Charlotte Corday And The Assassination Of Marat – Was She A Coldblooded Murderess Or Courageous Female Hero?

Ellen Lloyd - AncientPages.com - Marat must die! These were the words Charlotte Corday yelled. There was no way to persuade the young woman to stop her plan. She was determined to kill Marat at any cost.

Charlotte Corday

Charlotte Corday - Jean-Jacques Hauer (1751-1829). Credit: Public Domain

She bought a kitchen knife, headed for Paris, and murdered Jean-Paul Marat in the name of freedom.

Charlotte Corday was quickly executed and did not even receive a proper burial. Little did she know then that she accomplished nothing or very little. Historians still debate whether she should be considered a true freedom fighter, a female hero, or a cold-blooded, selfish murderess.

Charlotte Corday And The French Revolution

The story of Charlotte Corday takes us back to the French Revolution. On July 13, 1793, Charlotte Corday arrived at Marat's home four years after the Bastille was stormed. It was there Marat met his end, and Corday sealed her fate.

Corday stabbed Marat with a kitchen knife while sitting in his bathtub. Corday was arrested on the same day and executed under the guillotine four days later.

To understand why Corday was prepared to go so far, we must first understand France's political situation and atmosphere during this moment in history.

Charlotte Corday And The Assassin Of Marat – Was She A Coldblooded Murderess Or Courageous Female Hero?

Charlotte Corday by Paul Jacques Aimé Baudry, posthumous (1860). Credit: Paul-Jacques-Aimé Baudry - ARC Museum

Born on July 27, 1768, Marie-Anne Charlotte de Corday d'Armont spent her early years in her family home, a house in Saint-Saturnin-des-Ligneries, Orne, in Normandy. Her parents were aristocrats, but Charlotte's older sister and their mother died when she was still young. Her father could not cope with the grief, and Charlotte and her younger sister were sent to an abbey.

There, Charlotte spent many hours reading, and she was especially interested in literature that focused on the responsibility of citizens toward their country. People need to understand their duties towards the country. She was fascinated by how Brutus killed Julius Caesar in the name of freedom, the tragedian Pierre Corneille, and Plutarch, Raynal, and Rousseau.

Normandy was poor. People did not have bread, and one day, they had enough. They attacked a transport delivering bread. A young officer responsible for the delivery was killed. His head was placed on a pole, and the mob went to the abbey where Corday was staying. These hungry people thought the nuns had more bread than they could get.

Corday's birth house in Normandy.

Corday's birth house in Normandy. Credit: Sylvain Lumbroso

It may have been an event that changed Corday. She was later sent to a relative in Caen, and while living there, she began to sympathize with the Girondins, the moderate republicans of her time.

Corday was skeptical about the direction the French Revolution was taking. She disapproved of the violence and believed there must be another solution to deal with the dramatic political situation. She spent many hours reading books in her room, and she followed everything that was taking place in the country.

Charlotte Corday Disapproved Of The Radical Movement

Corday opposed the Montagnards, who supported a radical approach to the Revolution. The Montagnards believed that the only way to end all opposition was through terror, civil war, and execution of all who opposed the new reforms.

Beware Madame la Guillotine: Travel to the French Revolution with Murderess Charlotte Corday

 

Time-travel to 1793 and the French Revolution with this historical drama narrated by Charlotte Corday, a 24-year-old schoolgirl-turned-murderess. Find out why she abandoned her family to stalk radical leader Jean-Paul Marat. Read more

The most radical individual was Jean-Paul Marat, a journalist who gained power through his newspaper, L'Ami du Peuple ("When in Rome"). Marat was a member of the radical Jacobin faction, which had a leading role during the Reign of Terror.

Marat promoted violence, and Corday hated him. She held him responsible for several deaths, and she disapproved of the execution of King Louis XVI.

Corday was a woman who knew she could never gain political influence and power. So, she decided what, according to her, only a woman could do – kill Marat.

Corday Travels To Paris

She told her friends and relatives that she was going to England because she could no longer live in a country torn by violence. After burning her papers. she took the coach to Paris on June 9 and arrived on June 11. In Paris, she took a room at the Hôtel de la Providence and then went to Deperret. Her goal was to kill Marat when he attended the sessions of the Convention, but her plans were ruined because he was ill and confined to his lodgings.

Charlotte Corday being conducted to her execution. By Arturo Michelena, 1889.

Charlotte Corday being conducted to her execution. By Arturo Michelena, 1889.

Corday was not ready to give up. She changed her plans. On the morning of July 13, Corday went straight to Marat's house in the Rue des Cordeliers. Marat's wife, Simonne Evrard, opened the door and said her husband did not receive visitors. Corday gave Simonne a note she had written before and asked her to provide it to Marat. The letter she left stated that she had vital information for Marat concerning certain Girondin conspiracies at Caen.

Corday returned to the hotel and waited for a reply, but nothing happened, and she sent another letter to Marat seeking an interview. In the evening, a little after seven o'clock, Corday arrived at Marat's house, where she was met again by Simonne and two housekeepers.

After some arguments, Simonne said that Marat could see Corday.

Marat conducted most of his affairs from a bathtub because of his skin condition. Corday told him she knew about a planned Girondist uprising in Caen. Marat was interested in the information written down the Girondists' names that she gave him.

Marat said that all the persons named would soon be guillotined. Rising to her feet, Corday drew the knife and, with a great force, plunged it through the invalid's ribs into his lung and heart.

Charlotte Corday And The Assassin Of Marat – Was She A Coldblooded Murderess Or Courageous Female Hero?

Charlotte Corday N(1768-1793) French Patriot In Prison Following Her Assassination Of Jean-Paul Marat 1793 Lithograph Late 19Th Century After A Painting 1875 By Charles Louis Lucien Muller. Poster available at Amazon.com

Marat cried out in pain and sank back into the tub. He called out, Aidez-moi, ma chère amie! ("Help me, my dear friend!") and died within a minute or two.

Corday Arrested And Executed

Why did Corday kill Marat? She wanted to prevent what she believed was an impending civil war.

In the death of Jean-Paul Marat, she saw the salvation of both the Revolution and the Girondins, the moderate republicans of her time. She also sought the inevitable martyrdom that must follow her act. In her death, she would do what she could not do for France as a woman in the political assemblies in Paris.

Corday was arrested on the same evening. On July 17, 1793, four days after Marat was killed, Corday was executed by the guillotine. She was wearing a red overblouse denoting a condemned traitor who had assassinated a representative of the people. Hundreds of people came to see the execution of the female traitor. One of those who watched the execution with pleasure was Maximilien de Robespierre, one of the principal architects of the Reign of Terror.

According to some reports, a carpenter who worked on the guillotine named Legros lifted Corday's head from the basket when it fell and slapped it on the cheek. It was disrespectful and considered unacceptable. Legros was imprisoned for three months because of his outburst.

Jacobin leaders had her body autopsied immediately after her death to see if she was a virgin. They believed a man was sharing her bed and the assassination plans. To their dismay, she was found to be virgo intacta (a virgin).

Did Charlotte Corday Do The Right Thing?

Historians generally agree that Charlotte Corday's body was buried in Ditch no.5 in the cemetery of the Madeleine, rue d'Anjou-Saint-Honoré, between Dirch No.4, which held the corpse of Louis XVI.

Marat received a hero's funeral and was considered a martyr. The situation in France did not improve, and Corday's actions did nothing to help the Girondin cause.

Today, historians still discuss whether Corday did the right thing. Charlotte Corday was only 24 years old when she was executed. Perhaps she was too young to understand. She said that she opposed Marat because he believed in responding to violence with violence, but what Corday did was the same, or wasn't it?

Updated on Sep 14,  2023

Written by Ellen Lloyd – AncientPages.com

Copyright © AncientPages.com All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed in whole or part without the express written permission of AncientPages.com

Expand for references