Description

Immediate dispatch from Somerset. Book in excellent unread/unused condition. See images. Fantastic book.

About the book >.>.> In mid-July 1789 after the storming of the Bastille the municipality of Paris organized a Garde Nationale heir to the militias of the Ancien R?gime. Something of a myth the story of its origins is closely linked to the emblematic figure of the Marquis de La Fayette its commanding general. Provinces quickly formed identical militias which intervened in the troubles of the municipal revolution. Bringing citizens together the Garde Nationale became one of the most important players of the French Revolution. Organized on a military model it nevertheless remained a civilian force whose members who elected their officers were often armed and equipped with odds and ends by the municipalities. Responsible for ensuring order they performed their service despite their professional activity and family life. However the threat of war changed the mission of the Garde: after the King’s failed flight in June 1791 nearly 100000 Gardes joined battalions of volunteers destined for the armed forces and ultimately integrated into the regular troops. Confined to secondary tasks after the fall of Robespierre under the Directory the Garde Nationale was nevertheless retained by the Consulate. It quickly proved to be very useful responding to the needs of the Napoleonic government by transforming itself into a territorial ced under the authority of the prefects. (MP)