Paris, City of Dreams by Mary McAuliffe

Author:Mary McAuliffe
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Rowman & Littlefield Publishers
Published: 2020-03-05T00:00:00+00:00

In addition to feeling the effects of the emperor’s declining health, the empire was beginning to suffer from its very success, or at least from its longevity. With more than a decade having passed since the failure of the Second Republic and the fear of anarchy that had catapulted Louis-Napoleon into power, his subjects no longer dreaded mob rule and devastation. The passage of a decade had brought a new generation of bourgeoisie to the fore, including many who were opposed to the Roman Catholic Church and who were equally opposed to the empire’s constraints on their liberties.

At the same time, Louis-Napoleon had seriously undermined his support with conservative Catholics by his interventions in Italy, which had blown holes through the hitherto-sacred integrity of the thoroughly secular Papal States. And just as damaging, he had angered the significant group of protectionists among his supporters. Even the working class was emitting rumbles of discontent, as prices rose, misery increased, and the well-to-do were more ostentatiously well-to-do than ever.

The emperor responded by trying to shore up support among his more liberal subjects by making further concessions, such as those of late 1861, whereby the Legislature received a say over supplementary and special funds, hitherto raised by decree, as well as by other concessions that gave Parliament greater control over the budget—no small thing given Haussmann’s enormous ongoing expenditures.

Still, Louis-Napoleon’s Second Empire was far from being a parliamentary or a liberal regime, and his unpredictable and unsettling forays into foreign affairs only added to a growing sense of unease, both at home and abroad.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.