The Ancien Régime was the feudal system of government that existed in France prior to the revolution of 1789, including the monarchy and the aristocracy.

The big whites belonged to the higher of two classes to emerge among Whites in San Domingo, consisting of wealthy plantation owners, merchants, and similarly powerful non-governmental figures. 

In Marxist theory, the bourgeoisie are the capitalists who own the means of production. James uses this term with reference to France’s newly rich industrialists.