what did the committee of public safety

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What did the Committee of Public Safety turn into?

Under the Legislative Assembly, it was re-formed as the Comités de Surveillance ('Committee of Surveillance'). With the election of the National Convention, this group became the Comité de Sûreté Générale, or the Committee of General Security (CGS).

What was the Committee of Public Safety policies known as?

The Committee was created on 6 April 1793. Closely associated with the leadership of Danton, it was initially known as the Danton Committee.

What did the Committee of Public Safety do to protect the revolution?

The Commitee of Public Safety was keeping all people suspected of terrorism or who were against the French Revolution away from the country. According to The Law of Suspects, "[People] who, by their conduct, associations, talk, or writings have shown themselves to be enemies [will be suspected]." (Doc B).

What was the purpose of the Committee of Public Safety quizlet?

The Committee of Public Safety was named by the National Convention in 1793. The purpose of the committee was to provide the defense of France during the Revolution and to supervise food distribution.

What happened after the Committee of Public Safety began to fall apart quizlet?

What happened after the Committee of Public Safety began to fall apart? Power shifted back to the National Convention.

Did the the Committee of Public Safety actually protected the Revolution from its enemies?

Based on the Decree Against Profiteers, do you think the Committee of Public Safety protected the Revolution from its enemies? yes, The Decree Against Profiteers protected the Revolution from its enemies because it was trying to protect the people's rights to everyone having the things that they needed.

Why did the Committee of Public Safety considered monopoly to be a crime?

The Committee of Public Safety considered monopoly to be a serious crime because the French Revolution motto was liberty and equality. What was the punishment for those who did not comply with this law? Those who didn't obey the law were punished by death.

Why is the name Committee of Public Safety ironic?

Who was in charge of the Committee of Public Safety? Why is the name ironic? Revolutionary courts were set up and 40,000 people were killed in the Reign of Terror. Robespierre was in charge of the CPS and the name is ironic because Robespierre ended up killing around 15,000 people in the name of the CPS.

Who did the Committee of Public Safety consider to be enemies of the state?

Whom did the Committee of Public Safety consider to be enemies of the state ? The Committee of Public Safety considered foreign countries to be an enemy. Also their own people were agents them because of the example made of Lyon.

Why did the Committee of Public Safety Consider monopoly to be such a serious crime?

The Committee of Public Safety considered monopoly to be a serious crime because the French Revolution motto was liberty and equality. What was the punishment for those who did not comply with this law? Those who didn't obey the law were punished by death.

How did the Committee of Public Safety identify enemies of the state?

How did the Committee of Public Safety identify enemies of the state? They identified them by the people who were under suspicion of betraying France, they were ordered to be beheaded or put to death by guillotine.

What was the name of the committee that led the Girondins to the Vendée?

Closely associated with the leadership of Danton, it was initially known as the Danton Committee. Danton steered the Committee through the 31 May and 2 June 1793 journées that saw the violent expulsion of the Girondins and through the intensifying war in the Vendée.

When were the Hébertists arrested?

Consequently, though the Hébertists were arrested and executed in March 1794, the Committees had Desmoulins and Danton arrested as well. Hérault de Séchelles, a friend and ally of Danton, was expelled from the Committee of Public Safety, arrested and tried alongside them. On 5 April 1794, the Dantonists went to the guillotine.

What was the role of the Committee of Public Safety?

The role of the Committee of Public Safety included the governance of the war (including the appointment of generals), the appointing of judges and juries for the Revolutionary Tribunal, the provisioning of the armies and the public, the maintenance of public order and oversight of the state bureaucracy.

What was the reason for Dumouriez's defection?

On 5 April 1793, the French military commander and former minister of war General Charles François Dumouriez defected to Austria following the publication of an incendiary letter in which he threatened to march his army on the city of Paris if the National Convention did not accede to his leadership. News of his defection caused alarm in Paris, where imminent defeat by the Austrians and their allies was feared. A widespread belief held that revolutionary France was in immediate peril, threatened not only by foreign armies and by recent revolts in the Vendée, but also by foreign agents who plotted the destruction of the nation from within. Dumouriez's defection lent greater credence to this belief. In light of this threat, the Girondin leader Maximin Isnard proposed the creation of a nine-member Committee of Public Safety. Isnard was supported in this effort by Georges Danton, who declared: "This Committee is precisely what we want, a hand to grasp the weapon of the Revolutionary Tribunal ".

What was the precedent of the American Patriots?

During the American War of Independence, American Patriots formed Committees of safety. That was a recent major precedent of a Republican revolution , well-known to the French revolutionaries.

What powers did the Committee of the Armed Forces have?

As a wartime measure, the committee was given broad supervisory and administrative powers over the armed forces, judiciary and legislature, as well as the executive bodies and ministers of the Convention.

When was Robespierre executed?

After the arrest and execution of the rival factions of Hébertists and Dantonists, sentiment in the Convention eventually turned against Robespierre, who was executed in July 1794. In the following Thermidorian Reaction, the committee's influence diminished and it was abolished in 1795. During the American War of Independence, ...

How many men were in the CPS in 1793?

3. By September 1793 the CPS had expanded to 12 men and its membership rarely changed. During this month the Convention passed several measures that increased the power of the CPS, such as the Law of Suspects and the General Maximum.

What was the CPS power in 1793?

On December 4th, the Convention formalised the power of the CPS by passing the Law of 14 Frimaire, later dubbed the ‘Constitution of the Terror’ . This law handed the Committee de facto executive power while declaring the National Convention the “sole centre of government initiative”.

When did the CPS descend into authoritarianism?

The Committee’s descent into authoritarianism began with the election of Robespierre to the CPS on July 27th 1793 . The membership of the Committee changed little over the next year; the Convention re-endorsed its members every month and in September voted to increase the CPS to 12 members.

What was the name of the committee that was formed in 1793?

1. The Committee of Public Safety (CPS) was a powerful committee of the National Convention, formed in April 1793 following the defection of General Dumouriez to the Austrians.

What is the function of the CPS?

The function of the CPS was to receive and monitor intelligence, handle the day-to-day business of the war and report weekly to the Convention in session. The CPS was authorised to act on behalf of the Convention but had to report to the Convention weekly.

What was the first committee?

The first Committees were a microcosm of the Convention, containing a mix of moderates and radicals. During its first weeks, the members of the CPS worked collaboratively, inspired by a sense of unity and common purpose. Their measures were successful too, which encouraged the Convention to place even more trust in this group.

What was the controversy over the Committee of Public Safety?

It is credited, on the one hand, for overseeing the defence of the country and guiding France to victory in war over almost all the other nations in Europe.

What was the reign of terror?

The Reign of Terror (September 5, 1793 – July 28, 1794), also known as The Terror, was a period of violence during the French Revolution incited by conflict between two rival political factions, the Girondins (moderate republicans) and the Jacobins (radical republicans), and marked by mass executions of “the enemies of the revolution.”

What was the purpose of Jacobin rule?

The year of Jacobin rule was the first time in history that terror became an official government policy, with the stated aim to use violence to achieve a higher political goal. In June 1794, Robespierre, who favored deism over atheism, recommended that the Convention acknowledge the existence of his god. The next day, the worship of the deistic ...

How did Robespierre fall?

His fall was brought about by conflicts between those who wanted more power for the Committee of Public Safety (and a more radical policy than he was willing to allow) and moderates who completely opposed the revolutionary government. Robespierre tried to commit suicide before his execution by shooting himself, although the bullet only shattered his jaw. He was guillotined on July 28. The reign of the standing Committee of Public Safety was ended. New members were appointed the day after Robespierre’s execution and term limits were imposed. The Committee’s powers were reduced piece by piece.

What did the Paris sections call for?

In June 1793, Paris sections took over the Convention, calling for administrative and political purges, a low fixed price for bread, and a limitation of the electoral franchise to sans-culottes alone. The Jacobins identified themselves with the popular movement and the sans-culottes, who in turn saw popular violence as a political right. The sans-culottes, exasperated by the inadequacies of the government, invaded the Convention and overthrew the Girondins. In their place they endorsed the political ascendancy of the Jacobins. Robespierre came to power on the back of street violence.

What was the purpose of the reign of terror?

The period of the Jacobin rule known as the Reign of Terror, under the leadership of Maximilien Robespierre, was the first time in history that terror became an official government policy with the stated aim to use violence to achieve a higher political goal.

What was the significance of Robespierre's worship of the deistic Supreme Being?

The next day, the worship of the deistic Supreme Being was inaugurated as an official aspect of the revolution. As a result of Robespierre’s insistence on associating terror with virtue, his efforts to make the republic a morally united patriotic community became equated with the endless bloodshed.

When did Robespierre establish a dictatorship?

In December 1793, the Convention formally conferred executive power upon the Committee and Robespierre established a virtual dictatorship. Portrait of Maximilien de Robespierre (1758-1794) by an unknown artist.

COMMITTEE OF PUBLIC SAFETY

The overthrow of King Louis XVI and his execution in January 1793 left the young French Republic without executive authority. Faced with a desperate military and economic crisis in the spring, the National Convention resorted to placing executive powers in the hands of a Committee of Public Safety, established by a decree of 6 April.

Committee of Public Safety

Committee of Public Safety a French governing body set up in April 1793, during the Revolution. Consisting of nine (later twelve) members, it was at first dominated by Danton, but later came under the influence of Robespierre, when it initiated the Terror.

What was the role of the head of the Committee of Public Safety in the National Convention?

As the head of the Committee of Public Safety, which was the executive committee of the National Convention, he and the committee would become well known for carrying out the Reign of Terror . For many months throughout 1794, Robespierre battled against other revolutionaries in the National Convention by questioning each ...

What happened to Robespierre?

For the rest of the day, Robespierre was held captive until he was guillotined without a trial that same afternoon.

What was the Committee of Public Safety?

The Committee of Public Safety was a significant organization of the French Revolution that involved several key people and events. Formed in April of 1793, it was established by the National Convention, the revolutionary government of France at the time. In the months before its creation, French revolutionaries were facing intense pressure from foreign threats and invasion by surrounding nations loyal to Louis XVI . As a result, many members of the National Convention became increasingly paranoid from the perceived threat of external and internal challenges to the revolution. To combat these threats, the National Convention established the Committee of Public Safety, and provided it with sweeping powers.

How did the Committee of Public Safety prepare France for the invasion of France?

As well, the Committee of Public Safety prepared France to deal with foreign invasions by establishing new armies for the country. Men across France were drafted into these new forces as the Committee sought to stop neighbouring countries from stopping the progress of the revolution.

Who was the next leader to face the Guillotine?

For example, when Georges Danton, a leading revolutionary, called for an end to the Reign of Terror he was the next to face the guillotine. Finally, on June 4th, 1794, Robespierre was elected the president of the National Convention.

What did Robespierre do to the demonstrators?

Robespierre answered the demonstrators on September 5 by promising maximum prices for all foodstuffs and a Revolutionary militia for use in the interior against counterrevolutionaries and grain hoarders. In order to bring about a mass conscription, economic dictatorship, and total war, he asked to intensify the Reign of Terror.

What happened after the law of 22 Prairial?

Declining influence and authority. After the law of 22 Prairial (June 10) reorganizing the Revolutionary Tribunal, which had been formed in March 1793 to condemn all enemies of the regime, opposition to Robespierre grew; it was led by those représentants en mission whom he had threatened. His influence was challenged in the Committee ...

What was the role of the Montagnards after the fall of the Girondins?

After the fall of the Girondins, the Montagnards were left to deal with the country’s desperate position. Threatened from within by the movement for federalism and by the civil war in the Vendée in the northwest and threatened at the frontiers by the anti-French coalition, the Revolution mobilized its resources for victory.

What happened to Robespierre?

Declared an outlaw by the National Convention, Robespierre severely wounded himself by a pistol shot in the jaw at the Hôtel de Ville , throwing his friends into confusion. The soldiers of the National Convention attacked the Hôtel de Ville and easily seized Robespierre and his followers.

What was the purpose of Robespierre's work?

While some of his colleagues were away on missions and others were preoccupied with special assignments, he strove to prevent division among the revolutionaries by relying on the Jacobin societies and the vigilance committees.

What was Robespierre's legacy?

Legacy. Robespierre’s enemies credited him with dictatorial power, both in the Jacobin Club and in the Committee of Public Safety, a power that he did not have. Counterrevolutionaries and the rich condemned his egalitarian ideas, while popular militants accused him of lacking boldness.

What was the purpose of the report of 5 Nivôse, year II?

Robespierre devoted his report of 5 Nivôse, year II (December 25, 1793 [the French republican calendar had been introduced in September 1793, with its beginning, or year I, set one year prior]), to justifying the collective dictatorship of the National Convention, administrative centralization, and the purging of local authorities. He protested against the various factions that threatened the government. The Hébertists, the Cordeliers, and the popular militants all called for more-radical measures and encouraged de-Christianization and the prosecution of food hoarders. Their excesses frightened the peasants, who could not have been pleased by the decrees of 8 and 13 Ventôse, year II (February 26 and March 3, 1794), which provided for the distribution among the poor of the property of suspects.

Leader of the moderate opposition

From that time Danton’s political conduct became more complex. On various occasions he supported the policy of the Committee of Public Safety though at the same time refusing to play a part in it—which would have stabilized the political situation.

Disapproval of terror

Danton’s moderate position became more marked in the autumn of 1793. He did not, however, intervene personally but left it to his friends to criticize the policy of the government. His disapproval of the terrorist repression had become so strong that he withdrew from political life, alleging reasons of health or of family.

Overview

Origins and Evolution

Use of the term during the Algerian War

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