Government
The Death of Robespierre
This engraving, based on a color portrait by Beys, depicts the death of Robespierre on the guillotine. The executioners wear not the traditional hangman’s hood but red bonnets representing liberty. This judgment notes Robespierre’s failure to the Revolution itself.
The Days of 31 May and 1-2 June 1793
Even though popular action had unseated the Legislative Assembly and replaced it with the Convention, the elections that followed had not satisfied the radicals of Paris and their artisanal followers.
Massacre of the Priests
This image, also reproduced from the newspaper R*volutions de Paris, shows crowds massacring refractory clergy and prisoners.
Foundation of the Republic, August 10, 1792
One of the sharper engagements of 10 August between the revolutionaries and the royal defenders occurred on the palace’s steps. The caption emphasizes the revolutionaries’ point of view.
Triumph of the Parisian Army and the People
Returning home from the October march to Versailles, the women and the guardsmen display the heads of troops who confronted the marchers. Note the use of tree branches, symbolizing support for the revolution here as in other prints.
Memorable Day at Versailles, 5 October 1789
This engraving marks success and reconciliation among revolutionaries, as men and women, as well as soldiers and civilians, relax together.
The Day of 21 July 1789
More common than clashes by workers against employers were protests over the rising price of bread. This color drawing depicts events at the City Hall of Strasbourg on 21 July 1789.
Farewell Bastille
This hand–colored engraving equates the taking of the Bastille with the rise of the Third Estate against the clergy and nobility. A commoner in a black hat sporting a tricolor cockade plays the bagpipe triumphantly over the fallen lion of the absolutist monarchy.
Demolition of the Bastille
This watercolor painting illustrates the "demolition" of what the text refers to as the "horrible prison" of the Bastille. As workmen tear down the spires on the roof, ordinary people rip stones off the base.
Woman with Lenin/Stalin Flag
Articles and images published in Soviet newspapers on March 8, International Communist Woman’s Day, provide the most obvious examples of how women were used as symbols in a propaganda campaign.