace by the National Guard of the insurrectional Paris Commune and revolutionary fédérés from Marseilles, King Louis XVI and the royal family took shelter with the Legislative Assembly, which was suspended. The formal end of the monarchy that occurred six weeks later was one of the first acts of the new National Convention, the war declared on 20 April 1792 against the King of Bohemia and Hungary started badly. The initial battles were a disaster for the French, and Prussia joined Austria in active alliance against France, the blame for the disaster was thrown first upon the king and his ministers, and secondly upon the Girondin party. The King vetoed the decrees and dismissed Girondins from the Ministry, events came to a head on 16 June when Lafayette sent a letter to the Assembly, recommending the suppression of the anarchists and political clubs in the capital. The Kings veto of the Legislative Assemblys decrees was published on 19 June, the popular journée of 20 June 1792 was organized to put pressure on the King. The King, appearing before the crowd, put on the bonnet rouge of liberty and drank to the health of the nation and it was a brave but belated gesture. It could do nothing against the universal distrust in which the hero of 89 was now held, the deputies indicted the general for deserting his command. The king rejected all suggestions of escape from the man who had so long presided over his imprisonment, the crowd burnt him in effigy in the Palais-Royal. There was no place for such as Lafayette beside that republican emblem, within six weeks he was arrested whilst in flight to England, and immured in an Austrian prison. He failed because it clashed with national sentiment, the inaction in which he had kept the armies for more than 2 months past seemed inexplicable. It had given the Prussians time to finish their preparations and concentrate upon the Rhine undisturbed, six days later the Assembly declared La patrie est en danger. Banners were placed in the squares, bearing the words. That they devastate our fatherland through fire and murder, in a word, that they overcome you with chains dyed with the blood of those whom you hold the most dear. Citizens, the country is in danger. it is in the name of the King that liberty is being attacked, by this means he put the idea of deposing the King into the minds of the public. His speech, which made an impression, was circulated by the Assembly through all the departments. Evading the royal veto on a camp, the Assembly had invited National Guards from the provinces, on their way to the front, to come to Paris. These fédérés tended to have radical views than the deputies who had invited them
8.
Louis XVI of France
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Louis XVI, born Louis-Auguste, was the last King of France and Navarre before the French Revolution, during which he was also known as Louis Capet. In 1765, at the death of his father, Louis, Dauphin of France, son and heir apparent of Louis XV of France, Louis XVI was guillotined on 21 January 1793. The first part of his reign was marked by attempts to reform France in accordance with Enlightenment ideas and these included efforts to abolish serfdom, remove the taille, and increase tolerance toward non-Catholics. The French nobility reacted to the reforms with hostility. Louis implemented deregulation of the market, advocated by his liberal minister Turgot. In periods of bad harvests, it would lead to food scarcity which would prompt the masses to revolt, from 1776, Louis XVI actively supported the North American colonists, who were seeking their independence from Great Britain, which was realized in the 1783 Treaty of Paris. The ensuing debt and financial crisis contributed to the unpopularity of the Ancien Régime and this led to the convening of the Estates-General of 1789. In 1789, the storming of the Bastille during riots in Paris marked the beginning of the French Revolution. Louiss indecisiveness and conservatism led some elements of the people of France to view him as a symbol of the tyranny of the Ancien Régime. The credibility of the king was deeply undermined, and the abolition of the monarchy, Louis XVI was the only King of France ever to be executed, and his death brought an end to more than a thousand years of continuous French monarchy. Louis-Auguste de France, who was given the title Duc de Berry at birth, was born in the Palace of Versailles. Out of seven children, he was the son of Louis, the Dauphin of France. His mother was Marie-Josèphe of Saxony, the daughter of Frederick Augustus II of Saxony, Prince-Elector of Saxony and King of Poland. A strong and healthy boy, but very shy, Louis-Auguste excelled in his studies and had a taste for Latin, history, geography, and astronomy. He enjoyed physical activities such as hunting with his grandfather, and rough-playing with his brothers, Louis-Stanislas, comte de Provence. From an early age, Louis-Auguste had been encouraged in another of his hobbies, locksmithing, upon the death of his father, who died of tuberculosis on 20 December 1765, the eleven-year-old Louis-Auguste became the new Dauphin. His mother never recovered from the loss of her husband, and died on 13 March 1767, throughout his education, Louis-Auguste received a mixture of studies particular to religion, morality, and humanities. His instructors may have also had a hand in shaping Louis-Auguste into the indecisive king that he became
9.
Sans-culottes
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The sans-culottes, most of them urban labourers, served as the driving popular force behind the revolution. Though ill-clad and ill-equipped, they made up the bulk of the Revolutionary army during the years of the French Revolutionary Wars. The most fundamental political ideals of the sans-culottes were social equality, economic equality, the height of their influence spanned from the original overthrow of the monarchy in roughly 1789 to the Thermidorian Reaction in 1794. Several important leaders of the Enragés and Hébertists were imprisoned and executed by the revolutionary tribunals they had supported. After the defeat of the 1795 popular revolt in Paris, the sans-culottes ceased to play any political role in France until the July Revolution of 1830. The term sans-culottism, sans-culottisme in French, refers to this idealized image, many public figures and revolutionaries who were not strictly working class styled themselves citoyens sans-culottes in solidarity and recognition. However, in the immediately following the Thermidorian Reaction the sans-culottes. According to Sally Waller, part of the sans-culottes mantra was permanent anticipation of betrayal, the members of the sans-culottes were constantly on edge and fearing betrayal, which can be attributed to their violent and radical rebellion tactics. Marxist historian Eric Hobsbawm observes that the sans-culottes were a shapeless, mostly urban movement of the poor, small craftsmen, shopkeepers, artisans, tiny entrepreneurs. He further notes they were organised notably in the political clubs of Paris. Hobsbawm writes that these were the actual demonstrators, rioters and constructors of street barricades, the Marxist historian Albert Soboul emphasized the importance of the sans-culottes as a social class, a sort of proto-proletariat that played a central role in the French Revolution. That view has been attacked by scholars who say the sans-culottes were not a class at all. Indeed, as one historian points out, Sobouls concept has not been used by scholars in any period of French history. For example, currently, the term culottes in French is now used to describe womens underpants, the term sans-culottes has been used to refer colloquially to mean not wearing underpants. Enragés Hébertists Descamisado Andrews, Richard Mowery. in JSTOR Furet, François and Mona Ozouf, a Critical Dictionary of the French Revolution, pp 393–99 Sonenscher, Michael. Sans-Culottes, An Eighteenth-Century Emblem in the French Revolution, a Revolution in Political Culture in McPhee, ed. A Companion to the French Revolution 435–453
10.
Pierre-Joseph Cambon
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Pierre-Joseph Cambon was a French statesman. Born in Montpellier, Cambon was the son of a cotton merchant. Elected to the Legislative Assembly, Cambon was viewed as independent, honest and he was the most active member of the committee of finance and was often charged to verify the state of the treasury. His analytical skills were recorded in his speech of 24 November 1791. This proposal was implemented in 1792 when the Great Book of the Public Debt was created as a consolidation of all the states debts and he held his distance from political clubs and even factions, but nonetheless defended the new institutions of the state. On 9 February 1792, he succeeded in having a law passed confiscating the possessions of the émigrés and he was the last president of the Legislative Assembly. Re-elected to the National Convention, Cambon opposed the pretensions of the Paris Commune, Cambon incurred the hatred of the theist Maximilien Robespierre by proposing the suppression of the pay to the clergy, which would have meant the separation of church and state. On 15 December 1792, he persuaded the Convention to adopt a proclamation to all nations in favour of a universal republic. Although he took part in toppling Robespierre in July 1794, Cambon was targeted and pursued by the Thermidorian Reaction, during the Hundred Days, he was a deputy to the lower chamber, but only took part in debates over the budget. Proscribed by the Bourbon Restoration in 1816, he died at Saint-Josse-ten-Noode and this article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain, Chisholm, Hugh, ed. Cambon, Pierre Joseph
11.
Verdun
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Verdun is a small city in the Meuse department in Grand Est in northeastern France. It is an arrondissement of the department, Verdun is the biggest city in Meuse, although the capital of the department is the slightly smaller city of Bar-le-Duc. Verdun was founded by the Gauls and it has been the seat of the bishop of Verdun since the 4th century, with interruptions. The 843 Treaty of Verdun divided Charlemagnes empire into three parts, the city has been famous for dragées or sugared almonds from 1200 onwards, they were distributed at the baptism of French princes. Verdun was part of the kingdom of Lotharingia, and in 1374 it became a free imperial city of the Holy Roman Empire. The Bishopric of Verdun formed together with Tull and Metz the Three Bishoprics, from 1624 to 1636, a large bastioned citadel was constructed on the site of the Abbey of Saint Vanne. In 1670, Sébastien Le Prestre de Vauban visited Verdun and drew up a scheme to fortify the whole city. Although much of his plan was built in the following decades, despite the extensive fortifications, Verdun was captured by the Prussians in 1792 during the War of the First Coalition, but abandoned by them after the Battle of Valmy. During the Napoleonic War, the citadel was used to hold British prisoners of war, in the Franco-Prussian War, Verdun was the last French fortress to surrender in 1870. Shortly afterwards, a new system of fortification was begun and this consisted of a mutually supporting ring of 22 polygonal forts up to 8 kilometres from the city, and an inner ring of 6 forts. The Battle of Verdun was fought on August 20,1792 between French Revolutionary forces and a Prussian army and this therefore opened the path to Paris. Norwich Duff visited Verdun in 1819, shortly after the conclusion of the Napoleonic Wars and he writes, Verdun is prettily situated in a valley surrounded by hills. The River Meuse runs through the town and forms several canals and ditches round the town which is fortified and, I believe, the citadel and are a good deal out of repair and were at work on them. Though there is little to see at Verdun, every part of it felt interesting from the number of our countrymen confined here during the war, Verdun is famous for its sweetmeats, sugar plums, confits etc. which are said to be the best in France. They made us show our passports it being a fortified town, Verdun was the site of a major battle, and the longest-lasting, of the First World War. One of the costliest battles in history, Verdun exemplified the policy of a war of attrition pursued by both sides, which led to an enormous loss of life and very large casualty lists. Following the failure of the Schlieffen Plan in 1914 and the solidifying of the Western Front, once the French army had bled to death, Britain could be brought down by Germanys submarine blockade and superior military strength. Recent scholarship by Holger Afflerbach and others, however, has questioned the veracity of the Christmas memo, no copy has ever surfaced and the only account of it appeared in Falkenhayns post-war memoir
12.
Brunswick Manifesto
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The Brunswick Manifesto threatened that if the French royal family were harmed, then French civilians would be harmed. On 20 April 1792, Revolutionary France declared war on Austria, later, on 28 April, France invaded the Austrian Netherlands. Prussia joined the war against France, and on 30 July Austria and Prussia began an invasion of France, on 25 July, the Duke of Brunswick issued the Brunswick Manifesto. The manifesto promised that if the French Royal family was not harmed, however, if acts of violence or acts to humiliate the French Royal family were committed, the Allies threatened to burn Paris to the ground. The manifesto was written primarily by Louis Joseph de Bourbon, Prince de Condé, the leader of a corps of French émigrés in Brunswicks army. On August 1 news of the manifesto began sweeping through Paris, many believed the Brunswick Manifesto was final proof that Louis XVI was collaborating with the Allies. Also on August 1, Prussian forces crossed the Rhine near Coblenz, consequently, in late August and early September, the French were defeated in skirmishes with the Allied army, but on 20 September the French triumphed in the Battle of Valmy. Following its defeat, the Prussian army withdrew from France, recent research, however, argues that the Brunswick Manifesto did not have nearly the impact upon the revolutionaries suggested in earlier source material. Lastly, the French refused to take the Brunswick Manifesto seriously in any respect and this determination stemmed from what they believed to be its illegality, disrespect for the law of war, and denial of national sovereignty. War of the First Coalition House of Bourbon The Proclamation of the Duke of Brunswick,1792 Connelly, the wars of the French Revolution and Napoleon, 1792–1815. The Myth of the Foreign Enemy, the Brunswick Manifesto and the Radicalization of the French Revolution. The Oxford History of the French Revolution, the empire of the French, a chronology of the Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars 1792–1815
13.
War of the First Coalition
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France declared war on the Habsburg Monarchy of Austria on 20 April 1792. In July 1792, an army under the Duke of Brunswick and composed mostly of Prussians joined the Austrian side and invaded France, France suffered reverses and internal strife and responded with draconian measures. The Committee of Public Safety formed and the en masse drafted all potential soldiers aged 18 to 25. The new French armies counterattacked, repelled the invaders, and advanced beyond France, the French established the Batavian Republic as a sister republic and gained Prussian recognition of French control of the Left Bank of the Rhine by the first Peace of Basel. With the Treaty of Campo Formio, the Holy Roman Empire ceded the Austrian Netherlands to France, Spain made a separate peace accord with France and the French Directory carried out plans to conquer more of the Holy Roman Empire. The First Coalition collapsed, leaving only Britain in the fighting against France. The key figure, the Holy Roman Emperor Leopold II, brother to the French Queen Marie Antoinette, had looked on the Revolution calmly. He became more concerned as the Revolution grew further radical, although he hoped to avoid war. Dumouriez prepared an invasion of the Austrian Netherlands, where he expected the population to rise against Austrian rule. However, the revolution had thoroughly disorganized the French army, which had insufficient forces for the invasion and its soldiers fled at the first sign of battle, deserting en masse, in one case murdering General Théobald Dillon. While the revolutionary government frantically raised fresh troops and reorganized its armies, in July 1792 the invasion commenced. Brunswicks army, composed mostly of Prussian veterans, took the fortresses of Longwy, although the battle was a tactical draw, it bought time for the revolutionaries and gave a great boost to French morale. Dumouriez went on the offensive in Belgium once again, winning a victory over the Austrians at Jemappes on 6 November 1792. On 21 January the revolutionary government executed Louis XVI after a trial and this united all European governments, including Spain, Naples, and the Netherlands against the Revolution. France declared war against Britain and the Netherlands on 1 February 1793, in the course of the year 1793 the Holy Roman Empire, the kings of Portugal and Naples, and the Grand-Duke of Tuscany declared war against France. Thus the First Coalition was formed, the French government sent Citizen Genet to the United States to encourage them into entering the war on Frances side. The newly formed nation refused and remained throughout the conflict. After a victory in the Battle of Neerwinden in March, the Austrians suffered twin defeats at the battles of Wattignies, British land forces were defeated at the Battle of Hondschoote in September
14.
Champ de Mars
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The Champ de Mars is a large public greenspace in Paris, France, located in the seventh arrondissement, between the Eiffel Tower to the northwest and the École Militaire to the southeast. The park is named after the Campus Martius in Rome, a tribute to the Latin name of the Roman God of war, the name also alludes to the fact that the lawns here were formerly used as drilling and marching grounds by the French military. The nearest Métro stations are La Motte-Picquet–Grenelle, École Militaire, and Champ de Mars-Tour Eiffel, a disused station, Champ de Mars is also nearby. Originally, the Champ de Mars was part of a flat open area called Grenelle. Citizens would claim small plots and exploit them by growing fruits, vegetables, however, the plain of Grenelle was not an especially fertile place for farming. The construction, in 1765, of the École Militaire designed by Ange-Jacques Gabriel, was the first step toward the Champ de Mars in its present form. Grounds for military drills were originally planned for an area south of the school, the choice to build an esplanade to the north of the school led to the erection of the noble facade which today encloses the Champ de Mars. The planners leveled the ground, surrounded it with a ditch and a long avenue of elms, and, as a final touch. The Isle of Swans, formerly a riverine islet at the location of the foot of the Eiffel Tower, was, for the sake of symmetry and pleasing perspectives. Jacques Charles and the Robert brothers launched the worlds first hydrogen-filled balloon from the Champ-de-Mars on 27 August 1783 and this place witnessed the spectacle and pageantry of some of the best-remembered festivals of the French Revolution. On 14 July 1790 the first Federation Day celebration, now known as Bastille Day, was held on the Champ de Mars, the following year, on 17 July 1791, the massacre on the Champ de Mars took place. Jean Sylvain Bailly, the first mayor of Paris, became a victim of his own revolution and was guillotined there on 12 November 1793, the Champ de Mars was also the site of the Festival of the Supreme Being on 8 June 1794. With a design by the painter Jacques-Louis David, a massive Altar of the Nation was built atop an artificial mountain, the festival is regarded as the most successful of its type in the Revolution. The Champ de Mars was the site of Expositions Universelles in 1867,1878,1889,1900, in 2012 the United Buddy Bears exhibit was held on the Champ de Mars, an international art exhibition with more than 140 two-meter-tall bears representing individual countries. They promote peace, love, tolerance and international understanding and are displayed across the planet and they stand at Champ de Mars in Paris, fronting the Eiffel Tower. List of worlds fairs Champ de Mars Massacre Fête de la Concorde
15.
Prison de l'Abbaye
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The prison de l’Abbaye was a Paris prison in use from 1522 to 1854. The final building was built by Gamard in 1631 and made up of three floors, flanked by two turrets and an échauguette and it was the scene of one of the bloodiest episodes of the French Revolution. Madame Roland, wife of the Girondin Minister of the Interior Jean-Marie Roland, was interned here on her first arrest in 1793 before being transferred to Sainte Pélagie and it occupied part of the current site of boulevard Saint-Germain in the corner of the enclosire of Abbey of Saint-Germain-des-Prés. Its basilica became known as Saint-Denis of the Merovingians, since it contained the tombs of Childebert I, the prison de l’Abbaye was later transformed into a military prison and was finally demolished in 1854 for the construction of boulevard Saint-Germain
16.
Swiss Guards
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See Pontifical Swiss Guard for the Swiss Guard stationed at the Vatican. Swiss Guards are the Swiss soldiers who have served as guards at foreign European courts since the late 15th century, Foreign military service was outlawed by the revised Swiss Constitution of 1874, with the only exception being the Pontifical Swiss Guard stationed at the Vatican. The modern Papal Swiss Guard serves as both a unit and a bodyguard. Established in 1506, it is one of the oldest military units in the world, the earliest Swiss guard unit to be established on a permanent basis was the Hundred Swiss, which served at the French court from 1490 to 1817. This small force was complemented in 1567 by a Swiss Guards regiment, in the 18th and early 19th centuries several other Swiss Guard units existed for periods in various European courts. In addition to household and palace units, Swiss mercenary regiments have served as regular line troops in various armies, notably those of France, Spain. They were considered the most effective mercenaries of the 15th century, at the Battle of Marignano, the Landsknecht in French service defeated the Swiss pikemen. In addition the Gardes Suisses served in the field as a regiment in times of war. King Francis I of France used some 120,000 Swiss mercenaries in the Italian Wars, the Hundred Swiss were created in 1480 when Louis XI retained a Swiss company for his personal guard. By 1496 they comprised one hundred guardsmen plus about twenty-seven officers and their main role was the protection of the King within the palace as the garde du dedans du Louvre, but in the earlier part of their history they accompanied the King to war. In the Battle of Pavia the Hundred Swiss of King Francis I were slain before Francis was captured by the Spanish, the Hundred Swiss shared the indoor guard with the Kings Bodyguards, who were Frenchmen. The Hundred Swiss were armed with halberds, the blade of which carried the Royal arms in gold and their ceremonial dress as worn until 1789 comprised an elaborate 16th century Swiss costume covered with braiding and livery lace. A less ornate dark blue and red uniform with bearskin headdress was worn for ordinary duties, the Cent Suisses company was disbanded after Louis XVI left Versailles in October 1789. It was however refounded on 15 July 1814 with an establishment of 136 guardsmen, the Hundred Swiss accompanied Louis XVIII into exile in Belgium the following year and returned with him to Paris following the Battle of Waterloo. The unit then resumed its role of palace guards at the Tuileries. In 1616, King Louis XIII gave a regiment of Swiss infantry the name of Gardes suisses, the new regiment had the primary role of protecting the doors, gates and outer perimeters of the various royal palaces. In its early years this unit was officially a regiment of the line, during the 17th and 18th centuries the Swiss Guards maintained a reputation for discipline and steadiness in both peacetime service and foreign campaigning. Their officers were all Swiss and their rate of pay substantially higher than that of the regular French soldiers, internal discipline was maintained according to Swiss codes which were significantly harsher than those of the regular French Army
17.
Palace of Versailles
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The Palace of Versailles, Château de Versailles, or simply Versailles, is a royal château in Versailles in the Île-de-France region of France. Versailles is therefore not only as a building, but as a symbol of the system of absolute monarchy of the Ancien Régime. First built by Louis XIII in 1623, as a lodge of brick and stone. The first phase of the expansion was designed and supervised by the architect Louis Le Vau and it culminated in the addition of three new wings of stone, which surrounded Louis XIIIs original building on the north, south, and west. After Le Vaus death in 1670, the work was taken over and completed by his assistant, charles Le Brun designed and supervised the elaborate interior decoration, and André Le Nôtre landscaped the extensive Gardens of Versailles. Le Brun and Le Nôtre collaborated on the fountains, and Le Brun supervised the design. During the second phase of expansion, two enormous wings north and south of the wings flanking the Cour Royale were added by the architect Jules Hardouin-Mansart. He also replaced Le Vaus large terrace, facing the garden on the west, with became the most famous room of the palace. The Royal Chapel of Versailles, located at the end of the north wing, was begun by Mansart in 1688. One of the most baffling aspects to the study of Versailles is the cost – how much Louis XIV, owing to the nature of the construction of Versailles and the evolution of the role of the palace, construction costs were essentially a private matter. Initially, Versailles was planned to be a residence for Louis XIV and was referred to as the kings house. Once Louis XIV embarked on his campaigns, expenses for Versailles became more of a matter for public record. To counter the costs of Versailles during the years of Louis XIVs personal reign. Accordingly, all materials that went into the construction and decoration of Versailles were manufactured in France, even the mirrors used in the decoration of the Hall of Mirrors were made in France. While Venice in the 17th century had the monopoly on the manufacture of mirrors, to meet the demands for decorating and furnishing Versailles, Colbert nationalised the tapestry factory owned by the Gobelin family, to become the Manufacture royale des Gobelins. In 1667, the name of the enterprise was changed to the Manufacture royale des Meubles de la Couronne, the Comptes meticulously list the expenditures on the silver furniture – disbursements to artists, final payments, delivery – as well as descriptions and weight of items purchased. Entries for 1681 and 1682 concerning the silver used in the salon de Mercure serve as an example. 5 In anticipation, For the silver balustrade for the bedroom,90,000 livres II
18.
Georges Danton
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Georges Jacques Danton was a leading figure in the early stages of the French Revolution, in particular as the first president of the Committee of Public Safety. He was guillotined by the advocates of revolutionary terror after accusations of venality, Danton was born in Arcis-sur-Aube in northeastern France to Jacques Danton and Mary Camus, a respectable, but not wealthy family. As a child, he was attacked by animals, resulting in the disfigurement and scarring of the skin on his face. After obtaining an education he became an Advocate in Paris. He married Antoinette Gabrielle Charpentier on 14 June 1787 at the church of Saint-Germain-lAuxerrois in Paris, Danton was considered a very mischievous boy. Due to this, he went to different schools, also, he had a very high natural IQ. As a result, he was bored and disinterested in his classes. His first teacher was his grandfather and he was able to pass his classes with little effort, when he was 9, he was sent to a boys school. This is where Danton learned Latin and he was later sent to a school in Troyes for a year due to his mother thinking that he hasnt given up his mischievous ways as a child. Later, he attended a boarding house taught by Oratorians until he was 17, here, he learned more Latin and about the Bible, mainly the Acts of the Apostles and about Christian beliefs. He didnt really take to them, however, as early as age 12, he had already acquired the skills to become a leader. He led fellow classmates to either rebel or riot and this showed his leadership skills and how much his classmates already respected him at such a young age. He also consistently questioned authority, which will be seen later during the French revolution when he openly disrespected and called out Lafayette as a traitor during a meeting. At a young age, he had amazing writing and speech skills, as later during a competition, he took all the prizes for French discourse, Latin narration. Was highly influenced by thinkers of the time, such as Montesquieu. Studied at Reim University where he became a lawyer, later become bored of the career and became an orator. Was seen as a man of the people by then because he pleaded for the poor. Both his classmates, teachers and grandfather revered him as a prodigy and his amazing writing and speaking skills later made people give him the nickname “The Thunderer”
19.
Clergy
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Clergy are some of the main and important formal leaders within certain religions. The roles and functions of clergy vary in different religious traditions but these usually involve presiding over specific rituals, some of the terms used for individual clergy are cleric, clergyman, clergywoman, clergyperson and churchman. In Islam, a leader is often known formally or informally as an imam, mufti. In Jewish tradition, a leader is often a rabbi or hazzan. Cleric comes from the ecclesiastical Latin clericus, for belonging to the priestly class. This is from the Ecclesiastical Greek clericus, meaning appertaining to an inheritance, Clergy is from two Old French words, clergié and clergie, which refer to those with learning and derive from Medieval Latin clericatus, from Late Latin clericus. Clerk, which used to mean one ordained to the ministry, in the Middle Ages, reading and writing were almost exclusively the domain of the priestly class, and this is the reason for the close relationship of these words. Now, the state is tied to reception of the diaconate. Minor Orders are still given in the Eastern Catholic Churches, and it is in this sense that the word entered the Arabic language, most commonly in Lebanon from the French, as kleriki meaning seminarian. This is all in keeping with Eastern Orthodox concepts of clergy, which include those who have not yet received, or do not plan to receive. A priesthood is a body of priests, shamans, or oracles who have religious authority or function. Buddhist clergy are often referred to as the Sangha. This diversity of monastic orders and styles was originally one community founded by Gautama Buddha during the 5th century BC living under a set of rules. The interaction between Buddhism and Tibetan Bon led to a uniquely Tibetan Buddhism, within which various sects, similarly, the interaction between Indian Buddhist monks and Chinese Confucian and Taoist monks from c200-c900AD produced the distinctive Chan Buddhism. In these ways, manual labour was introduced to a practice where monks originally survived on alms, layers of garments were added where originally a single thin robe sufficed and this adaptation of form and roles of Buddhist monastic practice continued after the transmission to Japan. For example, monks took on administrative functions for the Emperor in particular secular communities, again, in response to various historic attempts to suppress Buddhism, the practice of celibacy was relaxed and Japanese monks allowed to marry. This form was then transmitted to Korea, during later Japanese occupation, as these varied styles of Buddhist monasticism are transmitted to Western cultures, still more new forms are being created. This broad difference in approach led to a schism among Buddhist monastics in about the 4th century BCE
20.
Beatification
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Beatification is a recognition accorded by the Catholic Church of a dead persons entrance into Heaven and capacity to intercede on behalf of individuals who pray in his or her name. Local bishops had the power of beatifying until 1634, when Pope Urban VIII, in the apostolic constitution Cœlestis Jerusalem of 6 July, reserved the power of beatifying to the Apostolic See. The requirement of a miracle is not relevant to the canonization of those who died in martyrdom, the feast day for a Blessed person is not universal, but is celebrated only in regions where the person receives particular veneration. For instance, Saint Kateri Tekakwitha was especially honored in the United States, the person may also be honored in a particular religious order, diocese, or organization, such as John Duns Scotus among the Franciscans, the Archdiocese of Cologne and other places. Pope John Paul II markedly changed previous Catholic practice of beatification, by October 2004, he had beatified 1,340 people, more than the sum of all of his predecessors since Pope Sixtus V, who established a beatification procedure similar to that used today. The Pope himself still can preside, as happened on 19 September 2010, cultus confirmation is a somewhat different procedure, wherein the church recognizes a local cult of a person, asserting that veneration of that person is acceptable. Such a confirmation is more an official sanctioning of folk Catholicism than a step in a canonization procedure. This article incorporates text from a now in the public domain, Herbermann, Charles. Juris Canonici et Juris Canonico-Civilis Compendium Nova Editio, Tomus Tertius, Pars Secunda List of all Blesseds in the Catholic Church by GCatholic. org
21.
Pope Pius XI
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Pope Pius XI, born Ambrogio Damiano Achille Ratti, reigned as Pope from 6 February 1922 to his death in 1939. He was the first sovereign of Vatican City from its creation as an independent state on 11 February 1929 and he took as his papal motto, Pax Christi in Regno Christi, translated The Peace of Christ in the Kingdom of Christ. During his pontificate, the hostility with the Italian government over the status of the papacy. He was unable to stop the persecution of the Church and the killing of clergy in Mexico, Spain and he canonized important saints, including Thomas More, Petrus Canisius, Konrad von Parzham, Andrew Bobola and Don Bosco. Pius XI created the feast of Christ the King in response to anti-clericalism and he took a strong interest in fostering the participation of lay people throughout the Catholic Church, especially in the Catholic Action movement. The end of his pontificate was dominated by speaking out against Hitler and Mussolini and defending the Catholic Church from intrusions into Catholic life and he died on 10 February 1939 in the Apostolic Palace and is buried in the Papal Grotto of Saint Peters Basilica. In the course of excavating space for his tomb, two levels of burial grounds were uncovered which revealed bones now venerated as the bones of St. Peter. Achille Ratti was born in Desio, in the province of Milan, in 1857 and he was ordained a priest in 1879 and embarked on an academic career within the Church. He obtained three doctorates at the Gregorian University in Rome, and then from 1882 to 1888 was a professor at the seminary in Padua and his scholarly specialty was as an expert paleographer, a student of ancient and medieval Church manuscripts. Eventually, he left teaching to work full-time at the Ambrosian Library in Milan. During this time, he edited and published an edition of the Ambrosian Missal and he became chief of the Library in 1907 and undertook a thorough programme of restoration and re-classification of the Ambrosians collection. He was also a mountaineer in his spare time, reaching the summits of Monte Rosa. The combination of a pope would not be seen again until the pontificate of John Paul II. In 1911, at Pope Pius Xs invitation, he moved to the Vatican to become Vice-Prefect of the Vatican Library, in October 1918, Benedict was the first head of state to congratulate the Polish people on the occasion of the restoration of their independence. In March 1919, he nominated ten new bishops and, soon after, Ratti was consecrated as a titular archbishop in October 1919. Benedict XV and Nuncio Ratti repeatedly cautioned Polish authorities against persecuting the Lithuanian and Ruthenian clergy, Ratti intended to work for Poland by building bridges to men of goodwill in the Soviet Union, even to shedding his blood for Russia. Benedict, however, needed Ratti as a diplomat, not as a martyr, the nuncios continued contacts with Russians did not generate much sympathy for him within Poland at the time. After Pope Benedict sent Ratti to Silesia to forestall potential political agitation within the Polish Catholic clergy, on 20 November, when German Cardinal Adolf Bertram announced a papal ban on all political activities of clergymen, calls for Rattis expulsion climaxed
22.
Martyr
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A martyr is somebody who suffers persecution and death for advocating, renouncing, refusing to renounce, or refusing to advocate a belief or cause as demanded by an external party. This refusal to comply with the presented demands results in the punishment or execution of the martyr by the oppressor, originally applied only to those who suffered for their religious beliefs, the term is now often used in connection with people imprisoned or killed for espousing a political cause. Most martyrs are considered holy or are respected by their followers, becoming symbols of exceptional leadership, Martyrs play significant roles in religions. Similarly, martyrs have had effects in secular life, including specific figures such as Socrates, as well as in politics. In its original meaning, the martyr, meaning witness, was used in the secular sphere as well as in the New Testament of the Bible. The term, in this sense, entered the English language as a loanword. The death of a martyr or the value attributed to it is called martyrdom, the early Christians who first began to use the term martyr in its new sense saw Jesus as the first and greatest martyr, on account of his crucifixion. The early Christians appear to have seen Jesus as the archetypal martyr, the word martyr is used in English to describe a wide variety of people. However, the table presents a general outline of common features present in stereotypical martyrdoms. Examples of this are found in the Mahabharata, during the great war which commenced, even Arjuna was brought down with doubts, e. g. attachment, sorrow, fear. This is where Krishna instructs Arjuna how to carry out his duty as a righteous warrior, Martyrdom in Judaism is one of the main examples of Kiddush Hashem, meaning sanctification of Gods name through public dedication to Jewish practice. Religious martyrdom is considered one of the significant contributions of Hellenistic Judaism to Western Civilization. Frend, Judaism was itself a religion of martyrdom and it was this Jewish psychology of martyrdom that inspired Christian martyrdom. In Christianity, a martyr, in accordance with the meaning of the original Greek martys in the New Testament, is one who brings a testimony, in particular, the testimony is that of the Christian Gospel, or more generally, the Word of God. A Christian witness is a biblical witness whether or not death follows, however, over time many Christian testimonies were rejected, and the witnesses put to death, and the word martyr developed its present sense. Where death ensues, the follow the example of Jesus in offering up their lives for truth. The concept of Jesus as a martyr has recently received greater attention, analyses of the Gospel passion narratives have led many scholars to conclude that they are martyrdom accounts in terms of genre and style. Several scholars have concluded that Paul the Apostle understood Jesus death as a martyrdom
23.
Ancient Diocese of Saintes
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The former French diocese of Saintes existed from the sixth century to the French Revolution. Its see was located in Saintes in western France, in the department of Charente-Maritime. After the Concordat of 1801, its territory passed mainly to the diocese of La Rochelle, Saintes has numerous Roman monuments, including a large amphitheater and an arch dedicated to Germanicus, the nephew of the Emperor Tiberius. The oldest bishop to whom a date can be assigned is Bishop Peter, the first reference to a bishop, however, is to one Eutropius. Venantius Fortunatus, in a written in the second half of the sixth century, makes explicit mention of him in connection with Saintes. Were it true, Saintes would be the church of Gaul which Gregory traces back to the first century. It is at this date that the legend of Eutropius as a martyr seems to have begun. Among the bishops of Saintes are several popularly believed to have been saints, including Vivianus, Trojanus, Concordius, Palladius and he was abbot commendatory of Saint-Nicholas-aux-bois from 1547/8 to 1574. At Saintes he was a reformer, vigilant against Protestant deviations among the secular clergy. He obtained a decree from Henry II assuring him powers of visitation over the abbeys and he took part in the Council of Trent. In 1568 during the French Wars of Religion the Cathedral of Saint-Pierre was nearly completely destroyed, the Cathedral Chapter had five dignitaries, the Dean, the two archdeacons, the Scholastica, and the Precentor. Except for the Dean, the dignitaries were appointed by the Bishop, in the early thirteenth century, Innocent III had to warn the Chapter not to allow the number of Canons to exceed forty. Both Bishop de La Rochefoucauld and Bishop de Coucy refused to take the oath of loyalty to the Civil Constitution, the electors of Charente-Infeurieure assembled on 27 February 1791 and elected Fr. Isaac-Étienne Robinet, the curé of Saint-Savinien-du-Port as their Constitutional Bishop and he made his formal entry into Saintes on 31 March, and took formal possession of the cathedral on 10 April. He roused up the feelings of the populace against the non-jurors. In November 1793 the crypt of the cathedral was broken into, Bishop Robinet resigned on 6 December 1793, and took up residence with his brother at Torxé, where he died on 8 September 1797. As a result of the leading to the Concordat of 1801 between First Consul N. Bonaparte and Pope Pius VII, the diocese of Saintes was suppressed. On 19 May 1843 the supposed relics of S. Eusebius were discovered in the crypt of the Cathedral, on 22 January 1852, the title Bishop of Saintes was revived by Pope Pius IX and conferred on the Bishop of La Rochelle, Clément Villecourt
24.
Jean Marie du Lau
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He was beatified on 17 October 1926 by Pope Pius XI. Lau was born on 30 October 1738 at the Château de la Côte at Biras, then in the Province of Perigord and his father was Armand du Lau, Lord of La Coste, and his mother Françoise de Salleton. On 1 October 1775, he was promoted by King Louis XVI to the office of Archbishop of Arles, like that of many reforming bishops, the archbishop’s interest extended to the preparation of midwives and catechism of children. He also undertook building works, such as the facade of the archbishop’s palace. With the convocation of the Estates-General of 1789, Lau was chosen as one of the representatives of the clergy, the conflict was short-lived for, on 12 July 1790, the National Assembly voted for measures that included the abolition of the Archdiocese of Arles. While this had in itself no validity in Church law, as it happened the archdiocese was never revived thereafter, jean-Marie du Lau dAllemans was in fact the last Archbishop of Arles. Laus remains, along with those of his victims, are entombed in the cemetery of the former Carmelite priory,70 rue de Vaugirard. September Massacres Gérard Cholvy, Jean Marie du Lau, archevêque d’Arles, et ses compagnons martyrs, colloque du IIe centenaire tenu à Arles les 2–4 octobre 1992, Université Paul Valéry, Montpellier,1995
25.
Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Arles
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The former French Catholic Archbishopric of Arles had its episcopal see in the city of Arles, in southern France. The bishopric of Arles was founded in 330 and it was promoted a metropolitan archdiocese in 460, suppressed a first time to become part of the Metropolitan Archdiocese of Aix and restored shortly in 1816. The Archbishopric of Arles was suppressed again, and incorporated into the Archdiocese of Aix in 1822, the latter is since officially called Archdiocese of Aix and is no longer a Metropolitan but an archiepiscopal title, within the ecclesiastical province of Marseille. The first Council of Arles was held in 314, for the purpose of putting an end to the Donatist controversy, bishops from the western part of the empire including three from Britain attended. It confirmed the findings of the Council of Rome, i. e. it recognized the validity of the election of Caecilian of Carthage, a council held in 353, and attended, among others, by two papal legates, was decidedly Arian in attitude. The legates were tempted into rejecting communion with Athanasius and refused to condemn Arius, a council was held on New Years Day of 435, to settle the differences that had arisen between the Abbot of Lérins and the Bishop of Fréjus. In the synod of 443, attended also by bishops of neighbouring provinces, fifty-six canons were formulated, between 475 and 480 another council was called, attended by thirty bishops, in which the pre-destinationist teachings of the priest Lucidus were condemned. In 524 a council was held under the presidency of St. Caesarius of Arles, a number of Caesarius of Arles works have been published in Sources Chrétiennes. Little is known of the councils of 554 and 682, the liturgical uses of Arles were recommended by pope Gregory the Great as a model for Augustine of Canterbury. An important council was held in 813, at the instigation of Charlemagne, for the correction of abuses, from 1080 to 1098, Aicard continued to act as bishop even though he had been deposed. He was followed on the throne by Ghibbelin of Sabran. Close inspection of their dioceses is urged on the bishops, as a remedy against the spread of heresy and this measure, met with in other councils, was meant to prevent testamentary dispositions in favour of known heretics. The laity should be instructed by their parish priests, the religious should also frequent the parochial service, for the sake of good example. This council also condemned the doctrines spread abroad under the name of Joachim of Flora, in 1275, twenty-two earlier observances were promulgated anew at a Council of Arles. Catholic Church in France Albanès, Joseph Hyacinthe, Ulysse Chevalier and this article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain, Herbermann, Charles, ed. article name needed
26.
Roman Catholic Diocese of Beauvais
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The Roman Catholic Diocese of Beauvais, Noyon, and Senlis is a diocese of the Latin Rite of the Roman Catholic Church in France. The diocese encompasses the department of Oise in the Region of Picardie, the diocese is a suffragan of the Archdiocese of Reims. The current bishop is Jacques Benoit-Gonnin, appointed in 2010, the Diocese of Beauvais was traditionally founded by St. Lucian in the 3rd century. After 1013 the Bishops were simultaneously Counts of Beauvais, and one of the Peers of France, the diocese was abolished during the French Revolution, and was recreated as part of the Diocese of Amiens in 1802. The Diocese of Beauvais was re-established in 1822, and the Diocese of Beauvais, Noyon, Beauvais Cathedral serves as the seat of the new diocese. Series episcoporum Ecclesiae catholicae, quotquot innotuerunt a beato Petro apostolo, ratisbon, Typis et Sumptibus Georgii Josephi Manz. pp. 510–512. Hierarchia catholica medii et recentis aevi V. Patavii, Messagero di S. Antonio, hierarchia catholica medii et recentis aevi VI. Hierarchia Catholica medii et recentioris aevi sive summorum pontificum, S. R. E. cardinalium, ecclesiarum antistitum series, VII usque ad pontificatum Gregorii PP. Hierarchia catholica Medii et recentioris aevi, IX usque ad Pontificatum Leonis PP. Hierarchia catholica medii et recentioris aevi, X usque ad pontificatum Benedictii PP. Histoire du Diocèse de Beauvais, depuis son établissement au 3me siècle jusquau 2 septembre 1792, les évêques et les archevêques de France depuis 1682 jusquà1801. Gallia Christiana, In Provincias Ecclesiasticas Distributa, de provincia Remensi, ejusque metropoli ac suffraganeis, Suessionensi, Laudunensi, Bellovacensi, Catalaunensi ac Noviomensi ecclesiis. Lépiscopat français depuis le Concordat jusquà la Séparation, centre national des Archives de lÉglise de France, L’Épiscopat francais depuis 1919, retrieved, 2016-12-24. New York, Robert Appleton Company,1907, david M. Cheney, Catholic-Hierarchy, Diocese of Beauvais-Noyon-Senlis
27.
Reign of Terror
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The Reign of Terror or The Terror, is the label given by some historians to a period of violence during the French Revolution. Different historians place the date at either 5 September 1793 or June 1793 or March 1793 or September 1792 or July 1789. Between June 1793 and the end of July 1794, there were 16,594 official death sentences in France, but the total number of deaths in France in 1793–96 in only the civil war in the Vendée is estimated at 250,000 counter-revolutionaries and 200,000 republicans. During 1794, revolutionary France was beset with conspiracies by internal, within France, the revolution was opposed by the French nobility, which had lost its inherited privileges. The Catholic Church opposed the revolution, which had turned the clergy into employees of the state, in addition, the French First Republic was engaged in a series of wars with neighboring powers, and parts of France were engaging in civil war against the loyalist regime. The latter were grouped in the parliamentary faction called the Mountain. Through the Revolutionary Tribunal, the Terrors leaders exercised broad powers, the Reign was a manifestation of the strong strain on centralized power. Many historians have debated the reasons the French Revolution took such a turn during the Reign of Terror of 1793–94. The public was frustrated that the equality and anti-poverty measures that the revolution originally promised were not materializing. Jacques Rouxs Manifesto of the Enraged on 25 June 1793, describes the extent to which, four years into the revolution, the foundation of the Terror is centered on the April 1793 creation of the Committee of Public Safety and its militant Jacobin delegates. Those in power believed the Committee of Public Safety was an unfortunate, according to Mathiez, they touched only with trepidation and reluctance the regime established by the Constituent Assembly so as not to interfere with the early accomplishments of the revolution. Similar to Mathiez, Richard Cobb introduced competing circumstances of revolt, counter-revolutionary rebellions taking place in Lyon, Brittany, Vendée, Nantes, and Marseille were threatening the revolution with royalist ideas. Cobb writes, the revolutionaries themselves, living as if in combat… were easily persuaded that only terror, Terror was used in these rebellions both to execute inciters and to provide a very visible example to those who might be considering rebellion. Cobb agrees with Mathiez that the Terror was simply a response to circumstances, at the same time, Cobb rejects Mathiezs Marxist interpretation that elites controlled the Reign of Terror to the significant benefit of the bourgeoisie. Instead, Cobb argues that social struggles between the classes were seldom the reason for actions and sentiments. Widespread terror and a consequent rise in executions came after external and internal threats were vastly reduced, with the backing of the national guard, they persuaded the convention to arrest 29 Girondist leaders, including Jacques Pierre Brissot. On 13 July the assassination of Jean-Paul Marat – a Jacobin leader, georges Danton, the leader of the August 1792 uprising against the king, was removed from the committee. The Jacobins identified themselves with the movement and the sans-culottes
28.
Stanley Loomis
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Stanley Loomis was the author of four books on French history, Du Barry, Paris in the Terror, A Crime of Passion, and The Fatal Friendship. Paris in the Terror was named one of the “books of the century” by the University of California and his books have been published in eight languages and reprinted numerous times. Stanley Pennock Loomis was born in New York City in 1922 and he grew up in Stockbridge, Massachusetts, and attended the Lenox School in Lenox, Massachusetts. He studied English at Columbia University, but his studies were interrupted by the war and he was trained in Japanese interpretation and served as a translator and intelligence officer in the Pacific. He was in Japan at the time of the Japanese surrender in 1945, according to his obituary in the New York Times, his “interest in French literature began when he was a soldier in World War II. Between air raids on Okinawa, he read the 18th-century memoirs of the Duc de St. Simon. ”He returned to Columbia after the war, after graduating, he spent three years in France. ”This “entertainment” became his life’s work. He wrote his first book, a biography of Madame du Barry, mistress of Louis XV and it was published by Lippincott in 1959. He married Virginia Lindsley Gignoux in 1960 and they had a son, Craig, in 1965, he and his family began to spend the winter months in Paris. They lived first on the Quai Anatole France and later on the rue d’Anjou and he also spent time at the Chateau de Missery in Burgundy, a property belonging to a cousin. In addition to his books, he wrote articles and book reviews and offered tours to visiting American friends of some of the less-well-known corners of Paris. He died in the American Hospital of Paris on December 19,1972 after being hit by a car on the Place de la Concorde, memorial services were held at the American Cathedral in Paris and in Stockbridge, Massachusetts. His family returned to the United States after his death, Du Barry, a story “told with brilliance and an admirable sense for comedy. Her later years are, fittingly enough, related in a mellow, nostalgic key…Entertained at first, then moved. Few books are published of which this could be said. ”Paris in the Terror, “Stanley Loomis describes massacres, conspiracies and confrontations with eloquence, and he regularly drops wise, cynical or provocative remarks. He never stretches a fact to suit a thesis and he never chooses among conflicting interpretations the one that will best advance his narrative… These qualities of measure and restraint contribute to the persuasiveness of his account. ”ISBN 0-931933-33-1 University of California, Berkeley
29.
Louis XVI and the Legislative Assembly
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The National Constituent Assembly dissolved itself on 1 October 1791. Upon Robespierres motion it had decreed that none of its members should be capable of sitting in the next legislature and its legacy, the Constitution of 1791, attempted to institute a liberal constitutional monarchy. This had been envisioned as an arrangement not to be tampered with for a generation but, in the event, in the attempt to govern, the Assembly failed altogether. In the words of the 1911 Encyclopædia Britannica, It left behind an empty treasury, an army and navy. The Legislative Assembly first met on 1 October 1791, few were nobles, very few were clergymen, and the great body came from the middle class. The members were young, and, since none had sat in the previous Assembly. The Right consisted of about 165 Feuillants, among the extreme Left—those who would retain the name of Jacobins—sat Cambon, Couthon, Antoine-Christophe Merlin, François Chabot, and Claude Bazire. The Girondins could claim the most brilliant orators, Pierre Victurnien Vergniaud, Marguerite-Élie Guadet, Armand Gensonné and this strong representation of the left in the Assembly was supplemented by the political clubs and the disorderly revolutionary elements in Paris and throughout France. The remainder of the Assembly, about 350 deputies, did not belong to any definite party, the kings ministers, named by him and excluded from the Assembly, were mostly persons of little mark. Montmorin gave up the portfolio of foreign affairs on 31 October 1791 and was succeeded by De Lessart, bon-Claude Cahier de Gerville was minister of the interior, Louis Hardouin Tarbé, minister of finance, and Bertrand de Molleville, minister of marine. But the only minister who influenced the course of affairs was the comte de Narbonne, overtly, the king had embraced the newly codified constitution. Marie Antoinette surely wished to shake off the impotence and humiliation of the Crown, the Left had three objects of enmity. First among these was the couple, King Louis XVI, Queen Marie Antoinette. The Left as a whole wished to replace the monarchy with a republic, second came the émigrés – now seen as a threat from abroad—and, third, the non-juring clergy. Those émigrés who had assembled in arms on the territories of the electors of Mainz and Treves and their chiefs were the kings brothers, who affected to consider Louis as a captive and his acts as therefore invalid. The count of Provence gave himself the airs of a regent, the non-juring clergy – those who refused to take an oath under the Civil Constitution of the Clergy – although harassed by the local authorities, kept the respect and confidence of most Catholics. But the anti-clerical bias of the Legislative Assembly was too strong for such a policy and it was increasingly unlikely that two rival Churches could co-exist. Insurrection along religious lines broke out in Calvados, Gévaudan, from the first, relations between the king and the Legislative Assembly were less than friendly
30.
International Standard Book Number
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The International Standard Book Number is a unique numeric commercial book identifier. An ISBN is assigned to each edition and variation of a book, for example, an e-book, a paperback and a hardcover edition of the same book would each have a different ISBN. The ISBN is 13 digits long if assigned on or after 1 January 2007, the method of assigning an ISBN is nation-based and varies from country to country, often depending on how large the publishing industry is within a country. The initial ISBN configuration of recognition was generated in 1967 based upon the 9-digit Standard Book Numbering created in 1966, the 10-digit ISBN format was developed by the International Organization for Standardization and was published in 1970 as international standard ISO2108. Occasionally, a book may appear without a printed ISBN if it is printed privately or the author does not follow the usual ISBN procedure, however, this can be rectified later. Another identifier, the International Standard Serial Number, identifies periodical publications such as magazines, the ISBN configuration of recognition was generated in 1967 in the United Kingdom by David Whitaker and in 1968 in the US by Emery Koltay. The 10-digit ISBN format was developed by the International Organization for Standardization and was published in 1970 as international standard ISO2108, the United Kingdom continued to use the 9-digit SBN code until 1974. The ISO on-line facility only refers back to 1978, an SBN may be converted to an ISBN by prefixing the digit 0. For example, the edition of Mr. J. G. Reeder Returns, published by Hodder in 1965, has SBN340013818 -340 indicating the publisher,01381 their serial number. This can be converted to ISBN 0-340-01381-8, the check digit does not need to be re-calculated, since 1 January 2007, ISBNs have contained 13 digits, a format that is compatible with Bookland European Article Number EAN-13s. An ISBN is assigned to each edition and variation of a book, for example, an ebook, a paperback, and a hardcover edition of the same book would each have a different ISBN. The ISBN is 13 digits long if assigned on or after 1 January 2007, a 13-digit ISBN can be separated into its parts, and when this is done it is customary to separate the parts with hyphens or spaces. Separating the parts of a 10-digit ISBN is also done with either hyphens or spaces, figuring out how to correctly separate a given ISBN number is complicated, because most of the parts do not use a fixed number of digits. ISBN issuance is country-specific, in that ISBNs are issued by the ISBN registration agency that is responsible for country or territory regardless of the publication language. Some ISBN registration agencies are based in national libraries or within ministries of culture, in other cases, the ISBN registration service is provided by organisations such as bibliographic data providers that are not government funded. In Canada, ISBNs are issued at no cost with the purpose of encouraging Canadian culture. In the United Kingdom, United States, and some countries, where the service is provided by non-government-funded organisations. Australia, ISBNs are issued by the library services agency Thorpe-Bowker
31.
Schama, Simon
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Simon Michael Schama, CBE is an English historian specializing in art history, Dutch history, and French history. He is a University Professor of History and Art History at Columbia University and he first came to popular public attention with his history of the French Revolution titled Citizens, published in 1989. In the United Kingdom, he is perhaps best known for writing and hosting the 15-part BBC television documentary series A History of Britain broadcast between 2000 and 2002, Schama was born in Marylebone, London. His mother, Gertie, was from an Ashkenazi Jewish family, in the mid-1940s, the family moved to Southend-on-Sea in Essex before moving back to London. Schama writes of this period in the introduction to his 1996 book Landscape & Memory, I had no hill and it was not the upstream river that the poets in my Palgrave claimed burbled betwixt mossy banks. It was the low, gull-swept estuary, the bed of salt and fresh water, stretching as far as I could see from my northern Essex bank. That would be Kent, the enemy who always seemed to beat us in the County Cricket Championship. In 1956, Schama won a scholarship to the private Haberdashers Askes Boys School in Cricklewood and he then studied history at Christs College, Cambridge, where he was taught by John H. Plumb. He graduated from the University of Cambridge with a Starred First in 1966, at this time, Schama wrote his first book, Patriots and Liberators, which won the Wolfson History Prize. His second book, Two Rothschilds and the Land of Israel, is a study of the Zionist aims of Edmond James de Rothschild, in 1980 Schama took up a chair at Harvard University. His next book, The Embarrassment of Riches, again focused on Dutch history, Citizens, written at speed to a publishers commission, finally saw the publication of his long-awaited study of the French Revolution, and won the 1990 NCR Book Award. Its view that the violence of the Terror was inherent from the start of the Revolution, not all readers absorbed the nuance of the title, it received a greatly mixed critical and academic reception. Traditional historians in particular denounced Schamas integration of fact and conjecture to produce a seamless narrative and it was an approach soon taken up by such historical writers as Peter Ackroyd, David Taylor and Richard Holmes. Sales in hardback exceeded those of Schamas earlier works as shown by relative rankings by Amazon. com, while many reviews remained decidedly mixed, the book was a definite commercial success and won numerous prizes. Appropriately, many of the came from the art world rather than from traditional academia. This was borne out when Schama became art critic for The New Yorker in 1995, during this time, Schama also produced a lavishly illustrated Rembrandts Eyes, another critical and commercial success. Despite the books title, it contrasts the biographies of Rembrandt van Rijn, in 1995 Schama wrote and presented a series called Landscape and Memory to accompany his book of the same name. Schama wrote and presented the episodes himself, in a friendly and often jocular style with his highly characteristic delivery, and was rewarded with excellent reviews and unexpectedly high ratings
32.
Citizens: A Chronicle of the French Revolution
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Citizens, A Chronicle of the French Revolution is a book by the historian Simon Schama. It was published in 1989, the bicentenary of the French Revolution, the terror, declared Schama in the book, was merely 1789 with a higher body count, violence. Was not just a side effect. It was the Revolutions source of collective energy and it was what made the Revolution revolutionary. In short, “From the very beginning violence was the motor of revolution, marxist historian Eric Hobsbawm has described the book as being exceptionally stylish and eloquent and extremely well-read. In Hobsbawms view, Schama fails to see the aspects of the revolution and focuses solely on the horror. Hobsbawm further criticizes the book, opining that Schama is not involved as an expert in the field, the book does not set out to add to the knowledge already available. The authors choice of a focused on particular people and incidents neatly sidesteps the problems of perspectives. Booknotes interview with Schama on Citizens, July 14,1989
33.
Charles Dickens
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Charles John Huffam Dickens was an English writer and social critic. He created some of the worlds best-known fictional characters and is regarded by many as the greatest novelist of the Victorian era and his works enjoyed unprecedented popularity during his lifetime, and by the twentieth century critics and scholars had recognised him as a literary genius. His novels and short stories enjoy lasting popularity, born in Portsmouth, Dickens left school to work in a factory when his father was incarcerated in a debtors prison. Dickenss literary success began with the 1836 serial publication of The Pickwick Papers, within a few years he had become an international literary celebrity, famous for his humour, satire, and keen observation of character and society. His novels, most published in monthly or weekly instalments, pioneered the publication of narrative fiction. The instalment format allowed Dickens to evaluate his audiences reaction, and he modified his plot. For example, when his wifes chiropodist expressed distress at the way Miss Mowcher in David Copperfield seemed to reflect her disabilities and his plots were carefully constructed, and he often wove elements from topical events into his narratives. Masses of the poor chipped in hapennies to have each new monthly episode read to them, opening up. Dickens was regarded as the literary colossus of his age and his 1843 novella, A Christmas Carol, remains popular and continues to inspire adaptations in every artistic genre. Oliver Twist and Great Expectations are also adapted, and, like many of his novels. His 1859 novel, A Tale of Two Cities, set in London, Dickens has been praised by fellow writers—from Leo Tolstoy to George Orwell and G. K. Chesterton—for his realism, comedy, prose style, unique characterisations, and social criticism. On the other hand, Oscar Wilde, Henry James, and Virginia Woolf complained of a lack of depth, loose writing. The term Dickensian is used to something that is reminiscent of Dickens and his writings. Charles John Huffam Dickens was born on 7 February 1812, at 1 Mile End Terrace, Landport in Portsea Island and his father was a clerk in the Navy Pay Office and was temporarily stationed in the district. He asked Christopher Huffam, rigger to His Majestys Navy, gentleman, Huffam is thought to be the inspiration for Paul Dombey, the owner of a shipping company in Dickenss eponymous Dombey and Son. In January 1815 John Dickens was called back to London, when Charles was four, they relocated to Sheerness, and thence to Chatham, Kent, where he spent his formative years until the age of 11. His early life seems to have been idyllic, though he himself a very small. Charles spent time outdoors but also read voraciously, including the novels of Tobias Smollett and Henry Fielding, as well as Robinson Crusoe
34.
A Tale of Two Cities
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A Tale of Two Cities is a novel by Charles Dickens, set in London and Paris before and during the French Revolution. In 1775, a man flags down the nightly mail-coach on its route from London to Dover, the man is Jerry Cruncher, an employee of Tellsons Bank in London, he carries a message for Jarvis Lorry, a passenger and one of the banks managers. Mr. Lorry sends Jerry back to deliver a response to the bank. The message refers to Alexandre Manette, a French physician who has released from the Bastille after an 18-year imprisonment. Once Mr. Lorry arrives in Dover, he meets with Dr. Manettes daughter Lucie, Lucie has believed her father to be dead, and faints at the news that he is alive, Mr. Lorry takes her to France to reunite with him. In the Paris neighborhood of Saint Antoine, Dr. Manette has been given lodgings by his former servant Ernest Defarge and his wife Therese, owners of a wine shop. He does not recognize Lucie at first but does see the resemblance to her mother through her blue eyes and long golden hair. Mr. Lorry and Lucie take him back to England, in 1780, French émigré Charles Darnay is on trial for treason against the British Crown. The key witnesses against him are two British spies, John Barsad and Roger Cly, who claim that Darnay gave information about British troops in North America to the French, with Barsads eyewitness testimony now discredited, Darnay is acquitted. In Paris, the hated and abusive Marquis St. Evrémonde orders his carriage driven recklessly fast through the streets, hitting and killing the child of a peasant. The Marquis throws a coin to Gaspard to compensate him for his loss, as the Marquiss coach drives off, the coin is flung back into his coach by an unknown hand, enraging the Marquis. Arriving at his country château, the marquis meets with his nephew and heir, Out of disgust with his aristocratic family, Darnay has shed his real surname and adopted an anglicized version of his mothers maiden name, DAulnais. The following passage records the Marquis principles of aristocratic superiority, Repression is the only lasting philosophy. The dark deference of fear and slavery, my friend, observed the Marquis, will keep the dogs obedient to the whip, as long as this roof, looking up to it, shuts out the sky. That night, Gaspard, who followed the Marquis to his château by riding on the underside of the carriage, stabs, Gaspard leaves a note on the knife saying, Drive him fast to his tomb. After nearly a year on the run, he is caught, in London, Darnay gets Dr. Manettes permission to wed Lucie, but Carton confesses his love to Lucie as well. Knowing she will not love him in return, Carton promises to embrace any sacrifice for you, Stryver, the barrister who defended Darnay and with whom Carton has a working relationship, considers proposing marriage to Lucie, but Mr. Lorry talks him out of the idea. On the morning of the marriage, Darnay reveals his name and family lineage to Dr. Manette
35.
Causes of the French Revolution
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Financial, Frances debt, aggravated by French involvement in the American Revolution, led Louis XVI to implement new taxations and to reduce privileges. Political, Louis XVI faced virulent opposition from provincial parlements which were the spearheads of the privileged classes resistance to royal reforms, economic, The deregulation of the grain market, advocated by liberal economists, resulted in an increase in bread prices. In period of bad harvests, it would lead to food scarcity which would prompt the masses to revolt, all these factors created a revolutionary atmosphere and a tricky situation for Louis XVI. The essence of the situation which existed in France in the 1780s was the bankruptcy of the king. This economic crisis was due to the increasing costs of government. These costs could not be met from the sources of state revenue. Since the 1770s, several attempts by different ministers to introduce financial stability had failed, the taxation system was burdensome upon the middle class and the more prosperous peasants, given that the nobles were largely able to exempt themselves from it. As a result, there was an insistent demand for reform of abuses of privilege, for an equitable means of taxation. The population of France in the 1780s was about 26 million, few of these owned enough land to support a family and most were forced to take on extra work as poorly paid labourers on larger farms. There were regional differences but, by and large, French peasants were better off than those in countries like Russia or Poland. Even so, hunger was a problem which became critical in years of poor harvest. The clergy numbered about 100,000 and yet they owned 10% of the land, the Catholic Church maintained a rigid hierarchy as abbots and bishops were all members of the nobility and canons were all members of wealthy bourgeois families. As an institution, it was rich and powerful. As with the nobility, it paid no taxes and merely contributed a grant to the state five years. The upper echelons of the clergy had considerable influence over government policy, dislike of the nobility was especially intense. The American Revolution demonstrated that it was plausible for Enlightenment ideas about how a government should be organized to actually be put into practice. Some American diplomats, like Benjamin Franklin and Thomas Jefferson, had lived in Paris, furthermore, contact between American revolutionaries and the French troops who served in North America helped spread revolutionary ideas to the French people. France in 1787, although it faced difficulties, was one of the most economically capable nations of Europe
