If the Fall of the Bastille on July 14, 1789, marks the symbolic beginning of the French Revolution, then August 4 is the day the Old Regime ended, for it was on that day (or, more precisely, that night) that the National Assembly met and undertook sweeping reforms that ultimately led to a complete reconstruction of the French polity. What began as a prearranged meeting with limited objectives suddenly took on a frenzied atmosphere during which dozens of noble deputies renounced their traditional privileges and dues. By the end of the night, the Assembly had instituted more meaningful...
If the Fall of the Bastille on July 14, 1789, marks the symbolic beginning of the French Revolution, then August 4 is the day the Old Regime ended,...
How did the ideals of liberty, equality and fraternity evolve out of the corporate structure of the Old Regime in France? This study investigates the evolution of a new ideal in polity in 1789 and the reaction of French society to it. Concentrating especially on the restructuring of the administration and judiciary, the author argues that the new political structure created by the Constitution of 1791 was the most equitable and participatory national political system in the world and that the achievements of the National Assembly deserve greater recognition than they have traditionally...
How did the ideals of liberty, equality and fraternity evolve out of the corporate structure of the Old Regime in France? This study investigates the ...
How did the ideals of liberty, equality and fraternity evolve out of the corporate structure of the Old Regime in France? This study investigates the evolution of a new ideal in polity in 1789 and the reaction of French society to it. Concentrating especially on the restructuring of the administration and judiciary, the author argues that the new political structure created by the Constitution of 1791 was the most equitable and participatory national political system in the world and that the achievements of the National Assembly deserve greater recognition than they have traditionally...
How did the ideals of liberty, equality and fraternity evolve out of the corporate structure of the Old Regime in France? This study investigates the ...
Did barristers as a professional group support the French Revolution, or were they most often "in flight from politics"? A close inquiry into the Order of Barristers at Paris--the largest and most important in France, with over six hundred members in 1789--reveals that the vast majority within the Order did not support the Revolution. Unsympathetic to the ideal of the nation asserted by the National Assembly, most members of the Order instead remained loyal to the traditional corporate paradigm that the National Assembly had specifically repudiated. Dismayed by the abolition of their...
Did barristers as a professional group support the French Revolution, or were they most often "in flight from politics"? A close inquiry into the O...
From Artisan to Worker examines the largely overlooked debate over the potential reestablishment of guilds that occurred from 1776 to 1821. The abolition of guilds in 1791 overturned an organization of labor that had been in place for centuries. The disorder that ensued from concerns about the safety of the food supply to a general decline in the quality of goods raised strong doubts about their abolition and sparked a debate both inside and outside of government that went on for decades. The issue of the reestablishment of guilds, however, subsequently became intertwined with the growing...
From Artisan to Worker examines the largely overlooked debate over the potential reestablishment of guilds that occurred from 1776 to 1821. The abolit...
