The French Revolutionary Wars, 1787-1802 (Modern Wars) [Hardcover]

T. C. W. Blanning (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0340645334 | ISBN-13: 978-0340645338 | Publication Date: March 29, 1996

The French revolutionaries mobilized the largest army seen in Europe, and, pursuing total war, succeeded in conquering a large part of the European continent. However, they were not content with purely territorial aggrandisement: they also attempted ideological conquest, spreading their revolutionary creed of liberty, equality and fraternity. The progress of the revolutionary armies is both narrated and analyzed in this study of the wars, with particular attention paid to the legacy of the old regime, the response of the other European powers, and the reasons for French success. Yet this success was won at a terrible cost: inside France, the war brought the end of pluralism, civil war and the Terror, burdening the country with an enduring legacy of instability. This interaction between events at the front and developments at home is studied in full in this text. There is also careful analysis of the mixed blessings bestowed on the rest of Europe by the impact of the Revolutionary armies. The author ends with the assertion that it was not the French Revolution which created the modern world but the French Revolutionary wars.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"...a superb work of historiography. Far more ambitious than its modest title suggests, it is a history of the French Revolution as well as a military and diplomatic history of Europe from 1787 to 1802....this book is more than a tour de force of erudition. It is a richly textured, engaging narrative punctuated by cogent, often brilliant analysis."--France Review of Books

--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

About the Author

T.C.W. Blanning, Professor of Modern European History, University of Cambridge.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 304 pages
• Publisher: Hodder Education Publishers (March 29, 1996)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0340645334
• ISBN-13: 978-0340645338
• Product Dimensions: 9.8 x 6.8 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,408,132 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

8 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars good account of sometimes overlooked wars, June 21, 2007

By 

Dr. Andrew Grimsdale (Singapore) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The French Revolutionary Wars, 1787-1802 (Modern Wars) (Paperback)

The wars between Revolutionary France and the other European states before the Peace of Amiens are sometimes neglected compared to the succeeding Napoleonic Wars. This book provides a good account of these wars and explains lucidly the connection between events in western and eastern Europe. The author also shows how the book both arose from domestic French politics and helped shape them. What I found particularly interesting was the sagacity of Robespierre - his comments about "No-one loves armed missionaries" and "You cannot export liberty at bayonet point" take on extra significance when one considers recent events in Iraq. The way in which wartime necessities were used to justify suppression of political and personal liberties also has an awful contemporary resonance. For anyone wanting a brief and readable account of these wars this is as far as I know the only one available. One complaint I would have is that the author could have used better maps, but this does not detract from what is an excellent account which all students of the period could benefit from reading.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent book, December 11, 2009

By 

Tim Ruffner "Ruffdog" (Hamilton, NJ) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: The French Revolutionary Wars, 1787-1802 (Modern Wars) (Paperback)

This is an excellent book on the French revolution. I find myself using it often as a reference book. The chapter on the causes of the revolution, is very illuminating. I found the discussion of the Austrian and Prussian response to the revolution, and the reasons thereof, very well presented. Overall, a very good book.

4.0 out of 5 stars A definitively good one, October 28, 2010

By 

Stephan78 - See all my reviews

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This review is from: The French Revolutionary Wars, 1787-1802 (Modern Wars) (Paperback)

Blanning writes clearly and you always get the feel he knows what he's saying. The book gives a complete outlook over the 1787-1802 period, touching all of the subjects and giving a clear picture of the French Revolutionary Wars.

However, for a person interested mainly in military History of the wars, as me, the book could be a little dissapointing because Blanning's aim is to give a summary, more or less a complete view, with its political, geographical, economical and also militar considerations, but the last not being the main center.

In a nutshell: A good one, specially because there is little bibliography on the subject. Don't hesitate to get it.