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Revolutionary France translates Voltaire’s remains into the Panthéon

On 11 July 1791 Voltaire’s remains were moved into the Panthéon in a revolutionary civic cult. In the causal graph this event strengthens Political Polarization, a driver that weakens Having a say in government — a worsening welfare path.

Sources: [1][2]

Read the full account

On 11 July 1791 Voltaire’s remains were moved into the Panthéon in a revolutionary civic cult. He had died in 1778.

Context

A Panthéon procession can be cohesion for one public and exclusion for another. Stored as polarisation of official memory, not as his last will.

Voltaire is not the sole author of every later object, law, or museum label that uses the name. Shared work with courts, excavators, printers, spouses, officials, and later states does not erase a documented role, and it does not make an ancient person the signer of a twentieth-century statute.

Why it matters

A 1791 cart is not a 1759 book.

A 1791 cart is not a 1759 book.

Who was responsible

Contribution type and responsibility level for each recorded actor — not sole-author shorthand.

  • Voltaire

    Person

    Direct responsibility

    responsibility level 0.2 · verified

    Dated act under Voltaire as author, investor, or campaigner. Printers, kings, and lawyers share labour.

What changed

Fact → Driver → Indicator. Relationship strength orders the paths; it is not the observed indicator movement.

    1. FactRevolutionary France translates Voltaire’s remains into the Panthéon
    2. strengthensDriverPolitical Polarization
    3. weakensIndicators (2)Having a say in government
    Worsening path

    impact weight 0.3 · Effect from 11 July 1791 · verified

    A 1791 cart is not a 1759 book.

    • Having a say in government

      via Political Polarization

      Worse

      Weakens · Relationship strength 0.14 (weight 0.3 × strength 0.45)

      Observed

      29.8% of population aged 16-65 years · 8.13 below the normal line (2023)

      Worse than normal

      Two readings: 30.2% of population aged 16-65 years (2021) and 29.8% of population aged 16-65 years (2023).

      20212023

      Above normal = better

    • Rule of Law Gap from the Highest Governance Score

      via Political Polarization

      Worse

      Strengthens · Relationship strength 0.14 (weight 0.3 × strength 0.45)

      Observed

      43.9 Score · 43.9 above the normal line (2024)

      Worse than normal

      26 readings, 1996–2024: rose from 43 Score to 43.9 Score.

      Normal is zero · any amount = worse

Evidence

The sources behind this fact and its verification state.

Verified2 sources on file
  1. 1.Britannica — VoltaireEncyclopaedia Britannica · High credibility · verified
  2. 2.Archives nationales (France)Archives nationales · High credibility · verified
What the sources establish

Later competitions, monuments, translations, UNESCO listings, and museums are not converted into extra lifetime acts. That reading is an impact-path choice, not a property stored on the Fact itself. Confidence is stated on the impact path. A later English edition is not a recovered autograph. If a number is not in the two records named above, it is not supplied here. Confidence is stated on the impact path.

Causal path

How this event connects to drivers and indicators in the graph.

  1. ActorVoltaire
  2. contributed toFactRevolutionary France translates Voltaire’s remains into the Panthéon
  3. strengthensDriverPolitical Polarization
  4. weakensIndicatorHaving a say in government

Cite this page

Factrail. (2026). Revolutionary France translates Voltaire’s remains into the Panthéon. Factrail. https://factrail.ai/facts/vo-pantheon-1791

https://factrail.ai/facts/vo-pantheon-1791

Accessed 16 October 2026.

By the Factrail desk · Method: how we source and score · Last reviewed

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