712. The Terror: The Fall of Robespierre (Part 6)

The fall of Maximilien Robespierre on the 9th of Thermidor marks the dramatic climax of the French Revolution's Reign of Terror. Robespierre’s self-pitying, rambling speech to the National Convention on July 26, 1794, inadvertently galvanized his political enemies, who feared being targeted by his vague allegations of conspiracy. Despite his initial support within the Paris Commune, Robespierre’s indecision and physical exhaustion during the subsequent insurrection allowed the Convention to rally its forces. The failure of the Commune’s military commander, Henriot, to decisively attack the Convention proved fatal to the Robespierrist cause. Following a botched suicide attempt that shattered his jaw, Robespierre and his closest allies were executed, effectively ending the most radical phase of the Terror and shifting power toward more moderate factions within the Convention.