Peter McPhee

A strinking account of the impact of the French Revolution in Paris, across the French countryside, and around the globe The French Revolution has fascinated, perplexed, and inspired for more than two centuries. It was a seismic event that radically transformed France and launched shock waves across the world. In this provocative new history, Peter McPhee draws on a lifetime’s study of eighteenth-century France and Europe to create an entirely fresh account of the world’s first great modern revolution—its origins, drama, complexity, and significance. Was the Revolution a major turning point in French—even world—history, or was it instead a protracted period of violent upheaval and warfare that wrecked millions of lives? McPhee evaluates the Revolution within a genuinely global context: Europe, the Atlantic region, and even farther. He acknowledges the key revolutionary events that unfolded in Paris, yet also uncovers the varying experiences of French citizens outside the gates of the city: the provincial men and women whose daily lives were altered—or not—by developments in the capital. Enhanced with evocative stories of those who struggled to cope in unpredictable times, McPhee’s deeply researched book investigates the changing personal, social, and cultural world of the eighteenth century. His startling conclusions redefine and illuminate both the experience and the legacy of France’s transformative age of revolution. “McPhee…skillfully and with consummate clarity recounts one of the most complex events in modern history…. [This] extraordinary work is destined to be the standard account of the French Revolution for years to come.”—Publishers Weekly (starred review)

The French Revolution

Liberty or Death

This volume provides an authoritative synthesis of recent work on the social history of France and is now thoroughly revised and updated to cover the 'long nineteenth century' from 1789-1914. Peter McPhee offers both a readable narrative and a distinctive, coherent argument about this century. McPhee explores themes such as peasant interaction with the environment, the changing experience of work and leisure, the nature of crime and protest, changing demographic patterns and family structure, the religious practices of workers and peasants, and the ideology and internal repercussions of colonisation.

Second Edition

A Social History of France, 1789-1914

In this reliable and succinct introduction to the French Revolution, Peter McPhee tackles the questions which are central to an understanding of this crucial period of French history. Why was there a revolution in France in 1789? Was France fundamentally changed as a result of it? And what effects did it have on everyday life? As well as providing an accessible interpretation of the events and consequences of the Revolution, it also provides an up-to-date guide to the main historiographical debates.

The French Revolution, 1789-1799

For some historians and biographers, Maximilien Robespierre (1758-94) was a great revolutionary martyr who succeeded in leading the French Republic to safety in the face of overwhelming military odds. This biography combines new research into Robespierre's dramatic life.

A Revolutionary Life

Robespierre

A collection of poetry, prose and short fiction by authors both famous and up and coming who performed at during the first three years of the famed Toronto literary festival.

A Scream in High Park Reader

Carnival

A study of rural politics in France during the Second Republic (1846-1852) which draws on many regional studies to explore this neglected period. This book aims to show that rural politics were both more complex and more threatening to urban elites than has been generally recognized.

Political Mobilization in the French Countryside, 1846-1852

The Politics of Rural Life

When Caroline wins a rodeo-style competition one summer, the owner of a posh local riding school invites her to take free lessons in show jumping.

A Way with Horses

On 14 July 1789 thousands of Parisians seized the Bastille fortress in Paris. This was the most famous episode of the Revolution of 1789, when huge numbers of French people across the kingdom successfully rebelled against absolute monarchy and the privileges of the nobility. But the subsequent struggle over what social and political system should replace the 'Old Rgime' was to divide French people and finally the whole of Europe. The French Revolution is one of the great turning-points in history. It continues to fascinate us, to inspire us, at times to horrify us. Never before had the people of a large and populous country sought to remake their society on the basis of the principles of liberty and equality. The drama, success and tragedy of their project have attracted students to it for more than two centuries. Its importance and fascination for us are undiminished as we try to understand revolutions in our own times. There are three key questions the book investigates. First, why was there a revolution in 1789? Second, why did the revolution continue after 1789, culminating in civil war, foreign invasion and terror? Third, what was the significance of the revolution? Was the French Revolution a major turning-point in French, even world history, or instead just a protracted period of violent upheaval and warfare which wrecked millions of lives? This new edition of The French Revolution contains revised text and new photographs. This edition includes video footage of Peter McPhee's interviews with Professor Ian Germani, University of Regina, Saskatchewan, Canada, on the role of military discipline in the French Revolutionary Wars; Dr Marisa Linton, Kingston University in London, about her book, Choosing Terror: Virtue, Friendship and Authenticity in the French Revolution, a major study of the politics of Jacobinism; and Professor Timothy Tackett, University of California, Irvine, on the origins of terror in the French Revolution.

Second Edition (Revised)

Philip G. Dwyer

The upheavals, terror, and drama of the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic period restructured politics and society on a grand scale, making this the defining moment for modern European history. This volume collects together a wide selection of primary texts to explain the process behind the enormous changes undergone by France and Europe between 1787 and 1815, from the Terror to the Counter-Revolution and from Marie-Antoinette to Robespierre and Bonaparte. While bringing the impact of historical events to life, Philip Dwyer and Peter McPhee provide a clear outline of the period through key documents and lucid introductory passages and commentary. They illustrate the meaning of the Revolution for peasants, sans-culottes, women, and slaves, as well as placing events within a wider European context.. Students will find this an invaluable source of information on the Revolution as a whole as well as the international significance of the events.

A Sourcebook

The French Revolution and Napoleon

This book provides a succinct yet up-to-date and challenging approach to the French Revolution of 1789-1799 and its consequences. Peter McPhee provides an accessible and reliable overview and one which deliberately introduces students to central debates among historians. The book has two main aims. One aim is to consider the origins and nature of the Revolution of 1789-99. Why was there a Revolution in France in 1789? Why did the Revolution follow its particular course after 1789? When was it 'over'? A second aim is to examine the significance of the Revolutionary period in accelerating the decay of Ancien Regime society. How 'revolutionary' was the Revolution? Was France fundamentally changed as a result of it? Of particular interest to students will be the emphasis placed by the author on the repercussions of the Revolution on the practives of daily life: the lived experience of the Revolution. The author's recent work on the environmental impact of the Revolution is also incorporated to provide a lively, modern, and rounded picture of France during this critical phase in the development of modern Europe.

A Companion to the French Revolution comprises twenty-nine newly-written essays reassessing the origins, development, and impact of this great turning-point in modern history. Examines the origins, development and impact of the French Revolution Features original contributions from leading historians, including six essays translated from French. Presents a wide-ranging overview of current historical debates on the revolution and future directions in scholarship Gives equally thorough treatment to both causes and outcomes of the French Revolution

A Companion to the French Revolution

Looking for his younger sister, Meghan, Kyle travels through Calgary's street culture, finding more than he expected.

Runner

Running Unconscious is the first collection of poetry by Toronto poet and poetry promoter Peter McPhee. 'Never Trust a Polar Bear in Shades,' 'Leaning against a lamppost at the corner of King and Diversity,' and, of course, 'Why the Stegosaurus is my favourite dinosaur' – Running Unconscious assembles all the McPhee classics in one goodlookin' volume.

Running Unconscious

A suicide pact made within her circle of friends leads Eilean, with unexpected help from school bully Ron, on a race against time: Jamie is dead, Sarah is in the hospital, and Cathy can't be found.

Peter McPhee

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