What was Paine’s role in the French Revolution?
Paine played a similar role in the French Revolution to that in the American Revolution. His Common Sense was translated into French and was widely read, which greatly spurred on the forces against monarchy and for democracy. He wrote Rights of Man in defense of the French Revolution against the attacks of England, and he was greeted in France as a hero and elected to the Assembly. There he took a leading role in writing the French Constitution and fought for universal suffrage. But he lost that fight, was sentenced to death, and barely escaped execution. Rights of Man became the vehicle which spread the ideals of the French Revolution around the world. Many of his most significant and impactful works were done in France in the 1790s.