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Louise Michel (; 29 May 1830 – 9 January 1905) was a teacher and prominent figure during 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 ...
. Following her
penal transportation Penal transportation (or simply transportation) was the relocation of convicted criminals, or other persons regarded as undesirable, to a distant place, often a colony, for a specified term; later, specifically established penal colonies bec ...
to
New Caledonia New Caledonia ( ; ) is a group of islands in the southwest Pacific Ocean, southwest of Vanuatu and east of Australia. Located from Metropolitan France, it forms a Overseas France#Sui generis collectivity, ''sui generis'' collectivity of t ...
she began to embrace
anarchism 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 ...
, and upon her return to France she emerged as an important French anarchist, and went on speaking tours across Europe. The journalist Brian Doherty has called her the "French grande dame of
anarchy Anarchy is a form of society without rulers. As a type of stateless society, it is commonly contrasted with states, which are centralized polities that claim a monopoly on violence over a permanent territory. Beyond a lack of government, it can ...
." Her use of a black flag at a demonstration in Paris in March 1883 was the earliest known instance of what would become known as the anarchy black flag.


Early life

Louise Michel was born May 29, 1830 to Marianne Michel, a
domestic worker A domestic worker is a person who works within a residence and performs a variety of household services for an individual, from providing cleaning and household maintenance, or cooking, laundry and ironing, or care for children and elderly ...
, and Laurent Demahis. She was raised by her paternal grandparents, Charlotte and Charles-Étienne Demahis, in northeastern France. She spent her childhood in the Château de Vroncourt and was provided with a liberal education. When her grandparents died, she completed teacher training and worked in villages.


Career and activism

In 1865 Michel opened a school in Paris which became known for its modern and progressive methods. She corresponded with the prominent French romanticist
Victor Hugo Victor-Marie Hugo, vicomte Hugo (; 26 February 1802 – 22 May 1885) was a French Romanticism, Romantic author, poet, essayist, playwright, journalist, human rights activist and politician. His most famous works are the novels ''The Hunchbac ...
and began publishing poetry. She became involved in the radical politics of Paris and among her associates were Auguste Blanqui, Jules Vallès and Théophile Ferré. In 1869 the feminist group ''Société pour la Revendication des Droits Civils de la Femme'' (''Society for the Demand of Civil Rights for Women'') was announced by André Léo. Among the members of the group were Michel, Paule Minck,
Eliska Vincent Eliska Vincent (née Eliska Girard 1841–1914) was a Utopia, Utopian Socialism, socialist and militant Feminism, feminist in France. She argued that women had lost civil rights that existed in the Middle Ages, and these should be restored. In the ...
, Élie Reclus and his wife Noémie, Mme Jules Simon, Caroline de Barrau and Maria Deraismes. Because of the broad range of opinions, the group decided to focus on the subject of improving girls' education. Commonly known as the ''Revendication des Droits de la Femme'' (''Demand for Women's Rights''), the group had close ties with the ''Société Coopérative des Ouvriers et Ouvrières'' (''Cooperative Society of Men and Women Workers''). The July 1869 manifesto of the ''Revendication des Droits de la Femme'' was thus signed by the wives of militant cooperative members. The manifesto was also supported by Sophie Doctrinal, signing with ''Citoyenne Poirier'' (citizen Poirier), who would later become a close associate of Michel in the Paris Commune. In January 1870 Michel and Léo attended the funeral of Victor Noir. Michel expressed disappointment that the death of Noir had not been used to overthrow the Empire. At the start of the Siege of Paris, in November 1870, Léo in a lecture declared "It is not a question of our practicing politics, we are human, that is all."


Paris Commune

During the siege, Michel became part of the National Guard. When 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 ...
was declared she was elected head of the Montmartre Women's Vigilance Committee. In April 1871 she threw herself into the armed struggle against the French government. Her lover, Théophile Ferré, was a senior member of the Commune and of its Committee of Public Safety. It was Ferré who ordered the execution of
Georges Darboy Georges Darboy (; 16 January 181324 May 1871) was a French Catholic prelate who served as Bishop of Nancy then Archbishop of Paris. He was among a group of prominent hostages executed as the Paris Commune of 1871 was about to be overthrown. ...
, the Archbishop of Paris. She was aligned with Ferré and Raoul Rigault, two of the most militant members of the Paris Commune. However, Ferré and Rigault persuaded her to not carry out her plan to assassinate
Adolphe Thiers Marie Joseph Louis Adolphe Thiers ( ; ; 15 April 17973 September 1877) was a French statesman and historian who served as President of France from 1871 to 1873. He was the second elected president and the first of the Third French Republic. Thi ...
, the chief executive of the French national government. Michel fought with the 61st Battalion of Montmartre and organized ambulance stations during the beginning of the
Bloody Week The ''Semaine sanglante'' ("") was a weeklong battle in Paris from 21 to 28 May 1871, during which the French Army recaptured the city from the Paris Commune. This was the final battle of the Paris Commune. Following the Treaty of Frankfur ...
(May 21–28, 1871), the battle that ended the Commune In her memoirs she later wrote "oh, I'm a savage all right, I like the smell of gunpowder,
grapeshot In artillery, a grapeshot is a type of ammunition that consists of a collection of smaller-caliber round shots packed tightly in a canvas bag and separated from the gunpowder charge by a metal wadding, rather than being a single solid projectile ...
flying through the air, but above all, I'm devoted to the Revolution." On May 23, after a fierce fight, Montmartre was captured by the French Army. On May 24, she surrendered to the French army in order to save her mother from possible imprisonment. Michel ideologically justified a militant revolution, proclaiming: "I descended the Butte, my rifle under my coat, shouting: Treason! . . . Our deaths would free Paris". She reflected: "It is true, perhaps, that women like rebellions. We are no better than men with respect to power, but power has not yet corrupted us." In her memoirs Michel confessed that the realities of the revolutionary government strengthened her resolve to end discrimination against women. On the attitude of her male comrades, she wrote, "How many times, during the Commune, did I go, with a national guardsman or a soldier, to some place where they hardly expected to have to contend with a woman?" She challenged her comrades to "play a part in the struggle for women's rights, after men and women have won the rights of all humanity?" In December 1871, Michel was tried by a
military court A court-martial (plural ''courts-martial'' or ''courts martial'', as "martial" is a postpositive adjective) is a military court or a trial conducted in such a court. A court-martial is empowered to determine the guilt of members of the arme ...
along with soldiers captured during the Bloody Week. She was charged with offenses including trying to overthrow the government, encouraging citizens to arm themselves, and using weapons and wearing a military uniform. She dared the judges to sentence her to death, saying "It seems that every heart that beats for freedom has no other right than a bit of lead, so I claim mine!" Instead, Michel was among 1,169 Commune supporters sentenced to
penal transportation Penal transportation (or simply transportation) was the relocation of convicted criminals, or other persons regarded as undesirable, to a distant place, often a colony, for a specified term; later, specifically established penal colonies bec ...
to a French prison colony in the South Pacific. It is estimated by some sources that 20,000 defenders of the Paris Commune had been killed or summarily executed after combat, though this number is disputed by other more recent sources. Jacques Rougerie, a noted French Marxist historian, put the probable number at closer to 10,000.


Deportation

On August 8, 1873, following twenty months in prison, Michel was loaded onto the ship ''Virginie'', to be deported to
New Caledonia New Caledonia ( ; ) is a group of islands in the southwest Pacific Ocean, southwest of Vanuatu and east of Australia. Located from Metropolitan France, it forms a Overseas France#Sui generis collectivity, ''sui generis'' collectivity of t ...
, where four months later she arrived. While on board she became acquainted with
Henri Rochefort Henri is the French form of the masculine given name Henry, also in Estonian, Finnish, German and Luxembourgish. Bearers of the given name include: People French nobles * Henri I de Montmorency (1534–1614), Marshal and Constable of France * ...
, a famous polemicist, who became her lifelong friend. She also met Nathalie Lemel, another figure active in the commune. It was this latter contact that led Louise to become an
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 ...
. She remained in New Caledonia for seven years and during that period befriended the local
Kanak people The Kanaks (French language, French spelling until 1984: Canaque) are the Indigenous peoples of Oceania, indigenous Melanesians, Melanesian inhabitants of New Caledonia, an overseas collectivity of France in the southwest Pacific Ocean, Pacifi ...
. Taking an interest in Kanak legends, cosmology and
languages Language is a structured system of communication that consists of grammar and vocabulary. It is the primary means by which humans convey meaning, both in spoken and signed forms, and may also be conveyed through writing. Human language is ch ...
, particularly the bichelamar creole, she learned about Kanak culture from friendships she had made with Kanak people. She taught French to Kanaks and took their side in the
1878 Kanak revolt The Great Kanak Revolt of 1878 is the term commonly used to describe the insurrection of the Kanak people in 1878 in New Caledonia, with the iconic figure of the great chief of Komalé, Ataï. The Kanaks refer to it as the War of Ataï. Colonial c ...
. The following year, she received authorization to become a teacher in
Nouméa Nouméa () is the capital and largest city of the French Sui generis collectivity, special collectivity of New Caledonia and is also the largest Francophone city in Oceania. It is situated on a peninsula in the south of New Caledonia's main i ...
for the children of the deported—among them many
Algeria Algeria, officially the People's Democratic Republic of Algeria, is a country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It is bordered to Algeria–Tunisia border, the northeast by Tunisia; to Algeria–Libya border, the east by Libya; to Alger ...
n Kabyles (" Kabyles du Pacifique") from Cheikh Mokrani's rebellion (1871).


Return to France

In 1880,
amnesty Amnesty () is defined as "A pardon extended by the government to a group or class of people, usually for a political offense; the act of a sovereign power officially forgiving certain classes of people who are subject to trial but have not yet be ...
was granted to those who had participated in the Paris Commune. Michel returned to Paris, her revolutionary passion undiminished. She gave a public address on 21 November 1880 and continued her revolutionary activity in Europe, attending the
1881 London Social Revolutionary Congress The International Social Revolutionary Congress was an anarchist meeting in London between 14 and 20 July 1881, with the aim of founding a new International organization for anti-authoritiarian socialism (i.e., anarchists). Preparations Pla ...
, where she led demonstrations and spoke to huge crowds. While in London, she also attended meetings at the Russell Square home of the Pankhursts where she made a particular impression on a young
Sylvia Pankhurst Estelle Sylvia Pankhurst (; 5 May 1882 – 27 September 1960) was an English Feminism, feminist and Socialism, socialist activist and writer. Following encounters with women-led labour activism in the United States, she worked to organise worki ...
. In France she successfully campaigned, together with Charles Malato and Victor Henri Rochefort, for an amnesty to be also granted to Algerian deportees in New Caledonia. In March 1883 Michel published in '' La Vengeance Anarchiste'', a journal calling for
propaganda by 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 ...
. Three days later, she led a demonstration of unemployed workers with her friend, Émile Pouget. In the subsequent
riot A riot or mob violence is a form of civil disorder commonly characterized by a group lashing out in a violent public disturbance against authority, property, or people. Riots typically involve destruction of property, public or private. The p ...
, 500 demonstrators led by Michel pillaged three bakeries and shouted "Bread, work, or lead". Reputedly, Michel led this demonstration with a black flag, which has since become a symbol of anarchism. It was the first recorded use of the anarchist black flag. Michel was tried for her actions in the riot and used the court to publicly defend her anarchist principles. She was sentenced to six years of solitary confinement for inciting the
looting Looting is the act of stealing, or the taking of goods by force, typically in the midst of a military, political, or other social crisis, such as war, natural disasters (where law and civil enforcement are temporarily ineffective), or rioting. ...
. Michel was defiant. For her, the future of the human race was at stake, "one without exploiters and without exploited." Michel was released in 1886, at the same time as
Kropotkin Pyotr Alexeyevich Kropotkin (9 December 1842 – 8 February 1921) was a Russian anarchist and geographer known as a proponent of anarchist communism. Born into an aristocratic land-owning family, Kropotkin attended the Page Corps and later ...
and other prominent anarchists. After her release, she published in the anarchist newspaper '' La Révolution cosmopolite'' with Charles Malato and Jacques Prolo. She contributed to its first issue and many subsequent publications. Through these contributions, she began to explore the use of literature as a revolutionary weapon, frequently publishing her poems in the journal. It was banned in 1887 for "incitement to murder and pillage".


Exile and speaking tours

In 1890 she was arrested again. After an attempt to commit her to a
mental asylum The lunatic asylum, insane asylum or mental asylum was an institution where people with mental illness were confined. It was an early precursor of the modern psychiatric hospital. Modern psychiatric hospitals evolved from and eventually replace ...
she moved to
London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...
. Michel lived in London for five years. She opened a school and moved among the European anarchist exile circles. Her International Anarchist School for the children of political refugees opened in 1890 at 19 Fitzroy Square. The teachings were influenced by the libertarian educationist Paul Robin and put into practice
Mikhail Bakunin Mikhail Alexandrovich Bakunin. Sometimes anglicized to Michael Bakunin. ( ; – 1 July 1876) was a Russian revolutionary anarchist. He is among the most influential figures of anarchism and a major figure in the revolutionary socialist, s ...
's educational principles, emphasising scientific and rational methods. Michel's aim was to develop among the children the principles of humanity and justice. Among the teachers were exiled anarchists, such as Victorine Rouchy-Brocher, but also pioneering educationalists such as Rachel McMillan and Agnes Henry. In 1892 the school was closed, when explosives were found in the basement. (See Walsall Anarchists.) It was later revealed that the explosives had been put there by Auguste Coulon, a Special Branch agent provocateur, who worked at the school as an assistant. Michel contributed to many English-speaking publications. Some of Michel's writings were translated into English by the poet Louisa Sarah Bevington. Michel's published works were also translated into Spanish by the anarchist Soledad Gustavo. The Spanish anarchist and workers rights activist Teresa Claramunt became known as the "Spanish Louise Michel". By that time Michel had become a well-known speaker, touring Europe repeatedly to speak in front of thousands of people. In 1895
Sébastien Faure Sébastien Faure (; 6 January 1858 – 14 July 1942) was a French anarchist, convicted sex offender, freethought and secularist activist and a principal proponent of synthesis anarchism. Biography Before becoming a free-thinker, Faure w ...
and Michel founded the French anarchist periodical ''Le Libertaire'' (The Libertaria''n''), now called ''Le Monde Libertaire'' (Libertarian World). In the same year Michel met
Emma Goldman Emma Goldman (June 27, 1869 – May 14, 1940) was a Russian-born Anarchism, anarchist revolutionary, political activist, and writer. She played a pivotal role in the development of anarchist political philosophy in North America and Europ ...
at an anarchist conference in London, at which both were speaking. The young Goldman was hugely impressed by Michel, considering her to have a "social instinct developed to the extreme". In reference to the harsh conditions of Michel's life, Goldman asserted "Anarchists insist that conditions must be radically wrong if human instincts develop to such extremes at the expense of each other." Michel returned to France in 1895. In an 1896 article, entitled "Why I am an Anarchist", Michel argued that "Anarchy will not begin the eternal miseries anew. Humanity in its fight of despair will cling to it in order to emerge from the abyss." In 1904 Michel went on a conference tour through
French Algeria French Algeria ( until 1839, then afterwards; unofficially ; ), also known as Colonial Algeria, was the period of History of Algeria, Algerian history when the country was a colony and later an integral part of France. French rule lasted until ...
. Michel was scheduled to meet the anti-colonial campaigner Isabelle Eberhardt, but Eberhardt died shortly before Michel arrived in Algeria.


Death

Michel died of
pneumonia Pneumonia is an Inflammation, inflammatory condition of the lung primarily affecting the small air sacs known as Pulmonary alveolus, alveoli. Symptoms typically include some combination of Cough#Classification, productive or dry cough, ches ...
in
Marseille Marseille (; ; see #Name, below) is a city in southern France, the Prefectures in France, prefecture of the Departments of France, department of Bouches-du-Rhône and of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur Regions of France, region. Situated in the ...
on 10 January 1905. Her funeral in Paris was attended by more than 100,000 people. Michel's grave is in the cemetery of Levallois-Perret, in one of the suburbs of Paris. The grave is maintained by the community. This cemetery is also the last resting place of her friend and fellow communard Théophile Ferré.


Political theory

Michel once joked, "We love to have agents provocateurs in the party, because they always propose the most revolutionary motions." Michel's political ideas evolved throughout her life. Once a teacher with progressive ideals, her activism saw her embrace
revolutionary socialism Revolutionary socialism is a political philosophy, doctrine, and tradition within socialism that stresses the idea that a social revolution is necessary to bring about structural changes in society. More specifically, it is the view that revo ...
, but the experience of a failed revolution turned her into a radical
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 ...
. Her political theory progressed from peaceful reform to violent revolution, because she came to believe that contemporary society had to be completely destroyed for a new
egalitarian Egalitarianism (; also equalitarianism) is a school of thought within political philosophy that builds on the concept of social equality, prioritizing it for all people. Egalitarian doctrines are generally characterized by the idea that all h ...
era to emerge. The many years she spent in prison and in the French penal colony
New Caledonia New Caledonia ( ; ) is a group of islands in the southwest Pacific Ocean, southwest of Vanuatu and east of Australia. Located from Metropolitan France, it forms a Overseas France#Sui generis collectivity, ''sui generis'' collectivity of t ...
were central to her change of heart. Michel's political theory had its roots in the aftermath of the French Revolution, which was followed by a series of monarchies. Two prevailing theories emerged. There were those who believed that the
Reign of Terror The Reign of Terror (French: ''La Terreur'', literally "The Terror") was a period of the French Revolution when, following the creation of the French First Republic, First Republic, a series of massacres and Capital punishment in France, nu ...
that followed the revolution was proof that
democracy Democracy (from , ''dēmos'' 'people' and ''kratos'' 'rule') is a form of government in which political power is vested in the people or the population of a state. Under a minimalist definition of democracy, rulers are elected through competitiv ...
was flawed. The ruling elites of the post-revolutionary monarchies believed that for the economy to succeed, it was necessary to control the labour market, wages and working conditions. Thus few labour reforms were enacted. On the other hand, French romanticism reinterpreted the French Revolution as the tangible spirit of the French people. In the 1840s romanticism in France became politicised, because it became accepted that individual happiness could not be achieved in isolation. Romantics became preoccupied with social progress and reform. Writers embarked on a quest to realistically portray the lives of the working poor.
Victor Hugo Victor-Marie Hugo, vicomte Hugo (; 26 February 1802 – 22 May 1885) was a French Romanticism, Romantic author, poet, essayist, playwright, journalist, human rights activist and politician. His most famous works are the novels ''The Hunchbac ...
and
Émile Zola Émile Édouard Charles Antoine Zola (, ; ; 2 April 184029 September 1902) was a French novelist, journalist, playwright, the best-known practitioner of the literary school of Naturalism (literature), naturalism, and an important contributor to ...
emerged as key writers and political activists. Shortly after Michel was born in 1830 a short-lived revolt resulted in a
constitutional monarchy Constitutional monarchy, also known as limited monarchy, parliamentary monarchy or democratic monarchy, is a form of monarchy in which the monarch exercises their authority in accordance with a constitution and is not alone in making decisions. ...
being established.
Louis Philippe I Louis Philippe I (6 October 1773 – 26 August 1850), nicknamed the Citizen King, was King of the French from 1830 to 1848, the penultimate monarch of France, and the last French monarch to bear the title "King". He abdicated from his throne ...
encouraged commercial interests and the enrichment of the upper-middle class through
colonization 475px, Map of the year each country achieved List of sovereign states by date of formation, independence. Colonization (British English: colonisation) is a process of establishing occupation of or control over foreign territories or peoples f ...
and
penal transportation Penal transportation (or simply transportation) was the relocation of convicted criminals, or other persons regarded as undesirable, to a distant place, often a colony, for a specified term; later, specifically established penal colonies bec ...
, but at the same time practiced
laissez-faire ''Laissez-faire'' ( , from , ) is a type of economic system in which transactions between private groups of people are free from any form of economic interventionism (such as subsidies or regulations). As a system of thought, ''laissez-faire'' ...
when the socio-economic plight of the
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 ...
was concerned. Michel first made a name for herself by publicly defending the poor and working-class women. In the 1860s she was noted as political activist for vehemently opposing the policies of
Emperor Napoleon III Napoleon III (Charles-Louis Napoléon Bonaparte; 20 April 18089 January 1873) was President of France from 1848 to 1852 and then Emperor of the French from 1852 until his deposition in 1870. He was the first president, second emperor, and last ...
. Michel signed a number of her published political writings with Enjolras, the name of the revolutionary in Hugo's ''
Les Misérables ''Les Misérables'' (, ) is a 19th-century French literature, French Epic (genre), epic historical fiction, historical novel by Victor Hugo, first published on 31 March 1862, that is considered one of the greatest novels of the 19th century. '' ...
''. In 1865 she provocatively wrote a new Marseillaise, the call to arms during the French Revolution. In her Marseillaise, Michel called for a mass uprising of the people to defend the
republic A republic, based on the Latin phrase ''res publica'' ('public affair' or 'people's affair'), is a State (polity), state in which Power (social and political), political power rests with the public (people), typically through their Representat ...
, arguing that
martyrdom A martyr (, ''mártys'', 'witness' stem , ''martyr-'') is someone who suffers persecution and death for advocating, renouncing, or refusing to renounce or advocate, a religious belief or other cause as demanded by an external party. In colloqui ...
was preferable to defeat. This sentiment would be echoed in her subsequently published poetry, plays and novels. But unlike her contemporaries, Michel repeatedly lamented the violent treatment of children and the gory abuse of animals. Michel's political characters fought for justice, while the children and animals in her fictional works were too weak, sick and starved to resist or survive. When Emperor Napoleon III and his army were captured by the Prussians in 1870, the
French Third Republic The French Third Republic (, sometimes written as ) was the system of government adopted in France from 4 September 1870, when the Second French Empire collapsed during the Franco-Prussian War, until 10 July 1940, after the Fall of France durin ...
was proclaimed in Paris. But the provisional government continued the war against the Prussians and a four-month siege of Paris resulted in bleak hardship. Parisians starved and froze to death. Some managed to save themselves by eating cats, dogs and rats. The government surrendered, but Michel and other Parisians had taken up arms and organised themselves as a National Guard. When 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 ...
was proclaimed Michel was named head of the Women's Vigilance Committee and played a key role in initiating economic and social reforms. Michel pushed through the separation of church and state, initiated educational reforms and codified rights for workers. The reforms were not carried out due to the short duration of the Commune. When Michel was tried, she demanded to be killed by
firing squad Firing may refer to: * Dismissal (employment), sudden loss of employment by termination * Firemaking, the act of starting a fire * Burning; see combustion * Shooting, specifically the discharge of firearms * Execution by firing squad, a method of ...
and proclaimed "If you let me live, I shall never stop crying for vengeance, and I shall avenge my brothers by denouncing the murderers". The military court refused to make her a
martyr A martyr (, ''mártys'', 'witness' Word stem, stem , ''martyr-'') is someone who suffers persecution and death for advocating, renouncing, or refusing to renounce or advocate, a religious belief or other cause as demanded by an external party. In ...
. Michel was imprisoned for two years before she was deported. While in prison she demanded to be treated just like the other prisoners and rejected efforts by her friends Hugo and
Georges Clemenceau Georges Benjamin Clemenceau (28 September 1841 – 24 November 1929) was a French statesman who was Prime Minister of France from 1906 to 1909 and again from 1917 until 1920. A physician turned journalist, he played a central role in the poli ...
to have her sentence commuted. She considered preferential treatment a dishonour. During the four-month journey to
New Caledonia New Caledonia ( ; ) is a group of islands in the southwest Pacific Ocean, southwest of Vanuatu and east of Australia. Located from Metropolitan France, it forms a Overseas France#Sui generis collectivity, ''sui generis'' collectivity of t ...
Michel re-examined her belief in
revolutionary socialism Revolutionary socialism is a political philosophy, doctrine, and tradition within socialism that stresses the idea that a social revolution is necessary to bring about structural changes in society. More specifically, it is the view that revo ...
. She embraced
anarchism 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 ...
and for the rest of her life rejected all forms of
government A government is the system or group of people governing an organized community, generally a State (polity), state. In the case of its broad associative definition, government normally consists of legislature, executive (government), execu ...
. In 1896 she wrote about her change of mind:
"I considered the things, events and people of the past. I thought about the behaviour of our friends of the Commune: they were scrupulous, so afraid of exceeding their authority, that they never threw their full energies into anything but the loss of their own lives. I quickly came to the conclusion that good men in power are incompetent, just as bad men are evil, and therefore it is impossible for liberty ever to be associated with any form of power whatsoever."
Michel was introduced to the tenets of anarchism by a fellow prisoner Nathalie Lemel, with whom she was imprisoned in a large cage for several months. Michel became known for her selfless generosity and devotion to others. In the penal colony she lived in voluntary poverty, giving away her books, clothes and any money she acquired. Michel took up teaching again. She spent time with the indigenous
Kanak people The Kanaks (French language, French spelling until 1984: Canaque) are the Indigenous peoples of Oceania, indigenous Melanesians, Melanesian inhabitants of New Caledonia, an overseas collectivity of France in the southwest Pacific Ocean, Pacifi ...
, teaching them French so that they could challenge the French authorities. Michel supported them in their revolt against the colonial power. In 1875 the monarchist-dominated National Assembly passed a constitution that established a republican government with an upper and lower house of parliament. This republic was a compromise, as the National Assembly could not agree on who should be king. The brutal crackdown on the Paris Commune would influence French politics for years to come. Conservatives and moderates in the new government avoided anything that could trigger another uprising. This fear delayed the amnesty for those who had participated in the Paris Commune for years. Eventually an amnesty was granted and when Michel returned to Paris in November 1880 she was greeted by
Henri Rochefort Henri is the French form of the masculine given name Henry, also in Estonian, Finnish, German and Luxembourgish. Bearers of the given name include: People French nobles * Henri I de Montmorency (1534–1614), Marshal and Constable of France * ...
, Clemenceau, a crowd of 20,000 and the police. But she had no patience for Clemenceau's "illustration... that he should wait for parliamentarianism to bring progress". Michel soon began her career as a public speaker and found an audience all over Europe. In 1882 she staged her first anarchist play ''Nadine''. As a public speaker Michel became skilled in advancing pragmatic arguments to attack
capitalism Capitalism is an economic system based on the private ownership of the means of production and their use for the purpose of obtaining profit. This socioeconomic system has developed historically through several stages and is defined by ...
and the authoritarian state, while holding open the possibility of a positive outcome. When she was put on trial in 1883 for leading a group of unemployed workers, she attacked shortcomings in the implementation of the French republican constitution, saying:
"They keep talking to us about liberty: There is the liberty of speech with five years of prison at the end. In England, the meeting would have taken place; in France, they have not even made a legal admonition in order to let the crowd retreat, which would have left without resistance. People are dying from hunger, and they do not even have the right to say that they are dying from hunger."
Michel frequently spoke on
women's rights Women's rights are the rights and Entitlement (fair division), entitlements claimed for women and girls worldwide. They formed the basis for the women's rights movement in the 19th century and the feminist movements during the 20th and 21st c ...
from an anarchist perspective. She not only advocated education for women, but also that
marriage Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognised union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children (if any), and b ...
should be free and that men should hold no
property rights The right to property, or the right to own property (cf. ownership), is often classified as a human right for natural persons regarding their Possession (law), possessions. A general recognition of a right to private property is found more rarely ...
over women. In the late 1880s she authored several works in which she revisited the themes of her earlier works, but also portrayed the demise of the old order and its replacement with a society of equals. Michel embarked on a journey towards a new political philosophy. The revolutionary characters in ''The Strike'' expected to die, but instead they gave life to a new age and Michel discussed the rights and responsibilities of the people who lived in the aftermath of a
revolution In political science, a revolution (, 'a turn around') is a rapid, fundamental transformation of a society's class, state, ethnic or religious structures. According to sociologist Jack Goldstone, all revolutions contain "a common set of elements ...
. She staged her plays in accordance with Jean Grave's theory on audience participation. The audience was integrated through a political and artistic program of lectures, poems and songs. The audience was encouraged to react and re-enact the conflicts of the plays. In her plays ''The Human Microbes'' (1886), ''Crimes of the Times'' (1888) and ''The Bordello'' (1890) an agricultural
utopia A utopia ( ) typically describes an imagined community or society that possesses highly desirable or near-perfect qualities for its members. It was coined by Sir Thomas More for his 1516 book ''Utopia (book), Utopia'', which describes a fictiona ...
emerges from a devastated Europe. Michel's political ideals owed much to the French romanticism of Hugo and are described at length in ''The New Era, Last Thought, Memories of Caledonia'' (1887):
"It is indeed time that this old world die since no one is safe any longer... We can no longer live like our Stone Age ancestors, nor as in the past century, since the series of inventions, since the discoveries of
science Science is a systematic discipline that builds and organises knowledge in the form of testable hypotheses and predictions about the universe. Modern science is typically divided into twoor threemajor branches: the natural sciences, which stu ...
have brought the certainty that all production will increase a hundredfold when these innovations will be used for the general good, instead of letting just a handful of vultures help themselves in order to starve the rest."
Michel lived at a time when
hunger In politics, humanitarian aid, and the social sciences, hunger is defined as a condition in which a person does not have the physical or financial capability to eat sufficient food to meet basic nutritional needs for a sustained period. In t ...
was widespread among the working poor of Europe. She believed that technological progress would replace physical labour with machines. In combination with anarchist politics, she argued, this could lead to equal distribution of wealth. In 1890 she reasoned that "the attractive power of progress will demonstrate itself all the more as daily bread will be assured, and a few hours of work which will have become attractive and voluntary will be enough to produce more than what is necessary for consumption." Like other anarchists of her time she did not believe that history was a record of constant improvement, but that it could become so. However, constant
economic growth In economics, economic growth is an increase in the quantity and quality of the economic goods and Service (economics), services that a society Production (economics), produces. It can be measured as the increase in the inflation-adjusted Outp ...
was not an improvement in itself. Michel argued instead, that progress came through intellectual development, social evolution and liberation. Her vision of the future was shaped by a supreme confidence.
"Science will bring forth harvests in the desert; the energy of the tempests and whirlpools will carve paths through the mountains. Undersea boats will discover lost continents. Electricity will carry ships of the air above the icy poles. The ideas of Liberty, Equality and Justice will finally burst into flame. Each individual will live his integral part within humankind as a whole. Progress being infinite, transformations will be perpetual."
Michel did not only bemoan the poverty in which people across Europe lived, she also advanced a detailed critique of 19th century capitalism. She lamented the deficiencies of the capitalist
banking system A bank is a financial institution that accepts Deposit account, deposits from the public and creates a demand deposit while simultaneously making loans. Lending activities can be directly performed by the bank or indirectly through capital m ...
and predicted that the concentration of capital would result in the ruin of small enterprises and the
middle class The middle class refers to a class of people in the middle of a social hierarchy, often defined by occupation, income, education, or social status. The term has historically been associated with modernity, capitalism and political debate. C ...
. In her memoirs Michel said that the ''Anarchist Manifesto of Lyon'' (1883) precisely expressed her views. The Manifesto had been signed by
Peter Kropotkin Pyotr Alexeyevich Kropotkin (9 December 1842 – 8 February 1921) was a Russian anarchist and geographer known as a proponent of anarchist communism. Born into an aristocratic land-owning family, Kropotkin attended the Page Corps and later s ...
, Émile Gautier, Joseph Bernard, and Toussaint Bordat. Kropotkin, like
Jules Guesde Jules Bazile, known as Jules Guesde (; 11 November 1845 – 28 July 1922) was a French socialist journalist and politician. Guesde was the inspiration for a famous quotation by Karl Marx. Shortly before Marx died in 1883, he wrote a letter ...
and Émile Pouget would become close friends and associates of hers. Instead of focusing on violent revolution, as she had done in her earlier works, Michel in her later works emphasised the spontaneous uprising of the people. She came to reject terror as a means of bringing about a new era. She wrote "Tyrannicide is practical only when tyranny has a single head, or at most a small number of heads. When it is a hydra, only the Revolution can kill it". She took the view that it is best if the leaders of such a revolution would perish, so that the people would not be burdened with surviving general staff. Michel thought that "power is evil" and in her mind history was the story of free people being enslaved. In an 1882 speech she said "All revolutions have been insufficient because they have been political". Organisation was, in her mind, not necessary because the poor and exploited would rise up and, through their sheer numbers, would force the old order to shrivel up.


Legacy

Michel was among the more influential French political figures in the second half of the 19th century. She was also one of the more powerful women political theorists of her day. Her publications on social justice for the poor and the cause of the working classes were read in France and all over Europe. When she died in 1905 she was mourned by thousands. Memorial services were held all over France and in London. Although her writings are today forgotten, her name is remembered in the names of French streets, schools and parks. Michel became a national heroine in France and was revered as the "great citizen". A cultish image of Michel emerged. Shortly before her death, when returning from her exile in London, Michel had been dubbed "the angel of petrol", "the virago of the rabble" and "queen of the scum" by the conservative French press. In turn, Charles Ferdinand Gambon compared her to
Jeanne d'Arc Joan of Arc ( ; ;  â€“ 30 May 1431) is a patron saint of France, honored as a defender of the French nation for her role in the siege of Orléans and her insistence on the Coronation of the French monarch, coronation of Charles VII o ...
in reference to her role in the Paris Commune. This imagery was further propagandized by Edmond Lepelletier in 1911. The image of Michel as ''vierge rouge'' (red virgin) came to be used by conservative and liberal historians alike when recounting the story of the Paris Commune. Michel is regarded as a founder of
anarcha-feminism Anarcha-feminism, also known as anarchist feminism or anarcho-feminism, is a system of analysis which combines the principles and power analysis of anarchist theory with feminism. It closely resembles intersectional feminism. Anarcha-feminism ge ...
. Despite the anti-authoritarian rhetoric, early anarchist thinkers maintained cultural orthodoxy when it came to the division of domestic labour and their personal relationships with women. The founder of French anarchism,
Pierre-Joseph Proudhon Pierre-Joseph Proudhon (, ; ; 1809 – 19 January 1865) was a French anarchist, socialist, philosopher, and economist who founded mutualist philosophy and is considered by many to be the "father of anarchism". He was the first person to ca ...
was notorious for his sexist views. Michel, Teresa Claramunt, Lucy Parsons,
Voltairine de Cleyre Voltairine de Cleyre (; November 17, 1866 – June 20, 1912) was an American anarchist, feminist writer and public speaker. Born into extreme poverty in Michigan, de Cleyre taught herself how to read and write, and became a lover of poetry. ...
and
Emma Goldman Emma Goldman (June 27, 1869 – May 14, 1940) was a Russian-born Anarchism, anarchist revolutionary, political activist, and writer. She played a pivotal role in the development of anarchist political philosophy in North America and Europ ...
became prominent figures in the late 19th century pan-European and American anarchist movement. With the formation of the First International anarchist sections in various European countries under the leadership of
Mikhail Bakunin Mikhail Alexandrovich Bakunin. Sometimes anglicized to Michael Bakunin. ( ; – 1 July 1876) was a Russian revolutionary anarchist. He is among the most influential figures of anarchism and a major figure in the revolutionary socialist, s ...
, anarchism became noted for not only encouraging female participation in the political movement but also for espousing the ideal of female emancipation. In 1913-1914, the anarchist cooperative '' Le Cinéma du Peuple'' chose her first name to name the main character of its first film, '' Les Misères de l'aiguille''. This is also likely the first
feminist Feminism is a range of socio-political movements and ideology, ideologies that aim to define and establish the political, economic, personal, and social gender equality, equality of the sexes. Feminism holds the position that modern soci ...
film in history. A movie by the French filmmaker Sarah Maldoror, ''The Commune, Louise Michel and Us'' (1971), now lost, was commissioned by the city of Saint-Denis. Michel was rediscovered by
French feminists Feminism in France is the history of Feminism, feminist thought and movements in France. Feminism in France can be roughly divided into three waves: First-wave feminism from the French Revolution through the French Third Republic, Third Republic ...
in the 1970s through the works of Xavière Gauthier. Michel is the subject of Mary M Talbot and Bryan Talbot's graphic work, ''The Red Virgin and the Vision of Utopia'' (2016). In 2020, street artist
Banksy Banksy is a pseudonymous England-based street artist, political activist, and film director whose real name and identity remain unconfirmed and the subject of speculation. Active since the 1990s, his satirical street art and subversive ep ...
was credited for sending a rescue ship in the
Mediterranean Sea The Mediterranean Sea ( ) is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the east by the Levant in West Asia, on the north by Anatolia in West Asia and Southern Eur ...
and naming it after Michel. Academic interest in Michel's life and political writings was prompted in the 1970s by Édith Thomas's comprehensively researched biography.


Monuments in Paris

In 1937 the Collège Louise-Michel was opened in the 10th arrondissement. On 1 May 1946 the Paris Metro Vallier station in
Levallois-Perret Levallois-Perret () is a Communes of France, commune in the Hauts-de-Seine Departments of France, department and ÃŽle-de-France Regions of France, region of north-central France. It lies on the right bank of the Seine, some from the Kilometre z ...
Paris Metro was renamed Louise Michel station. In 2004 the Square Louise-Michel in Montmartre was renamed after her. Michel was one of 10 French women honoured during the
2024 Summer Olympics opening ceremony The Olympic Games ceremony#Opening, opening ceremony of the 2024 Summer Olympics took place on 26 July 2024 across Paris, beginning at 19:30 Central European Summer Time, CEST (17:30 Coordinated Universal Time, UTC). As mandated by the Olympic ...
in Paris, where a gold statue of her was raised along the
Seine river The Seine ( , ) is a river in northern France. Its drainage basin is in the Paris Basin (a geological relative lowland) covering most of northern France. It rises at Source-Seine, northwest of Dijon in northeastern France in the Langres p ...
.


Publications

*
Anarchie
'' poetry and political philosophy, '' La Vengeance Anarchiste'', 6 March 1883 * ''À travers la vie'', poetry, Paris, 1894. * ''Le Bâtard impérial'', by L. Michel and J. Winter, Paris, 1883. * ''Le claque-dents'', Paris. *
La Commune
', Paris, 1898. *
'Contes et légendes'
, Paris, 1884. Translated into English by Jade Maître a
'Fairy Tales and Legends'
* ''Les Crimes de l'époque'', nouvelles inédites, Paris, 1888. * ''Défense de Louise Michel'',
Bordeaux Bordeaux ( ; ; Gascon language, Gascon ; ) is a city on the river Garonne in the Gironde Departments of France, department, southwestern France. A port city, it is the capital of the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region, as well as the Prefectures in F ...
, 1883. * ''L'Ère nouvelle, pensée dernière, souvenirs de Calédonie (prisoners' songs)'', Paris, 1887 * ''La Fille du peuple'' par L. Michel et A. Grippa, Paris (1883) * ''Le Gars Yvon, légende bretonne'', Paris, 1882. *
Légendes et Chants des Gestes Canaques
', Paris, 1885. Translated into English by Mitch Abidor as
Legends and Chants des Gestes
2005. * ''Lectures encyclopédiques par cycles attractifs'', Paris, 1888. * ''Ligue internationale des femmes révolutionnaires, Appel à une réunion.'' Signed "Louise Michel", Paris, 1882. * ''Le livre du jour de l'an : historiettes, contes et légendes pour les enfants'', Paris, 1872. * ''Lueurs dans l'ombre. Plus d'idiots, plus de fous. L'âme intelligente. L'idée libre. L'esprit lucide de la terre à Dieu...'' Paris, 1861. * ''Manifeste et proclamation de Louise Michel aux citoyennes de Paris'', Signed "Louise Maboul", Paris, 1883. * ''Mémoires'', Paris, 1886 (edited and translated by Bullitt Lowry and Elizabeth Ellington Gunter as '' The Red Virgin : Memoirs of Louise Michel'', The University of Alabama Press University, 1981, ) * ''Les Méprises, grand roman de mœurs parisiennes'', par Louise Michel et Jean Guêtré, Paris, 1882. * ''Les Microbes humains'', Paris, 1886. (translated by
Brian Stableford Brian Michael Stableford (25 July 1948 – 24 February 2024) was a British academic, critic and science fiction writer who published a hundred novels and over a hundred volumes of translations. His earlier books were published under the name Br ...
as ''The Human Microbes'', ) * ''La Misère'' by Louise Michel, 2nd part, and Jean Guêtré 1st part, Paris, 1882. * ''Le Monde nouveau'', Paris, 1888 (translated by Brian Stableford as ''The New World'', ) * ''"Nous reviendrons foule sans nombre": Louise Michel à Victor Hugo, lettres de prison et du bagne (1871–1879),'' ed. by Virginie Berling, coll. Scènes intempestives à Grignan, ed. TriArtis, Paris 2016, . * '' Today or Tomorrow'' (''Aujourd'hui ou demain''), 10-17 July 1892 ;Posthumous * ''Vol. I. Avant la Commune''. Preface by Laurent Tailhade,
Alfortville Alfortville () is a Communes of France, commune in the Val-de-Marne Departments of France, department in the southeastern suburbs of Paris, France. It is located from the Kilometre Zero, center of Paris. It is one of the 13 communes in the interc ...
, 1905. * ''Les Paysans'' by Louise Michel et Émile Gautier, Paris, Incomplete. * ''Prise de possession'', Saint-Denis, 1890. * ''Le Rêve'' (in a work by Constant Martin), Paris, 1898. * ', edition established by Xavière Gauthier, Édition de Paris- Max Chaleil, 1999.


See also

*
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 ...
* Louise Michel Battalions –
Spanish Civil War The Spanish Civil War () was a military conflict fought from 1936 to 1939 between the Republican faction (Spanish Civil War), Republicans and the Nationalist faction (Spanish Civil War), Nationalists. Republicans were loyal to the Left-wing p ...
* Marie Ferré


References


Bibliography

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * < * * * * * * * * * *


External links

* * *
Louise Michel archive
at the Anarchy Archives
Paul Foot on Louise Michel
* Archive o
Louise Michel Papers
at the
International Institute of Social History International is an adjective (also used as a noun) meaning "between nations". International may also refer to: Music Albums * ''International'' (Kevin Michael album), 2011 * ''International'' (New Order album), 2002 * ''International'' (The T ...
{{DEFAULTSORT:Michel, Louise 1830 births 1905 deaths Anarcha-feminists Burials at Levallois-Perret Cemetery Communards French anarchists French anti-capitalists French feminists French socialists French women activists French women environmentalists People from Haute-Marne People of Montmartre French socialist feminists Women in 19th-century warfare Women in war in France 19th-century French women politicians French magazine founders People deported to New Caledonia