The Origins of the French Revolution

Problems in Focus

by Peter R. Campbell (Editor)

The question of what brought about the French Revolution remains the subject of vigorous debate and perennial interest. This clear collection is an excellent introduction to a complex topic, written by ten distinguished American and British historians at the forefront of their fields. Chapters on political culture, finance, the role of religion, politics, art, the parlement, peasants, pamphlets, and the Estates General go to the heart of recent debate, making the origins of the French Revolution easier to study and teach.

Genres: History, France

384 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2006

Reviews

[Scott Goddard · Rating 4 out of 5]

Prior to reading this book, I had no idea of what caused the French Revolution, and indeed for what reason such radicalism emerged. It was this books purpose to provide an understanding of these ideas. Each section addressed a particular motivation - some invariably more interesting than others. On the whole, I thoroughly enjoyed the book - in spite of the constant invocation of either specific terminology and references which, unless it kept appearing, I had no effort to Google. Some chapters - particularly the one about religion - was extra tricky by quite a significant margin and after just a few pages I decided to skip to the next one. I'm not sure whether it was supposed to be an introductory text, as it does go into intricate details throughout, but even if it is not, it is certainly worth reading regardless.