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Books by Ralph Kingston

How did the French Revolution change ordinary lives? "Bureaucrats and Bourgeois Society" asks thi... more How did the French Revolution change ordinary lives? "Bureaucrats and Bourgeois Society" asks this question in relation to office clerks working in Parisian administrations. Under new masters, these clerks faced radical changes to work practices as reforming politicians looked to implement new 'administrative science'. Many also faced the loss of family inheritances, as positions no longer passed down from father to son. Clerks were now expected to make their career as individuals. In practice, this meant increased job insecurity. Administrators lived under the threat of regular cuts in pay and of personnel. In this situation, some believed that the way to get ahead was by playing office politics. In the early nineteenth century, however, clerks mitigated their situation by modifying occupational practices. Inside the offices, they settled new modes of judging individual merit. Outside, they accumulated other forms of individual credit, in the process helping to define nineteenth-century bourgeois social capital, ideals of emulation, honor, and masculinity. Job insecurity, however, continued to set 'bureaucrats' apart from the bourgeoisie and their social identity came under question during the July Monarchy and 1848 Revolution.

Articles by Ralph Kingston

Life in Revolutionary France, ed. Mette Harder and Jennifer Ngaire Heuer, 2020

"Surveillance at Work" looks at a case where "ordinary" crime became entangled with revolutionary... more "Surveillance at Work" looks at a case where "ordinary" crime became entangled with revolutionary justice. In August 1800, an archives clerk named Louis Bonnet was convicted of stealing valuable boxes used to protect seals on international treaties. This article investigates the case against Bonnet -- and his arguments that he had been set up. Competing testimonies show how people had learned during the French Revolution to behave as if they were constantly under scrutiny -- but also how they could use that surveillance to promote their own interests. Using the idea of "place-ballet," this article explores the -- sometimes self-imposed -- restrictions on people's movements in the workplace, and what this tells us about changing notions of privacy , surveillance, and suspicion in the Revolution, and how justice became closely connected to people's sense of self and space.

During his voyage of discovery to the South Pacific (1817-1820), Louis de Freycinet drew up new r... more During his voyage of discovery to the South Pacific (1817-1820), Louis de Freycinet drew up new rules for the selection of scientists and the organisation of their observations in order to encourage collaboration on board the Uranie. As he issued methodical lists of scientific investigations his officers might conduct irrespective of their scientific specialisms, he felt it necessary to remark to the members of his état major that they should not expect to follow in the footsteps of Humboldt. While they could not hope to aspire to the fame and glory of the Prussian explorer of South America, they could, nevertheless, still pursue an ambitious overarching scientific program by collaborating on his fixed agenda. Freycinet’s paperwork scheme facilitated the integration of multiple viewpoints in his official historical account of the voyage. It also changed the way in which his officers approached the day-to-day scientific operations of the expedition and on the sort of discoveries Freycinet’s men were able to make.

Au cours de son expédition de découverte vers le Pacifique Sud (1817-1820), Louis de Freycinet ét... more Au cours de son expédition de découverte vers le Pacifique Sud (1817-1820), Louis de Freycinet établit de nouvelles règles pour la sélection des scientifiques et l’organisation de leurs observations afin d’encourager la collaboration à bord de l’Uranie. Alors qu’il dressait des listes méthodiques des investigations scientifiques que ses officiers pouvaient conduire (sans tenir compte de leurs spécialisations disciplinaires), il se sentit obligé de faire remarquer à son état-major qu’ils ne devaient pas s’attendre à suivre les traces de Humboldt. Alors qu’ils ne pouvaient espérer atteindre la célébrité et la gloire de l’explorateur prussien de l’Amérique du Sud, ils pouvaient cependant mener un ambitieux programme scientifique d’envergure en travaillant ensemble sur les objectifs qu’il avait fixés. Ainsi, le programme de Freycinet facilita l’intégration de points de vue multiples dans le compte rendu historique officiel de son voyage. Il modifia également la façon dont ses officiers abordèrent les opérations scientifiques de l’expédition au jour le jour et le type de découvertes que les hommes de Freycinet furent en mesure de faire.

During his voyage of discovery to the South Pacific (1817-1820), Louis de Freycinet drew up new rules for the selection of scientists and the organization of their observations in order to encourage collaboration on board the Uranie. As he issued methodical lists of scientific investigations his officers might conduct irrespective of their scientific specialisms, he felt it necessary to remark to the members of his état major that they should not expect to follow in the footsteps of Humboldt. While they could not hope to aspire to the fame and glory of the Prussian explorer of South America, they could, nevertheless, still pursue an ambitious overarching scientific program by collaborating on his fixed agenda. Freycinet’s paperwork scheme facilitated the integration of multiple viewpoints in his official historical account of the voyage. It also changed the way in which his officers approached the day-to-day scientific operations of the expedition and on the sort of discoveries Freycinet’s men were able to make.

During the French Revolution, the comparative geographer Jean-Denis Barbié du Bocage lost his pat... more During the French Revolution, the comparative geographer Jean-Denis Barbié du Bocage lost his patron, his job, and (most importantly) his access to source materials. Working for ministry map depots, however, he was able to forge new alliances and, by acting as a broker between different actors and interests, mobilize new networks of accumulation inside France and across central and eastern Europe. In these new centers of accumulation, Barbié translated the meanings and the significance of the objects he collected to fit the interests of the different constituencies in his network: including French politicians, diplomats and consuls, Greek merchants and Enlightenment scholars. The strength of the ‘mobiles’ he collected was their mutability, the ease with which they could be repurposed. Such translations shifted Barbié’s own assumptions about the ways in which old and new information could be combined both in his work for the government and in his private antiquarian scholarship.

Well before Haussmann, ordinary Parisians invested in their streets and buildings, constructing t... more Well before Haussmann, ordinary Parisians invested in their streets and buildings, constructing their own capitalist geographies. This study of a street corner in Paris shows that their efforts involved not only a significant movement of capital, but also speculation on the exchange value of properties. Local business owners — “petit bourgeois” capitalists — had no means to draw on the “geographic” vision of the urban city planner. Carving new shortcuts through buildings and between streets, constructing sidewalks and passages couverts, they nevertheless reinterpreted the built environment at ground level, composing their own urban “texts.” The actions of such shopkeepers and tradesmen show us that nineteenth-century capitalist geographies were not the product of centralized city administrations alone. Capitalist geographies could also be created “in the street” by small-scale local entrepreneurs.

Historians of vandalism and conservation during the French Revolution have treated the archive as... more Historians of vandalism and conservation during the French Revolution have treated the archive as an idea, an expression of modern political culture, and have largely ignored its material history. When revolutionaries "attacked" Old Regime depots, however, they were spurred on by necessity: locating valuable property titles, or paper for use as gunpowder funnels. Moreover, it was only when limited space in ministry buildings forced New Regime administrators to discard documents from their own holdings that archivists embraced historical conservation. Through ministerial deposits in the Archives nationales, the archive as a lieu de mémoire—legitimized by a respect des fonds—took shape in nineteenth-century France.

Cultural and Social History, Jan 1, 2010

Endeavour, Jan 1, 2007

Nicolas Baudin's voyage to Australia in 1800 was particularly fractious. Many officers and scient... more Nicolas Baudin's voyage to Australia in 1800 was particularly fractious. Many officers and scientists deserted. When stories of mission mismanagement leaked back to France, Baudin's reputation – and the public reputation of the expedition as a whole – was left in tatters. All was not Baudin's fault, however. Scientific rivalries – disputes over credit and quarrels over mission priorities – undermined his mission from the start, and explain why his attempt to use a ‘public’ journal to foster teamwork backfired. Unable to control his floating laboratory's paperwork, Baudin became an ‘invisible commander’. After the expedition returned, naturalist François Péron assumed credit for its work.

French History, Jan 1, 2006

... Even before the apprehension of the royal family, the Assembly sealed the Ministry of Foreign... more ... Even before the apprehension of the royal family, the Assembly sealed the Ministry of Foreign Affairs offices; on 21 June 1791, the guard placed around the ministry forced Montmorin to write to the Legislative Assembly for a laissez-passer to attend their debate. ...

Collaborations by Ralph Kingston

Focusing on the second half of the long eighteenth century, this special issue explores the conce... more Focusing on the second half of the long eighteenth century, this special issue explores the concepts and practices of accumulation and management in ways that work to de-center the history of science and empire. Particular attention is paid to four intertwined elements: 1) the networked location of centres of accumulation around the world; 2) (natural) knowledge as a tool, object and consequence of accumulation; 3) the complex interactions between management and governance; and 4] the geographically dispersed processes of ascribing value. Following an extended introduction, four essays examine accumulation and management in New Granada, the Dutch East Indies, the Isle de France (Mauritius) and the networks that connected France to the western portions of the Ottoman Empire.

How did the French Revolution change ordinary lives? "Bureaucrats and Bourgeois Society" asks thi... more How did the French Revolution change ordinary lives? "Bureaucrats and Bourgeois Society" asks this question in relation to office clerks working in Parisian administrations. Under new masters, these clerks faced radical changes to work practices as reforming politicians looked to implement new 'administrative science'. Many also faced the loss of family inheritances, as positions no longer passed down from father to son. Clerks were now expected to make their career as individuals. In practice, this meant increased job insecurity. Administrators lived under the threat of regular cuts in pay and of personnel. In this situation, some believed that the way to get ahead was by playing office politics. In the early nineteenth century, however, clerks mitigated their situation by modifying occupational practices. Inside the offices, they settled new modes of judging individual merit. Outside, they accumulated other forms of individual credit, in the process helping to define nineteenth-century bourgeois social capital, ideals of emulation, honor, and masculinity. Job insecurity, however, continued to set 'bureaucrats' apart from the bourgeoisie and their social identity came under question during the July Monarchy and 1848 Revolution.

Life in Revolutionary France, ed. Mette Harder and Jennifer Ngaire Heuer, 2020

"Surveillance at Work" looks at a case where "ordinary" crime became entangled with revolutionary... more "Surveillance at Work" looks at a case where "ordinary" crime became entangled with revolutionary justice. In August 1800, an archives clerk named Louis Bonnet was convicted of stealing valuable boxes used to protect seals on international treaties. This article investigates the case against Bonnet -- and his arguments that he had been set up. Competing testimonies show how people had learned during the French Revolution to behave as if they were constantly under scrutiny -- but also how they could use that surveillance to promote their own interests. Using the idea of "place-ballet," this article explores the -- sometimes self-imposed -- restrictions on people's movements in the workplace, and what this tells us about changing notions of privacy , surveillance, and suspicion in the Revolution, and how justice became closely connected to people's sense of self and space.

During his voyage of discovery to the South Pacific (1817-1820), Louis de Freycinet drew up new r... more During his voyage of discovery to the South Pacific (1817-1820), Louis de Freycinet drew up new rules for the selection of scientists and the organisation of their observations in order to encourage collaboration on board the Uranie. As he issued methodical lists of scientific investigations his officers might conduct irrespective of their scientific specialisms, he felt it necessary to remark to the members of his état major that they should not expect to follow in the footsteps of Humboldt. While they could not hope to aspire to the fame and glory of the Prussian explorer of South America, they could, nevertheless, still pursue an ambitious overarching scientific program by collaborating on his fixed agenda. Freycinet’s paperwork scheme facilitated the integration of multiple viewpoints in his official historical account of the voyage. It also changed the way in which his officers approached the day-to-day scientific operations of the expedition and on the sort of discoveries Freycinet’s men were able to make.

Au cours de son expédition de découverte vers le Pacifique Sud (1817-1820), Louis de Freycinet ét... more Au cours de son expédition de découverte vers le Pacifique Sud (1817-1820), Louis de Freycinet établit de nouvelles règles pour la sélection des scientifiques et l’organisation de leurs observations afin d’encourager la collaboration à bord de l’Uranie. Alors qu’il dressait des listes méthodiques des investigations scientifiques que ses officiers pouvaient conduire (sans tenir compte de leurs spécialisations disciplinaires), il se sentit obligé de faire remarquer à son état-major qu’ils ne devaient pas s’attendre à suivre les traces de Humboldt. Alors qu’ils ne pouvaient espérer atteindre la célébrité et la gloire de l’explorateur prussien de l’Amérique du Sud, ils pouvaient cependant mener un ambitieux programme scientifique d’envergure en travaillant ensemble sur les objectifs qu’il avait fixés. Ainsi, le programme de Freycinet facilita l’intégration de points de vue multiples dans le compte rendu historique officiel de son voyage. Il modifia également la façon dont ses officiers abordèrent les opérations scientifiques de l’expédition au jour le jour et le type de découvertes que les hommes de Freycinet furent en mesure de faire.

During his voyage of discovery to the South Pacific (1817-1820), Louis de Freycinet drew up new rules for the selection of scientists and the organization of their observations in order to encourage collaboration on board the Uranie. As he issued methodical lists of scientific investigations his officers might conduct irrespective of their scientific specialisms, he felt it necessary to remark to the members of his état major that they should not expect to follow in the footsteps of Humboldt. While they could not hope to aspire to the fame and glory of the Prussian explorer of South America, they could, nevertheless, still pursue an ambitious overarching scientific program by collaborating on his fixed agenda. Freycinet’s paperwork scheme facilitated the integration of multiple viewpoints in his official historical account of the voyage. It also changed the way in which his officers approached the day-to-day scientific operations of the expedition and on the sort of discoveries Freycinet’s men were able to make.

During the French Revolution, the comparative geographer Jean-Denis Barbié du Bocage lost his pat... more During the French Revolution, the comparative geographer Jean-Denis Barbié du Bocage lost his patron, his job, and (most importantly) his access to source materials. Working for ministry map depots, however, he was able to forge new alliances and, by acting as a broker between different actors and interests, mobilize new networks of accumulation inside France and across central and eastern Europe. In these new centers of accumulation, Barbié translated the meanings and the significance of the objects he collected to fit the interests of the different constituencies in his network: including French politicians, diplomats and consuls, Greek merchants and Enlightenment scholars. The strength of the ‘mobiles’ he collected was their mutability, the ease with which they could be repurposed. Such translations shifted Barbié’s own assumptions about the ways in which old and new information could be combined both in his work for the government and in his private antiquarian scholarship.

Well before Haussmann, ordinary Parisians invested in their streets and buildings, constructing t... more Well before Haussmann, ordinary Parisians invested in their streets and buildings, constructing their own capitalist geographies. This study of a street corner in Paris shows that their efforts involved not only a significant movement of capital, but also speculation on the exchange value of properties. Local business owners — “petit bourgeois” capitalists — had no means to draw on the “geographic” vision of the urban city planner. Carving new shortcuts through buildings and between streets, constructing sidewalks and passages couverts, they nevertheless reinterpreted the built environment at ground level, composing their own urban “texts.” The actions of such shopkeepers and tradesmen show us that nineteenth-century capitalist geographies were not the product of centralized city administrations alone. Capitalist geographies could also be created “in the street” by small-scale local entrepreneurs.

Historians of vandalism and conservation during the French Revolution have treated the archive as... more Historians of vandalism and conservation during the French Revolution have treated the archive as an idea, an expression of modern political culture, and have largely ignored its material history. When revolutionaries "attacked" Old Regime depots, however, they were spurred on by necessity: locating valuable property titles, or paper for use as gunpowder funnels. Moreover, it was only when limited space in ministry buildings forced New Regime administrators to discard documents from their own holdings that archivists embraced historical conservation. Through ministerial deposits in the Archives nationales, the archive as a lieu de mémoire—legitimized by a respect des fonds—took shape in nineteenth-century France.

Cultural and Social History, Jan 1, 2010

Endeavour, Jan 1, 2007

Nicolas Baudin's voyage to Australia in 1800 was particularly fractious. Many officers and scient... more Nicolas Baudin's voyage to Australia in 1800 was particularly fractious. Many officers and scientists deserted. When stories of mission mismanagement leaked back to France, Baudin's reputation – and the public reputation of the expedition as a whole – was left in tatters. All was not Baudin's fault, however. Scientific rivalries – disputes over credit and quarrels over mission priorities – undermined his mission from the start, and explain why his attempt to use a ‘public’ journal to foster teamwork backfired. Unable to control his floating laboratory's paperwork, Baudin became an ‘invisible commander’. After the expedition returned, naturalist François Péron assumed credit for its work.

French History, Jan 1, 2006

... Even before the apprehension of the royal family, the Assembly sealed the Ministry of Foreign... more ... Even before the apprehension of the royal family, the Assembly sealed the Ministry of Foreign Affairs offices; on 21 June 1791, the guard placed around the ministry forced Montmorin to write to the Legislative Assembly for a laissez-passer to attend their debate. ...

Focusing on the second half of the long eighteenth century, this special issue explores the conce... more Focusing on the second half of the long eighteenth century, this special issue explores the concepts and practices of accumulation and management in ways that work to de-center the history of science and empire. Particular attention is paid to four intertwined elements: 1) the networked location of centres of accumulation around the world; 2) (natural) knowledge as a tool, object and consequence of accumulation; 3) the complex interactions between management and governance; and 4] the geographically dispersed processes of ascribing value. Following an extended introduction, four essays examine accumulation and management in New Granada, the Dutch East Indies, the Isle de France (Mauritius) and the networks that connected France to the western portions of the Ottoman Empire.