An analysis of the noble émigés of the French Revolution from 1789-1814. This paper looks at their life in the ancien régime, their life abroad in Coblenz and London, and their return to France. It focuses on their struggle and accomplishments abroad and their search for a collective identity during a time of uncertainty.

Throughout early-modern history, France and Britain had been enemies on opposite sides of the so-called Second Hundred Years’ War. Nevertheless, during the Revolutionary and the Napoleonic Wars (1793-1815), Britain became a haven for almost 40,000 French emigrants, and by 1814 France’s restored monarchy no longer viewed Britain as the enemy. The émigrés’ experience in Britain, its impact on long-term diplomatic ties between the two countries, and its wider repercussions for European history is the focus of my research. Did émigré diplomats knowingly follow a policy intended to foster a lasting alliance with Britain? Scholars who view the émigrés as politically impotent ignore the powerful impact French presence had on Britain’s elite. Even as early as 1793, the émigrés’ plight was an asset used by the British government in its negotiations with other European powers. My thesis will answer the aforementioned question by exploring a neglected aspect of the French experience in Great Britain: the émigrés’ social and political interactions with the British public and government and how this may have affected Franco-British diplomacy during the nineteenth century. / Graduate / 0335 / 0582 / sguenett@uvic.ca

The period of the French Revolution known as the Terror was a cataclysmic event for Ancien Regime Europe. Nearly every aspect of life was affected by the events which unfolded in France, forcing Europeans to confront the question of national identity through the context of the French Revolution. Nowhere was this phenomenon keener than in Great Britain, a traditional rival of France. Although in its infancy, a British national identity--as distinct from a English, Irish, Welsh, or Scot national identity--was already in existence. This new British identity was being shaped by forces such as a growing population, a reform movement within the Anglican Church, the drive for Empire, the increasing influence of the Industrial Revolution and the ensuing adjustment of the agricultural sector, and a steadily increasing middle class that demanded grater political participation. The French Revolution recast all of these issues and forced a reassessment of what it meant to be British, and, as such, was the chief stimulus for the development of British national identity as it changed from one based on political rights in the tradition of the Magna Carta to that of a bastion of order in the face of political radicalism. This study uses eighteenth century newspapers from across Britain to examine key events of the period of the Terror--the trial and execution of Louis XVI, the trial and execution of Marie-Antoinette, the murder of Marat, the execution of Madame Roland, and the fall of Maximilien Robespierre--in light of an evolving British national identity. The newspaper accounts of these reveal a composite British national identity consisting of the components of the reverence for the institutions of monarchy and the aristocracy, constitution/legal system, civilized society, commercial power, notions of chivalry, Christianity (Protestantism), the English language (represented by Shakespeare), and the notion of the French "other." This nationalism is also decisively male, propertied, and literate. This identity provided a foundation for future British activities such as the drive for imperial and industrial dominance in the nineteenth century.

This thesis seeks to explain the reasons behind Johann Wolfgang von Goethe's critical response to the French Revolution, and to identify his broader political views. It casts Goethe as a reform-minded conservative, who strove to advance civilisation and law-abiding liberty, and deplored tyranny, whether of the few or of the many. He deemed the Revolution politically and socially destructive, as it countered Enlightenment values of reason, tolerance, independent thought, and self-cultivation. While acknowledging the faults of the traditional ruling elite of the monarchy and aristocracy, Goethe also recognised the inherently flawed nature of human beings. This led him to support modest changes to redress specific grievances, rather than to overturn an entire political system in the utopian hope of realising a vice-ridden 'brotherhood of Man'. The fictional works indicate an author who favoured clearly definable freedoms over an abstract 'universal' freedom, who believed that BÃ1⁄4rger should develop their intellect and find an occupation best suited to their personal attributes, and that the most temperate and politically astute among them should influence government by co-operating with aristocrats. Goethe also portrays the fall of the ancien régime as largely self-inflicted, presenting many selfish and gullible courtiers, and incompetent kings. He appears to lament its demise, however, and not wish for a repeat in Germany, as the insurgent Bürger-dominated and/or republican regimes seem even more reckless. The advocates of 'liberté, égalité, fraternité' generally come across as perilously naïve or fraudulent, often using altruistic rhetoric to conceal egocentric and vindictive aims. The best cure for a flagging regime is (sometimes considerable) reform, not revolution. Political power should be treated with humility and self-restraint, and the relationship between rulers and subjects should be as intimate as possible. Above all, no part of the social hierarchy should suffer oppression from another, and people should be free to express various opinions, and criticise their government. For Goethe, the Revolution thwarted such principles.

No description available.

This work explores the motivations of the two major parties in the civil war in the Vendée from 1793 to 1796. It suggests that traditional understandings overemphasize simplistic notions of the idealistic crusade; the Revolutionaries fought for Republican ideals, while the locals fought to defend traditional Catholicism. This thesis suggests that the major motive for both sides was a fight for survival that was framed and expressed in political and religious terms rather than motivated by them. The reason that these motives have been confused is a long misunderstood connection between the means of discourse, the structure of social values, and their connection to any individual’s perceived sense of safety, which suggests an ecological, or holistic, rather than a Manichaean framework.

No / Napoleon: The End of Glory tells the story of the dramatic two years that led to Napoleon's abdication in April 1814. Though crucial to European history, they remain strangely neglected, lying between the two much better-known landmarks of the retreat from Moscow and the battle of Waterloo. Yet this short period saw both Napoleon's loss of his European empire, and of his control over France itself. In 1813 the massive battle of Leipzig - the bloodiest in modern history before the first day of the Somme - forced his armies back to the Rhine. The next year, after a brilliant campaign against overwhelming odds, Napoleon was forced to abdicate and exiled to Elba. He regained his throne the following year, for just a hundred days, in a doomed adventure whose defeat at Waterloo was predictable. The most fascinating - and least-known - aspect of these years is that at several key points Napoleon's enemies offered him peace terms that would have allowed him to keep his throne, if not his empire, a policy inspired by the brilliant and devious Austrian foreign minister Metternich. Napoleon: The End of Glory sheds fascinating new light on Napoleon, Metternich, and many other key figures and events in this dramatic period of European history, drawing on previously unused archives in France, Austria, and the Czech Republic. Through these it seeks to answer the most important question of all - why, instead of accepting a compromise, Napoleon chose to gamble on total victory at the risk of utter defeat? / Leverhulme Trust

No

Bernardin de Saint-Pierre survived the French revolution and was subsequently lionised, becoming a member of the École Normale and the Institut. Maurice Souriau, and most recently Malcolm Cook have looked at his contributions during the French revolution. Both concluded that these were far more substantial than what some critics have hitherto claimed but neither of them conducted a systematic research in the newspapers of the time to see how his work was received. Nor did they consider the correspondence in this respect. This is what this thesis proposes to do. We originally intended to cover the years 1789 to 1799 but we discovered such a wealth of information concerning the first four years of the revolution that we decided to concentrate our research on that period. This ties in with Bernardin’s own publications since hardly anything new was published by him after 1792. This study has revealed that Bernardin had very strong political ideas which he expressed in 1789 with Vœux d’un solitaire and then again in 1792 with Suite des vœux d’un solitaire and in July of the same year he produced a poster entitled: L’Invitation à la Concorde pour la fête de la confédération au 14 juillet 1792. The first three chapters of this thesis analyse the reaction of the press and his correspondents to these publications. We then turn our attention to La Chaumière indienne, first published in 1791 and then again in 1792 where Bernardin included more notes concerning his views on the shape of the earth. If, by and large, the reception of this story was positive, his scientific views triggered enough commentary to justify a section of a chapter dedicated to them. As we progressed in our research, Bernardin’s importance at the time became increasingly evident and we realised that parallel to his own publications, ran an undercurrent of writings paying homage to the man and which we felt helped to build up a portrait of the period. We finish with his nomination as ‘Intendant du Jardin des Plantes’ in July 1792 which led him to write an appeal to create a zoo in the Jardin des Plantes. Throughout 1792 Bernardin’s name was rarely out of the newspapers. This study has shed new light on the persona of Bernardin and helped to underline his importance before, during and after the French revolution.

O tema desta dissertação de mestrado é a controvérsia sobre os direitos civis e políticos das mulheres na França revolucionária , suscitada pela atuação cívica vigorosa das militantes políticas nos seis primeiros anos da Revolução - 1789-1795. Essas mulheres adquiriram uma visibilidade dramática ao participar maciçamente do movimento revolucionário, organizar-se em clubes políticos e exercer na prática alguns dos direitos de cidadania reservados ao sexo masculino. Seus direitos cívicos foram recusados, mas, pela primeira vez o assunto foi debatido e as autoridades tiveram que justificar a exclusão publicamente. O objetivo da pesquisa é estudar como as mulheres do povo conseguiram participar tão ativamente da vida política nacional no período inicial da Revolução e as razões pelas quais foram afastadas da cena pública. Estudarei a questão através das categorias práticas e representações, focalizando a atuação das militantes, e as imagens de mulheres nos espaços públicos e privados. Três grupos femininos emblemáticos serão considerados: as mães republicanas, as militantes políticas e as mulheres-soldados. A militância será analisada em duas vertentes principais: as jornadas revolucionárias começando pela Marcha a Versalhes em 1789 e a atuação de clubes femininos como a Sociedade das Republicanas Revolucionárias. As ativistas foram derrotadas junto com o último levante popular em Prairial do ano III. Razões políticas e culturais explicam porque as mulheres foram mal recebidas na arena política nacional. O capítulo da Iconografia apresenta 37 imagens de alegorias, caricaturas e cenas de acontecimentos da Revolução que ajudam a compreender o comportamento que se esperava das mulheres decentes: a maternidade com a dimensão cívica da educação dos futuros patriotas e a dedicação exclusiva ao lar. A moral republicana exigia que cada um cumprisse o seu papel na família e no corpo político. Era preciso manter a diferenciação das funções dos sexos: as mulheres deviam governar a casa e os homens o país. As militantes queriam ser mulheres livres, armarse, agir com independência , mas a maioria dos homens achava que eram usurpadoras das atribuições masculinas. A iconografia mostra modelos de comportamentos femininos virtuosos: deusas representando a nação porque estavam acima dos conflitos ou mães abnegadas, caridosas e heróicas. As que freqüentavam as tribunas das assembléias se transformavam nas terríveis \"tricoteiras\". As militantes foram toleradas enquanto foram úteis quando fizeram oposição aos jacobinos foram reprimidas em nome dos princípios morais que sustentavam a República. / The subject of this Master\'s thesis is the controversy about civil and political rights of women in revolutionary France, sparked by the vigorous female militancy in the early years of the Revolution 1789-1795. These women became dramatically visible when they massively joined the revolutionary movement, organized in political clubs and exercized some exclusively male citizenship rights. Their political rights of citizenship were denied , but for the first time the issue was debated and government officials had to publicly justify their decision. The objective of this research is to study how working-class women managed to participate so actively in national politics in the initial period of the Revolution and the reasons that led to their being banned from the public scene. I will explore the subject from the perspective of women\'s practices and representations, meaning the militants\' civic actions and women\'s images in the public and private spheres. This paper will focus on three main groups of women: republican mothers, political activists and women soldiers. Their political involvement will be considered from the standpoint of their participation in insurrectionary journées, such as the March to Versailles, and membership in women\'s political clubs, such as the parisian Society of Revolutionary Republicans. The militant citoyennes were defeated in the last popular uprising of Prairial, Year III. Political and cultural factors explain why women\'s intervention in national politics was not welcomed. The chapter on representations discusses a repertoire of 37 alegories , caricatures and revolutionary events that help understand the kind of behaviour expected of decent women: civic motherhood, whose aim was to nurture and educate future patriots and an exclusive devotion to domestic duties. Republican morals required that everyone fulfilled their proper role in the family and in public life. It was necessary to maintain the cultural norms of gender differentiation : women managed the household and men ruled the country. Militants wanted to be \"free women\", that is, bear arms, and act independently , but most men thought that activists were \"stepping out of their sex\" and usurping male roles. The iconography fosters virtuous feminine behaviour: lofty goddesses representing the nation because they stood above conflict; or self-sacrificing, charitable and heroic mothers. The women who regularly attended the Assembly galleries became despicable \"knitters\". Militant women were tolerated while useful but when they became political adversaries, they were repressed in the name of the essential moral principles of the Republic