Evolution for beginners

Abstract

This collection of Alison Patrick's most important articles and papers centre around the central question of how the French Revolution was actually achieved - who were the agents of change, how they went about their business, what machinery they established to achieve their ends, what practical problems they encountered, and how they justified to themselves what they were doing. The topics covered include: the parliamentary beginning of the revolution; the organisational and legal changes of the first three years of the Revolution; the political activities that were the foundation of revolutionary change; how the revolution reached the public; the reconstruction of French local government; the abolition of arbitrary detention; and, the relationship between the revolutionary project, the execution of the King, and the Terror that followed. 'Revolution for Beginners' is a key collection for all students and scholars of the French Revolution.