The Reign Of Terror
History is said to be written by the winners, but is it possible to
rewrite history? In a way, the French, like many who have preceded them, and
many who will proceed them have done the impossible, rewriting history. From
trivial folklore, such as George Washington chopping down a cherry tree, to the
incredibly wrong, the African slave trade; people's views of history can be
shaped and molded. The French have done a superb job of instilling all of us
with the concept that their Revolution was a fight for liberty, justice and the
good of all Frenchmen everywhere. Their glorification of the Bastille with it's
depictions in painting and sculpture and how the Revolution was the beginning ...
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blood as the people of Paris watched with an
entertained eye. No matter what the French may claim, if one chooses to open
his eyes and read about this tragedy, they are most certainly welcome.
The revolution begins quietly in the fiscal crisis of Louis XVI's reign.
The government was running deeply into bankruptcy, and at the urging of his
financial advisors, he called the Estates General. The governing body had not
been called for almost two centuries, and now it's workings seemed outdated. A
small number of people said that the Third Estate, that which was drawn from the
towns, should have power to equal the other Estates. Clubs of the bourgeoisie,
the middle class, were formed, proclaiming, "Salus populi lex est." It was a
simple cry meaning "the welfare of the people is law." To these people, the
Estates General was like a pair of shoes that no longer fit. Reformed seemed
iminent, the phrase, "The Third Estate is not an order, it is the nation itself"
began to ...
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at the Paris opera. Military forces were required to remedy the
situation, yet Paris only had six thousand troops with which to defend itself
against the rampaging mob. At the Place Vendome, the cavalry attempted to
control the riot, only to find their horses surrounded and unmovable through the
dense crowd.
The officers of the Swiss and Turkish armies attacked the rioters
outright, but the garde-nationale was called in to stop this massacre. This
chaos caused the Hotel de Ville to demand each tocsin, or summoning bell, cannon,
drum, and church bell be used to summon the people of Paris. Drawing from the
electoral populace of each section, four thousand and eight hundred men ...
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The Reign Of Terror. (2006, June 20). Retrieved November 22, 2024, from http://www.essayworld.com/essays/The-Reign-Of-Terror/47871
"The Reign Of Terror." Essayworld.com. Essayworld.com, 20 Jun. 2006. Web. 22 Nov. 2024. <http://www.essayworld.com/essays/The-Reign-Of-Terror/47871>
"The Reign Of Terror." Essayworld.com. June 20, 2006. Accessed November 22, 2024. http://www.essayworld.com/essays/The-Reign-Of-Terror/47871.
"The Reign Of Terror." Essayworld.com. June 20, 2006. Accessed November 22, 2024. http://www.essayworld.com/essays/The-Reign-Of-Terror/47871.
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