Reflections On The Revolution In France

Edmund Burke (1729-1797) writes Reflections on the Revolution in France in 1790. For much of the latter eighteenth century, Burke serves as a major figure in British politics in the Whig party, the liberal faction of British parliament. He sides with reform and justice in the prominent cases of the day, and he faces many: the American Revolution, issues of unification in Ireland, and justice for imperial India and its governance.

However, late in his political career, his party faces a divide, with more liberal members of the party favoring radical ideas, particularly those championed by the Enlightenment. During this time, people question institutions that previously enjoyed unfettered power: monarchies, the church, the nobility. Burke finds himself on the conservative side of his party, arguing for the time-proven value of these institutions against the more radical members of his party, who are enamored with the idea of a government founded on an abstraction Burke has difficultly defining: the Rights of Man. At this point, Burke pens Reflections on the Revolution in France, revealing his allegiance to and respect for the British constitution and British politics. 

Nationalism over any radical idea or abstraction defines Burke’s character. He identifies as proudly British, drawing ties to Britain and breaking ties with the Enlightenment, writing, “[a] spirit of innovation is generally a result of a selfish temper and confined views.