I. Text-book.
* Mrs. Gardiner's French Revolution (Longmans' Epoch Series, two shillings and sixpence) is decidedly the best and most useful text-book.
II. Complete Histories.
*Carlyle's French Revolution is still unapproached for the dramatic splendour of its narrative and the brilliant portraits which it contains.
Von Sybel's History of the French Revolution (4 vols. tr.) is perhaps the most valuable of the many large histories, but is severely critical, and sometimes unfair to the advanced Revolutionists. It is largely occupied with the history of Germany, Poland and other countries at the time.
Louis Blanc's Histoire de la Révolution Française (12 vols.) is a long and eloquent defence of the Revolution, and especially of Robespierre.
Michelet's Histoire de la Revolution Française (7 vols.) is a brilliant and sympathetic work, rather more critical than that of Louis Blanc.
*Morse Stephens' History of the French Revolution (3 vols.—the last as yet unpublished) is the latest English narrative of the period, and has much valuable biographical information. In tone it is favourable to the Jacobin party.
(The histories of Mignet, of Thiers, of Quinet, of the 'Deux Amis de la Liberté,' and of others are also of considerable value.)
III. Critical and Illustrative Works.
*Rousseau's Contrat Social; published at 25 centimes in the Bibliothèque Nationale.
Arthur Young's Tour in France.
*De Tocqueville's L'Ancien Régime (tr. as France before the Revolution); of the greatest value in studying the condition of France in the eighteenth century.
*Taine's Les Origines de la France Contemporaine (4 vols.); a brilliant work, long, diffuse, and severely critical in its judgments, but, in spite of its bias, full of valuable information, especially in the notes. The first volume deals with the 'Ancien Régime,' the next three with 'La Révolution.'
Burke's Reflections on the French Revolution.
Sorel's L'Europe et la Révolution Française (2 vols.); a very able and recent work on the foreign aspects of the Revolution.
Schmidt's Tableaux de la Révolution Française (3 vols.); a collection of papers relating largely to the secret police of Paris, some of which are of great value.
Mortimer-Ternaux's Histoire de la Terreur (8 vols.); a long and careful work, written with great minuteness, and very critical in tone towards the Revolutionary leaders.
IV. Biographies, Memoirs and Correspondence.
Voltaire, Life, by John Morley.
Diderot, Life, by John Morley (2 vols.).
Rousseau, Life, by John Morley (2 vols.). The second volume contains an admirable account of the Social Contract.
*Turgot, an Essay by John Morley (Miscellanies, vol. II).
Bailly, Mémoires (3 vols.); the best original account of the first five months of the Revolution.
*Mirabeau, Correspondance avec La Marek (3 vols.); by far the most important book on Mirabeau's policy and views. Dumont's Souvenirs sur Mirabeau are personal and very interesting.
Ferrières, Mémoires (3 vols.); a good account of events down to the 10th August, from the point of view of an independent Conservative.
*Madame Roland, Mémoires.
Marat, Life, by Chèvremont.
Danton, Lives, by Bougeart and Robinet.
*Robespierre, an Essay by John Morley (Miscellanies, vol. I). M. Hamel has published in three long volumes an elaborate Histoire de Robespierre, which contains an enthusiastic panegyric of his hero.
St. Just, Life, by Hamel.
Pontécoulant, Souvenirs historiques et parlementaires (4 vols.); valuable for the period after Robespierre's fall.
(The Memoirs of Malouet, Bouillé, Dumouriez, Madame de Campan, Bertrand de Molleville, Mallet du Pan, Garat, Barère and very many others are all of interest and value.)