Britain and the French Revolution

The French Revolution catapulted Europe into a new period of political upheaval, social change, and into the modern era.This book provides a concise introduction to the impact of the French Revolution on Britain and to the ways in which this impact has been assessed by historians.The book is organised thematically. It begins with a survey of the ideological debate sparked off by the Revolution discussing, in particular, the work of people such as Burke, Paine, Spence and Wollstonecraft. From here it presents an exploration of the Revolution s impact on Parliamentary polities The growth of radicalism and loyalism The way in which French ideas influenced Irish aspirations to generate rebellion The third main section of the book focuses on the causes and course of Britain s war with Revolutionary France, and on the effects of the war on the home front, most notably the recurrent, serious food shortages.

About the Author

Clive Emsley is Professor of History at the Open University and one of the two General Editors for the Seminar Studies in History Series.