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“The foulest and most atrocious deed”. What is British Prime Minister William Pitt the Younger (1759-1806) describing in 1793?

Answer: The execution of King Louis XVI of France in (1754-1793). The belief at the time was that this regicide would make war between Britain and France almost inevitable.

This indeed was the case, culminating in the 1815 Battle of Waterloo, where French emperor Napoleon would finally be defeated.

On the 200th anniversary of the start of the French Revolution in 1979, some French historians were arguing that its effects were still being felt.

Source: William Pitt the Younger by William Hague

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