A new look at Feuillantism: the triumvirate and the movement for war in 1791

This article suggests a new interpretation of the Feuillant group during the French Revolution. In particular, it focuses on the approach of Feuillant leaders Antoine Barnave, Adrien Duport and Alexandre Lameth to the movement in favour of war in 1791-92. Using dossiers newly found in the Archives Nationales, the study challenges the popular belief that the Jacobin group was responsible for the move towards war. On the contrary, this article shows that the war movement was launched and exploited by all moderate groups for reasons of domestic politics. Through it, the Feuillants hoped to reinforce and legitimate the monarchy in the political struggle to contain the Revolution. But the evolution of events largely overtook the moderates, who were crushed by the process they had set in motion. The study of this political struggle is a chance to reflect historiographically on Furet's suggestion of revolutionary derapage, and to consider the question of what freedom historical actors enjoyed within the revolutionary process.