Coleridge's Ancient Mariner and Select PoemsColeridge, Samuel Taylor
General
Coleridge's Ancient Mariner and Select Poems
Coleridge, Samuel Taylor
English poetry
42--*Britain's name*. England was from the beginning the centre of
resistance to the violence and ambition of revolutionary France; and
Pitt, who controlled English policy in these years, was looked upon as a
cold-blooded agent of tyranny by the French republicans and their
English sympathizers.
44--*sweet music of deliverance*. The French were so convinced that
their Revolution marked the beginning of a new era in human affairs that
they determined to have a new chronology. Accordingly a commission of
scientists was appointed to formulate a system, which was adopted in
October 1793. The "Era of the Republic" was to be counted from the
autumnal equinox, 1792. The year was divided into twelve months, as
before, but they were renamed (_Thermidor_ hot month, _Fructidor_ fruit
month, _Nivose_ snow month, &c.), and ran in periods of thirty days each
from the 22d of September. This left five days undistributed, which were
set apart as feast-days in celebration of five virtues or ideals. Each
month consisted of three decades, and each tenth day, or _decadis_, was
a holiday. The purpose of this was to eradicate the observance of the
Christian Sunday. This chronology was in actual use in France until
Napoleon put an end to it in 1806.
The municipality of Paris in 1793 decreed that on the 10th of November
the worship of Reason should be inaugurated at Notre Dame. "On that day
the venerable cathedral was profaned by a series of sacrilegious
outrages unparalleled in the history of Christendom. A temple dedicated
to 'Philosophy' was erected on a platform in the middle of the choir ...
the Goddess of Reason, impersonated by Mademoiselle Maillard, a well
known figurante of the opera, took her seat upon a grassy throne in
front of the temple; ... and the multitude bowed the knee before her in
profound admiration.... At the close of this grotesque ceremony the
whole cortège proceeded to the hall of the Convention, carrying with
them their 'goddess,' who was borne aloft in a chair of state on the
shoulders of four men. Having deposited her in front of the president,"
Chaumette, the spokesman of the procession, "harangued the Assembly....
He proceeded to demand that the ci-devant metropolitan church should
henceforth be the temple of Reason and Liberty; which proposition was
immediately adopted. The 'goddess' was then conducted to the president,
and he and other officers of the House saluted her with the 'fraternal
kiss,' amid thunders of applause. After this, upon the motion of
Thuriot, the Convention in a body joined the mass of the people, and
marched in their company to the temple of Reason, to witness a
repetition of the impieties above described.... At St. Gervais a ball
was given in the chapel of the Virgin. In other churches theatrical
spectacles took place.... On Sunday, the 17th of November, all the
parish churches of Paris were closed by authority, with three
exceptions.... Religion was proscribed, churches closed, Christian
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