Women
Marie Antoinette’s View of the Revolution (8 September 1791)
Fears about Marie Antoinette’s intentions and actions were not baseless. Although inexperienced in the new style of politics, Marie Antoinette did see a need for help from abroad if the monarchy was to stop or reverse the course of the Revolution, which she thought to be getting out of control.
Constance Pipelet, Review of a Book by Théremin, On the Condition of Women in a Republic
In this review of a book by an author favorable to women’s education, Pipelet argues that republics should demonstrate a different attitude toward women than monarchies.
Interrogation of a Suspected Rioter (June 1795)
The police interrogated those accused of participating in the May 1795 riots. This interrogation gives a good idea of the police’s concerns.
Denunciation of a Woman Participant in the Uprising of May 1795
Once the uprising of May 1795 had been suppressed, the government set up a military tribunal, which gathered denunciations of presumed rioters. This one gives a good sense of the charges made and the kind of language used ("infernal sect of Jacobin terrorists, blood–drinkers, etc.").
Police Reports on Women’s Discontent (Spring 1795)
Agitation over the shortage of bread reached a breaking point in the spring of 1795. Women played critical roles in these disturbances, as they had before the Revolution.
An Ordinary Woman Faces Prison for her Comments
This petition from the wife of a wigmaker in Paris demonstrates both the volatility of the political situation (she went to jail for badmouthing a local official while standing in line at a food market) and the conditions in prison.
How a Mother Survives
Madame Ducroquet wrote to her son in the spring of 1794 about the continuing shortage of food. She expressed her worries upon reading that someone with the same name had been arrested; in fact, it was her son, who went to the guillotine only a few weeks later.
Chaumette, Speech at City Hall Denouncing Women’s Political Activism (17 November 1793)
When a group of women appeared at City Hall wearing red liberty caps, Pierre–Gaspard Chaumette denounced them and all political activism by women. He held out the examples of Madame Roland and Olympe de Gouges as warnings.
The Trial of Olympe de Gouges
The case against Olympe de Gouges is worth reading in detail because it is typical of the attacks on those who criticized the authority of the central government that gathered force in the fall of 1793 and continued up to July 1794, when Robespierre fell from power.
Discussion of Women’s Political Clubs—Amar
In a follow–up to Fabre d’Eglantine’s speech on 29 October, Jean–Baptiste Amar proposed an official decree on 3 October forbidding women to join together in political associations.