''Redorer son blason'' (literally "to re-gild one's coat of arms") was a social practice taking place in

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan area ...

before the

French Revolution The French Revolution ( ) was a period of radical political and societal change in France that began with the Estates General of 1789 and ended with the formation of the French Consulate in coup of 18 Brumaire, November 1799. Many of its ...

, whereby a poor

aristocratic Aristocracy (, ) is a form of government that places strength in the hands of a small, privileged ruling class, the aristocrats. The term derives from the el, αριστοκρατία (), meaning 'rule of the best'. At the time of the word' ...

family married a daughter to a rich commoner. This enabled the aristocratic family to recover financially through the hefty

bride price Bride price, bride-dowry ( Mahr in Islam), bride-wealth, or bride token, is money, property, or other form of wealth paid by a groom or his family to the woman or the family of the woman he will be married to or is just about to marry. Bride dow ...

usually asked from the commoner. On the other hand, the commoner was allowed to add the aristocratic name of his bride (with the nobiliary particle "''de''") to his own family name, and this was dearly sought. This social practice was frowned upon by aristocratic families less in need, who looked with contempt or pity at the aristocratic families that had to re-gild their coat of arms. They called such an alliance with a commoner a '' mésalliance'' ("misalliance, marriage beneath one's station"), and the practice was often called ''déchoir'' ("to fall from rank") or ''salir son blason'' ("to dirty one's coat of arms"). As in most of Europe, noble children who married commoners would lose their noble status and take on that of their spouses. In the worst-case scenario, if the poor aristocratic family died out with no other heir than the daughter married to the commoner, the family was said to "fall into commonalty" (''tomber en roture''). As the French economy underwent drastic changes after the

Middle Ages In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire ...

, many aristocratic families lost their position of power and wealth, and ended up in poverty. For those aristocratic families from the provinces and far from Paris, far away from power and its associated gratifications, ''redorer son blason'' was often the only way to remain afloat. This was usually a step taken in the last extremity, often seen as shameful and degrading. However, in a few cases, ''redorer son blason'' could also be prestigious, such as was the case for the aristocratic families who married daughters with members of the Colbert family.

Modern usage

Today in France, the phrase is still used, but in a different context, meaning "to regain prestige" or "to improve one's image". An example of this contemporary usage in French newspapers is the '' Le Point'' headline: "Les maires FN veulent redorer leur blason".

Modern usage

References

See also