History - The Reign of Terror

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The Reign of Terror

After the execution of king Louis xvI, the war was still going badly. In March there was a peasant revolt in Vendee, so in august the Jacobins declared that Terror is the order of day. Over the summer many rebellions took place so the conventions took emergency measures. A fear of traitors had grown in France after the revolution and war was the only way to get rid of them.

More than 12,000 were officially guillotined but more were have thought to have died. Many innocent people were put to death for the most stupid things. Because guillotine was too slow, 300 were put to death by cannon fire and 2000 were drowned. Eventually in mid 1794 people got sick of killing and the terror dies out.

The main causes of the terror were:

France was in a state of economic and political crisis which led people to revolt

Robespierre was blinded by power that he guillotined more and more people, which led to revolve

The fear of traitors

Around 14% guillotined were clergy and nobles

The systems of Tribunals was totally unfair, just because you sold your sour wine doesn't mean that you're against the revolution. Also crying at your husbands death is not a penalty, it just mean you have a heart and that you care. People set other people up if they didn't like them, but if there was proof then that was that. You were heading for the guillotine.

The most particular horrors are that a women was forced to sit for hours under a blade which dropped her husbands blood onto her. And the she, herself, was guillotined for crying for her loss. Sawing down a tree was death worthy. An 18 year old boy, was put to death for that. Also wearing green and shouting 'Long Live the King' would mean death. People were cruel and heartless and to blind to see the real picture.

I think the Terror finally ended when Robespierre was guillotined. He was in power and people looked up to him. Robespierre wanted power so he killed more and more people. When people were finally tired of killing and sickened by the violence, they saw the bigger picture. Robespierre would ruin France with his power hungry attitude. So like he did to many he met the same sticky end.