The Jacobin Club: A Radical Political Party

The French revolution was a time of political upheaval that remains arguably unsurpassed by other events in modern history. It inspired a nuance of ideas and policies unlike anything seen before this time period. The creation and enforcement of new policies can be linked to one of the dominating political party of the time, the Jacobin Club. This research essay focuses on the origin of the Jacobins, their leaders and political belief system, and the overall accomplishments and damages caused by the party.
The Jacobins, better known as the Jacobin Club, was a radical, political party that promoted the Reign of terror and other extreme measures. They were active primarily throughout the French revolution in the years of 1789 to 1794 (Dictionary.com,

A republican form of government is simply one that allows the power of the government to be held by the people, while including a few local representatives to actively represent these certain people (Gage 2016). The French monarchy had been in use since the founding days of the country itself and the revolution was a chance for the people to uproot century old customs, such as the monarchy and feudal system. (History.com Staff, 2010). The Jacobins are specifically quoted as “Left wing revolutionaries who aimed to end the reign of King Louie XVI and establish a French republic in which political authority came from the people”(Sullivan, 2017, p.1). The Jacobins were also notorious for their support in the beheading of King Louis XVI, whereas other political groups, such as the more moderate Girondins, favored exiling or imprisoning him. These ideas were consistent with the fact that the Jacobins were highly supportive of the death penalty, especially for members of the French nobility (Llewellyn & Thompson, 2017). The Jacobins would not have been as successful as they were without their own inspiring icons and leaders. One of the most famous political leaders of the Jacobin Club was Maximilien Robespierre. He was seen as a strong leader to the commoners of the revolution, while using the Jacobin Club as one of his

After the fall of the Girondins (A rival political party) in June of 1793, the Jacobins initiated their greatest tactic, the Reign of Terror. The Reign of Terror was a time period of persecution for the French aristocracy and nobility, mainly enacted by Maximilien Robespierre. He believed the revolution was being threatened, so in an attempt to uphold its dignity he purged the remnants of the French aristocracy using the power of the new, centralized French government (Narayan, 2016). Participating alongside and helping a new group called the Committee of Public Safety, Robespierre and the members of the Jacobin Club reined terror on “enemies of the republic” from September of 1793 to July of 1794. These enemies were people who were still in support of the monarchy, or were not in total favor of the Left-wing mindset. According to the translated quote by Abidor (2004), Robespierre regarded the public enemy with malice and commented publicly on the harm he planned to deliver to them in numerous