Pierre-Mathurin Gillet (sometimes referred to as 'René Mathurin Gillet') (28 June 1762,

Lanrelas Lanrelas (; ) is a Communes of France, commune in the Côtes-d'Armor Departments of France, department of Brittany (administrative region), Brittany in northwestern France. Population Inhabitants of Lanrelas are called ''lanrelasiens'' in Fren ...

, near

Broons Broons (; ; Gallo language, Gallo: ''Bron'') is a Communes of France, commune in the Côtes-d'Armor Departments of France, department in Brittany (administrative region), Brittany in northwestern France. International relations Broons is twinne ...

- 4 November 1795,

Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...

) was a French politician. Before the

French Revolution The French Revolution ( ) was a period of radical political and societal change in France that began with the Estates General of 1789 and ended with the formation of the French Consulate in November 1799. Many of its ideas are considere ...

he was a lawyer at

Rochefort-en-Terre Rochefort-en-Terre (; ) is a commune in the Morbihan department of Brittany in north-western France. Rochefort-en-Terre is a designated “Petite Cité de Caractère”. The medieval chateau located in the town was the home of American painter ...

. In 1790 the young Gillet was sent by the electors of Rochefort to the assembly of

Pontivy Pontivy (; ) is a commune in the Morbihan department in Brittany in north-western France. It lies at the confluence of the river Blavet and the Canal de Nantes à Brest. Inhabitants of Pontivy are called ''Pontivyens'' in French. Map History ...

and in May of the same year he was elected to a position in the administration of the newly-created département of

Morbihan Morbihan ( , ; br, Mor-Bihan ) is a department in the administrative region of Brittany, situated in the northwest of France. It is named after the Morbihan (''small sea'' in Breton), the enclosed sea that is the principal feature of the coastli ...

. On 5 September 1791 Gillet was elected as an alternate deputy to the National Legislative Assembly but he was never called on to take a seat. Seven days later he was appointed procureur-général-syndic of Morbihan, making him, at 25, the highest-ranking local political figure. On 9 September 1792 he was elected to the

National Convention The National Convention (french: link=no, Convention nationale) was the parliament of the Kingdom of France for one day and the French First Republic for the rest of its existence during the French Revolution, following the two-year National ...

, coming sixth out of eight deputies elected. At just over 26 he was one of the youngest Convention members. He generally followed a moderate line, sitting with

the Plain The Plain (french: La Plaine), better known as The Marsh (french: Le Marais), was the majority of independent deputies in the French National Convention during the French Revolution. They sat between the Girondists on their right and Montagnards ...

while having a number of

Girondin The Girondins ( , ), or Girondists, were members of a loosely knit political faction during the French Revolution. From 1791 to 1793, the Girondins were active in the Legislative Assembly and the National Convention. Together with the Montagnard ...

acquaintances. During the

trial of Louis XVI The trial of Louis XVI—officially called "Citizen Louis Capet" since being dethroned—before the National Convention in December 1792 was a key event of the French Revolution. He was convicted of high treason and other crimes, resulting in ...

he voted against an appeal to the people and then in favour of the king's detention until peace was restored. However he refused to grant a reprieve on the death sentence once it was decided.

Représentant en mission

Gillet was sent as a

représentant en mission During the French Revolution, a ''représentant en mission'' (; English: representative on mission) was an extraordinary envoy of the Legislative Assembly (1791–92) and its successor the National Convention (1792–95). The term is most ofte ...

to the western départements in the Spring of 1793. He dismissed administrators and arrested judges. From

Lorient Lorient (; ) is a town (''Communes of France, commune'') and Port, seaport in the Morbihan Departments of France, department of Brittany (administrative region), Brittany in western France. History Prehistory and classical antiquity Beginn ...

he opposed the

Insurrection of 31 May – 2 June 1793 ), during the French Revolution, started after the Paris commune demanded that 22 Girondin deputies and members of the Commission of Twelve should be brought before the Revolutionary Tribunal. Jean-Paul Marat led the attack on the representatives in ...

but did not sign the protest petition, which saved him from arrest later. In June he was at

Nantes Nantes (, , ; Gallo: or ; ) is a city in Loire-Atlantique on the Loire, from the Atlantic coast. The city is the sixth largest in France, with a population of 314,138 in Nantes proper and a metropolitan area of nearly 1 million inhabita ...

with

Merlin de Douai Philippe-Antoine Merlin, known as Merlin de Douai (, 30 October 1754 – 26 December 1838) was a French politician and lawyer. Personal and public life Early years Merlin de Douai was born at Arleux, Nord, and was called to the Flemish bar asso ...

when the Vendéan rebels laid siege to the city. On 20 June the Vendean commanders, including Cathelineau offered to allow the Republican forces to withdraw with honour if they sent over the Convention deputies as hostages. Gillet and Merlin de Douai attempted to flee, but the citizens cut the reins of their carriages, forcing them to stay. After the siege was lifted, Gillet dismissed General Beysser, attacked Baco, the mayor of Nantes, and demanded the recall of

Jean-Baptiste Carrier Jean-Baptiste Carrier (, 16 March 1756 – 16 December 1794) was a French Revolutionary and politician most notable for his actions in the War in the Vendée during the Reign of Terror. While under orders to suppress a Royalist counter-revolutio ...

. He accompanied the Republican armies in the Vendée, before being sent to the

Army of the Moselle The Army of the Moselle (''Armée de la Moselle'') was a French Revolutionary Army from 1791 through 1795. It was first known as the ''Army of the Centre'' and it fought at Valmy. In October 1792 it was renamed and subsequently fought at Trier, F ...

in 1794. There he denounced a conspiracy in the 17th demi-brigade and followed the army into Hainaut. On 8 Messidor Year II (26 June 1794) he was present at the battle of Fleurus. He was still on mission when Robespierre was overthrown, and quickly rallied behind the new government.

After Thermidor

On 18 Germinal Year III (7 April 1795) he joined the

Committee of Public Safety The Committee of Public Safety (french: link=no, Comité de salut public) was a committee of the National Convention which formed the provisional government and war cabinet during the Reign of Terror, a violent phase of the French Revolution. S ...

. Although his attendance was sporadic, he was in charge of military supplies. During the

Revolt of 1 Prairial Year III The insurrection of 1 Prairial Year III was a popular revolt in Paris on 20 May 1795 against the policies of the Thermidorian Convention. It was the last and one of the most remarkable and stubborn popular revolts of the French Revolution. After ...

he directed the led the forces that put down the uprising. He left the committee on 15 Messidor (3 July). On 21 Vendémiaire Year IV (13 October 1795), Gillet was elected from

to the

Council of Five Hundred The Council of Five Hundred (''Conseil des Cinq-Cents''), or simply the Five Hundred, was the lower house of the legislature of France under the Constitution of the Year III. It existed during the period commonly known (from the name of the e ...

. His term of office began on 4 Brumaire (26 October) but he never took his seat. He fell ill, exhausted after two years of work to support the Republic, and died on 13 Brumaire (4 November 1795) at the age of 33.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Gillet, Pierre-Mathurin 1761 births 1795 deaths People on the Committee of Public Safety Regicides of Louis XVI