Victims of the National Razor

I have, it would appear, acquired something of a reputation for liking the more grisly aspects of history. Perhaps it is my prized miniature guillotine, perhaps the number of salon visitors who ended their days beneath the blade of that iconic instrument of death, I can hardly tell! Whatever the cause, these past months I have received a few queries from readers who would like an easy way to track down all the guillotine posts here at the Guide.

I always aim to help if I can and for this reason, I have introduced a new guillotine tag for just such an occasion. To make things even easier though, here are the links to all of those guillotine posts - I hope they prove ghoulishly diverting!

A model of the 1792 guillotine

To kick us off, who better than Joseph-Ignace Guillotin? This gentleman championed the guillotine, little imagining just how often it would come to be used!

The French Court During Revolution
Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette: The iconic king and queen of France.
Princess Élisabeth of France: A loyal sister to the end.
Madame du Barry: Mistress to a king.
Anne d'Arpajon: The woman mocked as Madame Etiquette by Marie Antoinette.
Lamoignon de Malesherbes: The man who defended Louis XVI at his trial, forced to watch his family die before his own execution.

The French Revolution
Maximilien Robespierre: The Revolutionary politician who presided over the Terror.
Charlotte Corday: Assassin.
Jean-Sylvain Bailly: Architect of the Revolution.
Louis-Antoine de Saint-Just: This confidante of Robespierre died alongside him.
Georges Danton and Camille Desmoulins: Powerhouses of the Revolution who fell foul of the Jacobins.
Olympe de Gouges: An ardent revolutionary and thinker who rethought her politics as the Reign of Terror took hold.
Friedrich von der Trenck: Spy, adventurer and man of action.
Adam Philippe, Comte de Custine: The military man better known as Général Moustache.

Life in the Georgian Court, true tales of 18th century royalty, is available at the links below.

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A Revolutionary on the Guillotine: Olympe de Gouges

Olympe de Gouges (née Marie Gouze; Montauban, Guyenne-and-Gascony, Kingdom of France, 7th May 1748 – Paris, France, 3rd November 1793)

Olympe de Gouges by Alexander Kucharsky 

Today we mount the steps to the iconic guillotine again and witness the execution of a French woman who strove for equal rights for women in her native land. Playwright, orator and passionate abolitionist, the hope with which Olympe de Gouges greeted the Revolution eventually ended in bloody disappointment.

Throughout her life, de Gouges dreamt of one day achieving equal rights for the women of France and the abolition of slavery. She wrote and spoke tirelessly on the subject and achieved recognition for her work,  Déclaration des droits de la Femme et de la Citoyenne (Declaration of the Rights of Woman and the Female Citizen). Although she greeted revolution with a sense of hope for the future of France, her opposition to execution left her without doubts about the direction the movement eventually took.

An avowed Girondist, de Gouges was vocal in expressing her feelings about the way in which the leaders of the Revolution were behaving and she wrote and published pamphlets and posters and even began work on a pro-Revolutionary play featuring Marie Antoinette and de Gouges herself!

It was these Girondist leanings that eventually proved the undoing of Olympe de Gouges. Placed under arrest, her papers were used as evidence for the prosecution at a trial that dragged on for three months. De Gouges was denied a lawyer and struggled with her own defence yet she continued to write and, via supporters, even managed to publish an account of her own arrest and interrogations. If De Gouges wasn't already marked for death then these writings sealed her fate and she was found guilty of seditious behaviour and sentenced to the guillotine on 2nd November 1793. Just one day later she went to her death, a revolutionary who fell victim to her own cause. 

The Execution of Général Moustache

Adam Philippe, Comte de Custine (Metz, France, 4th February 1740 – Paris, France, 28th August 1793) 

To France today for a trip to the National Razor in the company of Adam Philippe, Comte de Custine. Known as Général Moustache, Custine fell afoul of the Revolutionary Tribunal when his strategic mind failed him and he was censured for failing to properly command revolutionary forces against their loyalist opponents.

After a successful military career, Custine took a sideways move into politics but he was soon back in the forces, serving with distinction in a number of battles and campaigns. However, the Comte de Custine's career would soon falter, with fatal consequences.

Throughout 1792 and into 1793, it seemed that the Comte de Custine could not make a successful military move no matter what he did. Efforts to negotiate with his Prussian opponents failed and after series of high profile defeats and retreats he was recalled to Paris to account for himself before the Revolutionary Tribunal. 

Here he found himself accused of treason and conspiring with the Austro-Prussian High Command. At this point there can have been little doubt as to his fate and Général Moustache went to the guillotine on 28th August 1793.

"One does not make revolutions by halves": The Execution of Saint-Just

Louis Antoine de Saint-Just (Louis Antoine Léon de Saint-Just; Decize, France, 25th August 1767 – Paris, France, 28th July 1794)

Louis Antoine de Saint-Just by Pierre-Paul Prud'hon, 1793

In the past we have met many famed figures of the French Revolution and witnessed many iconic victims of the National Razor, Today we return to that heady time and the death of a man whose name has become synonymous with the Terror, Louis Antoine de Saint-Just.

Saint-Just's rise to power was stratospheric and unstoppable. Fiercely intelligent, dedicated and focused on his cause, he drafted the French Constitution of 1793 and was among Robespierre's most trusted friends. Like Robespierre, when the end came for Saint-Just it was swift and merciless and he was executed alongside his friend on 28th July.

Immediately before his arrest, Saint-Just attempted to make an eloquent speech in defence of Robespierre before members of the Convention but found himself unable to finish. Disgruntled deputies countered and heckled until, eventually, Jean-Lambert Tallien interrupted and silenced him, pushing him away from the lectern. Despite this, Saint-Just would not be provoked and instead attempted to continue speaking and make his point. Calm and dignified, he refused to surrender the platform and remained in place until his arrest and removal.

Detained in the Hôtel de Ville with the other arrested men, Saint-Just remained as calm as ever as around him, his former colleagues fell into a panic. Whilst others committed suicide or attempted to do so, Saint-Just calmly accepted his fate and walked unflinchingly to the scaffold alongside Robespierre and twenty others. With no trace of fear he went to the guillotine, convinced of his righteousness to the last.

Princess Élisabeth of France, A Most Loyal Sister

Princess Élisabeth of France (Élisabeth Philippine Marie Hélène de France, Versailles, France, 3rd May 1764 - Paris, France, 10th May 1794)

Élisabeth de France by Louise Élisabeth Vigée Le Brun

It seems like barely a week goes by without a trip to revolutionary France and today we are there again, this time to meet the lady known as Princess Élisabeth of France. Known as Madame Élisabeth, she was a loyal and loving sister of Louis XVI and remained with the doomed royal family to the very end.

Élisabeth birth was a far cry from the sad scenes that would close her life and she was born at the Palace of Versailles, daughter of Dauphin Louis and Marie-Josèphe of Saxony. Orphaned at the tender age of two, the little girl and her sister, Madame Clotilde, were raised Marie Louise de Rohan, comtesse de Marsan.

Under Marie Louise's tutelege they enjoyed an excellent education and Élisabeth soon showed herself to be a highly skilled artist as well as a pious young lady dedicated to her faith and family above all else. The thought of leaving France was one that the young Élisabeth refused to countenance and as a result she rebuffed discussions regarding a possible marriage to Joseph II, Holy Roman Emperor. Instead, Élisabeth remained with the family she adored and she held true to this even when Revolution swept through France urging her brother to put down the people by force.

Élisabeth of France by Joseph Ducreux, 1768

A passionate defender of the French monarchy, she wrote a letter to her brother,  Charles-Philippe, comte d'Artois, urging him to marshal military forces to come to her brother's aid. The letter was intercepted by the National Assembly and they began to regard Élisabeth with new eyes though even now her fate was not quite decided.

Further opportunities were presented for Élisabeth to leave the family and go to safety with her aunts yet she elected instead to join the ill-fated flight to Varennes, in the guise of a nursemaid. When the escape was thwarted she was returned to Paris with her family, providing much needed moral support as their situation became more desperate.

Madame Élisabeth by Adélaïde Labille-Guiard, 1788

Following the Insurrection of 10th August 1792, she was imprisoned in the Temple Tower with the rest of the royal family. Élisabeth and her niece, Marie-Thérèse remained with Marie Antoinette until she was transferred to the Concierge on 2nd August 1793 and were never told of her death. The final letter written by the queen was addressed to Élisabeth but never reached her. Held in the Temple with the teenaged Marie-Thérèse, Élisabeth provided her niece with moral support and comfort, a familiar and friendly face at what must have been a terrifying time for the young girl.

Élisabeth presented something of a problem for the new administration and initially they hoped to exile her from the country yet it soon became apparent that she was not willing to go quietly. Accused of aiding her brother's escape attempts, she remained defiant at her trial and spoke passionately to the Tribunal in support of her family and the monarchy.  There was no question of what the verdict would be and she was duly pronounced guilty and sentenced to death.

Madame Élisabeth as a Vestal Virgin by Charles Le Clerq, 1780s

The Princess was one of two dozen prisoners who were condemned to be executed on the same day and as she waited for her turn on the scaffold Élisabeth provided support and prayers for those who were due to die alongside her. Élisabeth mounted the steps to the scaffold with dignity, showing no fear to the crowd that had gathered to watch and following her death she was interred in a mass grave at the Cimetière des Errancis.

Following the Restoration, Louis XVIII attempted to recover her remains but they were unidentifiable. Instead, the Princess is remembered with a memorial dedicated to her name in the Basilica of Saint Denis.


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The Execution of Georges Danton and Camille Desmoulins

Georges Danton (Georges Jacques Danton; Arcis-sur-Aube, France, 26th October 1759 - Paris, France, 5th April 1794)

Camille Desmoulins (Lucie Simplice Camille Benoît Desmoulins; Guise, France, 2nd March 1760 – Paris, France, 5th April 1794)

Une Exécution Capitale, Place de la Révolution by Pierre-Antoine Demachy, 1793

It feels like a while since we travelled to Paris and today I had intended to tell the tale of the death of Camille Desmoulins, who makes a cameo appearance in my own yarn, The Star of Marseilles. However, those very same final moments were shared with Georges Danton and the comrades died within minutes of one another so today, both share centre stage here in the salon.

Desmoulins and Danton were vital to the success of the French Revolutionary cause; both were shrewd strategists and moved at the highest levels of the Revolutionary government, though their favoured positions were not to last forever. As the Terror took hold, Danton distanced himself from the Girondins and withdrew from public life, leaving the Convention in late Autumn of 1793 to retire to the country. However, Danton did not stay away long and he soon returned to Paris and resumed his political manoeuvrings, speaking out against extremism in government.

Georges-Jacques Danton by Caron after painting by Jacques-Louis David, 1841

In December 1793, as Danton re-established himself in Paris, Desmoulins published the journal, Le Vieux Cordelier. The journal presented an alternative to radicalism and the first issue was dedicated to Danton and our old friend, Robespierre, a man whom later issues of Le Vieux Cordelier would go on to challenge. Although Robespierre initially encouraged the journal, as the publication began to grow critical of the Committee of Public Safety and the Revolutionary Tribunal, Robespierre's opinion of his friend turned darker. When Desmoulins publicly spoke out against the controversial Law of Suspects, the Jacobins reached the end of their tether and moved to expel the journalist from the Club.

Even now Robespierre attempted to warn Desmoulins of the possible implications of publishing such critical pieces, but the journalist's refusal to moderate the content of Le Vieux Cordelier meant that Robespierre could not afford to be seen to be indulging him. Once Danton's own reputation was thrown into doubt after his secretary, Fabre d'Églantine, was involved in a fraud case, Robespierre joined the voices asking for Desmoulins to be removed from the Jacobin Club. The stage was set for trouble and Desmoulins and Danton were arrested in the last days of March, along with 13 others.

Camille Desmoulins by Joseph Boze, 1791

A chaotic trial began on 3rd April and Danton spoke furiously and passionately in his own defence. In fact, so concerned were his prosecutors that he might swing the verdict that they introduced a new measure that forbade defendants from addressing the jury or calling witnesses and even went so far as to remove the men from the courtroom. It was hardly surprising, therefore, that all of the accused were found guilty and their executions were scheduled to take place on 5th April.

The reactions of Desmoulins and Danton to their impending deaths could not have been more different. On the appointed date they were taken from the Luxembourg Palace to the tumbrel that would carry them to Place de la Révolution and whilst Danton maintained his composure, Desmoulins was flung into a panic at the news that his wife, Lucile, had also been arrested. It took a dozen men to drag him to the tumbrel and he struggled all the way to the scaffold, tearing his clothes and pleading hysterically and fruitlessly for mercy for Lucile. Scheduled to be the first of the Dantonists to die that die, Danton maintained his grim humour to the end. As he went to the guillotine he commented, “Show my head to the people; it is worth seeing.”

Joseph-Ignace Guillotin: A Most Notorious Name

Dr Joseph-Ignace Guillotin (Saintes,  Charente-Maritime, France, 28th May 1738 - Paris, France, 26th March 1814)

Well, it has not escaped my attention that one of the regular visitors to my salon thinks that I can be relied upon to feature the National Razor at least once each week. Never one to disappoint a gentleman, I could hard let the anniversary of the birth of the estimable Dr Joseph-Ignace Guillotin pass unmarked. I hope that a certain gentleman of Cork who visits the salon so often will appreciate that this post is written with him in mind! 

Although Guillotin's name is forever associated with the instrument of execution that was to became so infamous, the doctor himself was actually a medical man and politician. One of the ten Paris deputies in the Estates-General, Guillotin was passionate about reform of medicine in the country and became a regular at debates, where he was an eloquent and learned speaker.

On 10th October 1789 Guillotin attended a debate on the subject of capital punishment, a topic he held strong feelings on and something that he hoped to see stamped out forever. When it came to his turn to speak, Guillotin spoke out against the practise of agonising public executions and explained that, though he opposed that death penalty, he believed that the means of death should be as quick and humane as possible. To this end he proposed that decapitation should become the standard method of execution but not by axe or sword. Instead Guillotin posited that a machine might be developed that would "cut off your head in the twinkling of an eye and you never even feel it", and that every person sentenced to death would meet their maker by way of this machine. Crucial to his scheme was the importance of ensuring the condemned prisoner was afforded dignity, so there would be no public execution but rather a private, efficient procedure.

A model of the 1792 guillotine

This would, he felt, make capital punishment a truly democratic act. All prisoners would be afforded a speedy, hopefully painless end that would see their dignity remain intact. Rich and poor alike would face this yet to be named device and the town squares of France would no longer witness gory public executions. In fact those who witnessed the debate found the idea that anyone could be painlessly decapitated utterly laughable and it would be two years before decapitation became the official method of execution in France.

Guillotin himself did not design the machine that came to bear his name and it was, in fact, initially developed by Dr Antoine Louis and built by Tobias Schmidt.  In 1792 the guillotine was erected in Place de Grève and the first man to meet his death beneath the blade was Jacques Nicolas Pelletier. Although he played no part in its design,  the device was inextricably linked with Joseph-Ignace Guillotin to the extent that, many years later, the doctor's family petitioned the government to rename the instrument. When their request was refused they simply changed the family name.

It is a popular myth that Guillotin died on the National Razor; in fact, although he was briefly incarcerated during the revolution, he passed away peacefully at home in his seventy sixth year.

Madame Etiquette... From Versailles to the Guillotine

Anne d'Arpajon (Anne Claude Louise d'Arpajon; Arpajon, France, 4th March 1729 - Paris, France, 27th June 1794)

The Lady with the Mask by Pierre Louis de Surugue, 1746

Anne was born into privilege as the daughter of Louis de Sévérac, Marquis of Arpajon-sur-Cère and Anne Charlotte Le Bas de Montargis, a lady in waiting to the duchess de Berry. A noble marriage was never in doubt and at the age of 12, Anne married Philippe de Noailles, duc de Mouchy, Captain of the Hunts at Versailles, taking her place in one of the greatest and most noble families in France. The couple had six children, three of whom survived into adulthood.

A lady in waiting to Maria Leszczyńska, in 1770, Anne was charged the same position to the new Dauphine, Marie Antoinette. She was also responsible for making sure that the teenage Dauphine followed to the letter the strict etiquette of court, an element of royal life that Marie Antoinette did not quite care for. 

The two women disliked one another intensely and Marie Antoinette nicknamed her retainer Madame Etiquette, much to Anne's chagrin. In fact, almost as soon as the Dauphine became queen she flexed her administrative muscles and finally dismissed Anne, who went to Bellevue and joined the residents there. The King's aunts, known as the Mesdames Tantes, had little love for the new Queen and Anne found herself more than welcome there.

When the Revolution thundered through Paris, the Duke and Duchess of Mouchy were arrested and imprisoned. The unfortunate couple went to the guillotine on 27th June 1794 and within a month they were followed by three other members of the family, all of whom were buried at Picpus Cemetery.

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From Versailles to the National Razor: Lamoignon de Malesherbes

Guillaume-Chrétien de Lamoignon de Malesherbes (Paris, France, 6th December 1721 – Paris, France, 22nd April 1794)

The salon has seen a diverse crowd of late as we have welcomed dying composers, ambitious engineers, cricketing rogues and celebrated salon-keepers. Today we welcome a gentleman of the law, respected by the public for his political decisions and ultimately one of the men who would defend King Louis XVI when he went on trial for his life. Guillaume-Chrétien de Lamoignon de Malesherbes enjoyed a life rich with opportunity and achievement yet ultimately met a  a tragic end, following his loved ones to the National Razor.  

Malesherbes was born into an illustrious family already steeped in the legal profession and there was never any question of the business he would go into. His early career was sparkling and before he turned 30 the young lawyer succeeded his father, Guillaume de Lamoignon de Blancmesnil, as President of the Cour des Aides and Directeur de la Librairie. In this latter role he was responsible for the censorship of printed material and moved in the highest literary circles, mixing with the likes of Diderot, with whom he would enjoy an enduring friendship. A champion of the Enlightenment, Malesherbes played a large part in the publication of Diderot's Encyclopédie, ou dictionnaire raisonné des sciences, des arts et des métiers.

However, the legal and literary worlds proved less of a challenge than Malesherbes had hoped and in 1771 he took a step into politics, speaking out against a schedule of reforms that the king had tabled. This put him in direct opposition to  the highly influential and absolutist Maupeou, who immediately moved to block Malesherbes, eventually succeeding in convincing the Louis XV to exile him to his country estate where he could do no harm. 

When Louis XVI came to the throne he swept away Maupeou and his followers and Malesherbes was returned to his role in the Cour des Aides.  In 1775 he was made Secretary of State for the Royal Household and campaigned against corruption in local authorities, winning public respect for his actions and policies. He became a champion of penal reform and regulated the use of  the much abused system of lettres de cachet. However, his increasing interest in the rights of French Protestants found no favour with the king and Malesherbes eventually decided that he had spent long enough on matters of state, deciding that the time had come to spend a little time indulging his own interests.

When Malesherbes retired in 1776 he spent some time travelling Europe and furthering his love of the natural sciences, also finding time to write and speak on the subject of Protestantism. However, after a decade of peaceful retirement, Malesherbes found himself back at court when the king gathered his most trusted and valued allies to him in order to seek their guidance on matters of government.

Despite his uncertainty about leaving his peaceful retirement Malesherbes accepted the position of advisor but, troubled by the increasing unrest in the country, he eventually returned to his estate and resigned his position. However, his loyalty to Louis came to the fore when news reached Malesherbes of the king’s arrest and he left his peaceful life to join the king’s defence team alongside Raymond Romain, Comte de Sèze.

Of course their efforts were to be in vain and Louis went to his death in January 1793. At the end of that year, Malesherbes and his family were also arrested and sentenced to death as enemies of the new regime. As the elderly man watched, his daughter and grandchildren were executed before he followed them to the guillotine, the last act of an eventful life.

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"My Blood Alone Remains": The Execution of Marie Antoinette

Maria Antonia Josepha Johanna (Vienna, Austria, 2nd November 1755 - Paris, France, 16th October 1793)

Marie Antoinette Being Taken to Her Execution by William Hamilton, 1794

In the early hours of 16th October 1793, a famous widow awaited her last sunrise in a dingy cell at La Conciergerie, as hated by some as she was loved by others. Separated from her children and with her husband long since executed, Prisoner 280 had endured a vicious trial, the charges laid before her ranging from incest to treason and through all of it, the outcome was never really in doubt, her fate sealed long ago. The woman in question was, of course, the widow Capet, Queen Consort of France and Navarre, Marie Antoinette.

The small cell was a world away from the splendour she had known, the queen's once vibrant life reduced to a lonely existence of prayer, contemplation and unhappiness. She had never recovered from the death of her husband in January that year, let alone her separation from what remained of her family and now, in the closing hours of her life, she was to know little comfort.

Marie Antoinette's Cell at La Conciergerie

Just a few hours earlier Marie Antoinette had been found guilty of treason by the Revolutionary Tribunal; there was no right of appeal and the lady did not ask for mercy as none would be forthcoming. Instead, she was taken to her cell to await the coming day and her inevitable appointment with the executioner. She was not allowed to see her family again and if her husband had been afforded some measure of dignity in his final hours, this was not to be her fate.

As the night drew on, Marie Antoinette wrote a final, heartfelt letter to Madame Élisabeth, her sister-in-law, imploring her to care for the children who would be left behind. The tear-stained missive was never delivered and within the year Élisabeth too would die on the guillotine. With her letter finished, Marie Antoinette penned a few final lines in her prayer book, which would later be found among the papers of Robespierre:

"My God, have pity on me! My eyes have no more tears to cry for you my poor children; adieu! adieu!"

Marie Antoinette on the Way to the Guillotine by Jacques-Louis David, 1793

The sun had not yet risen when Marie Antoinette was joined by her maid, Rosalie Lamorlière, who arrived at the cell of her mistress to carry out her final duties. Rosalie helped Marie Antoinette dress in a simple white cap, kerchief and gown and assisted at her final toilette, all performed in the presence of her jailers. One can only imagine the solemnity and sadness of these final hours before Rosalie took her leave and her mistress returned once more to her prayers.

The morning progressed all-too quickly then and Marie Antoinette received a procession of visitors from prison and court officials to Henri Sanson, the famed revolutionary executioner. With her hair  cut short and hands bound, Marie Antoinette was taken to Cour du Mai where a tumbrel awaited to carry her to her fate. Calmly, she protested that her late husband, Louis XVI, had made his last journey in a carriage and was protected from the crowds who gathered to watch him pass but the officials told her that times had changed since then, she was to face the people of Paris head on.

Accompanied by a sworn priest, Sanson and his assistant, and travelling a route lined with heavy security, Marie Antoinette endured the ride to the scaffold in regal silence. As the mob heckled and jeered she showed no fear, maintaining her dignity until, at the sight of the towering guillotine in Place de la Révolution, she faltered momentarily. With the calls of the crowd ringing in her ears Marie Antoinette gathered herself, stepped down from the tumbrel and calmly climbed the steps to the scaffold.

From that point on Marie Antoinette never faltered in her composure; stepping on Sanson's foot, she apologised to him before saying a final prayer for her family. Just as Louis had faced the guillotine with composed dignity, so too did his queen go to the National Razor without a trace of the fear she must surely have felt. Just after noon the blade finally fell, ending Marie Antoinette's life. Once her head had been displayed to the crowd, her body was thrown into an unmarked grave in the Madeleine cemetery and there is would remain until 1815 when both Marie Antoinette and Louis were exhumed and interred at the Basilica of St Denis.

Funerary monuments of King Louis XVI and Queen Marie Antoinette 

Throughout her life and since her death she has been lionised and demonised, held up as a martyr and a traitor and yet at the last she was simply a bereaved wife terrified for the fate of her soon to be orphaned children. Whether royalist or revolutionary, one cannot deny that Marie Antoinette showed dignity to the end, regal in every sense of the word.

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Jean-Sylvain Bailly: Executed Architect of the French Revolution

Jean-Sylvain Bailly (Paris, France, 15th September 1736 - Paris, France, 12th November 1793) 

Jean-Sylvain Bailly by Jean-Laurent Mosnier, 1789

Well, my old grandmother always said that we Gilflurt girls would get a reputation and it seems that, in some quarters, my reputation is for ending tales with a visit to the National Razor. For those of you who have been missing the shadow of the guillotine for a few weeks here at the Guide, you'll be pleased to know that the fearsome instrument of execution makes another appearance today! We are back in Paris, back on the tennis court and back on the scaffold to learn more about the life of Jean-Sylvain Bailly.

The man who would become one of the architects of the French Revolution was born in the Louvre, the son of Jacques Bailly. Jacques was an artist and supervisor at the Louvre and the son of Nicholas Bailly, a painter at the Bourbon court. With the blood of painters running in his veins, the young Bailly found himself torn between the worlds of art and science but under the tutelage of Nicolas de Lacaille, he eventually developed a fascination with astronomy, a subject in which he was an exemplary student. Passionate about science, Bailly assisted with the construction of the Louvre observatory and was welcomed into the Académie des Sciences in 1763, joining the Swedish Academy 15 years later. Whilst progressing his astronomical research he found time to write on the subjects of literature, history and philosophy and moved in the highest intellectual circles in France.

Bailly was devoted to his academic and scientific career but when the Revolution swept through Paris, he found his life changed. A respected thinker like Bailly was perfect for the new regime and in 1789 he was elected as the Parisian Deputy to the Estates-General, swiftly moving from this office to that of inaugural president of the National Assembly. It was Bailly who presided over the Tennis Court Oath, an event I examined in my post about the ill-fated Louis XVI but to refresh your memory, the relevant snippet follows!

The Tennis Court Oath by Jacques-Louis David,  1791 (Bailly stands in the middle, arm raised)

Furious at their exclusion from a meeting in the Hôtel des Menus Plaisirs in Versailles, members of the Third Estate held a conference on a nearby tennis court. They believed that they were deliberately refused entry to the meeting and swore an oath of allegiance that they would not disband until a French constitution was written. It has been suggested that the doors of the meeting hall were likely locked as the royal family was in mourning for the King's oldest son, who had been dead barely a fortnight. Nevertheless, the Oath was a turning point as French citizens formally declared their opposition to the monarch. Faced with this vote of no-confidence, Louis attempted to make concessions but the damage was done and the idea of constitution began to take root. Less than a month later there were mobs on the streets of Paris and the Bastille fell. Once again Bailly found his political career on the move after the events at the Bastille and on 15th July 1789, just 24 hours after the mob took the fortress, he became the mayor of Paris.

Bust of Jean-Sylvain Bailly by Louis Pierre Deseine

Two days later, Louis attended the Hôtel de Ville where Bailly presented him with a tricolour cockade, a potent symbol of the revolution. However, he was unpopular with other revolutionaries who saw him as too staid to hold the important office of mayor, a role they hoped to see going to someone more radical. He was keenly aware of the limits of his own authority and pushed them as far as he could, in 1791 repealing taxes placed on Jewish residents and declaring them French citizens, a move that was viewed with suspicion by some. It was not this policy that would cost him his career though, it was instead a fateful decision he took later that same year.

On 17th July 1791 a crowd led by Danton and Desmoulins gathered on the Champ de Mars to deliver a petition calling for the removal of the monarch. With the people growing restless, Bailly sent the marquis de Lafayette and the National Guard to control the situation. Warning shots were fired and were met with a volley of stones and abuse, at which point the National Guard fired on the crowd itself, killing some and wounding others. 

This was to prove a disastrous decision and Bailly's popularity plummeted, the mayor suddenly seen as a traitor to public democracy. Faced with such open dislike from the citizens he retired and moved to Nantes, where he wrote several volumes of autobiography. However, whilst visiting Melun he found himself arrested and brought back to Paris to face the Revolutionary Tribunal to testify against Marie Antoinette. When he refused, Bailly was placed on trial for his life. The trial opened on 10th November 1793 and on 11th November he was sentenced to death, his appointment with the guillotine set for the following day.

For Bailly, the Tribunal made a special recommendation: his scaffold was to be erected on the Champs de Mars, the very site where the National Guard had fired on the crowd. The former mayor of Paris went to his death with dignity and courage, undaunted by the mob that heckled him all the way to the guillotine. Standing in the freezing November rain he awaited his fate apparently without fear, telling the heckling crowd "[If I shiver], it is only the cold"; minutes later, he was dead.

Life in the Georgian Court, true tales of 18th century royalty, is available at the links below.

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"I Die Innocent": The Life of Louis XVI

Louis XVI (Versailles, France, 23rd August 1754 – Paris, France, 21st January 1793) 

Louis XVI by Joseph-Siffrein Duplessis , 1776

There have been a few too many guillotines around these parts of late and today we're beneath the National Razor again, this time in the company of a king. We've already watched the Bastille fall, witnessed the Insurrection of 10th August and followed the man behind the Reign of Terror  to the guillotine, so let's gad back to Versailles and see where it all began.

Louis Auguste de France, Duc de Berry, was born to Louis, the Dauphin of France, and Maria Josepha of Saxony. Timid and studious, the boy's relationship with his parents was somewhat distant and he threw himself into his studies under the Duc de la Vauguyon, a strict disciplinarian. When his father died, the 11 year old Louis succeeded him as Dauphin; at the death of his mother two years later, the boy immersed himself even further in his education, excelling in his studies as he grew into a quiet young man.

In 1770, Louis was married to the 14 year old Habsburg Archduchess Maria Antonia, better known to history as Marie Antoinette. The daughter of a Holy Roman Emperor, the marriage cemented a powerful dynasty and  marriage took place by proxy on 19th April in the Church of the Augustine Friars, Vienna. The young bride was presented to her new family on 7th May 1770, the wedding ceremony following just over a week later. 

Marie Antoinette and her Three Children, Louise Élisabeth Vigée Le Brun, 1787

Away from the public gaze the marriage was far from passionate. Desperately shy, Louis did not consummate the union for seven years and as an heir became an increasingly distant hope, pamphleteers and balladeers made bawdy sport of the couple. Eventually Louis and Marie would have four children together but by the time the first was born, the country was already rife with rumour that the king was unable to father an heir. 

In 1774 the young man became King Louis XVI; utterly overwhelmed and underprepared by his education, Louis was an indecisive and timid ruler, desperate to be liked by the people even as he allowed himself to be influenced by his ministers and advisers. A series of unpopular policy decisions and poor foreign policies knocked the new King's confidence even further and, with the government descending deeper and deeper into debt, Louis found himself scrutinised by politicians and public alike. 

Louis XVI by Antoine-François Callet, 1786

The royal household was seen as profligate and wasteful both at home and overseas. Whilst the disastrous Seven Years' War and the part played by France in the American War of Independence were ruinously expensive, Louis prevaricated over financial reform and appointed Jacques Necker to sort out the fiscal mess the country was falling into. Hugely popular with the people, Necker's eventual dismissal would play a part in the fall of the Bastille. 

The public weren't only taxed to the limit, they were starving too and famine swept the land in the 1780s. A cloud of dissent swirled as the masses looked to Versailles where they saw opulence and luxury beyond their imagining. They were, they believed, ruled by a King who could not possibly imagine what the lives of his subjects were like. His wife was draped in the latest fashions, his household filled with luxuries available and while the people starved, the court dined on fine foods. His popularity fast waning, Louis struggled to reconcile the wishes of his subjects and his advisors as influential and ambitious nobles and politicians jockeyed to take advantage of his indecisive, quiet nature.

The Tennis Court Oath by Jacques-Louis David, 1791

Bowing to the wishes of his advisors, Louis faltered when it came to matters of reform and summoned the Estates-General for the first time since 1614, intending for this body to make taxation decisions. The decision proved a fateful one and the Third Estate, clamouring for equality, met to take the Tennis Court Oath, a seminal moment in France. 

Furious at their exclusion from a meeting in the Hôtel des Menus Plaisirs in Versailles, members of the Third Estate held a conference on a nearby tennis court. They believed that they were deliberately refused entry to the meeting and swore an oath of allegiance that they would not disband until a French constitution was written. It has been suggested that the doors of the meeting hall were likely locked as the royal family was in mourning for the King's oldest son, who had been dead barely a fortnight. Nevertheless, the Oath was a turning point as French citizens formally declared their opposition to the monarch. Faced with this vote of no-confidence, Louis attempted to make concessions but the damage was done and the idea of constitution began to take root. Less than a month later there were mobs on the streets of Paris and the Bastille fell. 

The Royal Family Return to Paris, by Jean Duplessis-Bertaux, 1791

Even now the events that led to the scaffold were beginning to form and Louis entered into talks with politicians, the family by now under effective house arrest in the Tuileries. Fearing for his future, Louis and his family fled for Montmédy and the protection of Austria; longer-term they hoped to return with a force made up of allies and sympathetic nations and reassert monarchial authority. However, indecision struck Louis again and he postponed the escape multiple times, not quite able to believe that his popularity had diminished to the point of revolution. 

When the family finally did undertake what has become known as the flight to Varennes on the night of 20th June, the plan was doomed to failure. Apparently recognising Louis from his portrait on currency a local man, Jean-Baptiste Drouet, raised the alarm. There would be no further chance to escape and the royal family was returned to the Tuileries and placed under arrest once more.

Looking to his fellow monarchs for support, Louis found himself met by a wall of platitudinous concern but little in the way of action. Declarations were issued, sabres were rattled and fingers were wagged but nobody rode to his rescue. France found now that it had few friends on the continent and one can only imagine how Louis must have felt as he watched his last remaining chances for escape slipping away bit by bit. When the Tuileries was stormed by a mob, the royal family was escorted out of the Palace to the Legislative Assembly, their already restricted world shrinking even further.

The King at The Temple, Jean-François Garneray 

The man who had once sat on the throne of France was arrested on 13th August 1792 and sent to the Temple, a Parisian prison that would be his final home. Just over a month later the National Assembly abolished the Monarchy, declaring France a Republic. Stripped of his titles, the imprisoned King Louis XVI was now known as nothing more grand that Citoyen Louis Capet. As his opponents were now to find, abolishing a monarchy was one thing but there remained the problem of what to do with the monarch when he no longer had a kingdom to rule. Moderate Girondins strongly encouraged the continued imprisonment of Louis whilst their more radical colleagues argued for nothing less than execution. Once more the politicians debated until, on 11th December, Louis and his counsel, Raymond Romain, Comte de Sèze,  appeared before the Convention to hear charges of high treason and crimes against the State.

The Execution of Louis XVI by  Isidore-Stanislas Helman, 1794

The trial lasted just over a month and on 15th January 1793, the verdict of guilty was read out. Among those who decided that the sentence should be death was Louis's own cousin, Philippe Égalité, the former Duc d'Orléans. The prisoner was returned to the Temple to prepare for his fate, his appointed with the executioner scheduled for 21st January 1793.


On the last evening of his life Louis said his farewells to his family; more than anything he wished to spare his children the agony of knowing they would never see their father again and told them that he would see them again in the morning, a meeting that was destined never to happen. At dawn on the day of his execution he celebrated mass and then, all hope of mercy gone, prepared to journey by carriage to the scaffold where a crowd of thousands waited.

Dignified to the last Louis showed no fear as he approached the guillotine and told the hostile citizens, 'I die innocent of all the crimes laid to my charge; I pardon those who have occasioned my death; and I pray to God that the blood you are going to shed may never be visited on France.'


Minutes later, Louis XVI was dead, his body transported for burial in the churchyard of the Church of the Madeleine. Here he lay until 21st January 1815 when he and Marie Antoinette's remains were retrieved and interred beside the King's ancestors in the Basilica of Saint-Denis, their memories honoured by a monument to their passing.

Funerary monuments of King Louis XVI and Queen Marie Antoinette, Saint Denis Basilica, France

Life in the Georgian Court, true tales of 18th century royalty, is available at the links below.

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