What happened to the prisons of Paris after the Bastille was stormed?
The storming of the Bastille in 1789 represented the beginning of the Revolution. But at the time it was stormed by a Paris mob, only six prisoners occupied the 400-year-old structure. The revolutionaries were seeking the weapons that were stored in the building. Bastille Day is celebrated in France each July 14 with celebrations centered at the Bastille monument. However, imprisonment hardly came to a halt with the storming of the Bastille. At the height of the Reign of Terror, several prisons throughout Paris swelled with inmates. Just before trial, most prisoners were moved to the Conciergerie, where they awaited trial before the Revolutionary Tribunal. Prisoners were frequently sentenced and executed on the same day. Over the course of the Revolution, the definition of crimes against the Revolution became more vague. Those crimes came to include conspiracy against the republic, statements favoring the return of the monarchy, and even expressions of grief at the execution of a loved
