On 6 April 1793 the National Convention created the Committee of Public Safety to defend the French Republic against the threat of foreign invasion and internal rebellion. In effect it formed the executive government in France. It was particularly influential under the leadership of Robespierre from August 1793 to July 1794, but was disestablished in 1795.
The idea for a committee to centralize power was first suggested by the Girondist leader Maximin Isnard. It was initially created under the leadership of George Danton, but when it was recomposed after the fall of the Girondists in July 1793, Danton was excluded. With Robespierre’s election to the committee on 27 July it became a de facto dictatorship. Responsible for applying the decrees of the National Convention, it implemented policy throughout the Reign of Terror.