Granger1
Hermione Granger
Mrs. Eulau
Period 3
28 September 2010
The Glory of the French Revolution
In S.E. Finer’s three-volume set, The History of Government, Finer boldly claims that the importance of the French Revolution surpasses other events in the history of government. Others oppose his statement and instead suggest that the American Revolution had more prestige than the French Revolution. Did the French and their national transformation surpass the Americans and their colonial victories, proving that the American Revolution was not as important? Yes. Did the French have more obstacles to face, but still continue their pursuit for liberty and equality? Yes. Did they transform their country’s political systems and traditions, without the support of other countries? Yes. Did their revolution inspire other nations to take action against their own flawed governments? Yes. Do perseverance, self-reliance, and setting an example for other countries make “the French Revolution the most important event in the history of government” (Finer 1517)?Yes.
TheAmerican Revolution, a noted event of leadership and innovative thinking, is simply not as important due to the fact that they had help from all of Europe and the changes that they made were not as radically enlightened as they claim to be.
“The Americans, who gave the impression that they were fighting only against the tyrannical prejudices of a mother country had rivals of England for their allies, the whole of Europe was united against the oppressor” (Finer 1517).Robespierre reprimanded the Americans’ haughtiness, “And you, brave Americans,” he stated, “your freedom was won with our blood and is protected by your alliance with us. What would be your fate if we no longer existed? You would crumble once again under the yoke of your enemy!” (Dunn19). Having to depend on another country to defend their nation detracts from the prestige of their revolution. Without the help of the French, the Americans simply would not have won the war against England. In contrast, the valiant French citizens relied on no one but themselves to successfully overthrow their King. In Sister Revolutions Dunn explains that,“The Americans… had ratified in 1787 a constitution that did not contain a Bill of Rights, and they still tolerated slavery. And were they not setting the clock back by retaining a Senate that mirrored the English hereditary House of Lords?” (Dunn18). “In this sense, their revolution signified a return, as the literal astronomical meaning of the word “revolution” suggest— “a circuit around a central axis, ending at the point from whence the motion began.” The importance of the American Revolution is diminished by their shallow attempts to enlighten their system of government. They neglected to include a bill of rights and approved of slavery.“The American Revolution had merely paved the way for the French Revolution, which would be based on truer, purer, and more profound principles” (Dunn18). The French proved they were forming their new government on enlightened ideas by treating citizens of France as equals and providing them with rights that, as a government France would protect.
Unlike the Americans, the French had many more obstacles to overcome on their quest for equality. France went into their revolution with even more than the 530 million livres in staggering debt (Dunn18). The French also faced a “bad harvest in 1787 and 1788, and a slowdown in manufacturing led to food shortages, rising prices for food, and unemployment. One the eve of the revolution, the number of poor—estimated at almost one-third of the population—reached crisis proportions” (Spielvogel 213). France begun their revolution with the odds already stacked against them; nonetheless they pursued their goal, equality for all. The Americans only had a few issues to resolve while the French had centuries of feudal traditions to abolish. In contrast to the French, “Americans, after all were content with their legal system; they had no feudal heritage to extirpate, no hereditary social orders to combat, no privileged leisure-class aristocracy to democratize and integrate into society… no wretched poverty to eliminate, and few domestic insurrections to quell” (Dunn11). “[They] had no vicious system of taxation to reform; and no feudal tyrannies, no hereditary distinctions, no rich powerful and privileged corporations, [and] no system of religious intolerance to destroy” echoes Finer.The American Revolution has been praised for all of its reforms, but the praise ought to be directed towards the French, for their perseverance in completely transforming their country’s government while facing such hardships.
“So it would be the French and not the Americans who were destined to dazzle the world with perfection… they have given a great example… Let us give it to the universe!” (Dunn 18). The French did dazzle Europe by influencing other countries to revolutionize their own flawed governments. The laws in the Declaration of the Rights of Man and other ideas soon spread across Europe. The French Revolution proved that the people have the ability to overthrow the government (Cody). Many European leaders worried that the revolution would spread to their lands. The monarchies of Austria and Prussia were so worried that they even threatened to use force to restore Louis XVI to full power (Speilvogel 217).Those leaders had a right to worry, all of France had caught a revolutionary fever, and its ideas and success story made it contagious. “The very scope of this revolution was unparalleled…It went dramatically further than elsewhere: more radical, more protracted and extending to classes that the American Revolution had largely left untouched” (Finer). Dunn elaborates explaining that, “Virtually all the vestiges of feudalism had been abolished. Citizens were equal before the law; the aristocracy was no longer a privileged elite exempt from taxes…Church property had been confiscated and sold; Jew and Protestants had been granted civil rights… married couples could divorce…and the principles of the rights of man were universally respected “. France, once the nation known for its strict absolutist monarch, unjust systems and laws, had transformed itself completely to be seen by the whole world as the leading example of a government for the people. The citizens of France had accomplished much more than any other country when it comes to the history of government.
The French Revolution is one event in history that will be studied and gone over by historians for years to come. The national transformation of the French Revolution surpassed the American Revolution. The French successfully completed their pursuit for liberty and equality against many obstacles. Unlike other revolutions and events in history, it was based on true, pure and profound standards. They successfully fought their oppressive government without any allies. Not only did they create an enlightened government, but through example they spread their ideas to other countries as well. The events, people, and ideas that consist of the French Revolution, truly make up “the most important event in the history of government” (Finer).