#révolution french

[m2canonymous]

[regnigt]

Magnificent double-page spread of Paris at the eve of the Revolution in spring 1789, from the graphic novel "Révolution: 1. Liberté" by Florent Grouazel and Yoann Locard, which I am currently making my way through.

[enlitment]

Camille Desmoulins and Maximilien Robespierre – doomed by the Revolution?

a second part of the answer to the ask kindly sent by @iron--and--blood - first part can be found here

Okay, so I tried to follow the sources and I ended up missing what is arguably the key question. I think that there is enough evidence that warrants seeing Camille and Maximilien’s relationship as a ‘friendship torn apart but the revolution’, but could it in fact be something more that the chain of events of the mid-1790s ended up destroying?

(aka the good old “were they gay?” question)

It’s probably not surprising to anyone that there is no conclusive evidence that would suggest that either of them was definitely queer or that they were involved in some kind of a relationship. For context, the French Constitutional Assembly did decriminalise homosexuality, since there was simply no mention of private same-sex relationships it in the penal code of 1791.

Of course, there would still be a stigma surrounding queerness, seeing how France was a Catholic country – well, up to that point. On the other hand, it is also important to remember that anyone who received a higher education at that time would be well versed in classical authors (Greek and Roman that is), so they would have a framework for a positively viewed queer attraction/relationship (I'm mostly thinking of a kind of Alcibiades/Socrates vibes here. I think it sort of fits? Well it does in my headcanon anyway...). Camille especially seemed to be really into classics, making references to classical authors, history or mythology in approximately every other sentence.

CAMILLE – VICES HONTEUX AND A POSSIBILE BICON

If we consider Camille, I think it is clear that he was attracted to women. I think that the historical sources show that he genuinely did love his wife - Lucile - although it may also be true he was bit of a cad. There is a whole deal with him and Lucile’s mother with whom he apparently exchanged some flirty letters? I honestly need to look into it more at some point.

That said, attraction to women of course doesn’t exclude attraction to men. The one thing that would suggest Camille might have pursued a same-sex relationships is the reference to “vices honteux“ (shameful vices), which Saint-Just claims were attributed to Camille by Danton. We also learn from Robespierre’s note that this refered to something that was ‘totally unrelated to the revolution’.

So we know it’s something that would be seen as ‘shameful’ behaviour, but nonetheless a private matter. Could it be interest in same-sex relationships? It’s of course hard to say, but the theory is not completely implausible. For a discussion about this, I recommend this article.

MAXIMILIEN – A CONFIRMED BACHELOR?

With Maximilien Robespierre, it gets a little more complicated. He was essentially a confirmed bachelor, living with a family that adored him but that was not his own (and also a dog. He had a dog.) Talk about a found family trope!

Some sources claim that he was engaged to Éléonore Duplay, but Robespierre’s sister for one vehemently denies this. It’s true that he could probably easily have married her – I can’t imagine her family being opposed to it, far from it probably – but the fact is that for one reason or another, he did not.

He also didn’t really seem to capitalise on his massive popularity among the Parisian women. (Though, to be fair, neither did Rousseau and he was… well I guess he was his own version of heterosexual.)

Sure, one can interpret that as Robespierre being a workaholic or putting the revolution above everything else, but I personally think it is very possible that he would be considered to be on the asexual spectrum by today’s standards.

That said, although France was moving away from institutionalised religion at that point, Catholic guilt could certainly play a role, especially in someone who prided himself in his moral conduct and was told to be rigid about the rules. So the possibility of him being closeted as an explanation for his lack of interest in women would also not be completely off the table.

As to Camille and Maximilien being together in some way? I think there is certainly a precedence for this type of relationship in adolescence. Seeing that they have studied together (and shared enthusiasm for classics probably), it is not impossible, though of course, it is highly speculative.

I think it is also fair to say that Robespierre went above and beyond for Camille until the last few months. That is something he probably would have not done for many other people. He actually said as much himself:

“Learn, Camille, that if you were not Camille, one could not have so much indulgence for you.“

Was it because Camille was universally liked by the revolutionaries for all the good he has done? Possibly, but I think one can also read more into it. It certainly suggests that Camille was special in some way, and the fact that Robespierre uses ‚one‘ instead of ‚I‘ does not necessarily mean he is not speaking about himself here.

CAMILLE AND MAXIMILIEN IN THE MEDIA

When it comes to media portrayal, the relationship often comes across as queer-coded - to an extent.

In La Révolution française, this aspect is more prominent between Robespierre and Saint-Just, but with some well-timed smiles and glances, it almost reads as a tragic love triangle between the three. There are some unfortunate implications however, mainly that the hints of Robespierre's queerness in the movie are implicitly associated with his descent to tyrany. Ugh. (And let's face it, a kind of effeminacy linked to villainy as well. Honestly, who thought that kind of portrayal would be a good idea? Kudos for making a historical movie about the French Revolution come across as homophobic I guess.)

Hilary Mantel straight-up makes Camille Desmoulins bisexual (ish?) in A Place of Greater Safety, though there are <a lot of> issues with that portrayal, as discussed here (watch me linking another mutual's great post! Frevblr is truly the best). Not sure how the relationship with Robespierre is presented here since it’s one of the books I’ve been in the middle of for months.

And then there’s Stanisława Przybyszewska of course. She would honestly warrant a separate post, but long story short: in her works, there is no doubt about the fact that she portrays the relationship between them as queer. She invokes the Erastes/eromenos dynamic between them (quite explicitly, referring to Camille as an ephebe at one point) and makes the attraction between the two seem palpable. There is plenty of queer (under)tones to be found in The Danton Case, but in Last Nights of Ventôse , she straight up interprets the fall of the Dantonists as Camille running into Danton’s arms to spite Robespierre for snubbing him and rejecting his devotion (romantic advances?). And it gets quite physical – not in a way that would warrant an E rating, but it would certainly deserve one for the sheer emotional intensity.

[astromechdroid-r2d2]

[year24groupedits]

OSCANDRÈ❤️❤️❤️

⚠️THIS IS NOT MINE!⚠️ ->@paleosart

A fan art of Oscar François de Jarjayes and Andrè Grandier by @paleosart from the manga "Versailles no Bara" or "Lady Oscar- The Rose of Versailles" by Riyoko Ikeda

[empirearchives]

“He [Napoleon] remained deeply attached to the refusal of the Ancien Régime, to the refusal of national degradation in the face of the Bourbons and aristocratic Europe. It is from this refusal that he will draw the strength to think and set up this powerful resistance movement which will be the return from the island of Elba in March 1815. This is why the forces of the Holy Alliance reject him, ostracizing him from humanity as an ‘anarchist’. He was in his time ‘the revolutionary emperor’ because his conquest was transformative for the social order.”

— Antoine Casanova, Vive la Révolution: 1789-1989: Réflexions autour du bicentenaire

[little-red-phrygian]

commission art w/ @naxim 😇😇🙏🏻（I'm not the author of this art! ）

*petition on more young Robespierre content 🫡

老师画的幼罗特别特别萌呜呜呜呜呜

[azzrael99]

May 8 is the day of celebration of the Supreme Being!! Citizens, let's celebrate these days of joy with beautiful phrases, art and dedications to the Supreme Being!!!

Illustration by Maxime

[roehenstart]

Toussaint L'Ouverture by George De Baptiste.

[m2canonymous]

[bizarreauhavre]

Guillotine with figure.

[folditdouble]

Women in Film Challenge 2024: [56/52] Whatever Happened to My Revolution, dir. Judith Davis (France, 2018)

If you think socialism is the sole solution for a life, you’re asleep. Maybe she opened her eyes, saw the absurdity of the world and life, with absurd people who have no goal. Absurdity hit her right in the face! You can still fight. There’s no meaning. Not one meaning, but many. That’s the great thing.

[belle-keys]

Vampires being Southern confederates in the American pop culture tradition makes so much sense to me logically. Not saying that I don't believe it's propaganda, because it absolutely is. But planter vampires and confederate vampires (Jasper, Damon, Lestat, Louis, Bill Compton) make a lot of sense in the American context, as much as aristocratic and “Old World” vampires make sense in the British context.

If vampires are inherently Gothic, then vampires must symbolize and personify the vestiges of a long-gone past – one which only simmers to life from far below the surface when it’s time to reveal the horrors, or the romance, of what is usually an oft-forgotten history. In 19th-century Britain, through vampire short stories and novellas, and later Dracula, vampires evoked the (misunderstood and misappropriated) time of the Goths. This, in turn, brought to readers’ minds images of towering castles, the superstition of Eastern Europe, and the so-called barbarism of the Old World, that which was made to appear antiquated in its monstrosity and secret imperialist desires. (*sarcastic voice*) The Old World was so at odds with enlightened, modern, industrializing Britain! It’s no wonder that vampires in British literature took the forms of counts, noblemen, and princes – they were the conspiring, powerful leaders of the Old World, or the medieval world, or some forgotten pre-Industrial feudal world.

And if we are to apply this concept of what vampires should represent for the United States, it only makes perfect sense that vampires would be planters and confederates. Slavers, planters, and confederate fighters also evoke the Old America, conjuring images of Southern chivalry, the great Antebellum, and the humble pioneers of this free nation of God and goodness and prosperity! And then the confederates got their ass beat really bad. And they could only hold on to these romantic images of that former “honour and glory” through propagation of the Lost Cause myth. What better vehicle to wield this romanticisation of, yunno, the defense of chattel slavery than through vampire softbois?! Immortal beings who symbolize the survival and resilience of the Antebellum South through time. Why don’t we make them hot guys who were just protecting the South in our pop culture? Sure. If the vestiges of America’s long-gone past are slavery and genocide and, uh, chivalric Southern honour, then vampires do a pretty effective job of reminding us of this horrifying/romantic (you choose here) history. Spoiler alert: it’s horrifying.

[catboygogol]

hewwo frevblr! its been awhile but today i bring yall a scan of the l'Humanité special edition, robespierre et le peuple debout, that came out this summer!

[year24groupedits]

My beloved Oscar and Andrè❤️

Oscandré is my favourite manga ship❤️

Oscar Françoise de Jarjayes and Andrè Grandier from the manga "Versailles no Bara" or "Lady Oscar- The Rose of Versailles" by Riyoko Ikeda

[empirearchives]

Descriptions of Napoleon’s personality by Adam Zamoyski

“He was kind by nature, quick to assist and reward. He found comfortable jobs and granted generous pensions to former colleagues, teachers, and servants, even to a guard who had shown sympathy during his incarceration after the fall of Robespierre. He was generous to the son of Marbeuf, promoted his former commander at TouIon Dugommier and looked after his family when he died, did the same for La Poype and du Teil, and even found the useless Carteaux a post with a generous pension. Whenever he encountered hardship or poverty, he disbursed lavishly. He could be sensitive, and there are countless verifiable acts of solicitude and kindness that testify to his genuinely wishing to make people happy.”

“He was most at his ease with children, soldiers, servants, and those close to him, in whom he took a personal interest, asking them about their health, their families, and their troubles. He would treat them with a joshing familiarity, teasing them, calling them scoundrels or nincompoops; whenever he saw his physician, Dr. Jean-Nicolas Corvisart, he would ask him how many people he had killed that day.”

“He possessed considerable charm and only needed to smile for people to melt. He could be a delightful companion when he adopted an attitude of bonhomie. He was a good raconteur, and people loved listening to him speak on some subject that interested him, or tell his ghost stories, for which he would sometimes blow out the candles. He could grow passionate when discussing literature or, more rarely, his feelings.”