Colin Jones's The Great Nation is history of the grand narrative type. In one long roller-coaster ride, its takes the reader from the death of Louis XIV to the seizure of power by Napoleon in 1799. Jones's emphasis is on continuity, his theory that France remained a country centred around the glory and brilliance of its court and rulers.
Within this theme, anecdotes and boudoir history are especially highlighted, making this generally fun to read while of course not avoiding more conventionally political or constitutional events. But Jones's version of the old regime and the revolution are very current, very fashionable, dwelling on court intrigue and the importance of an emerging `public sphere'. This makes for a certain kind of writing, which while amusing as a story - Jones obviously loves his subject, and has entertaining titles and chapters like `diamonds: not a queen's best friend', taking us to Versailles's gardens at night and then onto the vitriolic Paris pamphleteer's scene - is sometimes short on analysis. Students interested in, say, the monarchy's fiscal problems will have to look elsewhere for data. Jones's view is that old regime France's fragility had to do with court faction, dependence on foreign policy success, and a critical public opinion. Everyone is free to disagree.
