Theroigne de Mericourt: Woman of the French Revolution

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Singer, orator and revolutionary

Belgian born Anne-Josephe Theroigne (Terwagne) of Mericourt (Marcourt) was active as an agitating revolutionary agent in the Austrian held Low Countries towards the end of the eighteenth century. In 1789, dressed as a man, she was present at the National Assembly in Paris where she engaged in promoting the French Revolution and the rights of women. In 1791 these activities resulted in her being imprisoned by the Austrians. When she returned to Paris in 1792, she was welcomed as a heroine, but went on to suffer continual criticisms of her character for alleged sexual immorality. Her alliance with the moderate Girondin political party resulted in radical Jacobin women turning against her, and in the spring of 1793 in the Jardin de Tuileries she was stripped naked, severley beaten and might well have been killed but for the intervention of Jean-Paul Marat, who would later be assassinated himself. Theroigne went on to suffer painful headaches and developed mental disorders. Her behaviour became progressively more erratic and in 1794 she was certified insane and committed to an asylum where she remained until her death in 1817, aged 54 years.