Reign of Terror - Wikipedia Reign of Terror This article may be expanded with text translated from the corresponding article in French. ( May 2018 ) Click for important translation instructions. View a machine - translated version of the French article. Machine translation like Deepl or Google Translate is a useful starting point for translations, but translators must revise errors as necessary and confirm that the translation is accurate, rather than simply copy - pasting machine - translated text into the English Wikipedia. Do not translate text that appears unreliable or low - quality. If possible, verify the text with references provided in the foreign - language article. You must provide copyright attribution in the edit summary by providing an interlanguage link to the source of your translation. A model attribution edit summary ( using German ) : Content in this edit is translated from the existing German Wikipedia article at ( ( : de : Exact name of German article ) ) ; see its history for attribution. You should also add the template ( ( Translated fr Terreur_ ( Révolution_française ) ) ) to the talk page. For more guidance, see Wikipedia : Translation. This article is about the Reign of Terror in the French Revolution. For other uses, see Reign of Terror ( disambiguation ). `` The Terror '' redirects here. For other uses, see The Terror ( disambiguation ). Nine emigrés are executed by guillotine, 1793 Heads of aristocrats, on pikes The Reign of Terror, or The Terror ( French : la Terreur ), is the label given by most historians to a period during the French Revolution after the First French Republic was established. Several historians consider the `` reign of terror '' to have begun in 1793, placing the starting date at either 5 September, June or March ( birth of the Revolutionary Tribunal ), while some consider it to have begun in September 1792 ( September Massacres ), or even July 1789 ( when the first lynchings took place ), but there is a consensus that it ended with the fall of Maximilien Robespierre in July 1794. Between June 1793 and the end of July 1794, there were 16,594 official death sentences in France, of which 2,639 were in Paris. Contents 1 Barère and Robespierre glorify `` terror '' 2 Influences on the Terror 2.1 Enlightenment Thought 2.2 Threats of Foreign Invasion 2.3 Popular Pressure 2.4 Religious Upheaval 3 Major events during the Terror 4 Thermidorian Reaction 5 See also 6 Works Cited 7 References 8 Further reading 8.1 Primary sources 8.2 Secondary sources 8.3 Historiography 9 External links Barère and Robespierre glorify `` Terror '' See also : History of France § Counter-revolution subdued ( July 1793 -- April 1794 ) Bertrand Barère There was a sense of emergency among leading politicians in France in the summer of 1793 between the widespread civil war and counter-revolution. Bertrand Barère exclaimed on 5 September 1793 in the Convention : `` Let 's make terror the order of the day ! '' They were determined to avoid street violence such as the September Massacres of 1792 by taking violence into their own hands as an instrument of government. Robespierre in February 1794 in a speech explained the necessity of terror : If the basis of popular government in peacetime is virtue, the basis of popular government during a revolution is both virtue and terror ; virtue, without which terror is baneful ; terror, without which virtue is powerless. Terror is nothing more than speedy, severe and inflexible justice ; it is thus an emanation of virtue ; it is less a principle in itself, than a consequence of the general principle of democracy, applied to the most pressing needs of the patrie ( homeland, fatherland ). Some historians argue that such terror was a necessary reaction to the circumstances. Others suggest there were additional causes, including ideological and emotional. Influences on the Terror Enlightenment thought Enlightenment thought emphasized the importance of rational thinking and began challenging legal and moral foundations of society, providing the leaders of the Terror with new ideas about the role and structure of government. Rousseau 's Social Contract argued that each person was born with rights, and they would come together to form a government that would then protect those rights. Under the social contract, the government was required to act for the general will, which represented the interests of everyone rather than a few factions. Drawing from the idea of a general will, Robespierre felt that the French Revolution could result in a Republic built for the general will but only once those who fought this ideal were expelled. Those who resisted the government were deemed `` tyrants '' fighting against the virtue and honor of the general will. The leaders felt their ideal version of government was threatened from the inside and outside of France, and terror was the only way to preserve the dignity of the Republic created from French Revolution. Robespierre 's ideology was not strictly derived from Rousseau. The writings of another Enlightenment thinker of the time, Baron de Montesquieu, greatly influenced Robespierre. One of Montesquieu 's writings, The Spirit of the Laws, defines a core principle of a democratic government : virtue. He describes it as `` the love of laws and of our country. '' In Robespierre 's speech to the National Convention on February 5, 1794, On Political Morality, he talks about virtue being the `` fundamental principle of popular or democratic government. '' This was, in fact, the same virtue defined by Montesquieu almost 50 years earlier. Robespierre believed that the virtue needed for any democratic government was extremely lacking in the French people. As a result, he decided to weed out those he believed could never possess this virtue. The result was a continual push towards Terror. The Convention used this as justification for the course of action to `` crush the enemies of the revolution,... let the laws be executed,... and let liberty be saved. '' These members of the Enlightenment movement greatly influenced revolutionary leaders ; however, cautions from other Enlightenment thinkers were blatantly ignored. Voltaire 's warnings were often overlooked, though some of his ideas were used for justification of the Revolution and the start of the Terror. He protested against Catholic Dogmas and the ways of Christianity stating, `` of all religions, the Christian should of course inspire the most toleration, but till now the Christian 's have been the most intolerant of all men. '' These criticisms were often used by Robespierre and other leaders as justification for their anti-religious reforms. Voltaire also laid down some warnings. In his Philosophical Dictionary, he states, `` we are all steeped in weakness and error ; let us forgive each other our follies ; that is the first law of nature '' and `` every individual who persecutes a man, his brother, because he is not of his opinion, is a monster. '' The importance of forgiveness and understanding the failings of the human conditions were obviously lost on Robespierre and other leaders as they pursued Terror. Threats of foreign invasion After the beginning of the French Revolution, the surrounding monarchies did not show great hostility towards the rebellion. Though mostly ignored, Louis XVI was later able to find support in Leopold II of Austria ( Marie Antionette 's brother ) and Frederick William II of Prussia. On August 27, 1791, these foreign leaders made the Pillnitz Declaration saying they would restore the French monarch if other European rulers joined. In response to what they viewed to be the meddling of foreign powers, France declared war on April 20, 1792. However, at this point, the war was only Prussia and Austria against France. France began this war with a large series of defeats which set a precedent of fear of invasion in the people that would last throughout the war. Massive reforms of military institutions, while very effective in the long run, presented the initial problems of inexperienced forces and leaders of questionable political loyalty. In the time it took for officers of merit to use their new freedoms to climb the chain of command, France suffered. Many of the early battles were definitive losses for the French. There was the constant threat of the Austro - Prussian forces which were advancing easily toward the capital, threatening to destroy Paris if the monarch was harmed. This series of defeats, coupled with militant uprisings and protests within the borders of France pushed the government to resort to drastic measures to ensure the loyalty of every citizen to not only France but more importantly to the Revolution. While this series of losses was eventually broken, the reality of what might have happened if they persisted hung over France. The tide would not turn from them until September of 1792 when the French won a critical victory at Valmy preventing the Austro - Prussian invasion. While the French military had stabilized and was producing victories by the time the Reign of Terror officially began, the pressure to succeed in this international struggle acted as justification for the government to pursue its tyrannical actions. It was not until after the execution of Louis XVI and the annexation of the Rhineland that the other monarchies began to feel threatened enough to form the First Coalition. The Coalition, consisting of Russia, Austria, Prussia, Spain, Holland, and Sardinia, began attacking France from all directions besieging and capturing ports and retaking ground lost to France. With so many similarities to the first days of the Revolutionary Wars, the French government with threats on all sides, unification of the country became a top priority. As the war continued and the Reign of Terror began, leaders saw a correlation between using terror and achieving victory. Well phrased by Albert Soboul, `` terror, at first an improvised response to defeat, once organized became an instrument of victory. '' The threat of defeat and foreign invasion may have helped spur the origins of the terror, but the timely success of the Terror with French victories added justification to its growth and continuation. Popular pressure During the Reign of Terror, the sans - culottes and the Hébertists put pressure on the National Convention delegates and contributed to the overall instability of France. The National Convention was bitterly split between the Montagnards and the Girondins. The Girondins were more conservative leaders of the National Convention, while the Montagnards supported radical violence and pressures of the lower classes. Once the Montagnards gained control of the National Convention, they began demanding radical measures. Moreover, the sans - culottes, the scrappy, urban workers of France, agitated leaders to inflict punishments on those who opposed the interests of the poor. The sans - culottes ' violent demonstrations pushing their demands, created constant pressure for the Montagnards to enact reform. The sans - culottes fed the frenzy of instability and chaos by utilizing popular pressure during the Revolution. For example, the sans - culottes sent letters and petitions to the Committee of Public Safety urging them to protect their interests and rights with measures such as taxation of foodstuffs that favored workers over the rich. They advocated for arrests of those deemed to oppose reforms against those with privilege, and the more militant members would advocate pillage in order to achieve the desired equality. The resulting instability caused problems that made forming the new Republic and achieving full political support even more critical. Religious upheaval The Reign of Terror was characterized by a dramatic rejection of long - held religious authority, its hierarchical structure, and the corrupt and intolerant influence of the aristocracy and clergy. Religious elements that long stood as symbols of stability for the French people, were replaced by reason and scientific thought. The radical revolutionaries and their supporters desired a cultural revolution that would rid the French state of all Christian influence. This process began with the fall of the monarchy, an event that effectively defrocked the State of its sanctification by the clergy via the doctrine of Divine Right and ushered in an era of reason. Many long - held rights and powers were stripped from the Church and given to the State. In 1789, church lands were expropriated and priests killed and forced to leave France. A Festival of Reason was held in the Notre Dame Cathedral, which was renamed `` The Temple of Reason '', and the old traditional calendar was replaced with a new revolutionary one. The leaders of the Terror tried to address the call for these radical, revolutionary aspirations, while at the same time trying to maintain tight control on the de-Christianization movement that was threatening to the clear majority of the still devoted Catholic population of France. The tension sparked by these conflicting objectives laid a foundation for the `` justified '' use of terror to achieve revolutionary ideals and rid France of the religiosity that revolutionaries believed was standing in the way. Major events during the Terror Main articles : History of France § Revolutionary France ( 1789 -- 1799 ), and France § Revolutionary France ( 1789 -- 1799 ) This section needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. ( September 2017 ) Maximilien Robespierre, member of the Committee of Public Safety On 10 March 1793 the National Convention created the Revolutionary Tribunal. Among those charged by the tribunal, about a half were acquitted ( though the number dropped to about a quarter after the enactment of the Law of 22 Prairial ). In March rebellion broke out in the Vendée in response to mass conscription, which developed into a civil war that lasted until after the Terror. On 6 April the Committee of Public Safety was created, which gradually became the de facto war - time government. On 2 June, the Parisian sans - culottes surrounded the National Convention, calling for administrative and political purges, a low fixed price for bread, and a limitation of the electoral franchise to sans - culottes alone. With the backing of the national guard, they persuaded the convention to arrest 29 Girondist leaders. In reaction to the imprisonment of the Girondin deputies, some thirteen departments started the Federalist revolts against the National Convention in Paris, which were ultimately crushed. On 24 June, the convention adopted the first republican constitution of France, the French Constitution of 1793. It was ratified by public referendum, but never put into force. On 13 July the assassination of Jean - Paul Marat -- a Jacobin leader and journalist -- resulted in a further increase in Jacobin political influence. Georges Danton, the leader of the August 1792 uprising against the king, was removed from the committee. On July 27, 1793, Robespierre became part of the Committee of Public Safety. On 23 August, the National Convention decreed the levée en masse, `` The young men shall fight ; the married man shall forge arms and transport provisions ; the women shall make tents and clothes and shall serve in the hospitals ; the children shall turn all lint into linen ; the old men shall betake themselves to the public square in order to arouse the courage of the warriors and preach hatred of kings and the unity of the Republic. '' The execution of the Girondins On 9 September, the convention established paramilitary forces, the `` revolutionary armies '', to force farmers to surrender grain demanded by the government. On 17 September, the Law of Suspects was passed, which authorized the imprisonment of vaguely defined `` suspects ''. This created a mass overflow in the prison systems. On 29 September, the convention extended price fixing from grain and bread to other essential goods, and also fixed wages. On 10 October, the Convention decreed that `` the provisional government shall be revolutionary until peace. '' On 24 October, the French Republican Calendar was enacted. The trial of the Girondins started on the same day and they were executed on 31 October. Anti-clerical sentiments increased during 1793 and a campaign of dechristianization occurred. On 10 November ( 20 Brumaire Year II of the French Republican Calendar ), the Hébertists organized a Festival of Reason. The execution of Olympe de Gouges, feminist writer close to the Girondins On 14 Frimaire ( 5 December 1793 ) was passed the Law of Frimaire, which gave the central government more control over the actions of the representatives on mission. On 16 Pluviôse ( 4 February 1794 ), the National Convention decreed that slavery be abolished in all of France and French colonies. On 8 and 13 Ventôse ( 26 February and 3 March ), Saint - Just proposed decrees to confiscate the property of exiles and opponents of the revolution, known as the Ventôse Decrees. By the end of 1793, two major factions had emerged, both threatening the Revolutionary Government : the Hébertists, who called for an intensification of the Terror and threatened insurrection, and the Dantonists, led by Georges Danton, who demanded moderation and clemency. The Committee of Public Safety took actions against both. The major Hébertists were tried before the Revolutionary Tribunal and executed on 24 March. The Dantonists were arrested on 30 March, tried on 3 to 5 April and executed on 5 April. On 20 Prairial ( 8 June ) was celebrated across the country the Festival of the Supreme Being, which was part of the Cult of the Supreme Being, a deist national religion. On 22 Prairial ( 10 June ), the National Convention passed a law proposed by Georges Couthon, known as the Law of 22 Prairial, which simplified the judicial process and greatly accelerated the work of the Revolutionary Tribunal. With the enactment of the law, the number of executions greatly increased, and the period from this time to the Thermidorian Reaction became known as `` The Grand Terror ''. On 8 Messidor ( 26 June ), the French army won the Battle of Fleurus, which marked a turning point in France 's military campaign and undermined the necessity of wartime measures and the legitimacy of the Revolutionary Government. Thermidorian reaction Main article : Thermidorian Reaction The execution of Maximilien Robespierre The fall of Robespierre was brought about by a combination of those who wanted more power for the Committee of Public Safety ( and a more radical policy than he was willing to allow ) and the moderates who completely opposed the revolutionary government. They had, between them, made the Law of 22 Prairial one of the charges against him, so that, after his fall, to advocate terror would be seen as adopting the policy of a convicted enemy of the republic, putting the advocate 's own head at risk. Between his arrest and his execution, Robespierre may have tried to commit suicide by shooting himself, although the bullet wound he sustained, whatever its origin, only shattered his jaw. Alternatively, he may have been shot by the gendarme Merda. The great confusion that arose during the storming of the municipal Hall of Paris, where Robespierre and his friends had found refuge, makes it impossible to be sure of the wound 's origin. In any case, Robespierre was guillotined the next day. The reign of the standing Committee of Public Safety was ended. New members were appointed the day after Robespierre 's execution, and limits on terms of office were fixed ( a quarter of the committee retired every three months ). The Committee 's powers were gradually eroded. See also Bals des victimes Tricoteuse Drownings at Nantes State terrorism Works cited `` Battle of Valmy, ( 20 September 1792 ). '' Weapons and Warfare. April 09, 2018. Accessed October 30, 2018. https://weaponsandwarfare.com/2018/04/10/battle-of-valmy-20-september-1792/. Bloy, Marjorie. `` The First Coalition 1793 - 1797. '' A Web of English History. Accessed October 21, 2018. http://www.historyhome.co.uk/c-eight/france/coalit1.htm. Leopold, II, and Frederick William. `` The Declaration of Pillnitz ( 1791 ). '' French Revolution. February 27, 2018. Accessed October 26, 2018. https://alphahistory.com/frenchrevolution/declaration-of-pillnitz-1791/. McLetchie, Scott. `` Maximilien Robespierre, Master of the Terror. '' Maximilien Robespierre, Master of the Terror. Accessed October 23, 2018. http://people.loyno.edu/~history/journal/1983-4/mcletchie.htm#22. Montesquieu. `` Modern History Sourcebook : Montesquieu : The Spirit of the Laws, 1748. '' Internet History Sourcebooks. Accessed October 23, 2018. https://sourcebooks.fordham.edu/mod/montesquieu-spirit.asp. Ozouf, Mona. `` War and Terror in French Revolutionary Discourse ( 1792 - 1794 ). '' The Journal of Modern History 56, no. 4 ( 1984 ) : 580 - 97. http://www.jstor.org.du.idm.oclc.org/stable/1880323. Popkin, Jeremy D. A Short History of the French Revolution. 6th ed. London : Routledge, 2016. `` Robespierre, `` On Political Morality '', '' Liberty, Equality, Fraternity, accessed October 19, 2018, http://chnm.gmu.edu/revolution/d/413. Rothenberg, Gunther E. `` The Origins, Causes, and Extension of the Wars of the French Revolution and Napoleon. '' The Journal of Interdisciplinary History 18, no. 4 ( 1988 ) : 771 - 93. doi : 10.2307 / 204824. https://www.jstor.org/stable/204824. `` '' Terror Is the Order of the Day ``, '' Liberty, Equality, Fraternity, accessed October 26, 2018, http://chnm.gmu.edu/revolution/d/416. Voltaire. `` Voltaire, Selections from the Philosophical Dictionary. '' Omeka RSS. Accessed October 23, 2018. http://chnm.gmu.edu/revolution/d/273/. References ^ Jump up to : `` Reign of Terror ''. Encyclopædia Britannica ( 2015 ). Retrieved 19 April 2017. ^ Jump up to : Linton, Marisa. `` The Terror in the French Revolution '' ( PDF ). Kingston University. Archived from the original ( PDF ) on 17 January 2012. Retrieved 2 December 2011. Jump up ^ The dates July 1789, September 1792, March 1793 as starting date for the Reign of Terror ( French : la Terreur ) are given in the French Wikipedia, referring to source : Jean - Clément Martin, La Terreur, part maudite de la Révolution ( ' The Terror, the cursed part of the Revolution ' ), coll. Découvertes Gallimard ( n ° 566 ), Paris : Gallimard, 2010, p. 14 -- 15. ^ Jump up to : Linton, Marisa ( August 2006 ). `` Robespierre and the terror : Marisa Linton reviews the life and career of one of the most vilified men in history ''. History Today. 8 ( 56 ) : 23. Retrieved 28 April 2017. Jump up ^ Noah Shusterman -- The French Revolution. Faith, Desire, and Politics. Routledge, London and New York, 2014. Chapter 7 ( p. 175 -- 203 ) : The federalist revolt, the Vendée, and the start of the Terror ( summer -- fall 1793 ). Jump up ^ ( in French ) ' 30 août 1793 -- La terreur à l'ordre du jour ! ' Website Vendéens & Chouans. Retrieved 6 July 2017. Jump up ^ Halsall, Paul ( 1997 ). `` Maximilien Robespierre : On the Principles of Political Morality, February 1794 ''. Fordham University. Retrieved 5 March 2016. Jump up ^ Mathiez, Albert. La Révolution Française. Librairie Armand Colin. ISBN 978 - 7 - 100 - 07058 - 4. Jump up ^ Furet, Francois. A Deep - rooted Ideology as Well as Circumstance, p. 224. Jump up ^ Tackett, Timothy ( 2015 - 02 - 23 ). The Coming of the Terror in the French Revolution. Belknap Press : An Imprint of Harvard University Press. ISBN 0674736559. Jump up ^ William F. Church, `` Introduction '', in The Influence of the Enlightenment on the French Revolution, ed. William F. Church ( Boston : D.C. Heath and Company, 1964 ), vii. Jump up ^ Jean - Jacques Rousseau, `` Ideal Empires and Republics. Rousseau 's Social Contract, More 's Utopia, Bacon 's New Atlantis, Campanella 's City of the Sun with an Introduction by Charles M. Andrews '', ( Washington : M. Walter Dunne, 1901 ), 92 -- 94, Online Library of Liberty, http://oll.libertyfund.org/titles/rousseau-ideal-empires-and-republics. Jump up ^ Henri Peyre, `` The Influence of Eighteenth Century Ideas on the French Revolution '', in The Influence of the Enlightenment on the French Revolution, ed. William F. Church ( Boston : D.C. Heath and Company, 1964 ), 99 - 101. Jump up ^ Maximilien Robespierre, `` Justification of the Use of Terror '', July 28, 1794, Modern History Sourcebook, Fordham University, accessed May 1, 2018, https://sourcebooks.fordham.edu/mod/robespierre-terror.asp. Jump up ^ Maximilien Robespierre, `` Justification of the Use of Terror '', July 28, 1794, Modern History Sourcebook, Fordham University, accessed May 1, 2018, https://sourcebooks.fordham.edu/mod/robespierre-terror.asp. Jump up ^ Montesquieu. `` Modern History Sourcebook : Montesquieu : The Spirit of the Laws, 1748. '' Internet History Sourcebooks. https://sourcebooks.fordham.edu/mod/montesquieu-spirit.asp. Jump up ^ `` Robespierre, `` On Political Morality '', '' Liberty, Equality, Fraternity. http://chnm.gmu.edu/revolution/d/413. Jump up ^ `` '' Terror Is the Order of the Day ``, '' Liberty, Equality, Fraternity, accessed October 26, 2018, http://chnm.gmu.edu/revolution/d/416. Jump up ^ Voltaire. `` Voltaire, Selections from the Philosophical Dictionary. '' Omeka RSS. http://chnm.gmu.edu/revolution/d/273/. Jump up ^ Ibid. Jump up ^ Jeremy D. Popkin. A Short History of the French Revolution. 6th ed. London : Routledge, 2016. 54. Jump up ^ Gunther E. Rothenberg `` The Origins, Causes, and Extension of the Wars of the French Revolution and Napoleon. '' The Journal of Interdisciplinary History 18, no. 4 ( 1988 ) : 771 - 93. doi : 10.2307 / 204824. https://www.jstor.org/stable/204824. Jump up ^ Jeremy D. Popkin. A Short History of the French Revolution, 55. Jump up ^ `` Battle of Valmy, ( 20 September 1792 ). '' Weapons and Warfare. April 09, 2018. Accessed October 30, 2018. https://weaponsandwarfare.com/2018/04/10/battle-of-valmy-20-september-1792/. Jump up ^ Leopold II, and Frederick William. `` The Declaration of Pillnitz ( 1791 ). '' French Revolution. February 27, 2018. Accessed October 26, 2018. https://alphahistory.com/frenchrevolution/declaration-of-pillnitz-1791/. Jump up ^ Jermemy D. Popkin. A Short History of the French Revolution, 59. Jump up ^ Marjorie Bloy. `` The First Coalition 1793 - 1797. '' A Web of English History. https://plato.stanford.edu/archives/sum2014/entries/montesquieu/. Jump up ^ Ibid. Jump up ^ Jeremy D. Popkin. A Short History of the French Revolution, 64. Jump up ^ Soboul cited in Mona Ozouf. `` War and Terror in French Revolutionary Discourse ( 1792 - 1794 ). '' The Journal of Modern History 56, no. 4 ( 1984 ) : 580 - 97. http://www.jstor.org.du.idm.oclc.org/stable/1880323. Jump up ^ Jeremy D. Popkin, A Short History of the French Revolution, ( London : Routledge, 2016 ), 64. Jump up ^ `` Terror, Vengeance, and Martyrdom in the French Revolution : THE CASE OF THE SHADES - Oxford Scholarship '', 2014, accessed May 1, 2018, http://www.oxfordscholarship.com/view/10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199959853.001.0001/acprof-9780199959853-chapter-8. 2014. Jump up ^ Albert Soboul, The Sans - culottes ; the Popular Movement and Revolutionary Government, 1793 -- 1794, ( Garden City, N.Y. : Anchor Books, 1972 ), 5 -- 17. Jump up ^ Edmond Pressense, John Lacroix, Religion and the reign of terror, or, The church during the French revolution ( World constitutions illustrated ), ( New York : Cincinnati : Carlton & Lanahan ; Hitchcock & Walden, 1869 ). Jump up ^ Emmet Kennedy. A Cultural History of the French Revolution. ( Yale University Press, 1989 ), 343. ISBN 9780300044263. Jump up ^ Lynn Hunt, Politics, Culture and Class in the French Revolution ; chp 3, `` The Imagery of Radicalism '', 1984, 87 -- 119. Jump up ^ Jeremy D. Popkin, A Short History of the French Revolution, ( London : Routledge, 2016 ), 72 -- 73. Jump up ^ Lynn Hunt, Politics, Culture and Class in the French Revolution ; chp 3, `` The Imagery of Radicalism '', 1984, 87 -- 119. Jump up ^ Jeremy D. Popkin, A Short History of the French Revolution, ( London : Routledge, 2016 ), 72 -- 73. Jump up ^ Mantel, Hilary ( 6 August 2009 ). `` He Roared ''. London Review of Books. 3 ( 15 ) : 3 -- 6. Retrieved 16 January 2010. Jump up ^ Jones, Peter. The French Revolution 1787 -- 1804. Pearson Education, 2003, p. 57. Jump up ^ `` Maximilien Robespierre Biography, Facts, & Execution ''. Encyclopedia Britannica. Retrieved 2017 - 09 - 19. Jump up ^ Merriman, John ( 2004 ). `` Thermidor '' ( 2nd ed. ). A history of modern Europe : from the Renaissance to the present, p 507. W.W. Norton & Company Ltd. ISBN 0 - 393 - 92495 - 5 Further reading Primary sources Cléry, Jean - Baptiste ; Henry Essex Edgeworth ( 1961 ) ( 1798 ). Sidney Scott, ed. Journal of the Terror. Cambridge : Cambridge University Press. OCLC 3153946. Secondary sources Andress, David ( 2006 ). The Terror : The Merciless War for Freedom in Revolutionary France. New York : Farrar, Straus and Giroux. ISBN 0 - 374 - 27341 - 3. Andress, David ; Popkin, Jeremy ( 2015 ). Revolution and Changing Identities in France, 1789 - 99. Oxford University Press. Baker, Keith M. François Furet, and Colin Lucas, eds. ( 1987 ) The French Revolution and the Creation of Modern Political Culture, vol. 4, The Terror ( London : Pergamon Press, 1987 ) Beik, William ( August 2005 ). `` The Absolutism of Louis XIV as Social Collaboration : Review Article ''. Past and Present. 188 : 195 -- 224. doi : 10.1093 / pastj / gti019. Censer, Jack, and Lynn Hunt ( 2001 ). Liberty, Equality, Fraternity : Exploring the French Revolution. University Park, PA : Pennsylvania State University Press. Hunt, Lynn ( 1984 ). Politics, Culture, and Class in the French Revolution. Berkeley : University of California Press. Gough, Hugh. The terror in the French revolution ( London : Macmillan, 1998 ) Hibbert, Christopher ( 1981 ). The Days of the French Revolution. New York : Quill - William Morrow. ISBN 978 - 0 - 688 - 16978 - 7. Kerr, Wilfred Brenton ( 1985 ). Reign of Terror, 1793 -- 1794. London : Porcupine Press. ISBN 0 - 87991 - 631 - 1. Kennedy, Emmet. A Cultural History of the French Revolution. New Haven : Yale University Press, 1991. Linton, Marisa ( August 2006 ). `` Robespierre and the terror : Marisa Linton reviews the life and career of one of the most vilified men in history, ( Maximilien Robespierre ) ( Biography ) ''. History Today. 8 ( 56 ) : 23. Linton, Marisa, Choosing Terror : Virtue, Friendship and Authenticity in the French Revolution ( Oxford University Press, 2013 ). Loomis, Stanley ( 1964 ). Paris in the Terror. New York : Dorset Press. ISBN 0 - 88029 - 401 - 9. McLetchie, Scott. `` Maximilien Robespierre, Master of the Terror. '' Maximilien Robespierre, Master of the Terror. Accessed October 23, 2018. http://people.loyno.edu/~history/journal/1983-4/mcletchie.htm#22. Moore, Lucy ( 2006 ). Liberty : The Lives and Times of Six Women in Revolutionary France. London : HarperCollins. ISBN 0 - 00 - 720601 - 1. Palmer, R.R. ( 2005 ). Twelve Who Ruled : The Year of the Terror in the French Revolution. Princeton, New Jersey : Princeton University Press. ISBN 0 - 691 - 12187 - 7. Reinberg, M ; Chaouat, Bruno ; Brewer, Daniel ; Brewer, Maria ; Schlte - Sasse, Jochen ( 2010 ). Modernity and Ethics : The Ghost of Terror in the French Thought. ProQuest Dissertations and Thesis. Schama, Simon ( 1989 ). Citizens : A Chronicle of the French Revolution. New York : Alfred A. Knopf. pp. 678 -- 847. ISBN 0 - 394 - 55948 - 7. Scott, Otto ( 1974 ). Robespierre, The Fool as Revolutionary -- Inside the French Revolution. Windsor, New York : The Reformer Library. ISBN 978 - 1 - 887690 - 05 - 8. Shadow ( February 9, 1870 ). `` The `` Reign of Terror '' ``. New York Times. Shulim, Joseph I. `` Robespierre and the French Revolution, '' American Historical Review ( 1977 ) 82 # 1 pp. 20 -- 38 in JSTOR Soboul, Albert. `` Robespierre and the Popular Movement of 1793 -- 4 '', Past and Present, No. 5. ( May 1954 ), pp. 54 -- 70. in JSTOR Steel, Mark ( 2003 ). Vive La Revolution. London : Scribner. ISBN 0 - 7432 - 0806 - 4. Reviewed by Adam Thorpe in The Guardian, 23 December 2006. Sutherland, D.M.G. ( 2003 ) The French Revolution and Empire : The Quest for a Civic Order pp 174 -- 253 Thoral, Marie - Cecile. From Valmy to Waterloo France at War, 1792 - 1815. Palgrave Macmillan, 2011. https://link-springer-com.du.idm.oclc.org/content/pdf/10.1057%2F9780230294981.pdf Wahnich, Sophie ( 2016 ). In Defence of the Terror : Liberty or Death in the French Revolution ( Reprint ed. ). Verso. ISBN 978 - 1784782023. Reviewed by Ruth Scurr in The Guardian, 17 August 2012 Weber, Caroline. ( 2003 ) Terror and Its Discontents : Suspect Words in Revolutionary France online Historiography Kafker, Frank, James M. Lauz, and Darline Gay Levy ( 2002 ). The French Revolution : Conflicting Interpretations. Malabar, FL : Krieger Publishing Company. Rudé, George ( 1976 ). Robespierre : Portrait of a Revolutionary Democrat. New York : Viking Press. ISBN 0 - 670 - 60128 - 4. A Marxist political portrait of Robespierre, examining his changing image among historians and the different aspects of Robespierre as an ' ideologue ', as a political democrat, as a social democrat, as a practitioner of revolution, as a politician and as a popular leader / leader of revolution, it also touches on his legacy for the future revolutionary leaders Vladimir Lenin and Mao Zedong. External links Wikimedia Commons has media related to French Revolution. `` The Terror '' from In Our Time ( BBC Radio 4 ) French Revolution Causes Timeline Ancien Régime Revolution Constitutional monarchy Republic Directory Consulate Glossary Journals Museum Significant civil and political events by year 1788 Day of the Tiles ( 7 Jun 1788 ) Assembly of Vizille ( 21 Jul 1788 ) 1789 What Is the Third Estate ? ( Jan 1789 ) Réveillon riots ( 28 Apr 1789 ) Convocation of the Estates - General ( 5 May 1789 ) National Assembly ( 17 Jun -- 9 Jul 1790 ) Tennis Court Oath ( 20 Jun 1789 ) National Constituent Assembly ( 9 Jul -- 30 Sep 1791 ) Storming of the Bastille ( 14 Jul 1789 ) Great Fear ( 20 Jul -- 5 Aug 1789 ) Abolition of Feudalism ( 4 - 11 Aug 1789 ) Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen ( 27 Aug 1789 ) Women 's March on Versailles ( 5 Oct 1789 ) 1790 Abolition of the Parlements ( Feb -- Jul 1790 ) Abolition of the Nobility ( 19 Jun 1790 ) Civil Constitution of the Clergy ( 12 Jul 1790 ) Fête de la Fédération ( 14 Jul 1790 ) 1791 Flight to Varennes ( 20 -- 21 Jun 1791 ) Champ de Mars Massacre ( 17 Jul 1791 ) Declaration of Pillnitz ( 27 Aug 1791 ) The Constitution of 1791 ( 3 Sep 1791 ) Legislative Assembly ( 1 Oct 1791 -- Sep 1792 ) 1792 France declares war ( 20 Apr 1792 ) Brunswick Manifesto ( 25 Jul 1792 ) Paris Commune becomes insurrectionary ( Jun 1792 ) 10th of August ( 10 Aug 1792 ) September Massacres ( Sep 1792 ) National Convention ( 20 Sep 1792 -- 26 Oct 1795 ) First republic declared ( 22 Sep 1792 ) 1793 Execution of Louis XVI ( 21 Jan 1793 ) Revolutionary Tribunal ( 9 Mar 1793 -- 31 May 1795 ) Reign of Terror ( 27 Jun 1793 -- 27 Jul 1794 ) Committee of Public Safety Committee of General Security Fall of the Girondists ( 2 Jun 1793 ) Assassination of Marat ( 13 Jul 1793 ) Levée en masse ( 23 Aug 1793 ) The Death of Marat ( painting ) Law of Suspects ( 17 Sep 1793 ) Marie Antoinette is guillotined ( 16 Oct 1793 ) Anti-clerical laws ( throughout the year ) 1794 Danton and Desmoulins guillotined ( 5 Apr 1794 ) Law of 22 Prairial ( 10 Jun 1794 ) Thermidorian Reaction ( 27 Jul 1794 ) Robespierre guillotined ( 28 Jul 1794 ) White Terror ( Fall 1794 ) Closing of the Jacobin Club ( 11 Nov 1794 ) 1795 Constitution of the Year III ( 22 Aug 1795 ) Conspiracy of the Equals ( Nov 1795 ) Directoire ( 1795 -- 99 ) Council of Five Hundred Council of Ancients 13 Vendémiaire 5 Oct 1795 1797 Coup of 18 Fructidor ( 4 Sep 1797 ) Second Congress of Rastatt ( Dec 1797 ) 1799 Coup of 30 Prairial VII ( 18 Jun 1799 ) Coup of 18 Brumaire ( 9 Nov 1799 ) Constitution of the Year VIII ( 24 Dec 1799 ) Consulate Revolutionary campaigns 1792 Verdun Thionville Valmy Royalist Revolts Chouannerie Vendée Dauphiné Lille Siege of Mainz Jemappes Namur ( fr ) 1793 First Coalition Siege of Toulon ( 18 Sep -- 18 Dec 1793 ) War in the Vendée Battle of Neerwinden ) Battle of Famars ( 23 May 1793 ) Expédition de Sardaigne ( 21 Dec 1792 - 25 May 1793 ) Battle of Kaiserslautern Siege of Mainz Battle of Wattignies Battle of Hondschoote Siege of Bellegarde Battle of Peyrestortes ( Pyrenees ) First Battle of Wissembourg ( 13 Oct 1793 ) Battle of Truillas ( Pyrenees ) Second Battle of Wissembourg ( 26 -- 27 Dec 1793 ) 1794 Battle of Villers - en - Cauchies ( 24 Apr 1794 ) Battle of Boulou ( Pyrenees ) ( 30 Apr -- 1 May 1794 ) Battle of Tournay ( 22 May 1794 ) Battle of Fleurus ( 26 Jun 1794 ) Chouannerie Battle of Tourcoing ( 18 May 1794 ) Battle of Aldenhoven ( 2 Oct 1794 ) 1795 Peace of Basel 1796 Battle of Lonato ( 3 -- 4 Aug 1796 ) Battle of Castiglione ( 5 Aug 1796 ) Battle of Theiningen Battle of Neresheim ( 11 Aug 1796 ) Battle of Amberg ( 24 Aug 1796 ) Battle of Würzburg ( 3 Sep 1796 ) Battle of Rovereto ( 4 Sep 1796 ) First Battle of Bassano ( 8 Sep 1796 ) Battle of Emmendingen ( 19 Oct 1796 ) Battle of Schliengen ( 26 Oct 1796 ) Second Battle of Bassano ( 6 Nov 1796 ) Battle of Calliano ( 6 -- 7 Nov 1796 ) Battle of the Bridge of Arcole ( 15 -- 17 Nov 1796 ) The Ireland Expedition ( Dec 1796 ) 1797 Naval Engagement off Brittany ( 13 Jan 1797 ) Battle of Rivoli ( 14 -- 15 Jan 1797 ) Battle of the Bay of Cádiz ( 25 Jan 1797 ) Treaty of Leoben ( 17 Apr 1797 ) Battle of Neuwied ( 18 Apr 1797 ) Treaty of Campo Formio ( 17 Oct 1797 ) 1798 French invasion of Switzerland ( 28 January -- 17 May 1798 ) French Invasion of Egypt ( 1798 -- 1801 ) Irish Rebellion of 1798 ( 23 May -- 23 Sep 1798 ) Quasi-War ( 1798 -- 1800 ) Peasants ' War ( 12 Oct -- 5 Dec 1798 ) 1799 Second Coalition ( 1798 -- 1802 ) Siege of Acre ( 20 Mar -- 21 May 1799 ) Battle of Ostrach ( 20 -- 21 Mar 1799 ) Battle of Stockach ( 25 Mar 1799 ) Battle of Magnano ( 5 Apr 1799 ) Battle of Cassano ( 27 Apr 1799 ) First Battle of Zurich ( 4 -- 7 Jun 1799 ) Battle of Trebbia ( 19 Jun 1799 ) Battle of Novi ( 15 Aug 1799 ) Second Battle of Zurich ( 25 -- 26 Sep 1799 ) 1800 Battle of Marengo ( 14 Jun 1800 ) Battle of Hohenlinden ( 3 Dec 1800 ) League of Armed Neutrality ( 1800 -- 02 ) 1801 Treaty of Lunéville ( 9 Feb 1801 ) Treaty of Florence ( 18 Mar 1801 ) Algeciras Campaign ( 8 Jul 1801 ) 1802 Treaty of Amiens ( 25 Mar 1802 ) Military leaders French Army Eustache Charles d'Aoust Pierre Augereau Alexandre de Beauharnais Jean - Baptiste Bernadotte Louis - Alexandre Berthier Jean - Baptiste Bessières Guillaume - Marie - Anne Brune Jean François Carteaux Jean Étienne Championnet Chapuis de Tourville Adam Philippe, Comte de Custine Louis - Nicolas Davout Louis Desaix Jacques François Dugommier Thomas - Alexandre Dumas Charles François Dumouriez Pierre Marie Barthélemy Ferino Louis - Charles de Flers Paul Grenier Emmanuel de Grouchy Jacques Maurice Hatry Lazare Hoche Jean - Baptiste Jourdan François Christophe de Kellermann Jean - Baptiste Kléber Pierre Choderlos de Laclos Jean Lannes Charles Leclerc Claude Lecourbe François Joseph Lefebvre Jacques MacDonald Jean - Antoine Marbot Jean Baptiste de Marbot François Séverin Marceau - Desgraviers Auguste de Marmont André Masséna Bon - Adrien Jeannot de Moncey Jean Victor Marie Moreau Édouard Mortier, duc de Trévise Joachim Murat Michel Ney Pierre - Jacques Osten ( fr ) Nicolas Oudinot Catherine - Dominique de Pérignon Jean - Charles Pichegru Józef Poniatowski Laurent de Gouvion Saint - Cyr Barthélemy Louis Joseph Schérer Jean - Mathieu - Philibert Sérurier Joseph Souham Jean - de-Dieu Soult Louis - Gabriel Suchet Belgrand de Vaubois Claude Victor - Perrin, Duc de Belluno French Navy Charles - Alexandre Linois Opposition Austria József Alvinczi Archduke Charles, Duke of Teschen Count of Clerfayt ( Walloon ) Karl Aloys zu Fürstenberg Friedrich Freiherr von Hotze ( Swiss ) Friedrich Adolf, Count von Kalckreuth Pál Kray ( Hungarian ) Charles Eugene, Prince of Lambesc ( French ) Maximilian Baillet de Latour ( Walloon ) Karl Mack von Leiberich Rudolf Ritter von Otto ( Saxon ) Prince Josias of Saxe - Coburg - Saalfeld Peter Vitus von Quosdanovich Prince Heinrich XV of Reuss - Plauen Johann Mészáros von Szoboszló ( Hungarian ) Karl Philipp Sebottendorf Dagobert von Wurmser Britain Sir Ralph Abercromby Admiral Sir James Saumarez Admiral Sir Edward Pellew Prince Frederick, Duke of York and Albany Dutch Republic William V, Prince of Orange Prussia Charles William Ferdinand, Duke of Brunswick - Wolfenbüttel Frederick Louis, Prince of Hohenlohe - Ingelfingen Russia Alexander Korsakov Alexander Suvorov Spain Luis Firmin de Carvajal Antonio Ricardos Other significant figures and factions Society of 1789 Jean Sylvain Bailly Gilbert du Motier, Marquis de Lafayette François Alexandre Frédéric, duc de la Rochefoucauld - Liancourt Isaac René Guy le Chapelier Honoré Gabriel Riqueti, comte de Mirabeau Emmanuel Joseph Sieyès Charles - Maurice de Talleyrand - Périgord Nicolas de Condorcet Feuillants and monarchiens Madame de Lamballe Madame du Barry Louis de Breteuil Loménie de Brienne Charles Alexandre de Calonne de Chateaubriand Jean Chouan Grace Elliott Arnaud de La Porte Jean - Sifrein Maury Jacques Necker François - Marie, marquis de Barthélemy Guillaume - Mathieu Dumas Antoine Barnave Lafayette Alexandre - Théodore - Victor, comte de Lameth Charles Malo François Lameth André Chénier Jean - François Rewbell Camille Jordan Madame de Staël Boissy d'Anglas Jean - Charles Pichegru Pierre Paul Royer - Collard Girondists Jacques Pierre Brissot Roland de La Platière Madame Roland Father Henri Grégoire Étienne Clavière Marquis de Condorcet Charlotte Corday Marie Jean Hérault Jean Baptiste Treilhard Pierre Victurnien Vergniaud Bertrand Barère de Vieuzac Jérôme Pétion de Villeneuve Jean Debry Jean - Jacques Duval d'Eprémesnil Olympe de Gouges Jean - Baptiste Robert Lindet Louis Marie de La Révellière - Lépeaux The Plain Abbé Sieyès de Cambacérès Charles François Lebrun Lazare Nicolas Marguerite Carnot Philippe Égalité Louis Philippe I Mirabeau Antoine Christophe Merlin de Thionville Jean Joseph Mounier Pierre Samuel du Pont de Nemours François de Neufchâteau Montagnards Maximilien Robespierre Georges Danton Jean - Paul Marat Camille Desmoulins Louis Antoine de Saint - Just Paul Nicolas, vicomte de Barras Louis Philippe I Louis Michel le Peletier de Saint - Fargeau Jacques - Louis David Marquis de Sade Georges Couthon Roger Ducos Jean - Marie Collot d'Herbois Jean - Henri Voulland Philippe - Antoine Merlin de Douai Antoine Quentin Fouquier - Tinville Philippe - François - Joseph Le Bas Marc - Guillaume Alexis Vadier Jean - Pierre - André Amar Prieur de la Côte - d'Or Prieur de la Marne Gilbert Romme Jean Bon Saint - André Jean - Lambert Tallien Pierre Louis Prieur Bertrand Barère de Vieuzac Antoine Christophe Saliceti Hébertists and Enragés Jacques Hébert Jacques Nicolas Billaud - Varenne Pierre Gaspard Chaumette Charles - Philippe Ronsin Antoine - François Momoro François - Nicolas Vincent François Chabot Jean Baptiste Noël Bouchotte Jean - Baptiste - Joseph Gobel François Hanriot Jacques Roux Stanislas - Marie Maillard Charles - Philippe Ronsin Jean - François Varlet Theophile Leclerc Claire Lacombe Pauline Léon Gracchus Babeuf Sylvain Maréchal Others Charles X Louis XVI Louis XVII Louis XVIII Louis Antoine, Duke of Enghien Louis Henri, Prince of Condé Louis Joseph, Prince of Condé Marie Antoinette Napoléon Bonaparte Lucien Bonaparte Joseph Bonaparte Joseph Fesch Joséphine de Beauharnais Joachim Murat Jean Sylvain Bailly Jacques - Donatien Le Ray Guillaume - Chrétien de Malesherbes Talleyrand Thérésa Tallien Gui - Jean - Baptiste Target Catherine Théot List of people associated with the French Revolution Influential thinkers Les Lumières Beaumarchais Edmund Burke Anacharsis Cloots Charles - Augustin de Coulomb Pierre Claude François Daunou Diderot Benjamin Franklin Thomas Jefferson Antoine Lavoisier Montesquieu Thomas Paine Jean - Jacques Rousseau Abbé Sieyès Voltaire Mary Wollstonecraft Cultural impact La Marseillaise French Tricolour Liberté, égalité, fraternité Marianne Bastille Day Panthéon French Republican Calendar Cult of the Supreme Being Cult of Reason Temple of Reason Sans - culottes Metric system Phrygian cap Women in the French Revolution Symbolism in the French Revolution Historiography of the French Revolution Influence of the French Revolution GND : 4361185 - 0 Retrieved from `` https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Reign_of_Terror&oldid=866518526 '' Categories : 1793 events of the French Revolution 1794 events of the French Revolution French First Republic Anti-Catholicism in France Persecution of Christians Police misconduct in France Political and cultural purges Political repression in France Terrorism People killed in the French Revolution Revolution terminology Politicides Terrorist incidents in France Hidden categories : Articles containing French - language text Articles with French - language external links Articles to be expanded from May 2018 All articles to be expanded History articles needing translation from French Wikipedia Articles needing additional references from September 2017 All articles needing additional references CS1 : Julian -- Gregorian uncertainty Use dmy dates from February 2012 Interlanguage link template link number Wikipedia articles with GND identifiers Talk Contents About Wikipedia Alemannisch Asturianu Беларуская Български Bosanski Brezhoneg Català Čeština Dansk Deutsch Español Esperanto Euskara فارسی Français Gaeilge Galego 한국어 Hrvatski Ido Bahasa Indonesia Interlingua Íslenska Italiano עברית Basa Jawa ქართული Latina Lëtzebuergesch മലയാളം مصرى Bahasa Melayu Nederlands 日本 語 Norsk Norsk nynorsk Português Română Русский Scots Simple English Slovenščina Српски / srpski Srpskohrvatski / српскохрватски Suomi தமிழ் ไทย Türkçe Українська اردو Tiếng Việt 粵語 中文 45 more Edit links This page was last edited on 30 October 2018, at 20 : 46 ( UTC ). 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Question: who ruled france during the reign of terror
Answer: the Committee of Public Safety