Tumbrel

A tumbrel was a type of cart used during the French Revolution, most notably for carrying condemned prisoners to the guillotine. More broadly, it can refer to any crude farm cart or dung cart, especially one used for carrying heavy or unpleasant loads. The association with the French Revolution, however, is the predominant understanding of the term.

The tumbrels used during the Reign of Terror were simple, open carts with wooden sides, typically without seats. Prisoners were crammed together inside, often in large numbers, and transported through the streets of Paris to public execution sites like the Place de la Révolution (now the Place de la Concorde). The journeys were deliberately slow and public, designed to maximize the spectacle and terror.

The term has since become synonymous with revolutionary justice, particularly the brutal and indiscriminate nature of the Reign of Terror. The image of the tumbrel laden with victims, bouncing through the cobblestone streets, remains a powerful symbol of the era's violence and chaos.