Antoine Claire Thibaudeau
Encyclopedia
Antoine Claire, Comte Thibaudeau (23 March 1765 – 8 March 1854) was a French
politician
.
He was the son of Antoine de Thibaudeau (1739–1813), who was a lawyer of Poitiers
and a deputy to the Estates-General of 1789
. He was admitted to the bar
in 1787, and in 1789 accompanied his father to the Estates-General at Versailles
. When he returned to Poitiers in October he immediately set up a local revolutionary club, and in 1792 was returned as a deputy to the National Convention
.
Thibaudeau joined the party of the Mountain
and voted for the death of Louis XVI
unconditionally. Nevertheless he incurred a certain amount of suspicion because he declined to join the Jacobin Club
. In May 1793 he was on a special mission in the west and prevented his département
from joining the Federalist movement. Thibaudeau occupied himself more particularly with educational business, notably in the organization of the museum of the Louvre
. It was he who secured the inclusion of Tom Paine's name in the amnesty of Girondist
deputies.
Secretary and then president of the Convention for a short period, he served on the Committee of Public Safety
and of General Security. After the royalist insurrection of 13 Vendémiaire
(5 October 1795) he opposed those Thermidor
ians who wished to postpone the dissolution of the Convention. At the elections for the Corps Législatif
he was elected by no less than thirty-two départements. It was only by the intervention of Boulay de la Meurthe that he escaped transportation after the coup d'etat
of 18 Fructidor (4 September 1797), and he then returned to the practice of his profession.
The establishment of the Consulate
brought him back to public life. He was made prefect of the Gironde
, and then member of the council of state, in which capacity he worked on the civil code. He at this time had Napoleon
's confidence, and gave him wholehearted support. He did not entirely conceal his disapproval of the foundation of the Légion d'Honneur
, of the Concordat
and of Napoleon's acceptance of the Consulate for life, and his appointment as prefect of the Bouches-du-Rhône
, with consequent banishment from Paris
, was a semi-disgrace.
A peer of the Hundred Days
, he fled at the second Restoration to Lausanne
. During his exile he lived in Vienna
, Prague
, Augsburg
and Brussels
, occupying himself with his Mémoires sur la Convention et le Directoire (Paris, 2 vols., 1824); Mémoires sur le Consulat: par un ancien conseiller d'état (Paris, 1827); Histoire générale de Napoléon Bonaparte (6 vols., Paris and Stuttgart
, 1827–28, vol. iii. not printed); Le Consulat et l'Empire, vol. i. of which is identical with vol. vi. of the Histoire de Napoléon (10 vols., 1834). The revolution of 1830
permitted his return to France, and he lived to become a member of the Imperial Senate under the Second Empire.
He died in Paris on 8 March 1854 in his eighty-ninth year.
, with introduction and necessary notes, by G. K. Fortescue with the title of Bonaparte and the Consulate (1908). Among the papers left by Thibaudeau were documents entitled Ma Biographie and Mémoires avant ma nomination à la Convention. These were published in a small volume (Paris and Niort
, 1875) which includes a list of his works and of the narrative of his life.
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
politician
Politician
A politician, political leader, or political figure is an individual who is involved in influencing public policy and decision making...
.
He was the son of Antoine de Thibaudeau (1739–1813), who was a lawyer of Poitiers
Poitiers
Poitiers is a city on the Clain river in west central France. It is a commune and the capital of the Vienne department and of the Poitou-Charentes region. The centre is picturesque and its streets are interesting for predominant remains of historical architecture, especially from the Romanesque...
and a deputy to the Estates-General of 1789
Estates-General of 1789
The Estates-General of 1789 was the first meeting since 1614 of the French Estates-General, a general assembly representing the French estates of the realm: the nobility, the Church, and the common people...
. He was admitted to the bar
Bar (law)
Bar in a legal context has three possible meanings: the division of a courtroom between its working and public areas; the process of qualifying to practice law; and the legal profession.-Courtroom division:...
in 1787, and in 1789 accompanied his father to the Estates-General at Versailles
Versailles
Versailles , a city renowned for its château, the Palace of Versailles, was the de facto capital of the kingdom of France for over a century, from 1682 to 1789. It is now a wealthy suburb of Paris and remains an important administrative and judicial centre...
. When he returned to Poitiers in October he immediately set up a local revolutionary club, and in 1792 was returned as a deputy to the National Convention
National Convention
During the French Revolution, the National Convention or Convention, in France, comprised the constitutional and legislative assembly which sat from 20 September 1792 to 26 October 1795 . It held executive power in France during the first years of the French First Republic...
.
Thibaudeau joined the party of the Mountain
The Mountain
The Mountain refers in the context of the history of the French Revolution to a political group, whose members, called Montagnards, sat on the highest benches in the Assembly...
and voted for the death of Louis XVI
Louis XVI of France
Louis XVI was a Bourbon monarch who ruled as King of France and Navarre until 1791, and then as King of the French from 1791 to 1792, before being executed in 1793....
unconditionally. Nevertheless he incurred a certain amount of suspicion because he declined to join the Jacobin Club
Jacobin Club
The Jacobin Club was the most famous and influential political club in the development of the French Revolution, so-named because of the Dominican convent where they met, located in the Rue St. Jacques , Paris. The club originated as the Club Benthorn, formed at Versailles from a group of Breton...
. In May 1793 he was on a special mission in the west and prevented his département
Départements of France
The departments of France are French administrative divisions. The 101 departments form one of the three levels of local government, together with the 22 metropolitan and 5 overseas regions above them and more than 36 000 communes beneath them...
from joining the Federalist movement. Thibaudeau occupied himself more particularly with educational business, notably in the organization of the museum of the Louvre
Louvre
The Musée du Louvre – in English, the Louvre Museum or simply the Louvre – is one of the world's largest museums, the most visited art museum in the world and a historic monument. A central landmark of Paris, it is located on the Right Bank of the Seine in the 1st arrondissement...
. It was he who secured the inclusion of Tom Paine's name in the amnesty of Girondist
Girondist
The Girondists were a political faction in France within the Legislative Assembly and the National Convention during the French Revolution...
deputies.
Secretary and then president of the Convention for a short period, he served on the Committee of Public Safety
Committee of Public Safety
The Committee of Public Safety , created in April 1793 by the National Convention and then restructured in July 1793, formed the de facto executive government in France during the Reign of Terror , a stage of the French Revolution...
and of General Security. After the royalist insurrection of 13 Vendémiaire
13 Vendémiaire
13 Vendémiaire Year 4 is the name given to a battle between the French Revolutionary troops and Royalist forces in the streets of Paris...
(5 October 1795) he opposed those Thermidor
Thermidor
Thermidor was the eleventh month in the French Republican Calendar. The month was named after the French word thermal which comes from the Greek word "thermos" which means heat....
ians who wished to postpone the dissolution of the Convention. At the elections for the Corps Législatif
Corps législatif
The Corps législatif was a part of the French legislature during the French Revolution and beyond. It is also the generic French term used to refer to any legislative body.-History:The Constitution of the Year I foresaw the need for a corps législatif...
he was elected by no less than thirty-two départements. It was only by the intervention of Boulay de la Meurthe that he escaped transportation after the coup d'etat
Coup d'état
A coup d'état state, literally: strike/blow of state)—also known as a coup, putsch, and overthrow—is the sudden, extrajudicial deposition of a government, usually by a small group of the existing state establishment—typically the military—to replace the deposed government with another body; either...
of 18 Fructidor (4 September 1797), and he then returned to the practice of his profession.
The establishment of the Consulate
French Consulate
The Consulate was the government of France between the fall of the Directory in the coup of 18 Brumaire in 1799 until the start of the Napoleonic Empire in 1804...
brought him back to public life. He was made prefect of the Gironde
Gironde
For the Revolutionary party, see Girondists.Gironde is a common name for the Gironde estuary, where the mouths of the Garonne and Dordogne rivers merge, and for a department in the Aquitaine region situated in southwest France.-History:...
, and then member of the council of state, in which capacity he worked on the civil code. He at this time had Napoleon
Napoleon I of France
Napoleon Bonaparte was a French military and political leader during the latter stages of the French Revolution.As Napoleon I, he was Emperor of the French from 1804 to 1815...
's confidence, and gave him wholehearted support. He did not entirely conceal his disapproval of the foundation of the Légion d'Honneur
Légion d'honneur
The Legion of Honour, or in full the National Order of the Legion of Honour is a French order established by Napoleon Bonaparte, First Consul of the Consulat which succeeded to the First Republic, on 19 May 1802...
, of the Concordat
Concordat
A concordat is an agreement between the Holy See of the Catholic Church and a sovereign state on religious matters. Legally, they are international treaties. They often includes both recognition and privileges for the Catholic Church in a particular country...
and of Napoleon's acceptance of the Consulate for life, and his appointment as prefect of the Bouches-du-Rhône
Bouches-du-Rhône
Bouches-du-Rhône is a department in the south of France named after the mouth of the Rhône River. It is the most populous department of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region. Its INSEE and postal code is 13.-History of the department:...
, with consequent banishment from Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
, was a semi-disgrace.
A peer of the Hundred Days
Hundred Days
The Hundred Days, sometimes known as the Hundred Days of Napoleon or Napoleon's Hundred Days for specificity, marked the period between Emperor Napoleon I of France's return from exile on Elba to Paris on 20 March 1815 and the second restoration of King Louis XVIII on 8 July 1815...
, he fled at the second Restoration to Lausanne
Lausanne
Lausanne is a city in Romandy, the French-speaking part of Switzerland, and is the capital of the canton of Vaud. The seat of the district of Lausanne, the city is situated on the shores of Lake Geneva . It faces the French town of Évian-les-Bains, with the Jura mountains to its north-west...
. During his exile he lived in Vienna
Vienna
Vienna is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Austria and one of the nine states of Austria. Vienna is Austria's primary city, with a population of about 1.723 million , and is by far the largest city in Austria, as well as its cultural, economic, and political centre...
, Prague
Prague
Prague is the capital and largest city of the Czech Republic. Situated in the north-west of the country on the Vltava river, the city is home to about 1.3 million people, while its metropolitan area is estimated to have a population of over 2.3 million...
, Augsburg
Augsburg
Augsburg is a city in the south-west of Bavaria, Germany. It is a university town and home of the Regierungsbezirk Schwaben and the Bezirk Schwaben. Augsburg is an urban district and home to the institutions of the Landkreis Augsburg. It is, as of 2008, the third-largest city in Bavaria with a...
and Brussels
Brussels
Brussels , officially the Brussels Region or Brussels-Capital Region , is the capital of Belgium and the de facto capital of the European Union...
, occupying himself with his Mémoires sur la Convention et le Directoire (Paris, 2 vols., 1824); Mémoires sur le Consulat: par un ancien conseiller d'état (Paris, 1827); Histoire générale de Napoléon Bonaparte (6 vols., Paris and Stuttgart
Stuttgart
Stuttgart is the capital of the state of Baden-Württemberg in southern Germany. The sixth-largest city in Germany, Stuttgart has a population of 600,038 while the metropolitan area has a population of 5.3 million ....
, 1827–28, vol. iii. not printed); Le Consulat et l'Empire, vol. i. of which is identical with vol. vi. of the Histoire de Napoléon (10 vols., 1834). The revolution of 1830
Revolution of 1830
The Revolution of 1830 can be:* The July Revolution in France leading to a constitutional monarchy lasting until the revolutions of 1848* The Belgian Revolution in the United Kingdom of the Netherlands leading to the creation of Belgium...
permitted his return to France, and he lived to become a member of the Imperial Senate under the Second Empire.
He died in Paris on 8 March 1854 in his eighty-ninth year.
Works
The special value of Thibaudeau's works arises from the fact that he wrote only of those events of which he had personal knowledge, and that he quotes with great accuracy Napoleon's actual words. His Mémoires sur le Consulat has been translated into EnglishEnglish language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
, with introduction and necessary notes, by G. K. Fortescue with the title of Bonaparte and the Consulate (1908). Among the papers left by Thibaudeau were documents entitled Ma Biographie and Mémoires avant ma nomination à la Convention. These were published in a small volume (Paris and Niort
Niort
Niort is a commune in the Deux-Sèvres department in western France.The Latin name of the city was Novioritum.The population of Niort is 60,486 and more than 137,000 people live in the urban area....
, 1875) which includes a list of his works and of the narrative of his life.