ABSTRACT
Louis fled in hope of obtaining, at last, the support that he had been imploring from foreign rulers. There could be little doubt that sovereigns abroad opposed the Revolution: it announced and put into effect principles which redefined the law of nations as well as government and society. Yet the reigning heads of Europe were absorbed in their own rivalries until the king’s escape abruptly focused attention on affairs in France. The flight to Varennes, which dealt a fatal blow to the French monarchy, proved no less decisive in the relations between Europe and the Revolution.
