Jean Ternant and the Age of Revolutions

Jean Ternant’s life (1751–1833) spanned a period of enormous change in European life. Born when men were still subject to judicial torture, he lived to see the dawn of the railroad age. It was an era of political upheaval: the American Revolution, the “patriot” movement of the Dutch Republic, the Vonckist uprising in the Austrian Netherlands, the French Revolution, the Polish rebellion against Imperial Russia, the Greek war for independence and the struggle for independence in Spain’s South American colonies all occurred during Ternant’s lifetime. He was an active participant in four of them.
The son of a French leather goods merchant, Jean Ternant nevertheless built a public service career in an aristocratic society based on birth and privilege, commanding a regiment in the French army before being appointed minister-plenipotentiary to the United States. His story of public service undertaken for private ends illustrates the value of education and social contacts as well as the importance of luck and circumstances.

Frank Whitney is a former member of the adjunct faculty in the history department at Youngstown State University. He lives in Ravenna, Ohio.

Frank Whitney
Format: softcover (6 x 9)
Pages: 264
Bibliographic Info: 11 illustrations, notes, bibliography, index
Copyright Date: 2015
pISBN: 978-1-4766-6213-8
eISBN: 978-1-4766-2322-1
Imprint: McFarland

Table of Contents

Acknowledgments ix
Introduction 1
I. Damvillers—Mézières (1751–1772) 11
II. New Orleans—Versailles—Cap-Français (1773–1777) 22
III. Valley Forge—Philadelphia (March 1778–September 1778) 36
IV. Charlestown—Savannah—Philadelphia (October 1778–December 1779) 60
V. Charlestown—Havana—Philadelphia (January 1780–February 1782) 73
VI. Monticello—Fuller’s Plantation—Philadelphia (March 1782–June 1784) 93
VII. Versailles—Amsterdam—London (August 1784–March 1788) 111
VIII. Paris—Darmstadt—Bitche (March 1788–August 1791) 133
IX. Philadelphia—Mount Vernon—Goodstay (August 1791–July 1801) 163
X. Paris—St. ­Germain-en-Laye—Contrexéville (August 1801–November 1833) 188
Chapter Notes 209
Bibliography 231
Index 247