- On July 27, 28 and 23, 1830, the "Trois Glorieuses" took place in Paris:this was a revolutionary movement that led to the fall of Charles X, a king who wanted a return to absolutism and who was illiberal (against individual freedoms). The July Monarchy is set up following these revolutionary days.
- The Trois Glorieuses revolution brings hope to France after the Restoration:freedom of the press and association, as well as the return of a democratic regime is observed.
- The canuts are the foremen, owners of one or more looms:they work in the manufacture of silk:they are skilled workers. At the time, Lyon was the city in Europe with the highest concentration of workers in the same sector. It is estimated that there were around 8,000 canuts in Lyon at the time of the revolt, and these workshop leaders employed around 20,000 companions and workers.
- The silk sector went through a difficult period in 1827. The canuts obtained their supplies from “merchant manufacturers” who were in fact traders. These merchants then buy back the manufactured fabrics:this custom price (price of the work carried out on a raw material supplied by the merchant) continues to decrease, putting the canuts and the workers in difficulty.
1831-1834
Characters
Louis-Philippe I
Procedure
Revolt of 1831
On October 8, about 300 canuts gathered in the suburb of Croix-Rousse in the city of Lyon:they demanded an increase in the price of handling. During the month of October, the number of strikers will increase:the Prefect tries to ease tensions by summoning workshop managers and traders to find a compromise on the manufacturing price. But while an agreement is reached between the two parties, the traders refuse to apply this new agreement. On November 21, 1831, the canuts and workers, joined by some of the Lyon proletarians, again took to the streets. A riot starts at Croix-Rousse, and the thousands of rebels take the town hall.
While the insurgents hesitate on the continuation of the movement, 30,000 soldiers enter Lyon to restore order. The prefect is replaced, and a light repression hits the strikers:few of them go to prison at the end of the trial.
Revolt of 1834
On February 14, 1834, a general strike broke out again:the canuts deplored lower prices. The manufacturers left the city, but the authorities were more resolute than in 1831. A trial took place a few months after the end of the movement:an incident broke out on April 9, and a crowd of around 3,000 people gathered. Barricades were erected in Lyon and the suburbs between April 9 and 14, but the army acted immediately and strongly repressed the movement:there were 300 dead and many convictions.
Consequences
- The revolt of 1831 is considered one of the first movements of the working class in France. If the strike is a priori a failure, it allows in the longer term the construction of the workers' political identity, in particular with the newspaper L'Echo de la Fabrique , created just before the revolt.
- The revolt of 1834 was more of an assertive political movement than the revolt of 1831. The canuts, again joined by other professions, aspired to a larger political project, in particular against the monarchy and to proclaim a Republic.