André Antoine Bernard
Encyclopedia
André Antoine Bernard (21 June 1751, Corme-Royal
, Saintonge
— 19 October 1818, Funchal
, Madeira
) called Bernard de Saintes, was a French lawyer
and revolutionary, one of the Jacobins
responsible for the Reign of Terror
in the French Revolution
.
in the Legislative Assembly
, but he disliked that and changed it to Bernard de Xantes, which looked less religious. Later, he called himself Pioche-fer Bernard, or Pick-axe
Bernard. In the French revolutionary calendar
, adopted in 1793, Bernard's name-day (30 November, for Saint Andrew
) fell on the tenth day of Frimaire
, and marked the Festival of the Iron Pick-axe. He liked the connection and changed his first name accordingly.
. He represented Saintes in the Legislative Assembly
which sat from October, 1791, until September 1792, and then was a member from Charente-Maritime
of the National Convention
(20 September 1792, to 26 October 1795). Becoming a Jacobin
, he was among those responsible for the Reign of Terror
. In 1793 and 1794, he became notorious in the Haute-Saône
and the Côte-d'Or
for arresting suspected "enemies of the people", sending them to the revolutionary tribunal and the guillotine
.
Bernard is also credited with integrating the Duchy of Montbéliard
, previously a possession of Württemberg
, into France. As a representative of the Convention, he informed the municipal authorities: "Je vous apporte la liberté... j'ai des canons avec moi" (I bring you liberty... I have cannons with me). Four days later, a guillotine was erected on the square of St Martin in Montbéliard.
The Convention had a rolling presidency, so he held the title of President of the National Convention for three weeks in September 1794. When the revolutionary government was overthrown, he was imprisoned with many others, but was not among those executed.
Under the French Empire, Bernard settled in Saintonge
, where he worked as a criminal lawyer. In 1816, he was among those exiled from France as one of the regicide
s of King Louis XVI
, and settled first in Belgium, where he established a new pro-democracy periodical, Le Surveillant. Soon expelled by the Dutch
authorities then in control of Belgium, he took ship for the United States
but was shipwrecked at Madeira
. He died there at Funchal in 1818. The local church refused him a Christian funeral, so his remains were buried at sea.
Bernard's portrait in pen and ink by Jacques-Louis David
, done when they were in prison together at the Collèdes Quatre Nations, Paris, in July 1795) is in the Getty Museum.
Corme-Royal
Corme-Royal is a commune in the Charente-Maritime department in southwestern France.-Population:-References:*...
, Saintonge
Saintonge
Saintonge is a small region on the Atlantic coast of France within the département Charente-Maritime, west and south of Charente in the administrative region of Poitou-Charentes....
— 19 October 1818, Funchal
Funchal
Funchal is the largest city, the municipal seat and the capital of Portugal's Autonomous Region of Madeira. The city has a population of 112,015 and has been the capital of Madeira for more than five centuries.-Etymology:...
, Madeira
Madeira
Madeira is a Portuguese archipelago that lies between and , just under 400 km north of Tenerife, Canary Islands, in the north Atlantic Ocean and an outermost region of the European Union...
) called Bernard de Saintes, was a French lawyer
Lawyer
A lawyer, according to Black's Law Dictionary, is "a person learned in the law; as an attorney, counsel or solicitor; a person who is practicing law." Law is the system of rules of conduct established by the sovereign government of a society to correct wrongs, maintain the stability of political...
and revolutionary, one of the Jacobins
Jacobin Club
The Jacobin Club was the most famous and influential political club in the development of the French Revolution, so-named because of the Dominican convent where they met, located in the Rue St. Jacques , Paris. The club originated as the Club Benthorn, formed at Versailles from a group of Breton...
responsible for the Reign of Terror
Reign of Terror
The Reign of Terror , also known simply as The Terror , was a period of violence that occurred after the onset of the French Revolution, incited by conflict between rival political factions, the Girondins and the Jacobins, and marked by mass executions of "enemies of...
in the French Revolution
French Revolution
The French Revolution , sometimes distinguished as the 'Great French Revolution' , was a period of radical social and political upheaval in France and Europe. The absolute monarchy that had ruled France for centuries collapsed in three years...
.
Names
Bernard was a man of many names. Originally André Antoine Bernard, before the Revolution he added the name of a small property his family owned and became André Antoine Bernard de Jeuzines. Later he was called Bernard de Saintes, since he represented SaintesSaintes
Saintes is a French commune located in Poitou-Charentes, in the southwestern Charente-Maritime department of which it is a sub-prefecture. Its inhabitants are called Saintaises and Saintais....
in the Legislative Assembly
Legislative Assembly (France)
During the French Revolution, the Legislative Assembly was the legislature of France from 1 October 1791 to September 1792. It provided the focus of political debate and revolutionary law-making between the periods of the National Constituent Assembly and of the National Convention.The Legislative...
, but he disliked that and changed it to Bernard de Xantes, which looked less religious. Later, he called himself Pioche-fer Bernard, or Pick-axe
Pickaxe
A pickaxe or pick is a hand tool with a hard head attached perpendicular to the handle.Some people make the distinction that a pickaxe has a head with a pointed end and a flat end, and a pick has both ends pointed, or only one end; but most people use the words to mean the same thing.The head is...
Bernard. In the French revolutionary calendar
French Republican Calendar
The French Republican Calendar or French Revolutionary Calendar was a calendar created and implemented during the French Revolution, and used by the French government for about 12 years from late 1793 to 1805, and for 18 days by the Paris Commune in 1871...
, adopted in 1793, Bernard's name-day (30 November, for Saint Andrew
Saint Andrew
Saint Andrew , called in the Orthodox tradition Prōtoklētos, or the First-called, is a Christian Apostle and the brother of Saint Peter. The name "Andrew" , like other Greek names, appears to have been common among the Jews from the 3rd or 2nd century BC. No Hebrew or Aramaic name is recorded for him...
) fell on the tenth day of Frimaire
Frimaire
Frimaire was the third month in the French Republican Calendar. The month was named after the French word frimas, which means frost.Frimaire was the third month of the autumn quarter . It started between November 21 and November 23. It ended between December 20 and December 22...
, and marked the Festival of the Iron Pick-axe. He liked the connection and changed his first name accordingly.
Career
Bernard trained as a lawyer at the town of Saintes and became one of the 'new men' of 1789National Assembly (French Revolution)
During the French Revolution, the National Assembly , which existed from June 17 to July 9, 1789, was a transitional body between the Estates-General and the National Constituent Assembly.-Background:...
. He represented Saintes in the Legislative Assembly
Legislative Assembly (France)
During the French Revolution, the Legislative Assembly was the legislature of France from 1 October 1791 to September 1792. It provided the focus of political debate and revolutionary law-making between the periods of the National Constituent Assembly and of the National Convention.The Legislative...
which sat from October, 1791, until September 1792, and then was a member from Charente-Maritime
Charente-Maritime
Charente-Maritime is a department on the west coast of France named after the Charente River.- History :Previously a part of Saintonge, Charente-Inférieure was one of the 83 original departments created during the French Revolution on 4 March 1790...
of the National Convention
National Convention
During the French Revolution, the National Convention or Convention, in France, comprised the constitutional and legislative assembly which sat from 20 September 1792 to 26 October 1795 . It held executive power in France during the first years of the French First Republic...
(20 September 1792, to 26 October 1795). Becoming a Jacobin
Jacobin Club
The Jacobin Club was the most famous and influential political club in the development of the French Revolution, so-named because of the Dominican convent where they met, located in the Rue St. Jacques , Paris. The club originated as the Club Benthorn, formed at Versailles from a group of Breton...
, he was among those responsible for the Reign of Terror
Reign of Terror
The Reign of Terror , also known simply as The Terror , was a period of violence that occurred after the onset of the French Revolution, incited by conflict between rival political factions, the Girondins and the Jacobins, and marked by mass executions of "enemies of...
. In 1793 and 1794, he became notorious in the Haute-Saône
Haute-Saône
Haute-Saône is a French department of the Franche-Comté région, named after the Saône River.- History :The department was created in the early years of the French Revolution through the application of a law dated 22 December 1789, from part of the former province of Franche-Comté...
and the Côte-d'Or
Côte-d'Or
Côte-d'Or is a department in the eastern part of France.- History :Côte-d'Or is one of the original 83 departments created during the French Revolution on 4 March 1790. It was formed from part of the former province of Burgundy.- Geography :...
for arresting suspected "enemies of the people", sending them to the revolutionary tribunal and the guillotine
Guillotine
The guillotine is a device used for carrying out :executions by decapitation. It consists of a tall upright frame from which an angled blade is suspended. This blade is raised with a rope and then allowed to drop, severing the head from the body...
.
Bernard is also credited with integrating the Duchy of Montbéliard
Montbéliard
Montbéliard is a city in the Doubs department in the Franche-Comté region in eastern France. It is one of the two subprefectures of the department.-History:...
, previously a possession of Württemberg
Württemberg
Württemberg , formerly known as Wirtemberg or Wurtemberg, is an area and a former state in southwestern Germany, including parts of the regions Swabia and Franconia....
, into France. As a representative of the Convention, he informed the municipal authorities: "Je vous apporte la liberté... j'ai des canons avec moi" (I bring you liberty... I have cannons with me). Four days later, a guillotine was erected on the square of St Martin in Montbéliard.
The Convention had a rolling presidency, so he held the title of President of the National Convention for three weeks in September 1794. When the revolutionary government was overthrown, he was imprisoned with many others, but was not among those executed.
Under the French Empire, Bernard settled in Saintonge
Saintonge
Saintonge is a small region on the Atlantic coast of France within the département Charente-Maritime, west and south of Charente in the administrative region of Poitou-Charentes....
, where he worked as a criminal lawyer. In 1816, he was among those exiled from France as one of the regicide
Regicide
The broad definition of regicide is the deliberate killing of a monarch, or the person responsible for the killing of a monarch. In a narrower sense, in the British tradition, it refers to the judicial execution of a king after a trial...
s of King Louis XVI
Louis XVI of France
Louis XVI was a Bourbon monarch who ruled as King of France and Navarre until 1791, and then as King of the French from 1791 to 1792, before being executed in 1793....
, and settled first in Belgium, where he established a new pro-democracy periodical, Le Surveillant. Soon expelled by the Dutch
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
authorities then in control of Belgium, he took ship for the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
but was shipwrecked at Madeira
Madeira
Madeira is a Portuguese archipelago that lies between and , just under 400 km north of Tenerife, Canary Islands, in the north Atlantic Ocean and an outermost region of the European Union...
. He died there at Funchal in 1818. The local church refused him a Christian funeral, so his remains were buried at sea.
Bernard's portrait in pen and ink by Jacques-Louis David
Jacques-Louis David
Jacques-Louis David was an influential French painter in the Neoclassical style, considered to be the preeminent painter of the era...
, done when they were in prison together at the Collèdes Quatre Nations, Paris, in July 1795) is in the Getty Museum.
See also
- Liste des membres de la Convention nationale par département
- Liste des présidents de la Convention nationale