The duc d'Orléans and the coming of Revolution (article)

A new open-access article by Damien Tricoire in the Bulletin du Centre de recherche du château de Versailles, dated 26th March, takes an in-depth look at the role of the duc d'Orléans /  Philippe Égalité in bringing about the events of the Revolution.

Marie-Antoinette chocs

Sortir à Paris for 18th March has a feature on the Marie-Antoinette "pistoles" one of the first solid chocolates sweets, which was said to have been created by Louis XVI's personal pharmacist Sulpice Debauve.

Songs of the Revolution

 The University of Cambridge Varsity magazine publishes an article on French Revolutionary songs (by Lauren Quinn, dated 7th February)

Spotlight on Mick Jagger's house

An article by Fanny Guénon des Mesnards published in Architectural Digest on 10th January spotlights the Château de Fourchette in the Loire Valley, which once belonged to the duc de Choiseul.  Mick Jagger has owned (and by all accounts loved) the property since 1980.

Prison memoirs

In the wake of Nicolas Sarkozy's "Journal d'un prisonnier", an article in the Engelberg Ideas (by Muriel Zagha, 13th January) considers the French tradition of prison memoirs, with its roots  in the 18th century.

70 years of Studies in the Enlightenment

On the Liverpool University Press blog this month, Gregory Brown, editor of the Oxford University Studies in the Enlightenment, commemorates the 70th anniversary of the series.

French heritage reinvented (article)

 A feature in France Today, first published on 27th November, considers the strategy of the Centre des monuments nationaux in "reimagining" French heritage sites.

Duchess of Angouleme's tiara

The Court Jeweller website publishes a post, dated 27th October, on the diamond and emerald tiara made for the Duchess d'Angoulême - mercifully still safe in the Louvre collections!

Burke's Reflections

Age of Revolutions publishes an article by Jack Zapotochny on Edmund Burke's response to the French Revolution.

Operas of 1789

Part 2 of  Opera Wire's series of "Opera History Flashbacks" focuses on the productions of 1789 (with a link to the video of the 2018 American premiere of  Salieri's "La cifra")

Death of Marat (article)

The American art critic Kelly Grovier,  presents an analysis of David's "Death of Marat", currently on exhibition at the Louvre.  Article on BBC Culture dated 29th October.

The Oath of the Horatii

An article by Shane Lewis, published in the The Collector on 27th September, presents an analysis of David's painting The Oath of the Horatii.

Voltaire's chair

 The Voltaire Foundation blog for 10th October features a post by Toronto research student Jennifer Franks  on Voltaire's armchair ("fauteuil mortaire") in the musée Carnavalet.

Engraved portraits of Voltaire

The Voltaire Foundation's blog post of 26th September features an overview of the three principal collections of engraved portraits of Voltaire,in Brussels, Paris and Vienna.

The Queen we love to hate?

 Yet another offering on M.-A.: Deborah Nicholls-Lee asks, Why 'the most controversial queen in history' was so hated?  BBC, 18th September. 

Women and Revolutionary prisons

 Newly published on Age of Revolutions :  Oriane Guiziou-Lamour, "Sex under the guillotine: women, prison, and the French Revolution", posted 08.08/2025.

Too much Marie-Antoinette??

 In the wake of the new exhibition at the V & A, Anne Higonnet casts a critical light on the modern obsession with Marie-Antoinette style.  (Article published  in Town and Country Magazine on 4th September).

Politics and history at Puy du Fou

The Right-wing vision of French history represented by the Puy du Fou theme park  is discussed by Hélène de Lauzun in an article published in The European Conservative on 18th August.

Revolutionary music and song

The Library of Congress blog publishes a  guest blog post from Case Western University doctoral student Ellen Sauer Tanyeri on the musical background of the French Revolution with reference to material from the Library of Congress collections.

Jean-Joseph Mounier - Revolutionary

Posted on Age of Revolutions on 11th August:  Francesco Giosuè explores the career and reputation of the Revolutionary Jean-Joseph Mounier.