11-“The leaders of Thermidor attempted to return France to the political, economic and social values of 1789.”
Paragraph 1: Political Values
Point:
The Thermidorian leaders sought to moderate the revolutionary government and restore political stability reminiscent of 1789’s constitutional aspirations.
Explanation:
After the excesses of the Terror under Robespierre, Thermidorian leaders aimed to dismantle the radical centralized power structures and revive more moderate, representative political institutions similar to those envisaged in 1789. They reduced revolutionary tribunals, curtailed the Paris Commune’s influence, and sought to establish a balanced government through the Directory, echoing early revolutionary ideals of political liberty and moderation.
Evidence #1:
31 July 1794: Moderate Dantonists and members of the Plain replaced radicals in the Committee of Public Safety (CPS) and Committee of General Security (CGS).
10 August 1794: Revolutionary Tribunal reorganized with reduced executions and use of exile instead.
Evidence #2:
31 August 1794: Powers of the Paris Commune reduced; it was abolished in 1795, ending radical local authority.
12 November 1794: Jacobin Club closed, radical political societies disbanded.
Evidence #3:
Constitution of the Directory (August–November 1795) established a moderate government with separation of powers, annual elections, and dispersed executive authority.
Electoral reforms limited radical influence and sought stability.
Historical Concepts:
Change and Continuity: Marked political change from radical dictatorship to moderate republic, but continuity in republican ideals.
Cause and Consequence: The Terror’s abuses caused backlash leading to Thermidorian moderation.
Turning Point: Thermidor marked a clear shift away from Jacobin radicalism.
Paragraph 2: Economic Values
Point:
Thermidorian leaders attempted to reverse revolutionary economic controls to restore free-market principles resembling those before 1789, but economic instability complicated this effort.
Explanation:
The Thermidorians repealed price controls and allowed deregulation of trade, aiming to revive private enterprise and economic freedom lost under the Maximum laws during the Terror. This reflected a return to more laissez-faire economic policies aligned with early revolutionary hopes for economic liberty. However, these changes led to inflation, food shortages, and social hardship, showing limits to Thermidor’s success.
Evidence #1:
24 December 1794: Law of the Maximum repealed, restoring private ownership of workshops.
Deregulation of trade ended state price controls.
Evidence #2:
Inflation caused by overprinting assignats worsened; by end of 1795 assignats were worthless.
Food shortages worsened by poor harvests and harsh winter; bread rations fell drastically by May 1795.
Evidence #3:
Financial reforms (1796-1798) like introduction of mandats and tax reforms attempted to stabilize economy but met with mixed success.
Social impact: factory closures, starvation, and unrest demonstrated the fragile economic recovery.
Historical Concepts:
Cause and Consequence: Deregulation aimed to revive economy but caused inflation and hardship.
Short Term and Long Term: Short-term economic crisis persisted despite long-term reforms.
Similarity and Difference: Return to free-market policies similar to pre-1789, but wartime conditions and revolutionary aftermath caused key differences.
Paragraph 3: Social Values
Point:
Thermidorian leaders tried to restore social order and reduce radical social upheaval, reversing some revolutionary social policies while tolerating religious diversity, echoing moderate 1789 social values.
Explanation:
The Thermidorians suppressed radical sans-culottes and Jacobin social influence, reducing the power of revolutionary social movements and symbolically restoring traditional social hierarchies. They ended state-sponsored Constitutional Church policies and proclaimed religious toleration, reflecting 1789’s initial emphasis on individual freedoms and religious liberty rather than enforced secular radicalism.
Evidence #1:
White Terror violence against Jacobins and sans-culottes, supported by Muscadins and jeunesse dorée, ended radical social dominance.
Suppression of sans-culottes uprisings (Germinal, Prairial, Vendémiaire risings) reinforced order.
Evidence #2:
18 September 1794: Church and state separated; state stopped paying clergy, ending Constitutional Church.
February 1795: Religious toleration proclaimed, though Catholic practices were still somewhat restricted.
Evidence #3:
Closure of Jacobin Club and disbandment of affiliated radical societies.
Abolishment of représentants-en-mission and Revolutionary Tribunal by mid-1795 curtailed oppressive revolutionary social enforcement.
Historical Concepts:
Continuity and Change: Return to religious tolerance and less radical social policies compared to Terror years.
Cause and Consequence: Radical social policies led to backlash and conservative social restoration.
Similarity and Difference: Religious toleration reflected 1789 ideals, but social violence of White Terror was a significant new development.
Overall Judgement:
While the leaders of Thermidor clearly sought to restore many political, economic, and social values reminiscent of the early Revolution of 1789 — particularly political moderation, free-market economics, and religious toleration — the complex realities of post-Terror France meant their efforts were only partially successful. Politically, they ended radical dictatorship and established a moderate republic but faced persistent instability. Economically, they aimed to revive free enterprise but grappled with inflation and food shortages that exacerbated social tensions. Socially, they rolled back radical upheaval and promoted religious freedom but witnessed violent backlash and social unrest. Thus, Thermidor represented both a return to and a transformation of 1789 values in a turbulent, evolving revolutionary context.