Georges Danton

Georges Jacques Danton was a French politician and one of the leading figures of the French Revolution. A relatively obscure lawyer before the Revolution, he became a prominent orator of the Cordeliers Club and, following the overthrow of the monarchy on 10 August 1792, was appointed Minister of Justice. His role in the September Massacres has long been disputed. In early 1793, the National Convention sent him to Belgium in connection with the military and political crisis surrounding General Dumouriez. That spring, Danton supported the establishment of the Revolutionary Tribunal and helped establish the Committee of Public Safety, of which he became one of the first members.