Maximilien Robespierre was a French lawyer, leader of the radical Jacobins and one of the most influential figures in the French Revolution. Robespierre was also the chairmen of the Committee of Public Safety and one of the leaders of the Reign of Terror, who signed off death certificates. Robespierre helped push the French Revolution along, helping the people to become educated and equipped to revolt against the absolute monarchy and demand for their freedom. What Robespierre meant by his quote was that if people continued to stay uneducated they would also stay in captivity because they would not know that they didn’t have freedom because they were ignorant. Robespierre understood that the once someone became enlightened or educated they not only became a physical threat but also a mental threat to power and the government. …show more content…
Robespierre was influenced greatly by the teachings of Jean-Jacques Rousseau, which inspired Robespierre’s belief and morals and became the main reason why he fought for equal rights for men and demand for justice and change from the French monarchy. Robespierre was not fond of the French monarchy and believed that they were abusing their power so he used his platform to advocate for change. “Robespierre and his youthful colleague, Saint-Just (1767-94)-also once an opponent of the death penalty led the way in claiming that ‘Louis must die in order for the Revolution to live,” (Robespierre and The Terror). Robespierre’s begin to call for more purges and execution, causing the people and other government officials to question Robespierre’s motives. They began to fear for their lives and in fear of another revolutionary, they decided to overthrow Robespierre and execute
Maximilien Robespierre was executed on July 28, 1794. Robespierre has appeared to be inebriated with the control over life and demise. Numerous individuals in the Revolutionary government scrutinized Robespierre 's thought processes as the nation was not under risk by any outsiders. On July 27, 1794, Robespierre and a large portion of his associates were captured and taken to jail. He found himself able to escape with the guide of a thoughtful prison guard and covered up in the City Hall in Paris.
During the French Revolution, a period that is recognized as one of the most socially and politically transformative in the French Empire, changes in styles of governance from monarchy to a republican together with changes in social understanding and acceptance for all took place. One of the lead figures and revolutionists was Maximilien Robespierre who is especially credited with being the leader of the Reign of Terror which was a smaller event but part of the revolution. As the French Revolution went on, Robespierre, together with similarly minded individuals Danton and their followers engaged in the ruthless executions of people who were deemed to be enemies of the revolution and to keep away any foreign interference towards the revolution (Tackett, 2000). As an individual, Robespierre was both a lawyer and a politician who rose through the ranks of
Robespierre was born May 06, 1758 in Arras, France. Robespierre fought for freedom of the press (The French Revolution). He thought that everyone should be able to express and share their opinions. Robespierre also managed to kill everybody who was remotely against the revolution (The French Revolution). Robespierre took a firm stand in his beliefs.
He set out to get rid of every trace of France’s past. His rule became known as the Reign of Terror, his job was to protect France from its enemies along with his committee they did an efficient job at this but it was extremely brutal and merciless. Eventually Robespierre got out of hand and fearing for their own lives the people of France decided to execute him. This put France in an unknowing period because they did not know how or what to do with them selves. This the stage for one of the most brilliant strategic mind to lead France, Napoleon
He then tries to justify his actions exclaiming that although rights were important, there needs to be boundaries to prevent people from doing whatever they want (Doc 1). Robespierre had the right intentions but it could have been better thought out. The Enlightenment emphasizes how the government’s job should be to protect the rights of the people in the country. Instead, the Reign of Terror resulted in the devastating loss of
Throughout history, leaders have used the influence of others to form morals and ideologies for their country. The legacy that rulers leave behind can greatly influence the course of there country, even after death. Maximilien Robespierre is a great example of someone that has been a large influence on other rulers. In the 18th century, the Atlantic Region was full of revolutions, the American, Latin American, Haitian, and the ever so important French. France an active monarchy, with the ruler King Louis the XVI.
Since most of the Third Estate was starving while only three percent of the upper class enjoyed an overabundance of food, the French civilians decided to revolt against the monarchy. However, instead of using their act of disobedience to promote positive change, the leaders of the revolution instead invoked fear in the hearts of everyone in France to increase their own power. For example, Maximilien Robespierre was one of the great leaders of the revolution until he decided to abolish Catholicism and crown himself the leader of his own new religion. This period of time was known as the Reign of Terror because Robespierre sent 600,000 civilians to the guillotine and civilians forgot what they were fighting for out of fear for their lives. Because the French were done with all the death and greed that surrounded them, the French Revolution was widely unsuccessful and France regressed back to a monarchy.
France went from an absolute monarchy to a constitutional monarchy then to a committee called the Directory after the execution of Robespierre. Robespierre was a radical who led the Jacobins. He was mainly responsible for the Reign of Terror and the Jacobins controlled phase two of the revolution. Although they were responsible for the extreme use of the guillotine and deaths of about 40,000 people, many reforms were made by Jacobins. Because of the revolution, political parties were formed and a sense of patriotism and nationalism emerged.
Sunday worship, Christmas, and Easter were abolished…in Auxerre.” (Map created from various sources, Document C). The Reign of Terror was not justified because they enforced laws that made people do things that they didn’t want to do, which means that they don’t value liberty. Robespierre ultimately ruined the chances of peace, killing anyone who got in his way to stay in
Those who were considered as general leaders of the Enlightenment years were thought to be very intellectual and were held by most people in the highest regard throughout the colonial society. Some of the more common names spoken back then were of men such as “John Locke, Voltaire, Adam Smith, Benjamin Franklin, Thomas Jefferson, and James Madison” (Sage, 2013, para. 3). Jean-Jacques Rousseau was another prominent thinker as well. He believed that all “individuals had natural rights to life, liberty, and property, which even a king or pope could not deny” (Schultz, 2010, p. 69). Rousseau, along with countless others fought for the rights of the people while insisting that each person is afforded the lawful right to live their own life and to cast aside the authoritativeness of others if they saw fit in doing
This was a big step forward to fixing the rigid social structure of France and opposing the monarchy’s oppression of peasants. Additionally, Louis was convicted of crimes such as conspiring against liberty. He was later executed on January 21, 1793. (Scandiffio) This shows that the monarchy was seen as very detrimental to the ideal of liberty, the conviction and execution of the king marked the end of the monarchy which was formerly a vital feature of the Old Regime.
Napoleonic Rule The late 1700’s was a time of great discontent in France. The people of France revolted against their government in an attempt to gain power in political decision making. In this time, France experienced many forms of governments as the people fought for change. It was during the 1790’s that Napoleon Bonaparte became known to the people as a strong military leader.
Rousseau, one of the most leading philosophers during the Enlightenment, had indeed left many of legendries behind. Not only his writings had caused many of the reactions at that time, but also influenced many writers’ aspects of the French Revolution and the overall understanding of inequality and the General Will. As one of the chief political theorists during the French Revolution who was also influenced by Rousseau’s ideas, Abbe Sieyes, published the pamphlet, “What is the Third Estate?” in 1789. This pamphlet was one of the documents that changed the world and lit the flame toward the French Revolution, as characterized by Joe Janes, a University of Washington professor (Janes).
This enormous massacre of people went against Liberty, Equality, and Fraternity, all of which the national assembly declared were every man 's right. Much of the killing can be blamed on Robespierre and King Louis XVI. Although it was mostly a failure, some achievements can be seen through the Revolution. The French Revolution helped the French people become a more equal and socialist state. This showed Europe that the French were capable of revolting and they were not afraid to stand up for what they believed.
The French Revolution was undoubtedly influenced by the political theorists of the Enlightenment. The ideas of two French political theorists in particular are easily seen throughout the French Revolution, Jean-Jacques Rousseau and Baron Montesquieu. Jean-Jacques Rousseau’s thoughts and texts, such as the Social Contract, instilled the entitlement of basic human rights to all men. Rousseau’s concepts on rights combined with Baron Montesquieu’s ideas on government provided the backbone of a radical movement in the French Revolution known as the Terror. When one delves into the beginnings of the French Revolution, the motives and actions of the National Assembly, and the Terror of the French Revolution, one can obviously see the influence of two Enlightenment political theorists, Rousseau and Montesquieu.