The Role of Violence During the French Revolution

Rebecca Lash
History 204-01
Before revolutions take place, there are usually many small things that compound on top
of each other that lead up to a revolution. The French Revolution was no different. First, there

were many financial difficulties in France. In 1788 low farm yields led to high prices of bread.
Since few people could afford anything other than their basic needs, demand for non-essential
goods dropped and many people lost work. This led to unrest which caused raids and riots. The
majority of the French population did not have a say in the goings on of the country. Within
the National Assembly the majority were a part of the third estate, however, they could be
outvoted by the other two estates. Ultimately, they had no say in what would happen. Also, King
Louis was very ambivalent when it came to the wants and needs of the people. Instead of helping
the population of France and acting like he cared about their needs, he planned to use violence
and intimidation to keep the monarch under his control. These, and more factors contributed to
the French Revolution. During the French Revolution multiple documents were written about
what should be the actions of the people and the rights of the people of France. There is at least
talk of violence within all of these documents. However, the further into the revolution the
document was written, the more violent the author becomes and the more violence is advocated
for. Throughout this paper I will address three documents written during the French Revolution
and the violence that is addressed within the documents. The first document is The Declaration
of the Rights of Man written in 1789. Document number two is From the Declaration of the
Rights of Woman written in 1791. Finally, document three is Maximilien Robespierres
Revolutionary Speech written February fifth, 1794. Within all of these documents violence is at
least mentioned, but you will see, the later the documents are written, the more violent they
become.
The Declaration of the Rights of Man was written by Marquis de Lafayette on June
seventeenth, 1789. This document outlines rights that all men should have. Violence is addressed
right off the bat in article two. Article two states, The aim of all political association is the

preservation of the natural and imprescriptible rights of man. These rights are liberty, property,
security, and resistance to oppression.1 This means that all citizens of France should have some
way to fight their government, if the government is overstepping the bounds. If the peoples
rights are being infringed upon, they have the right to fight for their rights. The second reference
to violence within the rights of man is within article twelve. The security of the rights of man
and of the citizen requires public military forces. These forces are, therefore, established for the
good of all and not for the personal advantage of those to whom they shall be intrusted. 2 Being a
French citizen you may be a solider within the French military. The military would usually fight
for the monarchy, for the good of the people. The talk of violence within The Declaration of the
Rights of Man is basic violence. It allows the people to fight for their rights against their own
government and other countries who may attack with military force. Most populations have the
same rights within their own countries.
In July, after The Declaration of the Rights of Man was written, the people of France were
extremely mad about the kinds actions and overran the Bastille. Weapons of all kinds were
stored here and the commoners needed them to revolt. Hundreds of commoners participated in
this first of many episodes of popular violence.3 After this act of violence, the National Assembly
shared The Declaration of the Rights of Man with the whole of the country, Europe and around
the world. Slowly, the violence used during the revolution escalated from slight unrest to outright
violence. Following the issuance of the Rights of Man, the women of Paris invaded Versailles.
1 Marquis de Lafayette, The Declaration of the Rights of Man in Walter Ward, et al.
(eds.), Sources of World Societies, volume 2: Since 1450 (Boston: Bedford/St.
Martins, 2012), 143.
2 Ibid., 144.
3 McKay, et al., A History of World Societies, volume 2: Since 1450. (Boston:
Bedford/St. Martins, 2014), 663.
2

The womens goal was to find the Queen and kill her. They failed at assassinating the Queen but
succeeded in making the royal family move to Paris and ultimately become prisoners of the
people. Within two years, the royal family tries to flee France to Austria and are found and
arrested. A year later the trial of Kind Louis XVI is concluded, he is found guilty and sentenced
to death. On January twenty-first, 1793, the King is killed by guillotine.4
The Declaration of the Rights of Woman states the basic rights that all French women
should have, but, for the most part, at this point, do not possess. As you read through the excerpt
from The Declaration of the Rights of Woman you notice the same kind of violence is mentioned
as in The Declaration of the Rights of Man. Within article two of The Declaration of the Rights
of Woman it is stated, The purpose of any political association is the conservation of the natural
and imprescriptible rights of woman and man; these rights are liberty, property, security, and
especially resistance to oppression.5 This is stated, almost word for word, as in The Rights of
Man that the people, men and women, have the right to fight against oppression from their
governments. As was stated about the violence written about in the Rights of Man, the violence
within the Rights of Woman is basic violence. They have the right to defend themselves against
their own government if they are overreaching their bounds. Even though many women agreed
with this document, it was not given much attention by anyone involved in the revolution.
Women were seen as too emotional to vote or hold public office. Women should keep their own
gender roles or rearing the children and running the household. Women did not gain their rights
stated in this document until much later. Even though women do not possess all of these rights,
4 Globerover, French Revolution Timeline, < http://globerove.com/france/frenchrevolution-timeline/1061> (13 October, 2015).
5 Olympe de Gouges, The Declaration of the Rights of Woman in Walter Ward, et
al. (eds.), Sources of World Societies, volume 2: Since 1450 (Boston: Bedford/St.
Martins, 2012), 146.
3

they were responsible for essentially launching the revolution. Before the revolution really began
woman raided the palace of the Kind and Queen, and they helped storm the Bastille for weapons.
These women also took part in demonstrations, were leaders of the October days, observed
debates, and joined political clubs.6
The final document that will be addressed in Maximilien Robespierres revolutionary speech
which he wrote February fifth, 1794. Robespierre was a very important person for the
revolutionaries of France. He was a very eloquent speaker and was able to move the masses with
his words, and his actions. Robespierre was a lawyer who had enlightenment values. Overtime
he became a representative of the commoners of France and eventually a leader of the revolution.
Beginning his speech, Robespierre addresses the actions of the people in the recent past against
the monarchy. They are pretty calm in their actions up until that point. He goes on to say that the
revolution needs to have a clear goal and a plan to reach that goal. As Robespierre continues to
write his speech, he begins to advocate for violence within the revolutionaries. Close to the end
of the speech Robespierre states, We must crush both the interior and exterior enemies of the
republic, or perish with herthe first maxim of your policy should be to conduct the people by
reason, and the enemies of the people by terror.7 Slowly he increases the violence and talks
more about imposing terror on the people and on the government. The spring of popular
government in rebellion is at once both virtue and terror; virtue, without which terror is fatal!
Terror, without which virtue is powerless! Terror is nothing else than justice, prompt, secure, and

6 Sylvia Neely, A Concise History of the French Revolution (Lanham: Rowman &
Littlefield Publishers, Inc, 2008.), 149.
7 Maximilien Robespierre, Revolutionary Speech in Walter Ward, et al. (eds.),
Sources of World Societies, volume 2: Since 1450. (Boston:Bedford/St. Martins,
2012), 151.
4

inflexible!8 Robespierre advocates that terror is a tool that should be used during the revolution
by the revolutionaries to fight against the monarchy and all who fight for them. Robespierre feels
the monarchy are tyrants, and the tyrants should be stopped. If they are not stopped there will not
be a single revolutionary left when the war is over. Let tyranny but reign one day, and on the
morrow there would not remain a single patriot. Until when will the fury of tyranny continue to
be called justice, and the justice of the people barbarity and rebellion?...Nevertheless, it is
necessary that one or the other should succumb.9 Many revolutionaries believed that the success
of France could not have happened without violence. There was no way to peacefully resolve the
problems facing the French monarchy and France as a whole country. No revolution could exist
without violence and naturalized rhetoric turned disorder into proof of its necessity and justice,
and of the regeneration and future progress of the republic.10
In the end the French Revolution was a successful revolution. The revolutionaries were
successful in overthrowing the monarchy, ridding France of a tyrant for a kind and queen, and
gaining the rights of all men and, eventually, women who were citizens. This could not have
been accomplished without everyone involved or all of the small grievances that led to rebellion.
If it was not for the lower class common people, some believed the Bastille would not have
fallen, the monarchy would not have been overthrown, there would have been no arrest of
Girondins, and there would have been no spectacle that was the guillotine. The acts of popular
violence that was used were depended on by the middle class and they resulted to push the
8 Ibid.
9 Ibid.
10 Thomas Le Roux, Mary Ashburn Miller, A Natural History of Revolution: Violence
and Nature in the French Revolutionary Imagination 1789-1794, European History
Quarterly, volume 44, issue 3 (2014)
5

revolution forward to success.11 As the French Revolution would down, the violence that was
seen more and more was people sent to the guillotine during the reign of terror. However, many
began to reject the radical ways and policies of the revolution, and began to favor the more
moderate views and policies. In 1795 a new constitution was adopted by France. The
constitution of 1795 established a liberal republic with a franchise based on the payment of taxes,
a bicameral legislature to slow down the legislative process; and a five-man directory. 12
Finally, in 1799, the directory fell which gave way to the end of the French Revolution.

11 Jack Censon and Lynn Hunt, Imaging the French Revolutions: Depictions of the
French Revolutionary Crowd, The American Historical Review, volume 110, Number
1 (2005): 38
12 Constitution of 1795 (Year III): French History, <
http://www.britannica.com/topic/Constitution-of-1795> (13 October, 2015).
6

Bibliography
PRIMARY
Ward, Walter et al. (eds.). Sources of World Societies, volume 2 since 1450. Boston: Bedford/St.
Martins, 2012
i.
ii.
iii.

Marquis de Lafayette. The Declaration of the Rights of Man pp. 142-144

Maximilien Robespierre. Revolutionary Speech pp. 149-151
Olympe de Gouges. The Declaration of the Rights of Woman pp. 145-148

SECONDARY
Censon, Jack and Hunt, Lynn. Imaging the French Revolutions: Depictions of the French
Revolutionary Crowd. The American Historical Review, volume 110, number 1 (2005).
pp. 38
Constitution of 1795 (Year III): French History. < http://www.britannica.com/topic/Constitutionof-1795> (13 October, 2015).
Globerover. French

Revolution

Timeline.

<http://globerove.com/france/french-revolution-

timeline/1061> (13 October, 2015).

Le Roux, Thomas. Mary Ashburn Miller: A Natural History of Revolution: Violence and Nature
in the French Revolutionary Imagination 1789-1794. European History Quarterly,
volume 44, issue 3 (2014).
McKay, et al. A History of World Societies, volume 2: Since 1450. (Boston: Bedford/St. Martins,
2014), 663.
Neely, Sylvia. A Concise History of the French Revolution. (Lanham: Rowman & Littlefield
Publishers, Inc. 2008), 149.