No figure of the French Revolution has aroused so much controversy as that of Maximilien Robespierre. He is known to most people as the symbol of the Reign of Terror, a period where approximately 17,000 people died while enduring horrible prison conditions or were executed due to the mere suspicion of being a traitor. The question of whether or not these actions were rightfully justified is an important one. Robespierre seems to have thought so. I, however, will show that the use of terror by Robespierre during the French Revolution was not just or necessary, and that he was acting in his own best interest rather than the State's.

First to understand Robespierre it is important to look into his past. He was born on May 6, 1758 in the town of Arras to Francois Robespierre. Although he belonged to a poor family, he was able to study law in Paris by means of a scholarship. He was highly dedicated to his studies which left him isolated from companionship. Returning to Arras, he practiced law and gained a reputation. He then became familiar of the works of Jean Jacques Rousseau's theories of democracy, deism, and virtue (which Robespierre understood as civic morality). These b

In another speech one year later, Robespierre makes excuses for why he has changed his opinion of the death penalty in the case of Louis XVI:

In 1789 he was elected into the States-General and attached himself to the extreme left wing. His influence grew over the Jacobin Club and eventually he became its leader. In 1791 he made a law which stated that no member of the current Constituent Assembly would be able to sit in the following Legislative Assembly. For this, he was appointed Public Accuser. Robespierre opposed the Girondist's war proposals in 1792 which caused him to lose popularity with the public. He resigned as Public Accuser and was then elected as first deputy for Paris to the National Convention where he was bitterly attacked by the Girondists. Robespierre continually opposed the Girondist's idea of a special appeal to the people on the king's death. Louis was executed on January 21, 1793, which signaled the beginning of the Jacobin's triumph. In April of 1793, the Committee of Public Safety came into existence. Robespierre, who was elected in July, then became one of the rulers of France. His authority and prestige increased, and when France became endangered by foreign invasion and chaos, the Committee initiated the Reign of Terror (Lycos).

Robespierre, Maximilien Marie Isidore de. (1972). On the action to be taken against Louis XVI. In Gerald Emanuel Stearn (Series Ed.) & George Rude (Vol. Ed.), Great Lives Observed. Robespierre (pp. 27-31). Englewood, NJ: Prentice-Hall, Inc.

Lycos. Robespierre, Maximilien Marie Isidore. Infoplease.com [On-line]. Available: http://lycos.infoplease.com/ce5/CE44361.html

It is ironic that Robespierre was executed for the same reasons that he had Louis executed for. Robespierre had become a tyrant in his own idealistic society. His obsession with gaining more power over the citizens of France led him to commit unnecessary and illogical acts that contradicted his prior beliefs of virtue. He had become a hypocrite and a power-hungry monster. His explanation for the use of terror still goes unjustified because of his critical flaws in logic. Does the end really justify the means? In Robespierre's case, no. The means he used were to promote his own power, not to protect the State. The lack of logic in his own justifications is his major flaw. Perhaps it is proper, though, that he was persecuted with his own logic.

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