Dechristianization of France during the French Revolution itself. There has been much scholarly debate over whether the movement was popularly motivated. The French Revolution initially began with attacks on church corruption and the wealth of the higher clergy, an action with which even many Christians could identify, since the Roman Catholic church held a dominant role in pre-revolutionary France. During a two-year period known as the Reign of Terror, the episodes of anti-clericalism grew more violent than any in modern European history. The new revolutionary authorities suppressed the church; abolished the Catholic monarchy; nationalized church property; exiled 30,000 priests and killed hundreds more. In October 1793 the
Terror (politics) Terror (politics) Terror, is from the French "terreur", from Latin "terror" meaning "great fear", a noun derived from the Latin verb "terrere" meaning "to frighten", is a policy of political repression and violence intended to subdue political opposition. The term was first used for the Reign of Terror during the French Revolution. Modern instances of terror include red terror or white terror. Before the late twentieth century, the term ""terrorism"" in the English language was often used interchangeably with ""terror"." Some contemporary writers use terrorism to refer to acts by groups with a limited political base or parties on the