Sans-Culottes

Sans-Culottes Meaning

The name ‘sans-culottes’ refers to their distinct clothing and lower-class status. At the time, culottes were fashionable silk knee-breeches worn by the nobility and the bourgeoisie. However, instead of wearing the breeches, the Sans-Culottes wore pantaloons or long trousers to disassociate themselves from the elite.

Other distinctive pieces of clothing that the Sans-Culottes wore were:

• The carmagnole, a short-skirted coat.

• The red Phrygian cap also known as the ‘liberty cap’.

• Sabots, a type of wooden clog.

Redrawn 19th-century version of original early 1790’s illustrations of the Sans-Culottes. Source: Augustin Challamel, Histoire-musée de la république Française, depuis l'assemblée des notables, Paris, Delloye, 1842, Wikimedia Commons

Sans-Culottes: 1792

The Sans-Culottes became a more prominent and active group between 1792 and 1794; the height of their influence started to emerge at a pivotal stage of the French Revolution. Although there is no exact date of their formation, they slowly increased in number and officially established themselves in France over the revolutionary period.

Core Political Principles

The Sans-Culottes political principles were largely based on social equality, economic equality and popular democracy. They supported the abolition of privileges and authority of the monarchy, the nobility and the clergy of the Roman Catholic Church. There was also a wide range of support for policies such as establishing fixed wages and introducing price controls to make food and essentials affordable.

These demands were expressed through petitions, later presented to the Legislative and Convention Assemblies. The Sans-Culottes were a strategic group: they had other ways to voice their concerns and achieve their demands. One of these ways was publicly informing the police and the courts of thousands of traitors and suspected conspirators.

Aims and Objectives

• They advocated for price limits on food and essential commodities because they were egalitarian.

• They were not anti-capitalists, nor were they hostile to money or private property, but opposed its centralisation in the hands of a select few.

• They aimed to overthrow the aristocracy and reshape the world according to socialist principles.

• They were hindered in their progress because their ranks were too diverse; their objectives were sometimes ambiguous, and they tended to react to events rather than directing or influencing them.

Influence

The Sans-Culottes supported the more radical and anti-bourgeoisie factions of the Paris Commune, particularly the Enragés (ultra-radical revolutionary group) and Hérbertists (radical revolutionary political group). Furthermore, they occupied the ranks of paramilitary forces who had to enforce the policies and legislation of the revolutionary government. They implemented these through violence and executions against those deemed enemies of the Revolution.

Reception

As a dominant and influential group, the Sans-Culottes were seen as the most genuine and sincere of the Revolution. They were seen by many as living portrayals of the revolutionary spirit.

Public administrators and officials from the middle and upper-class backgrounds were fearful of being seen in their wealthy attires, especially during the Reign of Terror when it was such a dangerous period to be associated with anything against the Revolution. Instead, they adopted the clothing of the Sans-Culottes as a sign of solidarity with the working class, nationalism and the new republic.

Sans-Culottes Revolution

Whilst the Sans-Culottes were not directly involved in politics, their influence in the revolutionary movements is indisputable. Working-class mobs, formed of members of the Sans-Culottes, could be found in almost every revolutionary movement. We can explore some of the most significant here.

Robespierre’s plans to reconstitute the army

Maximilien Robespierre, one of the most influential figures of the French Revolution, expressed views that the Sans-Culottes admired. They helped him in his efforts to block reforms of the National Guard. These reforms would limit its membership to active citizens, primarily property owners, on 27 April 1791. Robespierre demanded the army be reconstituted democratically to allow ordinary citizens to participate. He believed the army needed to become the Revolution’s tool of defence rather than a threat to it.

However, despite Robespierre’s vigorous effort, the notion of an armed bourgeoisie militia was finally approved in the Assembly on 28 April.

Demonstrations of 20 June 1792

The Sans-Culottes were involved in the demonstration of 20 June 1792, which aimed to persuade King Louis XVI of France to forsake his current harsh governance strategy. Demonstrators wanted the King to uphold the Legislative Assembly’s decisions, defend France from foreign invasions, and maintain the ethos of the French Constitution of 1791. These demonstrations would be the last peaceful attempt by the people and were the culmination of France’s failed attempt to establish a constitutional monarchy. The monarchy was overthrown after the Insurrection on 10 August 1792.

Sans-Culottes Army

In the Spring of 1793, Robespierre pushed for the creation of a Sans-Culottes army, which would be funded by a tax on the wealthy. This was accepted by the Paris Commune on 28 May 1793 and they were tasked with enforcing revolutionary laws.

Call to Reform

Petitioners and members of the Paris Commune gathered together at the bar of the National Convention demanding that:

• A domestic revolutionary army was established.

• The price of bread be set at three sous a pound.

• Nobles in senior positions in the army were to be dismissed.

• Armouries were to be established for arming the sans-culottes.

• The departments of the state were to be purged and suspects arrested.

• The right to vote was to be provisionally reserved for Sans-Culottes.

• A fund was to be set aside for the relatives of those defending their country.

• Relief for the elderly and sick was to be set up.

The Convention disagreed with these demands, and as a result, the Sans-Culottes pressured further with their pleas of change. From 31 May to 2 June 1793, the Sans-Culottes took part in the insurrection that resulted in the Montagnard group triumphing over the Girondins. After successfully disposing of members of the Girondin, the Montagnards took control of the Convention. Since they were supporters of the Sans-Culottes, only at their command did they dominate.

In times of unrest, whoever was in charge of France’s destiny had to answer to the Sans-Culottes. They would face a similar insurrection and banishment if they did not do what was required of them. The Reign of Terror would shortly follow this political trend toward extremism.

What impact did the Sans-Culottes have on the French Revolution?

The Sans-Culottes were key figures in the French Revolution, remembered for their distinctive appearance, the changes they helped implement and their part in the Reign of Terror.

Legacy

The image of the Sans-Culottes became a prominent emblem for the ordinary man’s enthusiasm, optimism, and patriotism during the French Revolution. This idealistic picture and the concepts associated with it are referred to as sans-culottism or sans-culottisme in French.

In solidarity and acknowledgement, many prominent leaders and revolutionaries who were not working-class dubbed themselves citoyens (citizens) Sans-Culottes.

On the other hand, the Sans-Culottes and other far-left political factions were ruthlessly hunted and crushed by the Muscadins (young middle-class men) in the immediate aftermath of the Thermidorian Reaction when Robespierre was ousted.