Le Vieux Cordelier
 First issue of Le Vieux Cordelier
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| Type | Daily newspaper |
|---|---|
| Format | Broadsheet |
| Editor | Camille Desmoulins |
| Founded | 5 December 1793 |
| Political alignment |
Dantonism; Moderatism |
| Language | French |
| Ceased publication | 3 February 1794 |
| Headquarters | Paris, French Republic |
| Circulation | unknown |
Le Vieux Cordelier (French: [lə vjø kɔʁdəlje]) was a journal published in France between 5 December 1793 and 3 February 1794. Its radical criticism of ultra-revolutionary fervor and repression in France during the Reign of Terror contributed significantly to the downfall and execution of the Dantonists, among whom its author, the journalist Camille Desmoulins, numbered. It comprised seven numbers, of which six appeared; the seventh remained unpublished for some forty years.
French native born March 2, 1760, in Guise, France. Desmoulins' role as a journalist led him to the production of Le Vieux Cordelier. Desmoulins personally struggled in his attempts to become a lawyer; despite his acceptance in law school as well into parlement of Paris, Desmoulins found himself inadequate to continue his career as lawyer. Primarily because of his unruly temper. Nevertheless, he still continued his strife to contribute to a reconstructed government. As a Jacobin radical, Desmoulins was not the only one that contributed to these efforts, his close friends Maximilien Robespierre and Georges Danton played significant roles alongside him. This friendship lasted up until, both Desmoulins and Danton (among fifteen other revolutionists), were put on trial for their contribution to the revolution, their executions exemplified the reign of terror tumbling down.
The title of the Vieux Cordelier ("Old Cordelier") refers to the Cordeliers Club, an influential revolutionary society that, from its relatively moderate origins under Danton, had come to be associated with ultra-revolutionary factions – principally the followers of journalist Jacques René Hébert. Desmoulins sought to ally his journal's arguments with the less extreme politics of the earlier, "old" Cordeliers, while simultaneously repudiating the violent, anti-religious Hébertists. In this goal, Desmoulins was supported by Maximilien Robespierre, who viewed the Vieux Cordelier's attacks on the Hébertists as an effective means of reducing the faction's power and popularity. However, later numbers of the journal introduced criticisms of the Revolutionary Tribunal, the Committee of Public Safety, and Robespierre himself.
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