Table of Contents

Acknowledgements; Maps; Introduction; 1. The legacy of French history: the geopolitical challenge; 2. The legacy of French history: the sociopolitical challenge; 3. The approaches to revolution, 1774–88: the geopolitical challenge; 4. The approaches to revolution, 1774–88: the sociopolitical challenge; 5. The onset of revolution: from August 1788 to October 1789; Conclusion; Suggestions for further reading; Index.

Promotional Information

This book, first published in 2004, offers an interesting synthesis of the long- and short-term causes of the French Revolution.

Reviews

"Stone has ranged very widely over the secondary literature; his erudition is impressive and his book is crammed with information." Norman Hampson, International History Review "This volume offers nothing less than a novel reinterpretation of the French Revolution...This densely written book, based on a very wide reading about the French Revolution, provides a complicated argument. It is exciting, interesting, well-researched and contains sections that summarize very complex and somewhat inaccessible debates." Jack R. Censer, Journal of Social History "...Stone has performed a useful service in bringing together recent historical work on these topics and blending them into a concise narrative of France's slide towrd 1789...Stone writes clearly, and his argument is easy to follow...[T]he book will certainly appeal to students trying to make sense of a bulging and untidy historical literature. The synthesis of works on the neglected field of early modern France's international relations is particularly helpful." David A. Bell, Journal of Interdisciplinary History