British Reactions to the French Revolution

British Reactions to the French Revolution

As much as it was both reactionary zeal and genuine concern, much of Great Britain's Parliament felt compelled to restrict certain civil liberties (such as freedom of assembly and speech) in order to preserve the greater peace and thus saving England from the fate of France's failed revolution, whose Reign of Terror inspired fear in many European countries around it. English aristocrats and the Monarchy were very concerned over the course of events in France and as such would go to great pains to suppress any "radical" thinking or publishing (that is, any logic that mirrored or even resembled the "equality" ideals that fostered the revolution). The impassioned rhetoric of Edmond Burke and William Putt, Prime minister of England put into motion laws that would not only limit free speech, but also free thought in regards to the French political movement. Intellectual discussions of certain revolutionary ideas were banned and the writ of habeas corpus was temporarily suspended in 1794. While poets like William Wordsworth might indeed have been inspired by the nationalistic spirit and ideas of equality that the French National Assembly (the governing body of France during the revolution) proposed, the bloody turn of events in the French Revolution and the rise of Napoleon led not only to a new rise in conservatism in Europe(particularly in Wordsworth himself, who later in life identified himself as a conservative), but to reactionary laws in England.

The causes of the French revolution must be looked at if one is to understand why it caused the reactions it did in the British populace and their political figures. Among many other issues, royal absolutism throughout France was a leading cause of resentment in France, where the Royalty was very much in charge of the country's political and legal system. Not counting the twelve Parliaments of France (who were responsible for turning the King's decree into law), the King was the sole authority in the country; he was in charge of the military and the finances. Adding to the resentment heaped on by the Monarchy was the rising need to have a Republican state in a democratic form, which stemmed from the inadequateness of Louis XVI at solving France's problems and the writings of European Enlightened writers such as Voltaire and Locke help. The rising French middle class known as the Bourgeoisie (which comes from the French word Bourg, for "town") desired something more. They desired a rule founded in reason rather than in the divine right of Kings. Romantic poets such as William Wordsworth were excited at the prospect of a very new and very real republic forming right under their noses, and traveled to France. He wished to observe the events firsthand and toured the country, taking in the reality of the new Nation.

This new rise in the feeling of equality and Parliamentary reform that was engendered during the French Revolution started to spread throughout England, and many started to come together to discuss French ideals as applied to the English Parliamentary system. Thomas Paine wrote the Rights of Man in 1792, which greatly touted democratic reform in favor of a Republic and vehemently encouraged the populace to reject Britain's aristocratic ruling class. Paine expounded radical new ideas, such as maternity leave, mass public education, and other radical government proposals. A shoemaker by the name of Thomas Hardy put together a political society that would be in favor of suffrage for all men, (notice the word "men" not "people"). Many peasant and middle class citizens were attracted to the idea of suffrage for all men, and because it was relatively cheap to join, many did. However it was not as many as would be expected. Even in the most radical of the British towns, only 2000 joined. Meanwhile, in Scotland, a "British Convention" was held by radicals of the day. From that convention came a manifesto which, among other things, supported the ideals of the French Revolution and, similar to the ideas of the Revolution itself, called for a yearly vote. A good portion of these radicals were not just enamored of the French Revolution, but some of them wouldn't have objected at all if France had decided to invade England. These radicals were mostly of the leftist fringe in England at the time, and not in the majority. The majority, as in love with the revolution as they were, were distinctly pro-British and merely wanted to