Federalism/regionalism during the French Revolution

Inspired by some of the discussion in the current Rhineland thread, I wanted to focus on something a bit more specific. How much of a movement was there for regionalism/federalism during the French Revolution? What could bring it more to the fore against the Jacobin impulses?
 

Thande

Donor
Regionalism, in a broad sense, was a big motivation for counter-revolutionaries, largely because the provinces which had had various special privileges under the ancien regime (such as Brittany) stood to lose them thanks to the Jacobins centralising and homogenising French governance. But I'm not sure what you mean.
 
I meant whether there was any push for regionalist ideology within revolutionary forces and thinkers. It seems strange that *no one* would argue for a federal republic. Didn't any of the revolutionaries from Marseille or Strasbourg worry about their culture and language being subsumed into Parisian French?
 
I meant whether there was any push for regionalist ideology within revolutionary forces and thinkers. It seems strange that *no one* would argue for a federal republic. Didn't any of the revolutionaries from Marseille or Strasbourg worry about their culture and language being subsumed into Parisian French?

There was a "federalist" series of uprisings against the Jacobins indeed.
 
I think it was A.G. who said the Paris Commune ultimately wanted a federalist France, like the Girondins did.

I don't know a whole lot about the Girondins, but maybe they weren't into centralized power.
 
I think it was A.G. who said the Paris Commune ultimately wanted a federalist France, like the Girondins did.

I don't know a whole lot about the Girondins, but maybe they weren't into centralized power.

They were, when they held it, they weren't, after they lost it. (well, things are of course way more complex, but I can't say anything more detailed right now).
 
Girondins were a bit afraid of the Revolution. They wanted a mixture of the Ancien Régime (regionalist) and the Jacobinism (centralism). As for their position toward the king, they were between the two positions.

That's why they lost, because their position were untenable
 
Top