26 February 1894

Terrorism and Anarchism

In February 1894 a bomb placed by an anarchist in the Paris railway station Gare St. Lazaire created an enormous fear of anarchism. This was the background for summoning the anarchist Jean Grave to court on 26 February. Grave was accused of having written a book that incited to violence. The book in question, La Société Mourante et l'Anarchie, had been published more than a year earlier. Thanks to this court case, Grave (1854-1939) became widely known. Various famous writers demanded his release based on the right to free speech. But Grave was sentenced to two years in prison. In June of that same year the fear of anarchists was reinforced when an Italian anarchist murdered the French president Sadi Carnot.

See also:

•  Augustin Hamon papers
•  Lucien Descaves papers
•  Search IISH collections for 'Jean Grave'

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