The Religion of

Populism
Developments in the Influence of Parisian Religion
Between Napoleons (1814 1848)

Religious Populism
Un-centralized religion, free of formalisms
Loss in political power of the Church

The new face of post-Bourbon Christianity

Inspirational core of 19th Century socialism

and modern French secularism

The Restoration (1815

1830)
Louis XVIII pushed unpopular, religious laws:
Unbanning church-sponsored public ceremonies
Renaming the Panthon
Oct. 1814: ecclesial schools mandated in universities

Ultra-royalist factions pushed Louis

Concordat of 1516

Sacrilege Act of 1824

Divine right of Kings?
Perhaps a power hungry church

End of the Ancien Rgime

The Church as a centralized, political force
was proven obsolete by Napoleon

Zeitgeist was afraid of returning to preRevolution values and hierarchies (Second

Estate)

Papal Jubilee of 1826**

A Story of Conspiracy

Charles X actively participated in expiatory

processions in the context of the Papal Jubilee; in doing
so he cementedthat the conception of monarchy
which he believed in was more akin to being dramatized
by the missionaries than that [of] Louis XVIIIDressed
in purple, the color of mourning for the kings of France,
Charles X proceeded on foot with a candle in his hand,
casting himself as one of thesubjects participating in
such expiatory events[This] spectacle gave rise to the
widespread rumor that the king was in fact a bishop,
secretly working to place the reins of power in the
hands of clerics (Kroen, 2000).

July Monarchy (1830

-1848)
The Orlean Monarchy wanted a return to
Empire secularism and irreligiousity
1830-1832 Cross Collections

Saint Genevieve re-named and virtually all

religious laws removed.

Religiosity was on the rise, however.

Religion without a
Church
Several poor communities engaged in paganlike, Christian worship and ceremonies.

Religion of Republicans, Socialists, Communists,

and democratic minds.
Marx, Leroux, Engels, and Philippe Buchez
Christianity is the religious dogma of equality, democracy
is the political expression of that dogma. And Association is
the practical means by which it can be realized (Berenson,
1984).

A Unifying Faith
A notable branch of these movement is
called Saint-Simonainism founded by Herni
de Saint-Simon

New Chirstianity based on equality, free

speech, and industry.
Writings like Nouveau Christianisme inspired
many republican and liberal intellectuals and
Industrial workers and engineers.

The Populist Revolt

Several of these ideas and writings were
spread through Cabinets de Lecture.
Famine in 1846 inspired revolt
The poor mans plight would become vital
Buchez LAtlier

Campagne des Banquets fermented revolt

Moderate liberals called for legal reform
and more enfranchisement (70 banquets, 17,000
people)

Historic Paintings

Banquet at Chateau-Rouge

Drawing of Cabinet de Lecture

Works Cited
Alexander, Robert. Re-Writing the French Revolutionary
Tradition: Liberal Opposition and theFall of the Bourbon
Monarchy. Cambridge University Press, New York, 2003.
Web. 26 Oct 2015.
Berenson, Edward. Populist Religion and Left-Wing Politics in
France, 1830-1852. Princeton University Press, Princeton,
1984. Web. 26 Oct 2015.
Jones, Colin. Paris: Biography of a City. Penguin Group, New
York. 2004. Print.
Kroen, Sheryl. Politics and Theater: The Crisis of Legitimacy
in Restoration France, 1815-1830. University of California
Press, Los Angeles, 2000. Web. 24 Oct 2015.