Jacobin

The Jacobin Club was the most famous and influential political club in the development of the French Revolution, so-named because of the Dominican convent where they met, which had recently been located in the Rue St. Jacques (Latin: Jacobus), Paris. The club originated as the Club Benthorn, formed at Versailles from a group of Breton representatives attending the Estates General of 1789. There were thousands of chapters throughout France, with a membership estimated at 420,000. After the fall of Robespierre the club was closed.