Peasants and King in Burgundy

The example of Old Regime France provides a source for many of the ideas about capitalism, modernization, and peasant protest that concern social scientists today. Hilton Root challenges traditional assumptions and proposes a new interpretation of the relationship between state and society.

Hilton L. Root is Bers Professor of Social Science at the University of Pennsylvania.

Acknowledgments 
Abbreviations 
Introduction: The State, the Peasantry, and the Revolution 
1. Louis XIV Builds a Peasant Kingdom 
2. A Bureaucratic State in the Making 
3· Village Assemblies and the General Will 
4· The Politics of Agriculture 
5· Challenging the Seigneurie: Community and Contention on the Eve of the Revolution 
6. The Limits of Reform 
7· Financing the French Revolution 
Bibliography 
Index