The Mentality of the French Revolution

The National Assembly states that ignorance, neglect or contempt of the rights of man are the sole reason of public calamities and the corruption of the government (Doc A).According to Article 2, the aim of [government] is the preservation of the natural rights of man. These are liberty,property and security and resistance to oppression. However, Robespierre and Committee of Public safety violated Article 1,2,7,10. The government wanted to dechristianize france, they severely punished or even executed people who spoke out against the government. They denied rights and liberty and they prolonged cruel or unjust treatment or control… they were hypocrites. In March 1793, the revolutionary tribunal was established. On April 6,1793, the revolutionary government established the committee of Public Safety ( Document E) THe tribunal was developed to try crimes against the state. Anyone could come under suspicion but just criticizing the government in small way could get a person in trouble with the Committee of Pf Public safety. This did not justify these actions that the government took. There wasn't enough controls on the government to protect individual rights, the Committee of Public safety was know for suspecting almost everyone.That is proven by the fact, 35,000 to 40,000 people executed by the commission in the

On September 5, 1793, the National Convention of France declared terror “the order of the day,” which essentially meant that the government would take any and all necessary measures to maintain a sense of peace and stability. Strict laws and policies were imposed to ensure that the nation would continue to evolve and change. This day marked the beginning of the infamous Reign of Terror. The Reign of Terror was a period of turmoil in France following the onset of the French Revolution in 1789. Extreme violence and unwarranted brutality became standard during this decade. The head of the revolution and primary leader of the Committee of Public Safety was a French politician named Maximilien Robespierre.

The scarcest feedback of individuals by others would be sufficient evidence to put a man in jail or even have him executed, this happened frequently and negated the Declaration of Rights of Man and Citizens. (Doc E) The committee of public safety, of which Robespierre was a piece of, had set up source and spy systems to choose out the enemies This was another pointless extraordinary that was taken amid the Reign of Terror. (Doc E) The result of the upset was France is turning into a republic and Robespierre being slaughtered similarly of those 16,000 by the guillotine.

To begin with, Robespierre had gained solo power of a country almost immediately. Whenever power is shifted to quickly and power is given to one leader to become a dictator, it is unlikely for government to run smoothly. Robespierre was put into power due to the unstable revolution occurring in the country. Advisors to the National Convention wanted to end the revolution by killing as seen by the departmental adviser of Vendée who requested to, "...issue a decree whereby the criminal court of Niort judges this case as the last resort" (Document D). The case was against revolutionaries seen as bandits. The solicit meant that all these people should be put to death without appeal. A month after this incident Robespierre was placed into power and had the intention to kill as a way of fixing. When having ideals such as this, citizens will start to dislike the government. The Committee of Public Safety was set up in order to protect the populace Robespierre at the time was the head of this council. The situation of this group got ugly when they, "employed a shadowy network of informers and spies to achieve these ends" (Document E). This network was basically the NSA of 1793. They watched and checked on the public to hear the word and what words were being said. One can imagine how people will react if a watch committee is set up, like America and the NSA, we went crazy about our privacy and still are. People

The Reign of Terror, led by Robespierre, was a frightening period during the French Revolution that occurred to bring liberty, property, and equality to the citizens of France so they could live in peace within the government. The Reign of Terror began after the execution of Louis XVI in January 1793 to late July 1794. Between those 18 long months, more than 20,000 french citizens were put to the death by the guillotine; a machine used for beheading people. The threats, methods, and ideals are the reasons for why the Reign of Terror was not justified.

The Reign of Terror was a period of violence that succeeded the beginning of the French Revolution; it was caused by conflict between two rival political parties, and tens of thousands were executed by guillotine on account of being ‘enemies of the revolution’. The French Revolution started with the storming of the Bastille, and since then the government had been in a state of constant turmoil. Civil war broke out in multiple regions and various foreign countries started attacking France on all sides; a man named Maximilien Robespierre, who belonged to a radical group known as the Jacobins, saw his chance and seized the government along with his fellow extremists. The Jacobins felt that “it was their duty to preserve the revolution, even if it meant violence and terror” which

During the Reign of Terror, thousands of people were brutally executed for even thinking against the revolution. This all started when King Louis XVI had to share his power and to stop ruling everybody in France. This sparked chaos and France was hurt from the outside and the inside. The Committee of Public Safety saw that a solution would be to kill all the counterrevolutionaries. There was a reason behind the killings, however these deaths are not justified. People should not be persecuted for their beliefs, consequently the Rain of Terror was illogical. This can be seen when discussing the Committee of Public Safety‘s original intentions, the internal effects and the situation France was in.

“The execution of Louis XVI marked the beginning of an 18- month period of the French Revolution that has come to be called “The Reign of Terror” (Background Essay: Was it justified). The French revolution lasted from 1789 until 1794. During this period of time, the most terrifying part was the Reign of Terror. Even though some of the intentions from the Reign of Terror were good, it was a very destructive and unnecessary time.

Robespierre led the Reign of Terror, the new government of France executed individuals believed to be as enemies of the French Revolution (B.E.). The French government believed to reach a society that included, “Indivisibility of the Republic, Liberty, Equality, Unity, Fraternity or Death”; the government would need to eliminate the rebels of the new government (Overview). Another target was the Catholic Church, which it was considered as the old order (B.E.). During the Reign of Terror, foreign strain was building up into war against France (B.E.). There were violent battles inside and outside the country with the new government (B.E.). The Reign of Terror was justified because their goal of the government

Revolutions are often started as a response to an unjust form of government, and the Reign of Terror’s new revolutionary government was no exception. Although the revolutionary government was meant to replace a tyrannical government, it quickly turned into the dictatorial government it tried to replace and in many cases stepped far outside of the bounds of lawful or just action. During late 18th century France in the time period between the execution of King Louis XVI and the execution of Maximilien de Robespierre, the Reign of Terror senselessly guillotined thousands of people. Conditions in France in 1793 and 1794 were not serious enough to justify the revolutionary government’s response due to the response to external threats, response to internal threats, and the extreme methods deployed.

Crowds surrounded the platform which held the guillotine which would soon kill the king of France, King Louis XVI. Blood covered the floor as the kings head slowly rolled off, followed by clapping and cheering. Little did the people know, once Louis XVI was executed, it led to the start of the 18-month period of the French Revolution which later earned the name “The Reign of Terror”. From 1793-1794 The Reign of Terror took place, certainly fulfilling the name given. Led by chief prosecutor named Maximilien Robespierre, this time in France’s history would be filled with blood and guts and a whole lot of inequality. For something to be considered justified, it must be done for, or marked by a good or legitimate reason. The Reign of Terror was

(Doc. A) This would be contradicted when the Law of Suspects would pass in September 17, 1793. (Doc. B) The Law of Suspects limited the rights of the accused and made no one safe from suspicion. Criticism of the government could put one in prison or put to death by guillotine. (Doc. E) This means the privacy and freedom of speech that they established were slowly diminished as they tried to keep these established privileges. In order to make sure those who were the counterrevolutionaries would be able to see the consequences, there were public guillotine demonstrations that expressed equality in death and how fast executions could be enacted. (Doc. F) Those who were to be executed were not allowed a lawyer as they had no patriotism to be justified. Anyone who had defied the Revolution could be compared to those who defied the Roman Catholic Church during the Protestant Reformation or the Scientific Revolution; they were condemned and executed. Unjustified, the Reign of Terror gave rights to patriotic Revolutionaries and took them away from those who were

France was experience a great amount of change in the summer of 1793, when the Jacobins succeeded the moderates in the National Convention. With the radical Jacobins in power, the country was in tumult, and a Reign of Terror ensued due to a law of suspects that legalized local revolutionary committees. Because of this, thousands of people were killed by guillotine or other methods. Throughout the summer of 1793, the radical Jacobins’ control of the Committee of Public Safety instituted the Terror which was advantageous in it’s intended purpose, yet it was disadvantageous because of the enemies it created.

In June of 1793, the Committee of Public safety began the Reign of Terror, which would not end until July of 1794. As a result of the Terror, over 14,000 people were killed by the use guillotines, firing squads, and drowning. A large majority of these deaths occured in the French Departments of Lore, Lyon, and Vendee (Document 1). In Paris, most of those executed were nobles and upper middle class citizens, while throughout the rest of France, the majority of those executed were peasants and working class citizens. (Document 2). Over 10,000 of the people executed committed hostile acts against the French State (Document 3). The Reign of Terror was a chaotic time period in which France was warring against Austria and Prussia and in deep financial troubles. The revolutionaries used the terror to their advantage, eliminating all of those who were in opposition. The terror, however, was disadvantageous to the revolutionaries because it caused more chaos and civil unrest throughout all of France.

Robespierre was the main person to implement the laws he put forth.[Footnote] He believed in solving all his problems through violence. Those who were born to a particular family, having certain opinions, or simply being at the wrong place at the wrong time, would fall victim to him. Although Robespierre was obsessed with violence, he never actually performed acts himself, unless assured he would succeed, he’d have other people to do his work for him. The most common device used to punish people was the guillotine. Robespierre used other methods at times; he’d burn, hack, stab, shoot, and even cannonade a person. Those he objected, or had been his enemy would soon be imprisoned, and eventually executed. He was relentless and ordered people dead with no trial, killing people without proving or even knowing if they were truly “guilty”. He believed the mass murders he was responsible for were justified.