The Crowd and the Crown

The Hunchback of Notre Dame

This conflict-thread follows the political pressure between popular revolt, fragmented jurisdictions, and Louis XI’s effort to centralize power.

increasing

Bearing strength in each event

decreasing

A Fragmented City A Fragmented City from "The Hunchback of Notre Dame". Many Authorities Divided jurisdiction Paris is divided among overlapping lords, courts, church jurisdictions, and municipal powers.

A Fragmented City from "The Hunchback of Notre Dame". Many Authorities Divided jurisdiction Paris is divided among overlapping lords, courts, church jurisdictions, and municipal powers.

Many Authorities Divided jurisdiction Paris is divided among overlapping lords, courts, church jurisdictions, and municipal powers. No single police authority consistently controls the city. Conflict in the streets The patchwork allows local privileges and popular unrest to collide. A public disturbance can quickly become a challenge to several kinds of authority.

A King in the Bastille A King in the Bastille from "The Hunchback of Notre Dame". Louis XI at His Retreat Rule through calculation Louis XI receives accounts, manages appointments, and worries over costs from within the Bastille.

A King in the Bastille from "The Hunchback of Notre Dame". Louis XI at His Retreat Rule through calculation Louis XI receives accounts, manages appointments, and worries over costs from within the Bastille.

Louis XI at His Retreat Rule through calculation Louis XI receives accounts, manages appointments, and worries over costs from within the Bastille. His apparent economy masks a constant effort to strengthen royal control. News of unrest He initially welcomes the outcasts’ attack on the bailiff as a blow against feudal jurisdiction. His reaction changes when he learns Notre-Dame is also under assault.

The People’s Warning The People’s Warning from "The Hunchback of Notre Dame". A Political Forecast The hosier speaks plainly Jacques Coppenole explains how grievances, a public call, and collective action can set a city in motion.

The People’s Warning from "The Hunchback of Notre Dame". A Political Forecast The hosier speaks plainly Jacques Coppenole explains how grievances, a public call, and collective action can set a city in motion.

A Political Forecast The hosier speaks plainly Jacques Coppenole explains how grievances, a public call, and collective action can set a city in motion. His account challenges the king’s assumption that force always settles rebellion. An hour not yet arrived He describes the moment when bells, cannons, and collapsing strongholds announce the people’s power. Louis hears a prediction he cannot comfortably dismiss.

The King Changes Course The King Changes Course from "The Hunchback of Notre Dame". Royal Authority Threatened The target clarified Louis learns that the outcasts intend to seize Esmeralda from Notre-Dame, not merely attack the bailiff.

The King Changes Course from "The Hunchback of Notre Dame". Royal Authority Threatened The target clarified Louis learns that the outcasts intend to seize Esmeralda from Notre-Dame, not merely attack the bailiff.

Royal Authority Threatened The target clarified Louis learns that the outcasts intend to seize Esmeralda from Notre-Dame, not merely attack the bailiff. He treats the assault on the church as an assault on royal protection. A decisive order He mobilizes troops and commands a brutal suppression. The crown’s response shifts the conflict from local rescue to a demonstration of centralized force.

After the Suppression After the Suppression from "The Hunchback of Notre Dame". Order Restored by Violence A cleared square The royal troops defeat the outcasts, and officials remove the dead from the Place de Grève.

After the Suppression from "The Hunchback of Notre Dame". Order Restored by Violence A cleared square The royal troops defeat the outcasts, and officials remove the dead from the Place de Grève.

Order Restored by Violence A cleared square The royal troops defeat the outcasts, and officials remove the dead from the Place de Grève. The city’s visible disorder is quickly swept away. Power without justice Esmeralda is returned to the executioners despite her sanctuary and her innocence. Political order is restored without correcting the judicial wrong that began the crisis.

Paris in the fifteenth century

The night of the Notre-Dame siege

During Coppenole’s conversation with Louis XI

After the attack on Notre-Dame is reported

The morning following the siege