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Chapter Three
Chapter Three - The Decade of Revolution
“The events in France are most disturbing. The public execution of the king and the chaotic violence in the streets of Paris are antithetical to the ideals of liberty that the revolutionaries claim to support. His Majesty’s Government calls on the French government to cease their massacres and restore peace to their nation.” - Foreign Affairs Secretary John Jay (September 1793).
Just three months after the ascension of King Henry to the throne of the United States, an American-inspired revolution would break out in France. On July 14, 1789, a group of rebels would storm the French armory and prison known as the Bastille. A symbol of oppression and autocracy, the destruction of The Bastille would ignite the flames of revolution in France.
Storming of the Bastille
France had been in turmoil since the Seven Years’ War. The nation had been failing to pay off its debts and entry into the American Revolutionary War only made the situation worse. King Louis XVI, heavily influenced by the aristocracy and the clergy, continued to raise taxes on the Third Estate, resulting the already-impoverished lower class to suffer even more. A series of bad decisions and miscalculations by Louis XVI pushed the peasants and commoners to revolt against the status quo. King Louis was forced to relinquish many of his powers in 1791 as the revolutionaries attempted to institute and Anglo-American style of government; however, this government would only survive for a year. The French Revolution became increasingly radical and bloody after King Louis and his family attempted an escape from France to the Austrian Netherlands, leading to his powers to be suspended indefinitely. Paranoia began to spread across France that the traditionalist powers of Europe (namely Austria and Prussia) were plotting to invade France to reinstate Louis XVI’s absolute rule and quell the revolution, leading to the Assembly voting to declare war on Austria and Prussia, igniting the French Revolutionary War. Roughly six months after, the monarchy was formally abolished and the French Republic was declared.
King Louis XVI and his family arrested at Varennes (June 21, 1791)
The newly established National Convention, dominated by radicals, puts the deposed king on trial for “conspiracy against public liberty” and finds him guilty. By a single vote, he is sentenced to death and publicly executed on January 21, 1793. The extremely controversial execution of King Louis XVI led to the breakdown of diplomatic relations between Great Britain and France, leading to the British joining the growing anti-revolutionary coalition. Despite this, the Jacobins solidified their grip on power, expelling the moderates, ratifying a new constitution, and establishing the Committee of Public Safety. The Convention and the Committee of Public Safety would soon begin rapidly arresting and executing suspected opponents of the Revolution. Between June of 1793 and July of 1794, 16,000 French citizens were tried and executed under Robespierre’s rule. It was not until Maximilien Robespierre gave a fiery speech to the Convention, claiming there were traitors and demanding their arrest and execution, that his reign would end. The Convention rose against him, ordering the arrest of him and his brother. On July 29, Robespierre and his allies were publicly executed, and the Reign of Terror was finally over.
The next year would be objectively better for France. In April, France and Prussia officially signed a peace agreement, putting Prussia out of the French Revolutionary War and recognizing France’s claim on the left bank of the Rhine. Spain would sign a peace deal three months later, granting France control of Saint Domingue. In August, a new constitution is ratified, inspired by the American and British bicameral legislatures. The executive would be known as the “Directory” and composed of five Directors. France would turn her sights to Italy, where General Napoleon Bonaparte would carve out “sister republics” as allies. Spain would also sign an alliance with France and declare war on Great Britain in August. France would attempt an invasion of Ireland by the end of the year; however, a storm wrecked much of the French fleet and the operation was deemed a disaster. As peace neared with Austria and Great Britain, the government of France was badly divided. Recent elections gave the Royalists, running on a peace campaign, majorities in both chambers. Rumors circulated that a coup may occur against the Royalist majorities shortly after the elections, but nothing would come of it that year.
The unstable peace between France and the rest of Europe would begin to falter in the spring of 1798. In April, the Royalists deepened their majorities in the government. This worried many who supported the republic and the revolution, namely General Jean Moreau, a devout revolutionary and an opponent of a Bourbon restoration.
General Jean Moreau, an effective commander and a pragmatic revolutionary
Jean Moreau fought hard to preserve the revolution, and he did not want to see a return to the past. He decided to take matters into his own hands. On 5 Prairial (May 24), General Jean Moreau and his army marched into Paris. Moreau and his army stormed Parliament, declaring the government dissolved. The Royalist deputies were shocked with what they witnessed, while republican deputies were delighted to see Moreau storm Parliament. Moreau declared that a new constitution would be drafted and that the revolution shall be “forever preserved.” His constitution would declare him “Consul,” a military position that would be appointed for a ten-year term. The Congress of France would be established, with a directly elected House of Representatives and an appointed Senate, with equal representation for each department. The new elections secured republican majorities in both chambers.
For roughly six months, the only nation at war with France was Great Britain, which had been barely engaging France since the exit of Austria in October of 1797. Because of this, General Napoleon Bonaparte set sail just days before 5 Prairial to invade Egypt, held by the Ottoman Empire. That year, however, Britain and Austria organized a new coalition to attack France, this time with the Russian Empire. Napoleon Bonaparte, bogged down in Egypt, was cut off by the Royal Navy and was stranded. He withdrew his forces from Syria and concentrated back in Egypt, where he successfully fought off attempts by the British and Ottomans to take back Egypt. Bonaparte’s reputation would suffer from this campaign. He suffered defeats as his army became outnumbered and many of his men succumbed to the plague. General Bonaparte was forced to surrender to British forces after the Siege of Alexandria, thus ending fighting in Egypt. In Europe, the military situation had gone better for France. Russian and Austrian forces were routed from the Helvetic Republic in a decisive victory for France. Consul Moreau led troops to victory in Bavaria, namely at the Battle of Hohenlinden. Shortly after, Austria sued for peace for a second time. By 1802, the French Revolutionary War had finally ended.
Now, time to head back across the Atlantic.
The United States had avoided entangling itself in the French Revolutionary War, officially maintaining a neutral status. Public opinion was initially favorable towards the revolutionaries as they sympathized with their cause and understood their struggle, but as news of atrocities reached the United States, opinion turned against the French Revolution. The Adams Government held a firm position against the revolution shortly after the king’s execution in early 1793. King Henry I and President Adams, along with many members of Congress, condemned the execution of Louis XVI and believed the revolution was becoming too radical. During the war, the United States was harassed by both the British and French navies despite being neutral. To avoid a full-scale war with Great Britain, Foreign Affairs Secretary John Jay drafted a treaty with the British to resolve conflicts stemming from the Treaty of Paris and opening trade with Great Britain and her colonies. James Madison and the Liberty Party denounced this treaty, claiming it violated American neutrality and was strengthening the Whig Party’s control of Congress. Despite this, the treaty (known today as the Jay Treaty) passed the Senate and was approved by the king. After holding their majorities in the 1794 elections, President Adams took more controversial moves against violations of neutrality. Known as the Alien and Sedition Acts, the Adams Government tightened restrictions on immigration and granted the government power to deport immigrants and non-citizens from hostile nations. This would later doom the Whigs four years later, and in 1798, Madison’s Liberty Party took control of Congress.
Much of this is similar to OTL, but don't worry, the butterflies will keep getting stronger from here.
“The events in France are most disturbing. The public execution of the king and the chaotic violence in the streets of Paris are antithetical to the ideals of liberty that the revolutionaries claim to support. His Majesty’s Government calls on the French government to cease their massacres and restore peace to their nation.” - Foreign Affairs Secretary John Jay (September 1793).
Just three months after the ascension of King Henry to the throne of the United States, an American-inspired revolution would break out in France. On July 14, 1789, a group of rebels would storm the French armory and prison known as the Bastille. A symbol of oppression and autocracy, the destruction of The Bastille would ignite the flames of revolution in France.
Storming of the Bastille
France had been in turmoil since the Seven Years’ War. The nation had been failing to pay off its debts and entry into the American Revolutionary War only made the situation worse. King Louis XVI, heavily influenced by the aristocracy and the clergy, continued to raise taxes on the Third Estate, resulting the already-impoverished lower class to suffer even more. A series of bad decisions and miscalculations by Louis XVI pushed the peasants and commoners to revolt against the status quo. King Louis was forced to relinquish many of his powers in 1791 as the revolutionaries attempted to institute and Anglo-American style of government; however, this government would only survive for a year. The French Revolution became increasingly radical and bloody after King Louis and his family attempted an escape from France to the Austrian Netherlands, leading to his powers to be suspended indefinitely. Paranoia began to spread across France that the traditionalist powers of Europe (namely Austria and Prussia) were plotting to invade France to reinstate Louis XVI’s absolute rule and quell the revolution, leading to the Assembly voting to declare war on Austria and Prussia, igniting the French Revolutionary War. Roughly six months after, the monarchy was formally abolished and the French Republic was declared.
King Louis XVI and his family arrested at Varennes (June 21, 1791)
The newly established National Convention, dominated by radicals, puts the deposed king on trial for “conspiracy against public liberty” and finds him guilty. By a single vote, he is sentenced to death and publicly executed on January 21, 1793. The extremely controversial execution of King Louis XVI led to the breakdown of diplomatic relations between Great Britain and France, leading to the British joining the growing anti-revolutionary coalition. Despite this, the Jacobins solidified their grip on power, expelling the moderates, ratifying a new constitution, and establishing the Committee of Public Safety. The Convention and the Committee of Public Safety would soon begin rapidly arresting and executing suspected opponents of the Revolution. Between June of 1793 and July of 1794, 16,000 French citizens were tried and executed under Robespierre’s rule. It was not until Maximilien Robespierre gave a fiery speech to the Convention, claiming there were traitors and demanding their arrest and execution, that his reign would end. The Convention rose against him, ordering the arrest of him and his brother. On July 29, Robespierre and his allies were publicly executed, and the Reign of Terror was finally over.
The next year would be objectively better for France. In April, France and Prussia officially signed a peace agreement, putting Prussia out of the French Revolutionary War and recognizing France’s claim on the left bank of the Rhine. Spain would sign a peace deal three months later, granting France control of Saint Domingue. In August, a new constitution is ratified, inspired by the American and British bicameral legislatures. The executive would be known as the “Directory” and composed of five Directors. France would turn her sights to Italy, where General Napoleon Bonaparte would carve out “sister republics” as allies. Spain would also sign an alliance with France and declare war on Great Britain in August. France would attempt an invasion of Ireland by the end of the year; however, a storm wrecked much of the French fleet and the operation was deemed a disaster. As peace neared with Austria and Great Britain, the government of France was badly divided. Recent elections gave the Royalists, running on a peace campaign, majorities in both chambers. Rumors circulated that a coup may occur against the Royalist majorities shortly after the elections, but nothing would come of it that year.
The unstable peace between France and the rest of Europe would begin to falter in the spring of 1798. In April, the Royalists deepened their majorities in the government. This worried many who supported the republic and the revolution, namely General Jean Moreau, a devout revolutionary and an opponent of a Bourbon restoration.
General Jean Moreau, an effective commander and a pragmatic revolutionary
Jean Moreau fought hard to preserve the revolution, and he did not want to see a return to the past. He decided to take matters into his own hands. On 5 Prairial (May 24), General Jean Moreau and his army marched into Paris. Moreau and his army stormed Parliament, declaring the government dissolved. The Royalist deputies were shocked with what they witnessed, while republican deputies were delighted to see Moreau storm Parliament. Moreau declared that a new constitution would be drafted and that the revolution shall be “forever preserved.” His constitution would declare him “Consul,” a military position that would be appointed for a ten-year term. The Congress of France would be established, with a directly elected House of Representatives and an appointed Senate, with equal representation for each department. The new elections secured republican majorities in both chambers.
For roughly six months, the only nation at war with France was Great Britain, which had been barely engaging France since the exit of Austria in October of 1797. Because of this, General Napoleon Bonaparte set sail just days before 5 Prairial to invade Egypt, held by the Ottoman Empire. That year, however, Britain and Austria organized a new coalition to attack France, this time with the Russian Empire. Napoleon Bonaparte, bogged down in Egypt, was cut off by the Royal Navy and was stranded. He withdrew his forces from Syria and concentrated back in Egypt, where he successfully fought off attempts by the British and Ottomans to take back Egypt. Bonaparte’s reputation would suffer from this campaign. He suffered defeats as his army became outnumbered and many of his men succumbed to the plague. General Bonaparte was forced to surrender to British forces after the Siege of Alexandria, thus ending fighting in Egypt. In Europe, the military situation had gone better for France. Russian and Austrian forces were routed from the Helvetic Republic in a decisive victory for France. Consul Moreau led troops to victory in Bavaria, namely at the Battle of Hohenlinden. Shortly after, Austria sued for peace for a second time. By 1802, the French Revolutionary War had finally ended.
Now, time to head back across the Atlantic.
The United States had avoided entangling itself in the French Revolutionary War, officially maintaining a neutral status. Public opinion was initially favorable towards the revolutionaries as they sympathized with their cause and understood their struggle, but as news of atrocities reached the United States, opinion turned against the French Revolution. The Adams Government held a firm position against the revolution shortly after the king’s execution in early 1793. King Henry I and President Adams, along with many members of Congress, condemned the execution of Louis XVI and believed the revolution was becoming too radical. During the war, the United States was harassed by both the British and French navies despite being neutral. To avoid a full-scale war with Great Britain, Foreign Affairs Secretary John Jay drafted a treaty with the British to resolve conflicts stemming from the Treaty of Paris and opening trade with Great Britain and her colonies. James Madison and the Liberty Party denounced this treaty, claiming it violated American neutrality and was strengthening the Whig Party’s control of Congress. Despite this, the treaty (known today as the Jay Treaty) passed the Senate and was approved by the king. After holding their majorities in the 1794 elections, President Adams took more controversial moves against violations of neutrality. Known as the Alien and Sedition Acts, the Adams Government tightened restrictions on immigration and granted the government power to deport immigrants and non-citizens from hostile nations. This would later doom the Whigs four years later, and in 1798, Madison’s Liberty Party took control of Congress.
Much of this is similar to OTL, but don't worry, the butterflies will keep getting stronger from here.
EDIT: Made minor corrections on map.- Roosevelt
- Word Count: 1.5k