Throughout the French Revolution, there were a huge number of executions.
The King and Queen also lost their heads on the guillotine, and the execution device took
the heads of thousands.
Many people who initially were in favour of the revolution were then condemned to death
later on during a period of time which was known as The Reign of Terror.
Robespierre lead this, and anyone who dared have any word to speak which was negative
was led to the guillotine, and also many people were told upon to the authorities, and they
were also executed.
One man who was considered incredibly influential during the revolution was Camille Desmoulins,
however he would also later be executed in Paris despite being a brilliant advocate for
the end of the monarchy.
Join us today as we look at the execution of Camille Desmoulins, and remember to support
our channel please make sure to subscribe.
Camille Desmoulins was born on the 2nd March 1760 in Guise, and he became one of the most
influential journalists of the French Revolution.
His father was an official of Guise, and after a successful early life and education he was
admitted to the bar in 1785, however he suffered from a stammer.
This made his career as a lawyer rather difficult, but following the outbreak of the French Revolution
in 1789, Desmoulins became known for being a brilliant public speaker who could rally
a crowd, and he urged the people of Paris to take up arms.
This then turned into armed insurrection, and it climaxed with the Storming of the Basille
on the 14th July.
Following this, Camille then published a pamphlet named Free France, and with this he outlined
the issues with the old regime and the monarchy, and this became very popular.
He also then published ‘The Streetlamp’s address to the Parisians,’ which was published
in September 1789.
This supported reforms of the Revolutionary National Assembly and it outlined republican
ideals.
He continued to write and then he launched his revolutionary newspaper, called ‘The
Revolutions in France and in Brabant,’ and in this he attacked the policies that were
causing problems for democracy in France.
Following the King Louis XVI’s attempted escape from Paris, he ramped up his propaganda,
and called for the deposition of the King and for a republic to be established.
The assembly then attacked back, and ordered the arrest of Camille Desmoulins in July 1791,
but he then went into hiding for a number of months until he was then granted amnesty.
But at this time, he was working closely with Georges Danton and other Jacobin and Cordeliers.
He took part in the insurrection that caused the overthrow of the monarchy, and then he
became the Secretary general under Danton in the Ministry of Justice.
Following this, Camille was then elected to the National Convention which gathered in
September 1792, an Desmoulins joined others in a struggle against the Girondins.
He continued to write, and in particular he now attacked the Girondins and their influence.
Eventually these were expelled from the National Convention, but by December 1791, Danton and
Desmoulins were leaders of a moderate faction known as the Indulgents.
Their enemies were left wing Jacobins who were allied to the lower class Parsisians,
and they then instituted the Reign of Terror against suspected counter revolutionaries.
He continued to criticising, and in his new paper ‘The Old Cordeleir,’ he attacked
followers of Jacques Herbert, saying their movement sought to destroy Catholic institutions
across France.
But now his friend Robespierre was becoming the chief spokesman of the All powerful committee
of Public Safety, and they supported the anti-Herbertist campaign, but Desmoulins then lashed out against
the Committee.
By this he was making an enemy of the more powerful Romespierre, who ordered that Desmoulins’
writings should all be burned.
Danton and Desmoulin were accused of corruption and of counter revolutionary conspiracy, and
charges were brought before the Committee of public safety, and arrest warrants were
issued.
Desmoulins was arrested and he was then tried before the Revolutionary tribunal.
The trial was shocking, and he was not allowed to defend himself.
They were denied the right to have witnesses appear on their behalf, but Robespierre was
asked to testify for Desmoulins.
The verdict was then passed, and the death sentence was issued against him.
Camille wrote a final letter to his wife and he said, ’It is marvellous that I have walked
for five years along the precipices of the Revolution without falling over them, and
that I am still living; and I rest my head calmly upon the pillow of my writings...
I have dreamed of a Republic such as all the world would have adored.
I could never have believed that men could be so ferocious and so unjust.’
On the same day that the death sentence was issued, Camille Desmoulins was brought to
his execution.
As he was taken to the scaffold where the guillotine stood, he was told that his wife
had also been arrested, and Desmoulins went mad.
He was incredibly angry and he began to lash out, and several men were needed to get him
onto the cart that took him to the guillotine.
He struggled and tried to plead with the crowd, and he ripped his shirt in anger.
His wife would be executed 8 days later.
There were 15 people who were guillotined on the 5th April 1794 along with Desmoulins,
and one of them was Georges Danton.
Desmoulins then died third.
As he was led up to the guillotine and the scaffold, he scraped at the executioners ‘show
my head to the people, it is worth seeing.’
He was then strapped to the board, and was slid under the guillotine blade, before an
executioner quickly released the blade, and Camille Desmoulins’ head was taken clean
off.
Camille Desmoulins was a lawyer by training, however he became a key member of the French
Revolution and he managed to convince crowds on a number of times about actions.
He was a passionate man, however he ultimately was considered an enemy of the revolution
and along with key allies he fell from grace having distanced himself from Robespierre,
and he became a victim of the reign of terror.
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