Sansculottids

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The Sansculottides (also Epagomenen ; French Sans-culottides , Sanculottides , jours complementaires , jours épagomènes ) form the end of the year of the republican calendar of the French Revolution . They follow the Fructidor , they are followed by the Vendémiaire of the next year. They were still assigned to the summer quarter.

The sans-culottes, named after the revolutionary sans-culottes , are the supplementary days that are required to mark the beginning of the year on the autumn equinox . There were five sans-culottids in the normal year and six in the leap year (after that the name of the leap year année sextile ). The sansculottides start on September 17th or 18th and end between September 21st , 22nd or 23rd .

History of origin

In the decree of October 5, 1793 ( 14. du 1er mois II, later 14th Vendémiaire II ) the supplementary days were named and numbered jours complementaires . Only the leap day ( jour intercalaire ) was given a name:

  1. première jour complémentaire
  2. seconde jour complémentaire
  3. troisième jour complémentaire
  4. quatrième jour complémentaire
  5. cinquième jour complémentaire
  6. jour de la revolution

The other days, decades and months were also numbered. The poet Fabre d'Églantine in his discourse on calendar reform on October 24th ( 3rd du 2e mois, later 3rd Brumaire ) led this naming rhetorically ad absurdum ( le premier jour de la première decade du premier mois de la première année ) and suggested naming the days of the month, the days of the decade and the months before. For the jours complementaires he introduced the term sansculottides . He suggested the following names for the individual days:

  1. fête du génie (festival of the spirit)
    According to d'Églantine's proposal, the fête du génie should be dedicated to the most valuable and useful for the Fatherland achievements of the human spirit of the past year.
  2. fête du travail ( Labor Festival)
    At the fête du travail , hard work, physical labor and the production of useful things should be the focus.
  3. fête des actions (festival of (good) deeds)
    At the fête des actions , good deeds that brought help not to the nation but to individual people should be committed and publicly praised.
  4. fête des récompenses (festival of rewards)
    At the fête des récompenses , selected people who had distinguished themselves in the past three days were to be publicly recognized and awarded.
  5. fête de l'opinion (festival of opinion)
    At the fête de l'opinion , criticism of the administration and government should be allowed to run free. This should take the form of songs, caricatures and ironic-sarcastic mockery. Fabre d'Églantine commented, "I dare say that this one day will induce officials to do their duty more than even a draconian law can do."
  6. la sans-culottide / la Sanculottide
    The Sanculottide , celebrated every leap year, was supposed to be the festival of the fatherland and national unity. The different parts of the country should send representatives to the capital to get to know the others and celebrate with them.

On November 24, 1793, these proposals were accepted with minor changes. The name fêtes Sansculotides (with a t) was introduced for the supplementary days . The spellings Sans-culotides and Sans-culottides also occurred. The fête des actions was put first and called fête de la vertu . The fête des récompenses came to the last position of the normal year and the leap day kept its previous name:

  1. fête de la vertu (Festival of Virtue)
  2. fête du génie (festival of the spirit)
  3. fête du travail (Labor Festival)
  4. fête de l'opinion (festival of opinion)
  5. fête des récompenses (festival of rewards)
  6. fête de la Révolution (Revolution Day)

On August 24, 1795 (7th Fructidor III) with the introduction of the leap year rule, the supplementary days were renamed back to jours complémentaires . Officially, only the supplementary days of year II were called sans-culottids. In German historiography, however, the name Sansculottiden has been preserved.

The fête du travail is also known as the fête du labor . The fête de l'opinion is also called fête de l'option (festival of choice) or fête de la raison (festival of reason). A four-year cycle of the calendar was named la Franciade . This name was also used unofficially for the leap day.

Conversion table

Conversion table between the Republican and Gregorian calendar
for the "Sansculottids"
Common years
  I. II. IV. V. VI.
Fete de la
vertu		 Fête du
génie		 Fete you
travail		 Fete de
l'opinion		 Fête des
recompenses
17th 18th 19th 20th 21st
September 1793 1794 1796 1797 1798
Leap years
  III. VII.      
Fete de la
vertu		 Fête du
génie		 Fete you
travail		 Fete de
l'opinion		 Fête des
recompenses		 Celebration of the
Revolution
17th 18th 19th 20th 21st 22nd
September 1795 1799      
  VIII. IX. X. XII. XIII.
Fete de la
vertu		 Fête du
génie		 Fete you
travail		 Fete de
l'opinion		 Fête des
recompenses
18th 19th 20th 21st 22nd
September 1800 1801 1802 1804 1805
  XI.        
Fete de la
vertu		 Fête du
génie		 Fete you
travail		 Fete de
l'opinion		 Fête des
recompenses		 Celebration of the
Revolution
18th 19th 20th 21st 22nd 23
September 1803        

Conversion example

The Fête du génie XI is to be determined .

Year XI can be found in the leap year table below. Below that is the Gregorian year 1803 . Under the Fête du génie of this table there is a 19. Since the month is always September , the Gregorian date is September 19, 1803 .

See also: Conversion table between Gregorian and Republican calendars

Web links