July 14 marks the 136th anniversary of the beginning of one of the most transformative events in human history: the French Revolution. Unlike other revolutions of its era (most notably the American Revolution of 1776), it was not merely a revolt against monarchical tyranny but also a radical shift in ideology, enshrined in its immortal slogan: Liberté, Égalité, Fraternité (liberty, equality and fraternity).
The idea that a nation could be ruled by its people rather than royalty shook Europe’s monarchy-driven mindset to its core. Unlike the American War of Independence or Cromwell’s revolt against Charles I, the French Revolution was a people’s uprising rather than a military campaign. It was also among the bloodiest, with the monarchy overthrown, and the King and Queen executed by the infamous guillotine before roaring crowds.
Though royalty briefly returned to France, its grip would never be the same. The French Revolution changed the way the Western world looked at government, laying the foundations for democracy (introducing universal suffrage, though initially only for men) and socialism. In essence, it showed the world that people could be in charge of a nation, and that ruling was not a divine right.
‘Alas, poor Louis’: Carlyle’s chronicle of the revolution
Thomas Carlyle and the cover of his book The French Revolution: A History.(Photo: Wikimedia Commons and amazon.in)
Few history books portray the French Revolution as dramatically as Thomas Carlyle’s The French Revolution: A History. Published in 1837 and spanning nearly 900 pages, Carlisle stepped away from the conventional dry narration of the period and adopted a tone that was dramatic and almost journalist-like, painting life-like verbal portraits of key personalities, most notably the almost fanatically virtuous Maximilien Robespierre, whom he famously dubbed the “seagreen incorruptible.”
The execution of Louis XVI (“Poor Louis, Death has found thee. No palace walls or life-guards, gorgeous tapestries or gilt buckram of stiffest ceremonial could keep him out; but he is here, here at thy very life-breath, and will extinguish it“), the fighting in the streets, struggle of the common folk, the corruption of the leadership, and the trials of the erstwhile rulers are captured in vivid, at times almost disturbing detail.
As with most writers of the period, Carlyle saw the French Revolution as a bloody uprising against royalty and viewed democracy with suspicion. However, his turn of phrase and vivid descriptions added a new dimension to the art of historical narration. It can get a little heavy to read, and we would recommend keeping Wikipedia handy as Carlisle does seem to assume that readers are familiar with key figures of the time, but The French Revolution: A History remains one of the must-read books on the French Revolution, almost two hundred years after its publication.
The irony is that Carlye almost did not write it, as the creation of the book was every bit as chaotic as the events it described. The offer of writing the book was first presented to the famous economist and philosopher John Stuart Mill, but he passed it on to Carlisle as he was pressed for time. That was not the end of it. Carlye wrote his first draft of the first volume of the series and sent it to Mill, but his maid destroyed it by accident, which meant he had to write it all over again! He did just that, and did not just write history, but rewrote the art of historical writing.
‘A far, far better thing…’: Dickens’ fictional masterpiece
Carlyle’s work of non-fiction also inspired arguably the most famous work of fiction involving the French Revolution. So impressed was Charles Dickens by Carlyle’s narration of the French Revolution that he wrote a historical novel around it, A Tale of Two Cities. Dickens’ book, which many consider to be among his best alongside David Copperfield, is a tragic story of love and sacrifice in the times of revolution and begins with lines that have become immortal:
“It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness, it was the epoch of belief, it was the epoch of incredulity, it was the season of Light, it was the season of Darkness, it was the spring of hope, it was the winter of despair, we had everything before us, we had nothing before us…”
Saint Antoine by Fred Barnard. An illustration that shows Barnard’s view of the environs of the Defarges’ wine shop in Dickens’s A Tale of Two Cities, Book 2, chap. xvi. (Source: Scanned image and text by Philip V. Allingham from The Victorian Web)
Although A Tale of Two Cities is a love story of sorts, and also involves the imprisonment of a French doctor and his escape to London to meet his daughter, aided by a selfless Sidney Carton who dies for love, it is the scenes of France in revolution that stayed with readers. Dickens’ narration of the event is very similar to Carlyle’s, painting an image of anarchy, savagery, and chaos, reflecting how most of Europe viewed the Revolution. The final words of Sidney Carton as he goes to his death live rent-free in the minds of everyone who has read the book: “It is a far, far better thing that I do, than I have ever done; it is a far, far better rest that I go to than I have ever known.”
The academic lens: Doyle and Schama on revolution
Book covers of the The Oxford History of the French Revolution by William Doyle and Simon Schama’s Citizens: A Chronicle of the French Revolution (Oxford Press and Penguin)
Those wanting a more classically historic look at the French Revolution can get the very impressive The Oxford History of the French Revolution by William Doyle. Unlike Dickens and Carlyle, Doyle’s work is a little on the dry side, but is far more objective. Here you get a closer look at the events that led to the revolution, and while his profiles of characters like Robespierre, Marat and Louis XVI might not be as compelling as those of Carlyle, Doyle nevertheless provides an in-depth look at the Revolution as well as its consequences. It is slightly textbook-like (it is actually prescribed as a textbook in many universities). Still, it is perhaps the most informative and objective look at the French Revolution and at around 500 pages, is not as hefty as Carlyle’s work.
If The Oxford History seems a trifle dull, one can try Simon Schama’s Citizens: A Chronicle of the French Revolution, which narrates the events in vivid and lively detail. His tone is largely cynical and his stress on violence paints a rather dark and horrific picture of the event (a toned-down Carlyle), but is compelling reading nevertheless, thanks to Schama’s narrative skill.
Before Batman: The Birth of the Literary Superhero
The French Revolution also inspired a work that laid the foundation of the modern superhero. If that sounds difficult to believe, consider this: a hero who pretends to be flippant and uncaring in the public eye, but is a master of disguise, a swordsman who ventures out in secret to rescue innocents from villainous criminals. Well, this was Sir Percy Blakeney, or as he was better known, The Scarlet Pimpernel. Baroness Orczy’s The Scarlet Pimpernel was published in 1905 and became a massive rage of its time, laying the foundation of a hero with two identities – a meek one on the surface and a heroic one in secret.
Sir Percy Blakeney is shown pitting his wits and crossing swords with the French authorities while rescuing English and French aristocrats from the guillotine in the Reign of Terror that was a part of the French Revolution. It may be very one-sided, but it does capture the tension of those times, and is brisk, witty and entertaining writing, and contains the famous poem, spoken in jest by Sir Percy about his secret alter ego: “They seek him here, they seek him there/Those Frenchies seek him everywhere/ Is he in heaven or is he in hell?/ That demned elusive Pimpernel.”
A scene from the PrimeTime Emmy Winner, The Scarlet Pimpernel (1982) directed by Clive Donner. (Source: Amazon Prime Video)
The Scarlet Pimpernel became a series of books and even inspired a Hollywood film (starring Leslie Howard as Sir Percy). Almost twenty years later, in 1921, Rafael Sabatini used a similar concept for Scaramouche, another book revolving around the French Revolution featuring a lawyer who disguises himself as a clownish, buffoon character called Scaramouche to dispense justice in those times of terror. Like Sir Percy, he is a skilled swordsman and also extremely witty. No, we do not know whether he did the Fandango (no matter what Freddie Mercury sang in Bomenian Rhapsody), but the book is an entertaining read, although a little difficult to find these days.
The Scarlet Pimpernel and Scaramouche were the forerunners of superhero characters such as Zorro, The Shadow, The Phantom, and, of course, Batman. Bruce Wayne is the modern-day Sir Percy Blakeney: a rich, famous social butterfly on the surface, an avenging angel fighting injustice and villainy in reality. In Christopher Nolan’s The Dark Knight Rises, Inspector Gordon reads out Sidney Carter’s immortal lines from A Tale of Two Cities at the grave of Bruce Wayne: “It is a far, far better thing that I do, than I have ever done; it is a far, far better rest that I go to than I have ever known.”
The revolution lives on
Democracy, socialism, universal suffrage, mob justice, public execution, even Batman, owe something to the French Revolution.
It was a seismic event that shook the world, inspired countless works of fiction and non-fiction, and continues to shape the narratives we tell today. It was, indeed, the best of times and the worst of times. And it’s still worth reading about.
Depiciton of the Storming of the Bastille by Jean-Pierre Houël, 14 July 1789; covers of Thomas Carlyle’s The French Revolution: A History, Charles Dickens' , A Tale of Two Cities and Baroness Orczy's The Scarlet Pimpernel. (worldhistory.org, amazon.in) 
Thomas Carlyle and the cover of his book The French Revolution: A History.(Photo: Wikimedia Commons and amazon.in)
Saint Antoine by Fred Barnard. An illustration that shows Barnard’s view of the environs of the Defarges’ wine shop in Dickens’s A Tale of Two Cities, Book 2, chap. xvi. (Source: Scanned image and text by Philip V. Allingham from The Victorian Web)
Book covers of the The Oxford History of the French Revolution by William Doyle and Simon Schama’s Citizens: A Chronicle of the French Revolution (Oxford Press and Penguin)
A scene from the PrimeTime Emmy Winner, The Scarlet Pimpernel (1982) directed by Clive Donner. (Source: Amazon Prime Video)
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