The Road from Versailles: Louis XVI, Marie Antoinette, and the Fall of the French Monarchy

Rating:
Summary: Incredibly Researched
Review: Author Munro Price has shown that intense research combined with informative speculation is consistent with successfully piecing together a very confusing and torrid sequence of events in Western European history. Price, through what appears to be pains taking information gathering, relays a brilliant account of the lives of some of the French Revolution's most influential players. He brings to light, to those not in the academic world, the Baron de Breteuil and his tremendous influence on the policy of counter-revolutionary France. Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette, the recipients of the brunt of the Revolution, were shown both in their glory and in the flaws that led to their eventual demise. Price has not failed to impress with his clearly thought out formulations of the mindset and personal weaknesses of Louis XVI and, in contrast, the inner strength of Marie Antoinette. This book is easily followed and is difficult to put down. I recommend to anyone interested in this monumental period of political change in Europe.

Rating:
Summary: 3.7 stars; a provisional grade
Review: Munro Price's history of how Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette confronted the French Revolution comes at a less than propitious time. In a month from now, we will see Timothy Tackett's book on the Flight to Varennes. Tackett's previous books have been known for their thorough and exhaustive research, and his newest book may be a stark contrast to Price's which, as we will soon see, is comparatively under-researched. Nevertheless this book does have something of considerable value. It has been known that the royal couple were less than thrilled with the Constitution of 1791 and were trying to deal with foreign powers which France was at war with. But what were their real plans? Price's book offers some real answers.

The answers are convincing because they are not ones that Price is fully comfortable with. Price's colleague and occasional co-writer, John Hardman, has been the most pro-Louis historian for a couple of generations, even in one book comparing Louis to a saint. It is well known that Louis' last pre July 14 prime minister, the Baron de Breteuil was given special powers to talk to other foreign powers. (His letter of authority from the king, was forged, but Price reasonably argues that the Queen was just forcing the pace on her indecisive husband. The letter would not have worked if it did not represent Louis' views, and the plans for the Flight of Varennes could not have occurred without his knowledge and support.) But what were Louis XVI and Breteuil planning for France during the Flight to Varennes and the war with Europe? On at least two occasions the royal couple destroyed valuable documentation, while Breteuil was careful to leave as little information as possible. However with some diligence Price tracked down the papers of an ally of Breteuil, the Marquis de Bomballes, and found out what the royalists were planning. The result is devastating to Louis XVI's reputation.

Recently several scholars, most noticeably Keith Baker, have argued that by refusing a bicameral legislature in 1789, the National Assembly paved the way to totalitarianism and rejected reasonable compromise. It is clear from Bomballes' papers that the king had no interest in such a legislature. Royalists rejected it in 1789, and he and Breteuil rejected it several times in 1791-92. Louis had no interest in the Constitution of 1791, which he had swore to uphold, or using its mechanisms for amending it. He did not wish to go back to the National Assembly, but to the Estates General, giving the Nobles and the Clergy certain powers of veto. He did not plan to compromise with the Assemblies, but seek to use either his own troops to overwhelm them, or use the victory of foreign troops to get what he wanted. Although often unable to make a decision, these were his basic principles, pushed and prodded on by his wife.

This is the most valuable part of the book, and there are descriptions of the Flight of Varennes, the events of August 10 and the battle of Valmy that readers will find interesting. There are also interesting accounts of the royalist players, such as Breteuil's libidinous activities, and his daughter's affairs with an emigre bishop. I have some reservations about the book. (1) There are not that many new sources outside of the Bomballes papers, giving the book a somewhat padded feeling. (2) Certain counter-revolutionary activities could use more detail. There is only a brief mention of the affair of the Marquis de Favras, though Barry Shapiro in his book "Revolutionary Justice" points out that this was a major conspiracy which compromised the king's brother, Monsieur, later Louis XVIII. Price also briefly mentions a plan involving Danton to buy the royal family's freedom, which I would have liked to hear more about. (3) There is a somewhat indulgent tone about the royal couple, as Price tries to refute the idea that they were a pair of nitwits. This is not very convincing, especially since Price believes that Louis did not realize that ejaculation was a necessary condition for conception, while Marie Antoinette's suggestions were almost always unhelpful. At one point, in writing about the royal couple's last meeting before Louis was sent to a scaffold, Price sentimentally says that the two had found a kind of love, though he has elsewhere said that the Queen was sleeping with the Swedish aristocrat Fersen. (4) On certain points, like the royal couple's failure to conceive, or Breteuil's attitude towards Necker, Price relies on limited and self-serving sources. (5) Likewise he is not very acute on revolutionary "paranoia," particularly when he has shown that the republicans were right; the royal couple were traitors, and their treason implicated everyone who tried to deal with them in good faith. (6) Price has the odd tendency to claim that the king could have succeeded if he had just been decisive enough to call on the army. This is an odd argument, because every time it was considered the soldiers showed signs of mutiny and general untrustworthiness, whether it was at the fall of the Bastille, the Flight to Varennes, August 10, 1792, Lafayette's attempted coup, or Dumoriez's treason. And this was before they knew Louis' full plans. (6) Finally this is a history of a select group of individuals. We learn nothing about monarchist ideology or the royalist press, and we learn nothing about why the king never tried to mobilize public opinion on his side. The contrast with Britain, as seen in Linda Colley's "Britons", is rather striking.

Rating:
Summary: Interesting history
Review: The Road from Versailles is more than another retelling of this laboriously studied part of the French Revolution. It is a well-written narration, with excellently crafted literary panache and skill that really translate into a rousing read for any reader. More than that however, author Munro Price offers some very good new sources that lend a lot to his ideas concerning the last days of the Bourbon monarchy. His interpretation avoids the trap of dry repetitive narration/research and instead relies on new sources of information to explain the authors somewhat unique viewpoint.

The Road from Versailles begins in familiar territory. As the reign of Louis XVI continued, France fell further and further into failure, both economic and militarily. France was reeling from numerous failures abroad, most notably the defeat at the hand of the British in North America during the French and Indian War. Economically, the country was an absolute disaster. Even the royal government itself was not sure of the nations finances, and the system was bleeding funds chronically. People wanted someone to blame for their conditions, and they found a good candidate in the Austrian princess Marie Antoinette. Her heritage and her penchant for finery quickly gained her the ire of the French public. As disasters mounted, the monarchy came under attack from all sides. It was clear that, politically, Louis XVI would have to alter his role. How to do this was the big question. Rapidly, the question became moot as the street violence exploded.

Munro concentrates on the minor, or supposedly minor, character of Breteuil, a royal minister. Using new documents, Munro suggests that Breteuil was much more involved than previously though, especially concerning the various royal plots to aid the royals in their escape from Paris. One of the best parts of the book is its emphasis on what was happening outside of France, as numerous plots were being hatched to either evacuate the royal government or to reestablish its power by military force. The decisions and actions made and taken by the royal family are also examined. Munro tries to explain Louis XVI inaction and floundering a little too much, I thought. I believe the simple answer is that Louis was a very foolish person, who had little political comprehension besides the absolutionist system he was born into. Marie is shown as quite active, but not as devious as proposed in the some other works. Munro does a great job of explaining his conclusions to the reader in a way that is accessible to both popular and academic readers. A very good work of history.

Rating:
Summary: Good History
Review: The Road from Versailles is more than another retelling of this laboriously studied part of the French Revolution. It is a well-written narration, with excellently crafted literary panache and skill that really translate into a rousing read for any reader. More than that however, author Munro Price offers some very good new sources that lend a lot to his ideas concerning the last days of the Bourbon monarchy. His interpretation avoids the trap of dry repetitive narration/research and instead relies on new sources of information to explain the authors somewhat unique viewpoint.

The Road from Versailles begins in familiar territory. As the reign of Louis XVI continued, France fell further and further into failure, both economic and militarily. France was reeling from numerous failures abroad, most notably the defeat at the hand of the British in North America during the French and Indian War. Economically, the country was an absolute disaster. Even the royal government itself was not sure of the nations finances, and the system was bleeding funds chronically. People wanted someone to blame for their conditions, and they found a good candidate in the Austrian princess Marie Antoinette. Her heritage and her penchant for finery quickly gained her the ire of the French public. As disasters mounted, the monarchy came under attack from all sides. It was clear that, politically, Louis XVI would have to alter his role. How to do this was the big question. Rapidly, the question became moot as the street violence exploded.

Munro concentrates on the minor, or supposedly minor, character of Breteuil, a royal minister. Using new documents, Munro suggests that Breteuil was much more involved than previously though, especially concerning the various royal plots to aid the royals in their escape from Paris. One of the best parts of the book is its emphasis on what was happening outside of France, as numerous plots were being hatched to either evacuate the royal government or to reestablish its power by military force. The decisions and actions made and taken by the royal family are also examined. Munro tries to explain Louis XVI inaction and floundering a little too much, I thought. I believe the simple answer is that Louis was a very foolish person, who had little political comprehension besides the absolutionist system he was born into. Marie is shown as quite active, but not as devious as proposed in the some other works. Munro does a great job of explaining his conclusions to the reader in a way that is accessible to both popular and academic readers. A very good work of history.

Rating:
Summary: Interesting history
Review: This was an interesting and very readable book - I was sorry to see it end. It was obviously painstakingly researched and contains a lot of little known information about Louis and Marie-Antoinette and particularly their attitude toward the revolution which eventually killed them. It includes details about Marie-Antoinette's actions and attitudes that the general public may be surprised at - she was not just another pretty face who let events unfold - instead she apparently became stronger and took an active part in events.

Even though the death of the king and queen were inevitable I found myself rooting for their escape. The book almost reads like a novel, but is a true and absorbing story.