The role of religion in France in the years before the Terror

Despite the churches reduced role, the church was still one of the largest landowners in France, and was responsible for a large number of abuses, such as the tithe, of which many expressed dissatisfaction in their cahiers. In order to combat this, the newly found confidence of the National Assembly produced two documents. The first, the Decree, referred to the injustice of an institution, such as the church, holding too much land and charging too much rent. Furthermore, they also referred to the tithe as being an out of date and ridiculously unjust form of taxation. It is worth noting that despite the obvious intention of abolishing said tax and taking away the land, the National Assembly still stated the intention to support divine worship and the provide for the livelihood of the clergy at this point in time. Furthermore, the Decree also removed privileges from other parts of the Ancien Regime, such as the nobility and the Monarchy, however it was the church that was the first to face changes, none as important as the nationalisation of churchlands in 1790. Hanson argues that the nationalisation of churchlands by the National Assembly was an attempt to liquidate the national debt, and as such displays that the power of the church was diminishing. The second document under study, the Declaration, took the Decree from mere material grievances, and replaced it with an ideological and philosophical attack not just upon the church, but the entire Ancien Regime. The main attack on religion was the way in which the Declaration removed the Catholicism from its pedestal as the national church of France, and also promoted a new idea of religious freedom. Furthermore, the Declaration also defines where sovereignty lies. It claims there is an existence of a sovereign nation, and as such denounces the justification of any authority from any one individual organisation which is not the sovereign nation. This would evidently include the Catholic Church. Sutherland agrees with this argument by stating that the Declaration undermined the churches rationale for its existence as a separate organised order. The nationalisation of the churchlands and the Decree and Declaration produced by the National Assembly represent what Rude calls the beginning of the De-Christianization process in France. However, neither of these events would evidence the diminishing power of the church when in comparison the Civil Constitution of the Clergy in 1790.

Sutherland claims that the Civil Constitution of the Clergy represented an attempt by the National Assembly to gain a form of leverage and authority over the Catholic Church. Additionally, it provided a means the revolution to breach religious doctrine by invading the spiritual realm. The Civil Constitution of the Clergy requested clergymen to swear an oath which included many factors, but none more importantly than embracing the sovereign nation as its leader. It also enforced a number of smaller changes, such as a reduction of wealth disparity within the church. Rude argues that the CCC represented a clear moral decision for the clergy to decide upon, which was to either preserve their own theological beliefs and personal wealth, or popular sovereignty which demanded a reduction of religious authority. As a result, Hanson claims that over 50% of the clergy in France swore the oath. Whereas the rest of the clergy were angered with what the oath entailed and thus refused to take it, and as such became known as the refractory, or non-juring, clergy. An alternative stance taken by historian is displayed by Le Goff and Sutherland, who claim that the CCC was a political occasion, in which clergymen could demonstrate either their approval or disapproval of the regime. Despite the fact that this was evidently reducing the power of the church over French society, many priests who took the oath believed that the CCC was the ‘voice of God’, and many also believed that this was the restoration of a ‘purer’ and less opulent form of the Catholic Church. This represented the undeniably strong theological beliefs that still existed within France, and also shows how readily some members of the Catholic Church began believing in Enlightenment ideas themselves. This represents Tilly’s view that the CCC was a controversial and divisive subject, thus polarising the Church and all those who followed it. The main consequence of the CCC was ultimately that of the increase in counterrevolutionary sentiment. However, on a local scale refractory priests were hunted down by the government, whilst those who attended the illegal Catholic services were treated with great severity. In addition, the scale of clerical resistance meant that in 1791 the government had to adopt less harsh reforms due to fears of civil unrest. The third primary document, the Letter, displays the extent to which people were punished by referring to the illegal church services as an intoxication and fanaticism. This document also provides primary evidence to highlight the fears that existed in regards to a civil war, and further displays the scorn and hatred displayed by revolutionary forces on the Catholic Church. These fears were soon to be realised, as between 1791-1793 a significant counterrevolutionary force emerged, which stood for the ideals of Catholicism and would stand against Protestant and revolutionary forces to create an opposition, which then eventually culminated into the Terror.

There is a large amount of historiographical debate surrounding the question of why a counterrevolutionary force emerged. Tilly argues that after 1791 and the Civil Constitution of the Clergy, many staunch Catholics, particularly in rural areas, felt that their entire way of life was threatened, and thus needed to oppose the revolution publicly. Furthermore, Forrest supports this view by arguing that any attack on Catholicism was ultimately destined to create bitter opposition within French society. As aforementioned, the Decree and the Declaration would have contributed greatly to this anti-revolutionary sentiment. Hanson also agrees with the importance of the Civil Constitution of the Clergy, by stating that the areas of France with the highest rate of non-juring priests were also the areas that counterrevolutionary sentiment was at its strongest. Another debate that has arisen surrounds the topic of who actually was counterrevolutionary. Sutherland claims that the vast majority of counterrevolutionary forces were formed of craftsmen and peasants, thus describing the conflicts as a split of the old third estate. However, the role of religion in mobilising these craftsmen and peasants was paramount, as they were largely unorganised until they were led by priests with the support of the old nobility. This view is also supported by Le Goff and Sutherland who state that Catholicism was most prominent in the upper and lower classes of society, but rarely in the middle. Therefore, it is evident that the role of religion was essential in creating a counterrevolution. However, Rude highlights the possibility that this stereotypical link between Catholicism and counterrevolutionary thought could be incorrect, since there is no evidence to suggest that the majority of priests were strongly counterrevolutionary. This view is supported by Forrest, who states that not all Catholics were counterrevolutionary, but those who were represented what the entire movement was aiming to achieve, which was a return to rural Catholic culture.

Conclusively, the role of religion changed dramatically during the years 1789-1793, and thus arguably towards the end of the period could be seen as far weaker than it ever was before. The revolution not only removed the Monarchy, the feudal system, and a way of life, it also removed the prominence of Catholicism through laws and actions, as seen in the Decree, the Declaration, the nationalisation of churchlands, and the Civil Constitution of the Clergy. However, it is evident that a religion which was so entrenched into everyday life would not collapse without retaliation, as was displayed by the strong counterrevolution mounted by Catholicism. Furthermore, despite the fact that Catholicism eventually lost its counterrevolution, the Terror that then came after is clear evidence of the fear of Catholicism by revolutionaries.

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