The Revolution Will Devour its Own, Like Saturn Devouring his Children - Speech to the National Convention, 13 March 1793
.jpg)
Pierre Victurnien Vergniaud (1753–1793) was a leader in the French Revolution and one of its most celebrated orators.
He was a radical. a Giromdin, who was overtalen by those who were more radical. In the context of a further radicalisation process in March 1793, he made the following speech to the National Convention. It was prophetic both in his own case - he was guillotines on 31 October 1793 - but also for countless future radical and revolutionary movements.
The illustration is Francisco Goya, Saturn Devouring His Son
We go from crimes to amnesties, from amnesties to
crimes. Numbers of citizens have begun to confound seditious insurrections
with the great insurrection of liberty; to look on the excitement of
robbers as the outburst of energetic minds, and robbery itself as a
measure of general security. We have witnessed the development of that
strange system of liberty, in which we are told: 'you are free; but think
with us, or we will denounce you to the vengeance of the people; you are
free, but bow down your head to the idol we worship, or we will denounce
you to the vengeance of the people; you are free, but join us in
persecuting the men whose probity and intelligence we dread, or we will
denounce you to the vengeance of the people.' Citizens, we have reason to
fear that the revolution, like Saturn, will devour successively all its
children, and only engender despotism and the calamities which accompany
it.
Source:
http://www.fullbooks.com/History-of-the-French-Revolution-from-17894.html
This text is part of the Internet
Modern History Sourcebook. The Sourcebook is a collection of public domain and
copy-permitted texts for introductory level classes in modern European and World history.
Unless otherwise indicated the specific electronic form of the document is copyright.
Permission is granted for electronic copying, distribution in print form for educational
purposes and personal use. If you do reduplicate the document, indicate the source. No
permission is granted for commercial use of the Sourcebook.
© Paul Halsall, April 2023
