The Terror: Death at the Guillotine (Part 4)
The Rest Is History

The Terror: Death at the Guillotine (Part 4)

B2Upper-intermediateSeptember 30, 20261 hr 31 min
  • Conversation
  • History

How did two of the French Revolution's leading figures, Georges Danton and Maximilien Robespierre, differ in their views on how to further the cause? Which scandalous conspiracy was Danton accused of being involved in that would lead him to the guillotine? And, was it true? Or the betrayal of a former ally? Join Dominic and Tom as they discuss the terrible destruction of one of the great titans of the Revolution, Georges Danton, and the connotations of his cataclysmic fall for the future of the Terror. Join The Rest Is...

Play episode

Opens the player: the full transcript, every word clickable, with translation and flashcards.

Try it: tap any word

Real sentences from the start of this episode. Every word is marked with its level.

Sentence 1 of 12 · 0:00

, ,

opening onto the plus Louis-Cowns.

Hear this sentence

Tap a word to see its meaning in your language.

Do you know these words?

8 harder words from this episode. Tap one to see what it means, then mark it.

  • B21:48
  • B212:21
  • B228:27
  • C140:18
  • B248:22
  • C158:45
  • B271:21
  • C179:37

Mark a few words and we'll tell you how this episode fits your level.

Is this episode right for you?

B2

B2 · Upper-intermediate

Comfortable if you already follow TV news

A1 35%A2 39%B1 18%B2 7%C1 1%
  • 92% of the words are B1 or easier.
  • 171 words a minute: natural, fairly fast speech.
  • 472 harder words (B2 and up) in the whole episode.

Transcript

The opening of the episode. The whole transcript is in the player.

0:00

The execution was already underway when, having crossed the Tuileries, I reached the gate opening onto the plus Louis-Cowns. From there I saw the condemned men appear one after another on the fatal stage, only to vanish at once as the plank on which their eternal rest was to begin tipped them from

0:29

view. Donton appeared last on that stage, drenched in the blood of all his friends. Day was fading. At the foot of the dreadful structure, standing out like a colossal silhouette against the sky, I saw this tribune rise up like a shade out of Dante, half lit by the dying sun, seeming as much to be emerging from the tomb as about to enter it. Nothing could match the

0:58

boldness of this revolutionary athlete's bearing. Nothing could match the formidable set of that profile defying the axe, or the expression of that head which, about to fall, still seemed to be dictating the laws. A dreadful spectacle. Time could never erase it from my memory. Now I felt the whole force of the emotion behind D'Anton's last

That was the opening. The rest of the episode (90 min) is in the player: every word clickable, with translation, saved words and flashcards.

Continue in the player

Automatically generated from the audio. May contain errors. Audio belongs to its publisher and is played from their feed. Rights holders can request removal — copyright & takedown policy