History of French Civilization Since the Fall of the Roman Empire Volume 1

Author: Guizot (French), translated by Yuanzhi et al.
Publisher:
Publish Date: 1999-05-01
Features: When I reread these lectures today, I found my emotions as stirred as they were nearly thirty years ago when I first delivered them. The excitement stemmed from my participation in the arduous yet rapid development of my country, witnessing it overcome obstacles through effort and hardship to achieve growth and glory, filling me with both solemn and profound joy. The price France paid to be established was extraordinarily high. We complain (and with good reason) about the hardships and failures we have endured. Our ancestors did not live any more comfortably than we do, nor did they secure the fruits of their labor any earlier or more cheaply. In their fate, there was both cause for lament and cause for inspiration. History has frustrated the ambitions of those seeking quick results while supporting the aspirations of those with long-term vision. To win a free and just government, France made many attempts, few of which succeeded. At times, it even failed without learning from its own mistakes, a characteristic trait of the French. This nation is filled with intelligence and vibrant energy. It is passionate, it loses its way, then recognizes it, and suddenly changes course—or it quietly halts, seemingly exhausted and losing interest in futile exploration. Yet it refuses to resign itself to stagnation, using other works and achievements to overcome political setbacks until it can once again swiftly pursue its great goals. Since the fourteenth century, France has experienced significant alternations between anarchy and despotism, illusions and failures. Yet it has never long abandoned order or freedom, the two conditions of honor for all nations and the foundation of their lasting prosperity. Precisely because of this, our history is often dark but always reassuring. It tells us that despite our many errors and sins today, we are not the unprecedented innovators or equally criticized dreamers that some accuse us of being. The goals we pursue are in fact the same as those of our ancestors; like us, they dedicated themselves to liberating and elevating all classes of our society in spirit and material. They, like us, strove to ensure the good management of public affairs and the rights and freedoms of people through free institutions and the effective participation of the entire nation in politics. If they failed repeatedly in this bold and enduring endeavor, marked by greatness and determination, the nobility or bourgeoisie, officials or common citizens, always stood firm amidst general decline, preserving sound principles and lofty hopes, keeping the sacred flame alive, for the temple had not yet been successfully built. Yet the steadfast guardians of these unfortunate good causes never allowed their faith to be deceived. Its vitality not only surpassed its misfortunes but also reappeared with greater rigor and strength when the time was right. Time has only made what it could not destroy stronger. Therefore, we are certain that in our pursuit of establishing a free system, we not only do not deny France of the past few centuries but are continuing it, so that errors cannot entirely hinder the hope of success. Beyond this inspiring confidence, our history also teaches us two lessons, which I consider the most fundamental among many and wish to elaborate on them. The blind rivalry among the upper classes of society led to the failure of the experiment with a free government. The nobility and bourgeoisie, instead of uniting to resist or establish and implement freedom, divided themselves, engaging in mutual strife or exclusion. One side refused any concession to the other, and the other refused any advantage. Such arrogant notions were not only irrational in law but also futile in practice. The somewhat shallow arrogance of the nobility could not prevent the bourgeoisie from elevating themselves and occupying high positions in the state. The somewhat childish jealousy of the bourgeoisie also failed to stop the nobility from maintaining their family prestige and long-held privileges. Throughout the entire society, which was growing and expanding, there was an inherent movement of ascent and conquest. The society, as it continued, was structured in a certain hierarchy of rank, which persisted. Justice, reason, public interest, and of course, individual interest, were all willing to accept the existing facts of social order. In France, the different classes failed to grasp this subtle principle of fairness. As a result, they burdened themselves and their common nation with the weight of their imprudent selfishness. The nobility and bourgeoisie, the former clinging to their arrogant vanities, the latter to their jealous vanities, saw their degree of freedom, importance, and security in their social welfare reduced to an unparalleled extent. If they had shown a little more justice, foresight, and obedience to the sacred laws of human society, their situation would have been much better. They did not know how to cooperate to make each other free and strong; instead, they threw themselves and France into the whirlpool of revolution. Here is the second great lesson our history teaches us. History has shown us that our characteristic of being politically dominated is said to be like being ruled by the "furia francese" in war. When we are completely absorbed in a principle, an interest, or an emotion, we are absolutely and exclusively controlled by them; we obey them completely and follow them to the end, like a passionate logician, without considering other factors or facts. Have we reached the heights of our ambition for freedom? We sacrifice everything for it—the urgent conditions of order, the apparent need for power, current rest, and future security. As soon as the consequences of our errors are exposed, anarchy emerges, and the need for effective power becomes undeniable, we quickly align ourselves with it; we surrender all our positions of safety to it; we welcome and even exceed its demands. Because we have been too free in the past, we have forgotten that we once demanded freedom. Such fervor and such forgetfulness have their inevitable consequences. Discernment, foresight, recognizing the coexistence of different interests in society, considering the opposing principles that both unite and struggle, giving each person their share and no more, stopping in time to make appropriate compromises, sacrificing some of today for tomorrow—this is wisdom, this is flexibility, this is the necessity of politics; this is politics itself. As with the long fate of a nation, so too with the brief experience of an individual, God grants political success only under these conditions. The nation, compared to the individual, has the advantage of always having time to learn the way to success. And France is certainly capable of learning it, for in all ages, and despite all its errors, it has remained great, wise, and strong. It often fails, but it never weakens. Some of its successes have always overcome some of its setbacks. Although it has already had a history of fourteen centuries, it remains vibrant. It will never abandon what it has always hoped for and sought. I am one of those who firmly believe that when France understands why it has not yet succeeded, it will surely achieve the success it has not yet attained, as it should. Guizot de Valazé, September 1856