Reign of Terror

1793 – France at war against Europe, the Jacobins seize power, the Terror begins

Further radicalization of the revolution

 September 1792: More than 1000 people were killed in a massacre of prisoners in Paris.
 They argued the prisoners were conspiring to rise up and join a counter-revolutionary plot.
 However, although some were political prisoners, many were common criminals with no political agenda.

 After the execution of the king, the war and the revolution radicalized even more.
 February 1793: The Convention declares war to Britain and the Dutch Republic.
 Edict of Fraternity: France called on European peoples to rise against their rulers and offered their help.
 Britain already had a conflict of interest with France:
 They were scared revolutionary ideas would reach Britain.
 Louis XVI death: Terrorized all Europe countries and threatened their monarchs.
 Opposed the idea of France expanding its borders to Belgium: France wanted to take control of Belgium
finances as Belgium managed the finances of many European countries = threat to Britain’s commerce.
 When declaring war to Britain, France suffers many defeats: Weakens the position of Girondins in the
Convention.
 After the king’s death, Spain and Italy declared war to France.

 During the first half of 1793, France situation was chaotic.

 War efforts increases and therefore prices increase too.
 The Convention tries to afford the war by printing more paper money: Inflation increases.
 Peasants weren’t willing to sell their products for invaluable money: Decrease in amount of wheat available.
 Lower classes of Paris demanded a price-control measure.

 The Convention issue the Levée en masse: Obligatory conscription that required men to join the army.
 The requisition which looked to improve the defence in the war caused further discontent and riots start.
 1793 War in the Vendée: Armed uprising against the rule of the Convention, particularly against conscription.
 Initially it was a peasant uprising complaining about their high land tax, however royalists quickly joined.
 Convention takes troops from the borders and sends them to Vendée.
 Convention has the situation out of control: Takes a serious of very radical emergency measures between
March and May of 1793.

 Robespierre set up a Revolutionary Tribunal in Paris:

 Trials that judged any suspected ‘enemy of the revolution’.
 Trials were like purges: Rapid and biased.
 Local committees with similar purposes appeared in provinces, but were often unofficial.

 Once the Jacobins had the control of the Convention, they established the Committee of Public Safety:
 Dominated by the most hard-line Jacobins led by Robespierre.
 Was given powers two supervise military and legal affairs.
 Its role was to protect the new republic against foreign attacks and internal rebellions.
 It supervised the Committee of General Security (police), the secret police and the Revolutionary Tribunal.
 Also created the rationing cards: Certain amount of food each person receives depending on the number of
members of your family.
 Creates compulsory loan: Taxes on the wealthiest.
 Emigres territories are confiscated, and they are threatened with death if they return to France.

 Insurrection of 31 May – 2 June 1793: Organized by the Paris commune, an armed crowd of sans-culottes and
members of the National Guard storm the hall of the Convention and demanded the expulsion of Girondins.
The deputies resist.
 June 2: Sans-culottes and soldiers of the Paris Commune occupy the hall of the Convention and force it to
vote for the arrest of 29 Girondins deputies, and two ministers.
 Exclusion of the Girondins from the Convention start the Federalist revolts: France's provincial cities start
protesting because of the increasing centralisation of power in Paris and the radical measures.
 Napoleon is called to control the riots: He begins to be noticed.
 He controls the situation within France, but external war continues.
 They hunt generals that they thought were guilty for the defeats in the war.

 June 24 Constitution of 1793: Ratification of a new Constitution by the National Convention.

 The Constitution accepted rebellion and violence as long as it was interest of the revolution.
 July 1793: Marat was murdered by Charlotte Corday (a girondine) in his bath.
 He had played a substantial role in the political purge of the Girondins by incentivizing them in his
newspaper.
 Girondins, members of the Convention, are scared of these measures and try to limit the power of the radicals
(such as the power of the Paris commune lead by the sans-culottes).
 At the same time, sans-culottes think the Girondins are too moderate and blame them for the defeats in war.

 September 1793: Jacobins were facing several crises.

 The port of Toulon was besieged by the British: Could become a base for counter-revolutionaries to make
inroads towards France.
 The Convention passed the Law of Suspects: Arrests based on accusations rather than evidence.
 Guilt was defined in vague terms so that anyone who wasn’t an active supporter could be executed.
 The accused couldn’t have lawyers and were tried in special tribunals presided over by Jacobin agents rather
than judges.
 It created a mass overflow in the prison systems
 Start of the Reign of Terror.

Reign of Terror
 The measures taken by the Committee provoked rejection from moderates and public opinion.
 The Jacobins established the Reign of Terror, consolidating their power between 1972 and 1974.
 Some people in the committee didn’t support terror, as Danton who was executed in 1794.

 There was no central head ruling France, but many small committees in hands of the Jacobins.
 Period of Anarchy Terror: No authorities or governing body in France, everyone but nobody governed.
 This caused confusion, terror and many revolts.
 Robespierre is becoming supreme and violence now comes from the government (organized violence).
 Many of these committees go against the principles of the revolution for which they fought in the first place.
 For example, everyone who though different to Robespierre was executed: No liberty of expression.
 September-December 1793: Robespierre will repress anyone who opposes his power.
 October 1793: Series of public guillotine killings used to frighten people and avoid the rebellions.
 Only in October 1500 people were killed, including Maria Antoinette.
 Radicals take power of the provincial governments.
Popular pressure
 During the Reign of Terror, the sans-culottes and the popular masses put pressure on the National
Convention delegates and contributed to the overall instability of France.
 Jacobins supported radical violence and pressures of the lower classes.
 Once they gained control of the Convention, they began demanding radical measures.
 Sans-culottes agitated leaders to inflict punishments on those who opposed the interests of the poor.
 They violently pushed their demands and created constant pressure for the Jacobins to enact reform.

Robespierre’s cult
 A man of high morality that called for a ‘Republic of Virtue’ to replace Roman Catholicism.
 Emphasised duty, the need of all citizens to help each other and loyalty to democracy.
 Previous revolutionaries had criticised the power of the Church, but few attacked the religion itself.
 Introduced the Cult of the Supreme Being to replace the worship of the Christian God.

 Paris and many other large cities supported the extremist Jacobin rule, however agents from the C.P.S were
not public everywhere.
 Some members of the nobility who hadn’t fled abroad became the focus of loyalist activity.
 The clergy also commanded support in parts where moderates or royalists remained dominant.
 The agents sent to uncover and supress anti-revolutionary feeling were ruthless, but it wasn’t easy.

 The sans-culottes were the best known of extremist groups acting in Paris and the provinces.
 Several other groups emerged to enforce revolutionary law throughout the country.

Dechristianization of France
 Together with the Reign of Terror, it came a process of dechristianization from the Catholic Church.
 Closure of many Church’s, destruction of Catholic symbols and religious names of streets are changed.
 Notre-Dame Paris Cathedral was turned into the Temple of Reason and then into the Cult of the Supreme
Being.
 Priests: Forced to marry or to adopt an orphan, communes stop paying their salaries.
 Robespierre begins to believe he is supreme: Provokes resentment between French people.
 He notices this and asked the Convention to pass a Decree called the Liberty of Cult: Allowed religious
tolerance.

 By the end of 1793, the C.P.S controlled the riots in the provinces and the defeats from the war.
 The economy begins to stabilize more.
 As the period of chaos was over, many people thought the terror would end too: But Robespierre continued.
 4 December: With the excuse that there were too many committees which made it hard to governed,
Robespierre passed a law that gave more power to the C.P.S (power was more centralized).
 Back to the Ancient Regime: Power centralized in one committee.
 Unofficial military bodies were abolished: This increased the Sans-culottes anger towards Robespierre.
 He closed potential places of opposition and attacked his leaders, such as the political club of the Cordeliers.
 Jacques Herbet and other leaders of Cordeliers are condemned to death and guillotined: Caused more anger.
 Abril 1794: Danton is guillotined (he had previously work with Robespierre and asked him to diminish
terror).

The Great Terror

 50 days in which 1500 people will be guillotined, lasted until the Thermidorian Reaction.
 Robespierre ends with the provincial revolutionary tribunal and enemies of the revolution are send to the Paris
Revolutionary Tribunal.
 As prisons are full, the Convention speeds up the trials and the number of executions greatly increased.

The fall of Robespierre

 Robespierre was criticized for violating the principles of the revolution.
 He though the well-being of France justified the terror used to achieve this, and that he was the only one who
knew what France needed (the end justifies the means).
 Used the masses to achieve his objectives as he was very popular within the people.

 Other revolutionary groups grew alarmed by how extreme the Jacobins had become.
 The Law of Suspect was widely regarded as a step too far.
 As success in the war reduced the threat from abroad, some felt it was time to challenge Robespierre.
 The disorder persuade many people, even in Paris, that Robespierre was too dictatorial.
 The Committee was becoming too powerful, ignoring the Convention, and divided itself.

Thermidorian Reaction (after month 11 or Thermidor)

 July 26: Robespierre gives a violent speech at the Convention, demanding, without naming them, the arrest
and punishment of "traitors" in the Committees of Public Safety and General Security.
 He also says he should have total control of these institutions to hunt down these traitors: He only wanted to
increase his power and suppress anyone who challenge his authority
 He shows he is the only one who knows what right for France: He is demanding power.
 July 27: Robespierre was arrested, together with his brother Augustin and seventy of his allies.
 July 28: After a failed suicide attempt, Robespierre and around 90 of his colleagues were executed.
 The death of Robespierre marked the end of the Reign of Terror, decentralization of executive powers from
the Committee of Public Safety and a turn from the radical leftist policies to more conservative positions.

 Some believe Robespierre saved the revolution from defeat at a critical time.
 Others condemn his dictatorial rule and the executions that took place under his leadership..
 Contradictory on a personal level: Known as the ‘The Incorruptible’ but firmly believed power belonged to
the people and not to governments.
 However, he proved himself a ruthless politician who didn’t tolerate rivals even among the Jacobins, many of
whom he sent to the guillotine.

 Some historians claim the Reign of Terror was a class war waged against peasants and lower orders.
 The middle class was also judged and accusers trying to impress authorities (by their revolutionary passion)
killed many innocents.
 It is estimate that around 40 000 people were killed during the Reign of Terror.
 Some believe violence was necessary for the revolution and moderated compared to other dictators.
 The Reign of Terror shocked the 18th century Europe by its scale and lack of respect for institutions.