Political trials, terror, and civil society: the case of the revolutionary tribunal in Paris, 1793-94

Rapport, M. (2018) Political trials, terror, and civil society: the case of the revolutionary tribunal in Paris, 1793-94. In: Davis, M. T., Macleod, E. and Pentland, G. (eds.) Political Trials in an Age of Revolution: Britain and the North Atlantic, 1793-1848. Series: Palgrave histories of policing and punishment. Palgrave Macmillan: Cham, pp. 267-295. ISBN 9783319989587 (doi: 10.1007/978-3-319-98959-4_11)

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Abstract

This chapter investigates the friction arising from the pressures of making politically-driven prosecutions within a well-developed civil society. Using the posters and pamphlets produced by the Revolutionary Tribunal to explain its judgments to the public, this chapter argues that the court used the publicity to legitimise the government’s pursuit of its enemies and to help prepare citizens for a republican future. It then charts the often sceptical public response by using the (admittedly problematic) police reports on opinion in Paris. The complex relationship between Tribunal and people shows that the Terror could not have functioned without some acquiescence from the latter.

Item Type:Book Sections
Status:Published
Glasgow Author(s) Enlighten ID:Rapport, Dr Michael
Authors: Rapport, M.
Subjects:D History General and Old World > DC France
College/School:College of Arts & Humanities > School of Humanities > History
Publisher:Palgrave Macmillan
ISBN:9783319989587
Published Online:31 December 2018
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