France abolishes the Republican Calendar

Background. The French Republican Calendar was created during the Revolution and used by the government for about twelve years from late 1793 to 1805. It was designed to replace the Gregorian calendar. Despite the end of the First Republic in 1804, the system remained in official use until the beginning of 1806.

Abolition. An act dated 22 Fructidor an XIII (9 September 1805) abolished the calendar. This act was signed by Napoleon and referenced a report by Regnaud de Saint-Jean d'Angély and Mounier listing two fundamental flaws. The abolition took effect on 1 January 1806, ending the ten-day week system.

Political Context. Napoleon crowned himself Emperor of the French in December 1804, further consolidating his power. The calendar abolition occurred in 1805, a year in which the breakdown of the Treaty of Amiens had led to the War of the Third Coalition. The revolutionary calendar itself, with its ten-day week, had been introduced in 1793.