Books by Marisa Linton
The topic of conspiracy has a perennial fascination. Conspiratorial views of events abound. We in... more The topic of conspiracy has a perennial fascination. Conspiratorial views of events abound. We in our modern world often still have recourse to conspiracy theories. Sometimes such theories serve to explain the inexplicable. At other times they appear to be developed for motives of political expediency: it is simpler to see political opponents as conspirators and terrorists, putting them into one convenient basket, than to seek to understand and disentangle the complex motivations of opponents. It is not surprising then to see that, just as the French Revolution was the birthplace of the modern political world, so also a constant obsession with conspiracies and conspiracy theory lay at the heart of the revolutionary conception of politics. Sparked by the theories of Furet and the recent research of Tackett, recent debate has returned to the nature and effects of conspiracy during the French Revolution. This book is a comprehensive survey of the nature of conspiracy in the French Revolution, with chapters each written by a leading historian on the question. Each chapter is a research contribution to the topic, written however to include the wider issues for the area concerned. It is therefore accessible and a genuine contribution to our understanding of the French Revolution.
articles by Marisa Linton
“COME AND DINE”: THE DANGERS OF CONSPICUOUS CONSUMPTION IN FRENCH REVOLUTIONARY POLITICS, 1789-95... more “COME AND DINE”: THE DANGERS OF CONSPICUOUS CONSUMPTION IN FRENCH REVOLUTIONARY POLITICS, 1789-95
Abstract
The consumption of food and drink was suffused with political meaning in the new culture of revolution. This article explores tensions arising from the dining culture of revolutionary politicians at a time when the activity of politics had become subject to public scrutiny. A deputy’s approach to food, and especially to the social activity of dining, was used to judge his authenticity. Conspicuous consumption by deputies became a source of conflict between a hungry populace and its elected representatives. Cafés and restaurants, together with private dinner parties (‘behind closed doors’), were locations where the tactical business of politics could be conducted, yet such venues were seen as redolent of Old Regime practices and against the culture of transparency. Deputies who were seen to engage in excessive consumption and attend select dinner parties, especially with ‘suspect’ characters, were vulnerable to the charge that they were engaging in a conspiracy against the Republic.
Was the French Revolution only concerned with the
rights of man? This article explores how women ... more Was the French Revolution only concerned with the
rights of man? This article explores how women created
a space for themselves in revolutionary politics. Some
were eyewitnesses who gave perceptive accounts of
dramatic moments of the Revolution. Others became
active participants, determined that the Revolution
should be truly universal and address their own
concerns.
This article was published under the title, 'Women as Spectators and Participants in the French Revolution', Groniek, 197 (2013): 415-17
Marisa Linton traces the beginnings of the French revolutionary wars – which led ultimately to ri... more Marisa Linton traces the beginnings of the French revolutionary wars – which led ultimately to rise of Napoleon and his defeat at the Battle of Waterloo – to a fierce dispute between the extremist position of Jacques-Pierre Brissot, who wanted a ‘crusade for universal liberty’ and the cautious Maximilien Robespierre, who tried to block the path that ultimately led to a war that would engulf Europe for a generation.
This article is published under the title: ‘The First Step on the Road to Waterloo’ in the June 2015 issue of History Today.
History Today, Jan 1, 2015
For many people Saint-Just embodies the spirit of the French Revolution: young, full of feverish ... more For many people Saint-Just embodies the spirit of the French Revolution: young, full of feverish energy, courage and idealism, but, like the revolutionary Terror, capable of sacrificing human lives, including his own, to make the ideal a reality. In this article, Marisa Linton looks beyond the myths to the reality of his remarkable, short life.
I want to thank the editors of H-France for having selected Choosing Terror for this forum. I als... more I want to thank the editors of H-France for having selected Choosing Terror for this forum. I also want to express my gratitude to the four historians who contributed, all distinguished specialists of the Revolution, who read my work with care and, for the most part, with generosity and enthusiasm. Three of the four found much of value in my book; they also raised interesting questions and points for further reflection. For that scholarly engagement I thank them. The fourth evidently disliked my book, but the Terror has always been a subject that provokes strong reactions, and criticism too can be revealing, though not always in the way that its author intended.
BBC History Magazine, Sep 20, 2013
Les dirigeants révolutionnaires ont régulièrement affirmé qu'ils étaient mus par la vertu (dévoue... more Les dirigeants révolutionnaires ont régulièrement affirmé qu'ils étaient mus par la vertu (dévouement au bien public plutôt qu'intérêt personnel et ambition). Il existe cependant un abîme entre ce discours et leurs actions qui, inévitablement, avaient souvent pour motif l'intérêt personnel. C'était là un dilemme insoluble pour Robespierre, comme pour tous les révolutionnaires : pour établir leur crédibilité politique ils devaient prouver qu'ils agissaient conformément à la vertu véritable, mais leur motivation intérieure était difficilement vérifiable. Le pouvoir politique de Robespierre devait beaucoup à sa capacité à convaincre son auditoire que sa dévotion à la vertu était authentique ; mais ses affirmations étaient contestées par ses opposants, qui ne voyaient dans sa vertu qu'un masque cachant ses ambitions. La question de l'authenticité de Robespierre fit l'objet d'un affrontement sur la légitimité de la Révolution, et même sur l'usage de la Terreur. Cet article explore ce problème en se concentrant sur des cas précis où l'authenticité de Robespierre a été contestée durant sa carrière politique et après sa mort.
in the spring of 1794 the radical journalist camille Desmoulins, who had been a fervent supporter... more in the spring of 1794 the radical journalist camille Desmoulins, who had been a fervent supporter of the revolution since its beginning, spent several days in the prison of the luxembourg. He was waiting to be transferred to the conciergerie, where prisoners were held while awaiting their trials before the revolutionary tribunal. Unlike many victims of the terror Desmoulins personally knew his accusers. He and Maximilien robespierre had been friends since they were schoolboys together at the college of louis-le-Grand. Now robespierre had signed the order for his friend's arrest. For Desmoulins, this repudiation of former trust and friendship was a very personal betrayal. He was stupefied, crushed, by this reversal. in his cell he wrote several letters to his beloved wife, lucile, in which he wept over his fate and tried to understand how it could have happened to him:
From about the middle of the century there was a change of emphasis in the language of virtue. Th... more From about the middle of the century there was a change of emphasis in the language of virtue. This was the growing vogue for a form of natural virtue, based on the belief that virtue was an innate and sociable quality which predisposed people to seek to benefit others. 1 Although virtue had originally implied a masculine quality, this new emphasis tended to accord a preeminent place to women and to qualities considered particularly feminine. Women were thought to have more natural sentiments than men, to be closer to nature. Their natural feelings had not been curbed by the demands of a public career, military service or the market place. Their virtue was also said to be purer than men's because women were much less likely to be susceptible to the 'passions'. But this new stress on womanly virtue tended to accentuate traditional female qualities of devotion to family and home. The gap between natural virtue and political status was far from easy for women to bridge.
The civil virtues, that is to say, those virtues which relate to the common good and the advantag... more The civil virtues, that is to say, those virtues which relate to the common good and the advantage of human society, are infinitely better practised by women than by men.'
The periodic disputes between the FrenchParlements and the monarchy played a vital role in the un... more The periodic disputes between the FrenchParlements and the monarchy played a vital role in the unravelling of the ancien régime and the origins of the French Revolution. In recent years historians have looked towards the study of the ideological arguments put forward by the parlementaires to assert their importance and autonomy. This article focuses on the ideology and rhetoric of the Paris Parlement, during the period of the most intense dispute between crown and parlements prior to the Revolution, that is, the Maupeou crisis of 1770 to 1774. In 1771 Paris Parlement was abolished, although this decision was reversed in 1774 after the death of Louis XV. The rhetoric of the magistrates themselves is examined, as well as that of lawyers, journalists and other polemicists who engaged in the debate on behalf of the Parlement. The language of civic virtue played a significant role in the debates, expressed as the idea of virtuous magistrates who were acting to defend the public interest. This article examines how virtue came to be part of a rhetoric associated with the parlements. It then goes on to consider the protests, from the magistrates themselves in their remonstrances, from the lawyers attached to the Parlements, and from many observers of events. Supporters of the parlements saw the coup not simply as a power struggle between king and magistrates, but as confirmation that the government was ‘despotic’ and that the parlements were heroic - and virtuous - defenders of the liberties of the nation.
For the great majority of the magistrates, the issue of ‘parlementary constitutionalism’ seems to have been one towards which they retained a strong degree of ambiguity, as is suggested by their relative calm in the years after 1775 when their own jurisdictional authority was left relatively secure. But it is neverthess clear that from the time of the Maupeou coup, the jurisdictional quarrel between parlements and ministers had generated the idea of the legitimacy of civic virtue as an authority for political participation in the minds of people who followed the debate. The egalitarianism and moral authority implicit in the concept of civic virtue became, in the context of the final crisis of the ancien régime, a veritable Pandora’s box.
In the aftermath of the FrancoPrussian war and the seige of Paris by the Prussians, a revolutiona... more In the aftermath of the FrancoPrussian war and the seige of Paris by the Prussians, a revolutionary muncipal government was set up in
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Books by Marisa Linton
articles by Marisa Linton
Abstract
The consumption of food and drink was suffused with political meaning in the new culture of revolution. This article explores tensions arising from the dining culture of revolutionary politicians at a time when the activity of politics had become subject to public scrutiny. A deputy’s approach to food, and especially to the social activity of dining, was used to judge his authenticity. Conspicuous consumption by deputies became a source of conflict between a hungry populace and its elected representatives. Cafés and restaurants, together with private dinner parties (‘behind closed doors’), were locations where the tactical business of politics could be conducted, yet such venues were seen as redolent of Old Regime practices and against the culture of transparency. Deputies who were seen to engage in excessive consumption and attend select dinner parties, especially with ‘suspect’ characters, were vulnerable to the charge that they were engaging in a conspiracy against the Republic.
rights of man? This article explores how women created
a space for themselves in revolutionary politics. Some
were eyewitnesses who gave perceptive accounts of
dramatic moments of the Revolution. Others became
active participants, determined that the Revolution
should be truly universal and address their own
concerns.
This article was published under the title, 'Women as Spectators and Participants in the French Revolution', Groniek, 197 (2013): 415-17
This article is published under the title: ‘The First Step on the Road to Waterloo’ in the June 2015 issue of History Today.
For the great majority of the magistrates, the issue of ‘parlementary constitutionalism’ seems to have been one towards which they retained a strong degree of ambiguity, as is suggested by their relative calm in the years after 1775 when their own jurisdictional authority was left relatively secure. But it is neverthess clear that from the time of the Maupeou coup, the jurisdictional quarrel between parlements and ministers had generated the idea of the legitimacy of civic virtue as an authority for political participation in the minds of people who followed the debate. The egalitarianism and moral authority implicit in the concept of civic virtue became, in the context of the final crisis of the ancien régime, a veritable Pandora’s box.
Abstract
The consumption of food and drink was suffused with political meaning in the new culture of revolution. This article explores tensions arising from the dining culture of revolutionary politicians at a time when the activity of politics had become subject to public scrutiny. A deputy’s approach to food, and especially to the social activity of dining, was used to judge his authenticity. Conspicuous consumption by deputies became a source of conflict between a hungry populace and its elected representatives. Cafés and restaurants, together with private dinner parties (‘behind closed doors’), were locations where the tactical business of politics could be conducted, yet such venues were seen as redolent of Old Regime practices and against the culture of transparency. Deputies who were seen to engage in excessive consumption and attend select dinner parties, especially with ‘suspect’ characters, were vulnerable to the charge that they were engaging in a conspiracy against the Republic.
rights of man? This article explores how women created
a space for themselves in revolutionary politics. Some
were eyewitnesses who gave perceptive accounts of
dramatic moments of the Revolution. Others became
active participants, determined that the Revolution
should be truly universal and address their own
concerns.
This article was published under the title, 'Women as Spectators and Participants in the French Revolution', Groniek, 197 (2013): 415-17
This article is published under the title: ‘The First Step on the Road to Waterloo’ in the June 2015 issue of History Today.
For the great majority of the magistrates, the issue of ‘parlementary constitutionalism’ seems to have been one towards which they retained a strong degree of ambiguity, as is suggested by their relative calm in the years after 1775 when their own jurisdictional authority was left relatively secure. But it is neverthess clear that from the time of the Maupeou coup, the jurisdictional quarrel between parlements and ministers had generated the idea of the legitimacy of civic virtue as an authority for political participation in the minds of people who followed the debate. The egalitarianism and moral authority implicit in the concept of civic virtue became, in the context of the final crisis of the ancien régime, a veritable Pandora’s box.
This is an analysis of one of the key documents of the French Revolutionary Terror. In February 1794, at the height of the Terror, the Jacobin leader, Maximilien Robespierre made a speech on behalf of the Committee of Public Safety in which he sought to justify the recourse to terror by linking it to the ideological concept of virtue. By virtue he meant political integrity and selfless devotion to the public good. By terror he meant severe justice, wielded in the service of the new Republic. The analysis situates Robespierre’s speech within the context of revolutionary politics. It shows that much of this speech was targeted against Jacobin factions which the Committee of Public Safety feared were undermining the Revolution. The Committee subsequently orchestrated the arrest and destruction of these factions.
In a move away from overarching explanations of the Terror based on ideology, class or a ‘system of Terror’, historians have been investigating the web of connections between politics, ideology, tactics, emotions and the role of individuals. Consequently, a more complex picture of revolutionary politics has begun to emerge. This chapter uses these new approaches to examine how individual experiences of the Jacobin leaders can cast new light on the Terror. It asks how far we can reconstruct the motives that led individual Jacobin leaders to choose terror. Personal factors, including friendships, influenced political decision-making to a far greater extent than has previously been acknowledged. Emotions, above all fear, played an integral role in the Terror. Ironically, the Jacobin leaders were themselves subject to high levels of fear. They needed to maintain their public identity as ‘men of virtue’ or risk being destroyed in the politicians’ terror. The chapter examines the genesis of the politicians’ terror that culminated in the mutual destruction of political factions during the Year II.
In the following film Marisa Linton talks about the process whereby revolutionary leaders used the narrative of conspiracy to ‘unmask’ a succession of revolutionary leaders, many of whom were former colleagues and friends, as traitors against the Revolution.
Abstract
Much of what we know about Maximilien Robespierre’s personal life comes from two women: his sister, Charlotte Robespierre, and the daughter of his landlord in Paris, Elizabeth Duplay (later Le Bas). Both these women played a key part in the construction of a powerful image of Robespierre as a man of domestic virtue, which stands as a corrective and a challenge to the Thermidorean portrayal of him as a power-hungry orchestrator of the Terror. Yet we know comparatively little about these two women, and their lives after Thermidor. They are best known for the fact of being connected to Maximilien Robespierre; their own history is full of gaps and silences. This paper explores their lives after Thermidor, and asks questions about the options available to them as women, the choices they made, how they portrayed their own lives, how they remembered the past, and what kind of identities they assumed, or had imposed upon them.