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<p>[QUOTE=&quot;sylvester, post: 77760, member: 708&quot;]&quot;Since Louis was a target of the revolution,why would his coins feature this design on the back in 1792.</p><p>Was he trying to appease the population or what?&quot;</p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p>Louis was really out of the decision making process at this point. As Christian stated it was a constitutional monarchy by then. However up until 1792 Louis was not exactly unpopular. Marie Antoinette was the target of alot of the resentment. Louis though was seen as a decent constitutional monarch.</p><p><br /></p><p>French politics at this time had split into three parties, two major ones (the Girondins and the Jacobins) and another less influential party in exile (the Royalists).</p><p><br /></p><p>The Girondins (the liberal party) were in control up until 1791/2 and Louis was safe whilst ever they were in power. They went in for a more wide ranging but moderate revolution. That is a constituational monarchy and they hope they could spread their new revolutionary ideals beyond France to Germany, Austria, Spain and Russia and abolish their somewhat feudalistic systems, especially Russia.</p><p><br /></p><p>The Jacobins however, were more radical and wanted to purge Franch of the final trappings of the old regime (i.e the King and Queen). They were less intrested with spreading the revolution beyond France, they were more interested in taking France to the further limits of their ideals. (Ironically ending up in the Terror).</p><p><br /></p><p>1791/2 saw a crucial phase in French politics, the Girondin position weakened and the Jacobins gained further ground and eventually too over. The king had been trying to summon aid from the King of Spain to invade. The Royalist exiles were equally plotting coups (all ill thought out), and others were trying their hardest to persuade foreign governments to intervene of Louis&#039; behalf.</p><p><br /></p><p>Louis XVI figured that no one was ever gonna resuce him this he and his family tried to flee to Varenne, they were captured and their letters to Charles of Spain were found. The Jacobins had long suspected the Royal family of being untrustworthy, and for doctrinal reasons they had wanted to eliminate them from the equation (but had feared a backlash if they had just overthrown them), now they had all the evidence they needed to prove to the people that the king was an emeny of France, he was forced to abdicate in 1792, put on trial and guillotined in January 1793.</p><p><br /></p><p>And then France entered a very dark period for the next year and a half where the Jacobins became suspicious of everyone, and the Terror kicked off and the guillotinings became a regular occurence. So suspicious they became that even the Jacobin leader Robespierre was beheaded.[/QUOTE]</p><p><br /></p>

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