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Lecture

William Tyler
Revolution: Change for France, Europe, and the World

Monday 21.11.2022
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Summary

The reign of Louis XVI (1774-93) marked France’s last opportunity to deal with its financial, social, and political problems. The threat of revolution had been building for decades under the ruling House of Bourbon. Louis XVI was ill prepared to deal with the worsening crises.

Revolution finally arrived on 14th July, 1789, triggered by the Storming of the Bastille. The revolution took a violent and bloody turn in 1793, under Robespierre, in what has become known as The Reign of Terror.

Stability and normality did not arrive until Napoleon Bonaparte’s rule. Yet in the end that stability came crashing down in military defeat, at Leipzig in 1813 and at Waterloo in 1815. The Bourbons then returned to power, if only briefly (1814-48); and thus the question as to when the Revolution finally ended is a subject of much heated debate.

History 653 lectures
Geopolitics 462 lectures

William Tyler

 An image of William Tyler
William Tyler has spent his entire professional life in adult education, beginning at Kingsgate College in 1969. He has lectured widely for many public bodies, including the University of Cambridge and the WEA, in addition to speaking to many clubs and societies. In 2009, William was awarded the MBE for services to adult education, and he has previously been a scholar in residence at the London Jewish Cultural Centre. Link to William’ s blog with recommended book lists for his Lockdown lectures.
Yes, I think I mentioned that last time, not less because of Lafayette, who might well have become, if events had turned out differently, a liberal democratic leader of France, but it didn’t. Certainly, as you could see when I read out the passage from the “Rights of Man” that they leaned heavily on the American model. But it’s not a direct parallel, because Anglo-American history, and Anglo-American law, and Anglo-American views are distinctly different from those of continental Europe and of France.
Basically, as the English did. At the beginning, they’re terribly pro the Revolution, think about people like Benjamin Franklin. But then they’re horrified in the same way that the British were horrified when the stories come out.
They basically led it. But you’d say merchant class, now that’s slightly different. The merchant class are hoping always for stability, because that’s the way you make money. You can’t make money in the middle of a revolution. It’s the professional middle classes that lead it. And it’s the lawyers and accountants as ever, who I don’t know about, I haven’t got it off the top of my head how many lawyers and accountants, and such like professionals, sit in the House of Representatives. But they’re overrepresented in the House of Commons and always have been.
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