The convention opened on September 21, 1792, and a day later it proclaimed France a republic. Elections to the Convention were carried out on the basis of universal male suffrage, and therefore its composition was more revolutionary than that of the Legislative Assembly. The Convention included almost exclusively representatives of the bourgeoisie. It did not include at all that part of the nobles who at first supported the revolution - they also fled abroad.

In the fall of 1792, the French army crossed the border and expelled Austrian troops from Belgium. The Convention issued a decree on assistance to peoples wishing to overthrow their tyrants, and proclaimed the slogan: “Peace to the huts, war to the palaces.”

At first, the Girondins took the leading position in the Convention. They voted for a republic, but tried to hold back further development revolution, fearing for the interests of large owners. The Girondins sat on the lower benches of the Convention. With them and above were located most of the hesitant, ready to follow those who were stronger at the moment. At first they supported the Girondins. The people contemptuously called the unstable part of the deputies the “belly” or “swamp” of the Convention, and the deputies who belonged to it – “swamp toads.”

The upper benches in the Convention hall were occupied by the most determined representatives of the revolutionary bourgeoisie, ready to enter into a further alliance with the masses of the people to complete and defend the revolution. At the head of this group, nicknamed the “mountain” of the Convention, were Robespierre and Marat. At first they were followed by a minority of the Convention, but they enjoyed enormous influence among the people. They were supported by the Paris Commune. Gradually they achieved an advantage in the Jacobin club, and the Girondins were excluded from it.

The role of the grassroots as driving force revolution intensified. The Paris Commune and its revolutionary sections expressed the aspirations of the masses of sans-culottes - ordinary people, artisans, workers, small shopkeepers. Representatives of sections and crowds of people surrounded the Convention and put forward their demands. They sought the execution of the king. Relying on the people, the Jacobins ensured that he was brought before the court of the Convention. The king's death sentence was passed by open and roll-call vote. In January 1793, Louis XVI was beheaded.

Defeat in the war against the interventionists and the collapse of the Girondin policy

The execution of the king alarmed the monarchical governments of Europe. England and Spain joined the alliance (coalition) of Austria and Prussia. Due to the fault of the Girondins, the French revolutionary troops did not have uniforms and food. Speculators profited from military supplies, but in reality the troops remained barefoot and hungry. The peasants did not want to fight, because they did not. Feudal duties were finally abolished.

The Girondist generals turned out to be traitors. In the spring of 1793, Austrian troops went on the offensive and defeated the French army. The threat of invasion by interventionists once again loomed over the country. This greatly undermined the influence of the Girondins, who were responsible for the military failures.

The patience of the popular masses was exhausted when the Girondins put Marat on trial for exposing their actions and began to prepare reprisals against the revolutionary sections of the Commune. Under pressure from the Parisian sans-culottes, the court acquitted Marat, and the people solemnly carried their favorite in their arms through the streets of Paris. The eastern sections of the capital demanded the expulsion of the Girondins from the Convention.

This is not surprising, since in literary works and films dedicated to that era, this revolutionary organ is mentioned repeatedly.

However, the word “convention” has several meanings. Below we will consider each of them, but first we will define the term itself.

How to understand

Convent is a word borrowed from Latin, which is literally translated into Russian as “gathering” or “meeting”. And although its meaning has expanded over time, the original meaning can be clearly traced.

Spiritual orders

The Middle Ages - the era of the undivided dominance of Catholicism in the countries of Western and Central Europe. At that time, many monastic orders were founded, for example, the Benedictines, Dominicans, etc. In some of them, abbeys (monasteries) were traditionally called conventions.

In the era Crusades The church actively supported the organization of spiritual knightly orders. So, the Teutonic Order had a strict hierarchical structure headed by the Convention. It was a Council consisting of the highest officials spiritual knightly organization.

As you can see, the examples given are in full agreement with the Latin meaning of the word mentioned above.

National Convention

During the turbulent years of the French Revolution, or more precisely, after the uprising in August 1792, the country elected the highest body of executive and legislative power of the First Republic - the Convention. It operated for three years: from September 1792 to October 1795.

The most influential political parties that were part of it were:

1. Girondins.
2. Jacobins.
3. Montagnards.

The history of the French National Convention is usually divided into three stages:

1. Girondist.
2. Jacobin.
3. Thermidorian.

The first period of work of the supreme body of power, when the Girondins occupied the leading position in it, lasted from September 1792 to June 2, 1793. The most significant event of this time was the trial of the king, after which Louis XVI was executed.

The second period in the history of the National Convention was marked, on the one hand, by the adoption of a democratic Constitution, and on the other, by the bloody terror of the Jacobins, who actually established a revolutionary dictatorship in the country.

In July 1794, after the execution of Robespierre and his associates, a period of reaction began in France. The so-called Thermidorian Convention, defending the interests of the republican-minded bourgeoisie, abolished the socio-economic laws adopted by the Jacobins. The last significant act of the highest authority was the promulgation of a new, more moderate Constitution in August 1795, and two months later the National Convention dissolved itself.

On the other side of the ocean

As in France, in the United States in the 18th century the constituent assembly was called a convention. This body was vested with extraordinary legislative powers. It was its members who in 1787 developed the text of the country's Constitution.

Interestingly, these days, both the Republican and Democratic parties of the United States nominate their presidential candidates at national conventions. These meetings are essentially higher authorities each batch. Plus they play important role in the political life of the country.

Masons and more

Based on the fact that the definition of a convention comes down to one word - “meeting”, other examples of its use can be given:

• congress of deputies vested with state powers;
• Masonic Congress;
• a trial conducted by magistrates in ancient Rome.

However, one should not think that conventions are a thing of the past. Nowadays, this is the name of some regularly held events:

• furry conventions are organized by fans of animal-like characters with human features;
• meetings of science fiction writers, where the problems of the genre are discussed, the best authors and works are determined;
• conferences of translators;
• world convention of fantasy fans with award ceremony.

Thus, we come to the conclusion that any cultural event that gathers a large number of people united by common interests can be called a convention. These are, for example, gatherings of those who love anime, video games, comics, books or films of a certain genre, etc.

Riga landmark

In the Latvian capital there is the Ekka Convention, a medieval architectural monument. Previously, this building housed a hospice house for widowed women, and today a comfortable hotel and restaurant are located within its walls. If you have the opportunity to visit Riga, visit the Old Town to see with your own eyes this shelter for widows - the convention.

National Convention(fr. Convention nationale) or simply Convention- legislative body (actually endowed with unlimited powers) during the Great French Revolution (1792-1795).

Chronology of the Convention up to 9 Thermidor

The decisive blow to the Girondins was dealt between May 31 and June 2, when the convention was attacked for the first time by the Parisian proletariat, led by the Paris Commune. The result of "May 31" was an uprising in the provinces, covering more than half of France (Bordeaux, Toulon, Lyon, Marseille, Normandy, Provence, etc.); its leaders in many places were the Girondins. The convention brutally suppressed these uprisings. At the end of 1793, clashes began between the Hebertists, who wanted to continue the terror, and the Dantonists, who wanted to end it. On February 5, 1794, Robespierre spoke at the convention against both the “extreme” (Hébertists) and the “lenient” (Dantonists): in March, the Hébertists were arrested, accused of having relations with “enemies of freedom, equality and the republic” and executed (March 24 ), and after them, in April, the Dantonists died. Robespierre became the master of the situation, together with Couthon and Saint-Just.

The constant increase in terror, which threatened many influential members of the convention, led on 9 Thermidor (July 27) to the fall of Robespierre and to a reaction against terror. The conspirators, called the Thermidorians, now used terror at their discretion. They released their supporters from prison and imprisoned Robespierre's supporters. The Paris Commune was immediately abolished.

It must be said that out of 780 members of the Convention during the three years of its work, 4 deputies died in Austrian captivity, 19 died a natural death, 9 died at the hands of the enemy while carrying out military missions to the armies, 126 were deported or imprisoned, of which 73 Girondins, 76 deputies - were guillotined, among them Danton, Desmoulins, Robespierre, Saint-Just, etc., Marat was killed by Charlotte Corday, and Lebas committed suicide (shot himself) to avoid execution.

Powers of the Convention

The Convention concentrated executive and legislative powers, and partly judicial powers; throughout his existence, his power was not limited by any law and he ruled the state as an absolute monarch. Executive power was in the hands of committees (numbering up to 15), of which special meaning acquired the Committees of Public Safety (Comité du salut public) and Public Safety (Comité de la sûreté générale). The first, consisting first of 9, then of 12 members elected for a month, was organized with the aim of promoting the defense of the republic by emergency and urgent measures; the second, also consisting of 12 members and renewed every 3 months, had the right to bring before the revolutionary court. The decree of March 21, 1793 placed local committees of supervision and national agents or commissioners of the convention at the full disposal of the committee of public safety, and the latter actually had municipal and departmental authorities in their hands and disposed of the revolutionary army and revolutionary tribunals, which acted without any guarantees for the defendants. Another decree, on March 10, 1794, directly subordinated all administration to the Committee of Public Safety, and by decree of the 12th of Germinal II (April 1, 1794), 12 commissions were placed under the authority of the committee, replacing ministries.

After Thermidor

At the end of the terror, the composition of the ruling committees was not renewed at all. The first step of the convention after 9 Thermidor was the renewal of the Committee of Public Safety and the Revolutionary Court, the arbitrariness of which was limited. Then, in mid-November, came the closure of the Jacobin club, the return of 73 Girondins expelled for protesting against the "31 May" (8 December), the trial and execution of Carrier, the repeal of the decrees on the expulsion of nobles and non-sworn priests, the return of the surviving leaders of the Gironde, declared in 1793 outside the protection of laws (March 1795). The Parisian proletariat, deprived of the importance it had during the Terror, attacked the convention on the 12th of Germinal III (April 1), demanding “bread and the constitution of 1793”; this gave the convention a reason to arrest some Montagnards, reorganize the national guard and disarm the suburbs.

Important improvements were made by the convention, at the suggestion of Cambon, in the financial department. Much has been done in the field of education, in the field of which Lakanal played a particularly prominent role: the Normal School, the Central School of Public Works, the Special School of Oriental Languages, the Bureau of Longitudes, the Conservatory of Arts and Crafts, the Louvre Museum, the National Library of France, and the national archives were created or transformed , Museum of French Antiquities, Paris Higher National Conservatoire of Music and Dance, art exhibitions, national institute. The decrees of 30 Vendemier and 29 Frimer II (October 21 and December 19, 1793) proclaimed the principle of compulsory and free primary education, which, however, did not receive implementation.

National Convention(fr. Convention nationale) or simply Convention- legislative body (actually endowed with unlimited powers) during the Great French Revolution (1792-1795).

Chronology of the Convention up to 9 Thermidor

The decisive blow to the Girondins was dealt between May 31 and June 2, when the convention was attacked for the first time by the Parisian proletariat, led by the Paris Commune. The result of "May 31" was an uprising in the provinces, covering more than half of France (Bordeaux, Toulon, Lyon, Marseille, Normandy, Provence, etc.); its leaders in many places were the Girondins. The convention brutally suppressed these uprisings. At the end of 1793, clashes began between the Hebertists, who wanted to continue the terror, and the Dantonists, who wanted to end it. On February 5, 1794, Robespierre spoke at the convention against both the “extreme” (Hébertists) and the “lenient” (Dantonists): in March, the Hébertists were arrested, accused of having relations with “enemies of freedom, equality and the republic” and executed (March 24 ), and after them, in April, the Dantonists died. Robespierre became the master of the situation, together with Couthon and Saint-Just.

The constant increase in terror, which threatened many influential members of the convention, led on 9 Thermidor (July 27) to the fall of Robespierre and to a reaction against terror. The conspirators, called the Thermidorians, now used terror at their discretion. They released their supporters from prison and imprisoned Robespierre's supporters. The Paris Commune was immediately abolished.

It must be said that out of 780 members of the Convention during the three years of its work, 4 deputies died in Austrian captivity, 19 died a natural death, 9 died at the hands of the enemy while carrying out military missions to the armies, 126 were deported or imprisoned, of which 73 Girondins, 76 deputies - were guillotined, among them Danton, Desmoulins, Robespierre, Saint-Just, etc., Marat was killed by Charlotte Corday, and Lebas committed suicide (shot himself) to avoid execution.

Powers of the Convention

The Convention concentrated executive and legislative powers, and partly judicial powers; throughout his existence, his power was not limited by any law and he ruled the state as an absolute monarch. Executive power was in the hands of committees (up to 15 in number), of which the committees of public safety (Comité du salut public) and public safety (Comité de la sûreté générale) acquired particular importance. The first, consisting first of 9, then of 12 members elected for a month, was organized with the aim of promoting the defense of the republic by emergency and urgent measures; the second, also consisting of 12 members and renewed every 3 months, had the right to bring before the revolutionary court. The decree of March 21, 1793 placed local committees of supervision and national agents or commissioners of the convention at the full disposal of the committee of public safety, and the latter actually had municipal and departmental authorities in their hands and disposed of the revolutionary army and revolutionary tribunals, which acted without any guarantees for the defendants. Another decree, on March 10, 1794, directly subordinated all administration to the Committee of Public Safety, and by decree of the 12th of Germinal II (April 1, 1794), 12 commissions were placed under the authority of the committee, replacing ministries.

After Thermidor

At the end of the terror, the composition of the ruling committees was not renewed at all. The first step of the convention after 9 Thermidor was the renewal of the Committee of Public Safety and the Revolutionary Court, the arbitrariness of which was limited. Then, in mid-November, came the closure of the Jacobin club, the return of 73 Girondins expelled for protesting against the "31 May" (8 December), the trial and execution of Carrier, the repeal of the decrees on the expulsion of nobles and non-sworn priests, the return of the surviving leaders of the Gironde, declared in 1793 outside the protection of laws (March 1795). The Parisian proletariat, deprived of the importance it had during the Terror, attacked the convention on the 12th of Germinal III (April 1), demanding “bread and the constitution of 1793”; this gave the convention a reason to arrest some Montagnards, reorganize the national guard and disarm the suburbs.

Important improvements were made by the convention, at the suggestion of Cambon, in the financial department. Much has been done in the field of education, in the field of which Lakanal played a particularly prominent role: the Normal School, the Central School of Public Works, the Special School of Oriental Languages, the Bureau of Longitudes, the Conservatory of Arts and Crafts, the Louvre Museum, the National Library of France, and the national archives were created or transformed , Museum of French Antiquities, Paris Higher National Conservatory of Music and Dance, art exhibitions, national institute. The decrees of 30 Vendemier and 29 Frimer II (October 21 and December 19, 1793) proclaimed the principle of compulsory and free primary education, which, however, was not implemented.