Title: What was the significance of Maximilien Robespierre in the French Revolution? - eNotes.com
Headings: What was the significance of Maximilien Robespierre in the French Revolution?
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What was the significance of Maximilien Robespierre in the French Revolution?
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Content: Robespierre is remembered for his influence on the Reign of Terror because he so strongly advocated for the government's right to execute those who were opposed. While he still was against the death penalty (go figure!), he believed that the ends justified the means. In other words, setting up a stable France required executing those who were unbalancing things. Further Reading
https://www.historytoday.com/archive/robespierre-and-terror
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Maximilien Robespierre is often the person most associated with the French Revolution, although there were many important movers and shakers in the events of the French Revolution. His philosophy and actions during the time known as "The Reign of Terror" represented how far awry a revolution could go, replacing the tyranny of the King with the tyranny of the Committee of Public Safety. It was Robespierre who argued that King Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette, among others, should be executed for crimes against France and her people. He came to dominate the committee and set about purging all rival elements of the revolutionary factions as enemies of the new France. Tens of thousands of people perished in The Terror, and Robespierre was particularly brutal and merciless in his sentencing. It was inevitable that he would eventually be arrested himself and executed by his rivals, and that his name would come to be synonymous with the French Revolution.