Anglo-French Encounters: The Integration of French Prisoners of War and Émigrés into British Society 1789-1815
Katherine STEVENS
Kingston University, September 2017
Abstract:
"At a time of hostility between Britain and France, émigrés and prisoners of war on parole were granted the opportunity, albeit restricted, to interact with people of a different social status within British communities. This dissertation aims to look beyond studies of national identities and perceived Anglo-French hostilities to determine whether Anglo-French encounters show that the French were given a genuine opportunity to settle into British life or whether the British, indoctrinated by messages from the government and the media, maintained their hostility towards the French as ‘others’. This study comes at a time when immigration and the movement of refugees is a growing concern across the globe. The research aims to highlight the potential for people to show one another humanity, even in the context of two battling nations forced together. It examines the extent to which French visitors encountered a warm welcome and assistance from their social counterparts in British society. It looks at the differing social standings of the French and the impact of this in terms of acceptance on an individual basis. To determine the importance of rank when accessing overall success of French integration into British society, it asks to what extent the attitudes of the British may have been affected by judgments based on social status or Francophobia. This study is based on a range of sources, including diaries and individual contemporary accounts, to help determine the views of both the British and French of the mass arrival of French immigrants, some voluntary, some forced. The National Archives PRO ADM 103 Series, HO 42 Series and T 93 Series have been essential for looking at the scale of immigration into Britain at the time and obtaining accounts of interactions."