American political debate over the nature of the French Revolution exacerbated pre-existing political divisions and resulted in the alignment of the political elite along pro-French and pro-British lines. However, with revolutionary change also came political instability, violence, and calls for radical social change in France that frightened many Americans.
Americans hoped that the existing Franco-American alliance would be solidified by democratic reforms that would transform France into a republican ally against aristocratic and monarchical Britain. When the first rumors of political change in France reached American shores in 1789, the U.S. politics, as pro- and anti- Revolutionary factions sought to influence American domestic and foreign policy. The French Revolution also influenced U.S. The Revolution precipitated a series of European wars, forcing the United States to articulate a clear policy of neutrality in order to avoid being embroiled in these European conflicts. The French Revolution lasted from 1789 until 1799.
The United States and the French Revolution, 1789-1799
