Product Description

Concise, convincing and exciting, this is Christopher Hibbert’s brilliant account of the events that shook eighteenth-century Europe to its foundation. With a mixture of lucid storytelling and fascinating detail, he charts the French Revolution from its beginnings at an impromptu meeting on an indoor tennis court at Versailles in 1789, right through to the ‘coup d’etat’ that brought Napoleon to power ten years later. In the process he explains the drama and complexities of this epoch-making era in the compelling and accessible manner he has made his trademark. Writing in The Times, Richard Holmes described the book as ‘A spectacular replay of epic action …’ while The Good Book Guide called it, ‘Unquestionably the best popular history of the French Revolution’.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #61563 in Books
• Published on: 2001-10-25
• Original language: English
• Binding: Paperback
• 352 pages

Customer Reviews

A fine introduction to the subject
Well written and easy to read, Hibbert's account of the French revolution is an ideal starting point for those unfamiliar with the period. He makes understanding the shifting political groupings easy and his portraits of the protagonists breathe life into the whole. The description of the rising tide of mob violence is particularly effective.

Great narrative, easy read
This entertaining work concisely untangles the confusing succession of events, actors and institutions between 1789 and 1799. At the vivid depiction of the “journées” and the public serial guillotining, I could imagine myself being part of the haranguing crowd. A disturbing feeling.

However, I was disappointed that the book does not explore the ideas that catalysed this quest for new forms of government and social order.

A real eye-opener to a romanticised period
This book is a fascinating account of the real forces driving the French Revolution: not huddled masses rising up against a despot but a mixture of lawyers and merchants on the make who were eventually consumed by the monster that they created. The level of violence throughout is unbelievable, mobs, looters, and gangs of self-styled "assassins" roamed free summarily lynching anyone considered an enemy of whichever faction held sway in the government. It is shocking that the Revolution,given the tens of thousands of innocent victims that it claimed is still celebrated today; it is like the Russians celebrating the Gulags,or the British celebrating the anniversary of Bloody Sunday. Each key revolutionary leader, Robespierre, Marat, Danton, are given a brief biography before we learn of their inevitable demise, as infighting, graft, and factionalism destroy the Revolution's goals. An excellent read and a great introduction to the subject.