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1789: The French Revolution Begins

Robert H. Blackman, JYA 1989

The French Revolution marks the beginning of modern politics. Using a diverse range of sources, Robert H. Blackman reconstructs key constitutional debates, from the initial convocation of the Estates General in Versailles in May 1789, to the National Assembly placing the wealth of the Catholic Church at the disposal of the nation that November, revealing their nuances through close readings of participant and witness accounts. This comprehensive and accessible study analyses the most important debates and events through which the French National Assembly became a sovereign body, and explores the process by which the massive political transformation of the French Revolution took place.

Blackman's narrative-driven approach creates a new path through the complex politics of the early French Revolution, mapping the changes that took place and revealing how a new political order was created during the chaotic first months of the Revolution.

"It might be assumed that there is little more to be said about how the French Revolution began with the creation of a National Constituent Assembly in the summer of 1789, but Robert H. Blackman's excellent book proves otherwise. By employing a series of fresh sources, he demonstrates precisely how the deputies seized the initiative and started founding a new order, despite Louis XVI's bad faith on the one hand, and pressure from the populace on the other. This study offers a stimulating reinterpretation of a momentous episode in European history."

Malcolm Crook, University of Keele

"A splendid close study of the critical moments of 1789 as Old Regime slid into Revolution, debunking the argument that the political choices made by the deputies of 1789 progressed along an inexorable route allowing little scope for compromise. Blackman gives us a new understanding of the choices faced by the deputies of the Third Estate."

Marisa Linton, Kingston University London

ISBN: 1108492444

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