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| On July 27, 1793 Maximilien Francois Marie Isidore de Robespierre was elected by the National Convention to the Committee of Public Safety (Comite de Salut Public). This Committee made ruthless use of its power for the summary arrest and execution of those suspected as adversaries to the Revolution. While Robespierre was not the inventor of the "Reign of Terror" or the revolutionary tribunal, his personal eloquence and popularity attracted a fanatical following among the Jacobins. Robespierre's praise of the system of revolution led people to believe that the Terror, instead of being monstrous, was laudable. Under Robespierre and the Jacobins, the number of executions rose every month (21 in September of 1793, 59 in October, 61 in November, 68 in December, 61 in January of 1794, 77 in February, and 121 in March); and the Paris prisons held 8,000 prospective victims. Opponents to the Terror held that the victims were no longer the clergy and the aristocrats, but rather ordinary citizens accused of hoarding, profiteering, or one of the various offenses included under the Law of Suspects. In 1794 the dictatorship of the Committee intensified, but from fear, not popular support. Executions continued to increase (258 in April of 1794, 345 in May, and 688 in June) and differences in the Committee became irreconcilable. On July 27, 1794 Robespierre was shouted down in the National Convention while giving a speech to answer attacks against his policies. Cries of "Down with the tyrant" were raised and Robespierre's arrest was decreed. Robespierre and his followers escaped, but were later captured. He and 19 of his followers were executed July 28, 1794. |
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