The Threat of Revolution Causes, Interpretations, and 革命的原因，解释与威胁，.docVIP

The Threat of (a French) Revolution in Britain: Causes, Interpretations, and Implications, 1789-1848 Nick Chiorian Hudson High School Hudson, Ohio 2008 NEH Seminar for School Teachers Interpretations of the Industrial revolution in Britain Discussions of the Industrial Revolution in Britain generally do not include references to the French Revolution. On the surface, the social implications of the Industrial Revolution evokes images of oppressed workers, wealthy, innovative industrialists, and intense class conflict between this newly created proletariat and the exploitative bourgeoisie. Images of the Luddites, the Peterloo Massacre, the Six Acts, the Combination Acts, and other events and legislation paint a picture of a Britain on the verge of class revolution. But these images are not often paralleled with Jacobins or sans culottes. Yet in the minds of the ruling classes in Britain after 1792, there was a strong association between the two revolutions, one that accounted for the strong backlash against various working-class reform movements in the 1790s and early decades of the 1800s. What were the dynamics of the relationship between revolution in France and the threat of revolution in Britain? Was Britain on the verge of revolution? And if so, what were the underlying causes? Most importantly, to what extent did the intense revolutionary activity on the Continent impact revolutionary ideas and the fear of revolution in Britain? This essay will explore social unrest in Britain during the period from roughly 1789-1832 in light of the work of several authors. In so doing, it will explore the extent to which social unrest was due to Marxian class conflict, in addition to several related questions: was social unrest due entirely to the development of new technologies and new methods of organizing production? Or was it a reaction to the events and ideals of the French Revolution and Napoleon? Indeed, we also have to question whether or not there even exist