François Buzot | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Born | François Buzot 1 March 1760 |
| Died | 24 June 1794(1794-06-24) (aged 34) |
| Cause of death | suicide |
| Known for | French politician and leader of theFrench Revolution |
François Nicolas Léonard Buzot (French pronunciation:[fʁɑ̃swanikɔlaleɔnaʁbyzo]; 1 March 1760 – 24 June 1794) was a French politician and leader of theFrench Revolution.
Born atÉvreux,Eure, Buzot studiedLaw, and, at the outbreak of the Revolution was alawyer in his home town. In 1789, hewas elected a deputy of theThird Estate to theEstates-General, and became known there for his radical opinions. He demanded thenationalization of the possessions of theRoman Catholic Church, and theright of all citizens to bear arms.
After the dissolution of theNational Constituent Assembly, Buzot returned to Évreux, where he was named president of the criminal tribunal.[1]
In 1792, Buzot was elected deputy to theNational Convention, and joined theGirondists under the influence of his friendMadame Roland. Buzot entered a polemic with the main rival of the Girondists,Jean-Paul Marat, and demanded the formation of aNational Guard from thedépartements to defend the Convention against the Paris crowds ofsans-culottes. His proposal was carried, but never put into force - the Parisians subsequently singled him out as a target of their hatred.
In the trial ofKingLouis XVI, Buzot voted in favour of thecapital punishment death, but withappeal to the people and postponement of sentence (sursis). He had a sentence of death passed against theRoyalistémigrés who did not return to France, and against anyone who should demand the re-establishment of the monarchy.[1] At the same time, he opposedGeorges Danton andThe Mountain, and rejected the creation of aCommittee of Public Safety andRevolutionary Tribunal (butabstained when the question of Marat's trial before the Tribunal was brought up by the Girondists). On 5 May 1793, his servant was arrested in theJardin du Luxembourg.[2]
Proscribed with the Girondists on 2 June 1793, Buzot escaped, and took refuge toCalvados inNormandy, where he contributed to organize a Girondistinsurrection against the convention, which was suppressed soon after.[1]
The Convention prosecuted him, and decreed "that the house occupied by Buzot be demolished, and never to be rebuilt on this plot. [Instead,] acolumn shall be raised, on which there shall be written: "Here was the sanctuary of the villain Buzot who, while a representative of the people,conspired for the overthrow of theFrench Republic"". He fled, together withJérôme Pétion de Villeneuve, toSaint-Émilion, nearBordeaux and remained in hiding. Both of them most likely committedsuicide; their bodies were found in a field a week later, half-eaten by dogs.[3] It is unclear whether the men used poison or shot themselves with a pistol,[4] which is likely due to the decomposed state in which their bodies were found.[5]
Buzot's house in Evreux was purposefully burnt to the ground, plus an effigy of Buzot, by a crowd on 27 July 1793.[6]
Buzot left behind hisMemoirs, first published in 1823.
One or more of the preceding sentences incorporates text from a publication now in thepublic domain: Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). "Buzot, François Nicolas Léonard".Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 4 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. p. 895. This cites as reference:Pétion and Buzot escaped the captors of Barbaroux by hiding in a pine forest; but their spirit was broken by their long sufferings and the death of their comrade, and, in despair, the once-adored Mayor of Paris, and the lover of Madame Roland, blew out their brains.
It was not ascertained whether they had committed suicide by poison or by other means, or whether they had perished of hunger, for their bodies were half-devoured by animals
