See Panic-Inducing Rumors Went Viral Ahead of the French Revolution: Researchers use the tools of epidemiology to trace how false tales spread from place to place, and provoked a revolt by Eric Niiler of The WSJ. Excerpts:
"the French Revolution was driven by the mass hysteria of ignorant peasants or a rational response to the famine and economic conditions of the day."
"In the summer of 1789, French peasants formed militias to combat bandits rumored to be attacking towns and villages, destroying crops and terrorizing peasants. When the brigands, which were believed to be acting with the support of nobles, didn’t materialize, the peasants turned against castles to destroy land titles held by local lords."
"The rumors . . . were more likely to affect towns and cities with more-educated populations"
"regions with high wheat prices—and hence higher food prices—were more likely to be “infected.”"
"the Great Fear spread according to a logical pattern linked to the social and political conditions of the time"
"Cities or areas that had suffered most had more incentive to revolt"
[rumors] "spread from town to town by horseback"
See also Epidemiology models explain rumour spreading during France’s Great Fear of 1789 by Stefano Zapperi, Constant Varlet-Bertrand, Cécile Bastidon, Caterina A. M. La Porta & Antoine Parent.
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