711. The Terror: Killing God (Part 5)
Summary
This episode details the Festival of the Supreme Being, a massive public spectacle orchestrated by Robespierre and Jacques-Louis David to replace Christian traditions with a state cult. The hosts explore Robespierre’s belief that an all-seeing deity was necessary to enforce civic virtue and secure the Revolution, contrasting this with the skepticism of deputies like Thuriot who viewed the event as sinister and counter-revolutionary. The discussion also covers the psychological motivations behind Robespierre’s obsession with order and the introduction of the new Republican calendar, which so…
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Robespierre's speech and the Festival of the Supreme Being
Logistics, Jacques-Louis David, and Robespierre's nerves
The festival's success and the papier-mâché mountain
Criticism of the event and Robespierre's belief in God
Natural rights, the Declaration, and the 'disembodied eye'
Robespierre's need for order and the suspended Constitution
The bind of Virtue and Terror; the happiest day of his life
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Deputy Thuriot's reaction and Robespierre as a 'fun sponge'
Religion, superstition, and the treatment of priests
The new revolutionary calendar and Fabre d'Églantine
The Vendée uprising and the 'republican baptisms'
Introduction of Joseph Fouché and his background
Fouché's atrocities in Lyon and de-Christianization
Fouché's return to Paris and Robespierre's confrontation
The Law of Prairial and the expansion of the Terror
The decline of Robespierre and the approach of Thermidor
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