The fan during the French Revolution: from the elite to the people

From the Revolution onwards, the fan, considered as an emblem of the Ancien Régime, lost its splendour. But paradoxically, as the events to be reported are constantly increasing, the number of actuality fans is increasing considerably, and the frames are becoming more simplified. The fan is made of propaganda, illustrating allegories of the Republic and spreading revolutionary songs. This object, which had been the prerogative of the nobility for so long, now contributes to its loss. In the opposing camp, so-called "royalist" fans were also made. They are more discreet, representing the figures of the King and Queen between the branches of a weeping willow for example. Through an anecdotal object in the history of the French Revolution, this article proposes to understand how the people transmitted their opinion. More specifically, we will describe the processes through which the range conveyed these political messages. We will also study the modalities that made him an emblem of the Ancien Régime and that led to his adoption by the revolutionaries.