Transcript Sans-Culottes - Mr. Lewin Summer 2013

The Radical Stage of the French
Revolution
1791-1799
Term to Know: Sans-Culottes
The term “Sans-Culottes” refers to the poor and working poor of
French cities. The term comes from their tendency to wear full-length
trousers instead of the knee-high “culottes” of the rich.
The Sans-Culottes felt left out of the Revolution, feeling that it had
been hijacked by the rich commoners (bourgeoise) and they had not
benefitted at all.
They demanded a closing of the gap
between rich and poor and a voice in the
government.
Do they have a point?
The King Flees
June, 1791
Meanwhile, the Émigré
Nobles finally wanted to
spend money…on funding a
European army planning to
invade France and undo the
Revolution.
Traveling in disguise, the King
and Queen tried to flee the
country to join and lead the
Émigrés, but were
recognized and caught near
the border.
Why would the King do
this?
Louis XVI—The Prisoner King
June, 1791
After the King was put under house-arrest in his palace, many French
for the first time considered making France a republic—a nation
without a hereditary monarch.
In any case, the King, fearing the Revolution, stopped opposing any
laws the Assembly passed.
Also, it became clear that the idea that the King and the former Nobles
were conspiring with other countries to undo the Revolution was real.
War with the Austrian Empire and perhaps other monarchies seemed
unavoidable.
Why would other countries want to help France?
At the Assembly
The Legislative Assembly (formerly the National
Assembly) was led by a group called the Girondins who:
 Generally favored the upper classes and ignored the
poor
 Called for immediate war against Austria
Why War??? The Girondins’ Case for
War
European kings were going to invade France anyway, so it
would be better to:
 Throw the first punch
 Fight the war on foreign soil instead of in France
 Get some quick early victories to show other countries that
the French would be willing to die to protect the Revolution
The Girondins also wanted war because:

War would unite the people in a common cause (and
make the Girondins heroes).

The French had a duty to spread the ideals of the
Revolution to other countries and lessen the powers
of Kings, Nobles, and Priests across Europe.
A good idea?
Why would the King support the war
and allow “his” army to fight?
 He needed to get the French on
his side again
-and
He wanted the French to LOSE
so that the other countries
would restore him to maximum
power
And the War Went…Terribly
April, 1792
Reasons the Austrian troops found themselves right outside Paris:
 2/3 of the top French officers stayed loyal to the king and either
refused to fight for the Revolution or had fled the country,
 The French Army was outmanned and outgunned as Louis XVI had
neglected France’s military preparedness,
 The Revolutionary government had trouble organizing and getting
food and supplies to the troops.
Side Effects of the War
 Food prices shot up as food was needed for the soldiers,
 Taxes went up on peasants (in some cases even higher than they were
before the Revolution) to pay for the war and get food to the soldiers,
 The French economy worsened,
 Protesting both taxes and the Assembly’s attacks on the Church, peasants
in the Vendee region had an armed uprising against the government that
took troops away from the front lines. This was known as the Vendee
Uprising, (see next slide) and it was led by former nobles and Priests,
Was it right for the peasants to turn against the Revolution?
The Vendee Uprising
The worst of the counter-revolutionary
revolts was in the Vendee region where
there had been relatively good relations
between nobles and commoners.
Counting war between the rebels and the
Revolutionary Government, slaughter
during the Reign of Terror (see slides 2627) and the war-caused disruption of the
food supply, between a third and half of
the Vendee’s population was lost in this
civil war.
Map of centers of counter-revolutionary activities
between 1793 and 1799. The Vendee Region is in the
northwest.
Paris Panics
August, 1792
With the Austrian and Prussian armies entering France, the
Sans-Culottes feared they would be slaughtered at the end of
the war either by the king or the foreign armies.
In anger at the King and in the hope that if the royal family
was dead the foreign armies would have nothing for which to
fight, a mob of Sans-Culottes attacked the King’s palace and
killed several hundred Swiss guards. Over 100 revolutionaries
were killed.
The September Massacres
September, 1792
With the foreign armies very close to Paris,
crazy rumors spread in Paris that jailed
Priests and former Nobles would break out
of jail and fight the Revolution as Paris was
being defended.
Driven by fear, patriotism and anger, a mob
of Sans-Culottes broke into prisons and
murdered more than a thousand
prisoners—mostly common thieves. This
was called the September Massacres
Understandable?
The War Turns
September, 1792
Overstretched, and reluctant to
fight in the streets of Paris, the
foreign armies were beaten at the
Battle of Valmy right outside of
Paris as everyday Parisians joined
the fight.
Although the war would continue
for another 20 years, Paris was no
longer in danger and the
Revolutionary government became
more popular.
France Becomes a Republic
September, 1792
In a close vote, the Assembly abolished the monarchy and made
France a Republic.
In December, Louis Capet (formerly Louis XVI) was found guilty of
treason and was beheaded. Marie Antionette was beheaded
shortly thereafter.
Rise of the Jacobins
Rising in popularity was an alternative to the
ruling Girondins called the Jacobins.
The Jacobins were the favorites of the SansCullottes as, although their leaders were
rich bourgeoisie, they favored programs and
government aid designed to help the poor.
But since the poor could not vote, the
Jacobins could not gain the majority in the
Assembly.
The Jacobins Take Power
June, 1793
Frustrated that once again the Sans-Cullottes had saved the Revolution (this
time by rushing to the war at Valmy) and that the Girondin-led Assembly was
only helping the middle class, a mob of 80,000 Sans-Culottes decided to seize
power. They marched to the Assembly, and took prisoner a few Girondin
leaders they did not like.
This made the Jacobins the majority in the assembly. Understandably fearing
for their lives, the Assembly and Paris accepted this turn of events.
Is this a morally acceptable action by the Sans-Cullottes?
Problems Inherited by the Jacobins
The new
Jacobin
leaders
immediately
faced a bunch
of problems:
 They were seen as not being legitimate rulers,
 The Vendee Uprising intensified in the
countryside,
 The war continued to drain France’s budget,
 Royalists (supporters of the royal family) and the
bourgeoisie wanted to undo the Revolution,
 The Sans-Cullottes expected help in return for
putting the Jacobins in power
Robespierre
The Jacobins were led by the “Incorruptible”
Maximilien Robespierre.
Robespierre wanted to “create a better society
founded on reason, good citizenship, and
patriotism. In his ‘Republic of Virtue’ there would
be no kings or Nobles, people would be free,
equal and educated, and reason would be
glorified and superstition ridiculed. There would
be no extremes of wealth or poverty.” (Perry)
Always carrying one of Rousseau’s books with
him, Robespierre thought he could channel
France’s “General Will”
Life under Robespierre:
Nationalism
In his “Republic of Virtue,” everyone was
supposed to put selfish interests aside and
work for the good of the nation:
“Young men will go to war, married men
manufacture arms and transport supplies, women
make tents and uniforms, children turn rags into
bandages, and old people…stimulate the courage of
warriors and preach the hatred of kings.”
Life Under Robespierre:
The General Economy
 Under the Law of the Maximum, bread and other essentials would
have a maximum price so it could be affordable to all.
 “Luxurious” white bread was banned, and people were expected to
eat the rough, brown “bread of equality” of the poor.
 Limits were set on the size of businesses and farms one could own in
order to put more people in the “owners’” class
 Land was taken from large farms and given
to landless peasants.
Life under Robespierre:
The War Economy
To make sure the war was won:
 All unmarried males were subject to be conscripted (drafted) into the army,
 Anyone caught hoarding food or selling it above the Law of the Maximum price would
be hanged,
 If needed, nonessential businesses would be required to produce what was needed.
For instance, instead of fancy hats, a hat maker would make army caps. A paint factory
might now make guns.
 Shoes, horses, and winter clothes would be taken from the rich and given to the army
 Food could be taken from peasants to give to the soldiers and the poor
Life under Robespierre:
Society
 To show solidarity between the classes, everyone was expected to dress no
finer than a Sans-Culotte,
 Everyone was expected to call each other “citizen” instead of Monsieur or
Madame,
 Titles of Nobility were abolished,
 The royal palace the Louvre became a museum…and still is,
 All entertainment had to promote values consistent with the “Republic of
Virtue,”
 Activities of the rich such as operas and lavish balls were discouraged,
Life under Robespierre:
Reason
 All of France adopted the reason-based Metric system
 A new calendar was introduced (will be explained in class).
1792 was now Year I.
 Education focused on reason, logic, and
love of the Revolution
 There were even plans for a ten-hour
“metric clock” that were thankfully abandoned.
Life under Robespierre:
Politics
 Anyone opposing the ironically-named “Committee of
Public Safety” would be punished.
 Almost all males could vote…in elections that were
never held
 Robespierre’s “Committee of Public Safety” had total
control with no formal opposition.
Life under Robespierre:
Religion
 Catholicism was banned, and replaced with a new reason-based religion
devised by the Jacobins called the “Cult of the Supreme Being” celebrating
the God-given gift of reason
 The Vatican quickly reminded France that all non-Catholics were hellbound
 Priests had to uphold the new religion, and could show their dedication to it
and renunciation of Catholicism by getting married.
 The wealth of the Church was sold, and church bells were melted down to
make bullets.
 The Cathedral of Notre Dame was renamed the “Temple of Reason” and all
Catholic imagery was removed.
Life under Robespierre:
The Terror
To protect the Republic of Virtue from its enemies or from those
too ignorant or brainwashed to understand the benefits of the
“Republic of Virture”, enemies had to be destroyed in a Reign of
Terror.
The majority of the 500,000 imprisoned or killed by the Jacobins
were political opponents of the Jacobins, people desiring less
central control of France by Paris, counterrevolutionary priests,
nobles, and their peasant supporters, participants in the Vendee
Uprising, and anyone profiteering in a way that hurt the Republic
as a whole.
Life under Robespierre:
The Terror
In Paris, public beheadings
became a lunch-hour entertainment. (although
contrary to popular belief, the vast majority of the
Reign of Terror’s victims lived outside of major
cities)
In the countryside, most were killed without a trial
and were unceremoniously shot.