Madame Roland - Marriage and Political Activity

Marriage and Political Activity

In the winter of 1780, Manon Phlippon married the philosopher Jean-Marie Roland de la Platière. 20 years her senior, M. Roland was politically ambitious, and following their marriage, Madame Roland's love for literature and her husband's political aspirations formed a new foundation for her intellectual development. She collaborated on a number of M. Roland's works: the Dictionnaire des Manufactures, Arts et Métiers, and a contribution to Panchoucke's Encyclopedie Methodique, in particular. Her most significant influence flowed through her husband's political writings. Nevertheless, attempting to conform to Rousseau's model of femininity, she also carefully restricted herself "well within the limits of a woman's domestic function." Thus, with him and through him, she proved both powerful and influential in the era of the French Revolution.

In 1784, she obtained a promotion for her husband which transferred him to Lyon, where she began building her network of friends and associates. In Lyon, the Rolands began to express their political support for the revolution through letters to the journal Patriote Français. Their voice was noticed and in November 1790, Jean-Marie was elected to represent Lyon in Paris, negotiating a loan to reduce the debt of Lyon. When the couple moved from Lyon to Paris in 1791, she began to take an even more active role. Her salon at the Hotel Britannique in Paris became the rendezvous of Brissot, Pétion, Robespierre and other leaders of the popular movement. An especially esteemed guest was Buzot, whom she loved with platonic enthusiasm. These leaders of the Girondist faction of the Jacobin Club met to discuss the rights of citizens and strategies to transform the French from subjects of the Monarchy into citizens of a constitutional republic.

In person, Madame Roland is said to have been attractive but not beautiful; her ideas were clear and far-reaching, her manner calm, and her power of observation extremely acute. Madame Roland’s ability to weave social networks fed the Rolands' growing popularity; an invitation from Madame Roland would signify acknowledged importance to the developing French government. It was through Manon that one gained access to the inner circle of the growing Gironde. Inevitably, her activity placed her in the centre of political aspirations where she swayed a company of the most talented men of progress.

As noted above, Madame Roland began her movement toward political involvement slowly, initially acting as her husband’s secretary, and later developing into a far more influential member of revolutionary politics. As time went on she realised that she could tweak a number of her husband’s letters and still sign them in his name. M. Roland’s rise in politics and the Girondin faction subsequently improved Madame Roland’s influence. In maintenance of her feminist beliefs she never spoke during formal meetings. Instead she listened intently at her desk, taking notes, thus educating herself on political matters. Independently, M. Roland performed sufficiently in his duties as a minister, possessing reasonable knowledge, activity, and integrity. In combination with Madame Roland, he shone due to his ability to articulate writings infused with spirit, gentleness, authoritative reason, and seducing sentiment. Consequently, whenever M. Roland spoke, it was generally known that he was speaking also for her. Girondin policies reflected her sentiments. This political influence continued until the downfall of the Girondin movement, related to Madame Roland's notoriety provoking strong opposition from the Montagnards and celebrated figures such as Robespierre, Danton, and Marat.

As a result of ideological differences, Madame Roland and her husband defected from the Jacobins in early 1792 and, with Jacques-Pierre Brissot, formed the moderate Girondin party. The Girondists desire to bring liberty to the people, whilst simultaneously implementing control coincided with Madame Roland’s political beliefs, thus satisfying her ‘appetite’: “All her tastes were with the ancient nobility and their defenders. All her principles were with the people.” Succeeding the surrender of King Louis XVI, the Girondists installed M. Roland as Minister of the Interior. At the time, this position was particularly dangerous, creating an alternate representation of the French monarchy. This 'promotion' added to the spirit of Madame Roland, “whose all-absorbing passion it now was to elevate her husband to the highest summits of greatness, was gratified in view of the honor and agitated in view of the peril.” During this period, she authored much of his official correspondence, including the letter to the King of June 21, 1792, which urged the King to publicly pledge his loyalty and cooperation to the new republic, or suffer the consequences of escalating civil unrest. Madame Roland’s sharply worded passion cost her husband his ministry, but satisfied Madame Roland’s pride and passion. This letter to the King could be considered the peak of her political influence. After Monsieur Roland made a stand against the worst excesses of the Revolution, however, the couple became unpopular. Once, Madame Roland appeared personally in the Assembly to repel the falsehoods of an accuser, and her ease and dignity evoked enthusiasm and compelled acquittal. Her drive, focus, and radiant intelligence made her the equal in accomplishments of any contemporary male politician.

Nevertheless, the accusations mounted. On the morning of 1 June 1793, she, along with other Girondins, was arrested for treason and, as a woman who had betrayed her gender, for her political activism. She was thrown into the prison of the Abbaye. Her husband escaped to Rouen with her help. Released for an hour from the Abbaye, she was again arrested and placed in Sainte-Pelagie, and finally transferred to the Conciergerie. In prison, she was respected by the guards, and was allowed the privilege of writing materials and occasional visits from devoted friends. There, she wrote her Appel à l'impartiale postérité, memoirs which display a strange alternation between self-praise and love of country, the trivial and the sublime. She was tried on trumped-up charges of harbouring royalist sympathies, but it was plain that her death was part of Robespierre's purge of the Girondist opposition.