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amateurvoltaire · 5 months

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Recently, after quite a few years, I’ve been skimming through the Twelve Who Ruled, and one thing that really jumped out at me is Palmer's massive crush on Saint-Just. Seriously, a lot of the times when Saint-Just shows up in the book, the descriptions turn almost poetic... Take Chapter 3, for instance. Here, Saint-Just is likened to a shooting star, his striking handsomeness and youth are noted several times, and at one point, the word demigod makes an appearance.

It gets even more obvious when Palmer contrasts him with Robespierre. Poor Maximilien—if it weren't for his undeniable kindness and sincerity, he'd surely be losing the battle.

But was Palmer correct?

Did Saint-Just really patronise Robespierre?

Various accounts suggest as much. Levasseur, in his memoirs, observes, "Robespierre has always been perceived as the head of the revolutionary government. Having been a close witness to those times, I might venture to assert that Saint-Just wielded more influence than Robespierre himself." He further notes, "Closely allied with Robespierre, he had become indispensable to him, and perhaps he had become more feared than he would have preferred to be loved. Their opinions were invariably unified, and if the personal beliefs of one were to be subordinated to those of the other, certainly, it was not Saint-Just who conceded."

Sainte-Beuve(1) shares a telling anecdote: during a heated committee meeting, Saint-Just ordered Robespierre, "Calm yourself; the empire favours the phlegmatic." (« Calme-toi donc, l’empire est au flegmatique. »)

Moreover, another Convention member, Baudot, reflects in his memoirs that Saint-Just possessed "a mind far stronger and more commanding than Robespierre's." (« une tête bien autrement forte et plus puissante que Robespierre»)

So... while 'patronizing' might be a strong term, it does seem that Saint-Just's personality was more domineering. In my view, he was undoubtedly more pragmatic than the Incorruptible, owing largely to his military experience and missions in the field. Saint-Just was a man of action while Robespierre was more a man of the tribune. Coupled with the uncompromising nature typical of youth (who wasn't a radical at 26?), this would likely have rendered him more authoritarian and rigid in the eyes of his contemporaries.

Note:

Sainte-Beuve isn’t a particularly reliable source, but the anecdote seemed interesting.

Sources:

R.R Palmer, Twelve Who Ruled

Sainte-Beuve; Sainte-Beuve, Charles-Augustin. (1865) Causeries du lundi. Tome V (3e éd.) « Études sur Saint-Just, par M. Édouard Fleury.

M.A. Baudot, Notes historiques

R. Levasseur, Mémoires

#frev #french revolution #robespierre #saint just #maximilien robespierre #antoine saint just

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