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French Republican Calendar of 1794, drawn by Philibert-Louis Debucourt. The French Republican calendar (French: calendrier républicain français), also commonly called the French Revolutionary calendar (calendrier révolutionnaire français), was a calendar created and implemented during the French Revolution, and used by the French government for about 12 years from late 1793 to 1805, and ...
- Germinal
- Floréal
- Prairial
- Messidor
- Thermidor
- Fructidor
- Vendémaire
- Brumaire
- Frimaire
- Nivôse
Marking the first month of spring, Germinalrefers to budding plants. Its name derives from the Latin word “germen”, meaning bud or sprout. The French novelist Emile Zola would later give the name to his famous novel of 1885.
The second spring month is Floréal, referring to the blossoming of seasonal flowers. It marks the beginning of the sign of Taurus (interestingly, many calendars associate each month with corresponding western astrological sun signs, which suggests they weren’t as purely secular as they claimed to be. A sort of “New Age” counterculture avant la lett...
The third and final spring month under the calendrier républicain is Prairial, which makes me immediately think of swaying summer grasses. It comes from the French prairie, or meadow. While it has a pleasant sound to it,one of the most brutal laws of the revolutionary reign of terror was enacted on 22 Prairial An 2 (June 10th, 1794): one that deeme...
The summer begins with Messidor, often depicted and described as a time of relaxation, rest and enjoyment (especially outdoors) after a period of labor. {Related: How to Enjoy Summer in Paris} Frequently symbolized by wheat, it refers to a period of harvest. The first three days of the month correspond to three crops important in France at the time...
Midsummer in the revolutionary calendar corresponds to Thermidor, or “month of warmth”. The month has since become associated with the events of the so-called “Thermidorian reaction”, which refers to the ousting of the ruthless Robespierre in Thermidor Year 2 (July 1794) and the waning of the “Reign of Terror”. The term still appears in reference t...
Late summer marks Fructidor, or the time of fruitfulness. This is traditionally the moment when many fresh fruits and nuts would be ripe and harvested, which is why several days in the month pays tribute to plums, barberry, lemons, watermelons, walnuts, etc.
Referring to the vendanges, or wine harvests, late summer turns to early autumn with Vendémaire. This is traditionally the period of the year when France harvest the year’s grapes to produce wines, hence the celebration of events such as the Vendanges de Montmartre in Paris each October.
As fall deepens and the days grow darker, we reach Brumaire, from the French brume or brumeuxfor fog/foggy. As in our own calendar, late October and November are associated with reflection and darkness, death and the promise of renewal. In terms of key events during the month of Brumaire, the 18th of the month marks the anniversary of General Napol...
Moving closer to the solstice, Frimaire marks the beginning of winter and its dark nights. The word comes from the French frimas(frost). On the 11th day of this month in 1804 (when the calendar was still in use), Napoleon was crowned as France’s first Emperor.
On or directly following the winter solstice comes Nivôse, the month of ice and snow (from the Latin word nivosus, or “snowy”). Of course, while traditional winter religious holidays including Christmas were no doubt quietly celebrated by many during the 1790s, they would likely have been de-emphasized during the early years of anticlerical revolut...
Oct 26, 2022 · The French Republican Calendar, also known as the French Revolutionary calendar, was created during the French Revolution (1789-1799) in an attempt to build a new society separate from the vestiges of the Ancien Régime. First implemented in 1793, the calendar remained in use for twelve years until 1806 and was revived for 18 days during the ...
- The French Republican or Revolutionary calendar was a secularized calendar meant to separate France's "republican era," starting with the birth of...
- The French Republican Calendar consisted of twelve months, each consisting of three ten-day weeks.
- The French Republican calendar began on 22 September
- France officially stopped using the Republican calendar on 1 January 1806, during the reign of Emperor Napoleon I, although it was briefly revived...
A History of Western Society. 12th ed., Bedford/St. Martin's, 2019. (This is a general textbook reference for the adoption of the Gregorian calendar in Europe.) ↑ McKay, John P., et al. A History of Western Society. 12th ed., Bedford/St. Martin's, 2019. (This is a general textbook reference for the adoption of the Gregorian calendar in Europe.)
Oct 16, 2023 · Each year had twelve months of thirty days each. Five days, called complementary days, were added to the end of the year to bring the total to 365. Every four years, beginning with the third year of the Republic, an extra complementary day was added. (Days were added to years 3, 7, 11, and so forth.)
A revolutionary calendar. A secular calendar was established. And it had a ten day week: primidi (first day), duodi (second day), tridi (third day), quartidi (fourth day etc.), quintidi, sextidi, septidi, octidi, nonidi and décadi. Months were three weeks long. The end of the year was Fructidor which had 5 supplementary days to make the total ...
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Jul 19, 1998 · Colin Alistair Ronan. Calendar - Reform, Mid-18th Century: In late 18th-century France, with the approach of the French Revolution, demands began to be made for a radical change in the civil calendar that would divorce it completely from any ecclesiastical connections. The first attacks on the Gregorian calendar and proposals for reform came in ...
