Of all the many personal tragedies of the Revolutionary epoch, none seems more poignant than the death of Condorcet, the great exponent of human progress, alone in his prison cell. The nature of his death remains uncertain; did he attempt to take charge of his fate by an act of suicide or did he merely succumb, more mundanely but mercifully, to a medical condition - a heart attack or a stroke? Here are a few notes on the lead up to Condorcet's arrest, and what is know of his final end.
In the rue Servandoni - With Mme de Vernet
On 8th July 1793 Condorcet's arrest was decreed by the Convention and his possessions seized. A few days later, his name appeared with those of Brissot, Valazé, Gensonné and Vergniaud, on the list of Girondin deputies condemned to death for conspiracy against the Republic. Condorcet now published an open letter, justifying his flight from "tyranny". He immediately left his house at 505 rue de Lille and fled first to Auteuil, where he had a pied-à-terre at no.2 Grande-Rue. The doctors Pinel and Boyer, friends of Cabanis and of Félix Vicq d'Azir managed to find him refuge in Paris with a widow, Mme de Vernet, at 21 rue des Fossoyeurs, now 15 rue Servandoni.
Although they were not previously acquainted, Mme de Vernet, with considerable generosity of spirit, sheltered and provided for him. For the next eight months he lived quietly, dividing his days between working, reading and the society of the household. His wife, who at this time made ends meet by portrait-painting, was able to visit him once or twice a week; she came on foot from Auteuil, disguised as a peasant and would mingle with the crowds from the guillotine so as not to be noticed. He was also able to receive a few intimate friends - Cabanis, Diannyère, Cardot. Mme de Vernet's lodger, Marcoz, who was deputy for Mont-Blanc, furnished him with books (he devoured "an enormous quantity of novels"), newspapers and news from the Convention. At the end of October, unsurprisingly, he was thrown into a state of considerable agitation by the execution of his fellow Girondists.
