Charles Jean Marie Barbaroux
Encyclopedia
Charles Jean Marie Barbaroux (6 March 1767 – 25 June 1794) was a French
politician of the Revolutionary period
.
, Barbaroux was educated at first by the local Oratorians
, then studied law
in Aix-en-Provence
, and became a successful lawyer
. He was appointed greffier
to the commune of Marseille, and in 1792 was commissioned to go to the Legislative Assembly
and demand the accusation of the directorate of the département of Bouches-du-Rhône
, as accomplices in a Royalist
movement in Arles
.
In Paris
, he was received in the Jacobin club
, and contacted Jacques Pierre Brissot
and the Rolands - Jean Marie Roland de la Platiere and Madame Roland
. It was at his instigation that Marseille sent to Paris the battalion of volunteers
that arrived in Paris singing the Marseillaise, and which contributed to the Paris Commune
insurrection remembered as the tenth of August
1792 against King Louis XVI
.
, and an ultra-Jacobin movement at Marseille, and was elected deputy to the National Convention
with 775 votes out of 776 cast. He viewed himself as an opponent of the Montagnards
from the first day of sessions, and accused Maximilien Robespierre
of aiming to establish a dictatorship
(25 September 1792), attacked Jean-Paul Marat
, and proposed to break up the Commune of Paris. Afterwards, he got the Act of Accusation against the king adopted, and in the trial voted for his capital punishment
"without appeal
and without delay". He participated to the Constitution Committee that drafted the Girondin constitutional project
.
During the final struggle between the Girondist
s and the Montagnards, Barbaroux refused to resign as deputy, and rejected the offer made by the extremist group
in Paris to give hostages for the arrested representatives. He succeeded in escaping, first to Caen
, where he organized the Girondist rebellion, then to Saint-Émilion
near Bordeaux
, where he wrote his Mémoires (first published in 1822 by his son, and re-edited in 1866). Discovered, he attempted to shoot himself, but was only wounded, and was taken to Bordeaux, where he was guillotine
d once his identity was established.
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
politician of the Revolutionary period
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...
.
Early career
Born in MarseilleMarseille
Marseille , known in antiquity as Massalia , is the second largest city in France, after Paris, with a population of 852,395 within its administrative limits on a land area of . The urban area of Marseille extends beyond the city limits with a population of over 1,420,000 on an area of...
, Barbaroux was educated at first by the local Oratorians
Oratory of Saint Philip Neri
The Oratory of Saint Philip Neri is a congregation of Catholic priests and lay-brothers who live together in a community bound together by no formal vows but only with the bond of charity. They are commonly referred to as Oratorians...
, then studied law
Law
Law is a system of rules and guidelines which are enforced through social institutions to govern behavior, wherever possible. It shapes politics, economics and society in numerous ways and serves as a social mediator of relations between people. Contract law regulates everything from buying a bus...
in Aix-en-Provence
Aix-en-Provence
Aix , or Aix-en-Provence to distinguish it from other cities built over hot springs, is a city-commune in southern France, some north of Marseille. It is in the region of Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur, in the département of Bouches-du-Rhône, of which it is a subprefecture. The population of Aix is...
, and became a successful 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...
. He was appointed greffier
Secretary
A secretary, or administrative assistant, is a person whose work consists of supporting management, including executives, using a variety of project management, communication & organizational skills. These functions may be entirely carried out to assist one other employee or may be for the benefit...
to the commune of Marseille, and in 1792 was commissioned to go to 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...
and demand the accusation of the directorate of the département of Bouches-du-Rhône
Bouches-du-Rhône
Bouches-du-Rhône is a department in the south of France named after the mouth of the Rhône River. It is the most populous department of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region. Its INSEE and postal code is 13.-History of the department:...
, as accomplices in a Royalist
House of Bourbon
The House of Bourbon is a European royal house, a branch of the Capetian dynasty . Bourbon kings first ruled Navarre and France in the 16th century. By the 18th century, members of the Bourbon dynasty also held thrones in Spain, Naples, Sicily, and Parma...
movement in Arles
Arles
Arles is a city and commune in the south of France, in the Bouches-du-Rhône department, of which it is a subprefecture, in the former province of Provence....
.
In Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
, he was received in the Jacobin club
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...
, and contacted Jacques Pierre Brissot
Jacques Pierre Brissot
Jacques Pierre Brissot , who assumed the name of de Warville, was a leading member of the Girondist movement during the French Revolution. Some sources give his name as Jean Pierre Brissot.-Biography:...
and the Rolands - Jean Marie Roland de la Platiere and Madame Roland
Madame Roland
Marie-Jeanne Roland, better known simply as Madame Roland and born Marie-Jeanne Phlipon , was, together with her husband Jean-Marie Roland de la Platière, a supporter of the French Revolution and influential member of the Girondist faction...
. It was at his instigation that Marseille sent to Paris the battalion of volunteers
French Revolutionary Army
The French Revolutionary Army is the term used to refer to the military of France during the period between the fall of the ancien regime under Louis XVI in 1792 and the formation of the First French Empire under Napoleon Bonaparte in 1804. These armies were characterised by their revolutionary...
that arrived in Paris singing the Marseillaise, and which contributed to the Paris Commune
Paris Commune (French Revolution)
The Paris Commune during the French Revolution was the government of Paris from 1789 until 1795. Established in the Hôtel de Ville just after the storming of the Bastille, the Commune became insurrectionary in the summer of 1792, essentially refusing to take orders from the central French...
insurrection remembered as the tenth of August
10th of August (French Revolution)
On 10 August 1792, during the French Revolution, revolutionary Fédéré militias — with the backing of a new municipal government of Paris that came to be known as the "insurrectionary" Paris Commune and ultimately supported by the National Guard — besieged the Tuileries palace. King Louis XVI and...
1792 against 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....
.
Convention
Returning to Marseille, he helped to repress a Royalist movement in AvignonAvignon
Avignon is a French commune in southeastern France in the départment of the Vaucluse bordered by the left bank of the Rhône river. Of the 94,787 inhabitants of the city on 1 January 2010, 12 000 live in the ancient town centre surrounded by its medieval ramparts.Often referred to as the...
, and an ultra-Jacobin movement at Marseille, and was elected deputy to 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...
with 775 votes out of 776 cast. He viewed himself as an opponent of the Montagnards
The Mountain
The Mountain refers in the context of the history of the French Revolution to a political group, whose members, called Montagnards, sat on the highest benches in the Assembly...
from the first day of sessions, and accused Maximilien Robespierre
Maximilien Robespierre
Maximilien François Marie Isidore de Robespierre is one of the best-known and most influential figures of the French Revolution. He largely dominated the Committee of Public Safety and was instrumental in the period of the Revolution commonly known as the Reign of Terror, which ended with his...
of aiming to establish a dictatorship
Dictatorship
A dictatorship is defined as an autocratic form of government in which the government is ruled by an individual, the dictator. It has three possible meanings:...
(25 September 1792), attacked Jean-Paul Marat
Jean-Paul Marat
Jean-Paul Marat , born in the Principality of Neuchâtel, was a physician, political theorist, and scientist best known for his career in France as a radical journalist and politician during the French Revolution...
, and proposed to break up the Commune of Paris. Afterwards, he got the Act of Accusation against the king adopted, and in the trial voted for his capital punishment
Capital punishment
Capital punishment, the death penalty, or execution is the sentence of death upon a person by the state as a punishment for an offence. Crimes that can result in a death penalty are known as capital crimes or capital offences. The term capital originates from the Latin capitalis, literally...
"without appeal
Appeal
An appeal is a petition for review of a case that has been decided by a court of law. The petition is made to a higher court for the purpose of overturning the lower court's decision....
and without delay". He participated to the Constitution Committee that drafted the Girondin constitutional project
Girondin constitutional project
The Girondin constitutional project, presented to the French National Convention on February 15 and 16, 1793, by Nicolas de Caritat, formerly the Marquis de Condorcet, is composed of three parts:...
.
During the final struggle between the Girondist
Girondist
The Girondists were a political faction in France within the Legislative Assembly and the National Convention during the French Revolution...
s and the Montagnards, Barbaroux refused to resign as deputy, and rejected the offer made by the extremist group
Sans-culottes
In the French Revolution, the sans-culottes were the radical militants of the lower classes, typically urban laborers. Though ill-clad and ill-equipped, they made up the bulk of the Revolutionary army during the early years of the French Revolutionary Wars...
in Paris to give hostages for the arrested representatives. He succeeded in escaping, first to Caen
Caen
Caen is a commune in northwestern France. It is the prefecture of the Calvados department and the capital of the Basse-Normandie region. It is located inland from the English Channel....
, where he organized the Girondist rebellion, then to Saint-Émilion
Saint-Émilion
Saint-Émilion is a commune in the Gironde department in Aquitaine in southwestern France.-History:Saint-Émilion's history goes back to prehistoric times and is a World Heritage site, with fascinating Romanesque churches and ruins stretching all along steep and narrow streets.The Romans planted...
near Bordeaux
Bordeaux
Bordeaux is a port city on the Garonne River in the Gironde department in southwestern France.The Bordeaux-Arcachon-Libourne metropolitan area, has a population of 1,010,000 and constitutes the sixth-largest urban area in France. It is the capital of the Aquitaine region, as well as the prefecture...
, where he wrote his Mémoires (first published in 1822 by his son, and re-edited in 1866). Discovered, he attempted to shoot himself, but was only wounded, and was taken to Bordeaux, where he was 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...
d once his identity was established.