French Revolution-Guillaume Chretien de Lamoignon de Malesherbes (6 December 1721  23 April 1794), often referred to as Malesherbes or Lamoignon-Malesherbes, was a French statesman, minister, and afterwards counsel for the defence of Louis XVI.Malesherbes in December 1792, in spite of the fair excuse his old age and long retirement would have given him, he voluntarily left his asylum and undertook, with Fran?ois Tronchet and Raymond Des?ze, the defence of the king before the Convention, and it was his painful task to break the news of his condemnation to the king. with Fran?ois Tronchet and Raymond Des?ze, the defence of the king before the Convention, and it was his painful task to break the news of his condemnation to the king. After this effort he returned once more to the country, but in December 1793 he was arrested with his daughter, his son-in-law M. de Rosanbo, and his grandchildren, imprisoned in the Prison Port-Libre, and on the 23 April 1794 he was guillotined in Paris, after having seen all whom he loved in the world executed before his eyes for their relationship to him. (illustration by Yan' Dargent 1824-1899).