The Third Restoration refers to an unsuccessful attempt in 1873 to restore the monarchy in

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

following the collapse of the Second Empire and the political instability of the early Third Republic. This effort, led by royalists, sought to crown

Henri d'Artois Henri, Count of Chambord and Duke of Bordeaux (; 29 September 1820 – 24 August 1883), was the Legitimist pretender to the throne of France as Henri V from 1844 until his death in 1883. Henri was the only son of Charles Ferdinand, Duke ...

, Count of Chambord, as king, but ultimately failed due to political divisions and Henri's refusal to compromise on key symbols such as the tricolor flag.

Background

After the fall of

Napoleon III Napoleon III (Charles-Louis Napoléon Bonaparte; 20 April 18089 January 1873) was President of France from 1848 to 1852 and then Emperor of the French from 1852 until his deposition in 1870. He was the first president, second emperor, and last ...

in 1870,

faced political fragmentation. In the 1871 legislative elections, royalists won a majority in the

National Assembly In politics, a national assembly is either a unicameral legislature, the lower house of a bicameral legislature, or both houses of a bicameral legislature together. In the English language it generally means "an assembly composed of the repr ...

, with a split between

Legitimists The Legitimists () are royalists who adhere to the rights of dynastic succession to the French crown of the descendants of the eldest branch of the House of Bourbon, Bourbon dynasty, which was overthrown in the 1830 July Revolution. They reject ...

supporting Henri d'Artois and Orléanists backing Philippe d'Orléans, Count of Paris. The Orléanists agreed to support the Count of Chambord's claim to the throne, with the expectation that upon his death, with him lacking any sons, he would be succeeded by their own claimant, Prince Philippe, Count of Paris.

Restoration plan

Henri d'Artois, known to his supporters as "Henri V," returned to France and expressed willingness to ascend the throne under a monarchy. However, Henri insisted that he would accept the crown only on condition that France abandon its tricolour flag (associated with the French Revolution) and return to the use of the ''fleur de lys'' flag, comprising the historic royal arms of France. He declared, "I will not abandon the white flag, which has been the symbol of French honor and monarchy." His unwavering insistence on reinstating the white Bourbon flag instead of retaining the republican tricolor flag alienated moderate supporters and Orléanists. Despite efforts by royalist leaders, including Patrice de Mac Mahon, the monarchist factions could not reconcile their differences. Henry rejected a compromise whereby the ''fleur-de-lys'' would be the new king's personal standard, and the tricolour would remain the national flag.

Pope Pius IX Pope Pius IX (; born Giovanni Maria Battista Pietro Pellegrino Isidoro Mastai-Ferretti; 13 May 1792 – 7 February 1878) was head of the Catholic Church from 1846 to 1878. His reign of nearly 32 years is the longest verified of any pope in hist ...

, upon hearing Henri's decision, notably remarked "And all that, all that for a napkin!"

1873 Attempt

In 1873 another attempt to restore the monarchy failed for the same reasons. Henri traveled to Paris and tried to negotiate with the government, to no avail; and on 20 November, the National Assembly confirmed Mac Mahon as President of France for the next seven years.Gabriel de Broglie, ''Mac Mahon,'' Paris, Perrin, 2000, pp. 247–251. Without broad political consensus, the National Assembly dissolved the royalist commission on 31 October 1873, ending the immediate prospects for restoration.

Cementing the Republic

The failure of the restoration solidified the Third Republic, especially after the Constitutional Laws of 1875 established a framework for republican governance. The 1877 legislative elections further weakened royalist influence, and by 1879, the election of a republican Senate and the resignation of Mac Mahon marked the definitive decline of monarchist aspirations.

Extinguishing the Legitimist Claim

Upon the Count of Chambord's death, the Orleanist claimant Phillippe Count of Paris was recognized by most monarchists as Philippe VII of France. This succession was disputed by the

Carlist Carlism (; ; ; ) is a Traditionalism (Spain), Traditionalist and Legitimist political movement in Spain aimed at establishing an alternative branch of the Bourbon dynasty, one descended from Infante Carlos María Isidro of Spain, Don Carlos, ...

descendants of the Bourbon kings of Spain, who argued that being descended directly from

Louis XIV LouisXIV (Louis-Dieudonné; 5 September 16381 September 1715), also known as Louis the Great () or the Sun King (), was King of France from 1643 until his death in 1715. His verified reign of 72 years and 110 days is the List of longest-reign ...

their claim was greater than that of the Orléanists'; however, this argument was weakened by

Philip V of Spain Philip V (; 19 December 1683 – 9 July 1746) was List of Spanish monarchs, King of Spain from 1 November 1700 to 14 January 1724 and again from 6 September 1724 to his death in 1746. His total reign (45 years and 16 days) is the longest in the ...

's renunciation of his and his descendants' claim to the French throne pursuant to the

Treaty of Utrecht The Peace of Utrecht was a series of peace treaty, peace treaties signed by the belligerents in the War of the Spanish Succession, in the Dutch city of Utrecht between April 1713 and February 1715. The war involved three contenders for the vac ...

References

{{reflist 1873 in France History of France Monarchism in France Bourbon Restoration French Third Republic