Georges Jacques Danton (Danton) - French revolutionary, born October 26, 1759 in the city of Arcy-sur-Aube (in Champagne), executed April 5, 1794 in Paris.

In 1787, Danton, the son of a minor official, married the daughter of a wealthy café owner, with the dowry he received he bought a position as a lawyer at a Parisian court and soon took a prominent position in the Parisian bar. As soon as it started The French Revolution, he became one of its most courageous and gifted speakers at public meetings, in cafes and clubs. Danton was, as it were, born for the revolution: his enormous stature, the sharp features of an ugly face, furrowed with smallpox, but remarkably expressive, a strong voice, impetuous gestures, stormy and commanding eloquence, the ability to master popular speech, passionate calls for freedom and against “despotism” predisposed him to the role of people's tribune.

On July 14, 1789, he inspired the crowd to attack the Bastille: he played the same role during the march on Versailles on October 5-6, 1789. Together with Camille Desmoulins, Fabre d'Eglantine and Marat, he founded the club in 1790 Cordeliers, which, in its influence on the course of revolutionary events, competed with the Jacobin club; Danton also visited and spoke in the latter, and at one time (1793) was even its chairman. In 1790, Danton received the position of assistant prosecutor of the Paris commune (city council) and retained it until August 10, 1792.

On July 17, 1791, he collected signatures on the Champ de Mars petition for the deposition of the king. The popular uprising and attack on the Tuileries on August 10, 1792, which led to the fall of royal power, was prepared to a large extent by him. On the same day, the Legislative Assembly appointed him Minister of Justice (222 votes out of 284). Danton's attitude towards those who soon followed September murders remains not entirely clear; most contemporaries considered him one of the main culprits of these murders; he was attributed to the words that he allegedly said after the murders to a detachment of national guards involved in this case: “I thank you, not as the Minister of Justice, but as the Minister of the Revolution.” However, it is absolutely certain that Danton, who had a broad nature and was alien to base anger, gave the opportunity to escape from prison to several people, some even his personal opponents. In any case, he knew about the murders that were being prepared and made no attempt to prevent them, because he was no longer able to curb the divergent revolutionary elements. But the accusation of this falls on him in the same way and, in the same way, on his more moderate comrades in the ministry, for example, on the Girondin Rolana.

Georges Jacques Danton: between justice and revolution. Historian Natalia Basovskaya

In September 1792, Danton was elected to the Convention in Paris and, due to the incompatibility of the post of minister with the title of deputy, he sacrificed the former to retain the latter. On November 30, 1792, he was sent by the Convention to Belgium to organize the administration of this newly conquered country. His administration there was distinguished by the usual character of that time: state and church property was confiscated, “enemies of the revolution” were arrested and executed. And here Danton, as during the September murders, often bowed to personal requests and saved the people whom he system doomed to death. Generally ruthless and decisive, backing down to nothing when it came to taking political action, he always showed kindness and the ability to feel compassion when it came to individuals. Subsequently, he was accused of using confiscations for personal enrichment and dishonestly handling public funds.

In January 1793, Danton returned to Paris for several days, just during the trial of King Louis XVI, and at the convention voted for his execution. In March he finally left Belgium, and the first months thereafter were the time of his greatest influence in the Convention. On his initiative, the main conductor was created terror- bloody revolutionary tribunal.

Danton. Feature Film. Starring Gérard Depardieu

Nevertheless, Danton, finding that the republic was already secured, and not sympathizing with the extreme measures for which the Hébertists and Robespierre stood, wanting to strengthen the position of France with a number of economic measures and expedient foreign policy, began to strive for rapprochement with the Girondins, but did not meet with sympathy from their sides. They, on the contrary, brought charges against him in the Convention as one of the perpetrators of the September murders, but to no avail. The union became impossible, but Danton still did not support the executions of the Girondins; in general, at this time he became the head of the most moderate faction of the Jacobin Mountains. He pointed out the need to conquer Holland and support in England elements sympathetic to the French Revolution. He was one of the main defenders of the bread tax law.

In the summer of 1793, Danton went to his homeland in Arcy and there, a few months after the death of his first wife, he remarried the daughter of a royalist, Louise Gely. At the insistence of the bride's parents, the marriage was celebrated in a church in compliance with all Catholic rituals; Subsequently, Danton's enemies reproached him for this fact and attributed his moderation to the influence of his wife. From about this time, Danton's influence, thanks to the dominance of extreme elements, began to rapidly decline. From Committee of Public Safety he was expelled. In March 1794, he helped Robespierre deal with the Hébertists. Meanwhile, it was no secret to anyone that Robespierre, following the opponents on the left, had in mind to exterminate the opponents on the right, the “moderantists.” Danton was warned about the danger, but he refused to run, saying that “the homeland cannot be carried away on the soles of boots.” In addition, Danton in recent months showed some apathy and fatigue, which made it easier for his enemies to fight against him.

On the night of April 1, 1794, Danton, along with his friends Desmoulins, Westermann and others, was arrested by order of the Committee of Public Safety. On April 3, the prisoners were put on trial by the revolutionary tribunal founded by Danton himself. Danton was accused of accepting money from the court and of having criminal relations with a traitor Dumouriez and conspired to overthrow the republic and enthrone Duke of Orleans. The trial was conducted without formalities, without any guarantees of justice; no serious evidence was provided to support the accusation.

Danton behaved courageously at the trial, treating the judges with complete contempt and complete indifference to his fate. When asked about his name, age and place of residence, Danton replied: “My name is Danton; it is quite famous in the revolution; I am 35 years old; My home will soon be Nothing, but my name will live in the Pantheon of history.” After the death sentence was announced, Danton said: “Robespierre will follow me.” On April 5, Danton, along with 13 Dantonists, was guillotined. Before execution, he told the executioner: “One belt is enough for me, save the other for Robespierre.”

Danton's revolutionary mood was often explained by the embitterment of a man who was in debt all around, and who saw in the revolution a means of improving his affairs. But it has now been established that before the revolution he earned good money as a lawyer.

Danton, Georges Jacques, French politician of the era of the Great Revolution, was born in 1759. After graduating from college in Troyes, Danton moved to Paris to study jurisprudence. In 1785 he acted for the first time as a defender, and by 1789 he had already acquired a decent clientele, mainly among the lower classes. In the first two years of the revolution, Danton did not play a prominent role. His participation in the political life of the country was limited to campaigning activities within the neighborhood where he lived, and speeches at the Cordilleran Club, the most democratic of that period. But Danton’s brilliant oratorical talent, his inexhaustible energy, decisive character and organizational skills soon made his name very popular among wide sections of the Parisian population. In 1791, Danton was already considered one of the largest leaders of the democratic party, and Marat was even inclined, apparently, to nominate him for the post of dictator. At this time, Danton was a democratic monarchist and remained so even after the king’s flight, disagreeing on this issue with a significant part of his republican-minded Cordelier friends. The Republican petition on July 17 did not contain Danton's signature. However, the bourgeois reaction that followed the execution of the petitioners on the Champs de Mars forced him to hide for a time in England. In September Danton returned to Paris, and in November he was elected comrade prosecutor of the Paris commune. His influence in Paris grew noticeably, and his political views became more and more definitely republican. In the summer of 1792, he already took an active part in the republican agitation and supervised the preparation of the uprising on August 10. The success of the uprising put Danton at the head of the government of the country. The Legislative Assembly, having taken the executive power into its own hands, elected Danton as Minister of Justice, and Danton's personal qualities made him the de facto leader of the executive council. Himself a member of the revolutionary Parisian commune, Danton was moreover clearly aware of the need for the government to take it into account if it wanted to preserve national unity in the face of the advancing enemy and the royalist danger. This dependence on the commune often forced Danton to tolerate acts that he personally did not like and which left some stain on his political reputation: this included the September murders, which he failed to prevent. Nevertheless, his merits, as a person who managed to organize national defense and maintain order in the country during this extremely difficult period, are enormous. At the moment of panic caused by the Prussian invasion, only Danton's energy managed to keep the government in Paris. Elected as a deputy to the convention in October 1792, Danton resigned as minister.
TO As a member of the convention, Danton, aligned with the Mountain, sought at the same time to establish an agreement between the two major republican groups. His program was a program of republican concentration. Of the decrees of the convention adopted at Danton's proposal, it should be noted: the decree on the protection of property rights on September 21, 1792, the decree on the unity and indivisibility of the French Republic on September 25, 1792, the decree on the establishment of the Revolutionary Tribunal - March 10, 1793, April 6. 1793 Danton was elected a member of the first Committee of Public Salvation, in which he was in charge of foreign affairs and actually stood at the head of the administration. In the struggle between the Commune and the Girondins, Danton adhered to opportunist tactics. But at the last, tragic moment of this struggle, the Committee led by Danton spoke out decisively against the expulsion and arrest of the Girondist deputies. The victory of the Commune on June 2 was at the same time the defeat of Danton. Nevertheless, he remained a member of the Committee until July 10, when the convention, dissatisfied with the softness of his policy towards the rebellious departments and arrested Girondins, removed him from power and elected a new Committee, in which Robespierre soon began to play a leading role. During the period of dominance of this so-called second committee, Danton at first fully supported the terrorist policy of Robespierre and was even the initiator of some terrorist acts. But after the autumn successes of the army and the suppression of the uprising in most of France, the opposition began to group around Danton, standing for a softening of the terror and a gradual transition to a normal constitutional order. This caused a sharp conflict between Danton and Robespierre, which was resolved by Danton's arrest. March 30, 1794 Accused before the revolutionary tribunal of “conspiracy to restore the monarchy, overthrow the national assembly and the republican government,” he was found guilty, despite the complete lack of evidence and the obvious absurdity of the charge, on April 5, 1794 (16 Germinal II year Republic) Danton was executed.

//Encyclopedic Dictionary of the T-va “Br. A. and I. Granat and Co.” T.17. / ed. Yu.S. Gambarova, V.Ya. Zheleznova, M.M. Kovalevsky and others - M., [B.g.] - P.616-618.

First Chairman of the Committee of Public Safety. Executed during the "revolutionary terror".

Georges Jacques Danton
fr. Georges Jacques Danton
Date of Birth	October 26(1759-10-26 )
Place of Birth	Arcy-sur-Aube (in the current department of Aube, France)
Date of death	5th of April(1794-04-05 ) […] (34 years)
A place of death
A country
Occupation	French Revolutionary figure
Father	Jacques Danton (1722-1762)
Mother	Marie-Madeleine Camus
Spouse	Antoinette Gabrielle Danton[d] And Louise Sébastienne Danton[d]
Autograph
Georges Jacques Danton at Wikimedia Commons

Youth. Advocate

Danton's foreign policy

After the victory at Jemapes, Danton was sent by the Convention to Belgium to organize the conquered region. Later, in view of the irritation that the policy of intervention caused in neighboring states, Danton insisted at the convention on the decision not to interfere in the internal affairs of other nations (April 13) and not to undertake either offensive wars or conquests (June 15). The goal of further diplomatic relations and military armaments was peace and recognition of the republic by other powers. Danton helped replace the parliamentary government of the Gironde with a temporary revolutionary dictatorship of the Committee of Public Safety and began to fight opponents of the revolution inside and outside France through revolutionary tribunals and colossal recruitments. The period of time from April 1793 to September 1793 is the era of Danton's greatest influence. In foreign relations, he outlined a whole system of policies for his successors: in England, support all opposition elements against Pitt, achieve the neutrality of small powers - Denmark, Sweden, etc., try to separate Prussia and Bavaria from the coalition, tame Sardinia and Spain by force, fight irreconcilably against Austria, creating difficulties for it in the East with agitation in Poland and Turkey.

Conviction and execution

Since the establishment of the second Committee of Public Safety, the transfer of power begins, on the one hand, to the Hébertists, on the other, to Robespierre. Danton weakly resisted this and was often absent from Paris, relying too much on his popularity. He did not approve of the continuation of executions, for which he began to receive accusations of excessive leniency. Shortly before his arrest, Danton allegedly responded to friends who suggested he flee France: “Is it possible to carry away your homeland on the soles of your boots?”

After the fall of the Hébertists, when Robespierre's influence reached its apogee, on March 31, 1794, Danton and his friends were arrested by order of the joint committees of public safety and general safety; this measure was approved by the convention based on the report of Saint-Just, compiled according to Robespierre's sketches. From the very beginning, the process was conducted in violation of all formalities; By a new resolution of the convention, at the suggestion of Saint-Just, the accused were directly outlawed. The Dantonists (Camille Desmoulins, Hérault de Sechelles, Fabre d'Eglantine and others) were accused of plotting to overthrow the national representation and the republic, were convicted and died on the guillotine. On the way to the scaffold, Danton encouraged himself with the words: “Go ahead, Danton, you must not know weakness! And driving past the house where Robespierre lived, Danton shouted out prophetic words: “Maximilian, I’m waiting for you, you will follow me!”

Executioner's testimony

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Youth. Advocate

Danton's foreign policy

After the victory at Jemapes, Danton was sent by the Convention to Belgium to organize the conquered region. Later, in view of the irritation that the policy of intervention caused in neighboring states, Danton insisted at the convention on the decision not to interfere in the internal affairs of other nations (April 13) and not to undertake either offensive wars or conquests (June 15). The goal of further diplomatic relations and military armaments was peace and recognition of the republic by other powers. Danton helped replace the parliamentary government of the Gironde with a temporary revolutionary dictatorship of the Committee of Public Safety and began to fight opponents of the revolution inside and outside France through revolutionary tribunals and colossal recruitments. The period of time from April 1793 to September 1793 is the era of Danton's greatest influence. In foreign relations, he outlined a whole system of policies for his successors: in England, support all opposition elements against Pitt, achieve the neutrality of small powers - Denmark, Sweden, etc., try to separate Prussia and Bavaria from the coalition, tame Sardinia and Spain by force, fight irreconcilably against Austria, creating difficulties for it in the East with agitation in Poland and Turkey.

Conviction and execution

Since the establishment of the second Committee of Public Safety, the transfer of power begins, on the one hand, to the Hébertists, on the other, to Robespierre. Danton weakly resisted this and was often absent from Paris, relying too much on his popularity. He did not approve of the continuation of executions, for which he began to receive accusations of excessive leniency. Shortly before his arrest, Danton allegedly responded to friends who suggested he flee France: “Is it possible to carry away your homeland on the soles of your boots?”

After the fall of the Hébertists, when Robespierre's influence reached its apogee, on March 31, 1794, Danton and his friends were arrested by order of the joint committees of public safety and general safety; this measure was approved by the convention based on the report of Saint-Just, compiled according to Robespierre's sketches. From the very beginning, the process was conducted in violation of all formalities; By a new resolution of the convention, at the suggestion of Saint-Just, the accused were directly outlawed. The Dantonists (Camille Desmoulins, Hérault de Sechelles, Fabre d'Eglantine and others) were accused of plotting to overthrow the national representation and the republic, were convicted and died on the guillotine. On the way to the scaffold, Danton encouraged himself with the words: “Go ahead, Danton, you must not know weakness! And driving past the house where Robespierre lived, Danton shouted out prophetic words: “Maximilian, I’m waiting for you, you will follow me!”

Testimony of the executioner Charles Henri Sanson: “First, Hérault de Sechelles ascended the scaffold, and Danton with him, not waiting to be called. The assistants had already grabbed Hérault and put a bag over his head when Danton came up to hug him, since Hérault could no longer say goodbye to him. Then Danton exclaimed: “Fools!” Will you stop the heads from kissing in the sack?..” The guillotine knife had not yet been cleared when Danton was already approaching; I held him back, inviting him to turn away while the body was removed, but he just shrugged his shoulders contemptuously: “A little more or less blood on your car, what’s the importance?” just don’t forget to show my head to the people; It’s not every day that you see such heads.” These were his last words."

In culture

To the cinema

• Andrzej Wajda shot the film Danton in France in 1982, in which Gérard Depardieu played the main role.

• Romain Rolland dedicated a play of the same name to Danton.
• "The French Revolution" (film, 1989). As Danton, Klaus Maria Brandauer

Memory

• In 1891, the Paris city council decided to erect a monument to Danton.
• Drama by Georg Büchner "The Death of Danton".
• The name "Danton" was given to a French naval battleship sunk in 1917 by a German submarine in the Mediterranean Sea.

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Notes

Literature

• Danton J.-J.. - Kharkov, 1924.
• Levandovsky A. Danton. - M.: Young Guard, 1964. - (Life of wonderful people).
• Fridland G. S.. - M., 1965.
• Molchanov N. Montagnards. - M.: Young Guard, 1989. - (Life of wonderful people).
• Valovaya D., Valovaya M., Lapshina G. Boldness. - M.: Young Guard, 1989. - 320 p.
• Tolstoy A. N.

Source

• Shchepkin E. N. Danton, Georges-Jacques // Encyclopedic Dictionary of Brockhaus and Efron: in 86 volumes (82 volumes and 4 additional). - St. Petersburg. , 1890-1907.

Links

• (inaccessible link since 05/26/2013 (2208 days) - , )// LaRevolution.ru
• // Vive Liberta Library
• (inaccessible link since 05/26/2013 (2208 days) - , )// aphorisms and sayings on www.afword.ru

Predecessor: Andre Jeanbon

23rd President of the Convention July 25 - August 8

Successor: Marie Jean Herault de Sechelles

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Excerpt characterizing Danton, Georges Jacques

Right at the altar, a handsome young knight tried to crush the skull of an elderly man... The man did not die, his skull did not give in. The young knight calmly and methodically continued to beat until the man finally twitched for the last time and fell silent - his thick skull, unable to bear it, split...
The young mother, gripped by horror, held out the child in prayer - a second later, two even halves remained in her hands...
A little curly girl, crying out of fright, gave the knight her doll - her most precious treasure... The doll's head easily flew off, and after it the head of the owner rolled like a ball on the floor...
Unable to bear it any longer, sobbing bitterly, I fell to my knees... Were these PEOPLE?! WHAT could you call a person who committed such evil?!
I didn’t want to watch it any further!.. I had no more strength left... But the North mercilessly continued to show some cities, with churches burning in them... These cities were completely empty, not counting the thousands of corpses thrown right on streets, and spilled rivers of human blood, drowning in which wolves feasted... Horror and pain shackled me, not allowing me to breathe even for a minute. Not allowing you to move...

How must the “people” who gave such orders have felt??? I think they didn’t feel anything at all, because their ugly, callous souls were black.

Suddenly I saw a very beautiful castle, the walls of which were damaged in places by catapults, but mostly the castle remained intact. The entire courtyard was littered with corpses of people drowning in pools of their own and others' blood. Everyone's throat was cut...
– This is Lavaur, Isidora... A very beautiful and rich city. Its walls were the most protected. But the leader of the crusaders, Simon de Montfort, enraged by unsuccessful attempts, called for help all the rabble he could find, and... 15,000 “soldiers of Christ” who came to the call attacked the fortress... Unable to withstand the onslaught, Lavur fell. All residents, including 400 (!!!) Perfects, 42 troubadours and 80 knights-defenders, brutally fell at the hands of the “holy” executioners. Here, in the courtyard, you see only the knights who defended the city, and also those who held weapons in their hands. The rest (except for the burned Qataris) were slaughtered and simply left to rot in the streets... In the city basement, the killers found 500 women and children hiding - they were brutally killed right there... without going outside...
Some people brought a pretty, well-dressed young woman, chained in chains, into the castle courtyard. Drunken whooping and laughter began all around. The woman was roughly grabbed by the shoulders and thrown into the well. Muffled, pitiful moans and screams were immediately heard from the depths. They continued until the crusaders, by order of the leader, filled the well with stones...
– It was Lady Giralda... The owner of the castle and this city... All her subjects, without exception, loved her very much. She was soft and kind... And she carried her first unborn baby under her heart. – North finished harshly.
Then he looked at me, and apparently immediately understood that I simply had no more strength left...
The horror ended immediately.
Sever sympathetically approached me, and, seeing that I was still trembling heavily, he gently put his hand on my head. He stroked my long hair, quietly whispering words of reassurance. And I gradually began to come to life, coming to my senses after a terrible, inhuman shock... A swarm of unasked questions was annoyingly swirling in my tired head. But all these questions now seemed empty and irrelevant. Therefore, I preferred to wait to see what the North would say.
– Sorry for the pain, Isidora, but I wanted to show you the truth... So that you understand the burden of Katar... So that you don’t think that they easily lost the Perfect ones...
– I still don’t understand this, Sever! Just like I couldn’t understand your truth... Why didn’t the Perfect Ones fight for life?! Why didn't they use what they knew? After all, almost each of them could destroy an entire army with just one movement!.. Why was there any need to surrender?
– This was probably what I talked to you about so often, my friend... They just weren’t ready.
– Not ready for what?! – out of old habit, I exploded. – Not ready to save your lives? Not ready to save other suffering people?! But all this is so wrong!.. This is wrong!!!
“They were not warriors like you are, Isidora.” – Sever said quietly. “They didn’t kill, believing that the world should be different.” Believing that they could teach people to change... Teach Understanding and Love, teach Goodness. They hoped to give people Knowledge... but, unfortunately, not everyone needed it. You are right in saying that the Cathars were strong. Yes, they were perfect Mages and possessed enormous power. But they did not want to fight with FORCE, preferring to fight with the WORD. This is what destroyed them, Isidora. That's why I'm telling you, my friend, they weren't ready. And to be very precise, the world was not ready for them. The earth, at that time, respected strength. And the Cathars brought Love, Light and Knowledge. And they came too early. People were not ready for them...
– Well, what about those hundreds of thousands who carried the Faith of Qatar throughout Europe? Why were you drawn to Light and Knowledge? There were a lot of them!
– You’re right, Isidora... There were a lot of them. But what happened to them? As I told you before, Knowledge can be very dangerous if it comes too early. People must be ready to accept it. Without resisting or killing. Otherwise this Knowledge will not help them. Or even worse - if it falls into someone’s dirty hands, it will destroy the Earth. Sorry if I upset you...
– And yet, I do not agree with you, North... The time you are talking about will never come to Earth. People will never think alike. This is fine. Look at nature - every tree, every flower is different from each other... And you want people to be alike!.. Too much evil, too much violence has been shown to man. And those who have a dark soul do not want to work and KNOW when it is possible to simply kill or lie in order to get what they need. We must fight for Light and Knowledge! And win. This is exactly what a normal person should lack. The Earth can be beautiful, North. We just have to show her HOW she can become pure and beautiful...
North was silent, watching me. And I, in order not to prove anything further, again tuned in to Esclarmonde...
How could this girl, almost a child, endure such deep grief?.. Her courage was amazing, making her respect and be proud of her. She was worthy of the Magdalene family, although she was only the mother of her distant descendant.
And my heart again ached for the wonderful people whose lives were cut short by the same church, which falsely proclaimed “forgiveness”! And then I suddenly remembered the words of Caraffa: “God will forgive everything that happens in his name!” monsters!..
Before my eyes again stood young, exhausted Esclarmonde... An unfortunate mother who had lost her first and last child... And no one could really explain to her why they did this to them... Why did they, kind and innocent, go to death...
Suddenly a thin, out of breath boy ran into the hall. He clearly came straight from the street, as steam was pouring out of his wide smile.
- Madam, Madam! They were saved!!! Dear Esclarmonde, there is a fire on the mountain!..

Esclarmonde jumped up, about to run, but her body turned out to be weaker than the poor thing could have imagined... She collapsed straight into her father's arms. Raymond de Pereil picked up his feather-light daughter in his arms and ran out the door... And there, gathered on the top of Montsegur, stood all the inhabitants of the castle. And all eyes looked only in one direction - to where a huge fire was burning on the snowy peak of Mount Bidorta!.. Which meant that the four fugitives had reached the desired point!!! Her brave husband and newborn son escaped the brutal clutches of the Inquisition and could happily continue their lives.
Now everything was in order. All was good. She knew that she would go to the fire calmly, since the people dearest to her were alive. And she was truly pleased - fate took pity on her, allowing her to find out... Allowing her to calmly go to her death.
At sunrise, all the Perfect and Believing Cathars gathered in the Temple of the Sun to enjoy its warmth for the last time before leaving for eternity. The people were exhausted, cold and hungry, but they were all smiling... The most important thing was accomplished - the descendant of Golden Maria and Radomir lived, and there was hope that one fine day one of his distant great-grandchildren would rebuild this monstrously unfair world, and no one will have to suffer anymore. The first ray of sunlight lit up in the narrow window!.. It merged with the second, third... And in the very center of the tower a golden pillar lit up. It expanded more and more, covering everyone standing in it, until the entire surrounding space was completely immersed in a golden glow.

It was farewell... Montsegur said goodbye to them, tenderly seeing them off to another life...
And at this time, below, at the foot of the mountain, a huge terrible fire was taking shape. Or rather, a whole structure in the form of a wooden platform, on which thick pillars “flaunted”...
More than two hundred Paragons began to solemnly and slowly descend the slippery and very steep stone path. The morning was windy and cold. The sun peeked out from behind the clouds only for a short moment... to finally caress its beloved children, its Cathars going to their deaths... And again leaden clouds crawled across the sky. It was gray and uninviting. And to strangers. Everything around was frozen. The drizzling air soaked thin clothes with moisture. The heels of those walking froze, sliding on wet stones... The last snow was still showing off on Mount Montsegur.

Below, a small man, brutalized by the cold, hoarsely yelled at the crusaders, ordering them to cut down more trees and drag them into the fire. For some reason the flame did not flare up, but the little man wanted it to blaze to the very heavens!.. He deserved it, he waited for it for ten long months, and now it has happened! Just yesterday he dreamed of returning home quickly. But anger and hatred for the damned Cathars took over, and now he wanted only one thing - to see how the last Perfects would finally burn. These last Children of the Devil!.. And only when all that is left of them is a pile of hot ashes, will he calmly go home. This little man was the seneschal of the city of Carcassonne. His name was Hugues des Arcis. He acted on behalf of His Majesty, King of France, Philip Augustus.

http://site/uploads/posts/2012-02/1329744529_dant.jpg [b] Danton Georges Jacques Danton 1759 / 1794 Georges Jacques Danton was born on October 26, 1759 in Arcy-sur-Aube, the fourth son in the family of a provincial prosecutor. He studied at the seminary and college in Troyes (1772-80). Arriving in Paris, Danton served as an assistant prosecutor, then bought the position of lawyer (1787). Speaking in the judicial chambers of the Paris Parliament, Danton quickly gained a clientele and fame thanks to his rare oratorical talent. A man of enormous height and physical strength, with an ugly flat nose, pitted with smallpox and a scarred face, he had a powerful and beautiful voice, charm and the art of persuasion. In 1787-93, Danton was married to Gabrielle Charpentier, they had three sons (the eldest died in infancy). After Gabrielie's death, Danton married Louise Gely (1793). Already on the eve of the storming of the Bastille (July 14, 1789), Danton’s voice called the Parisians to arms. Possessing all the qualities of a people's tribune, he quickly became one of the revolutionary leaders and was elected chairman of the radical club of the Cordeliers, while also being a member of the Jacobin Club. Danton played an important role in the march of the poor to Versailles (October 5-6, 1789). Forced to flee to England in 1791, upon his return he was elected deputy prosecutor of the Paris Commune. Danton called on the people to overthrow the king (July 17, 1792), holding posts in the Executive Committee and the Rebel Commune, and participated in the preparation of the uprising on August 10, 1792. After the overthrow of the monarchy, he was appointed Minister of Justice of the revolutionary government. He was one of the few who managed to maintain composure during the offensive of the interventionists in August-September 1792. He prevented the government from leaving Paris, sent commissioners to the provinces to inspire the masses and recruit volunteers, and arrested about three thousand suspicious people in Paris. On September 2, 1792, Danton spoke from the rostrum of the Legislative Assembly: “The sound of the alarm bell is not an alarm, but a call to fight the enemies of the fatherland. To defeat them, you need courage, courage and courage again, and then France will be saved !". At the same time, as Minister of Justice, Danton was guilty of conniving at the mass extrajudicial killings of royalists in the prisons of Paris (September 1792). As a deputy of the Convention, he voted for the execution of Louis XVI and actively fought against the Girondins. During this period, he was also involved in foreign policy and organizing the revolutionary army. In 1793, on the initiative of Danton, a revolutionary tribunal was created, which took the path of terror. However, after the defeat of the Girondins, he, believing that the achievements of the revolution had already been sufficiently consolidated, Danton began to speak out for the need to end the terror. “I suggest,” he said, “not to believe those who would like to lead the people beyond the limits of the revolution and would begin to propose ultra-revolutionary measures.” From that time on, Danton openly and decisively opposed supporters of terror, representatives of the most radical strata, Chaumette and Hébert, and helped Robespierre deal with them. But he himself arouses the suspicions of Robespierre, who finds the Dantonist line insufficiently revolutionary. Under pressure from Robespierre, Danton and his supporters were arrested on March 31, 1794 and accused of having relations with the Girondins, embezzling government money, etc. The trial of the revolutionary tribunal ended with a death sentence, and on April 5, 1794, Danton and his closest associates were guillotined. “Show my head to the people,” he said to the executioner, “it’s worth it.” Danton's personality and activities are extremely contradictory. Danton's merits in establishing the principles of the French Revolution are undeniable. At the same time, Danton belonged to those figures who expected quick personal benefits from the revolution. During the Revolution, Danton accumulated enormous land wealth through the purchase of national properties. For the purpose of personal enrichment, he used requisitions for the needs of the army. Danton tossed between his glory as a leader and the desire to stop the revolutionary wheel in order to calmly enjoy life and property, but a tragic fate led him to the scaffold. Works: Danton J. Selected Speeches. Kharkiv. 1924 Literature: Lewandowski A. Danton. M. "Young Guard" (ZhZL). 1964 Fridlyand G.S. Danton. M. 1965 Molchanov N. Montagnards. M. "Young Guard" (ZhZL). 1989