Origins of Nationalism in France

In terms of the origins of national identicalness in France it is agreed that the french Revolution was the single most important period of radical amicable and political upheaval and was henceforth a catalyst for the deal out of patriotism in France aswell as byout the rest of Europe. Despite the fact the French Revolution occurred over 200 years ago, in impersonate day France, there remain various symbols of the revolution which have become deeply embedded in the national personal identity of the country.One of which being the tricolore flag which was created to oppose the flag of the King, which itself was a symbol of the Ancient Regime. Pre-revolutionary France was characterised by a social structure based on class and tradition, but more importantly, it was based on inequalities which were sanctioned by the force of law. The Ancient regime in France had been based on the division of rescript into legal categories. Membership of the first and second estates (clergy and no bility) conferred legal and social entitlements that were not available to the Third Estate.The supposition of Absolutism meant that the Monarchy was entitled to expect the obedience of the people on the grounds that the King was the agent of idols purpose. The French Revolution was the turning point in modern history. It was the first manifestation of nationalism in the Western world it abolished the ancient regime and thus the absolute monarchy, giving birth to the French nation in a sudden burst of enthusiasm. In 1790 all the communities of France erected an altar to the fatherland with the memorandum The citizen is born, lives and dies for the fatherland. The revolution began a new age in French political life, the old political stage in France was destroyed and replaced by a new order that was based on individual rights, p blind institutions and loyalty to the nation as opposed to the Monarch. This new era fostered new political ideals summarised in the French slogan Liber te, Egalite et Fraternite which is still to this day a symbol of French nationalism. One of the key events in the organic evolution of nationalism in France which arose with the French Revolution was The declaration of the rights of man of the citizen in 1789.This fundamental document harboured exhilaration that France belonged to its people, not Louis XVI and defined the individual and collective rights of all the estates of the realm as universal. It created shared value such as liberty, property, security, resistance to oppression and civil equality which bought the French people together as nation. Napoleon Bonaparte also had a significant role in creating a national identity in France. He was considered by some to be the preserver of the French Revolution as he introduced the Napoleonic Code which attempted to unite the country by making everyone equal forwards the law.It spread the ideals of the revolution including legal equality and economic freedom and therefore a senti ment of nationalism through France and the rest of Europe. However, often the nationalism that developed in reaction to Napoleon took one of two tracks. In some cases, it was a conservative nationalism, a desire to go back to the old ways that prevailed before Napoleon took over and started making reforms. On the other hand, there was liberal nationalism. Napoleon continued to spread some of the fruits of the French Revolution but some people wanted more they wanted accepted self-government.As a result of the French Revolution and Napoleon, French people started taking great pride in the history, language, culture and religion of their country which helped create a strong French national identity. During the French Revolution, the case Assembly decreed that the Louvre should be used as a museum, to display the nations masterpieces. Napoleon shake national pride by reopening the Louvre in 1801 and bringing hundreds of famous paintings and other works of art to the nations attentio n.The French nation-state unified the French people in particular through the consolidation of the use of the French language. The French language has been essential to the concept of France even though in 1789 but 50% of French people spoke it. Conscription, invented by Napoleon mixed the various groups of France into a flag-waving(a) mould which created the French citizen and his consciousness of membership to a common nation, while the various patois were progressively eradicated.Secularism in France is a fundament of the French nation. It is important when considering the national identity of France as it stems from the sense of sacred freedom which was a principle laid down by the French Revolution. It also emphasises the fact that the commonwealth has always recognised individuals, rather than groups and that a French citizen owes allegiance to the nation, and has no officially sanctioned heathenish or religious identity.