Robert H. Blackman is Elliott Professor of History at Hampden-Sydney College, where he won the J. B. Fuqua Award for excellence in teaching. He is the author of articles in French History and French Historical Studies, regularly presenting his research at the Western Society for French History and the Society for French Historical Studies. He is also the co-editor of the H-France Salon 'Becoming Revolutionaries: Papers in Honor of Timothy Tackett' with Micah Alpaugh and Ian Coller.
'It might be assumed that there is little more to be said about how the French Revolution began with the creation of a National Constituent Assembly in the summer of 1789, but Robert H. Blackman's excellent book proves otherwise. By employing a series of fresh sources, he demonstrates precisely how the deputies seized the initiative and started founding a new order, despite Louis XVI's bad faith on the one hand, and pressure from the populace on the other. This study offers a stimulating reinterpretation of a momentous episode in European history.' Malcolm Crook, University of Keele 'A splendid close study of the critical moments of 1789 as Old Regime slid into Revolution, debunking the argument that the political choices made by the deputies of 1789 progressed along an inexorable route allowing little scope for compromise. Blackman gives us a new understanding of the choices faced by the deputies of the Third Estate.' Marisa Linton, Kingston University London 'Blackman's intense focus on the debates in and around the National Assembly results in a rich, convincing narrative, and deserves to become a standard reference for the political history of 1789.' Peter McPhee, H-France 'It might be assumed that there is little more to be said about how the French Revolution began with the creation of a National Constituent Assembly in the summer of 1789, but Robert H. Blackman's excellent book proves otherwise. By employing a series of fresh sources, he demonstrates precisely how the deputies seized the initiative and started founding a new order, despite Louis XVI's bad faith on the one hand, and pressure from the populace on the other. This study offers a stimulating reinterpretation of a momentous episode in European history.' Malcolm Crook, University of Keele 'A splendid close study of the critical moments of 1789 as Old Regime slid into Revolution, debunking the argument that the political choices made by the deputies of 1789 progressed along an inexorable route allowing little scope for compromise. Blackman gives us a new understanding of the choices faced by the deputies of the Third Estate.' Marisa Linton, Kingston University London 'Blackman's intense focus on the debates in and around the National Assembly results in a rich, convincing narrative, and deserves to become a standard reference for the political history of 1789.' Peter McPhee, H-France