Covers Year I to Year XIV, with the leap (sextile) years actually observed: Years III, VII and XI. The result appears as soon as you change a value.
The Republican year has twelve months of thirty days, followed by five complementary days — six in so-called sextile (leap) years — making 365 or 366 days. Each month is divided into three décades of ten days, named primidi, duodi, tridi, quartidi, quintidi, sextidi, septidi, octidi, nonidi and décadi: the seven-day week and Sunday vanish from the records.
The year begins on the day of the autumn equinox as observed in Paris: depending on the year, 1 Vendémiaire falls on 22, 23 or 24 September. Year I begins on 22 September 1792.
| Month | Season | Dates in Year II (1793-1794) |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Vendémiaire | autumn | 22 September – 21 October |
| 2. Brumaire | autumn | 22 October – 20 November |
| 3. Frimaire | autumn | 21 November – 20 December |
| 4. Nivôse | winter | 21 December – 19 January |
| 5. Pluviôse | winter | 20 January – 18 February |
| 6. Ventôse | winter | 19 February – 20 March |
| 7. Germinal | spring | 21 March – 19 April |
| 8. Floréal | spring | 20 April – 19 May |
| 9. Prairial | spring | 20 May – 18 June |
| 10. Messidor | summer | 19 June – 18 July |
| 11. Thermidor | summer | 19 July – 17 August |
| 12. Fructidor | summer | 18 August – 16 September |
| Complementary days | end of year | 17 – 21 September |
These dates apply to Year II. In other years they can shift by one day, sometimes two: for an exact date, use the converter rather than this table.
First called sansculottides, then complementary days from 1795 onwards, each has a name: Jour de la Vertu (Virtue), du Génie (Talent), du Travail (Labour), de l'Opinion (Opinion), des Récompenses (Rewards) — and, in sextile years only, Jour de la Révolution. They belong to no month: a record dated “the third complementary day” is from mid-September.
The decree set the start of the year at the equinox, but also provided for a leap year every four years (the franciade) — two rules that eventually contradict each other. In practice, the sextile years were Years III, VII and XI, each with a sixth complementary day. The following New Year's Day then moves back by one day:
Gregorian date of 1 Vendémiaire for each year, from the table published on Wikipedia.
The record opens like this (in French):
« Aujourd'hui le douze floréal, l'an cinq de la République une et indivisible, à deux heures après midi… »
“Today the twelfth of Floréal, Year Five of the Republic one and indivisible, at two in the afternoon…”
The day (twelve), the month (Floréal, the 8th month) and the year (Year V) are written out in words. Year V begins on 22 September 1796; Floréal begins 210 days later; so 12 Floréal Year V is Monday, 1 May 1797 — the day the father registered the child.
Further on, the record states that the mother “gave birth yesterday, the eleventh day of the present month of Floréal”: the birth took place on 11 Floréal Year V, i.e. Sunday, 30 April 1797. That is the date that goes into the family tree, not the date of registration.
See the full record, its transcription and translation →
Source: Departmental Archives of Moselle, France (archives57.com) — Elzange, call number 9 NUM/1MIE194/1.
In a Revolutionary record, the date is often not the hardest part: the clerk's rapid hand, surnames, occupations, ages written out in words. KinScribe deciphers your scan and gives you a faithful transcription, a modern French version and an English translation, with uncertain passages shown on the image.
