Between politics and conspiracy: the public image and the private politics of the Duc d'Orleans

For contemporaries of the French Revolution, the figure of Philippe, due d'Orleans, made a significant impact and for good or ill his image was deep rooted in the origins of the 1789 revolution. However, over the past two centuries, a mixture of truths, rumours, propaganda and falsehoods have blended together to form a distorted image of Philippe and his place in the history of reform and revolution. Although the caricature of Philippe Egalite is well known to historians, the existence of multiple and often contradictory images of Philippe has made it increasingly difficult to separate fact from fiction, leading George Kelly to brand him an enigma. This uncertainty surrounding Philippe has made him a sidelined figure in recent histories of the Revolution. The purpose of this PhD has been to peel away the layers of propaganda, rumour and myth that have surrounded Philippe, and to provide a new study that traces both the evolution of Philippe's private politics and the continual development of his public image.