The Bonnot Gang (''La Bande à Bonnot''), or The Tragic Bandits (''Les Bandes Tragiques''), was a French criminal

anarchist Anarchism is a political philosophy and Political movement, movement that seeks to abolish all institutions that perpetuate authority, coercion, or Social hierarchy, hierarchy, primarily targeting the state (polity), state and capitalism. A ...

group that operated in

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

and

Belgium Belgium, officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. Situated in a coastal lowland region known as the Low Countries, it is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeas ...

during the late ''

Belle Époque The Belle Époque () or La Belle Époque () was a period of French and European history that began after the end of the Franco-Prussian War in 1871 and continued until the outbreak of World War I in 1914. Occurring during the era of the Fr ...

'' from 1911 to 1912. Composed of individuals who identified with the emerging

illegalist Illegalism is a tendency of anarchism that developed primarily in France, Italy, Belgium and Switzerland during the late 1890s and early 1900s as an outgrowth of individualist anarchism. Illegalists embrace criminality either openly or secretl ...

''milieu'', the gang used new technology, such as cars and

repeating rifle A repeating rifle is a single-barreled rifle capable of repeated discharges between each ammunition reload. This is typically achieved by having multiple cartridges stored in a magazine (within or attached to the rifle) and then fed individually ...

s not then available to the police. The press originally referred to them as simply "The Auto Bandits", as they carried out the first motorized

robberies Robbery is the crime of taking or attempting to take anything of value by force, threat of force, or use of fear. According to common law, robbery is defined as taking the property of another, with the intent to permanently deprive the person o ...

and bank raids in world history. They have been called the "inventors of the motorized get-away". The group also earned the moniker ''Les bandes tragiques'' from the press due to a sense of the group's "desperate courage", who were painted as

tragicomic Tragicomedy is a literary genre that blends aspects of both tragic and comic forms. Most often seen in dramatic literature, the term can describe either a tragic play which contains enough comic elements to lighten the overall mood or a serious ...

figures for their

working-class The working class is a subset of employees who are compensated with wage or salary-based contracts, whose exact membership varies from definition to definition. Members of the working class rely primarily upon earnings from wage labour. Most c ...

origins and espoused anarchist politics. Ultimately, the gang became known by the title of "The Bonnot Gang" after

Jules Bonnot Jules Joseph Bonnot (14 October 1876 – 28 April 1912) was a French soldier, Illegalism, illegalist anarchist, bank robber, and murderer. He is notorious for his role in the French anarchist band "The Bonnot Gang" that committed many crimes in ...

gave an interview at the office of ''

Le Petit Parisien ''Le Petit Parisien'' () was a prominent France, French newspaper during the Third French Republic, Third Republic. It was published between 1876 and 1944, and its circulation was over two million after the First World War. Publishing Despite its ...

'', a popular daily paper. Bonnot's perceived prominence within the group was later reinforced by his high-profile death during a

shootout A shootout, also called a firefight, gunfight, or gun battle, is a confrontation in which parties armed with firearms exchange gunfire. The term can be used to describe any such fight, though it is typically used in a non-military context or to ...

with French police in

Choisy-le-Roi Choisy-le-Roi () is a commune in the Val-de-Marne department, in the southeastern suburbs of Paris, Île-de-France. History The current Hôtel de Ville was completed in 1988. Geography Choisy-le-Roi is located southeast from the center of ...

. While many of the gang's members originated from regions across France and Belgium, such as

Lyon Lyon (Franco-Provençal: ''Liyon'') is a city in France. It is located at the confluence of the rivers Rhône and Saône, to the northwest of the French Alps, southeast of Paris, north of Marseille, southwest of Geneva, Switzerland, north ...

Brussels Brussels, officially the Brussels-Capital Region, (All text and all but one graphic show the English name as Brussels-Capital Region.) is a Communities, regions and language areas of Belgium#Regions, region of Belgium comprising #Municipalit ...

Charleroi Charleroi (, , ; ) is a city and a municipality of Wallonia, located in the province of Hainaut, Belgium. It is the largest city in both Hainaut and Wallonia. The city is situated in the valley of the Sambre, in the south-west of Belgium, not ...

, and Alais, they congregated in the city of

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

. Only some decades after the

Paris Commune The Paris Commune (, ) was a French revolutionary government that seized power in Paris on 18 March 1871 and controlled parts of the city until 28 May 1871. During the Franco-Prussian War of 1870–71, the French National Guard (France), Nation ...

of 1871 and the wave of anarchist terrorism of the 1890s, and not long after the General Strike of 1906 organized by the ''

Confédération Générale du Travail The General Confederation of Labour (, , CGT) is a national trade union center, founded in 1895 in the city of Limoges. It is the first of the five major French confederations of trade unions. It is the largest in terms of votes in the Labour C ...

'' (CGT), Paris was a hotbed of anarchist debate and organizing, with ongoing bitter disagreements between the

anarcho-individualists Individualist anarchism or anarcho-individualism is a collection of anarchist currents that generally emphasize the individual and their will over external determinants such as groups, society, traditions, and ideological systems. Individuali ...

(such as the illegalists) and

anarcho-communists Anarchist communism is a Far-left politics, far-left political ideology and Anarchist schools of thought, anarchist school of thought that advocates communism. It calls for the abolition of private property, private real property but retention ...

and

anarcho-syndicalists Anarcho-syndicalism is an anarchism, anarchist organisational model that centres trade unions as a vehicle for class conflict. Drawing from the theory of libertarian socialism and the practice of syndicalism, anarcho-syndicalism sees trade uni ...

Crime spree

The first robbery by Bonnot's Gang was on 21 December 1911 at the AB Branch of

Société Générale Société Générale S.A. (), colloquially known in English-speaking countries as SocGen (), is a French multinational universal bank and financial services company founded in 1864. It is registered in downtown Paris and headquartered nearby i ...

Bank, located at 148 rue Ordener in the

18th Arrondissement The 18th arrondissement of Paris (''XVIIIe arrondissement'') is one of the 20 arrondissements, or administrative districts, of the capital city of France. In spoken French, this arrondissement is referred to as ''dix-huitième''. The arrondiss ...

of Paris. They shot a collection clerk in the neck and lung (yet he survived) and snatched his cash bags. On 25 March 1912, the gang stole a

de Dion-Bouton De Dion-Bouton was a French automobile manufacturer and railcar manufacturer, which operated from 1883 to 1953. The company was founded by the Marquis Jules-Albert de Dion, Georges Bouton, and Bouton's brother-in-law Charles Trépardoux. Ste ...

automobile in

the Forest of Sénart ''The'' is a grammatical article in English, denoting nouns that are already or about to be mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The ...

south of Paris by shooting the driver through the heart.Richard Parry, ''The Bonnot Gang: Story of the French Illegalists'' (Rebel Press, 1987), . They drove into

Chantilly Chantilly may refer to: Places France *Chantilly, Oise, a city ** US Chantilly, a football club *Château de Chantilly United States * Chantilly, Missouri, an unincorporated community * Chantilly (Charlotte neighborhood), North Carolina ...

, north of Paris, where they robbed the local branch of Société Générale Bank, and fatally shot two bank cashiers and severely wounded a bookkeeper. Sûreté Chief

Xavier Guichard Xavier Guichard (1870–1947) was a French Director of Police, archaeologist and writer. His 1936 book ''Eleusis Alesia: Enquête sur les origines de la civilisation européenne'' is an early example of speculative thinking concerning Earth myster ...

took the matter personally. Even politicians became concerned, increasing police funding by 800,000 francs. Banks began to prepare for forthcoming robberies and many cashiers armed themselves. The Société Générale promised a reward of 100,000 francs for information that would lead to arrests.

Members

Gang members included

* Émile Bachelet * * * * *

* * * *

Jean de Boë Jean Adelin De Boë (March 20, 1889 in Anderlecht (Brussels) – January 2, 1974 in Watermael-Boitsfort (Brussels)) was a typographer and anarchist. References External links 1889 births 1974 deaths Typographers and type designers Bel ...

* *

Eugène Dieudonné Eugène Dieudonné (1884–1944) was a French anarchist and illegalist. He was a frequent visitor of the headquarters of ''L'Anarchie'' and accused of being a member of the Bonnot Gang. Despite Jules Bonnot and Octave Garnier exonerating him, he ...

Anna Dondon Anna Dondon (1884–1979) was a French illegalist anarchist, associated with the Bonnot Gang. Biography Anna Dondon was born on 27 August 1884, in the town of Decize, in the eastern department of Nièvre. She was raised by her father in Clermo ...

* *

Octave Garnier Octave Garnier (25 December 1889 – 14 May 1912) was a French anarchist and founding member of the infamous Bonnot Gang. Life Born in Fontainebleau, Seine-et-Marne to Élie Germain Garnier, a laborer, and Françoise Anastasie Desmurs, on Chris ...

* * * * * *

Victor Serge Victor Serge (; born Viktor Lvovich Kibalchich, ; 30 December 1890 – 17 November 1947) was a Belgian-born Russian revolutionary, novelist, poet, historian, journalist, and translator. Originally an anarchist, he joined the Bolsheviks in Janu ...

Barbe Le Clerch Barbe Marie Josèphe Le Clerch (1891–) was a Breton domestic worker and illegalist anarchist, linked to the Bonnot Gang. Biography Le Clerch was born on 5 February 1891, in the town of Le Faouët, in the Morbihan department of Brittany. She ...

Rirette Maîtrejean Henrirette Maîtrejean, known as "Rirette", was the pseudonym of Anna Estorges (14 August 1887 – 11 June 1968). She was a French individualist and illegalist anarchist born in TulleRichard Parry. ''The Bonnot Gang: The Story of the French Ille ...

* *

Étienne Monier Étienne Monier (20 April 1889 – 21 April 1913), also known as Élie Monier and nicknamed Simentoff, was a French anarchist and member of the infamous Bonnot Gang. Life Étienne Monier was born into a family of winegrowers in Estagel, in P ...

* * * * * Louis Rimbault * * * * *

Marie Vuillemin Marie Félicie Vuillemin (14 May 1889 – 1963) was a Belgians, Belgian individualist anarchism, individualist anarchist, known for her involvement with the Bonnot Gang. Born in Mons, Belgium, Mons, she met the French anarchist Octave Garnier whi ...

Mugshots of Bonnot Gang members

File:Jules-bonnot.png,

, shot dead by law enforcement officers in France File:Octave-garnier.png,

, shot while unconscious during a police raid on his

safe house A safe house (also spelled safehouse) is a dwelling place or building whose unassuming appearance makes it an inconspicuous location where one can hide out, take shelter, or conduct clandestine activities. Historical usage It may also refer to ...

. File:CALLEMIN attitude trois-quarts casquette.jpg,

Raymond Callemin The Bonnot Gang (''La Bande à Bonnot''), or The Tragic Bandits (''Les Bandes Tragiques''), was a French criminal anarchist group that operated in France and Belgium during the late ''Belle Époque'' from 1911 to 1912. Composed of individuals wh ...

, executed by

guillotine A guillotine ( ) is an apparatus designed for effectively carrying out executions by Decapitation, beheading. The device consists of a tall, upright frame with a weighted and angled blade suspended at the top. The condemned person is secur ...

File:Etienne MONIER Bande à Bonnot.jpg,

, executed by guillotine File:SOUDY.jpg, , executed by guillotine File:Edouard CAROUY Bande à Bonnot IJ.jpg, Edouard Carouy, nicknamed "Leblanc," sentenced to

life in prison Life imprisonment is any sentence of imprisonment under which the convicted individual is to remain incarcerated for the rest of their natural life (or until pardoned or commuted to a fixed term). Crimes that result in life imprisonment are co ...

but died immediately after sentencing using a

cyanide pill A suicide pill (also known as the cyanide pill, kill-pill, lethal pill, death-pill, cyanide capsule, or L-pill) is a pill, capsule, ampoule, or tablet containing a fatally poisonous substance that a person ingests deliberately in order to achie ...

hidden in his shoe.

See more

Anarchism in France Anarchism in France can trace its roots to thinker Pierre-Joseph Proudhon, who grew up during the Restoration and was the first self-described anarchist. French anarchists fought in the Spanish Civil War as volunteers in the International Briga ...

Anarchism in Belgium Anarchism spread into Belgium as Communards took refuge in Brussels with the fall of the Paris Commune. Most Belgian members in the First International joined the anarchist Jura Federation after the socialist schism. Belgian anarchists also orga ...

* '' La Bande à Bonnot'', 1968 film *

Flavio Costantini Flavio Costantini (21 September 1926 – 20 May 2013) was an Italian painter and illustrator. Costantini created portraits of writers and artists for newspapers, and illustrated several novels. His early works were inspired by the novelist Franz ...

, Italian painter who featured the Bonnot Gang in his works * ''

Les Brigades du Tigre ''The Tiger Brigades'' () is a 2006 French crime film. Based on a very successful 1970s-'80s French television series of the same name the film depicts an Untouchables-type crack "Flying Squad" once formed by then PM Georges Clemenceau to tackle ...

'' *

Expropriative anarchism The Argentine anarchist movement has been one of the strongest such movement in South America. It was strongest between 1890 and the start of a series of military governments in 1930. During this period, it was dominated by anarchist communists ...

Illegalism Illegalism is a tendency of anarchism that developed primarily in France, Italy, Belgium and Switzerland during the late 1890s and early 1900s as an outgrowth of individualist anarchism. Illegalists embrace criminality either openly or secret ...

Individualist anarchism Individualist anarchism or anarcho-individualism is a collection of anarchist Anarchism is a political philosophy and Political movement, movement that seeks to abolish all institutions that perpetuate authority, coercion, or Social hi ...

Left-wing terrorism Left-wing terrorism is a form of terrorism, terrorist political violence motivated by Far-left politics, far-left ideologies, committed with the aim of overthrowing current Capitalism, capitalist systems and replacing them with Communism, comm ...

Propaganda of the deed Propaganda of the deed, or propaganda by the deed, is a type of direct action intended to influence public opinion. The action itself is meant to serve as an example for others to follow, acting as a catalyst for social revolution. It is primari ...

* ''

Les Vampires ''Les Vampires'' () is a 1915–1916 French Silent film, silent Crime film, crime serial film written and directed by Louis Feuillade. Set in Paris, it stars Édouard Mathé, Musidora and Marcel Lévesque. The main characters are a journalist an ...

'', 1915–16 serial

References

External links

* {{Authority control Illegalists Defunct anarchist organizations in France Defunct anarchist militant groups French bank robbers Motor vehicle theft Gangs in France 1911 in France 1912 in France Left-wing militant groups in France Belle Époque French anarchists Belgian anarchists Individualist anarchists Attacks on commercial buildings in France Attacks on buildings and structures in the 1910s 1910s crimes in France