Revolutionary TribunalThe Revolutionary Tribunal (French: Tribunal révolutionnaire; unofficially Popular Tribunal) was a court instituted by the National Convention during the French Revolution for the trial of political offenders. In October 1793, it became one of the most powerful engines of the period often called the Reign of Terror. Judicial reformsIn early 1791, freedom of defence became the standard; any citizen was allowed to defend another.
Reign of Terror1793–1794 political violence in FranceHistorical caricature of the Reign of Terror.Bertrand Barère by Jean-Louis Laneuville.The Reign of Terror (French: La Terreur, lit.
Thermidorian ReactionIn the historiography of the French Revolution, the Thermidorian Reaction (French: Réaction thermidorienne or Convention thermidorienne, "Thermidorian Convention") is the common term for the period between the ousting of Maximilien Robespierre and politically-aligned deputies on 9 Thermidor II, or 27 July 1794, and the inauguration of the French Directory on 2 November 1795.
Law of 22 PrairialThe Law of 22 Prairial, also known as the loi de la Grande Terreur, the law of the Great Terror, was enacted on 10 June 1794 (22 Prairial of the Year II under the French Revolutionary Calendar). It was proposed by Georges Auguste Couthon but seems to have been written by Maximilien Robespierre according to Laurent Lecointre. Using this law, the Committee of Public Safety simplified the judicial process to one of indictment and prosecution.
Maximilien RobespierreFrench revolutionary, lawyer and politician (1758–1794)Maximilien François Marie Isidore de Robespierre (; French:; 6 May 1758 – 28 July 1794) was a French lawyer and statesman, widely recognised as one of the most influential figures of the French Revolution. Robespierre fervently campaigned for the voting rights of all men and their unimpeded admission to the National Guard.
MuscadinThe term Muscadin (French:), meaning "wearing musk perfume", came to refer to mobs of young men, relatively well-off and dressed in a dandyish manner, who were the street fighters of the Thermidorian Reaction in Paris in the French Revolution (1789–1799). After the coup against Robespierre and the Jacobins of 9 Thermidor Year II (27 July 1794), they took on the remaining Jacobins and sans-culottes, and largely succeeded in suppressing them over the next year or two.
GirondinsThe Girondins (US: ; French:), also called Girondists, were a political group during the French Revolution. From 1791 to 1793, the Girondins were active in the Legislative Assembly and the National Convention. Together with the Montagnards, they initially were part of the Jacobin movement. They campaigned for the end of the monarchy, but then resisted the spiraling momentum of the Revolution, which caused a conflict with the more radical Montagnards.
French RevolutionThe French Revolution was a period resulting in the political and societal changes in France that began with the Estates General of 1789 and ended with the Coup of 18 Brumaire on 9 November 1799. Many of the revolution's ideas are considered fundamental principles of liberal democracy, and its values remain central to modern French political discourse. It was caused by a combination of social, political, and economic factors which the existing regime proved unable to manage.
JacobinsThe Society of the Friends of the Constitution (French: Société des amis de la Constitution), renamed the Society of the Jacobins, Friends of Freedom and Equality (Société des Jacobins, amis de la liberté et de l'égalité) after 1792 and commonly known as the Jacobin Club (Club des Jacobins) or simply the Jacobins (; French: [ʒakɔbɛ̃]), was the most influential political club during the French Revolution of 1789.
Civil Constitution of the ClergyThe Civil Constitution of the Clergy (French: Constitution civile du clergé) was a law passed on 12 July 1790 during the French Revolution, that sought the complete control over the Catholic Church in France by the French government. As a result, a schism was created, resulting in an illegal and underground French Catholic Church loyal to the Papacy, and a "constitutional church" that was subservient to the State. The schism was not fully resolved until 1801.
French languageFrench (français or langue française) is a Romance language of the Indo-European family. Like all other Romance languages, French and its closest relatives—the langues d'oïl, historically spoken in northern France and southern Belgium—descended from the Vulgar Latin of the Roman Empire. It was influenced by native Celtic languages of Northern Roman Gaul and by the GermanicFrankish language of the post-Roman Frankish invaders.
Jean-Paul MaratJean-Paul Marat (UK: , US: ; French: [ʒɑ̃pɔl maʁa]; born Mara; 24 May 1743 – 13 July 1793) was a French scientist, physician, political theorist, journalist, and politician. Before the French Revolution, he pursued a career in medicine and science and spent more than ten years abroad. He published works on subjects including optics, electricity, political theory, and criminal law.*As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.