“A whiff of grapeshot.”

— Thomas Carlyle

Pt. I, Bk. V, ch. 3.
1830s, The French Revolution. A History (1837)

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Thomas Carlyle 481

Scottish philosopher, satirical writer, essayist, historian… 1795–1881

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“Give them a whiff of grapeshot.”

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This is often quoted as a command Napoleon issued when dispersing mobs marching on the National Assembly in Paris (5 October 1795), or it is occasionally stated that he boasted "I gave them a whiff of grapeshot" sometime afterwards, but the first known use of the term "whiff of grapeshot" is actually by Thomas Carlyle in his work The French Revolution (1837), describing the use of cannon salvo [salve de canons] against crowds, and not even the use of them by Napoleon.
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Context: Gods are fragile things, they may be killed by a whiff of science or a dose of common sense. They thrive on servility and shrink before independence. They feed upon worship as kings do upon flattery. That is why the cry of gods at all times is "Worship us or we perish."

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