King Louis Xvi's Reign Of Terror

Louis’s destructive character sent the country ablaze with fury and closer to the removal of the monarchy. The intervention of Prussia caused King Louis’s situation to change “from that of de facto prisoner to that of de facto hostage.” Popular pressure ruled the National Assembly to the point the council suspended the King from his duties, dissolved the National Assembly for the creation of the National Convention, and imprisoned Louis in the Temple under guard by the Commune. Here, King Louis XVI finally became an official prisoner of the state. He could not leave the Temple to hunt, one of his pastimes, or eat extravagant food. He heard of the Prussian invasion and the beginning of the Reign of Terror with the invention of the guillotine

Louis’s plan of defense presented the faults of his own character prominently. The Convention accused Louis of “retracting his oath to uphold the constitution, leading an army against the forces of the nation and leaving the kingdom; he had … already incurred the only penalty possible, dethronement.” As the nation accused Louis and read of certain charges, Louis responded to all the questions with short and vague answers such as, “At that time I could order troops to march where I pleased,” and rarely shared his motives to justify all his poor and externally influenced decisions. Before, Louis could not talk when his power was in jeopardy. Now, he finally found enough words to break and explain his silence, but it was too late. His words carried no weight to the betrayed National Convention. At this point, Louis realized his biggest mistake—his silence. He attempted to fix all his errors in a short period of time, except his efforts could not change the opinions of his subjects. His lack of honesty, words, initiative, intuition, and authority undermined his attempted goodness for his dear country and ultimately pushed the National Convention to announce his death by guillotine. As Louis waited for the decision of the Convention, he prepared his Testament. His Testament explained his position on the trial, his innocence before the law, and conveyed the tone of a martyr, rather than

The main motion was: “Is Louis Capet, former king of the French, guilty of conspiring against liberty and an attempt against the state? Yes or no.” The motion passed with a strong majority, while the motion to execute Louis passed with a simple majority. The minister of justice announced execution to Louis, and he showed a lack of sentiment when the decision of the Convention was read to him, but persisted to have the three motions delayed. This action displayed the consistency of the ex-king to show unconcern at decisions. However, the king for one of the first times exhibited initiative and desire to save France. Since his imprisonment, Louis faced his identity and realized where he went wrong. Once again, this was not enough to save his head from the guillotine. The National Convention and people of France executed Louis on January 21, 1793 as a