Sister republics (, ) were

republic A republic, based on the Latin phrase ''res publica'' ('public affair' or 'people's affair'), is a State (polity), state in which Power (social and political), political power rests with the public (people), typically through their Representat ...

s established by the

French First Republic In the history of France, the First Republic (), sometimes referred to in historiography as Revolutionary France, and officially the French Republic (), was founded on 21 September 1792 during the French Revolution. The First Republic lasted un ...

or local pro-French revolutionaries during the

French Revolutionary Wars The French Revolutionary Wars () were a series of sweeping military conflicts resulting from the French Revolution that lasted from 1792 until 1802. They pitted French First Republic, France against Kingdom of Great Britain, Great Britain, Habsb ...

. Though nominally independent, sister republics were heavily reliant on French protection, making them in effect client states of France. This became particularly evident after the

First French Empire The First French Empire or French Empire (; ), also known as Napoleonic France, was the empire ruled by Napoleon Bonaparte, who established French hegemony over much of continental Europe at the beginning of the 19th century. It lasted from ...

was established in 1804, after which France annexed several sister republics and transformed the remainder into monarchies ruled by members of the House of Bonaparte.

History

The French Revolution was a period of social and political upheaval in France from 1789 until 1799. The Republicans who overthrew the monarchy were driven by ideas of popular sovereignty,

rule of law The essence of the rule of law is that all people and institutions within a Body politic, political body are subject to the same laws. This concept is sometimes stated simply as "no one is above the law" or "all are equal before the law". Acco ...

, and

representative democracy Representative democracy, also known as indirect democracy or electoral democracy, is a type of democracy where elected delegates represent a group of people, in contrast to direct democracy. Nearly all modern Western-style democracies func ...

. The Republicans borrowed ideas and values from Whiggism and Enlightenment philosophers. The French Republic supported the spread of republican principles in Europe. According to Paul D. Van Wie most of these ''sister republics'' became a means of controlling occupied lands as client regimes through a mix of French and local power.

Sister republics in Italy

* The Subalpine Republic (1800–1802), annexed by the French Republic ** The Piedmontese Republic (1798–1799), conquered by Austro-Russian troops and rendered back to Sardinia, but reconquered by

Napoleon Napoleon Bonaparte (born Napoleone di Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French general and statesman who rose to prominence during the French Revolution and led Military career ...

in 1800 and renamed the Subalpine Republic (Novara to the Italian Republic) *** The Republic of Alba (1796), reconquered by the Kingdom of Sardinia * The Parthenopean Republic (1799), reconquered by the '' Sanfedisti'' for the King of Naples and Sicily ** The Republic of Pescara (1799), reunited with the

Kingdom of Naples The Kingdom of Naples (; ; ), officially the Kingdom of Sicily, was a state that ruled the part of the Italian Peninsula south of the Papal States between 1282 and 1816. It was established by the War of the Sicilian Vespers (1282–1302). Until ...

* The

Roman Republic The Roman Republic ( ) was the era of Ancient Rome, classical Roman civilisation beginning with Overthrow of the Roman monarchy, the overthrow of the Roman Kingdom (traditionally dated to 509 BC) and ending in 27 BC with the establis ...

(1798–1799), ended with the restoration of the

Papal States The Papal States ( ; ; ), officially the State of the Church, were a conglomeration of territories on the Italian peninsula under the direct sovereign rule of the pope from 756 to 1870. They were among the major states of Italy from the 8th c ...

** The Anconine Republic (1797–1798), joined the Roman Republic ** The Tiberina Republic (1798–1799), joined the Roman Republic * The Ligurian Republic (1797–1805), annexed by the French Empire * The Republic of Lucca (1799 and 1800–01), later continued (1801–05) under the old oligarchy and replaced by the Principality of Lucca and Piombino * The Italian Republic (1802–1805), transformed into the

Kingdom of Italy The Kingdom of Italy (, ) was a unitary state that existed from 17 March 1861, when Victor Emmanuel II of Kingdom of Sardinia, Sardinia was proclamation of the Kingdom of Italy, proclaimed King of Italy, until 10 June 1946, when the monarchy wa ...

** The Cisalpine Republic (1797–1802), transformed into the Italian Republic *** The Cispadane Republic (1796–1797), formed the Cisalpine Republic **** The Bolognese Republic (1796), annexed by the Cispadane Republic *** The Transpadane Republic (1796–1797), formed the Cisalpine Republic *** The Republic of Crema (1797), formed the Cisalpine Republic *** The Republic of Bergamo (1797), formed the Cisalpine Republic *** The Republic of Brescia (1797), annexed by the Cisalpine Republic * The Provisional Municipality of Venice (1797–1798), annexed by the

Austrian Empire The Austrian Empire, officially known as the Empire of Austria, was a Multinational state, multinational European Great Powers, great power from 1804 to 1867, created by proclamation out of the Habsburg monarchy, realms of the Habsburgs. Duri ...

Other sister republics

* The Republic of Bouillon (1794–1795) * The Republic of Liège (1789–1791) * The Rauracian Republic (1792–1793), French revolutionary republic in

Basel Basel ( ; ), also known as Basle ( ), ; ; ; . is a city in northwestern Switzerland on the river Rhine (at the transition from the High Rhine, High to the Upper Rhine). Basel is Switzerland's List of cities in Switzerland, third-most-populo ...

* The Lémanique Republic (1798), joined the Helvetic Republic * The Republic of Mainz (1793), French revolutionary republic in Rhenish Hesse and the

Electoral Palatinate The Electoral Palatinate was a constituent state of the Holy Roman Empire until it was annexed by the Electorate of Baden in 1803. From the end of the 13th century, its ruler was one of the Prince-electors who elected the Holy Roman Empero ...

* The

Batavian Republic The Batavian Republic (; ) was the Succession of states, successor state to the Dutch Republic, Republic of the Seven United Netherlands. It was proclaimed on 19 January 1795 after the Batavian Revolution and ended on 5 June 1806, with the acce ...

(1795–1806) * The Cisrhenian Republic (1797) * The

Irish Republic The Irish Republic ( or ) was a Revolutionary republic, revolutionary state that Irish Declaration of Independence, declared its independence from the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland in January 1919. The Republic claimed jurisdict ...

(1798), accompanied General Jean Joseph Amable Humbert's Irish expedition in support of the

Irish Rebellion of 1798 The Irish Rebellion of 1798 (; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ''The Turn out'', ''The Hurries'', 1798 Rebellion) was a popular insurrection against the British Crown in what was then the separate, but subordinate, Kingdom of Ireland. The m ...

* The Helvetic Republic (1798–1803) * The Republic of Danzig (1807–1814) * The Rhodanic Republic (1802–1810) ( Valais)

References

{{Client states of the Great French War Republicanism Modern history of Italy French Directory Types of republics

History

Sister republics in Italy

Other sister republics

See also

References