The French Revolution | Part 6 | The Rights of Man

“Liberté, égalité, fraternité!”

Alongside violence, the French Revolution is a story of principles and values. It is the ultimate intersection of brutality and Enlightenment idealism, as epitomised by the Fall of the Bastille. So too the creation and implementation of the Declaration of the Rights of Man - a totemic manifesto for the French state, which seemingly embodied a shockingly overt rupture from the past. Not only one of the decisive moments of the French Revolution, the declaration would prove transformative for all world history, and galvanised France as the cradle of of modern nationalism. So, just as the walls of the Bastille were abolished, the words of the document tore down something just as old and once impenetrable: the taint of absolutism, handing sovereignty from the king to the nation. By the 4th of August 1789 this amorphous beast was gripped by a great hysterical, almost paranoid passion, and it was amidst this turmoil that the French Assemblée Constituante voted unanimously to abolish feudalism, in one fell swoop eliminating everything that had come before. What would this consciously manufactured new beginning hold in store for Revolutionary France, or was it merely a bombastic continuation of the past?

Join Tom and Dominic as they discuss the groundbreaking ideas behind the French Revolution, along with the deep history of the ideals its enshrined. So too the stories behind some of its most famous iconography, and the long-term repercussions of this transformative upheaval for the modern world.
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*The Rest Is History LIVE in the U.S.A.*
If you live in the States, we've got some great news: Tom and Dominic will be performing throughout America in November, with shows in San Francisco, L.A., Chicago, Philadelphia, Washington D.C., Boston and New York.

*The Rest Is History LIVE at the Royal Albert Hall*
Tom and Dominic, accompanied by a live orchestra, take a deep dive into the lives and times of two of history’s greatest composers: Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart and Ludwig van Beethoven.

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Twitter:
@TheRestHistory
@holland_tom
@dcsandbrook

Producer: Theo Young-Smith
Assistant Producer: Tabby Syrett
Executive Producers: Jack Davenport + Tony Pastor

[billbissenas]

If you’d told me a week ago that watching two dudes talking to one another would be a riveting experience, I would not have believed you.

[call_in_sick]

Best history info on YouTube ❤ encouraging art and history students to listen to this series.

[ChalrieD]

You guys are providing an absolutely excellent service. Thank you so much for this.

[frederickschwarz]

You're RIGHT! The Sermon on the Mount reverberates through the Rights of Man, Professor Holland

[madbell]

Thanks from France! le comte de Noailles you can pronounce it " No-eye" just 2 vowels 😉

[frederickschwarz]

Voltaire's work is so very FUNNY - YOU TWO help create "THE BEST OF ALL POSSIBLE WORLDS" Thank You Both Kindly. Semper Fidelis

[BARGEWALK]

This series on the Fr revolution has been superlative, made better by the interaction between the hosts, reminding me of Basil Brush being read a story by Mr Derek. Cultural icons

[peakychamp.]

How many parts are there planned for this series? Really enjoying it!

[monacollins]

This is lovely you guys and now I need to know why you have this resentment against the Vicomte de Noailles… actually it brings to mind, but I would love to have a series of episodes, if you haven’t done them already, on the nature of the, “special relationship“ between the US and the UK, starting with theAmerican Revolution. I have some British friends that remain quite snarky regarding the Fourth of July.

[elkpaz]

Loving this series. Revisiting an A level with years of wisdom in between.

[johncarroll]

Never thought l would hear Feargal Sharkey mentioned in a podcast about The French Revolution 😊

[gary]

These two are absolutely fascinating to listen to. They make the history of the french revolution come alive in such a clear way. I totally love this series. 👍🏻🙏🏼

[suzannetevlin]

Last 15 minutes were terrific!! So nice to hear someone who knows a bit of religious history. Thanks. FYI - I'm about to give a series of 8 lectures, 2 hours each, on the art history, and the political history, as well as other developments in France from 1789 to 1900. It will be a wild ride. It will be held in downtown Toronto.

[simonelubbe]

This is probably the most thrillingly informative insight into great historic events by two delightful unstuffy historians? If education was driven by people of their stature perhaps society wld be better served & wld more clearly understand the value & lessons of history that shed light on our own troubled times.

[nigeh]

Brilliant stuff well delivered with a touch of good humoured rubbing of our cousins across La Manche/The Channel 👍

[andrewmcdonald]

As Fitzgerald put it, " So we beat on, boats against the current, borne back ceaselessly into the past ", liberty, equality and fraternity - history unfolds and a terrible beauty is born, while all that is solid, melts into air

[cheeseofultimatedoom]

Surprised to not hear a mention of Rousseau.

[frederickschwarz]

I appreciate your DEEP INSIGHTS on property & sovereignty, Professor Holland!!! 🤗💯

[TheOriginalNiceGuy]

You’re wrong about Voltaire though. He was an enigma. In addition to attacking the church, he spoke out about tolerance for the church. And he put his money where his mouth was. He had a church built at his own expense on his estate in Ferne, and hired a Father Adam to live there. He also provided safe refuge at his estate for the Jesuits when they were expelled from France, even though they aided in his expulsion from France.
The list goes on.

[shindogcity]

This series, as superb as it is, would enhance it's value with accompanying illustrations/images. Talking heads are perfect for podcasting, streaming not so much.