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The Analysis of a Counter-Revolution

1963; Wiley; Volume: 3; Issue: 1 Linguagem: Inglês

10.2307/2504303

1468-2303

Charles Tilly,

French Historical and Cultural Studies

Just as a of heredity which could not account for the occasional appearance of dramatically new genetic traits would be considered incomplete, a of revolution, or analysis of a specific revolution, which provides no understanding of the presence of counter-revolutionary forces in the midst of a society in revolt must leave us unsatisfied. If a purports to tell us when and why a society is ready for rebellion, it also ought to tell us which sectors of the society will resist the rebellion, and why. Exceptions prove the rule. Counter-revolutions test our explanations of revolutions. If this is true, it is of no small interest to examine the ways that historians have handled the problem of counter-revolution. There is no theory of as such, but most analyses of counter-revolutions have relied implicitly on general conceptions of the nature of revolution. Almost always, furthermore, the historian's attitude toward the revolution in question has shaped his understanding of the counter-revolution which arose in its shadow. One might think that everyone would agree with Meusel's description of counter-revolution as an attempt to reverse the transformations effected in a revolution; its success signalizes the triumph of the upper class, which has been endangered and temporarily displaced by the revolution.' Yet this description rests on a particular (if popular) of revolution, one which leads to the conclusion that When a great revolution finally breaks, it encounters virtually no internal opposition; it appears to unite the people rather than to separate them into hostile camps. 2 It no longer seems indubitable that this is the case, even for the most frequently cited model, the great French Revolution. There is accordingly room for doubt about the corollary propositions on the nature of counter-revolution. One reasonable way to deal with this doubt would be to assemble information about a number of counter-revolutions, in order to discern any uniformities in their personnel, circumstances or organization. That would