20. Charlotte Corday changed the course of the French Revolution
Charlotte Corday was a member of a political group which opposed the violent radicalism of the Jacobins in revolutionary France. The Jacobins believed that the means of avoiding an all-out civil war in France was identifying and executing those who opposed them, which led to France’s memorable Reign of Terror. Jean-Paul Marat was a noted leader of the Jacobins, publisher of a newspaper which presented their views and supported their actions. Corday killed him by stabbing him to death while he soaked in a therapeutic bath, an act for which she was sent to the guillotine. The Reign of Terror intensified after her crime, as the Jacobins increased their efforts to destroy their enemies.