The Reign of Terror
Jacobin: a revolutionary far-left political movement.
In 1793, Maximilien Robespierre slowly began rising to power.
He and his followers set out to "fix" France - by cutting out its past. He wanted to build a "republic of virtue". They believed in reason, and even changed the calendar so that it had no Sundays because they felt religion was old-fashioned and dangerous. Eventually, they closed all churches in Paris.
In the July of 1973, Robespierre became the head of the Committee of Public Safety. But he would basically end up leading France as a dictator which would be called the Reign of Terror.
The main objective for the Committee of Public Safety was to protect the Revolution from its enemies. The main tool for protection was the guillotine. Often, enemies would be tried in the morning and then executed in the afternoon.
His quick rise to power and the extreme radical views makes Robespierre important to the Reign of Terror. Robespierre could rightly be called the "Master of the Guillotine", making him a poster-child of the terror.
Another reason the Reign was so terrifying was because it brought down many famous people such as Marie Antoinette and Georges Danton.
Finally, however, members of the National Convention, fearing for their lives, turned on Robespierre. On July 28th, 1794 when he went to the guillotine which ended the Reign of Terror.
In 1793, Maximilien Robespierre slowly began rising to power.
He and his followers set out to "fix" France - by cutting out its past. He wanted to build a "republic of virtue". They believed in reason, and even changed the calendar so that it had no Sundays because they felt religion was old-fashioned and dangerous. Eventually, they closed all churches in Paris.
In the July of 1973, Robespierre became the head of the Committee of Public Safety. But he would basically end up leading France as a dictator which would be called the Reign of Terror.
The main objective for the Committee of Public Safety was to protect the Revolution from its enemies. The main tool for protection was the guillotine. Often, enemies would be tried in the morning and then executed in the afternoon.
His quick rise to power and the extreme radical views makes Robespierre important to the Reign of Terror. Robespierre could rightly be called the "Master of the Guillotine", making him a poster-child of the terror.
Another reason the Reign was so terrifying was because it brought down many famous people such as Marie Antoinette and Georges Danton.
Finally, however, members of the National Convention, fearing for their lives, turned on Robespierre. On July 28th, 1794 when he went to the guillotine which ended the Reign of Terror.