63 10 1079 https://revolution.chnm.org/files/original/ecbd9b58b73ab901cb71998691e1d53c.jpg c02f48a8b711023066d74351479f80a7 https://revolution.chnm.org/files/original/b4b475b02105bfe6c72652f975c900b4.jpg 670c7f8e4ed1cd67fca307dad70f1d4e Still Image A static visual representation. Examples include paintings, drawings, graphic designs, plans and maps. Recommended best practice is to assign the type Text to images of textual materials. Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context 445 Title A name given to the resource Napoleon’s Egyptian Campaign—1798–99 Relation A related resource https://chnm.gmu.edu/revolution/d/445/ Map Napoleon Bonaparte War Text A resource consisting primarily of words for reading. Examples include books, letters, dissertations, poems, newspapers, articles, archives of mailing lists. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre Text. Text Any textual data included in the document On my return to Paris [from Egypt] I found division among all authorities, and agreement upon only one point, namely, that the Constitution was half destroyed and was unable to save liberty. All parties came to me, confided to me their designs, disclosed their secrets, and requested my support; I refused to be the man of a party. The Council of Elders summoned me; I answered its appeal. A plan of general restoration had been devised by men whom the nation has been accustomed to regard as the defenders of liberty, equality, and property; this plan required an examination, calm, free, exempt from all influence and all fear. Accordingly, the Council of Elders resolved upon the removal of the legislative Body to Saint-Cloud; it gave me the responsibility of disposing the force necessary for its independence. I believe it my duty to my fellow citizens, to the soldiers perishing in our armies, to the national glory acquired at the cost of their blood, to accept the command. The Councils assembled at Saint-Cloud; republican troops guaranteed their security from without, but assassins created terror within. Several deputies of the Council of Five Hundred, armed with stilettos and firearms, circulated threats of death around them. The plans which ought to have been developed were withheld, the majority disorganized, the boldest orators disconcerted, and the futility of every wise proposition was evident. I took my indignation and grief to the Council of Elders. I besought it to assure the execution of its generous designs; I directed its attention to the evils of the Patrie [Fatherland] . . . ; it concurred with me by new evidence of its steadfast will. I presented myself at the Council of Five Hundred, alone, unarmed, my head uncovered, just as the Elders had received and applauded me; I came to remind the majority of its wishes, and to assure it of its power. The stilettos which menaced the deputies were instantly raised against their liberator; twenty assassins threw themselves upon me and aimed at my breast. The grenadiers of the Legislative Body whom I had left at the door of the hall ran forward, placed themselves between the assassins and myself. One of these brave grenadiers had his clothes pierced by a stiletto. They bore me out. At the same moment cries of “Outlaw” were raised against the defender of the law. It was the fierce cry of assassins against the power destined to repress them. They crowded around the president, uttering threats, arms in their hands they commanded him to outlaw me; I was informed of this: I ordered him to be rescued from their fury, and six grenadiers of the Legislative Body secured him. Immediately afterwards some grenadiers of the legislative body charged into the hall and cleared it. The factions, intimidated, dispersed and fled. The majority, freed from their attacks, returned freely and peaceably into the meeting hall, listened to the proposals on behalf of public safety, deliberated, and prepared the salutary resolution which is to become the new and provisional law of the Republic. Frenchmen, you will doubtless recognize in this conduct the zeal of a soldier of liberty, a citizen devoted to the Republic. Conservative, tutelary, and liberal ideas have been restored to their rights through the dispersal of the rebels who oppressed the Councils. Sortable Date 1799-11-10 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived John Hall Stewart, ed., A Documentary Survey of the French Revolution (New York: Macmillan, 1951), pp. 763-765. Description An account of the resource Napoleon glosses over the conspiracy to overthrow the Constitution of 1795 and the duly elected legislature. This conspiracy was organized in part by his younger brother Lucien. He does, however, admit that some of the deputies opposed his endeavor and tried to arrest him. At this moment, Napoleon portrays himself as a simple “soldier of liberty, a citizen devoted to the Republic.” Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context 502 Title A name given to the resource Napoleon’s Own Account of His Coup d’Etat (10 November 1799) Relation A related resource https://chnm.gmu.edu/revolution/d/502/ Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource November 10, 1799 Napoleon Bonaparte Public Opinion Text Text A resource consisting primarily of words for reading. Examples include books, letters, dissertations, poems, newspapers, articles, archives of mailing lists. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre Text. Text Any textual data included in the document Napoleon was not irreligious in the ordinary sense of the word. He would not admit that there had ever existed a genuine atheist; he condemned Deism as the result of rash speculation. A Christian and a Catholic, he recognized in religion alone the right to govern human societies. He looked on Christianity as the basis of all real civilization; and considered Catholicism as the form of worship most favorable to the maintenance of order and the true tranquility of the moral world; Protestantism as a source of trouble and disagreements. Personally indifferent to religious practices, he respected them too much to permit the slightest ridicule of those who followed them. It is possible that religion was, with him, more the result of an enlightened policy than an affair of sentiment; but whatever might have been the secret of his heart, he took care never to betray it. His opinions of men were concentrated in one idea which, unhappily for him, had in his mind gained the force of an axiom. He was persuaded that no man, called to appear in public life, or even only engaged in the active pursuits of life, was guided or could be guided by an other motive than that of interest. He did not deny the existence of virtue and honor; but he maintained that neither of these sentiments had ever been the chief guide of any but those whom he called dreamers, and to whom, by this title, he, in his own mind, denied the existence of the requisite faculty for taking a successful part in the affairs of society. . . . Whilst in his conceptions all was clear and precise, in what required action he knew neither difficulty nor uncertainty. Ordinary rules did not embarrass him at all. In practice, as in discussion, he went straight to the end in view without being delayed by considerations which he treated as secondary, and of which he perhaps too often disdained the importance. The most direct line to the object he desired to reach was that which he chose by preference, and which he followed to the end, while nothing could entice him to deviate from it; but then, being no slave to his plans, he knew how to give them up or modify them the moment that his point of view changed, or new combinations gave him the means of attaining it more effectually by a different path. . . . Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Clemens Lothar Wenzel, FŸrst von Metternich-Winneburg, Memoirs of Prince Metternich, 1773-1815, ed. Prince Richard Metternich, tr. Mrs. Alexander Napier, 5 vols. (New York: Charles Scribner's Sons, 1880-1882), I: pp. 272-273. Description An account of the resource Klemens von Metternich, head of the Austrian government and therefore a sharp critic of Napoleon, reported that Napoleon viewed Catholicism in largely utilitarian, even cynical terms. Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context 505 Title A name given to the resource Napoleon’s Personal Feelings about Religion Relation A related resource https://chnm.gmu.edu/revolution/d/505/ Napoleon Bonaparte Religion Text Text A resource consisting primarily of words for reading. Examples include books, letters, dissertations, poems, newspapers, articles, archives of mailing lists. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre Text. Text Any textual data included in the document The internal situation of France is today as calm as it has ever been in the most peaceful periods. There is no agitation to disturb the public tranquility, no suggestion of those crimes which recall the Revolution. Everywhere useful enterprises are in progress, and the general improvements, both public and private, attest the universal confidence and sense of security. . . A plot conceived by an implacable government was about to replunge France into the abyss of civil war and anarchy. The discovery of this horrible crime stirred all France profoundly, and anxieties that had scarcely been calmed again awoke. Experience has taught that a divided power in the state is impotent and at odds with itself. It was generally felt that if power was delegated for short periods only, it was so uncertain as to discourage any prolonged undertakings or wide-reaching plans. If vested in an individual for life, it would lapse with him, and after him would prove a source of anarchy and discord. It was clearly seen that for a great nation the only salvation lies in hereditary power, which can alone assure a continuous political life which may endure for generations, even for centuries.The Senate, as was proper, served as the organ through which this general apprehension found expression. The necessity of hereditary power in a state as vast as France had long been perceived by the First Consul. He had endeavored in vain to avoid this conclusion; but the public solicitude and the hopes of our enemies emphasized the importance of his task, and he realized that his death might ruin his whole work. Under such circumstances, and with such a pressure of public opinion, there was no alternative left to the First Consul. He resolved, therefore, to accept for himself, and two of his brothers after him, the burden imposed by the exigencies of the situation. After prolonged consideration, repeated conferences with the members of the Senate, discussion in the councils, and the suggestions of the most prudent advisers, a series of provisions was drawn up which regulate the succession to the imperial throne. These provisions were decreed by a senatus-consultus of the 28 Floréal last. The French people, by a free and independent expression, then manifested its desire that the imperial dignity should pass down in a direct line through the legitimate or adopted descendants of Napoleon Bonaparte, or through the legitimate descendants of Joseph Bonaparte, or of Louis Bonaparte. From this moment Napoleon was, by the most unquestioned of titles, Emperor of the French. No other act was necessary to sanction his right and consecrate his authority. But he wished to restore in France the ancient forms and recall those institutions which divinity itself seems to have inspired. He wished to impress the seal of religion itself upon the opening of his reign. The head of the Church, in order to give the French a striking proof of his paternal affection, consented to officiate at this august ceremony. What deep and enduring impressions did this leave on the mind of Napoleon and in the memory of the nation! What thoughts for future races! What a subject of wonder for all Europe! In the midst of this pomp, and under the eye of the Eternal, Napoleon pronounced the inviolable oath which assures the integrity of the empire, the security of property, the perpetuity of institutions, the respect for law, and the happiness of the nation. The oath of Napoleon shall be forever the terror [of] the enemies of France. If our borders are attacked, it will be repeated at the head of our armies, and our frontiers shall never more fear foreign invasion. Sortable Date 1804-12-00 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived James H. Robinson and Charles A. Beard, eds., Readings in Modern European History, vol. 1 (Boston: Ginn and Company, 1908), pp. 334-336. Description An account of the resource When he made himself emperor, Napoleon clearly rejected the republican form of government. Here he tries to claim that hereditary government is necessary in a large state. The presence of the pope at his coronation seemed to confer legitimacy on the act. Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context 508 Title A name given to the resource Napoleon’s Reasons for Making Himself Emperor (December 1804) Relation A related resource https://chnm.gmu.edu/revolution/d/508/ Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource December 1804 Monarchy Napoleon Bonaparte Text Event A non-persistent, time-based occurrence. Metadata for an event provides descriptive information that is the basis for discovery of the purpose, location, duration, and responsible agents associated with an event. Examples include an exhibition, webcast, conference, workshop, open day, performance, battle, trial, wedding, tea party, conflagration. Sortable Date 1815-06-22 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context 742 Title A name given to the resource Napoleon’s second abdication. Relation A related resource https://chnm.gmu.edu/revolution/d/742/ Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource June 22, 1815 Timeline Text A resource consisting primarily of words for reading. Examples include books, letters, dissertations, poems, newspapers, articles, archives of mailing lists. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre Text. Text Any textual data included in the document This body came into being on 17 June 1789, with the renaming of the Estates-General on the motion of the abbé Sieyès. The renaming was effectively a claim that this new body was now sovereign. Initially, it comprised the members of the Third Estate and a few liberal nobles and clergy. When Louis XVI rejected the use of violence and ordered recalcitrant deputies to meet with the National Assembly on 27 June, the National Assembly became legal without resorting to violence. However, just a fortnight later the people of Paris had to rally to save it, ending with the 14 July assault on the Bastille. This body was to function as the legislative branch of government until the end of September 1791 and charged itself with writing a constitution. To reflect that mission, it called itself the National Constituent Assembly. Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context 1102 Title A name given to the resource National Assembly Relation A related resource https://chnm.gmu.edu/revolution/d/1102/ Glossary Text A resource consisting primarily of words for reading. Examples include books, letters, dissertations, poems, newspapers, articles, archives of mailing lists. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre Text. Text Any textual data included in the document [Le Chapelier spoke on behalf of the constitutional committee:] . . . One duty remains to your former constitutional committee. That duty is imposed upon it by you, by its love for the public good, and by its desire to secure and propagate all the principles preserving the constitution that France has just received after two and a half years of travails and alarms. We are going to speak to you about these organizations formed from an enthusiasm for liberty, and to which they owe their prompt establishment. We speak of those organizations which, during stormy periods, had the fortunate result of rallying public morale, providing centers for similar views, and showing the opposing minority the enormous size of the majority that wanted to exterminate the abuses, reverse the prejudices, and establish a free constitution. But like all spontaneous institutions created from the purest of motives, due to considerable changes in circumstances and various other causes, they soon deviate from their goal and end up taking on a kind of political role that they should not. As long as the Revolution lasted, this state of affairs was almost always more useful than harmful. When a nation changes its form of government, every citizen becomes a magistrate. Everyone deliberates, and should deliberate, on the State, and everything that expedites, everything that ensures, everything that speeds a Revolution, must be put to use. It is a momentary agitation that must be sustained and even increased so that the Revolution leaves no doubt in the minds of its opponents, encounters fewer obstacles, and reaches its end more quickly. But when the Revolution is over and the constitution of the State has been decided, when all public powers have been delegated and all the authorities called up, then everything must be restored to the most perfect order to ensure the security of that constitution. Then, nothing must hinder the actions of the constituted authorities, and deliberation and the power to act must be located where the constitution has placed them and nowhere else. Everyone must also recognize his own rights and responsibilities as a citizen, never exceeding the former nor violating the latter. The Societies of Friends of the Constitution have done too many favors for the State, and they are driven by excessive patriotism, so normally it is necessary to do no more than just warn their members of the dangers that these organizations pose to the State. They are dragged into illegal actions by men who cultivate them only to stir them up. . . . All citizens have the right to peaceful assembly. In a free country, where a constitution, founded on the rights of man, has created a homeland, an intense and profound feeling attaches all inhabitants to the State. They feel the need to take care of it and discuss it. Far from extinguishing or restricting this sacred fire, all social institutions must help to sustain it. But, in addition to this general interest, this deep affection created by the existence of a homeland, and the free use of citizen's rights, the maxims of public order and representative government must be in evidence. There is no power except that constituted by the will of the People and expressed through their representatives. There are no authorities except those delegated by the People, and there can be no actions except those of its representatives who have been entrusted with public duties. It is to preserve this principle, in all its purity, that the constitution has abolished all corporations, from one end of the state to another, and henceforth recognizes only society as a whole, and individuals. A necessary consequence of this principle is the prohibition of any petition or poster issued in the name of a group. Organizations, peaceful assemblies of citizens, and clubs; all go unnoticed in the State. Should they abandon the private status granted them by the constitution, they rise up against the constitution, thereby destroying it instead of defending it. From that point on the invaluable rallying cry—"Friends of the Constitution"—seems nothing more than a cry of agitation designed to upset the legitimate exercise of authority. These organizations are, for the most part, composed of worthy citizens, true friends of the homeland and avid defenders of the constitution. They will easily understand us when we tell them that, if the Revolution has sometimes driven them to outward acts, the established constitution condemns such acts or that they cannot be affiliated to any of the major cities without being compared to the corporations that have been destroyed . . . and that this political role, necessarily leads to two equally fatal results: the organizations take on a public life; and they foster divisions that every good citizen should seek to extinguish—divisions which, with the aid of strange and corporate affiliations, reappear instantaneously whenever any kind of exclusive right to patriotism is proclaimed, producing accusations against unaffiliated citizens and hatred against unaffiliated organizations. Also, delegations, collective addresses, participation in public ceremonies, recommendations, or certificates given to a few favored persons, or praise and blame distributed among the citizens, are similarly infractions of the constitutional law and means of persecution of which evil men seize hold. Records of their debates, the publication of their resolutions, and the galleries set up in their meeting halls for spectators, are acts contrary to the constitution. They commit a very grave crime when they seek to influence administrative or judicial acts. And lastly that even the Revolution itself cannot waive the orders summoning public officials to account for their conduct. Acts of violence were committed in order to destroy the judicial proceedings against so-called patriots—an audacity which forced a tribunal to designate seats in its courtroom for deputies of these clubs so they could watch over criminal proceedings and judgments. These commissioners' dispatches are being sent to various places to delegate tasks that can only be assigned by constituted authorities, a right that belongs only to men in public office. A veil must be cast over all these actions. We must even repeat that their logic and goals have often been to protect our efforts and work against malicious attacks, and in confounding the latter's maneuvers, they hastened the establishment of liberty. But now, such actions would only be a shameful malfeasance, a criminal attack on the authorities established by the constitution. The friends of the constitution, those who have sworn to maintain it by force of arms, have agreed to distinguish themselves only through the most profound respect for the constituted powers, and the most absolute repudiation of any thought of creating political entities proscribed by the constitution. The organizations that were formed to hear about and support its principles are only gatherings, friendship clubs which play no more role than any citizen, that is, to protect the constitution. They can learn, discuss, and teach one another, but their conferences and their internal proceedings must never go beyond the confines of their meeting halls. No public characteristic or collective action should bring attention to them. No one can contest these constitutional principles, yet we still see them violated. Collective petitions are forbidden, yet they are addressed to the constituent body itself, they are posted in the streets, and administrative officers and municipal authorities are worn out by them. . . . Everyone has sworn to support the constitution, everyone calls for order and public peace, everyone wants an end to Revolution. From now on, these are the unequivocal signs of patriotism. The time of destruction is past. No abuses remain to be overthrown, no prejudices remain to fight against. From now on, we must embellish this edifice of which liberty and equality are the keystones. We must endear the new order to those who have shown themselves to be its enemies. And we must consider our most fearsome adversaries as those who seek to slander or degrade the established authorities, or to take over certain organizations in order to give them an active role in the administration of the state, turning them into arbitrary censors, turbulent detractors, and perhaps even despotic subjugators of public officials. . . . Having spoken of the constitutional principles and the acts that tarnish them, does it need to be stated that the public existence of organizations, their affiliations, their newspapers, their collective petitions, their illegal influence, are able to alarm all peaceful citizens and alienate those who wish to live peacefully under the protection of the laws? It is in the nature of things that deliberative societies seek to acquire some external influence, or that that wicked or ambitious men seek to take control of them to serve as instruments of their ambition or revenge. If the actions of these organizations become public, if they are transmitted through a network of affiliations and published in their newspapers, a constituted authority can be rapidly debased or discredited, or a citizen defamed. No one can fight such slander. A person is accused, but by his enemy. It is too easy to accuse and too easy to give this accusation an air of respectability. Society applauds it, sometimes welcoming it. All the affiliated organizations are informed, and the most honest of men, the public servant with the most integrity, can be the victim of the skillful maneuvering of an evil man. From a moral and ethical point of view, as well as from a constitutional point of view, there must be neither organized affiliations, nor published means for reporting their debates. You must believe that public order, the confidence and security of a host of citizens, greatly depends on this. No one wants a master other than the law. If the organization could have an empire, if they held a man's reputation in their hands, if, as corporate entities, they had networks and agents from one end of France to the other, then their members would be the only free men. Or rather, a few affiliated members would have a free hand to destroy public freedom. There must therefore be neither affiliations among societies, nor newspapers reporting their debates. . . . [Le Chapelier presented a draft decree providing penalties against the political intervention of societies in the conduct of public affairs. The assembly proceeded to a discussion of his proposals.] Robespierre: Gentlemen, it is proposed that the assembly order the printing and distribution of the report it has just heard in the form of a directive. However, this report contains ambiguity and expressions that attack the principles of the constitution. The language of liberty and of the constitution were included and spoken of in a manner calculated to destroy them, and to conceal personal views and individual resentments under the guise of goodness, justice, and the public interest. [Applause from the galleries.] Numerous members: Order! Order! Robespierre: It is an art that is by no means foreign to revolutions, and we have seen it used often enough in the course of our own revolution to have learned how to detect and expose it. As for myself, I confess that if I ever strongly felt joy at arriving at the end of our task, it has been in witnessing this last example of that art, wherein we hear charges leveled at the organizations which secured the Revolution. I would have thought that, on the eve of our replacement by a new legislature, we could have relied on both the enlightenment and zeal of our successors . . . to take the most appropriate action. I remember with confidence—and I find this reassuring in view of the way in which we want to end our session—as I was saying, I remember with confidence and satisfaction that a very great number of those about to replace us come from the heart of these organizations. [Applause on the extreme left and in the galleries.] I know that the hope and confidence of the French nation rests particularly with them, and it is to them that the nation seems to entrust the task of defending liberty against the progress of a Machiavellian system that threatens its future ruin. . . . The constitution guarantees all Frenchmen the right to unarmed peaceful assembly. It guarantees them free expression of their ideas, as long as no harm is caused to others. The constitution guarantees all Frenchmen the right to act in any way that is not directly contrary to the laws of the state. In view of these principles, I ask how anyone dares to tell you that the sharing of ideas from one gathering of peaceful, unarmed men to other gatherings of a similar nature can be prohibited by the principles of the constitution? . . . Is it not evident that he who has attacked these principles, he who violates them in the most open manner, is only putting them forth today to make up for the odious attack he gets away with against liberty? How, and under what facade, will you send orders to the departments that are to persuade citizens that the Societies of Friends of the Constitution are forbidden to correspond and affiliate? What is unconstitutional in an affiliation? An affiliation is nothing more than the relationship between one legitimate organization and another, in which they agree to correspond one with another on matters of public interest. How can there be anything unconstitutional about that? Or rather, show me how the constitutional principles that I have outlined do not sanction these truths? . . . Le Chapelier: I ask to reply to Robespierre, who knows not a word of the constitution. [Enthusiastic applause] . . . Robespierre: Praise has been lavished on the Societies of Friends of the Constitution, but in truth this is done only to gain the right to denigrate them, and to make extremely vague allegations that are far from proven and absolutely slanderous. But it doesn't matter, because at least the good that cannot be denied has been said—which is nothing less than acknowledging their services since the beginning of the Revolution in the name of liberty and the nation. It seems to me that this consideration alone would have given the constitutional committee reason not to hasten to restrict societies which, by its own admission, have been so useful. But they say we no longer need these organizations because the Revolution is over and it is time to break the tool that has served us so well. [Applause from the galleries] . . . The Revolution is finished. I would certainly like to join you in assuming this to be true, although I am not entirely clear of the meaning you attach to this proposition that I have heard repeated with such affectation. But assuming this to be the case, is it less necessary now to propagate the knowledge, the constitutional principles, and the public spirit without which the constitution cannot exist? Is it less useful now to form assemblies in which citizens can concern themselves with these matters which are the most important interests of their country, in the most effective manner? Is there a more legitimate or more worthy concern for a free people? To be able to truly say that the Revolution is finished, it requires that the Constitution be firmly consolidated, for its destruction or weakening would necessarily prolong the Revolution, which is nothing more than the nation's efforts to preserve or attain liberty. How then can it be proposed that the most powerful means of consolidating the constitution, that which the committee's spokesman has himself acknowledged to have been generally recognized as necessary until now, be rendered invalid and without influence? For my part, I see on the one hand that the fledgling constitution still has enemies from within and without, that the nature of the discourse and outward appearances have changed while actions remain the same, and that hearts could only have been changed by a miracle. I see plots and duplicity sounding the alarm at the same time as they sow unrest and discord, and leaders of opposing factions fighting less for the cause of the Revolution than for access to power in order to rule in the monarch's name. On the other, I see the excessive zeal with which they call for blind obedience while, at the same time, dictate every word of liberty. I see the extraordinary means they use to kill the public's spirit by rekindling prejudices, irresponsibility, and idolatry. . . . When I see these things, I do not believe that the Revolution is finished. . . . If I must adopt other language, if I must stop protesting against the plans of the state's enemies, if I must applaud my country's ruin, order what fate you will for me, but let me die before liberty is lost. [Mutterings and applause] Even so, men will remain in France that will be sufficiently sincere and devoted to liberty, sufficiently farsighted to perceive the traps that are being laid all around us and to prevent the traitors from ever enjoying the fruits of their efforts. I know that in preparing the success of the plans that are being put forth in your discussions today, care has been taken to proliferate criticisms, sophisms, slander, and all the petty means used by the petty men who are both the disgrace, and the scourge, of revolutions. [Applause in the galleries, laughter in the center] I know that all the knaves and fools in France have been brought around to their opinions. [Renewed laughter] I know that these kinds of schemes give great pleasure to all who are fond of prevaricating with impunity, because anyone who is corruptible fears the surveillance of informed citizens, just as criminals fear the light that reveals their hideous crimes. Only virtue can unearth this sort of conspiracy against the patriotic organizations. Destroy them, and you will have eliminated the most powerful restraint against corruption, and you will have overthrown the last obstacle in the way of its sinister schemes. For the conspirators, the plotters, the ambitious, will know well how to gather and elude the law whose passage they have secured. Sortable Date 1790-09-20 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived M. J. Mavidal and M. E. Laurent, eds., Archives parlementaires de 1787 à 1860, première série (1787 à 1799), 2d ed., 82 vols. (Paris: Dupont, 1879–1913), 31:617–23. Description An account of the resource The "Champ de Mars Massacre" inaugurated a brief period of political repression directed at the popular movement and dramatized the growing tension between the claims of political activism and the desire of moderates to bring the Revolution to an orderly close. This issue was foremost in the minds of the representatives in the very last days of the Constituent Assembly, as they debated a proposal for a new decree limiting the political role of clubs. The decree was adopted but never implemented. Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context 399 Title A name given to the resource National Assembly Debate on Clubs (20 September 1791) Relation A related resource https://chnm.gmu.edu/revolution/d/399/ Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource September 20, 1790 Clubs Popular Politics Sans-culottes Text The Terror https://revolution.chnm.org/files/original/ea78b8d6369aeef68170664bf901530a.jpg 8ed83552df0a8cc45599dc8532cb68ff https://revolution.chnm.org/files/original/43f7c679bd676bd489eb0ed9f9ba1e87.jpg a9f826207b125e377443b03abeb8789e Still Image A static visual representation. Examples include paintings, drawings, graphic designs, plans and maps. Recommended best practice is to assign the type Text to images of textual materials. Original Format The type of object, such as painting, sculpture, paper, photo, and additional data Engraving Physical Dimensions The actual physical size of the original image 36 x 47cm Title (French) The image's title, in French. Assemblée Nationale abandon de tous les privilèges, à Versailles, séance de la nuit du 4 au 5 aout 1789 Sortable Date 1790-00-00 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Bibliothèque Nationale de France Description An account of the resource This image, part of a series produced to show the most important events of the Revolution, focuses on 4 and 5 August 1789, when the system of privileges came to an end. This legal structure, characteristic of the old regime, guaranteed different rights for different people. Most obviously, nobles had advantages over commoners, but the system was a far more general phenomenon that encompassed guilds, cities, and regions. Almost, everyone participated in this system, but grievances were most obviously directed against the nobility. In destroying privilege, the National Assembly meant to set up a new system, in which every individual was equal before the law. Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Isidore-Stanislas Helman (engraver) Antoine-Jean Duclos (engraver) Charles Monnet (designer) Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource Public Domain Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource JPEG Language A language of the resource French Title A name given to the resource National Assembly Relinquishes All Privileges Relation A related resource http://chnm.gmu.edu/revolution/d/648/|Michel Hennin. Estampes relatives à l'Histoire de France. Tome 119, Pièces 10386-10489, période : 1789 Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1790 Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context 648 Economic Conditions Image Middle Classes – Bourgeoisie Peasants Popular Politics Text A resource consisting primarily of words for reading. Examples include books, letters, dissertations, poems, newspapers, articles, archives of mailing lists. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre Text. Text Any textual data included in the document Elected in September 1792 to write a constitution that would not include the King, this body held power until 5 Brumaire Year IV (27 October 1795). Elected via universal manhood suffrage, this assembly functioned as both the executive and legislative branches of government. It tried the King, executed him after a lengthy and divisive trial, prosecuted a war with most of Europe, faced enormous fiscal problems and two internal rebellions. In addition, a constitution written and submitted to the public in 1793 was suspended “until the peace.” The depth of these crises led it to resort to a systematic use of Terror as a method of facing the situation. The Convention also delegated much of its power to a twelve-member Committee of Public Safety headed by Maximillien Robespierre for nearly a year in 1793–94, until after the coup of 9 Thermidor (27 July). It took more than a year after the end of the Reign of Terror for the Convention to submit once again to the will of the voters, but it tried to limit continuing factionalism by promulgating a new constitution—that of 1795—and requiring that two-thirds of the deputies to the new legislature be current members of the Convention. Despite concrete achievements, the Convention failed to dampen factional violence and place the republic on secure footing. Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context 1103 Title A name given to the resource National Convention Relation A related resource https://chnm.gmu.edu/revolution/d/1103/ Glossary Text A resource consisting primarily of words for reading. Examples include books, letters, dissertations, poems, newspapers, articles, archives of mailing lists. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre Text. Text Any textual data included in the document This organization of citizen-soldiers was created in early July 1789 on the suggestion of the electors of the city of Paris. They wanted to replace the traditional bourgeois militia with an organization that would allow them to resist the massing of regular troops by the King. After 14 July, the Marquis de Lafayette was named the organization’s commander. In July and August, cities and towns throughout France imitated Paris, setting up their troops of the National Guard. The guard chose to “federate” and through an invitation of the Paris Commune, representatives of the regular army and municipal National Guards met in Paris on 14 July 1790. This festival of the federation was one of the high points of the early years of the Revolution. Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context 1104 Title A name given to the resource National Guard Relation A related resource https://chnm.gmu.edu/revolution/d/1104/ Glossary