French Calendar Dbq

1168 Words5 Pages
Ryan Lerner The French Revolution is widely regarded as one of the most bizarre times in the history of the world. One of the most bizarre occurrences from this movement came with the adoption of a new French calendar. With the French movement, the phrase, “liberty, equality, and fraternity” became increasingly important. However, the adoption of the revolutionary calendar actually undermined all three of these values. While this calendar may have seemed very logical, promoting religious and social reform, it actually did much more harm than good. These problems would contribute to the discontinuation of the French calendar by Napoleon in 1806. First of all, the adoption of this new calendar just seemed logical. After the biggest shift in global politics it only seemed appropriate to completely change everything. While the leadership and system of government in France had to change, so did the calendar. Unlike the Gregorian calendar which starts its year in the middle of winter, the French calendar logically decided to begin their years at the first day of autumn. The French also decided to make even ten day weeks with just one day of rest in order to increase productivity and boost the economy. Also unlike the Gregorian calendar, the French calendar’s months were aptly named to account for the climate of that time of year. For example, March 21-April 19’s month name translates to Month of New Growth and the next month translates to Month of Flowers. (Doc 4) This new nomenclature only seemed logical to coincide with the seasons. This calendar on paper seemed like it could be a great success. The National Assembly believed that this uniformity would abolish class systems, reform the economy, and transform the world. (Doc 5) Unfortunately, the National Assembly was sadly misinformed. Before this calendar was made, there was some skepticism involved. While
Open Document