The Muscadin reaction

The Terror * and its contrasts

It would be a wrong idea of the French population behaviour to think that, in 1793, mourning and anxiety reigned everywhere.

In Paris, where the gloomy scene recurred so frequently, twenty-three theatres made their business.

The restaurants et the "cafés" (pubs) were full of people, the stroll ways were busy as usual, and the day off, the "guinguettes" of the suburbs (typical open cafe where the sound of accordion accompanied the dancers) were crowded with people who made much fun.

There were endless opportunities for dressing, provided that no splendor was associated.

In 1793, the elegants who react against the carelessness of the sans-culottes are the Muscadins, idle young boys, many of them avoiding conscription. Carefully dressed, their fine linen, elegant coats, their hair combed in dog ears announce the eccentricities of the Directoire.

So, Muscadin is the name given to these elegants who, in 1793, affected a tidy appearance and royalist opinions. It is said that they were named Muscadin because the musk was their preferred perfume. The origin of their name is also said to come from the name of a doctor living in Lyon, who was excessively perfumed.

They reappeared down the street, shortly after the Terror, organized in gangs with their headquarters at the Palais Royal.

"With they grey tail coat, their green tie, their tight-fitting breeches, their shoes, their bludgeon - a stick with a leaden tip - that they called their "executive power", they organized meetings and mauled the vendors of Jacobin sheets" (Source: Larousse Paris, 1931)