Accomplished revolutionary ripped apart French philosopher (7)
I believe the answer is:
diderot
'french philosopher' is the definition.
(I know that Diderot is a philosopher)
'accomplished revolutionary ripped apart' is the wordplay.
'accomplished' becomes 'did' (to do something is to accomplish it).
'revolutionary' shows that the letters should be reversed in order (letters revolve around).
'ripped apart' becomes 'tore' (I've seen this in another clue).
'tore' in reverse letter order is 'erot'.
'did'+'erot'='DIDEROT'
(Other definitions for diderot that I've seen before include "Denis --, French philosopher; odd rite (anag.)" , "Denis --, French philosopher and encyclopedist" , "Denis ---, Fr. encyclopaedist" , "Denis --- Fr. encyclopedist, D. editor (anag)" .)