Clerical philosophers
Encyclopedia
Clerical philosophers is the name given to a group of Catholic intellectuals, namely the Savoyard Joseph de Maistre
, and the French Louis de Bonald and François-René de Chateaubriand
, who sought to undermine the intellectual foundations of the French Revolution
in reaction to what they perceived as its overt anti-religious and destructive character.
restorationists and left-wing Revolutionaries; herein arose the clerical philosophers whose answer was restoring absolute monarchy
and reinstalling the Roman Catholic Church as the official State Church of France.
, by repudiating two centuries of progress since the Revolution in 1789. (see Action Française
)
, even though not a French (being a magistrate and diplomat of the Kingdom of Piedmont-Sardinia), is the Bourbon Restoration
's philosopher of reaction; his writings are authoritative sources of reactionary ideas advocating authoritarian government of a society classified according to a divinely-established "natural inequality". A pessimist about Man's nature, he repudiated the Revolution's humanist principles and socio-political institutions, because they originated in the anti-Christian Enlightenment, saying it was God who created the State, not a human social contract
; societal order and stability are paramount, yet feasible only via obedience to Church-anointed an absolute monarch; and that civil law expressed custom and tradition, not the fickle opinion of the people. In the book, Examen de la philosophie de Bacon (The Examination of the Philosophy of Bacon), he attacked Francis Bacon
's materialism
.
and centralization
in government; championed absolute monarchy and the Church as the only means of securing domestic tranquillity. He proposed restoring the mediaeval guild
system to ensure the rights (and obligations) of every French social class.
in Catholic (black) dress, and is considered the first Romantic
writer. Although not reactionary per se, he accepted Revolutionary change, but not its social principles. He mingled new institutions with old memories, traditions with ideals of the ancien régime, so, in dressing the monarchic Restoration in Catholic trappings, he sought to the Bourbon Régime's stability via the people's devotion. Moreover, Chateaubriand wrote Christian-themed novels, such as Atala and Genie du Christianisme (The Genius of Christianity).
Joseph de Maistre
Joseph-Marie, comte de Maistre was a French-speaking Savoyard philosopher, writer, lawyer, and diplomat. He defended hierarchical societies and a monarchical State in the period immediately following the French Revolution...
, and the French Louis de Bonald and François-René de Chateaubriand
François-René de Chateaubriand
François-René, vicomte de Chateaubriand was a French writer, politician, diplomat and historian. He is considered the founder of Romanticism in French literature.-Early life and exile:...
, who sought to undermine the intellectual foundations of the French Revolution
French Revolution
The French Revolution , sometimes distinguished as the 'Great French Revolution' , was a period of radical social and political upheaval in France and Europe. The absolute monarchy that had ruled France for centuries collapsed in three years...
in reaction to what they perceived as its overt anti-religious and destructive character.
Aftermath of the French revolution
In the Revolution's aftermath, France was continually wracked with the quarrels between the right-wing BourbonistUltra-royalist
Ultra-Royalists or simply Ultras were a reactionary faction which sat in the French parliament from 1815 to 1830 under the Bourbon Restoration...
restorationists and left-wing Revolutionaries; herein arose the clerical philosophers whose answer was restoring absolute monarchy
Absolute monarchy
Absolute monarchy is a monarchical form of government in which the monarch exercises ultimate governing authority as head of state and head of government, his or her power not being limited by a constitution or by the law. An absolute monarch thus wields unrestricted political power over the...
and reinstalling the Roman Catholic Church as the official State Church of France.
Return to a Golden Age
Since then, France's history features said recurrent patterns of political thought, with reactionaries longing for an erstwhile pre-Revolutionary Golden AgeGolden Age
The term Golden Age comes from Greek mythology and legend and refers to the first in a sequence of four or five Ages of Man, in which the Golden Age is first, followed in sequence, by the Silver, Bronze, and Iron Ages, and then the present, a period of decline...
, by repudiating two centuries of progress since the Revolution in 1789. (see Action Française
Action Française
The Action Française , founded in 1898, is a French Monarchist counter-revolutionary movement and periodical founded by Maurice Pujo and Henri Vaugeois and whose principal ideologist was Charles Maurras...
)
Joseph de Maistre
Joseph de MaistreJoseph de Maistre
Joseph-Marie, comte de Maistre was a French-speaking Savoyard philosopher, writer, lawyer, and diplomat. He defended hierarchical societies and a monarchical State in the period immediately following the French Revolution...
, even though not a French (being a magistrate and diplomat of the Kingdom of Piedmont-Sardinia), is the Bourbon Restoration
Bourbon Restoration
The Bourbon Restoration is the name given to the period following the successive events of the French Revolution , the end of the First Republic , and then the forcible end of the First French Empire under Napoleon – when a coalition of European powers restored by arms the monarchy to the...
's philosopher of reaction; his writings are authoritative sources of reactionary ideas advocating authoritarian government of a society classified according to a divinely-established "natural inequality". A pessimist about Man's nature, he repudiated the Revolution's humanist principles and socio-political institutions, because they originated in the anti-Christian Enlightenment, saying it was God who created the State, not a human social contract
Social contract
The social contract is an intellectual device intended to explain the appropriate relationship between individuals and their governments. Social contract arguments assert that individuals unite into political societies by a process of mutual consent, agreeing to abide by common rules and accept...
; societal order and stability are paramount, yet feasible only via obedience to Church-anointed an absolute monarch; and that civil law expressed custom and tradition, not the fickle opinion of the people. In the book, Examen de la philosophie de Bacon (The Examination of the Philosophy of Bacon), he attacked Francis Bacon
Francis Bacon
Francis Bacon, 1st Viscount St Albans, KC was an English philosopher, statesman, scientist, lawyer, jurist, author and pioneer of the scientific method. He served both as Attorney General and Lord Chancellor of England...
's materialism
Materialism
In philosophy, the theory of materialism holds that the only thing that exists is matter; that all things are composed of material and all phenomena are the result of material interactions. In other words, matter is the only substance...
.
Louis de Bonald
Though less talented, Louis de Bonald was of the same cloth as De Maistre. He buttressed the convictions of already-convinced reactionaries; attacked the Revolution for creating individualismIndividualism
Individualism is the moral stance, political philosophy, ideology, or social outlook that stresses "the moral worth of the individual". Individualists promote the exercise of one's goals and desires and so value independence and self-reliance while opposing most external interference upon one's own...
and centralization
Centralization
Centralisation, or centralization , is the process by which the activities of an organisation, particularly those regarding planning and decision-making, become concentrated within a particular location and/or group....
in government; championed absolute monarchy and the Church as the only means of securing domestic tranquillity. He proposed restoring the mediaeval guild
Guild
A guild is an association of craftsmen in a particular trade. The earliest types of guild were formed as confraternities of workers. They were organized in a manner something between a trade union, a cartel, and a secret society...
system to ensure the rights (and obligations) of every French social class.
François-René de Chateaubriand
François-René de Chateaubriand was an eloquent writer described as RousseauJean-Jacques Rousseau
Jean-Jacques Rousseau was a Genevan philosopher, writer, and composer of 18th-century Romanticism. His political philosophy influenced the French Revolution as well as the overall development of modern political, sociological and educational thought.His novel Émile: or, On Education is a treatise...
in Catholic (black) dress, and is considered the first Romantic
Romanticism
Romanticism was an artistic, literary and intellectual movement that originated in the second half of the 18th century in Europe, and gained strength in reaction to the Industrial Revolution...
writer. Although not reactionary per se, he accepted Revolutionary change, but not its social principles. He mingled new institutions with old memories, traditions with ideals of the ancien régime, so, in dressing the monarchic Restoration in Catholic trappings, he sought to the Bourbon Régime's stability via the people's devotion. Moreover, Chateaubriand wrote Christian-themed novels, such as Atala and Genie du Christianisme (The Genius of Christianity).