There were two ‘Reigns of Terror’, if we could but remember and
consider it; the one wrought murder in hot passions, the other in
heartless cold blood; the one lasted mere months, the other had lasted
a thousand years; the one inflicted death upon a thousand persons, the
other upon a hundred million; but our shudders are all for the
“horrors of the… momentary Terror, so to speak; whereas, what is
the horror of swift death by the axe compared with lifelong death from
hunger, cold, insult, cruelty and heartbreak? A city cemetery could
contain the coffins filled by that brief terror that we have all been
so diligently taught to shiver at and mourn over; but all France could
hardly contain the coffins filled by that older and real Terror - that
unspeakable bitter and awful Terror which none of us has been taught
to see in its vastness or pity as it deserves.-Mark Twain I do not
wish to disown anything of the Revolution. I do not claim to discharge
it of anything. I seize it as a whole, its truths and its errors, its
virtues and its excesses, its triumphs and its reverses…You will
tell me that it violated justice, oppressed liberty, I will agree with
you. I will even join in examining the causes of these lamentable
digressions. I will go further. I will grant you that the germ of
these crimes was present in the very cradle of Revolution! - Francois
Guizot Bienvenu! This blog serves as a repository for quotes, images,
and discussions relating to the French Revolution in general and
Maximilien Robespierre in particular. Periodically gaga over Joan of
Arc Also contains personal posts and a substantial amount of
historical humor. Please feel free to shoot me a message if you have
any questions, comments, or just want to chat. Theme banner kindly
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