Chapter 7 Reaction to change at home and abroad
When the National Assembly followed the royal family back to Paris after the October Days it made the Salle de
Manège (the riding school). Alongside the Tuileries gardens its meeting hall. Benches were erected for the
deputies and platforms for the Parisian who liked to attend and add their comments to the to the debates. The
deputies arranged themselves on the left and right of the President’s platform and their positions have given
the names left wing and right wing to political parties ever since. Even though the deputies were not members
of parties in the modern sense they, nevertheless, formed distinct groups.
On the right were the noirs, who were aristocrats and monarchists and the constitutional monarchists
sometimes known as Fayettists after their champion Lafayette. On the left were a more radical group which
followed Antione Barnarve and a tiny far left clique of which Maximilien Robespierre was the most vociferous.
The political clubs
The different interest groups established bases in Paris where they would meet to discuss issues, decide on
their policies, and produce pamphlets and papers to spread their ideas. Many of the political clubs had been
founded after the meeting of the Estates-General in May 1789
The noble faction met at the ‘Salon Français.’ They produced Les Actes des Apôrtes, a satirical pamphlet
which took up the defence of the monarchy and, from first publication in November 1789, soon offered
around three issues a week. L’Ami du Roi, first issued in June 1790, was another royalist publication.
The Société de 89, founded by Sièyes, was the meeting place of the supporters of constitutional
monarchy. It met at the Palais-Royal and charged a high entry fee, so its membership came from
moderates like Lafayette, Bailly, Mirabeau and Condorcet.
The Jacobins (the most known), on the left wing, were the heirs to the Breton Club, such had first been
set up at Versailles in May 1789 as a meeting place for the deputies from the Brittany area. They began
as a quite conservative group due to high entrance fees meaning most were very rich – there were
many constitutional royalists. It changed its name in January 1790 to ‘the Friends of the Constitution’
but soon acquired the nickname of the ‘Jacobin Club’ because its new home in Paris was the library of an
ex-Dominican monastery. They met daily, after the Assembly proceedings had finished and by August
1790, there were 152 affiliated ‘Jacobin’ clubs across France. Initially all members were deputies, but
the club rapidly expanded to over 1000 by the end of 1790, with its members being predominantly
bourgeois as membership fees were high. However, the club adopted a more radical position in 1791
which led some members to breakaway and created the moderate Feuillant Club in July of that year.
Fees were reduced and from October 1791 artisans and shopkeepers joined in large numbers.
The Cordeliers Club, on the left wing, began as the Société des Amis des Droits de L’Homme et du
Citoyen in April 1790. It took its nickname from the place where it met: a former Franciscan monastery
on the rue des Cordeliers. They had no membership fee meaning that anyone could turn up. It claimed
to protect citizens rights and keep a watch on the activities of the Assembly. The entry fee was minimal,
and membership was open to all including women and passive citizens – they favour the sans-culottes
and the working class. George Danton and Camille Desmoulins were the founders and Jean-Paul Marat
(later assassinated by Charlotte Corday) was a member. They are typical radicals – middle-class, well-
off and are either pro-working class or ashamed of their wealth. The club became the home of radical
democratic and Republican ideas. The Cordeliers linked itself to a number of local clubs in Paris in
1790. These included the Société Fraternelle founded in February 1790 where artisans and
shopkeepers met to have the Assembly’s decrees explained to them in a language that they could
understand. Hébert, a journalist, Brissot, a journalist, and Marat, a failed doctor who hated anyone who
had enjoyed the privileges of the regime were also members
These clubs were influential, both because of the membership of the clubs, which ranged from prominent
members of the Assembly to humble Parisian workers, and because of the ideas emerging from them. They
provided a platform for propaganda and often delivered their views in the form of petitions to the Assembly.
This allowed them to influence decisions. They produced revolutionary pamphlets which reached out to the
ordinary people through public readings, extracts pasted on walls or proclaimed in the streets and copies
spread around cafés.
In the winter of 1791, there is a spreading rapidly of Cordeliers Club and they form a federation – these clubs
acted as sort of pressure groups
, The three dominate politician journalists, all of whom founded their own papers, were:
Camille Desmoulins: editor of Les Révolutions de France at de Brabant (November 1789-July 1791).
This was a fairly low-cost nationwide paper which strongly attacked the monarchy
Jean-Paul Marat: author of L’Ami du Peuple (September 1789-July 1793), a popular and influential
paper among the working people of Paris. It contained a long editorial and letters through which Marat
addressed his readers
Jacques-René Hébert: author of Le Père Duchesne (January 1791- March 1794). This was a humorous
and sometimes rather coarse publication, popular with workers, but with a ‘cult-following’ among some
of the higher classes who wanted to be seen as true to the revolution. The ‘hero’ of the paper was Père
Duchesne – a fictious pipe-smoking ‘man of the people.’
It is also clear that at this time the peasants were disillusioned. There is nothing in any of the reforms about
helping the peasants even though they still need land/food. It is clear that the middle class effectively believe
that they know what is best for the poor and they are the best people to discuss it. In 1790 there was a rural
revolution and also revolts in south/south-east of France. There were price-fixing riots (you can choose a price
for something, and you paid it). The sans-culottes were unhappy as prices of food are increasing – grain price
increased by 50%. The most significant issue is that it is now 2 years into the revolution, and nothing has
changed for most people
The King and the Flight to Varennes
The King had been placed in a difficult position ever since the establishment of the National Assembly; his
authority had been questioned, he had lost the support of his army, his Divine Right had been challenged and
his subjects showed an increasing lack of respect. However, by June 1791 he found his situation almost
intolerable.
He had been forced to accept changes that he clearly did not like
He was a ‘prisoner’ in the Tuileries
The Civil Constitution of the Clergy had challenged his deepest convictions, even though he had
accepted it in December 1790
The political clubs were blossoming and showing increasingly radical sentiment
On 2nd April 1791, his courtier Count Mirabeau had died. Mirabeau had been a member of the National
Assembly, favouring Constitutional monarch, and had acted as a ‘go-between’
On 18th April 1791, Louis and his family had planned to spend Easter at their nearby Palace of Saint-
Cloud, where they would have taken Mass, given by a refractory priest. They were prevented from
leaving the Tuileries by a mob flanked by National Guardsmen, who actions were in defiance of their
commander, Lafayette.
Louis’ wife and sister (Madame Elisabeth) urged the King to take action to resist the revolutionary
movement
The King and Queen were in contact with the growing band of émigré nobles who had wanted Louis to assert
his authority. Marie-Antionette had the assurances of her younger brother, Leopold, that he would help the
royal family and he had troops along the French borders in parts of the Austrian Netherlands that were under
his control. Though some believe that they were heading to Montmédy in France to begin with.
After the Saint-Clous incident in April 1791 where the family wanted to go to Saint-Cloud for Easter, but are
stopped by the mob, the King and his advisers decided that they should flee from Paris as they seem to be
becoming prisoners of the mob. Quite what their ultimate intentions were are not clear, but it is probably
unlikely that Louis was contemplating direct military action.
The escape attempt took place on the night of the 20/21 June and was marred by misunderstanding and errors
of judgement.
Count Fersen drove them, and he was well-known to be Marie-Antoinette’s lover and so some
historians believe that this could have been an escape of lovers
Louis rejected his advisers’ choice of route and suggestion that the royal family should travel
separately; instead, they travelled in a (large) six-horse berline. Though, they did travel in a more
average carriage and Louis would pretend to be a servant on the outside – they would also travel at
night
The departure was delayed (as it took an hour and a half to load and one of the wheels broke) and the
weight on the coach slowed the journey down. The troops waiting for Louis at Châllons left half an hour
before the royal family arrived (over two hours late), so the royal party continued without protection
When the National Assembly followed the royal family back to Paris after the October Days it made the Salle de
Manège (the riding school). Alongside the Tuileries gardens its meeting hall. Benches were erected for the
deputies and platforms for the Parisian who liked to attend and add their comments to the to the debates. The
deputies arranged themselves on the left and right of the President’s platform and their positions have given
the names left wing and right wing to political parties ever since. Even though the deputies were not members
of parties in the modern sense they, nevertheless, formed distinct groups.
On the right were the noirs, who were aristocrats and monarchists and the constitutional monarchists
sometimes known as Fayettists after their champion Lafayette. On the left were a more radical group which
followed Antione Barnarve and a tiny far left clique of which Maximilien Robespierre was the most vociferous.
The political clubs
The different interest groups established bases in Paris where they would meet to discuss issues, decide on
their policies, and produce pamphlets and papers to spread their ideas. Many of the political clubs had been
founded after the meeting of the Estates-General in May 1789
The noble faction met at the ‘Salon Français.’ They produced Les Actes des Apôrtes, a satirical pamphlet
which took up the defence of the monarchy and, from first publication in November 1789, soon offered
around three issues a week. L’Ami du Roi, first issued in June 1790, was another royalist publication.
The Société de 89, founded by Sièyes, was the meeting place of the supporters of constitutional
monarchy. It met at the Palais-Royal and charged a high entry fee, so its membership came from
moderates like Lafayette, Bailly, Mirabeau and Condorcet.
The Jacobins (the most known), on the left wing, were the heirs to the Breton Club, such had first been
set up at Versailles in May 1789 as a meeting place for the deputies from the Brittany area. They began
as a quite conservative group due to high entrance fees meaning most were very rich – there were
many constitutional royalists. It changed its name in January 1790 to ‘the Friends of the Constitution’
but soon acquired the nickname of the ‘Jacobin Club’ because its new home in Paris was the library of an
ex-Dominican monastery. They met daily, after the Assembly proceedings had finished and by August
1790, there were 152 affiliated ‘Jacobin’ clubs across France. Initially all members were deputies, but
the club rapidly expanded to over 1000 by the end of 1790, with its members being predominantly
bourgeois as membership fees were high. However, the club adopted a more radical position in 1791
which led some members to breakaway and created the moderate Feuillant Club in July of that year.
Fees were reduced and from October 1791 artisans and shopkeepers joined in large numbers.
The Cordeliers Club, on the left wing, began as the Société des Amis des Droits de L’Homme et du
Citoyen in April 1790. It took its nickname from the place where it met: a former Franciscan monastery
on the rue des Cordeliers. They had no membership fee meaning that anyone could turn up. It claimed
to protect citizens rights and keep a watch on the activities of the Assembly. The entry fee was minimal,
and membership was open to all including women and passive citizens – they favour the sans-culottes
and the working class. George Danton and Camille Desmoulins were the founders and Jean-Paul Marat
(later assassinated by Charlotte Corday) was a member. They are typical radicals – middle-class, well-
off and are either pro-working class or ashamed of their wealth. The club became the home of radical
democratic and Republican ideas. The Cordeliers linked itself to a number of local clubs in Paris in
1790. These included the Société Fraternelle founded in February 1790 where artisans and
shopkeepers met to have the Assembly’s decrees explained to them in a language that they could
understand. Hébert, a journalist, Brissot, a journalist, and Marat, a failed doctor who hated anyone who
had enjoyed the privileges of the regime were also members
These clubs were influential, both because of the membership of the clubs, which ranged from prominent
members of the Assembly to humble Parisian workers, and because of the ideas emerging from them. They
provided a platform for propaganda and often delivered their views in the form of petitions to the Assembly.
This allowed them to influence decisions. They produced revolutionary pamphlets which reached out to the
ordinary people through public readings, extracts pasted on walls or proclaimed in the streets and copies
spread around cafés.
In the winter of 1791, there is a spreading rapidly of Cordeliers Club and they form a federation – these clubs
acted as sort of pressure groups
, The three dominate politician journalists, all of whom founded their own papers, were:
Camille Desmoulins: editor of Les Révolutions de France at de Brabant (November 1789-July 1791).
This was a fairly low-cost nationwide paper which strongly attacked the monarchy
Jean-Paul Marat: author of L’Ami du Peuple (September 1789-July 1793), a popular and influential
paper among the working people of Paris. It contained a long editorial and letters through which Marat
addressed his readers
Jacques-René Hébert: author of Le Père Duchesne (January 1791- March 1794). This was a humorous
and sometimes rather coarse publication, popular with workers, but with a ‘cult-following’ among some
of the higher classes who wanted to be seen as true to the revolution. The ‘hero’ of the paper was Père
Duchesne – a fictious pipe-smoking ‘man of the people.’
It is also clear that at this time the peasants were disillusioned. There is nothing in any of the reforms about
helping the peasants even though they still need land/food. It is clear that the middle class effectively believe
that they know what is best for the poor and they are the best people to discuss it. In 1790 there was a rural
revolution and also revolts in south/south-east of France. There were price-fixing riots (you can choose a price
for something, and you paid it). The sans-culottes were unhappy as prices of food are increasing – grain price
increased by 50%. The most significant issue is that it is now 2 years into the revolution, and nothing has
changed for most people
The King and the Flight to Varennes
The King had been placed in a difficult position ever since the establishment of the National Assembly; his
authority had been questioned, he had lost the support of his army, his Divine Right had been challenged and
his subjects showed an increasing lack of respect. However, by June 1791 he found his situation almost
intolerable.
He had been forced to accept changes that he clearly did not like
He was a ‘prisoner’ in the Tuileries
The Civil Constitution of the Clergy had challenged his deepest convictions, even though he had
accepted it in December 1790
The political clubs were blossoming and showing increasingly radical sentiment
On 2nd April 1791, his courtier Count Mirabeau had died. Mirabeau had been a member of the National
Assembly, favouring Constitutional monarch, and had acted as a ‘go-between’
On 18th April 1791, Louis and his family had planned to spend Easter at their nearby Palace of Saint-
Cloud, where they would have taken Mass, given by a refractory priest. They were prevented from
leaving the Tuileries by a mob flanked by National Guardsmen, who actions were in defiance of their
commander, Lafayette.
Louis’ wife and sister (Madame Elisabeth) urged the King to take action to resist the revolutionary
movement
The King and Queen were in contact with the growing band of émigré nobles who had wanted Louis to assert
his authority. Marie-Antionette had the assurances of her younger brother, Leopold, that he would help the
royal family and he had troops along the French borders in parts of the Austrian Netherlands that were under
his control. Though some believe that they were heading to Montmédy in France to begin with.
After the Saint-Clous incident in April 1791 where the family wanted to go to Saint-Cloud for Easter, but are
stopped by the mob, the King and his advisers decided that they should flee from Paris as they seem to be
becoming prisoners of the mob. Quite what their ultimate intentions were are not clear, but it is probably
unlikely that Louis was contemplating direct military action.
The escape attempt took place on the night of the 20/21 June and was marred by misunderstanding and errors
of judgement.
Count Fersen drove them, and he was well-known to be Marie-Antoinette’s lover and so some
historians believe that this could have been an escape of lovers
Louis rejected his advisers’ choice of route and suggestion that the royal family should travel
separately; instead, they travelled in a (large) six-horse berline. Though, they did travel in a more
average carriage and Louis would pretend to be a servant on the outside – they would also travel at
night
The departure was delayed (as it took an hour and a half to load and one of the wheels broke) and the
weight on the coach slowed the journey down. The troops waiting for Louis at Châllons left half an hour
before the royal family arrived (over two hours late), so the royal party continued without protection
