Les Miserables Time Period Misconception And Accuracy

Most people think that the story of Les Miserables takes place during the French revolution. But contrary to popular belief, this story takes place in 1832, which is a little bit later in history than the French Revolution, which began in 1789 with the storming of the Bastille.

According to Brian Bergstrom’s article, How historically-correct are the events in Les Miserables?, “the event in 1832, during which the story of Les Mis takes place, is known as the June Rebellion, or the Paris uprising of 1832. This mini-revolution was an unsuccessful, anti-monarchist rebellion of the Parisian Republicans, who were mostly students, and took place on June 5 and 6, 1832.

In the years leading up to the June Rebellion, France was struggling with catastrophic failures in harvest and food inadequacy. Combined with an increase in the cost of living, these situations were extremely devastating for Paris’s poorest citizen. The same Bergstrom article describes the death of General John McQuillen Lamarque, who was a leader known for his sympathy for the lower classes of citizens. On June 2, 1832, Lamarque’s death was seen as the event that caused the uprising and his death was used as an excuse for riots to take place. Lamarque died as a result of a European outbreak of Cholera that resulted in the deaths of over 18,000 people in Paris alone.

Lamarque’s death is actually referenced in Les Miserables as the rebellious students use this occasion to take a stand against what they perceive to be an unfair government. Les Miserables is quite accurate to most of these events, even including the funeral procession that happened before the barricades were put up by the students.

The largest giveaway that Les Mis does not take place during the French Revolution is that in the play, it mentions that the old king was killed by the people but the new one isn’t much better. This actually refers to the beheading of the previous king, Louis XVI, during the French Revolution. So if a new king is in place, this event has to take place AFTER the French Revolution.

Overall Les Miserables is almost exactly accurate to history and the conditions at the time of the attacks. People just need to understand that while Les Mis is about a revolution, it is not the French Revolution.

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