Topic 7
Ending the Terror
those who overthrew Robespierre were known as Thermidoreans
they were regicides and believed giving the sans-culottes what they want would lead to anarchy
between July 1794 and May 1795, the Convention did the following:
abolished the Revolutionary Tribunal and Paris Commune
released all suspects from prison
repealed the Law of Prairal and closed the Jacobin club
(abolished key institutions of the terror)
they also:
renounced the constitutional church
no longer paid clerical salaries (separation of church and state)
restored freedom of worship
ended the recognition of the Cult of Supreme Being
Uprisings of Germinal and Prairal
Thermidoreans abolished maximum price controls in December 1974 → cost of essential goods like food and fuel rocketed
huge inflation → a sack of firewood that cost 20 livres in 179 cost 500 livres in 1795
the govt. now also had to pay for market prices for the army → printed more assignats → value down 96% by May 1795
Germinal: April 1795 - sans - culottes protested outside the convention due to economic collapse → light repression followed (not a threat)
Prairal: May 1795 - armed rising led by Parisian workers - government responded with military force and it was crushed quickly (divided rising and lack of bourgeoisie support → not a threat)
The White Terror
caused by desire for vengeance and Thermidorean government moving away from radicalism
April to May 1795 - gangs (jeunesse doree) attacked Jacobins and sans-culottes (less organised + centralised terror)
The White Terror (Vendee)
a movement known as the Chouan, opposed to conscription, began to roam the countryside destabilising local government by murdering officials (serious threat to law and order)
June 1795, 3k emigre troops were joined by Chouans to create a force of 22k → they were eventually crushed by general Hoche
The White Terror (South)
the murder gangs were not considered a serious threat so they faced little resistance
however this allowed them to spread rapidly and they killed 2k
Constitution - 1795
the new constitution separated legislature from the executive to avoid centralisation so that a CPS type dictatorship could never return
weaknesses:
yearly elections promised instability as majorities could be quickly overturned and nothing would get done
legislature clashed with the executive
takes long time for change to take place in the Directory due to constant renewals
there was fear that free elections could produce a royalist majority
The Legislature
divided into 2 chambers:
the council of 500 → would start legislation and then pass onto ancients
the council of ancients → approve or object to bills but not introduce or change them
this flawed structure led to legislature reaching gridlock
The Executive
a Directory of 5 people chosen by the Ancients
the 5 directors hold office for 5 years but 1 had to retire each year
in charge of diplomacy, military affairs and law enforcement
Verona Declaration
constitutional monarchists felt they were gaining public support as they argue constitutional monarchy could have worked in 1791 if not for Louis and the war
the Comte de Provence issued the Verona Declaration in June 1795, proclaiming himself Louis 18th and basically called the abolition of the monarchy illegitimate
the Declaration actually made a monarchy restoration much more difficult → good for Republic
The Vendemiaire Uprising
October 1795, royalists gathered to march on the convention to seize power
this uprising was put down brutally by Napoleon which:
boosted Napoleons reputation as the man who could restore order and crush opposition
saved the Directory from a royalist takeover
showed that Journees dont work as there were no more Journees until 1830
but, it shows that the Directory rely on the army more than public support (political weakness) which helps pave the way for Napoelons takeover
The Directory
all 5 directors are regicides and anti-terror - stable liberal government
terror is not a long term threat to the revolution but monarchy is therefore they prioritise preventing a monarchical restoration
they faced little opposition:
Jacobins discredited due to terror
royalists were divided between Verona extremists and constitutional monarchy
public were apathetic towards the government
the army supported the Directory as a royalist restoration would mean an end to the war
the army, above all, enabled the Directory to overcome challenges to its authority but it was a double edged weapon because if the Directory don’t do what the army want, they’ll be purged
The Babeuf Plot 1796
a radical pamphlateer who disliked the 1795 constitution as it empowered the wealthy
advocated for the abolition of private property and aimed to establish a more egalitarian society
March 1796, Babeuf organised a plan to overthrow the Directory
he received no support from the sans-culottes or former Jacobins and was arrested in May 1796 - not a threat to the Revolution
The Coup of Fructidor 1797
elections of 1797 showed monarchists growing in influence as people were tired of war and religious conflict → viewed a constitutional monarchy as stable and peaceful
monarchists won 69% of the seats but because the directors were regicides, they were fuming
army protect themselves as an absolute representation of law and order and therefore are backed by the Directory to carry out and drive policy
September 1797 - the military conducted a purge to remove royalist deputies from the legislative council
→ increased centralisation - saved the government in the short term from a monarchical restoration but weakened it in the long term by further proving their dependence on the military
after Fructidor, the new Directory took down emigres and refractory priests to fully destroy royalist sentiment
Financial Reform
previous regimes had printed more assignats to pay for the war and by February 1796 they were almost worthless - the Directory issued a new currency called mandats territoriaux
the new currency was less than 5% of its nominal value months after being issued and in Feb 1797, they ceased to be legal tender
there were only 1b livres in circulation in 1797 which led to deflation
→ from 1795-1797, the Directory had been unpopular w workers due to inflation but now, the Directory was unpopular w businessmen as lower prices meant lower profits
→ regime politically unstable and isolated as they alienate both ends of the social spectrum
Debt and Revenue
Directory had debt so they cancelled 2/3 of it and paid remaining debt holders in bonds but those bonds became worthless
despite this, no revolt — public were apathetic and exhausted and the threat of the army prevented opposition
Ramel wanted to increase revenue so he introduced 4 tax policies in 1798 → success as they helped increase revenue and lasted till 1914
France’s plunder in Italy and peace with Austria also gained lots of revenue and stablilised things
the Directory’s reintroduction of the octrois (internal tarrifs) raised prices but was unpopular → short term financial success but damaged public support
overall the Directory reached a balanced budget in 1797 due to sensible reforms, plunder and peace with Austria
The Coup of Floreal
1798 elections, the Directory annulled the elections of 127 elected deputies, 86 of whom were Jacobins
→ while it didn’t depend on military intervention, it showed how broken the political system was as the Directory had to disregard the limited democracy that existed to maintain political survival
Jourdan’s law
June 1798 - pushed for further conscription due to anticipation of escalating conflict (led to War of 2nd Coalition)
74k/230k reached the armies → 32% compliance rate revealed how damaged the Directory’s authority was and proved them an ineffective regime
The Coup of Brumaire
Napoleons failure during the Egyptian campaign forced him to return to Paris in October 1799 → barely damaged his reputation as he was already seen as a national hero
18 Brumaire — Napoleon dissolved the Directory and seized power with military backing, fabricating a Jacobin threat to justify the coup
Sieyès conspired with Napoleon, revealing the collapse was primarily caused by internal rather than external factors
→ the ease of the coup proved the Directory had no support left - the constraints of the 1795 constitution, intended to prevent tryanny, left the Directory lacking power or clear leadership
The Consulship
the 3 consuls (Napoleon, Sieyes, Ducos) drew up a new constitution
Napoleon was the 1st Consul (most power) and the other 2 consuls had less but equal power
to add legitimacy, Lucien Bonaparte organised a plebiscite - the figures were exagerrated to present overwhelming support (3m yes)
→ highly likely that this support came from dissatisfaction towards the old leaders rather than love for the new one