Sister republic

1799 caricature in which the Prussian ("God, how it grows; It's terrifying"), Russian ("That should be good to eat"), and Austrian ("Don't touch that, my friend, it's poisonous") monarchs watch how republics spring up like mushrooms around France, spreading towards other European capitals

Sister republics (French: république sœur, pronounced [ʁepyblik sœʁ] ) were republics established by the French First Republic or local pro-French revolutionaries during the French Revolutionary Wars. 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 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

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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, and representative democracy. 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.[1]

List of Sister Republics

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Map of France and her sister republics in 1798
Flag Name Duration Location Fate
Subalpine Republic 1800–1802 Piedmont Annexed by the French Republic.
Piedmontese Republic 1798–1799 Piedmont Predecessor to the Subalpine Republic. Conquered by Austro-Russian troops, later reconquered by Napoleon.
Republic of Alba 1796 Alba Predecessor to the Piedmontese Republic; reconquered by the Kingdom of Sardinia.
Parthenopean Republic 1799 Naples Reconquered by the Sanfedisti for the King of Naples and Sicily.
Republic of Pescara 1799 Pescara Reunited with the Kingdom of Naples.
Roman Republic (1798–1799) 1798–1799 Papal States Ended with the restoration of the Papal States.
Anconine Republic 1797–1798 Ancona Joined the Roman Republic.
Tiberina Republic 1798–1799 Perugia Joined the Roman Republic.
Ligurian Republic 1797–1805 Genoa Annexed by the French Empire.
Republic of Lucca 1799, 1800–1805 Lucca Replaced by the Principality of Lucca and Piombino.
Italian Republic (Napoleonic) 1802–1805 Northern Italy Transformed into the Kingdom of Italy (Napoleonic).
Cisalpine Republic 1797–1802 Northern Italy Transformed into the Italian Republic.
Cispadane Republic 1796–1797 Emilia-Romagna Merged with the Transpadane Republic to form the Cisalpine Republic.
Bolognese Republic 1796 Bologna Annexed by the Cispadane Republic.
Transpadane Republic 1796–1797 Lombardy Merged with the Cispadane Republic to form the Cisalpine Republic.
Republic of Crema 1797 Crema Annexed by the Cisalpine Republic.
Republic of Bergamo 1797 Bergamo Annexed by the Cisalpine Republic.
Republic of Brescia 1797 Brescia Annexed by the Cisalpine Republic.
Provisional Municipality of Venice 1797–1798 Venice Ceded to the Austrian Empire by the Treaty of Campo Formio.
Republic of Bouillon 1794–1795 Bouillon (modern-day Belgium) Annexed by the French First Republic.
Republic of Liège 1789–1791 Prince-Bishopric of Liège (modern-day Belgium) Dissolved after restoration of the Prince-Bishopric; later annexed by France.
Rauracian Republic 1792–1793 Basel (modern-day Switzerland) Annexed by the French First Republic.
Lémanique Republic 1798 Vaud (modern-day Switzerland) Joined the Helvetic Republic as the Canton of Léman.
Republic of Mainz 1793 Rhenish Hesse and Palatinate (modern-day Germany) Collapsed upon the Prussian reconquest of Mainz.
Batavian Republic 1795–1806 Netherlands Replaced by the Kingdom of Holland.
Cisrhenian Republic 1797 West bank of the Rhine (modern-day Germany) Proclaimed but not fully established; area annexed by France.
Irish Republic (1798) 1798 Connacht (Ireland) Proclaimed during the Irish Rebellion of 1798; collapsed with the defeat of the Franco-Irish force.
Helvetic Republic 1798–1803 Switzerland Dissolved by Napoleon's Act of Mediation.
Altamura 1799 Altamura (Kingdom of Naples) Crushed by Neapolitan royalist forces (the Sanfedisti).
Astese Republic 1797 Asti Short-lived, suppressed and absorbed by the Cisalpine Republic.
Reggiana Republic [it] 1796 Reggio Emilia Annexed by the Cispadane Republic.
Rhodanic Republic 1802–1810 Valais (modern-day Switzerland) Transformed into the Republic of Valais under French influence, later annexed.


See also

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References

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  1. ^ Van Wie, Paul D. (1999). Image, History, and Politics: The Coinage of Modern Europe. University Press of America. pp. 116–7. ISBN 9780761812227. Retrieved 24 June 2015.