Page "Political spectrum" Paragraph 21

Originally, the defining point on the ideological spectrum was the ancien régime (" old order ").

" The Right " thus implied support for aristocratic or royal interests, and the church, while " The Left " implied support for republicanism, secularism, and civil liberties.

Because the political franchise at the start of the revolution was relatively narrow, the original " Left " represented mainly the interests of the bourgeoisie, the rising capitalist class ( with notable exceptions such as the proto-communist Gracchus Babeuf ).

Support for laissez-faire capitalism and Free markets were expressed by politicians sitting on the left, because these represented policies favorable to capitalists rather than to the aristocracy ; but outside of parliamentary politics, these views are often characterized as being on the Right.