Maximilien Robespierre

French attorney, politician and revolutionary. A fanatical idealist and radical leader of the Jacobins, he was called "the incorruptible." Robespierre, a patriot with a sense of duty and sacrifice, became the very symbol of the French Revolution.

Robespierre’s mother died when he was young. His father, a lawyer, left Maximilien, his brother Augustin and his sisters to be raised by their maternal grandparents. Small in stature, he was pale and sincere. In 1765, he attended the college of the Oratorians at Arras. He was awarded a scholarship to the famous college of Louis-le-Grand in Paris, in 1769, where he studied philosophy and law. In 1781, he received his law degree, began working as a lawyer and made a comfortable home with his sister Charlotte. Soon distinguished in his field, he was appointed judge at the Salle Episcopale. In 1783, he was admitted to the Arras Academy for the advancement of the arts and sciences, later becoming its chancellor and then its president. He socialized with the young people in the area as well as with the local notables, and spent his time entering academic competitions. His "Mémoire sur les peines infamantes" ("Report on Degrading Punishments") won first prize at the Academy of Metz, and by 1788, he was noted for his altruism.

In March 1789, at the age of 30, he embarked upon a political career, after the citizens of Arras chose him to be one of their representatives. Always careful in his dress and personal grooming and a man of simple manners, he quickly gained attention, but kept his frugal lifestyle. His first speech, of the more than 500 total he gave throughout his lifetime, was given before the National Assembly on approximately 18 May 1789, and despite a voice which had weak carrying power, his message spread, his popularity grew, and as well, he engendered great opposition. In April 1790, he presided over the Jacobins, a political club that promoted the ideas of the French Revolution.