Synopses & Reviews
Review
"The quality of its scholarly research and its perceptive comparisons make this the best work on the role of peasantry in the French Revolution from 1787 to 1800." Choice"In this useful work of synthesis, P.M. Jones provides a timely critique of recent trends in the historiography of the peasantry in the French revolution." American Historical Review
Synopsis
This book fills the gap in the literature of the French Revolution, and offers a synthesis which brings together the fruits of two generationâs research in the field of French rural and agrarian history. George Lefebvreâs contention that the peasantry occupied the centre-stage during the early years of the revolution is vindicated.
Synopsis
The contention of Georges Lefebvre that the peasantry occupied center stage during the early years of the Revolution is vindicated with the support of fresh evidence culled from archives, unpublished theses and other sources.
Table of Contents
List of illustrations; List of tables; Preface; Acknowledgements; List of abbreviations; 1. Rural France in the eighteenth century; 2. The crisis of the late 'ancien régime'; 3. 1789: between hope and fear; 4. Dismantling the seigneurial regime; 5. The land settlement: collective rights versus agrarian individualism; 6. The administrative revolution; 7. Terror and counter-terror; 8. The balance-sheet; Notes; Bibliography; Index.