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The abolition of feudalism: peasants, lords, and legislators in the French Revolution

1997; Association of College and Research Libraries; Volume: 35; Issue: 01 Linguagem: Inglês

10.5860/choice.35-0511

1943-5975

French Historical and Cultural Studies

One of most important results of French Revolution was destruction of old feudal order, which for centuries had kept common people of countryside subject to lords. In this book, John Markoff addresses ways in which insurrectionary peasants and revolutionary legislators joined in bringing the time of lords to an end and how, in that ending, seigneurial rights came to be central to very sense of Revolution. He traces interaction of peasants and legislators, showing how they confronted, challenged, and implicitly negotiated with one another during course of events. Contrary to many historians who see source of revolutionary change in elite culture, Markoff argues that peasant insurrection was a crucial element of transformation of France. Of particular importance to study is Markoff's analysis of unique cahiers de doleances, lists of grievances drawn up in 1789 by rural communities, urban notables, and nobles alike. These documents are invaluable for understanding Revolution, but until pioneering work of Markoff and Gilbert Shapiro, they had not been studied systematically at national level. In addition to an unprecedented quantitative analysis of cahiers, Markoff traces ebb and flow of peasant insurrection across half a decade of revolutionary turbulence. He also offers qualitative analysis through his use of records of legislative debates as well as memoirs and journals of legislators. The Abolition of Feudalism breaks new ground in charting patterns of grievance and revolt in one of most important social and political upheavals in history.