What Caused the Abolishment of the French Monarchy

August 28, 2022 admin 121 Views

What Caused the Abolishment of the French Monarchy

22.5.2: The First French Republic and Regicide

The execution of Louis Sixteen on January 21, 1793, radicalized the French Revolution at dwelling house and united European monarchies against revolutionary France.

Learning Objective

Evaluate the decision to execute the male monarch and queen

Key Points

The Insurrection of Baronial 10, 1792, led to the creation of the National Convention, elected by universal male person suffrage and charged with writing a new constitution. On September 20, the Convention became the new de facto government of France, and the next day it abolished the monarchy and alleged a republic.
A commission was established to examine evidence against the King while the Convention’s Legislation Committee considered legal aspects of any hereafter trial. Most Montagnards (radical republicans) favored sentence and execution, while the Girondins (moderate republicans) were divided apropos Louis’south fate.
The trial began on December three. The following 24-hour interval, the Convention’s president Bertrand Barère de Vieuzac presented information technology with the indictment and decreed the interrogation of Louis XVI. Louis XVI heard 33 charges.
Given overwhelming evidence of Louis’ bunco with the invaders during the ongoing war with Austria and Prussia, the verdict was a foregone determination. Ultimately, 693 deputies voted “aye” in favor of a guilty verdict. Not a single deputy voted “no,” although 26 fastened some condition to their votes. For punishment, 361 voted for death without conditions, just carrying the vote by a marginal majority.
On January 21, 1793, the former Louis XVI, now simply named Citoyen Louis Capet (Denizen Louis Capet), was executed by guillotine. Marie Antoinette was tried separately, after Louis’south expiry. She was guillotined on October xvi, 1793.
In France, the Reign of Terror followed. Across Europe, conservatives were horrified and monarchies called for war against revolutionary France. The execution of Louis Sixteen united all European governments, including Spain, Naples, and the Netherlands, against the Revolution.

Central Terms

Paris Commune: During the French Revolution, the government of Paris from 1789 until 1795. Established in the Hôtel de Ville just afterwards the storming of the Guardhouse, it consisted of 144 delegates elected by the 48 divisions of the city. It became insurrectionary in the summer of 1792, refusing to take orders from the primal French government. It took charge of routine civic functions but is best known for mobilizing extreme views. It lost much power in 1794 and was replaced in 1795.
Insurrection of Baronial 10, 1792: One of the defining events in the history of the French Revolution, the storming of the Tuileries Palace past the National Baby-sit of the insurrectional Paris Commune and revolutionary fédérés from Marseilles and Brittany resulted in the fall of the French monarchy. King Louis XVI and the royal family took shelter with the Legislative Assembly, which was suspended. The formal finish of the monarchy six weeks after was one of the kickoff acts of the new National Convention.
Legislative Assembly: The legislature of France from October 1, 1791, to September 20, 1792, during the years of the French Revolution. It provided the focus of political argue and revolutionary law-making between the periods of the National Constituent Assembly and the National Convention.

The Aftermath of August 10

The Coup of August 10, 1792, was ane of the defining events in the history of the French Revolution. The storming of the Tuileries Palace past the National Guard of the insurrectional Paris District and revolutionary
fédérés (federates) from Marseilles and Brittany resulted in the fall of the French monarchy. King Louis Xvi and the majestic family unit took shelter with the Legislative Assembly, which was suspended. Anarchy persisted until the National Convention, elected by universal male suffrage and charged with writing a new constitution, met on September xx, 1792, and became the new de facto authorities of France. The next day the Convention abolished the monarchy and alleged a commonwealth.

The Convention’due south unanimous declaration of a French Republic on September 21, 1792, left open the fate of the Male monarch. A commission was established to examine bear witness against him while the Convention’s Legislation Committee considered legal aspects of any futurity trial. Almost Montagnards (radical republicans) favored judgement and execution, while the Girondins (moderate republicans) were divided concerning Louis’due south fate, with some arguing for royal inviolability, others for charity, and however others for either bottom punishment or death. On November twenty, opinion turned sharply confronting Louis post-obit the discovery of a secret cache of 726 documents of his personal communications. Most of the pieces of correspondence in the cabinet involved ministers of Louis 16, but others involved about of the large players of the Revolution. These documents, despite the likely gaps and pre-selection showed the duplicity of advisers and ministers—at least those that Louis 16 trusted—who had set upwards parallel policies.

The Trial

The trial began on December 3. The following solar day, the Convention’s president Bertrand Barère de Vieuzac presented it with the indictment and decreed the interrogation of Louis XVI. The Convention’s secretary read the charges: “the French people” accused Louis of committing “a multitude of crimes in lodge to found [his] tyranny by destroying its liberty.” Louis Xvi heard 33 charges.

Louis XVI sought the most illustrious legal minds in France as his defense team. The task of lead counsel somewhen roughshod to Raymond Desèze, assisted by François Denis Tronchet and Guillaume-Chrétien de Lamoignon de Malesherbes. Although he had merely ii weeks to prepare his defense force arguments, on December 26 Desèzepleaded the king’s case for three hours, arguing eloquently yet discreetly that the revolution spare his life.

Given overwhelming bear witness of Louis’south collusion with the invaders during the ongoing war with Austria and Prussia, the verdict was a foregone conclusion. Ultimately, 693 deputies voted “yeah” for a guilty verdict. Not a unmarried deputy voted “no,” although 26 attached some condition to their votes. 26 deputies were absent from the vote, nearly on official business. 23 deputies abstained for various reasons, several because they felt they had been elected to make laws rather than to judge.

For the king’south sentence, deputy Jean-Baptiste Mailhe proposed “Death, just (…) I think information technology would be worthy of the Convention to consider whether information technology would be useful to policy to delay the execution.” This “Mailhe amendment,” supported by 26 deputies, was regarded by some of Mailhe’south contemporaries as a conspiracy to salve the king’south life. It was even suggested that Mailhe had been paid, perhaps by Spanish gold. Paris voted overwhelmingly for expiry, 21 to 3. Robespierre voted beginning and said “The sentiment that led me to phone call for the abolitionism of the decease penalisation is the same that today forces me to demand that it be applied to the tyrant of my country.” Philippe Égalité, formerly the Duke of Orléans and Louis’ own cousin, voted for his execution, a cause of much future bitterness among French monarchists.

There were 721 voters in total. 34 voted for death with attached atmospheric condition (23 of whom invoked the Mailhe amendment), ii voted for life imprisonment in irons, 319 voted for imprisonment until the end of the state of war (to be followed past banishment). and 361 voted for death without atmospheric condition, just conveying the vote by a marginal majority. Louis was to be put to death.

Execution

On January 21, 1793, Louis XVI awoke at 5 a.chiliad. and heard his last Mass. Upon Father Edgeworth’s communication, he avoided a farewell scene with his family. His royal seal was to become to the Dauphin and his nuptials band to the Queen. At ten a.m., a carriage with the male monarch arrived at
Place de la Révolution
and proceeded to a space surrounded past guns and drums and a crowd carrying pikes and bayonets, which had been kept free at the pes of the scaffold. The old Louis Xvi, now simply named
Citoyen Louis Capet (Denizen Louis Capet), was executed past guillotine.

Marie Antoinette was tried separately, after Louis’s decease. She was guillotined on October xvi, 1793.

Execution of Louis 16, High german copperplate engraving, 1793, past Georg Heinrich Sieveking.

The body of Louis Xvi was immediately transported to the onetime Church building of the Madeleine (demolished in 1799), since the legislation in force forbade burial of his remains beside those of his father, the Dauphin Louis de France, at Sens. On January 21, 1815 Louis XVI and his wife’southward remains were reburied in the Basilica of Saint-Denis where in 1816 his blood brother, Male monarch Louis XVIII, had a funerary monument erected past Edme Gaulle.

Aftermath of the Execution

In Apr 1793, members of the Montagnards went on to establish the Committee of Public Safety nether Robespierre, which would be responsible for the Terror (September 5, 1793 – July 28, 1794), the bloodiest and one of the nearly controversial phases of the French Revolution. The fourth dimension betwixt 1792 and 1794 was dominated by the radical ideology until the execution of Robespierre in July 1794.

Across Europe, conservatives were horrified and monarchies called for war confronting revolutionary French republic. The execution of Louis Xvi united all European governments, including Spain, Naples, and the Netherlands, against the Revolution. France declared war against Great britain and the Netherlands on February 1, 1793, and shortly after against Spain. In the course of 1793, the Holy Roman Empire, the kings of Portugal and Naples, and the K-Duke of Tuscany declared war against France. Thus, the Offset Coalition was formed.

Attributions

The First France and Regicide