One of the dates often considered by historians as the beginning of France’s Reign of Terror in 1793. During the French revolution, violent and bloody retribution is the practice, with more than 16,000 people put to death by guillotine or “national razor” between the summer of 1793 and the summer of 1794, including most famously Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette. The Reign of Terror and the guillotine would soon become staple settings and props of literature, theater and film.
This Day in Halloween: One of the dates often considered by historians as the beginning of France’s Reign of Terror in 1793. / Illustration by Blanca Dunwoody