Provincial Autonomy and National Disunity

The monarchy's weakness allowed provincial particularisms, never fully suppressed, to reassert themselves. Provincial estates in pays d'états like Brittany and Languedoc defended fiscal privileges against royal demands. Provincial parlements allied with local interests against central authority. Different legal systems, weights and measures, and internal customs barriers emphasized France's incomplete unification. This provincial resistance, while defending privilege, also preserved diversity against homogenizing absolutism.

Brittany exemplified provincial opposition. The Breton Parlement's resistance to royal taxes led to the exile of magistrates and military occupation. The Affaire de Bretagne (1764-1774) became a cause célèbre as harsh repression generated sympathy for provincial liberties. The Duke d'Aiguillon's authoritarian governance, supported by Louis XV against legal prosecution, demonstrated arbitrary power's reality. Brittany's resistance inspired other provinces to defend their particular privileges.

Economic regionalism reinforced political particularism. Different provinces specialized in different products—Mediterranean wine, Norman textiles, Lyonnais silk—creating distinct economic interests. Internal customs barriers protected local industries while hindering national commerce. Physiocratic proposals for free trade threatened established interests. The monarchy, dependent on support from diverse regions, could not impose economic unity that would benefit the nation while harming particular provinces.

Urban particularism also limited royal authority. Major cities maintained distinct privileges and governing structures. Municipal offices, often venal and hereditary, resisted royal oversight. Urban corporations and guilds regulated economic life according to traditional rules that hindered innovation. Royal attempts to standardize urban administration met fierce resistance from entrenched interests. This urban autonomy, while preserving local traditions, prevented coordinated national development.