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Sometimes, new political powers that come into office reject everything done by the predecessors. Sometimes it is a truly curious way of showing disregard.

Through history revolutionaries turned into vandals, destroying everything associated with the past.

On VANDALS AND REVOLUTIONARIES

This insistence took also other forms, such as making life difficult for everyone just to throw away even the most reasonable solutions intoduced by the ovethrown power. Let the people be tormented; whatever the predecessors did must be tossed into the bin. In this context, having in mind my later post, let me talk quite a folly committed by the French revolutionaries in an attempt to distance themselves from the Catholic Church. Not that I don’t appreciate what the French Revolution brought to Europe. It was a painful process, but it granted us Europeans civil rights that made our lives easier. However, in introducing the Republican Calendar, the French revolutionaries simply went overboard lossing any reason.

Convention Nationale in Pantheon of Paris, France

Pope Gregory XIII, who commissioned the Gregorian Calendar, and the National Convention that implemented the Republican Calendar in France.

About GREGORIAN CALENDAR

The Republican Calendar, also known as the French Republican Calendar, reflects the revolutionary spirit of the French Revolution. Adopted during a time when France was undergoing a major ideological and societal transformation, this calendar aimed to break free from the traditional Gregorian calendar, which was associated with monarchy and religious traditions (>>>).

Introduced in 1793 by the National Convention, it played a significant role in the broader initiative for decimalization in France. It was not merely a means of timekeeping, but a symbol of the revolution’s desire to rid itself of religious and royalist influences. In addition to the calendar, this comprehensive effort included the introduction of decimal time, currency, and metrication, which aimed to standardize and simplify (!) various aspects of daily life.

The Republican Calendar consisted of twelve months, each with unique names inspired by nature, seasons, and agricultural activities. For the autumn season, the calendar included the months of Vendémiaire (Vintage), Brumaire (Mist), and Frimaire (Frost). These months, starting on September 22nd, 23rd, or 24th, marked the transition from summer to winter. As winter arrived, the Republican Calendar continued with the months of Nivôse (Snowy), Pluviôse (Rainy), and Ventôse (Windy). These months, starting on December 21st, 22nd, or 23rd, captured the essence of the colder months and the changing weather patterns. With the arrival of spring, the Republican Calendar embraced the months of Germinal (Germination), Floréal (Flower), and Prairial (Meadow). These months, starting on March 21st or 22nd, April 20th or 21st, and May 20th or 21st respectively, were associated with the renewal of life, blooming flowers, and the lushness of meadows. Finally, the calendar entered the summer season with the months of Messidor (Harvest), Thermidor (Summer Heat, sometimes referred to as Fervidor or Burning Hot), and Fructidor (Fruit). These months, starting on June 19th or 20th, July 19th or 20th (Thermidor/Fervidor) and August 18th or 19th, marked the peak of agricultural activities, when the harvest was gathered and fruits ripened.

One of the most notable aspects of the Republican Calendar was the shift from a 7-day week to a 10-day week. Each month consisted of three ten-day weeks, known as “decades,” totaling 30 days. Each day was divided into ten hours, each hour into 100 decimal minutes, and each decimal minute into 100 decimal seconds. Thus an hour was 144 conventional minutes.

There was also a problem with the leap year rule for the Republican Calendar, for which the Gregorian principles were proposed. The proposal faced challenges and was never adopted. Its advocate Gilbert Romme was sentenced to the guillotine and committed suicide.

While this change aimed to reflect the decimal system, it faced practical difficulties. After the fall of Maximilien Robespierre in 1794 efforts were made to revert to more traditional practices, including the use of the Gregorian calendar. Finally, in 1806, under the rule of Napoleon Bonaparte, the Gregorian calendar was officially reinstated.

Today, the Republican Calendar serves as a historical curiosity and a testament to the radical changes brought about by the French Revolution. Nonetheless, it remains an enduring symbol of France’s revolutionary past and the determination of the French people to reshape their society in a profound way.

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The Republican Calendar. A curious way of showing disregard

While exploring different places, one can appreciate them, especially where there is an extensive array of objects; however, remembering and explaining them all can be challenging. St. Peter’s Basilica in the Vatican is an example of such a place. It houses numerous sculptures depicting former popes or saints. Some of these figures not only played pivotal roles in the Catholic Church but also held significance in a broader context. One such figure was Pope Gregory XIII.

Pope Gregory XIII, born as Ugo Boncompagni in 1502, in Bologna, Italy, was the 226th pope of the Roman Catholic Church. He ascended to the papacy in 1572, and held the position until his death in 1585. Before becoming Pope, he served as the Governor of Fano and later as the papal legate to Spain. The latter activity helped him to be elected pope in a conlcave that lasted for less than 24 hours.

Statue of Pope Gregory XIII at the St. Peter’s Basilica, Vatican by Camillo Rusconi (1658–1728)

Pope Gregory XIII was the one who commissioned the Gregorian Calendar, named after him, to make necessary corrections to its predecessor, the Julian Calendar. The reform was necessary to realign the calendar year with the solar year, ensuring a more accurate reflection of Earth’s orbit around the Sun, which used to occur in the Julian Calendar. According to the Julian Calendar, a year was 365.25 days long. In fact, the solar year is a bit shorter than that. The Gregorian Calendar refined the length of the year to be about 365.2425 days. The difference in the length of the year between the Julian and Gregorian calendars was about 0.18 hours, which is approximately 10.8 minutes. It doesn’t make a difference on an annual scale; however, over several hundred years of using the Julian Calendar, it created a time gap between the calendar year and the solar year (overestimation of the solar year).

The Julian Calendar, named after Julius Caesar, was introduced in 45 BCE. It was used for 1,527 years! To synchronize the calendar with astronomical realities, a ten-day correction was introduced, along with new time counting. On the implementation of the Gregorian Calendar October 4, 1582, was followed by October 15, 1582. This adjustment recalibrated the calendar and brought it in harmony with the changing seasons.

The adjustments made during the introduction of the Gregorian Calendar made the calendar more accurate compared to the solar year, but there was still a tiny difference. In the Gregorian Calender like in the Julian Callender every fourth year is a leap year, except however for years divisible by 100 but not by 400. This meticulous adjustment ensures that the calendar year closely aligns with the solar year, preventing a gradual drift over time.

The adoption of the Gregorian Calendar varied among countries, and it did not happen simultaneously worldwide. Some of the first countries to adopt the Gregorian Calendar were those under Catholic influence, as the calendar reform was initiated by the Catholic Church. First to adopt were the Catholic countries like Italy, Spain, Portugal and Poland. In the latter it was later dropped and then reintroduced.

Russia was one of the last major countries to adopt the Gregorian Calendar. The switch occurred after the Russian Revolution in 1917. The Julian Calendar was in use in Russia until January 31, 1918, when they transitioned to the Gregorian Calendar. The last country to officially adopt the Gregorian Calendar was Saudi Arabia. It made the switch from the Islamic Hijri Calendar to the Gregorian Calendar on October 1, 2016. Saudi Arabia’s decision to adopt the Gregorian Calendar was part of a series of economic and social reforms aimed at aligning the country with global standards. Before this change, Saudi Arabia was one of the last countries to use a purely lunar-based calendar for civil purposes.

The Gregorian Calendar has become the standard civil calendar worldwide. While the Gregorian Calendar is predominant in secular contexts, various cultures and religions continue to observe alternate calendars.

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The Republican Calendar. A curious way of showing disregard

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