T3: The Coup of Thermidor Flashcards
(21 cards)
when was the Coup of Thermidor?
27-28th July 1794
what were the 3 main reasons for the fall of Robespierre and the end of the Terror?
- popular support for the Terror declined
- military success reduced external threat
- growing opposition to Robespierre’s dictatorship
how did the CPS alienate the Sans Culottes?
through economic hardship and mass executions
economic conditions that alienated the SC?
- value of the assignat continued to drop
- Commune (loyal to Robespierre since purge of Hebertists, March 1794) imposed max wages
- Committee raised max prices
how did wages changed due to the max wages imposed by the Paris Commune?
dropped by as much as half
how did the executions of the Hebertists and the Indulgents affect the SC?
alienated them - SC had most closely associated with Hebert and Danton
by when was France having more success in the war?
mid 1794
what was the effect of the war going better?
Many questioned why extreme repression was still necessary, when foreign threat was much of what had justified the Terror in the first place
what new religion did Robespierre introduce?
the Cult of the Supreme Being
why did Robespierre introduce a new religion?
to encourage moral behaviour and control society
what festival came alongside the Cult of the Supreme Being?
the Festival of the Supreme Being
when was the Festival of the Supreme Being
June 1794
how did people respond to the Cult of the Supreme Being?
many opposed - atheists (SC) thought it was an abomination, Catholics saw it as an attack on their religion
confused many
what was Robespierre accused of as a result of the Cult of the Supreme Being?
added to accusations that Robespierre was a power-crazed dictator - seemed as if the ‘supreme being’ was Robespierre himself.
examples of opposition to Robespierre’s dictatorship within the CPS?
- Lazare Carnot accused Robespierre + Saint Just of being dictators
- d’Herbois was appalled by the Cult of the Supreme Being
- CGS angered over the Law of Prairial and being sidelined by Police Bureau
what did Robespierre do as a result of waning support within his government?
began to attend less and less frequently
what atmosphere had the mass killings created within the Convention?
an atmosphere where many deputies feared for their lives
when did Robespierre speak at the convention and claim he knew the names of traitors?
26 July 1794
what did Robespierre say at the convention on 26 July 1794?
said he knew the names of more traitors but refused to name them
what was the impact of Robespierre’s refusal to name the traitors he claimed to know of?
created fear- deputies feared they would be named
what happened the day after Robespierre’s traitors speech?
Robespierre and Saint Just were drowned out in the convention by cries of ‘down with the tyrant’. convention voted for the arrest of Robespierre and his colleagues
