"Liberty Equality Fraternity" - With this clarion call the French revolution stormed into this world 218 years ago this very day when angry Parisian mobs led by the San-Culottes engineered the "Fall of the Bastille". Like all revolutions this one came uninvited into the ball room of History and by the time its dance was done it had altered the structure of the World beyond recognition, forever and for good. Like the flood that enriches the very bank it wreaks havoc on its upheavals brought with it the light of enlightenment into this world. "Liberty Equality Fraternity" were no longer words confined to the books they jumped out and captured the imagination of the public.No event in modern history has altered the world we live in as much as the French revolution. It was a time of great suffering and also a moment of great joy and as Charles Dickens's opening line of "The Tale of Two Cities" puts it "It was the best of times, it was the worst of times..."
There are principally three kinds of revolutions - Political, Economic and Social. The one we are seeing in India and China for instance is economic in nature. But out of the three the most significant and far reaching is the Social one and the French revolution stands out as an example of a social revolution. It brought to an end the tyrannical rule of royalty and laid the foundations of the modern democracy where people were governed by themselves and not by some snob who ruled because it was his birth right. The intensity of the revolution is best felt in the French national anthem the 'La Marseillaise' which is one of the most passionate of all anthems and shows us the sacrifices made during the time for things we take for granted today, namely - freedom and equality.
Come to think of it the revolution could not have happened anywhere else but France. For 18th France with such thinkers as Voltaire and Rousseau had the intellectual wherewithal required for it, also the ineptitude of the monarchy also was a decisive factor and these two factors merged with the frustration of the people helped to precipitate the revolution. Since french culture pervaded throughout Europe at that time, the revolutionary principles spread throughout it , and since Europe ruled the world the principles pervaded throughout the world, far and wide like a wild-fire.
The revolution stands as a testament to the indomitable human spirit that craves for freedom and equality. It also rings a warning bell for tyrannical rules and dictatorships that subjugate their people.If i had to pick few of my favourite moments in time, then the revolution will be among the very best. Its sense of drama,euphoria,passion and not to forget its far reaching consequences have enthralled me for years and will always remain one of my favourite passages in time.
Posts
