We want a new order in which any low and cruel passions are unknown, and all beneficiary and noble inclinations are encouraged by the laws ... A nation becomes rotten when it loses its character and liberty and changes from democracy to aristocracy or monarchy ... Two types of evil can topple democracy: the aristocracy of those who have the government in their hands; and the disdain of the people for the authority it has established itself.
Robespierre, speech to the National Convention, 1794.
Robespierre, speech to the National Convention, 1794.