Liberty Leading the People: A History of France through the Industrial Revolution

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TABLE OF CONTENTS
INTRODUCTION: A CAPETIAN END
I. END OF AN AGE
II. AMBITIONS OF AN EMPEROR
III. RESTORATION AND REVOLUTION​

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BOOK I: A DAY IN JULY​

IV. THE LONDON TREATY​

V. THE RISE OF ABD-AL QADIR
VI. THE ALGIERS PREDICAMENT http://forum.paradoxplaza.com/forum/showpost.php?p=10524148&postcount=11
VII. A WAR OF SATISFACTION
VIII. THE AGRESSIONS OF LOUIS-PHILIPPE I
IX. OF MADAGASCAR AND LIBREVILLE
X. A KING, A SULTAN AND A WĀLI
XI. THE HOLY WAR OF ABD-AL QADIR
XII. NORTH AFRICAN INTRIGUE
XIII. FURTHER TENSIONS
XIV. THE FOOL OF ORLEANS​

 

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I. End of an age

I. END OF AN AGE​

France is one of the more interesting nations to survey the history of especially during the turbulent and historically maturing times known as the 19th Century. Before this century began the land known as France was a Kingdom under various houses and monarchs from the times of the Carolingians until the last king Louis XVI of the House of the Bourbons.

The last King Louis XVI

The Monarchs of France had ruled from the technologically depressed Dark Ages through the Feudal Middle Ages, mankind’s rediscovering of technology in the bright Renaissance, the Age of Discovery, all the way until the Age of Enlightenment which proved to be the last days of the stability of the French Kingship. However the French Monarchistic governing and social laws proved to be adherent at the dawn of the early modern age, this government incompetence in the face of social change and in particular King Louis’ dictatorial repressive “Reign of Terror” as it was known climaxed at the Gates of Bastille on the 14th of July 1789. Bastille was stormed in a violent display by the repressed population of the French Kingdom leading a great French Revolutionary War. The monarchy of Louis XVI and the Bourbon House of the Capetian Dynasty was overturned and hundreds of years of reign ended. In the wake of the revolution the future of France’s governing forces were defined and thus the French First Republic was founded on September 22nd 1792 mere months before the infamous execution of the King on 21st of January 1793. The First Republic to reign in France was under a council renamed numerous times during the proceeding Napoleonic Wars as first the National Convention, then Directory in 1795 under Paul Barras and finally under the leading general and victor of the wars of Coalition, Napoleon Bonaparte, as the Consulate. Since the Revolution in France, the Republic had been leading many wars against the established Monarchies of Europe and had been victorious dissolving the Holy Roman Empire in Germania which had been established almost longer than the previous French Monarchy. In 1804 after the Second War of Coalition the leader of the Consulate under Napoleon Bonaparte abolished the French First Republic and set up the First French Empire with Emperor Napoleon had its head.

Emperor Napoleon​

 

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II. AMBITIONS OF AN EMPEROR​

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France continued to wage and take part in many victorious wars of Coalition from 1804 to 1814 throughout Europe, North Africa and the Americas including Emperor Napoleon’s Campaign in Egypt, the defeat of the Austrian armies and War of 1812 while he was allied with the newly born United States. However half way through his reign in 1811 the Emperor suffered his first real defeat at the hands of the Russian Imperial Army who forced France’s armies to retreat from their staging places in Latvia and Poland. During this winter the Russian, Austrian, British and Prussian Armies rebuilt their forces and began the war of Sixth Coalition in 1812 which pushed back Napoleon’s forces on all sides even though he managed numerous victories against the Coalition and their new allies: Prussia.
Eventually Napoleon’s forces where defeated at Paris and thus ended the Sixth War of Coalition as Emperor Napoleon’s Greater French Empire was defeated and the Bourbon Dynasty restored under Louis XVIII who was the nephew of Louis XVI who had been executed in 1793. The restored Kingdom of France only lasted about a year when Napoleon returned from exile and took back control of the government for the infamous period named the Hundred Days in which the Empire of France was restored and the War of the Seventh Coalition took place. Napoleon was defeated a Waterloo and the Napoleonic Wars ended but it only marked the beginning of the constant change in French government which would plague the nation for the years to come.

Emperor Napoleon
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III. RESTORATION AND REVOLUTION

The Bourbon Dynasty was restored once again and France had seemed to temporarily return to the Monarchistic state it had once been. The years following the end of the Napoleonic Wars saw moderate peace in Europe as the Great Powers were reconstructed and new social reforms and laws took place that would govern the nations for the future changing world. Louis XVIII had successfully reignited the torch of French Kingship however short his time was. By the early 1820s, as the last colonies in New Spain fell into revolution, Louis XVIII had finally set up France once again and had deterred it from becoming a flailing state including strengthening its ties with the Kingdom of Spain as they shared the same royal blood as Bourbons. Louis had constructed ties with the other Bourbon Monarchs in Europe including an alliance with the Two Sicilies. In 1824 Louis XVIII died and was succeeded by Charles X. Charles X desired to restore full power to the monarchy with repressive laws similar to the Reign of Terror by Louis XVI. In the last days of his reign he ordered the Invasion of Algiers from the Ottoman Regency. France had secured a foothold in North Africa but only days before Charles X’s reign was toppled in July Revolution which lead to ascention to the throne by his cousin Louis-Philippe I, the Duc d’Orléans, ending the reign of the House of Bourbon permanently and enacting a Constitutional Monarchy under the House of Orléans. By 1836 King Louis-Philippe the first was leading an industrial super power of Europe and large exporter on the World Market.

King Louis-Philippe of the July Monarchy​

 

[volksmarschall]

A nice overview of the Napoleonic Wars, and post-Vienna Convention era.

I'll be looking forward to what you do from this point on... Good stuff!

 

[unmerged(86922)]

Good stuff. I know this is a AAR I will like!

 

[NACBEAST]

Alright, let's see just how well France copes in this AAR. Have to say, always loved a good history book-type AAR

 

[HMAS-Nameless]

thanks guys, just some more info on what im trying to accomplish here. I am playing using VIP 03 for Ricky. As France's political government changed alot during the 1836-1936 period im gonna have each Book cover a certain government's regime except for the intro. So Book I: A Day in July will last as long as the July Monarchy lasts

 

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IV. THE LONDON TREATY


At the start of what had come to be known as the July Monarchy, the Kingdom of France seemed to be at a turning point. With the Napoleonic Wars behind them they could now begin the long journey through the Industrial Ages. By 1836 the Kingdom had superior factories compared to rest of Europe and a staging ground to begin the European colonisation of Africa and Oceania. France had come a long way since the days of the Capetians and yet it still had a long way to come.

A Map of France and the surrounds in 1836
The Belgian Revolution had been raging across the Southern Provinces of the United Kingdom of the Netherlands for nearly seven years when the European powers came together to discuss the future of an independent Belgium. This was an important issue for France as the region previously under the control of the Netherlands was a region of French-speaking Catholic Walloons who had been repressed by the Dutch. When Great Britain came forward with the London Treaty, the Kingdom of France was enthusiastic to comply. The treaty was signed by King Louis-Philippe and France and the United Kingdom of Great Britain, Scotland and Ireland to recognize the new nation as separate entity from the United Kingdom of the Netherlands. The German Confederation refused to sign the treaty supporting full Dutch control of the Belgian lands. However the Netherlands eventually complied ending the conflict and so a newly created nation existed in Europe’s powerful network of alliances and thus Belgium was born.

Episode of the Belgian Revolution of 1830, Egide Charles Gustave Wappers (1834)​

 

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V.THE RISE OF ABD-AL QADIR

In early 1836 the Algerian leader, Abd-al Qadir began raiding French colonies near Oran and Tlemcen. Abd-al Qadir was an Algerian leader who fought against the French Occupation of Algiers which was previously an Ottoman regency. The French Marshall Clauzel in command of the region authorized the French occupation of the Algerian city of Tlemcen which great risked war with the Algerian Military and Political Leader. In late January Marshall Clauzel attacked the Algerian raiders at Tlemcen and occupied the city.
While tensions increased in Algeria tensions began to strive all over the North African Coast with the Tunisian break from Ottoman spheres of influence and the ascension of Mustafa ibn Mahmud as Bey of Tunisia. When Mustafa refused to pay tribute to the Ottomans they threatened to intervene in Tunisia. With the Ottoman threats King Louis-Philippe who believed heavily in the French colonisation of the North African coast sent word to Bey Mustafa ibn Mahmud that the Kingdom of the French would support his right not to pay the belligerent Ottomans and offered to intervene if necessary guaranteeing their independence from the Ottoman Empire. In response to the French support of the Beylik of Tunis, the Ottomans backed down their aggression against Tunisia and opted to maintain the status quo in North Africa denying anymore French incursion into their African territories.

Abd-al Qadir in Damascus

In March 1836 French Explorer Antoine de Bourgogne landed in Tahiti as part of a voyage to increase ties with the native Queen and after negotiations laid out the plans for increase French-Tahitian Relation building. The Arc de Triomphe was completed on July 2nd 1836 to commemorate the French Revolutionary War and following Napoleon’s defeat at Waterloo to represent the Peace of 1815. ​

 

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VI. THE ALGIERS PREDICAMENT

Having stabilized the Western regions of the Algerian coastline at Tlemcen, Marshall Clauzel ordered a similar incursion at the city of Constantine where the last Turkish governor, Ahmed Bey still reigned. King Louis-Philippe was faced with a descision to whether support or overrule his military actions against Aldjazair and the other Algerian groups. While supporting the military action would strengthen France’s position in North Africa it would greatly increase the militancy and aggression of the Algerian leader Abd-al Qadir and the Sunni Muslim inhabitants of the French colony whilst overruling the military incursion would weaken France’s position and strengthen Muslim accordance with France in Algeirs. Word had gotten out that Clauzel’s forces had repressed and dictated the locals of Tlemcen during the expedition and that lower the public opinion of the ventures in Africa greatly in mainland France. After long sessions of debate the King Louis-Philippe and the Royal Council decided on November 19th 1836 that whilst they would overrule the military action they would do nothing to deter it.
Marshall Clauzel went against the orders of the Royal Council and attacked the city of Constantine the following day. However during the advance they were caught in a blizzard of snow and Turkish gun fire and retreated back to Algiers. Upon his arrival back at Algiers he was court martialled by the French Army and a new Marshall of the French Army in Algiers was elected. Marshall Canrobert took command of the Armée d’Algerie the next day and relising that they would now be forced to intervene and attack Constantine anyway or they would be forced to succumb to Turkish victory. The Armée d’Algerie departed for the Turkish town of Constantine the next day after King Louis-Philippe’s approval. Marshall Canrobert and the Armée d’Algerie reached Constantine and besieged the city on January 2nd 1837 defeating an army of 8,000 Turkish irregulars.

Marshall François Certain Canrobert, Commander of the Armée d’Algerie ​

The second part of the London protocol was signed on January 7th recognizing the newly founded Duchy of Luxemburg. The Duke of Luxemburg himself was of the House of Bourbon and a distant relation of the King Louis-Philippe. Unlike the first treaty the German Confederation did sign the treaty due to the fact that Luxemburg was a German Duchy.
On April 23rd an explosion went off at the Paris Gold Bank as a group of thirteen armed thieves rigged their way out with explosives and ran down a back alley in the proceeding massive smoke cloud that blanketed the district. What came to be known as the Great Paris Gold Robbery of 1837 had just happened. The Robbery came to be known as the crime of the century.
With the unrest caused in Eastern Algiers after the unauthorized incursion into Constantine by former Marshall Clauzel, the General Thomas Robert Bugeaud proposed the Treaty of Tafna which forced Algerian Leader Abd-al Qazir to recognize French Imperial Sovereignty over Algeria but with the secession of most Algerian territories except a few vital ports to the Muslim leader. Abd-al Qazir accepted the treaty and they both signed the article on May 30th 1836.
By the time of the signing of the Tafna agreement, France had become again one of the most powerful of the Great Powers only exceeded by the British Empire.​

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VII. A WAR OF SATISFACTION​

King Louis-Philippe had great supported the opening of new industries including the lumber and other wood businesses in the Pyrenes and Normandy and in March 1837 set about opening the Bourgogne Chemical Industries in and around Dijon in eastern central France. The Chemical Industry had been set up and local farmers had been diverted from the crops to new jobs in factories.
In early 1838 a French pastry cook, Monsieur Remontel, who was a resident and owned a shop in Mexico claimed that his pastry shop had been ransacked and looted by Mexican Officers in 1828, some ten years earlier, and appealed to King Louis-Philippe. Louis-Philippe ordered that in compensation that Mexico pay a tribute of 600,000 pesos in damages which was ridiculously high considering that the average workman in Mexico’s daily wage was about 1 peso. In addition to the tribute, Mexico had defaulted on millions of dollars worth of loans from France. The diplomats from France demanded Mexico pay or the French would demand satisfaction. When the President of Mexico refused Louis-Philippe ordered the blockade of all Mexican ports from the Yucatán to Rio Grande by the French Navy, to bombard the Mexican fortress of San Juan de Ulúa and to capture to port of Veracruz. The Pastry War: France’s first intervention in Mexico had begun. In the early months of the blockade the Mexicans smuggled goods such as flower through Corpus Christi in southern Texas. The French Navy briefly blockaded Texas as well but after negotiations with the Texan State and the U.S. they agreed to respect Texan waters and land.

The French Blockade​

One of the last royal houses of Languedoc, the House of Roquefeuil-Blanquefort became extinct in the year 1838. Jean Jacques de Roquefeuil et du Bousquet died on March 29th 1838. Jean Jacques had lived alone and had never had children being an only child himself in long line of only children. He was a descendant of a French Officer named Aymar Joseph de Roquefeuil et du Bousquet who had served the under King Louis XV and XVI. The estate and fortunes of the old noble royal house became property of the state.​

 

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VIII. THE AGRESSIONS OF LOUIS-PHILIPPE I​

After the inheritance of the Roquefeuil-Blanquefort fortune the King Louis-Philippe I ordered the creation of the Armée nationale de Réserve de la France, the national reserve army, a demobilised force that would be mobilised in the face of immediate war.
In August 1838, King Louis-Philippe ordered the extradition of Louis Napoleon, the grand pretender to the French throne, from Switzerland where he had been living for past years since the Napoleonic Wars. The Swiss refused to extradite the infamous Napoleon Bonaparte’s nephew. The King Louis-Philippe threatened Switzerland with war if they did not comply. After heated threats and aggressive diplomatic movements by the French King, war did not come to fruition only after the pretender to the French throne left Switzerland and landed in Great Britain.
A few days after France’s heated aggressions against Switzerland, the Queen Pōmare IV of Tahiti expelled two French missionaries from the small South Pacific Island Kingdom under French influence. Louis-Philippe automatically demanded compensation from Tahiti in light of the unfounded expulsion. As soon as possible after the expulsion the Queen Pōmare IV offered her apologies for the French Kingdom in the face of possible bad outcomes for the Kingdom.

Queen Pōmare IV of Tahiti​

Continuing his policies of opening new industries, King Louis-Philippe opened a new Canned Food Factory on the French Mediterranean island of Corsica to help the creation of new reserve armies. The two main products used by reserve armies where Canned Food Goods and Small Arms. The opening of the Ajaccio Canned Food Factory meant that the French Kingdom did not have to buy Canned Food from the World Market any longer.
Towards the end of 1838, Juan Manuel de Rosas the governor of Buenos Aires imposed a new tariff on French goods being exported. He imposed 25% of French goods being taken to the province via Montevideo in Uruguay. This halved the income of the small nation and weakened the French Market in the area. King Louis-Philippe decided with the help of his royal council that a massive French blockade would be placed upon Argentina, in turn destroying their economy and showing to Rosas not to implement important discissions over France.