Jacquerie

American  

[zhahk^uh-ree] / ʒɑkəˈri /

noun

1. the revolt of the peasants of northern France against the nobles in 1358.

2. (lowercase) any peasant revolt.

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Jacquerie British  

/ ʒakri /

noun

1. the revolt of the N French peasants against the nobility in 1358

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Etymology

Origin of Jacquerie

< French, Middle French, equivalent to jaque ( s ) peasant (after Jacques, a name thought to be typical of peasants) + -rie -ry

Explanation

A jacquerie is an insurrection or revolt, especially by peasants against the ruling class. The original jacquerie was an organized uprising by working class farmers in 14th-century France. Chaos among the nobility had left these peasants charged with risking their lives to defend the palaces against invading English soldiers. They rebelled violently for months, but ultimately lost to the aristocrats. Jacquerie derives from the nobles' mocking nickname for peasants, Jacques, a reference to the padded jackets, or jacques, they wore.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

Jacquerie

This, combined with the soaring fiscal burden of near-constant war, set off a series of uprisings, most notably the French Jacquerie of 1358 and the English Peasants' Revolt of 1381.

From Salon ● Apr. 26, 2020

They may make a Jacquerie, but they cannot make a revolution.

From Blackwood's Edinburgh Magazine, Volume 61, No. 379, May, 1847 by Various

No doubt the revolt had had some obscure connection with the horrible excesses of the Jacquerie which at the same moment had been desolating Paris.

From The Story of Rouen by Cook, Theodore Andrea, Sir

Our talk of his exploits brought us to Meaux, at the time of the Jacquerie, in the twelfth century.

From Everyman's Land by Williamson, A. M. (Alice Muriel)

Now that eight months have elapsed, we know what to think of this "Jacquerie;" the facts have at length been brought to light.

From Napoleon the Little by Hugo, Victor