"At the close of the regency of the Duke of Orleans the Old Régime in France was still in full vigor: the government of the country, the general social and intellectual condition of the people, were such as they long had been. Fifty-one years later, Louis XV. ended his inglorious reign; the Old Régime was then on the verge of dissolution, the beliefs and hopes of the French people had suffered more change than in the century preceding, the economical condition of the country had been greatly modified; a new literature had arisen, new ideas were found in books, were discussed in the salons, and were debated on the streets; the demand was widespread for new social conditions, for laws which should improve the lot of the poor, and should allow to all a greater freedom of thought and action. In this altered society the government still preserved the same outward form, but it needed no prophet to discern that institutions, which seemed as firmly rooted as those of the Medes and Persians when Louis XIV. was proclaimed the Great, were nearing their end when Louis XV. lay on his death-bed. The French Revolution, like the other great events of history, sprang from no accident or sudden caprice, – a political revolution followed an intellectual revolution..." - James Breck Perkins
Contents: The Condition of France. The Ministry of the Duke of Bourbon. The Ministry of Cardinal Fleury. The War of the Polish Succession. The War of the Austrian Succession. The Emperor Charles VII. Renewal of the War by Frederick. The Close of the War of the Austrian Succession. Dupleix. The Loss of an Eastern Empire. The Reign of Mme. de Pompadour. The Austrian Alliance. The Combination against Frederick. War with Frederick. The Failure of the Combination. The Administration of Choiseul. The Expulsion of the Jesuits. The Annexation of Corsica. The Disgrace of Choiseul. The Overthrow of the Parliament. The Partition of Poland. The End of the Reign. Intellectual and Social Changes. The Influence of Literature.
Contents: The Condition of France. The Ministry of the Duke of Bourbon. The Ministry of Cardinal Fleury. The War of the Polish Succession. The War of the Austrian Succession. The Emperor Charles VII. Renewal of the War by Frederick. The Close of the War of the Austrian Succession. Dupleix. The Loss of an Eastern Empire. The Reign of Mme. de Pompadour. The Austrian Alliance. The Combination against Frederick. War with Frederick. The Failure of the Combination. The Administration of Choiseul. The Expulsion of the Jesuits. The Annexation of Corsica. The Disgrace of Choiseul. The Overthrow of the Parliament. The Partition of Poland. The End of the Reign. Intellectual and Social Changes. The Influence of Literature.