July Monarchy
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Louis-Philippe's July Monarchy (1830–1848) is generally seen as a period during which the haute bourgeoisie was dominant. Louis-Philippe, who had flirted with liberalism in his youth, rejected much of the pomp and circumstance of the Bourbons and surrounded himself with merchants and bankers. Ruling as a constitutional monarch, Louis-Philippe left much of the governing to the parliament. The period was one of economic growth, and also major change in the Catholic Church, as it dropped much of its rigidly reactionary views. At the same time the church became seen as less of an enemy by the left.
Despite this, the July Monarchy remained a time of turmoil. A large group of Legitimists on the right demanded the restoration of the Bourbons to the throne. On the left, Républicanisme (republicanism) remained a powerful force. Late in his reign Louis-Philippe became increasingly rigid and dogmatic and his Prime Minister, François Guizot, had become deeply unpopular, but Louis-Philippe refused to remove him. The situation gradually escalated until the Revolutions of 1848 saw the fall of the monarchy and the creation of the Second Republic.
[edit] The Policies of the July Monarchy
When Louis-Philippe, the Orleanist “King of the French,” ascended to power, he clearly understood his base of power. The wealthy bourgeoisie had carried him aloft during the July Revolution through their work in the Parliament, and throughout his reign, he kept their interests in mind. The July Monarchy, time and time again, would push for legislation and reform measures aimed at increasing the stake of the bourgeoisie within the French government.
However, during the first several years of his regime, Louis-Philippe appeared to move his government toward legitimate, broad-based reform. The government found its source of legitimacy within the Charter of 1830, written by reform-minded members of Chamber of Deputies upon a platform of religious equality, the empowerment of the citizenry through the creation of a National Guard, electoral reform, the reformation of the peerage system, and the lessening of royal authority. And indeed, Louis-Phillipe and his ministers adhered to policies that seemed to promote the central tenets of the constitution. However, as will be shown, the majority of these policies were veiled attempts to shore up the power and influence of the government and the bourgeoisie, rather than legitimate attempts to promote equality and empowerment for a broad constituency of the French population. Thus, though the July Monarchy seemed to move toward reform, this movement was largely illusory.
During the years of the July Monarchy, enfranchisement roughly doubled, from 94,000 under Charles X to more than 200,000 by 1848. However, this represented only roughly one percent of population, and as the requirements for voting were tax-based, only the wealthiest gained the privilege. By implication, the enlarged enfranchisement tended to favor the wealthy merchant bourgeoisie more than any other group. Beyond simply increasing their presence within the Chamber of Deputies, this electoral enlargement provided the bourgeoisie the means by which to challenge the nobility in legislative matters. Thus, while appearing to honor his pledge to increase suffrage, Louis-Philippe acted primarily to empower his supporters and increase his hold over the French Parliament. The inclusion of only the wealthiest also tended to undermine any possibility of the growth of a radical faction in Parliament, effectively serving socially conservative ends.
The reformed charter of 1830 limited the power of the King – stripping him of his ability to propose and decree legislation, as well as limiting his executive authority. However, the limits placed upon Louis-Philippe accomplished very little. The King of the French still believed in a version of monarchy that held the king as much more than a figurehead for an elected Parliament, and as such, he was deeply involved in legislative affairs. He manoeuvered to have his two eldest sons appointed to the Chamber of Peers, and increasingly appointed ministers who adhered to his vision of conservative liberalism and strong Constitutional Monarchy. Thus, again, while appearing to adhere to notions of popular sovereignty and reduced royal power, the Crown actively worked toward completely opposite conservative ends.
In addition, one of the first acts of Louis-Philippe, ostensible champion of liberalism and reform, in constructing his cabinet was to appoint the rather conservative Casimir Perier as the premier of that body. Perier, a banker, was instrumental in shutting down many of the secret societies and labor unions that had formed during the early years of the regime. In addition, he oversaw the dismemberment of the National Guard after it proved too supportive of radical ideologies. He performed all of these actions, of course, with royal approval. He was once quoted as saying that the source of French misery was the belief that there had been a revolution. “No Monsieur,” he said to another minister, “there has not been a revolution: there is simply a change at the head of state.” He thus viewed the purpose of the government as preserving the status quo against republican and radical agitators. He garnered the support of the cabinet through oaths of solidarity and strict discipline for dissenters. He excluded reformers from official discourse, and abandoned the regime’s unofficial policy of mediating in labor disputes in favor of a strict laissez-faire policy that favored employers. Thus, one sees the emergence of a clear trope of supporting the rights of the wealthy bourgeoisie while actively working to protect the status quo.
Further expressions of this trend came under the supervision of Perier and the then Minister of the Interior, Francois Guizot. The regime acknowledged early on that radicalism and republicanism threatened it, undermining its laissez-faire and pro-business policies. Thus, the Monarchy declared the very term republican illegal in 1834. Guizot shut down republican clubs and disbanded republican publications. Republicans within the cabinet, like the banker Dupont, were all but excluded by Perier and his conservative clique. The National Guard was disbanded after it failed to break up labor strikes, and the army was reformed in order to ensure its loyalty to the government.
Though two factions always persisted in the cabinet, split between liberal conservatives like Guizot and liberal reformers like the aforementioned journalist Thiers, the latter never gained prominence. After Perier came Mole, another conservative. After Mole came Thiers, a reformer later sacked by Louis-Philippe after attempting to pursue an aggressive foreign policy. After Thiers came the conservative Guizot. In particular, the Guizot administration was marked by increasingly authoritarian crackdowns on republicanism and dissent, and an increasingly pro-business laissez-faire policy. This policy included protective tariffs that defended the status quo and enriched French businessmen. Guizot’s government granted railway and mining contracts to the bourgeois supporters of the government, and even contributing some of the start-up costs. As workers under these policies had no legal right to assemble, unionize, or petition the government for increased pay or decreased hours, the July Monarchy under Perier, Mole, and Guizot generally proved detrimental to the lower classes. In fact, Guizot’s advice to those who were disenfranchised by the tax-based electoral requirements was a simple “enrichissez-vous” – enrich yourself.
[edit] Sources
Collingham, H.A.C. The July Monarchy: A Political History of France, 1830-1848. London; New York: Longman, 1988
Pinkney, David H. “Laissez-Fair or Intervention? Labor Policy in the First Months of the July Monarchy.” French Historical Studies, Vol. 3. No. 1. (Spring, 1963), pp. 123-128.
