Image courtesy of Stephanie Buck via timeline.com
Welcome, readers, to my final installment of Feisty Females in History! It's Erin today! Charity will share her final installment early next week. I hope you enjoy this SPECIAL news article on the Knitting Women of the French Revolution!
Knitting Women Seek Revenge
The Reign of Terror Has Affected All
Account of Reporter Hylands
The les tricoteuses, many of whom took part in the Women’s March on Versailles, were angry knitting women whose families had starved before the French Revolution. These furious revolutionaries took pride and joy in watching the executions of the nobles who had terrorized them and their families.
Baroness Orczy, author of The Scarlet Pimpernel, shares, “They sat beneath the guillotine platform to knit whilst head after head fell beneath the knife, and they themselves got quite bespattered with the blood of those cursed aristos.”
Because they took part in the Women’s March on Versailles, these women were once renowned heroes. Despite this, their anger and desire for revenge got the better of them. While waiting for the beheadings to occur, these women continued their daily work of knitting socks, hats, scarves, and other such items. When the guillotine fell, they cheered.
Eventually, these women began to prowl the streets for unsuspecting nobility who might or might not have approved of the revolution.
“This changed everything,” a young aristocrat explains. “I no longer felt safe to even go for a simple walk, let alone go to the market or visit a friend.”
In May of 1793, the knitting women were banned from the any government proceedings, and later they were prohibited from any political event.
“We are being loyal to our country!” one knitting woman defends. “We wanted to find those disloyal. Besides, they hurt our family with excessive taxation.”
So, we must decide for ourselves: were the knitting women justified in what they did? Or was their acts of revenge utterly abhorrent? Comment below with your answer!
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Bibliography
Buck, Stephanie. “Horror Spectators: The Lady Revolutionaries Who Calmly Knit During Executions.” Timeline, 19 Dec 2016, https://timeline.com/tricoteuse-french-revolution-b9887af073f4.
Nalle, Julia, and Rob Nalle. “Chapter 25: The French Revolution.” The BiblioPlan Companion Year Three, vol. 2, BiblioPlan for Families, Palmrya, Virginia, 2014, p. 623.
Rogers, Lisa Waller. “The Tricoteuses of the French Revolution.” Lisa’s History Room: Where Past is Always Present, 3 Nov 2018, https://lisawallerrogers.com/2018/11/03/the-tricoteuses-of-the-french-revolution/.
I just feel like there is something wrong with you if you cheer when you watch someone die, even if you believe wholeheartedly that they deserved it. I do not think that these women were usually in the right. If the 'pauper' side of the Revolution had set up a proper government, those women would be entirely wrong. Nevertheless, knitting socks and coats, and other warm things would have been hugely beneficial, if done for the right reason.
Excellent work, Erin!