Historedia
EuropeEvent

Adolphe Thiers becomes prime minister of France

When
1840
Where
Paris; France (negotiations between the king and Thiers; specific site not stated in sources)
Episodes
5

Adolphe Thiers formed his second government on 1 March 1840, following the fall of the Soult cabinet. His ministry, known as the Second Thiers cabinet, lasted until October 1840. During this period, Thiers secured legislative majorities, oversaw the announcement of the transfer of Napoleon's remains, and navigated a diplomatic crisis involving Egypt, Britain, and Russia. A disagreement over the draft of the throne speech preceded the ministry's end in October 1840.

Episodes

  1. March 1840 · ParisSecret Funds Debate

    Thiers secured an easy majority in the debate on secret funds in March 1840.

  2. 1 March 1840 – October 1840 · ParisFormation of the Second Thiers Cabinet

    Thiers formed his government on 1 March 1840, following the collapse of the Soult cabinet on 20 February 1839.

  3. 12 May 1840 · ParisTransfer of Napoleon's Remains

    The government announced the transfer of Napoleon's remains to the Invalides.

  4. 16 May 1840 · ParisRejection of Social Reforms

    Thiers rejected universal suffrage and social reforms following a speech by François Arago.

  5. 7 October 1840 · France (negotiations between the king and Thiers; specific site not stated in sources)Diplomatic Compromise on Egypt

    A compromise was reached regarding French support for Muhammad Ali in Syria.

Background and detail

Background. Thiers returned to the Deputies in 1839 and delivered speeches denouncing the government led by Molé. Molé was forced to resign, leading to elections on 2 March 1839. The Soult cabinet fell in February 1839 after deputies voted against the proposed dowry for the Duke of Nemours. This political instability paved the way for Thiers to form a new government in early 1840.

Domestic Policy. Thiers obtained an easy majority in March 1840 regarding secret funds. On 16 May 1840, he rejected universal suffrage and social reforms following a speech by François Arago. His government announced the transfer of Napoleon's remains to the Invalides on 12 May 1840. Thiers also helped secure the election of Victor Hugo to the Académie Française in December 1840.

People involved

Sources

  1. July Monarchy Wikipedia, revision of 2026-08-27
  2. Adolphe Thiers Wikipedia, revision of 2026-09-06

Machine-drafted from the cited Wikipedia passages and checked by a reviewing model, not by a human editor. Every passage cites the revision it was written from; dates and places follow those passages.