Robespierre 1794 Essays - French First Republic, Montagnards

Robespierre 1794 1794 Paris, France At the expense of thousands of lives, the recent terror that has struck France has helped to rescue France from the brink of total collapse. The leadership of Robespierre and the Committee of Public Safety have created a powerful military, rid France of internal opposition, and placed a much needed cap on the price of essential goods. While the mass butchery seems inhumane and drastic, this time period of terror was completely necessary. Though it may sound harsh, many problems were solved that had been threatening France from within and outside its borders during this time of terror. During this time of terror, France has been able to drive all of its enemies off French soil, crush all revolts that had been brewing within the French providence's, and hold off what could have been a devastating famine. All of the French people have been forced to contribute towards the war effort. All unmarried men were forced to join the military, married men made weapons, women made tents and served as battle nurses, and children made bandages and gunpowder. All of this support for France's army, although forced, proved invaluable beside a strict discipline policy. The French army has overwhelmed the enemy forces by the large numbers of men. In the past two and a half years of fighting, almost all enemies have been driven off French soil, Flanders has been retaken, and the army has established a new Batavian Republic in Holland. Aside from fending off foreign invasion, the ?Reign of Terror? also served to help resolve the problems that had been threatening France from within. The Committee of Public Safety had put forth steadfast efforts to resolve order to the French countryside, where revolts jeopardized the nations security. Anyone suspected of opposing Robespierre's ?Republic of Virtue? could be convicted and executed without any evidence being heard on the defendants behalf. Brutal and wrongful as it was, the action of the Committee of Public Safety was essential in extinguishing the rebellious uprisings that threatened France. France was successful in battling off enemies from afar and within, yet it was faced with another threat, famine. Food prices were dangerously high and to avoid mass starvation, the Committee of Public Safety issued the Law of the Maximum. This new law demanded that forty goods, including corn, flour, firewood and oil were to be frozen until further notice. This new law also fixed people's wages and those who broke the maximum were subject to death. The law had some faults, namely the fact that many other goods prices continued to rise while wages remained frozen. In spite of the law's imperfections, the Law of the Maximum helped France survive the famine. Considering all of the benefits France was able to acquire during the ?Reign of Terror,? it is appropriate to say that the ends justified the means, as brutal as the means happened to be. European History