Philippe Égalité
The part Philippe d'Orléans played during the summer of 1789 is one of the most debated points in the history of the French Revolution. The royal court said he was at the bottom of every popular movement, and saw the "gold of Orléans" as the cause of the Réveillon riot and the storming of the Bastille. This was like the subsequent belief held by the Jacobins that everything opposing them relied on the "gold of Pitt the Younger"). His hatred of Marie Antoinette, his previous disgrace at court, and his liberalism (alongside his friendship with Duport and Choderlos de Laclos), all seem to point towards his involvement. The Duke is also said to have deliberately withheld grain from the people of Paris, being a direct cause of the 5 October "March on Versailles". The Duke is also thought to have lied about where he was when the Palace at Versailles was stormed in the early hours of the morning on the 6th of October. He said he was at the General Assembly in Paris, yet several witness (including the Marquise de la Tour du Pin) saw him lead the bloodthirsty mob to a staircase leading to the Queen's bedroom, protected by Swiss Guard. The mob cried "Long live our King d'Orléans" during the raid.