Neo-Babouvism
Encyclopedia
Neo-Babouvism is a term commonly used to designate a revolutionary communist current in French political theory and action in the nineteenth century.
It hearkened back to the 'Society of the Equals' of Gracchus Babeuf and his associates, who tried to overthrow the Directory
at the end of the French Revolution
. Babeuf's programme of radical Jacobin republicanism and economic collectivism was propagated after his execution by Philippe Buonarroti
, who had been associated with the 'Society of the Equals' but had survived. Buonarroti's writings influenced many French revolutionaries in the 1830s and '40s, among them Théodore Dézamy
, Albert Laponneraye
, Richard Lahautière
and Jacques Pillot
. The Neo-Babouvists represented the extreme left wing of the Neo-Jacobin republican movement. Many of them participated in the revolutionary events of the nineteenth century, such as the Revolution of 1848 and the Paris Commune
. They provided a link between the utopian communism of the French Revolution
and Marxism
. Louis-Auguste Blanqui is sometimes also grouped with the followers of Babeuf, and Babouvists and Blanquists were often allies (for example in the Paris Commune). However, Blanqui regarded himself as a political descendant of Jacques Hébert
and his followers, not of Babeuf, and he had no organisational ties to the societies of the Babouvists. He also lacked the clear committment to economic communism of the Babouvists. The writings of Buonarroti and through them the doctrines of Babeuf also had a considerable influence on some socialists within the British Chartist
movement, notably on James Bronterre O'Brien
.
Neo-Babouvism largely disappeared in the second half of the nineteenth century, although an echo of it may be found in the small non-Marxist Alliance Révolutionnaire Communiste that existed briefly in the 1890s.
It hearkened back to the 'Society of the Equals' of Gracchus Babeuf and his associates, who tried to overthrow the Directory
French Directory
The Directory was a body of five Directors that held executive power in France following the Convention and preceding the Consulate...
at the end 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...
. Babeuf's programme of radical Jacobin republicanism and economic collectivism was propagated after his execution by Philippe Buonarroti
Philippe Buonarroti
Filippo Giuseppe Maria Ludovico Buonarroti more usually referred to under the French version Philippe Buonarroti was an Italian egalitarian and utopian socialist, revolutionary, journalist, writer, agitator, and freemason; he was mainly active in France.-Early activism:Buonarroti was born in Pisa...
, who had been associated with the 'Society of the Equals' but had survived. Buonarroti's writings influenced many French revolutionaries in the 1830s and '40s, among them Théodore Dézamy
Théodore Dézamy
Alexandre Théodore Dézamy was a French socialist, a representative of the Neo-Babouvist tendency in early French communism, along with Albert Laponneraye, Richard Lahautière, Jacques Pillot and others. He was also an early associate of Louis-Auguste Blanqui...
, Albert Laponneraye
Albert Laponneraye
Albert Laponneraye was a French republican socialist and a journalist, popular historian, educator and editor of Robespierre's writings. He was a representative of the Neo-Babouvist tendency in the 1840s, along with Richard Lahautière, Jean-Jacques Pillot and others. He combined Jacobin...
, Richard Lahautière
Richard Lahautière
Auguste-Richard Lahautière was a French socialist, journalist and lawyer. He is commonly grouped with Théodore Dézamy, Albert Laponneraye, Jean-Jacques Pillot and others as belonging to the Neo-Babouvist tendency in French nineteenth-century socialism, which formed a link from the utopian...
and Jacques Pillot
Jean-Jacques Pillot
Jean-Jacques Pillot was a French revolutionary and republican communist. He participated in the Revolution of 1848 and in the Paris Commune of 1871.-Early Life:...
. The Neo-Babouvists represented the extreme left wing of the Neo-Jacobin republican movement. Many of them participated in the revolutionary events of the nineteenth century, such as the Revolution of 1848 and the Paris Commune
Paris Commune
The Paris Commune was a government that briefly ruled Paris from March 18 to May 28, 1871. It existed before the split between anarchists and Marxists had taken place, and it is hailed by both groups as the first assumption of power by the working class during the Industrial Revolution...
. They provided a link between the utopian communism 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...
and Marxism
Marxism
Marxism is an economic and sociopolitical worldview and method of socioeconomic inquiry that centers upon a materialist interpretation of history, a dialectical view of social change, and an analysis and critique of the development of capitalism. Marxism was pioneered in the early to mid 19th...
. Louis-Auguste Blanqui is sometimes also grouped with the followers of Babeuf, and Babouvists and Blanquists were often allies (for example in the Paris Commune). However, Blanqui regarded himself as a political descendant of Jacques Hébert
Jacques Hébert
Jacques René Hébert was a French journalist, and the founder and editor of the extreme radical newspaper Le Père Duchesne during the French Revolution...
and his followers, not of Babeuf, and he had no organisational ties to the societies of the Babouvists. He also lacked the clear committment to economic communism of the Babouvists. The writings of Buonarroti and through them the doctrines of Babeuf also had a considerable influence on some socialists within the British Chartist
Chartist
Chartist may refer to:*Chartist , a person who uses charts for technical analysis*Chartist , a British social democratic periodical*An adherent of Chartism, a 19th-century political and social reform movement in the UK...
movement, notably on James Bronterre O'Brien
James Bronterre O'Brien
James Bronterre O'Brien was an Irish Chartist leader, reformer and journalist.- Irish Birth & Formative Years :James O'Brien, was born near Granard, County Longford, Ireland in 1804 or 1805...
.
Neo-Babouvism largely disappeared in the second half of the nineteenth century, although an echo of it may be found in the small non-Marxist Alliance Révolutionnaire Communiste that existed briefly in the 1890s.