Plain (La Plaine)

E76013

Plain (La Plaine) was the centrist, non-aligned group of deputies in the French National Convention during the Revolution, positioned between the radical Montagnards and the moderate Girondins.


Statements (48)
Predicate Object
instanceOf parliamentary faction
political group
alsoKnownAs La Plaine
Le Marais
characterizationByHistorians centrist majority
opportunistic
country France
decisionMakingStyle pragmatic
endTime 1795
era late 18th century
governingBodyOf deputies representing various French departments
governmentalRole legislative decision-making
hadNoFormalPartyStructure true
historicalPeriod French Revolution
historicalRegion First French Republic
historicalSignificance embodied the centrist majority of the French Revolution’s main assembly
ideologicalAlignment non-aligned
influenceAfterThermidor shifted toward more moderate policies
influencedBy political circumstances rather than fixed doctrine
influencePeak during the Reign of Terror
languageOfName French
legislativeBody French National Convention
locatedInChamber center benches of the Convention
membershipSize largest grouping in the Convention
membershipType deputies of the National Convention
namedAfter its seating on the lower, flat part of the hall
notableEventParticipation trial of Louis XVI
notableFor lack of strong ideological cohesion
operatedIn French National Convention
opposedBy Girondins
Montagnards
opposedFaction Girondins
Montagnards
parliamentaryChamberType unicameral revolutionary assembly
politicalFunction mediating group between radical and moderate factions
politicalPosition centrist
moderate
politicalSystemContext revolutionary France
positionRelativeToGirondins more radical
positionRelativeToMontagnards more moderate
roleInConvention swing vote between Montagnards and Girondins
startTime 1792
tendencyDuringTerror largely followed Montagnards under pressure
typicalPolicyPreference order and stability over ideological extremes
typicalSocialBackground middle-class deputies
votedOn execution of Louis XVI
votingBehavior often decisive in close votes
votingPatternDescription often followed whichever side seemed ascendant

Referenced by (2)

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