Terreur

Terreur is the French noun for terror, meaning extreme fear or an atmosphere of violence and intimidation. In political and historical contexts, it also denotes the use of fear as a method of control by a government or faction, often described as state terror or political terror.

Historically, the term is closely associated with La Terreur, the Reign of Terror during the French Revolution (approximately September 1793 to July 1794). The revolutionary government, led by the Committee of Public Safety and figures such as Robespierre, employed mass arrests, political tribunals, and executions by guillotine to suppress counterrevolution and dissent. The exact death toll is debated; official tribunals sentenced thousands, with additional deaths in prisons and during war. The period ended after Robespierre's fall from power in July 1794.

In contemporary usage, "terreur" describes fear-driven policy, including coercive policing and suppression of opposition. The expression appears in political theory as "state terror" and in cultural contexts as a motif in literature and film to evoke fear.

Related terms include terreur d'État, terrorisme, and the English "terror" or "terrorism."