Multiplier les enfants pour s’engager ? Maternité de combat et devotions dans L’Archiconfrérie des Mères Chrétiennes (1860-1870)

Rejection of motherhood was not common during the nineteenth century, when the maternal model was both exalted and disciplined. At the same time, many scholars have highlighted the fact that the reinterpretations of that model weakened some of the interdictions that women with children were subjected to – for example concerning access to the public sphere. The phenomenon is clearly shown by the reinterpretations of motherhood by nationalisms – the Republican Motherhood in the United States or the “patriots mothers” in Italy and in Germany, that allowed many women to take part in the nation-building process. This essay sheds light on the case of the Archiconfrérie des Mères Chrétiennes – a large transnational group of catholic women who made motherhood political by extending the maternal tasks (care, upbringing) from their children to the whole of society. Devotions were crucial in this strategy, providing role models that were both legitimate and prestigious. Focusing on the main devotions of the group, Blanche of Castille, mother of Louis IX, and Monica, mother of Augustin of Hippo, it will be possible to better understand the Mères Chrétiennes’ militant motherhood, showing both the weaknesses and the strengths of their project.