The Great Fear of 1789

Nov 3, 2025

The Great Fear of 1789 unleashed panic across rural France, ignited by conspiracy theories and economic distress. Hosts explore the dire conditions of peasant life and how poor harvests worsened the crisis. They delve into the spread of rumors, from illiterate villagers to armed uprisings, fueled by news of aristocratic conspiracies. The chaotic response culminated in violence against the nobility, revealing the decentralized nature of the uprising. Insights into how misinformation spread like an epidemic draw parallels to modern times, showcasing historic cycles of panic and reaction.

Ask episode

AI Snips

Chapters

Books

Transcript

Episode notes

INSIGHT

Climate, Trade and Food Crisis

Population growth and repeated bad harvests increased pressure on food and land supplies.
Holly Fry connects climatic events and trade disruptions to worsening rural hardship before 1789.

INSIGHT

Voting Rules Spark Revolution

The Estates General's impasse over voting sparked the National Assembly and fast political escalation.
Tracy B. Wilson describes how disputes about representation catalyzed revolutionary action in 1789.

INSIGHT

Slow, Fragmented News Networks

Rural news traveled slowly and unevenly via letters read aloud by local officials.
Holly Fry highlights dialect and literacy differences that distorted and delayed information outside Paris.

Get the Snipd Podcast app to discover more snips from this episode

Get the app

The Great Fear was a panic during the French Revolution that spread through rural areas. It all started with a conspiracy theory.

Research:

Davies, Alun. “The Origins of the French Peasant Revolution of 1789.” History, 1964, Vol. 49, No. 165 (1964). https://www.jstor.org/stable/24404527
Elster, Jon. “The Two Great Fears of 1789.” Prepared for the Conference on “Emotions and Civil War”, Collège de France June 10-11 2010. https://www.college-de-france.fr/media/jon-elster/UPL13205_LePillouerThe_two_great_fears_of_1789.pdf
Hill, Henry Bertram. “An Aftermath of the Great Fear.” The Journal of Modern History, Vol. 22, No. 4 (Dec. 1950). Via JSTOR. https://www.jstor.org/stable/1875896
Kasal, Krystal. “Mapping out France's 'Great Fear of 1789' shows how misinformation spreads like a virus.” Phys.org. 8/28/2025. https://phys.org/news/2025-08-france-great-misinformation-virus.html
Lefebvre, Georges. “The Great Fear of 1789; rural panic in revolutionary France.” Joan White, translator. Pantheon Books. 1973.
Lenharo, Mariana. “An abiding mystery of the French Revolution is solved — by epidemiology.” Nature. 8/27/2025. doi: https://doi.org/10.1038/d41586-025-02739-9
Mark, Harrison W. “Great Fear.” World History Encyclopedia. https://www.worldhistory.org/Great_Fear/
Markoff, John. “Contexts and Forms of Rural Revolt: France in 1789.” The Journal of Conflict Resolution , Jun., 1986, Vol. 30, No. 2 (Jun., 1986), pp. Via JSTOR. https://www.jstor.org/stable/174254
Pelz, William A. “The Rise of the Third Estate: The French People Revolt.” From A People's History of Modern Europe. Pluto Press. Via JSTOR. https://www.jstor.org/stable/j.ctt1c2crfj.8
Tackett, Timothy. “Conspiracy Obsession in a Time of Revolution: French Elites and the Origins of the Terror, 1789-1792.” The American Historical Review , Jun., 2000, Vol. 105, No. 3. Via JSTOR. https://www.jstor.org/stable/2651806
Zapperi, Stefano et al. “Epidemiology models explain rumour spreading during France’s Great Fear of 1789.” Nature. 8/27/2025. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41586-025-09392-2

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.