Non-Decorators: The Logic of a List
One of the account books of the city of Amiens contains a list - in no obvious order - of 105 individuals fined for failing to decorate the fronts of their houses in honor of the traditional Catholic parish processions in May 1562. However, it was not until I came upon another list, an even larger list of Protestant “suspects” in the National Library of France, that I realized that the Non-Decorators in the account book had been listed according to their parish of residence. For example, the first five persons on the list: Raoul Forestier, Centurion [Hublee], Pierre Polleur, François Savary and Jehan Dupuis were all – according to the list of Suspects in the National Library – residents of the parish of Saint Firmin-en-Castillon. The next nine non-decorators were all from the parish of Saint Germain and so on.
The list of Non-Decorators was apparently compiled from separate parish lists and it seems likely according to an entry in the deliberations of the town council that the church wardens (marguilliers) of the various parishes may have been charged with this responsibility in their parishes. Once the names were compiled, the fines were assessed and recorded. Discoveries like this helped give dimension for me to what were simply names on a list when I first came upon them prior to ever setting foot in Amiens. Variations in the amounts of the fines, also initially puzzling to me, also proved to have a underlying logic: As I worked with the series of postmortem inventories, I saw that the minimal fines for failure to decorate (such as 8 or 10 sous) were associated with poorer folks, in short that that the fines were calibrated according to the offender’s presumed ability to pay, rather than, say, the severity of the offense.
I reproduce below the list of 105 non-decorators as it appears in the printed inventory of Georges Durand and superimpose some markers which display the underlying parish architecture derived from the list of suspects:
Parish key:
Saint Firmin-en-Castillon
Saint Germain
Saint Leu
Saint Jacques
Saint Remy
Saint Souplis
Saint Michael
Saint Firmin-le-Confesseur
Raoul Forestier, 20 livres; Centurion, 10 sous; Pierre Polleur, 4 livres; François Savary, 20 sous; Jehan Dupuis, 24 sous; Jehan Blerie, tapissier, 4 livres; Claude Buret, 10 sous; Christofle de Mortrœux, 20 sous; Ozias de Mortrœux, 10 sous; Jehan Lhéritier, 4 livres; Rasset Dumont, 60 sous; Nicolas Gauchet, 8 sous; Loĩs Lebrun, 10 sous; Pierre Waugermol, 100 sous; Jehan Hangest, 20 sous; Jehan Moufflier, 10 livres; Anthoine Dècle, 10 livres; Thoinyn de Guisnes, 20 sours; Guiot de le Lie, 32 sous; Andrieu Chocquet, 60 sous; Henry Guénard, 40 sous; Jacques le Berguier, 100 sous; Thomas Elloy, 40 sous; Jehenne Menoier, 40 sous; Nicolas de Moncheaux, 60 sous; Mariette Rolland, 10 livres; Jehan Badde, 40 sous; Fremyn Lucas, 40 sous; Claude Nouyn 40 sous; Anthoine Heudebourg, 20 sous; Claude Denyn, 40 sous; Adenet Gouget, 4 livres; Fremyn Froissart, 10 sous; Jacques de Navarre, 40 sous; Jehan Dubois, 20 sous; Nicolas Ballin, 40 sous; Jehan de le Vallée, 20 sous; Guillaume le Moisne, 40 sous; Jehan Beudyn, 60 sous; Estienne Griffouyn, 40 sous; Jehan Platel, 60 sous; Pierre Lestocquart, 10 sous; Martine de Revelle, 20 sous; Pierre Le Soing, 60 sous; Jehan Ricard, 10 livres; Nicolas Gervois, 40 sous; Anthoine Becquet, 40 sous; Fremyn Sevault, 20 sous; Jehan Elloy, 4 livres; Phrlipprd Hullot, 10 livres; Raoul Floury, 20 sous; Colin Lemaire, 8 livres; Nicolas Macquerel, 10 livres; Jehan de Bellemeunière, 40 sous; Leurens de Conty, 10 sous; Guillaume Boutart, 10 sous; Estienne Bouteleux, 10 sous; Gabriel Coustellier, 20 sous; Grégoire du Saulchoy, 20 sous; Léon Bullot, 4 livres; Francois Latien, 20 sous; Zorobabel Léger, 60 sous; Anthoine Le Jeune, 20 sous; Colin de St.-Léger, 10 sous; Toussains Puissant, 20 sous; Jehan Cuvellier, 40 sous; Marche Darras, 4 livres; Jehan Guillemetz, 60 sous; Jehan Desbrunetz, 60 sous; Raoul Dufierz, 20 sous; Martin Caignart, 40 sous; Jehan Wallet, 20 sous; Robert Willequyn, 20 sous; Pierre Hiérosme, 8 sous; Ambroise Chocquet, 40 sous; Jehan Moictier, 20 sous; Robert Cappel, 8 sous; Guillaume Souldet, 8 sous; Anthoine Lefèvre, 60 sous; Guillaume Caron, 60 sous; Adrien Duppliquer, 20 sous; Pierre de le Bridelle, 40 sous; Anthoine Poinctel, 10 livres; Nicolas Lefèvre l’aisné, 8 sous; Nicolas Lefèvre, his son, 8 sous; Jehan Lesobre, 20 sous; Fremyn Courchel, 20 sous; Adam Paien, 40 sous; Lucien Dupuis, 10 sous; Fremin Dufour, 8 sous; Fremine Coutel, 10 sous; David Cocquyn 40 sous; Phelipes de la Houlsoie, 20 sous; Simon Lecoq, 20 sous; Roberde Leborgne, 40 sous; Anthoine Docquois, 10 sous; Colyn Prévost, 20 sous; Pierre Dufour, x sous; Jehan Cosette, 8 sous; Jehan Laloue, 20 sous; Nicolas Lefèvre, 4 livres; Jehan de Waudricourt, 60 sous; Pierre Beuger, 100 sous; Nicolas Vasseur, 20 sous; Anthoine Lasne, 4 livres; Anthoine Le Roy, 100 sous; Jehan Le Grant, 20 sous; Francois Bullot, 40 sous; Master Nicolas Cauchie, 4 livres; Jehan Randon, orfèvre (goldsmith), 3 different fines: one 20 livres; the other two each 60 sous. Toussains de Rivery, 60 sous [not found on the list of suspects]
* See the scans of the physical list in my “Non-Decorators” blog post on the Sources page