Francois Babeuf

[redcannon]

i heard that Francois Babeuf had the power of 17000 men behind him and almost started a revolution in france, but a member of his inner circle turned on him and he was executed. can anybody verify this? were we really that close?

[chimx]

I don't know where you got 17,000, but I was always under the impression that Babeuf's "conspiracy of equals" was relatively small--though I couldn't guess at a figure.

His plans were betrayed by someone who was involved with his secret society, and also part of the Farmy or police I believe.

I don't know what you mean by really being "that close" though. Babeuf's ideology was pretty vague. Whether he advocated the elimination of private property altogether, or simply equal distribution of it is unclear. I suggest you check out Buonarroti's writings on Babeuf's economic decree from the link below.

What is most important about Babeuf is his proto-communist legacy within Europe. Years after Babeuf was put to death, his friend and co-conspirator Buonarroti wrote a history about Babeuf and the need for secret societies to seize power. Buonarroti had a follower that many of you have probably heard of called Blanqui. Blanqui combined Buonarroti's idea of secret societies with his own term he coined called, "the dictatorship of the proletariat." Marx and Engels then borrowed this term for Blanqui. Neat! (though you should note, many Marxists deny the connection)

You may want to check out the Babeuf Archive:
http://marxists.org/history/france/revolut...quals/index.htm (http://marxists.org/history/france/revolution/conspiracy-equals/index.htm)

[redcannon]

i got the 17000 figure from Monarch Notes: Marxist and Utopian Socialists