Sans-Culottes : Sans-Culottes The Peoples revolution
Definition : Definition Sans-culottes (French for without knee-breeches) was a term used, originally during the early years of the French Revolution, to refer to the poorly clad and ill-equipped volunteers of the Revolutionary army, and later generally to the extremist democrats of the Revolution.
Slide 3 : Sans-culottes were a prominent political group at the end of the nineteenth century, and played a large role in the French Revolution. The sans-culottes movement was important to the Revolution of 1789 and later revolutions, because it was one of the first working class groups that used both political goals with its social values.
The sans-culottes were for the most part members of the poorer classes, but during the Reign of Terror, well educated and well off members of the Parisian social hierarchy referred to themselves as citoyens sans-culottes.
Fashion : Fashion The distinctive costume of typical sans-culottes featured:
The pantalon (long trousers) - in place of the culottes (knee-breeches) worn by the upper classes
The carmagnole (short-skirted coat)
The red cap of liberty
Sabots (wooden shoes).
Fashion Beliefs : Fashion Beliefs The elite members of the sans-culotte preferred the trousers of the working-man. They hated the breeches of the aristocracy or upper-middle classes. They felt that all classes were equal and, therefore, should not be segregated by fashion. The Sans-culotte preferred the pike to the sword or gun for their weapon of choice. Due to the fact that it was easily constructible. It evened the playing field between the lower class revolutionaries and the king's army.
Political beliefs : Political beliefs Socially, the views of the sans-culottes were anything but definite. The politics of any member depended on personal goals, professional jealousies, and economic factors. Although their politics could differ, sans-culottes did hold many political opinions in common
Sans-culottes believed in the ideology that all men were equal.
Ideally, each citizen would own one piece of property, such as a farm or shop, and no one would control large enterprises or estates.
The sans-culotte were not opposed to the concept of private property, but did despise the indulgent wealth by the bourgeoisie and the elite aristocrats.
Beliefs continued : Beliefs continued Food should be taken from big landowners and grain-merchants and to be given to small workshops, to dispersed the food among its employees.
They called for a radical Republic based on Direct Democracy.
They wanted a tax on the rich, based on ones ability to pay.
Revolution of 1789 : Revolution of 1789 The Sans-Culottes were among the prominent losers of the first, more subtle revolution. While the middle class and wealthy classes benefited greatly from the revolution, the sans-culottes saw their livelihoods disappearing and inflation driving them to fight for survival. Of all the groups of France, the views and actions of the sans-culottes is what drove the more radical revolution from 1792 to 1794
Forming of the National Assembly : Forming of the National Assembly During this period the Sans-Culottes did not even exist as a political party, though the people that make up the group did, in an unorganized form, they had almost no say during this period of the revolution leaving it up to the middle/upper-classes.
Fall of the Bastille : Fall of the Bastille Though the Sans-Culottes still did not officially exist at this point, its beliefs were still being put forward. The rumors of massing of troops and the increase in food prices agitated the lower-class casting a grim mood over the city of Paris. The situation build over when a mob of more then 800 people stormed the Bastille in Paris searching for weapons, during the confusion the order to fire was given to the French soldiers inside and 93 rioters lay dead in the streets. However the rioters gained entrance to the Bastille, they did not find any weapons and only freed seven prisoners all of whom were not being held for political reasons.
Great Fear : Great Fear The agitation caused by raising food prices and the presence of soldiers was not limited to the cities of France the country side as similarly effected, the Great Fear was the lower-class’s reaction to these threats to their livelihoods, they swept through the country side burning documents and the refusal to pay taxes. On August 4 the Nobles gave in to the would be Sans-Culottes and gave up their noble rights and privileges effectively making all men in France equal, which was a great victory to the Sans-Culottes ideology.
The Declaration of the Rights of Man and Citizen : The Declaration of the Rights of Man and Citizen Another grate victory for the Sans-Culottes belief system was the Declaration of the Rights of Man and citizen, this document put on paper what the Sans-Culottes would strive for, equality for all despite social status of wealth. It also dictated that taxes would be determined on the “capacity to pay”. These two ideals were another step forward for the sans-culottes though they still faced many problems as a people, food prices were still increasing on an almost daily basis, and the gap between the rich and poor was still as wide as ever.
The Royal Family Returns : The Royal Family Returns The would be sans-culottes made their will herd again on October 5 when 7,000 women marched on Versailles demanding more food. The king was forced to return to Paris with his family, otherwise he risked the mob storming his palace and possibly executing him on the spot. This even was important to the revolution because it was the first example of a populace directing the “language of popular sovereignty… against the monarch”
Reconstruction of France : Reconstruction of France The Sans-Culottes factored little in the Reconstruction as they were not a political group yet they had no say in the proceedings. The assembly sought to repress the Sans-Culottes, despite the fact that they believed that every one was equal before the law they did not extend that belief to the social standings of the people. The assembly also did not want an “extensive democracy” something that the Sans-Culottes strived for. As for the Civil Constitution of the Clergy it Angered many peasants especially in the west of France who had grown up for generations under the church, this led to even more distrust and hatred to the upper-class’s as the peasants felt that they were confiscating lands for their own selfish purposes.
Second Revolution : Second Revolution This is the time in which the Sans-Culottes first raised their head as a major political force. Friction was appearing among the members of the assembly as many such as the Sans-Culottes wanted the revolution to go further then it had. while mounting distrust of the King thanks to the Declaration of Pillnitz was pushing other groups for an absolute democracy void of a King.
Jacobins : Jacobins The Beliefs of the Sans-Culottes were far more radical than what many of the Jacobins had in mind. However, more radical Jacobins sympathized with the sans-culottes and began to work with them. This radical group of Jacobins were called the Mountain, because they took the highest seats in the Assembly. Under this partnership the convention came more under their control, it turned its attention to doing away with the monarchy. In December of 1792, the Convention put Louis XVI on trial. The Girondists and more moderate Jacobins struggled to save his life, but the Convention narrowly voted to execute him. On January 31, 1793, he was beheaded.
Enrages : Enrages One of the most important factions of the Sans-Culottes during this time was the Enrages, a term applied to a small group of Parisian radical’s in the French Revolution. Rising prices and food shortages provoked them in February of 1793, to pillage the city’s food stores. Led by Jacques Roux, they demanded strict economic controls and successfully demanded for the overthrow of the Girondists. To maintain popular support in a time of crisis, the government granted many of their demands in the early months of the Reign of Terror. However they arrested many of their leaders.
Roux : Roux One such leader that was arrested was Jacques Roux. He was a member of the Commune of Paris of August 1792. As a leader of the enrages in the Paris sections, he helped to instigate several food riots in Paris. After his arrest he committed suicide in January 1794. After his death Jacques René Hébert became the leader of the Enrages.
Reign of Terror : Reign of Terror During the Reign the Sans-Culottes allied themselves closely with the Committee of Public Safety when they stormed the convention and demanded the expulsion of the Girondist’s. The Committee then issued a Levee en masse which effectively conscripted thousands of Sans-Culottes into the army. To maintain the support of the Sans-Culottes the Committee fulfilled one of the main goals from the beginning of the Sans-Culottes, a limit on the price of food. However the alliance to the Committee would eventually be their undoing, as the Committee allied itself with the S-C for only as long as it suited them and when the Committee was dragged down they dragged the S-C down with them. Ironicly the vast majority of those executed by the Reign of Terror was its biggest supporters the Sans-Culottes
Dechristianization : Dechristianization With the departure from Christian beliefs and their calendar, The Republican Calendar at first termed several days at the end of the year Sans-culottides, this was again a attempt to gain the support of the Sans-Culottes. However, the National Convention suppressed the name after the fall of Robespierre and the Reign of terror. Many of those Sans-Culottes who opposed the Civil constitution of the Clergy where in support of the dechristianization. This seems to be because of the fact that it substituted religion with another religion instead of suppressing the current one.
Fall of the Sans-Culottes : Fall of the Sans-Culottes With the fall of Robespierre in may 1794 the influence of the sans-culottes ceased with the Thermidorian Reaction and anyone attempting to use the name effectively committed political suicide. With the suicide of Roux and the fall of Hébert, sans-culotte power was neutralized completely. The sans-culotte dress also disappeared being replaced by the knee-breeches of the upper and middle classes. After the fall the lower-classes no longer had any say as a political group. This is clearly showed that after the war, the support of the S-C was no longer needed so the ceiling of food prices was revoked, causing hundreds of food riots all over the country. Some former Sans-Culottes turned to the royalist rebels though they were put down just as harshly as the food riots were. The fall of Robespierre effectively ended the reign of the Sans-Culottes once and for all.