Underused French Revolution PODs

[Socrates]

Pretty much every POD affecting the French Revolution ends with the same result as our timeline, a constitutional monarchy stabilizing after 1791 or Napoleon securing his throne as Emperor of the French. But what are underused PODs that could have seen more interesting results?

For example, in our timeline Louis XVI agreed to double representation for the Third Estate but later regretted it so insisted they vote by estate. The Third Estate got angry and formed the National Assembly where their original double representation became restored. But what if the original concession was never given? What if the Estates General formed and the Third Estate had to grant power to the First to push through their agenda, giving a theocratic Catholic element to the new regime?

Or what if a leading thinker argued for federalism, and localist revolts used this to halt the universality of Parisian French and demand local assemblies have a seat at the table?

What if the Committee of Public Safety survived in a less extreme form, similar to the Soviet politburo? What about a Girondin France? Or a lasting Directorate?

How would these PODs affect the ultimate fate of France and Europe?

 

[John Fredrick Parker]

Two of my favorite ideas for this period:

• the Flight of Varennes successfully removes the Bourbon Royal Family from the country into Austria, leading the revolutionary government to declare them deposed and, not yet ready to declare a republic, offer the crown to the next in line, the enthusiastic revolutionary Duke of Orleans
• the Coup of Brumaire proceeds without involving Napoleon, with Sieyes choosing as his "sword" a more reliable partner, leading to the next constitution being something more in line with what he imagined, and very importantly, not being governed by the Corsican who had such a huge impact on OTL history

Other ideas you could consider - the young Dauphin does not die during the 1789 Estates General; the Insurrection of August 1792 is (somehow) averted; or the Jacobin Revolt of 1793 is (somehow) averted.

 

[SavoyTruffle]

the Flight of Varennes successfully removes the Bourbon Royal Family from the country into Austria, leading the revolutionary government to declare them deposed and, not yet ready to declare a republic, offer the crown to the next in line, the enthusiastic revolutionary Duke of Orleans

I like this one. An earlier Legitimist vs Orleanist conflict.

How about a Revolutionary loss at Valmy? Is that plausible?

 

[HortenseMancini]

Pretty much every POD affecting the French Revolution ends with the same result as our timeline, a constitutional monarchy stabilizing after 1791 or Napoleon securing his throne as Emperor of the French. But what are underused PODs that could have seen more interesting results?

For example, in our timeline Louis XVI agreed to double representation for the Third Estate but later regretted it so insisted they vote by estate. The Third Estate got angry and formed the National Assembly where their original double representation became restored. But what if the original concession was never given? What if the Estates General formed and the Third Estate had to grant power to the First to push through their agenda, giving a theocratic Catholic element to the new regime?

Or what if a leading thinker argued for federalism, and localist revolts used this to halt the universality of Parisian French and demand local assemblies have a seat at the table?

What if the Committee of Public Safety survived in a less extreme form, similar to the Soviet politburo? What about a Girondin France? Or a lasting Directorate?

How would these PODs affect the ultimate fate of France and Europe?

The idea of a 1st estate-3rd estate alliance intrigues me. But I'm just now getting some serious knowledge about the French Revolution, so I'm not quite sure how much input I could give haha.

 

[connorCD]

A successful Conspiracy of the equals?

 

[piratedude]

Well one relatively easy POD with big consequences is to have the national convention not move to Paris with the king in the aftermath of the Women's March, and instead swearing not to leave Versailles until they've finished a constitution, taking inspiration from the American constitutional convention in that sense (though it would certainly be more pleasant Philadelphia was for the delegates).

Part of the problem in going to paris was that the politicians would play to the crowds favor, like the parliaments had, but it also left them susceptible to the flashes of violence that demagogues would stir up. Versailles isn't totally safe in that regard, but its a bit more insulated from that problem.

 

[Kaze]

The theft of the crown jewels go horribly wrong.

Here is the IRL - the French crown jewels where placed into a house. A bunch of people broke in. They proceeded to steal some small pieces then they left. Then they broke in again finding security was so lax that they held a party where the jewels were being kept inviting their wives and mistresses to wear some of the jewels. After the party, the security caught onto them.... and the Big Blue ends up in Holland, it is re-cut and sold in England, the stone is re-sold again -> the former Big Blue is now called the Hope Diamond. The security recover some of the jewels, but others go missing and / or were melted down to pay for the troops in the wars.

Here is the horribly wrong - all the jewels go missing, that somewhere hidden in somebody's rose garden is the long lost French crown jewels. (PS - for the love of god, leave my own rose garden alone! I have already chased off two treasure hunters digging up my grandmother's prized rosebushes)

 

[Socrates]

Two of my favorite ideas for this period:

• the Flight of Varennes successfully removes the Bourbon Royal Family from the country into Austria, leading the revolutionary government to declare them deposed and, not yet ready to declare a republic, offer the crown to the next in line, the enthusiastic revolutionary Duke of Orleans
• the Coup of Brumaire proceeds without involving Napoleon, with Sieyes choosing as his "sword" a more reliable partner, leading to the next constitution being something more in line with what he imagined, and very importantly, not being governed by the Corsican who had such a huge impact on OTL history

Other ideas you could consider - the young Dauphin does not die during the 1789 Estates General; the Insurrection of August 1792 is (somehow) averted; or the Jacobin Revolt of 1793 is (somehow) averted.

The first one is probably the best possible outcome you could get for the revolution, a (mostly) legitimate monarch wanting to work with the reformers, before everyone gets too polarized.

How was the second one imagined?

 

[JanWellem]

The theft of the crown jewels go horribly wrong.

Here is the IRL - the French crown jewels where placed into a house. A bunch of people broke in. They proceeded to steal some small pieces then they left. Then they broke in again finding security was so lax that they held a party where the jewels were being kept inviting their wives and mistresses to wear some of the jewels. After the party, the security caught onto them.... and the Big Blue ends up in Holland, it is re-cut and sold in England, the stone is re-sold again -> the former Big Blue is now called the Hope Diamond. The security recover some of the jewels, but others go missing and / or were melted down to pay for the troops in the wars.

Here is the horribly wrong - all the jewels go missing, that somewhere hidden in somebody's rose garden is the long lost French crown jewels. (PS - for the love of god, leave my own rose garden alone! I have already chased off two treasure hunters digging up my grandmother's prized rosebushes)

And then Alexandre Dumas and Eugène Emmanuel Viollet-le-Duc uncover them during the Paris commune and later manage to persuade the Count of Chambord that this is clearly a sign of god for him to accept the crown of France, Tricolore or no Tricolore. (This is of course an analogy to Sir Walter Scott finding the Honours of Scotland in a long forgotten chest)

 

[John Fredrick Parker]

How was the second one imagined?

Short version - Napoleon doesn’t come to power; if you’ve ever thought about that WI, it’s basically a way of achieving that.

Now more if you want to get into more specifics - like how Sieyes initially thought the new government was going to work - this is as good an introduction as any.

 

[GregTheWolf144]

How internationalist was the Conspiracy Of Equals/ how Communist really was it? Would a successful Conspiracy Of Equals set off a major revolutionary timeline? Would it just be doing the thing in the 1790s instead of 1917? That's one that I find interesting. Would America fall? They wouldn't really have the infrastructure in their infancy to have a really anti-Communist Red Scare so maybe people could end up going along. That's something I wonder.

 

[Socrates]

How internationalist was the Conspiracy Of Equals/ how Communist really was it? Would a successful Conspiracy Of Equals set off a major revolutionary timeline? Would it just be doing the thing in the 1790s instead of 1917? That's one that I find interesting. Would America fall? They wouldn't really have the infrastructure in their infancy to have a really anti-Communist Red Scare so maybe people could end up going along. That's something I wonder.

I can't see any reason for why America would fall in those circumstances.

 

[Roisterer]

Charlotte Corday slips on the wet floor. Marat survives and eventually outmaneuvers Robespierre, but becomes more and more infirm, so the Terror ends in a whimper without the Jacobins divided.

Regards

R

 

[Mad Bad Rabbit]

Lavoisier discovers nitroglycerin, which the duPonts refine into dynamite. After the attack on the Tullieries, they are forced to flee France & their shop is looted. Not long after, someone begins anonymously publishing a "Manuel d'Anarchie" which among other things includes instructions for making nitroglycerin and dynamite.

 

[pompejus]

I am always amazed that in every timeline in which the French Revolution happens, no matter the POD, France always manages to defeat and conquer/occupy/turn into vasal sates half of Europe. Surely that is not destined to happen.

 

[sampleswift]

Smarter Coalition forces means French Revolution crushed earlier?

 

[Shiva]

How about a POD involving the Marquis de Sade becoming the ruler of Revolutionary France?