Kant and the French Revolution (Elements in the Philosophy of Immanuel Kant)

To Kant, the French revolution's central events were the transfer of sovereignty to the people in 1789 and the trial and execution of the monarch in 1792-1793. Through a contextual study, this Element argues that while both events manifested the principle of popular sovereignty, the first did so in lawful ways, whereas the latter was a perversion of the principle. Kant was convinced that historical examples can help us understand political philosophy, and this Element seeks to show this in practice. Cover 1 Title page 3 Copyright page 4 Kant and the French Revolution 5 Contents 6 1 Introduction and Historical Context 7 2 Philosophical Foundations 15 2.1 Right, Popular Sovereignty, and Reform 16 2.2 Resistance and Revolution 22 3 Reform: 1789 27 3.1 Kant’s History of 1789 29 3.2 Defending the National Assembly’s Sovereignty 36 4 Revolution: 1792 45 4.1 Kant’s History of 1792 47 4.2 Against the King’s Trial 51 4.3 The French Revolution from a Teleological Perspective 59 5 Conclusion 61 List of Abbreviations 64 References 66 Acknowledgements 74 "To Kant, the French Revolution's central events were the transfer of sovereignty to the people in 1789 and the trial and execution of the monarch in the period 1792-3. Through a contextual study, this Element argues that while both events manifested the principle of popular sovereignty, the first did so in lawful ways, whereas the latter was a perversion of the principle. Kant was convinced that historical examples can help us understand political philosophy, and this Element seeks to show this in practice"-- Back cover. Kant was convinced that historical examples can help us understand political philosophy, and this Element seeks to show this in practice. This Element concerns Kant's views on popular sovereignty, reform, and revolution.