Gouverneur Morris and the salons of revolutionary France

Abstract

Introduction. The French Revolution contributed to the rapid politicization of society, which could not but affect the traditional salon culture by that time, creating a unique atmosphere of merging private and public. The salon, first of all, is a conversation, a free exchange of opinions on different topics, including political ones. The contribution of salon hostesses, influential and often wellknown ladies, to the revolutionary cause, as well as the range of ideas and political sentiments that salons broadcast during this period, especially in metropolitan circles, remains debatable.
Materials and Methods. The key source of Mr. Morris’s “salon communications” are his diary entries, which he kept during his entire stay in Paris focusing mainly on his notes on political events and direct participation in revolutionary events (as a diplomat).
Analysis. The article examines the social activity of Gouverneur Morris (1792-1794), who arrived in France at the beginning of the Revolution as a private citizen, and then became the official plenipotentiary representative of the United States. One of the main sources of information for Morris, which he recorded in his diary and then forwarded to Washington, became the Paris salons, where he managed to find not only valuable acquaintances in the pleasant society of fashionable ladies, but also to receive valuable information about affairs in the capital and beyond.
Results. Morris regularly visited the most famous salons in Paris; this was the main form of his political activity at the beginning of the Revolution. The “World of Salons” did not die in 1788, its rapid politicization begins. Morris could be found among both royalists and liberals. His critical notes demonstrate an outside view of the political discussions in salons during the Revolution and, at the same time, testify to the importance of salons in the political life of France in 1789-1793.