National Workshops

Last updated December 20, 2022

National Workshops (French : Ateliers Nationaux) refer to areas of work provided for the unemployed by the French Second Republic after the Revolution of 1848. The political crisis which resulted in the abdication of Louis Philippe caused an industrial crisis adding to the general agricultural and commercial distress which had prevailed throughout 1847. It rendered the problem of unemployment in Paris acute.

On February 25, 1848 a group of armed workers interrupted a session of the provisional government to demand "the organization of labor" and "the right to work".^[1] The provisional government under the influence of one of its members, Louis Blanc, passed a decree (25 February 1848) guaranteeing government-funded jobs. The following is an extract: "The provisional government of the French Republic undertakes to guarantee the existence of the workmen by work. It undertakes to guarantee work for every citizen."^[2]

For the carrying out of this decree, Louis Blanc wanted the formation of a ministry of labor, but this was shelved by his colleagues, who as a compromise appointed a government labor Commission, under the presidency of Louis Blanc, with power of inquiry and consultation only. The implementation of the February decree was entrusted to the minister of public works, M. Marie, and various public works were immediately started. The initial stages of the national works prompted the following account: ^[2]

The workman first of all obtained a certificate from the landlord of his house, or furnished apartments, showing his address, whether in Paris or the department of the Seine. This certificate was visaed and stamped by the police commissary of the district. The workman then reported to the office of the maire of his ward, and, on delivering this document, received in exchange a note of admission to the national works, bearing his name, residence and calling, and enabling him to be received by the director of the workplaces in which vacancies existed. All went well while the number of the unemployed was less than 6000, but as soon as that number was exceeded, the workmen of each arrondissement , after having visited all the open works in succession without result, returned to their mayor’s offices tired, starving and discontented.^[2]

In June 1848, the Workshops were closed down, leading to the June Days uprising.

Related Research Articles

1848 (MDCCCXLVIII) was a leap year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar and a leap year starting on Thursday of the Julian calendar, the 1848th year of the Common Era (CE) and Anno Domini (AD) designations, the 848th year of the 2nd millennium, the 48th year of the 19th century, and the 9th year of the 1840s decade. As of the start of 1848, the Gregorian calendar was 12 days ahead of the Julian calendar, which remained in localized use until 1923.

Alphonse Marie Louis de Prat de Lamartine, was a French author, poet, and statesman who was instrumental in the foundation of the Second Republic and the continuation of the Tricolore as the flag of France.

Louis-Eugène Cavaignac was a French general and politician who served as head of the executive power of France between June and December 1848, during the French Second Republic.

Louis Jean Joseph Charles Blanc was a French politician and historian. A socialist who favored reforms, he called for the creation of cooperatives in order to guarantee employment for the urban poor. Although Blanc's ideas of the workers' cooperatives were never realized, his political and social ideas greatly contributed to the development of socialism in France. He wanted the government to encourage co-operatives and replace capitalist enterprises. These co-operatives were to be associations of people who produced together and divided the profit accordingly.

The French Second Republic, officially the French Republic, was the republican government of France that existed between 1848 and 1852. It was established in February 1848, with the February Revolution that overthrew the July Monarchy of King Louis-Phillip, and ended in December 1852. Following the election of President Louis-Napoléon Bonaparte in 1848 and the 1851 coup d'état the president staged, Bonaparte proclaimed himself Emperor Napoleon III and initiated the Second French Empire. The short-lived republic officially adopted the motto of the First Republic; Liberté, Égalité, Fraternité.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Alexandre Auguste Ledru-Rollin</span> French politician and revolutionary leader

Alexandre Auguste Ledru-Rollin was a French lawyer, politician and one of the leaders of the French Revolution of 1848.

Louis-Antoine Garnier-Pagès was a French politician and active freemason who fought on the barricades during the revolution of July.

Alexandre Martin, nicknamed Albert l'Ouvrier, was a French socialist statesman of the French Second Republic. He was the first member of the industrial working class to be in French government.

The June Days uprising was an uprising staged by French civilians from 22 to 26 June 1848. It was in response to plans to close the National Workshops, created by the Second Republic in order to provide work and a minimal source of income for the unemployed. The National Guard, led by General Louis-Eugène Cavaignac, was called out to quell the rebellion. Over 10,000 people were either killed or injured, while 4,000 insurgents were deported to French Algeria. The uprising marked the end of the hopes of a "Democratic and Social Republic" and the victory of the liberals over the Radical Republicans.

The Executive Commission of 1848 was a short-lived government during the French Second Republic, chaired by François Arago, that exercised executive power from 9 May 1848 to 24 June 1848. It succeeded the Provisional Government of 1848 and was in turn replaced by the Cabinet of General Cavaignac. The members of the Commission acted as joint head of state.

The year 1848 in France, like in other European countries, is mostly remembered as the year of a revolution that deposed king Louis Philippe and brought Napoleon III to power as president of the second republic.

The French demonstration of 15 May 1848 was an event played out, mostly, in the streets of Paris. It was intended to reverse the results of a Second Republic election of deputies to the Constituent Assembly. It is difficult to say, with any precision, whether this phenomenon should be called a demonstration, a riot, an invasion, an rebellion, or an attempted coup d'état. Nonetheless, it seems to have been largely unplanned, not particularly bloody, and indisputably a failure.

The French Revolution of 1848, also known as the February Revolution, was a brief period of civil unrest in France, in February 1848, that led to the collapse of the July Monarchy and the foundation of the French Second Republic. It sparked the wave of revolutions of 1848.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Constantin Pecqueur</span>

Charles Constantin Pecqueur was a French economist, socialist theoretician and politician. He participated in the Revolution of 1848 and influenced Karl Marx.

The Left in France was represented at the beginning of the 20th century by two main political parties, namely the Republican, Radical and Radical-Socialist Party and the French Section of the Workers' International (SFIO), created in 1905 as a merger of various Marxist parties.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jean-Martial Bineau</span> French engineer and politician (1805–1855)

Jean-Martial Bineau was a French engineer and politician who promoted the early development of railways in France. He was Minister of Public Works during the French Second Republic, and served as Minister of Finance from 1852 to 1855 under the Emperor Napoleon III. He pushed through measures to increase revenues and contain expenditures in the face of opposition from the legislature.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Michel Goudchaux</span>

Michel Goudchaux was a French banker and politician who was twice Minister of Finance during the French Second Republic. A firm Republican, he refused to accept the government of Napoleon III.

The Provisional government was the first government of the French Second Republic, formed on 24 February 1848 following the abolishment of the July Monarchy by the February Revolution. The provisional government was succeeded on 9 May 1848 by the Executive Commission.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ferdinand Flocon</span> French politician and journalist

Ferdinand Flocon was a French journalist and politician who was one of the founding members of the Provisional Government at the start of the French Second Republic in 1848. He was Minister of Agriculture and Commerce for the Executive Commission of 1848. He opposed Louis Napoleon and was forced into exile in the Second French Empire (1852–1870).

The Paris Municipal Commission Ministry of 1830 was proclaimed by the Paris Municipal Commission on 31 July 1830, after the revolution in which the Bourbon Restoration monarchy was deposed. One day later, it was replaced by a provisional government named by Louis Philippe I of Orléans.

References

↑ Chastain, J.G., "Provisional Government of the Second French Republic", Encyclopedia of 1848 Revolutions, Ohio University, October 17, 2004
1 2 3 One or more of the preceding sentences incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain : Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). "National Workshops". Encyclopædia Britannica . Vol. 19 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. pp. 272–273.

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.

[1] Chastain, J.G., "Provisional Government of the Second French Republic", Encyclopedia of 1848 Revolutions, Ohio University, October 17, 2004

[EB1911-2] 1 2 3 One or more of the preceding sentences incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain : Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). "National Workshops". Encyclopædia Britannica . Vol. 19 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. pp. 272–273.

[1]

[2]