9 Thermidor

The phrase 9 Thermidor usually refers to the events which occurred on July 27 1794, and are usually qualified as being 9 Thermidor Year II. On this day Robespierre and Saint-Just came under a concerted and organised attack from members of the Committee of Public Safety; Robespierre gambled and appealed to the deputies of the right to support him, however the deputies of the Right rejected his appeal and the Committee almost unanimously voted against them, and Robespierre's totalitarian rule was overthrown.

Background

The 9 Thermidor represents the final throes of the Reign of Terror. With Robespierre the sole remaining strong man of the Revolution, (following the assassination of Marat, and the executions of Danton and Hébert), his grasp on political power at this time appeared absolute. However, his rule was becoming increasingly despotic and tyrannical even by the standards of that period. He controlled the armed forces, and his support from the Right appeared rock-solid; yet, he was also the subject of a number of conspiracies, to a greater or lesser extent motivated by a fear that he would eventually assume dictatorship.

Conspiratorial Groups

Not all of the conspiratorial groupings were ideological in motivation; many who conspired against Robespierre did so for strong practical and personal reasons, most notably self-preservation. The surviving Dantonists, such as de Thionville for example, wanted revenge for the death of Danton and, more importantly, to protect their own heads.

The Left were opposed to Robespierre on the grounds that he supported the concept of God.

The prime mover, however, for the events of 9 Thermidor was a Montagnard conspiracy, led by Tallien and Bourdon de l'Oise, which was gradually coalescing, and was to come to pass at the time when the Montagnards had finally swayed the deputies of the Right over to their side.

Events

On 9 Thermidor, in the Hall of Liberty in Paris, Saint-Just was impugned by Tallien whilst he was reading a report to the Committee of Public Safety, and who then went on to denounce the tyranny of Robespierre. The attack was taken up by Billaud-Varenne. Robespierre leapt to Saint-Just's defence. Cries went up of 'Down with the tyrant! Arrest him!' Robespierre then made his appeal to the deputies of the Right, "Deputies of the Right, men of honour, men of virtue, give me the floor, since the assassins will not." However, the Right was decided, and a debate to arrest Robespierre and his followers ensued which led to the end of Robespierre's rule.

The Death of Robespierre

Robespierre was declared an outlaw, and condemned without judicial process. The following day, 10 Thermidor, 28 July 1794, he was executed with 21 of his closest associates.

Consequences

Certainly, the events of 9 Thermidor were to prove a watershed in the revolutionary process. Although not the end of the Revolution itself, it marks the end of the Reign of Terror, the downfall of one of the prime movers of the Revolution, Robespierre and also the commencement of an altogether more liberal regime.

Sources:

Histoire de la Convention Nationale - Pierre-Toussaint Durand de Maillane (Paris: Baudouin, 1825)

La republique jacobin (10 août 1792 - 9 thermidor an II) - Marc Bouloiseau (Paris 1972)