Texas Department of Public Safety

Over 40,000 people in France were executed from 1793 to 1794. Whether or not this massive killing was necessary is controversial. Leading this reign of terror was dictator, Maximilien Robespierre, who was apart of the Jacobins and ruled France for about a year under absolute power. He ordered that anyone who was against the French Revolution would be imprisoned or executed. The problem with this was that not all who were accused were guilty. Robespierre’s justification for killing all of these…

Many historians have found it difficult to precisely define a reason as to what caused ‘The Terror,’ this is due to it being a culmination of terrible events leading to tyranny. ‘The Terror’ can be defined as the period within 1793 and 1794, when the Robespierre subjugated Jacobian group executed, without remorse, any opposing citizens to their regime. Through the critical analysis of Maximilien Robespierre’s speech ‘On the moral and political principles of domestic policy’ in conjunction with…

Adam Michnik, a Polish historian believed that “After the French Revolution, it was not the treason of the king that was in question; it was the existence of the king. You have to be very careful when you judge and execute somebody for being a symbol.” When the colonists declared war on Britain in 1776, they promoted “Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness (Declaration of Independence par. 2).” When the citizens of France and the Third Estate became weary of the tyranny and despotism of…

were; the execution of their king, Louis XVI, in 1792, the food shortage because of bad harvests, and the ongoing threat of invasion from the rest of the European countries. These events pushed the National Convention to give the Committee of Public Safety more power in order to carry out the Reign of Terror. Robespierre wrote about the king 's trial, saying, “As for Louis, I ask that the National Convention declare him, from this moment on, a traitor to the French Nation, a…

Secularism is defined by Merriam-Webster as "the belief that religion should not play a role in government, education, or other public parts of society" ("Secularism"). In France, one of the most widely known forms of secularism is known as Laïcité. Laïcité is a core ideal found in the French constitution that has generated laws that does not condone religiosity which has sparked…

population of the government’s democratic intentions. Throughout the Terror, Robespierre emphasized punishing tyrants in order to strengthen the nation. In 1792 he said, “It is not thirst for a vengeance unworthy of the nation; it is the need to strengthen public liberty and tranquillity [sic] through the punishment of a tyrant.” Robespierre continued with that theme and in 1794 said, “All those who interpose their parricidal gentleness to protect the wicked from the avenging blade of national…

tone down the restrictive policies of the Committee of Public Safety and develop a more moderate form of Government. Robespierre was not impressed by the threat to his leadership Danton posed and arranged Danton’s execution in April 1794. Robespierre in June 4 1794 was unanimously elected as the president of the National Convention. However, his fate soon changed as many members of the National Convention began to fear for their own safety. Robespierre and 21 of his supporters were guillotined…

Maximilien Robespierre, went around killing all who were opposed to the republic and all who were supposedly counterrevolutionary. From January 1793 to July 1794, France was governed by the Committee of Public Safety, Maximilien Robespierre and Georges Danton were influential members. The Committee of Public Safety, made on April 6, 1793, was created to maintain order within France and protect the country from outside threats. Many executions…

the Committee of Public Safety. Eventually, Maximilien Robespierre dominated this committee and executed anyone who opposed the French revolution. Robespierre, after only about a year of power, would then be executed himself…

during a democratic revolution, not just revolutionaries. During the French Revolution, in 1789, revolutionaries wanted to make a new government based on freedom of the people. In 1793, Maximilien Robespierre; National Convention; Committee of public safety wanted to scare people into supporting the new Republic. The revolutionaries killed the counter revolutionaries with the guillotine, about 35,000-40,000 people were murdered this way. The Reign of Terror was not justified because the threats…