The French Republican Calendar is abolished.
The French Republican calendar (French: calendrier républicain français), also widely recognized as the French Revolutionary calendar (calendrier révolutionnaire français), represents a profound and radical departure in timekeeping. This innovative system was conceived and formally adopted during the tumultuous period of the French Revolution, specifically decreed on 24 October 1793. However, its epoch, or starting point, was retrospectively set to 22 September 1792, the symbolic date of the proclamation of the First French Republic and the autumn equinox in Paris of that year. It served as the official calendar for the French government and its territories for approximately 12 years, from its effective implementation in late 1793 until its abolition in 1805. A significant, albeit brief, resurgence occurred when the Paris Commune briefly reinstated it for 18 days in 1871, a powerful symbolic act during another period of revolutionary fervor.
This revolutionary calendrical system was fundamentally designed to systematically eradicate all vestiges of religious and royalist influence from daily life and public administration. This objective was a core component of a far broader and ambitious initiative aimed at the complete decimalisation of French society, a movement that sought to rationalize and standardize measurements across the board. Beyond the calendar, this decimalisation drive encompassed proposals for decimal time of day (dividing the day into 10 hours, each with 100 decimal minutes and 100 decimal seconds), the decimalisation of currency (leading to the franc), and crucially, the successful implementation of the metric system for weights and measures, which has since become a global standard. The calendar's design reflected this decimal philosophy by dividing each month into three 10-day weeks, known as décades, thereby eliminating the traditional seven-day week and its Sunday, a day of Christian worship. Month names were also radically altered, discarding traditional Roman or Christian associations in favor of terms derived from natural phenomena, seasons, and agricultural activities, such as Vendémiaire (harvest), Brumaire (fog), and Floréal (flowering), further stripping away monarchical and ecclesiastical references.
The French Revolutionary calendar was not merely a domestic curiosity; it was an administrative tool extensively employed in official government records throughout France and in all territories under direct French rule or significant influence. This included, but was not limited to, modern-day Belgium, Luxembourg, significant portions of the Netherlands, regions within what is now Germany (particularly the Rhineland), Switzerland, the island of Malta, and various parts of Italy that were integrated into the French Empire or established as French client states, such as the Cisalpine Republic. Its widespread adoption in these regions underscores its role as a symbol of French revolutionary ideals and administrative uniformity across a vast European dominion.
Key Features and Abolition
- Decadary Week: Instead of the traditional seven-day week, the calendar introduced a 10-day week (décade), with the tenth day (décadi) being a day of rest. This aimed to diminish the influence of Sunday and religious observations.
- Seasonal Month Names: The twelve months were renamed to reflect aspects of nature or the agricultural cycle, designed to be more rational and secular than their Gregorian predecessors. Examples include Vendémiaire (grape harvest), Nivôse (snowy), and Germinal (germination).
- Complementary Days: To reconcile the 12 months of 30 days (360 days) with the solar year, five or six additional days were added at the end of the year. These were known as Jours complémentaires or, more popularly, Sansculottides, dedicated to virtues and celebrations rather than religious figures.
- Abolition by Napoleon: The calendar was eventually abolished by Emperor Napoleon Bonaparte, effective 1 January 1806 (11 Nivôse An XIV). This decision was primarily driven by pragmatic reasons, including a desire to normalize relations with the Catholic Church, stabilize French society, and align France's administrative practices with the rest of Europe, which predominantly used the Gregorian calendar.
Frequently Asked Questions about the French Republican Calendar
- When was the French Republican calendar first used?
- Although decreed on 24 October 1793, its epoch (start date) was retrospectively established as 22 September 1792, coinciding with the proclamation of the First French Republic and the autumn equinox.
- Why was the calendar created during the French Revolution?
- It was a deliberate attempt to break from the past, specifically to eliminate all religious (Christian) and royalist influences embedded in the traditional Gregorian calendar. It formed part of a broader rationalization and decimalisation movement in France.
- What was decimalisation in the context of this calendar?
- Decimalisation aimed to apply a base-10 system to all measurements. For the calendar, this meant a 10-day week (décade) and an attempt at decimal time. This principle was successfully applied to currency and, most notably, the metric system of weights and measures.
- How long was the French Revolutionary calendar in official use?
- The calendar was officially used by the French government and its associated territories for approximately 12 years, from late 1793 until its definitive abolition by Napoleon Bonaparte on 1 January 1806.
- Did any other revolutionary movements use this calendar?
- Yes, most notably, the Paris Commune briefly adopted the French Republican calendar for 18 days in May 1871, symbolically reviving a key emblem of radical republicanism during their short-lived revolutionary government.