Approximately how many people were executed during the Reign of Terror?

• A. 40,000
• B. 4,000
• C. 400
• D. 400,000

Answer: (A)

During the Reign of Terror, the revolutionary authorities used extraordinary measures to root out enemies of the Revolution, with the guillotine and Revolutionary Tribunal signaling the scale of repression. The aim was to deter traitors and solidify control, which led to a very large number of executions across France. The figure most commonly cited in history texts and exams for the total executed is about forty thousand. This estimate reflects the broad reach of the Terror, affecting not only high-profile figures but many ordinary people swept up in revolutionary justice. While some sources place lower numbers, around sixteen thousand executed by guillotine, the broader tally used in standard study contexts is near forty thousand. The other options are far from this scale: four thousand undercounts the reach, four hundred is far too small, and four hundred thousand would imply an incomparably larger wave of violence for the period.