Jean-Henri Voulland

Jean-Henri Voulland (born October 11, 1751 in Uzès , Gard department , † February 23, 1801 in Paris ) was a politician during the French Revolution .

Life

Voulland came from a Protestant family, studied law and then worked as a lawyer in his hometown. The third estate of the Nîmes constituency elected Voulland in 1789 as a member of the Estates General . In 1790 he worked in the Constituent Assembly for the connection of the papal enclave of Avignon to France and in March 1791 accepted the position of judge at the Court of Cassation. In September 1792 he was elected to the National Convention by the Gard department . He was one of the supporters of the Montagne and voted in January 1793 for the death of Louis XVI .

Voulland was sent in August 1793 as a "representative in mission" to judge in the departments of Hérault and Gard. In September 1793 he was elected a member of the security committee and took on a leading role alongside Amar and Vadier . Voulland served as President of the National Convention from December 6 to 21, 1793. The arrests of the Secretary General in the War Ministry, François-Nicolas Vincent , and the leader of the Paris Revolutionary Troops , Charles Philippe Ronsin , on December 17, 1793 marked the beginning of fierce factional struggles within the Montagne, in which Voulland took an active part on Hébert's side .

Voulland, who often tended to extremist views and zealously implemented terrorism , strongly criticized Robespierre's indecision in the campaign for de-Christianization and the cult of the Supreme Being, which Robespierre protected . The annihilation of the " Hébertists " in March 1794 and the transfer of some powers of the security committee to the welfare committee led to Voulland's irreconcilable hostility towards Robespierre. Voulland therefore actively supported the overthrow of 9th Thermidor II (July 27, 1794) and was then one of the left Thermidorians . He campaigned for the continuation of Jacobin politics and therefore lost his political influence and in September 1794 his seat on the security committee.

Jean-Henri Voulland took part in the Prairial Uprising from May 20 to 23, 1795 and after its failure he lived in secret. After the general amnesty of October 26, 1795, he renounced politics and died on February 23, 1801 in Paris.

literature

• Bernd Jeschonnek: Revolution in France 1789–1799. A lexicon. Akademie-Verlag, Berlin 1989, ISBN 3-05-000801-6 .