Paris Walks : Women of the revolution

Women of the Revolution

A walk through the Odéon neighbourhood - the hotspot of Paris's

Revolutionary years - is like stepping back in time. The streets down which

people once strode; the cobblestoned passages where they worked and where the

housewives did their shopping; the cafés where couples flirted, and the taverns

where they got merry: they all make up a treasure map of life on both sides of

the revolutionary divide.

The reins of History were firmly in male hands, though, as were the guns

and the vote. Incredible as it may seem, back in that era of Enlightenment

and Progress, females were considered good only to play the roles of either

mistress and muse (such as the talented Marie-Madeleine de Grandmaison) or

obedient wife (Gabrielle Danton) and devoted mother (like the playful Lucille

Desmoulins). Even under the banner of Equality, Freedom, and

Fraternity, amazing women like Olympe de Gouges were kept firmly in their

place.

They were excluded from every committee, ejected from every council,

absent from all assemblies, kept away from any decision-making

post, and silenced when not being patronized; yet none observed (as did the

clairvoyant Mlle Lenormand), encouraged, incited and cheered (like

the tricoteuses of the Club des Cordeliers), or silently condemned (like the

doomed Noailles) more forcefully from their imposed immobility...

...until the merciful Veuve Vernet and the determined Charlotte Corday

took matters in their own hands – as shall we, when we follow in the footsteps

of the women of the Revolution as we explore this quartier once dominated by

alpha males all busy killing each other, but now populated by the ghosts of

desperate mothers,  wives driven mad with worry, and despairing

companions who witnessed the hideous crimes and the ruthless scheming while

trying to find bread for the table and go about the tasks of their daily life. They

were never even given a chance to transform their world, but at Odéon, the

echoes of their voices can still be heard...

Further Information:

Price of the Tour: 20 Euros

Place: Meet at the corner of rue de Buci and rue Mazarine.

Métro: Odèon

Suggestion: Enjoy a pre-tour coffee at the counter of the “Café Le Buci” (52,

Rue Dauphine) the closest to our meting spot.

Lunch: Participants might like to envisage lunch Bouillon Racine (3, rue

Racine) an original Art Nouveau brasserie decor for a nouvelle