20 Vendémiaire
An CCXXXV
Étienne-François Letourneur
Letourneur – a victim of providence or a rigged draw? In the spring of 1797, just before the first drawing of lots to determine which Director would leave office, parliamentary elections had brought significant gains for moderate and royalist forces. This gave what was intended as a routine procedure considerable political significance. Directors Carnot and Letourneur accepted the election results – Barras, Reubell and La Révellière-Lépaux did not. From the perspective of these three staunch republicans, Letourneur's departure was ideal, since Carnot was useful as an organiser of the Revolutionary Wars. The lot did indeed fall to Letourneur. Little wonder that suspicions later arose that chance had been given a helping hand. Whether those suspicions were justified remains unknown to this day. But a few months later, the triumvirate within the government did take action with the coup of 18 Fructidor.
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1751 - 1817
- March 15, 1751 · Born in Granville, in the department of Manche.
- 1768 · Enters the military engineering school in Mézières. He begins a career as an engineering officer.
- September 1791 · Elected as a deputy for the department of Manche to the Legislative Assembly.
- September 1792 · Elected as a deputy to the National Convention.
- January 1793 · At the king's trial, Letourneur votes for the death penalty without conditions.
- 1793 · As a representative on mission, he takes part, among other activities, in reorganising the French Mediterranean fleet after the recapture of Toulon.
- August 1795 · Letourneur is elected to the Committee of Public Safety. This body, so powerful during the Reign of Terror, is dissolved a few months later.
- November 1795 · Letourneur becomes one of the five Directors of the Republic. Together with Carnot, he deals primarily with military affairs.
- May 19, 1797 · At the first regularly scheduled drawing of lots to determine which member of the Directory is to leave office, the lot falls to Letourneur.
- 1800 · Napoleon appoints Letourneur prefect of Loire-Inférieure.
- 1810 · Councillor at the Court of Audit.
- 1816 · He is banished from France as a regicide and moves to Belgium.
- October 4, 1817 · Dies in Laeken, near Brussels.
Quotes
This drawing of lots is merely a figure of speech that scarcely fools even the people any longer.
Diplomatic correspondence of Baron de Staël-Holstein and Baron Brinkmann, 1797
It has been said that this was the result of an arrangement. Carnot would not have agreed to such a thing. The drawing of lots was fair.
Memoirs of Carnot by his son, 1862
Since the lot has decided, I must finally leave.
Letourneur in a caricature of the drawing of lots on 30 Floréal, Year V.
Le Moniteur
30 Floréal, Year V: Letourneur is selected by lot as the outgoing Director.
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