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The Reign of Terror: France's Dark Days

Explore the tumultuous period of the French Revolution known as the Reign of Terror, where political divisions, wars, and extreme measures led to widespread violence, culminating in the execution of thousands. Discover the rise of Maximilien Robespierre and the Committee of Public Safety, the implementation of the guillotine, and the eventual end of the terror.

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The Reign of Terror: France's Dark Days

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  1. Mr. Caudill World History Welcome to

  2. Despite the new government, old problems such as _____ shortages and government ______ remained • The Legislative Assembly split into three general groups Conflicting Goals Cause Divisions

  3. Why war? • Monarchs and nobles who led absolute monarchies elsewhere in Europe begin to fear they will be the next victim of Enlightenment thought • Austria and Prussia propose France put Louis 16th back on the throne • French Legislative Assembly declares war on Austria; Prussia later joins War with Austria & Prussia

  4. 20,000 Parisian men and women invade the royal palace where Louis and his family were staying • Despite the efforts of Louis’s 900 Swiss guards the mob massacred them and imprisoned Louis’s family • Over 1,000 prisoners (many nobles and clergymen) are murdered by Parisians in the September massacres War with Austria and Prussia

  5. Threatened by Parisians, Legislative Assembly is dissolved and a new elected governing body takes over called National Convention • Abolishes the monarchy and declares France a Republic • Reduce King Louis 16th role from king to common citizen and prisoner More Government Reform

  6. King Louis 16th last words “ I am innocent and shall die without fear. I would that my death might bring happiness to the French, and ward off the dangers I foresee.” Queen Marie Antoinette “Monsieur, I beg your pardon. I did not do it on purpose.” The King is Executed

  7. Maximilian Robespierre • French Lawyer, known as the “incorruptible”, for his impeccable integrity • Gains control of the newly created French Republic • Member of radical Jacobin party that came to dominate French politics • Goal: Build a “republic of virtue” • Freedom, abolition of death penalty, and absolute loyalty to the free French republic • Rid France of ANY trace of its past monarchy and nobility A New Leader Emerges

  8. Families named Leroy (king) changed names to something less political • Kings, Queens, and Jacks were removed from playing cards • Separation of church and state • All churches in Paris are closed • New calendars with no Sundays and renamed months Extreme Measures Kings Were Replaced With Wise Men (Solo, Plato, Cato, & Brutus), and Queens With Virtues (Justice, Union, Prudence, & Force)

  9. Robespierre orchestrates the killing of hundreds of thousands French citizens not committed to the Republic of France • Committee of Public Safety- Created to identify “enemies of the republic” through a quick trial and often execution by means of the guillotine Penalty for all offences is death The Reign of Terror

  10. Enemies of the Revolution are put to death • The Guillotine • Invented by Joseph Guillotin • 20 – 40 thousand men, women and children put to death • Quick and painless?

  11. Death by Guillotine • Most common sentence - death by guillotine • Condemned paraded through Paris in open carts • Mobs watched at scaffold; executions took less than one minute

  12. Jean-Baptiste Henry, age 18, journeyman tailor, convicted of having sawn down a tree of liberty, executed 6th September, 1793 “A Woman was charged with the crime of having wept at her husbands execution.. She was condemned to sit for hours under the blade which shed upon her, drop by drop the blood of her dead husband” Henriette Francoise Marboeuf, age 55, convicted of having hoped for the arrival of Austrians and Prussians and of keeping food for them, condemned to death and executed the same day Francois Bertrand, age 37, publican, convicted of having provided the defenders of the country with sour wine, condemned and executed the same day The Execution Record: 1793

  13. Fed up with the killings and fearing their own safety, the National Convention demands an end to Robespierre’s reign • “Down with the tyrant!” • Robespierre is sent to the guillotine The Terror Ends

  14. After the Terror • France started over with new constitution in 1795 • Voting limited to property owners • The Directory established • High prices, bankruptcy, and citizens’ unrest continued • Power vacuum developed

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