The legacy of the French Revolution has remained a fascinating and contentious subject for over two centuries. Instead of seeing the revolution as an aberrant bloodbath on the path to a liberal society, this new book, the first significant history of the French Revolution in over twenty years, maintains that it fundamentally changed the Western world.<br><br>Looking at history from the bottom up, the history of working people and peasants, Hazan asks: How did they see their opportunities? What were they fighting for? What was the Terror and could it be justified? And how was the revolution stopped in its tracks?<br><br>This is vivid historical writing – the multitude of voices of the Revolution come to life. Hazan shows how only through the people can we fully understand the legacy of the French Revolution.