The Brutality of the French Revolution

In his masterpiece, A Tale of Two Cities, Charles Dickens portrays the brutality of the French Revolution. In the final paragraphs of Book 3, Chapter 4, he illustrates four defining elements of the Reign of Terror. These are the French Republican Calendar, the Law of Suspects, the fates of Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette, and, most importantly, the guillotine, referred to as “La Guillotine” (Dickens, 161). While maintaining historical accuracy, Dickens vividly illustrates how these elements contribute to the French Revolution and Reign of Terror.

Dickens refers to the French Republican Calendar when he says, “Year One of Liberty” (Dickens, 160). The French Republican Calendar was established on October 6, 1793, and lasted until September 9, 1805. However, its start date was fixed on September 22, 1792, when the French Republic was declared (Foundation Napoleon). The National Convention, which established the above-mentioned calendar, also proclaimed the Law of Suspects. This came into effect in September 1793 and allowed committees all over the country to imprison all sorts of suspects, as defined by the law. These committees are mentioned by Dickens immediately before he discusses the Law of Suspects.

The former king and queen of France, Louis XVI and his wife, Marie Antoinette, were executed by the people of France. Charles Dickens describes these events, and states “the executioner showed the people the head of the king—and now, it seemed almost in the same breath, the head of his fair wife which had had eight weary months of imprisoned widowhood and misery, to turn it gray” (Dickens, 161). This was just the beginning of the Reign of Terror, in which thousands of people were executed at “La Guillotine.” Dickens portrays this instrument of death as a cruel woman, a personification made by many people during the Revolution. The guillotine was introduced in France in 1792 and lasted long after the Revolution and Reign of Terror, until it was finally abandoned in September 1981 when France outlawed capital punishment (Britannica). Dickens writes that the operator of the guillotine during the Reign of Terror was nicknamed Samson, “but, so armed, he was stronger than his namesake, and blinder, and tore away the gates of God’s own Temple every day” (Dickens, 161). Today, the guillotine is still the most recognizable symbol of the French Revolution, and although the Reign of Terror is long past, the cruel stain of blood still taints every thought of that monstrous device.

Works Cited

Alpha History. “The Law of Suspects (1793).” Alpha History, https://alphahistory.com/frenchrevolution/law-of-suspects-1793/. Accessed 14 February 2022.

Britannica, The Editors of Encyclopedia. “guillotine | Facts, Inventor, & History | Britannica.” Encyclopedia Britannica, 10 December 2010, https://www.britannica.com/topic/guillotine. Accessed 14 February 2022.

Dickens, Charles. A Tale of Two Cities. CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform, 2015.

Foundation Napoleon. “The Republican calendar - napoleon.org.” Napoleon.org, https://www.napoleon.org/en/history-of-the-two-empires/the-republican-calendar/. Accessed 14 February 2022.

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